Coronaviruses are a family of viruses common throughout the world. They can cause illness in both animals and people. Coronaviruses that typically infect animals can rarely evolve into a new human coronavirus causing disease in people and spreading from person to person. The 2019-nCoV is a betacoronavirus like MERS and SARS. Illness caused by coronaviruses can range from mild cold-like symptoms to severe disease.