( CNN ) -- An Illinois businessman believed to have had Middle East Respiratory Syndrome , or MERS , was not infected with the virus , Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials said Wednesday . The finding means there has been no confirmed transmission of the virus within the United States . Two confirmed cases of MERS have been imported into the country . On May 17 , local , state and federal health officials reported preliminary tests showed that the businessman appeared to have tested positive for MERS . He had met with the first confirmed MERS patient in the United States , an American resident who had traveled from Saudi Arabia to Indiana . The face-to-face meeting included a handshake with the infected patient . Public health officials said they became concerned about the potential for a more contagious virus when preliminary testing indicated MERS may have been transmitted during that meeting . However , after more extensive blood tests , the `` CDC has concluded that the Illinois resident was not previously infected with MERS-CoV , '' according to the agency . As of Wednesday , the World Health Organization has received reports of 636 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with MERS . 5 things to know about MERS . The first instance of MERS in the United States occurred in the patient who was working as a health care provider in Saudi Arabia and then traveled to Indiana . In the second case , a health care provider who lives and works in Saudi Arabia received a MERS diagnosis in Florida . The Florida and Indiana cases are not linked , said Dr. Anne Schuchat , director of the CDC 's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases . MERS is a coronavirus , the same group of viruses as the common cold . It attacks the respiratory system , according to the CDC . Symptoms can lead to pneumonia or kidney failure . It was first found in the Arabian Peninsula in 2012 . Experts believe the MERS coronavirus requires close and sustained contact , such as between family members or health care workers , to spread between humans . `` While we never want to cause undue concern among those who have had contact with a MERS patient , it is our job to move quickly when there is a potential public health threat , '' the CDC 's Dr. David Swerdlow said in a statement . `` Because there is still much we do n't know about this virus , we will continue to err on the side of caution when responding to and investigating cases of MERS in this country . '' Florida MERS patient recovers . CNN 's Miriam Falco contributed to this report .
Tests conclude Illinois businessman did not have MERS after all , CDC says . He had met with first confirmed MERS patient in the United States . Score: 6