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Coronavirus USA news summary: Tuesday 14 July

Update:
Miami (United States), 12/07/2020.- A men rides a bike in front of the walk-UP Coronavirus testing entrance in the Miami beach Convention Center in Miami Beach, Florida, USA, 12 July 2020. Florida reports 15,300 new Coronavirus cases, a record for one day

Coronavirus USA latest: Tuesday 14 July

USA

US coronavirus latest: 15:45 PT / 18:45 ET on Tuesday 14 July (00:45 CEST on Wednesday 15 July)

According to the latest figures published by Johns Hopkins University, 13,203,571 cases have been detected worldwide, with 576,201 deaths and 7,331,068 people recovered.

In the USA, there have been 3,407,798 confirmed cases and 136,319 deaths, with 1,031,939 people recovered from the virus.

Trump

Trump: "Our testing is the best in the world"

Donald Trump has again put forward his disprovedclaim that the US’ surging coronavirus case count is merely a reflection of increased testing in the country. 

"Our testing is the best in the world […],"Trump said. "If China, if Russia, if India did tests like we did, check out how many cases they’d have. We’ve done a great job, got no credit for it."

(Photo: EFE/EPA/TASOS KATOPODIS / POOL)

Trump again attacks China over Covid-19 in announcement of sanctions over HK

Donald Trump has used his press conference in the Rose Garden to announce he has signed legislation imposing sanctions on China over its interference in Hong Kong's autonomy - and has also taken the opportunity to again attack the Asian nation over the coronavirus.

"We hold China responsible for concealing the virus and unleashing it upon the world," Trump said on Tuesday, referring to the coronavirus as the "Chinavirus". "They could have stopped it; they should have stopped it."

Trump has also fired a veritable salvo of barbs at former US Vice-President Joe Biden, the Democrats' presumptive presidential nominee. For example:

Trump set to hold Rose Garden press conference

The US president, Donald Trump, is due to speak to the media from the White House Rose Garden at 17:00 ET. You can watch the press conference live by following the link below:

$600 unemployment benefits boost: will it be in next stimulus bill?

CORONAVIRUS

$600 unemployment benefits boost: will it be in next stimulus bill?

Will the $600 benefits boost be in the next stimulus package?

As part of the CARES Act, out-of-work Americans have been receiving an extra $600 a week in jobless benefits during the coronavirus crisis.

Full story:

Biden

Biden to Trump: "Do your job, Mr President"

The Democrats' presumptive presidential nominee, Joe Biden, has welcomed Donald Trump's decision to wear a mask in public, but has told the president his administration must do more to curb the spread of the coronavirus. 

"The pandemic has affected more than three million Americans. It has cost more than 135,000 lives and climbing. And it shows no signs of slowing down," Biden said on Tuesday, per Axios

He added: "It's gotten bad enough that even Donald Trump finally decided to wear a mask in public. I'm glad he made the shift. Mr President, it's not enough. We won't be able to turn the corner and get the American people back to work safely without presidential leadership."

Biden concluded: "Mr President, please listen to your public health experts instead of denigrating them. Do your job, Mr President."

(Photo: Olivier DOULIERY / AFP)

President Trump to speak to the media at 17:00 ET

Austin

Downtown streets in Austin, Texas are seen nearly empty on Tuesday. Austin public health officials reported 657 new cases of Covid-19 in Travis County on Monday.

(Photo: Montinique Monroe/Getty Images/AFP)

Louisiana AG tests positive, sits out Pence visit

Louisiana’s attorney general, Jeff Landry, has had to miss US Vice-President Mike Pence’s visit to the state because he has tested positive for the coronavirus, the local newspaper the Advocate has reported.

Pence travelled to Louisiana on Tuesday to discuss the state’s battle against Covid-19.

Out of an overabundance of caution with the Vice President coming to our state, I was tested for coronavirus,” Landry said in an email to employees at the Louisiana Department of Justice, according to the Advocate. “Though experiencing no symptoms, I tested positive for Covid-19.”

More US schools go online-only

With coronavirus infections and deaths rising in many parts of the country, US educators from California to Wisconsin are opting for online learning rather than a return to classrooms when the school year begins in a few weeks.

Florida, which reported a record 132 new Covid-19 deaths on Tuesday, still plans for its schools to resume in-person learning in August. The state recorded over 9,000 new cases, down from 12,000 on Monday and a record increase of 15,000 on Sunday.

Schools from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Fort Bend County, Texas, joined California's two largest school districts, Los Angeles and San Diego, in announcing plans to keep teachers and students from the close contact that classrooms demand.

The decision puts the districts at odds with US President Donald Trump, who has threatened to withhold federal funds or remove tax-exempt status if they refuse to reopen classrooms, even though most schools are financed by state and local taxes.

(Text: Reuters)

Record daily death toll in Florida

Florida has recorded its highest daily death toll yet, after the state's Department of Health reported 132 new coronavirus fatalities in the past 24 hours. Amid a surge of Covid-19 cases in Florida, this record toll brings the state's total number of deaths to 4,513.

wall street

Big U.S. banks predict more economic pain from coronavirus

Three of the largest U.S. banks said on Tuesday they had set aside a whopping $28 billion for loan losses, in a stark reminder that much of the economic pain from the coronavirus pandemic is still to come. Borrowers have been propped up by trillions of dollars in government and bank assistance, cheap credit and loan forbearance programs, but some of that support is going away, and banks said they fear losses will spike.

'The consumers' incomes are up, savings are up and home prices up,' said JPMorgan Chase & Co CEO Jamie Dimon said on a call with journalists. 'The recessionary part' will come later, he said. JPMorgan and Citigroup Inc each reported huge second-quarter profit declines on Tuesday, while Wells Fargo & Co posted its first loss since 2008.

Banks with big Wall Street businesses were able to offset their loan woes with huge gains in capital markets revenue, particularly trading. The rough results were almost entirely due to loan-loss provisions. The unprecedented government aid programs have created a disconnect between the financial markets and the economy, such that financial conditions look sunny, but could turn upside down quickly if the temporary assistance expires.

“None of us lie” says White House Covid-19 Task Force member

 

Chances of big San Andreas earthquake have increased

A new study suggests that last year’s Ridgecrest earthquakes increased the chance of a large earthquake on California’s San Andreas fault, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The study, published in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America on Monday, says there is now a 2.3% chance of an earthquake of magnitude 7.5 or greater in the next 12 months on a section of the 160-mile-long Garlock fault, which runs along the northern edge of the Mojave Desert.

maxwell

U.S. judge to decide whether Ghislaine Maxwell deserves bail

A U.S. judge is expected to decide on Tuesday whether to grant bail to Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's longtime associate, who has been charged with luring young girls so the late financier could sexually abuse them.

U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan in Manhattan is set to preside over the arraignment of Maxwell, who prosecutors accused of helping Epstein recruit and eventually abuse girls from 1994 to 1997, and lying about her role in depositions in 2016. Maxwell, 58, is expected to plead not guilty to six criminal charges, including four related to transporting minors for illegal sexual acts, and two for perjury. She has been held since July 6 at the Metropolitan Detention Center, a Brooklyn jail, and is expected to appear by video conference at the arraignment, scheduled for 1 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT).

 

Covid-19 leaves scars in patients

A study on heart scans of Covid-19 patients has revealed over half had some form of damage.

The study involved 1,216 patients, of whom 813 had been diagnosed with Covid-19, and 298 were deemed probable cases. Due to the design of the study, the remaining 105 were assumed to have Covid-19, the co-authors told Newsweek. The participants were from 69 countries across six continents. They each had an echocardiogram, a type of ultrasound scan for the heart, between April 3 and 20.

Of the total 1,216 patients, 667 (55 percent) had abnormalities in their scan and one in seven participants had what researchers described as "severe abnormalities," according to the paper published in the journal European Heart Journal - Cardiovascular Imaging.

Chicharito finally gets off the mark

LA Galaxy's Chicharito grabbed his debut goal in MLS in the 1-2 defeat to Portland Timbers. The Mexican found the target on 88 minutes after earlier having a penalty saved.

The airline industry has been devastated by the coronavirus. American Airlines is the latest to plan for furloughs as the virus continues to wreak havoc on international and domestic flights.

It was only a matter of time before Fauci's stance on this became too scientific for the White House and now, after leaving his role, is being discredited for some of his comments earlier in the pandemic. 

Many European countries have already suffered through the worst of hospitals living at breaking point. Some predictions say America has that and worse coming in the next few months.

The US military has seen a spike in Covid-19 cases in recent weeks, with the number of confirmed cases in July growing by about 4,000, a jump of about 60%, according to Defense Department statistics. 

President Donald Trump on Monday took a swipe at health experts in his government leading the U.S. response to the coronavirus, and one of them, Dr. Anthony Fauci, answered with an appeal for states to stick to guidelines to snuff out a surge in cases.

The U.S. Senate will begin debate next week on a fifth coronavirus-response bill, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Monday, as he forecast tough negotiations with Democrats who are seeking broader aid than Republicans.

California shuts down businesses, schools as coronavirus outbreak grows

Trump bashes U.S. health experts, Fauci urges caution, as virus cases surge

Drugmakers partnered with the U.S. government are on track to begin actively manufacturing a vaccine for COVID-19 by the end of the summer, a senior administration official said on Monday.

 

Michigan under criticism

Several attendees at a party in Michigan on July 4 have tested positive for coronavirus and authorities have cited them to be analyzed by doctors.

Stimulus check: McConnell gives date for Senate debate to begin

CORONAVIRUS USA

Stimulus check: McConnell gives date for Senate debate to begin

McConnell says debate next week

As millions of Americans await news of a potential second payment, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pointed to a fifth coronavirus-response bill.

Hawaii governor delays plan to reopen tourism by at least a month

During a legislative briefing Monday, Ige said he would be extending the 14-day mandatory quarantine for all trans-Pacific travellers through the end of August as the state continues to hammer out the details of how the testing program would work ― and ensure that visitors don’t slip through the cracks.

“We are preparing the emergency, supplemental emergency proclamation for specifically that,” Gov. David Ige said.

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP): what companies got loans?

CORONAVIRUS

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP): what companies got loans?

Who benefitted from PPP?

The list published on Monday as part of a more transparent approach, had many people asking if the taxpayer aid was really getting to those in most need.

Boost viral defenses, nutrition is the body’s bread and butter

“Poor nutrition is associated with a poor immune system,” said Dr. Elena Dent, an instructor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. “When you have a good diet, typically, you have better outcomes with an illness, including a virus.

“If you get the flu, for instance, having a good nutritional base, including enough protein and calories, can shorten the recovery time. But if you come across any claims, particularly on social media, that certain foods or nutrients fight off Covid-19, be very skeptical.

"Those claims are not evidence-based, so far.”

How Florida is replacing New York as the Covid-19 epicenter

The positive test rate - which indicates how much the virus is spreading even with testing increases - is nearing 20%, the highest since early March when the pandemic hit the US. That's also four times the standard for reopening set by the World Health Organization, and double the recommendation by the Centers for Disease Control.

Florida only hit the 100,000 case mark on 22 June, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Just 13 days later, that number had doubled. 

Now, there are more than 278,000 cases.

DIY masks and art kits

A local company looks to encourage the wearing of face coverings amid the surge of coronavirus cases in Florida.

The White House attack on Dr Fauci

The document provided to several media outlets lists examples of what the White House views as Fauci contradicting himself.

One example in the short document is a comment made by Fauci on NBC's Today Show in late February that "at this moment, there is no need to change anything that you're doing on a day-by-day basis."

However, that was not the full statement Fauci made during the interview.

Covid catch-up

Here are a selection of stories that have been making the headlines over the past 24 hours:

- Joe Biden campaign slams Trump administration for "disgusting" attempt to discredit Dr. Fauci

- The White House has officially named Tyler Goodspeed as acting chair of its Council of Economic Advisers

- Drugmakers will start coronavirus vaccine production by end of summer, Trump health officials say

- California, Oregon roll back reopenings as more schools decide to begin year with remote instruction

- Tax us: Abigail Disney among 83 millionaires begging for higher taxes for coronavirus relief

- Antibody responses to Covid-19 can begin to decline after as little as 2-3 months, according to research from Dr Katie Doores

US coronavirus latest: 19:00 PT / 22:00 ET on Monday 13 July (01:00 CEST on Tuesday 14 July)

According to the latest figures published by Johns Hopkins University, 13,026,225 cases have been detected worldwide, with 570,924 deaths and 7,188,992 people recovered.

In the USA, there have been 3,352,696 confirmed cases and 135,524 deaths, with 1,031,856 people recovered from the virus.

Hello and welcome to our live, rolling coverage of the coronavirus situation in the United States

The global number of Covid-19 cases is now over 13 million, with several worrying hotspots around the world, including in Latin America and India. The US though remains the most badly affected country, with more than 3.3 million cases. 

The global death toll stands at over 570,000, with the US over 135,000 reported deaths from the novel coronavirus.