Coronavirus USA: news summary for Saturday 05 September
Coronavirus USA: live updates
US coronavirus latest: 18:00 PT / 21:00 ET on Saturday 5 September (03:00 CEST Sunday 6 September)
Latest figures published by Johns Hopkins University.
Worldwide
Cases: 26,739,782
Deaths: 876,938
Recoveries: 17,834,856
US
Cases: 6,243,849
Deaths: 188,507
Recoveries: 2,302,187
Coronavirus-related stories you might be interested in:
Covid-19 surge leaves Mexico short of death certificates
Mexico is running out of death certificates because of the excessive of fatalities due to the coronavirus pandemic and federal red tape delaying burials.
The higher-than-normal deaths have brought on a scarcity of certificates in working-class communities of the nation’s most populated state, the State of Mexico, in addition to in Mexico City and Baja California state, mentioned Deputy Health Minister Hugo López-Gatell, who leads the federal government’s pandemic response.
The scarcity displays the depth of the pandemic in Mexico. The nation ranks fourth on this planet in Covid-19 deaths at greater than 66,000, after the U.S., Brazil and India. Both the federal government and well being consultants say the actual toll is probably going far larger however is obscured by restricted testing.
Second stimulus check: what did Mike Pence say about the second payment?
Second stimulus check: what did Mike Pence say?
Even though Congress has not yet reached an agreement about a stimulus relief package, the Vice President has made the White House's position clear.
Read more:
Mladenovic and Babos withdraw from U.S. Open doubles after quarantine notice
Top seeds Kristina Mladenovic and Timea Babos were withdrawn from the U.S. Open doubles competition on Saturday, hours before they were due on court after Mladenovic received a Covid-19 quarantine notice from public health officials, the United States Tennis Association (USTA) said.
Mladenovic is one of 10 players who came in contact with France's Benoit Paire, who was pulled out from the men's field at the hardcourt major after testing positive for the new coronavirus. Since the players are staying in Nassau County, the USTA said public health officials prevented those who were in contact with Paire from travelling to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City.
"Public health officials of Nassau County, N.Y., have issued quarantine notices for all individuals who had prolonged close contact to a person who previously tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus," the USTA said in a statement. "All persons who were identified as having prolonged close contact with the infected player will quarantine in their rooms for the remainder of their quarantine period. 'Kristina Mladenovic is one of these individuals, and as the women's doubles competition has begun, the women's doubles team of Kristina Mladenovic and Timea Babos has been withdrawn from the U.S. Open.'
42% of low earners feel they might not be able to pay September's rent
According to a recent U.S. Census Bureau Household Pulse Survey, 42% of renter households earning less than $35,000 per year are not confident of being able to pay this month's rent.
Last week, the Trump administration said it is implementing a national four-month moratorium on residential evictions. It went into effect on Friday and will run until 31 December. The new initiative applies to individuals earning less than $99,000 a year and who are unable to make rent or housing payments. The move comes after Republicans and Democrats in Congress failed to reach a deal on another coronavirus rescue package.
A different summer for Cape Cod businesses: "Ten times the work for half the money"
Businesses in Cape Cod expected business to be slower this year because of the economic effects of the Coronavirus pandemic but the summer season wasn't as bad as many had feared, the Boston Globe reports.
Due to a temporary ban on worker visas, summer jobs normally undertaken by foreign students were done by locals. Fortunately, most pandemic-related shutdowns were lifted before the peak tourist season began. In a survey involving 370 businesses, 52% said their revenues had dropped by more than half in 2020.
Kamala Harris: Trump can't be trusted about possible Covid-19 vaccine
Democratic U.S. vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris said she would not take President Donald Trump's word alone on any potential coronavirus vaccine. In an interview excerpt broadcast by CNN on Saturday, Harris said Trump had a track record of suppressing expert opinion about the coronavirus pandemic and worried that might happen again in the case of a prospective vaccine. "I would not trust Donald Trump," she said, adding she would only be convinced of the efficacy of a vaccine if someone credible were vouching for it as well. "I will not take his word for it."
$36,500 tuition not to be refunded to 11 dismissed students
In the latest and most aggressive attempt to prevent the pandemic from disrupting plans to return to Boston’s campuses this fall, the 11 students were dismissed.
The students were caught at the Westin Hotel, which is being used as a temporary dormitory this semester, on Wednesday night without masks and not social distancing, according to university spokeswoman Renata Nyul.
The dismissed students will not be allowed to take courses from home this semester but will be permitted to return in the spring, Nyul said. They were part of a special one-semester program for freshmen that was prepaid and cost $36,500. That money will not be refunded.
Full story below:
A negative coronavirus test result will be required to board a flight to China from the US
Passengers flying from the US to China will be required to provide negative coronavirus test results issued within 72 hours of boarding, according to a new notice from China's embassy in the US on Friday.
Effective September 15th, non-Chinese citizens who take a direct China-bound flight from the US will need to provide negative test results ahead of boarding, according to the notice. Passengers who are transiting in the US are required to present a verified Health Declaration Form to the airlines, the notice stated.
Texas' half-year battle against Covid-19 goes on
The editor of the DMN introduces their piece:
It’s been half a year since the first diagnosed case of Covid-19 in North Texas. The Dallas Morning News is examining how the pandemic has altered our landscape in health care, education, business and politics in a new series, Covid-19 at Six Months. Read more about the series below and see all the stories here.
Full story:
Privacy rules against school cases
Concerns raised in Florida after local officials were stopped from releasing data on new infection cases in schools.
Domino's didn't fall amid pandemic disruption
Last year Domino’s Pizza Inc. began testing a new service aimed at time-pressed customers: a way to pick up a pizza without entering the store. Upon arrival, you check in via the Domino’s app on your phone or text message, and an employee deposits the pie in the trunk of your car. You never make contact.
Then the pandemic hit, and suddenly customers either couldn’t or wouldn’t enter stores. Domino’s quickly rolled out “Carside” pickup to its stores. It is one reason why the pizza delivery giant thrived during the pandemic.
Full insight below:
US surgeon general tells states: be ready for vaccine by November "just in case"
US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams has told states to be ready to distrubute a coronavirus vaccine as early as November.
"We've always said that we are hopeful for a vaccine by the end of this year or beginning of next year," Adams said in an ABC News interview Friday.
"That said, it's not just about having a vaccine that is safe and effective -- it's about being ready to distribute it."
France expects more severe COVID cases in next 15 days
France must stay vigilant as more people will be hospitalised in intensive care units in the next two weeks, reflecting a flare-up in COVID-19 infections in recent days, Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Saturday. Veran however ruled out the need for a new nationwide lockdown, telling BFM television that France had other means to fight the virus, including testing.
"I cannot envision a general lockdown. The lockdown was a lid on an overflowing cooking pot," he said. Health authorities on Friday reported 8,975 new confirmed cases, almost 1,500 higher than the previous daily peak of 7,578 on March 31, when France was in one of Europe's strictest coronavirus lockdowns. The death toll in France stood at 30,686 people as of Friday.
Brazil reports 51,194 coronavirus cases, 907 deaths
(Reuters) - Brazil recorded 51,194 additional confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, as well as 907 deaths from the disease, the Health Ministry said on Friday.
Brazil has registered nearly 4.1 million cases of the virus since the pandemic began, in the world's second worst outbreak after the United States.
But with initial signs that the spread of the virus may be easing in South America's largest country, third-ranked India could overtake Brazil in coronavirus cases within days.
The official Brazilian death toll has risen to 125,521, according to ministry data. The ministry reported lower figures earlier on Friday before revising them.
Analysts bullish about stocks amid pandemic
"There are a slew of companies that are outperforming through the pandemic and Wall Street analysts said this week that they will continue to do so," reports CNBC...
Coronavirus USA: Fauci makes Labor Day plea amid high cases
US infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci has said that he is concerned about what is happening as the holiday approaches.
Iran's friends should have defied US sanctions during pandemic - President Rouhani
(Reuters) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani bemoaned Iran’s friends on Saturday for not standing up to the United States and breaking crippling sanctions during the coronavirus pandemic.
He also said that if the United States had a "bit of humanity or brain," it would have lifted sanctions on Iran for the duration of the health crisis.
Iran, with over 380,000 registered cases and over 22,000 deaths from the coronavirus, is one of the countries worst-hit by the pandemic in the Middle East.
"Over the past months since the coronavirus arrived in our country... no one came to our help," Rouhani said in remarks broadcast live on Iranian state television.
If the United States "had a bit of humanity and brain," he said, it would have offered to "lift the sanctions for a year because of the coronavirus."
But the United States “is far more heartless and evil than those things," he added.
Instead, it "imposed new sanctions and pressures on us over these past seven months of coronavirus," Rouhani said.
At the same time, he said, “not a single friendly country told us that in this time of coronavirus and hardship and for the sake of humanity ‘we will stand up to America'" and do business with Iran despite threats of US retaliation.
The United States has threatened to impose sanctions on whoever conducts business with Iran.
WHO's Tedros says 'vaccine nationalism' would prolong pandemic
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for countries around the world to join forces to tackle the coronavirus on Friday, saying that "vaccine nationalism" would only slow the response to the pandemic.
Tedros said 78 high-income countries had now joined the "COVAX" global vaccine allocation plan, bringing the total to 170 countries, adding that joining the plan guaranteed those countries access to the world's largest portfolio of vaccines.
The WHO and the GAVI vaccine alliance are leading the COVAX facility, aimed at helping buy and distribute vaccination shots fairly around the world.
Californians bake as punishing heat wave descends on U.S. West Coast
Californians sought relief on Friday from the first day of a punishing heat wave expected to last through the Labor Day weekend, bringing temperatures of up to 125 degrees Fahrenheit (49 Celsius) and raising the risk of wildfires and rolling blackouts.
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency, a proclamation that allows power plants to operate beyond normal limits throughout the three-day holiday weekend.
"The heat is on again! Please do your part to ConserveEnergy to avoid power outages over LaborDayWeekend.
Some state beaches are closed or have modified operations due to wildfires & Covid-19," California State Parks said on Twitter.
Fauci disagrees with Trump (again)
Dr. Anthony Fauci said he’s not sure what President Trump is talking about when he said that the country is “rounding the corner” on the pandemic.
US Open: Mannarino's match with Zverev delayed by health officials
Frenchman Adrian Mannarino's third round match against German fifth seed Alexander Zverev at the U.S. Open was delayed by health officials, the United States Tennis Association (USTA)said in a statement on Friday.
The match was originally scheduled to start at 2:30 pm local time on Louis Armstrong Stadium but was pushed back by 2-1/2 hours while organisers conducted a "collaborative dialogue" with health officials, the governing body said in a statement.
Mannarino was one of 10 players who had contact with Benoit Paire and was placed under an "enhanced protocol plan" after his fellow Frenchman pulled out of the tournament having tested positive for Covid-19.
Coronavirus USA: Fauci makes Labor Day plea amid high cases
Dr. Fauci makes Labor Day plea amid high cases
US infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci has said that he is concerned about what is happening as the holiday approaches.
Vaccine developers prepare joint safety pledge
Several drug makers developing Covid-19 vaccines plan to issue a public pledge not to seek government approval until the shots have proven to be safe and effective, an unusual joint move among rivals that comes as they work to address concerns over a rush to mass vaccination.
Trump appeals for common sense
The US president urged for US citizens to social distance and use face masks as the Labour Day weekend starts
Kudlow expects Trump administration to unveil aid for airlines in weeks
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow on Friday said he thinks the Trump administration will in a matter of weeks unveil additional aid for U.S. airlines, which have been dealt a blow by a coronavirus pandemic that has grounded most flights.
"If they need additional assistance, we stand ready to work with them to hammer out additional packages," Kudlow told Bloomberg TV in an interview.
Airlines received $25 billion in U.S. government stimulus funds in March meant to cover payrolls and protect jobs through September. Congress also approved another $25 billion in loans for airlines but much of the money has not been tapped.
As bailout money runs out without a travel recovery in sight, airlines and unions have lobbied Washington for another $25 billion. But talks have stalled as Congress has struggled to reach agreement on a broader coronavirus assistance package, despite significant bilateral support for the airline package.
U.S. coronavirus deaths projected to more than double to 410,000 by January
U.S. deaths from the coronavirus will reach 410,000 by the end of the year, more than double the current death toll, and deaths could soar to 3,000 per day in December, the University of Washington's health institute forecast on Friday.
Deaths could be reduced by 30% if more Americans wore face masks as epidemiologists have advised, but mask-wearing is declining, the university's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation said.
The U.S. death rate projected by the IHME model, which has been cited by the White House Coronavirus Task Force, would more than triple the current death rate of some 850 per day.
Hello and welcome
We begin our new round of US coronavirus news, as the total caseload in the country stands at 6,183,405, while deaths have surpassed 187,000.
We'll be bringing you all the lastest US-focused news and reaction as it breaks throughout the day.