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Coronavirus USA news summary: Sunday 9 August

Update:
DEADWOOD, SD - AUGUST 08: A woman crosses the street wearing a mask as motorcyclists ride through downtown Deadwood, South Dakota during the 80th Annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally on August 8, 2020. While the rally usually attracts around 500,000 people, of

Coronavirus live USA: latest Covid-19 news - Sunday 9 August

U.S. coronavirus latest: 14:30 PT / 17:30 ET on Sunday 9 August (23:30 CEST)

According to the latest figures published by Johns Hopkins University19,730,013 cases have been detected worldwide, with 728,549 deaths and 11,984,935 people recovered.

In the U.S., there have been 5,033,960 confirmed cases and 162,833 deaths, with 1,643,118 people recovered from the virus.

Trump executive order on unemployment benefits "laughable", says Cuomo

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has branded Donald Trump’s executive order on enhanced unemployment insurance as "laughable", saying his state cannot afford to contribute to the benefits boost.

On Saturday, the U.S. president signed an executive memorandum vowing to give unemployed Americans an extra $400 a week in benefits, amid stalled negotiations over a wider coronavirus relief package.

As part of Trump’s plan, states would have to cover $100 of the additional $400.

"What the president has done has made it impossible, impossible on the state," Cuomo told reporters, per The New York Post. "The concept of saying to states 'you pay 25 percent of unemployment insurance' is just laughable."

Trump executive orders: when does $400 unemployment boost start?

CORONAVIRUS

Trump executive orders: when does $400 unemployment boost start?

Trump executive orders: when does $400 unemployment boost start?

On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders that include the extension of enhanced unemployment benefits amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Full details:

Nine positive at high school where images crowded corridors went viral

Nine people have tested positive for Covid-19 at a high school in Georgia which recently gained widespread attention after images emerged of corridors crowded with students despite the coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter to parents obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, North Paulding High School Principal Gabe Carmona said: “At this time, we know there were six students and three staff members who were in school for at least some time last week who have since reported to us that they have tested positive.”

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's report quotes Angie Franks, the aunt of two students who have tested positive, as saying: "They sat in class all day long with no masks and not social distancing. And I have no idea how many kids they came into contact with."

Mnuchin

Dems will have "a lot of explaining to do" if they challenge executive orders - Mnuchin

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin has warned Democrats against mounting a legal challenge against President Donald Trump’s executive orders, which include the extension of enhanced unemployment benefits at the reduced rate of $400 a week.

"We've cleared with the office of legal counsel all these actions," Mnuchin told Fox News Sunday. "If the Democrats want to challenge us in court and hold up unemployment benefits to those hardworking Americans that are out of a job because of Covid, they’re going to have a lot of explaining to do."

(Photo: Mandel NGAN / AFP)

Trump executive orders "unconstitutional slop" - Pelosi

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has branded Donald Trump’s executive orders on coronavirus relief measures as "unconstitutional slop", echoing a phrase also used by Senator Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) on Saturday.

Pelosi also described Trump’s executive actions as "illusions" and defended Democrats' role in failed negotiations over an aid package, saying she and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) had sought to meet Republicans in the middle.

"What the president does doesn’t even accomplish anything he sets out to do in the categories he did, but we said to [Republicans], we'll come down a trillion [dollars], you come up a trillion and we’ll be able to have an agreement that meets the needs of the American people," she told Fox on Sunday, per The Hill.

"We have to reach an agreement, children are food insecure, families are at the risk of being evicted, the virus is moving like a freight train."

U.S. Covid-19 cases hit 5 million

Confirmed cases of Covid-19 infection in the United States reached a new milestone on Sunday with over five million confirmed as having contracted the virus according to Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. makes up almost a quarter of Covid-19 cases worldwide, with the global figure standing at 19,674,865 at 16:00 hours CEST. In total, 162,430 people have died of the virus. 

'The worst policy idea since telling people they don't need to wear masks'

In relation to the previous article about President Trump's executive orders, Paul Krugman breaks down its various elements and concludes, rather clearly, that this is not the 'saviour' package it is being sold as by some.

Trump executive orders: is a second stimulus check coming?

CORONAVIRUS USA

Trump executive orders: is a second stimulus check coming?

Trump's executive orders and a second stimulus check

Friday 7 August. It was the date set as the deadline for Republican and Democrat leaders to come to an agreement on the latest relief package to support millions of businesses and households around the United States who were struggling to deal with the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Did they manage it? No.

What happened next? President Donald Trump signed a selection executive orders to provide something.

Florida teacher writes own obituary to protest reopening schools

"We have a moral imperative to do our absolute BEST to return #FLschools to full operation," the state's Department of Education said in a tweet on July 8. "Our children’s education & our economy are all depending on us to make a collaborative effort to reopen our school campuses."

The state's largest teachers union, the Florida Education Association, said the order violates a constitutional mandate to keep public schools "safe and secure" and has sued to block it.

Are the asymptomatic the key to a solution?

New research suggests that some people that have had past encounters with common cold coronaviruses could be protected to a degree.

Parody Covid-19 video takes aim at conspiracy theorists: look what's hidden in your face mask!

CORONAVIRUS

Parody Covid-19 video takes aim at conspiracy theorists: look what's hidden in your face mask!

Masking the truth!

After that previous advice on masks from the WHO, you may want to just double check what's inside yours...

Get mask, use properly

The WHO have a whole webpage devoted to guidance on using a face covering.

Make sure you know the dos and don'ts to reduce the spread, so that you're not just wearing it for the sake of it. Read more

Pandemic batters Saudi Aramco profits for first half of the year

Oil giant Saudi Aramco has reported a 50% fall in net income for the first half of its financial year, reflecting a devastating year for oil markets and the global economy at large as the world continues to battle the coronavirus pandemic. 

In a release published Sunday, the company said net income plunged to $23.2 billion in the first six months of the year, down by half from $46.9 billion over the same period in 2019.

Saudi Arabia’s majority state-owned oil company and the world’s largest crude producer also maintained its second-quarter dividend of $18.75 billion, saying it will be paid in the third quarter. Its first-quarter dividend of the same amount was paid in the second quarter.

Is the US too reliant on China for medicines?

The shortage of a simple, over-the-counter painkiller shows how dependent the US has become on China for vital pharmaceutical supplies, reports the WSJ.

For weeks this spring, as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the world, Nicole Izsak wasn’t able to stock up on acetaminophen at her neighborhood pharmacies on New York City’s Roosevelt Island.

Read more

New York pushes forward with in-person education as others reconsider

New York is pressing ahead with allowing K-12 schools to resume in-person instruction next month, setting it apart from other cities and states that have in recent weeks scrapped or delayed their plans to do so and instead start the school year online. 

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Friday granted preliminary authorization for schools across the state to begin implementing their reopening plans, a much anticipated decision that he said reflects the state’s progress since becoming it ground zero for the country’s outbreak this spring.

President Trump signs executive order: what is included?

CORONAVIRUS USA

President Trump signs executive order: what is included?

President Trump's executuve order

Unemployment benefits, student loans...a second round of stimulus checks?

We look at what Donald Trump's latest executive order includes.

Here's what is known about the relationship between cigarette smoke and the coronavirus

Secondhand smoke isn’t believed to directly spread the virus, experts say, but infected smokers may blow droplets carrying the virus when they exhale.

Being able to smell the smoke might be a red flag that you’re standing too close to the smoker. The respiratory droplets people spray when they talk, cough or sneeze are believed to be the main way the virus spreads. And people also exhale those droplets when smoking, as well as when they’re vaping.

“Not only are they potentially spreading virus by not wearing a mask, they are blowing those droplets to the people around them to potentially get infected,” says Dr. Albert Rizzo, chief medical officer for the American Lung Association.

Read the full piece from AP below

 

The United States has already exceeded 5 million infections by coronavirus

Donald Trump signs extension to unemployment payments in the USA

Mexico's coronavirus death tally exceeds 52,000, cases above 475,900

Mexico's health ministry on Saturday reported 6,495 new confirmed coronavirus infections and 695 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 475,902 cases and 52,006 deaths. Officials have said the real number of infected people is likely significantly higher than the confirmed cases. Mexico has the third highest coronavirus death tally globally, behind the United States and Brazil. 

Hawaii facing $2bn budget 

Hawaii is bracing for a $2bn budget as the island state's tourism industry has been ravaged by the coronavirus crisis. The tourism industry, fueled by 10 million annual visitors, is the largest employer in Hawaii and brings in a substantial portion of tax revenue.

MLS to continue its regular season in home markets

MLS

MLS to continue its regular season in home markets

MLS to continue its regular season in home markets

Major League Soccer has announced that they will resume their 2020 regular season amid the coronavirus pandemic with teams playing in their home markets. Read more...

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine again tests negative for coronavirus

d

In pictures: Newly ordained priest Filiberto Cortez, originally from Mexico, gives a first blessing to a family member during the first-ever outdoor Ordination Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels amid the COVID-19 pandemic on August 8, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Archbishop Gomez ordained eight new priests, known as the Pandemic Class of 2020, beneath a tent with social distancing and face coverings in a rite delayed more than two months due to the spread of the coronavirus. (Mario Tama/Getty Images/AFP)

U.S. sets record as coronavirus cases top 5 million (Reuters tally)

The United States set a record for coronavirus cases on Saturday, with more than 5 million people now infected, according to a Reuters tally, as the country's top infectious diseases official offered hope earlier this week that an effective vaccine might be available by year-end. With one out of every 66 residents infected, the United States leads the world in COVID-19 cases, according to a Reuters analysis. The country has recorded more than 160,000 deaths, nearly a quarter of the world's total.

The grim milestone comes as President Donald Trump signed executive orders intended to provide economic relief to Americans hurt by the coronavirus pandemic after the White House failed to reach a deal with Congress. On Friday, the U.S. Labor Department reported that U.S. employment growth slowed considerably in July, underscoring an urgent need for additional government aid. Dr. Anthony Fauci told Reuters on Wednesday there could be at least one vaccine that works and is safe by year-end. But Trump offered a more optimistic view, saying it was possible the United States would have a coronavirus vaccine by the time of the Nov. 3 presidential election. 

$400 unemployment benefit: Trump signs executive order

CORONAVIRUS

$400 unemployment benefit: Trump signs executive order

Trump signs exectutive order for $400 unemployment benefit

President Trump has signed a series of orders aimed at providing relief to Americans suffering from the impact of economic crisis sparked by the coronavirus pandemic. Read more...

Welcome to our live blog

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of coronavirus news from the US. As we start our live blog this Sunday evening, the U.S. has reached the grim milestone of 5 million cases, by Reuters tally, while President Donald Trump has signed executive orders aimed at helping Americans struggling due to the pandemic.