| In coronavirus pandemic, Trump allies say they're ready to die for the economy Posted: 25 Mar 2020 08:54 AM PDT  Some conservatives are urging Americans to ignore the advice of public health experts and get back to work in order to avoid an extended market downturn.
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| A Georgia healthcare worker was found dead in her home, and a posthumous test found she was infected with the new coronavirus Posted: 25 Mar 2020 11:58 PM PDT  Healthcare workers in the US are contracting the novel coronavirus and few have already died from COVID-19.
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| Republicans block most aid to help states plan for presidential election amid coronavirus pandemic Posted: 25 Mar 2020 03:31 PM PDT  Voting reforms that would make it much easier to cast ballots by mail in the fall presidential election were left out of the $2 trillion rescue package that was unveiled Wednesday.
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| Nicolás Maduro: US charges Venezuelan president with drug crimes Posted: 26 Mar 2020 10:44 AM PDT  It also offers a $15m (£12.5m) reward for information leading to Nicolás Maduro's arrest.
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| Biden: ‘I think we’ve had enough debates’ Posted: 25 Mar 2020 12:13 PM PDT  When former Vice President Joe Biden was asked if he believes there should be more Democratic primary debates, he said he believes that there have been enough.
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| Exclusive: As coronavirus spreads, U.S. military to withhold some infection data Posted: 26 Mar 2020 05:53 AM PDT  The U.S. military has decided it will stop providing some of the more granular data about coronavirus infections within its ranks, citing concern that the information might be used by adversaries as the virus spreads. U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper outlined the plan in an interview with Reuters, saying that he wanted the military to keep providing broader data about infections in the armed forces, which rose by more than a third to 280 current cases on Thursday.
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| Cuomo Says Stimulus Not Enough as New Yorkers Flood 911 Posted: 25 Mar 2020 03:35 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- With New York City residents dialing 911 for medical services at a rate not seen in nearly two decades, Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio said lawmakers in Washington weren't doing enough to respond to the spiraling coronavirus crisis.Cuomo has been the chief outside-the-Beltway critic of the Trump administration's response as New York has added thousands of new coronavirus cases every day. The peak of infection is still about three weeks away, Cuomo said, and city and state authorities are racing to add capacity to handle as many as 140,000 cases.In a sign of the grim calculus facing officials, Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration is preparing refrigerated trucks and shipping containers to store bodies if morgues get full. Also on Wednesday, the Four Seasons New York hotel said it would make its rooms available at no charge to medical personnel, in response to the governor's plea for help.Cuomo, in his daily briefing on the outbreak on Wednesday, called out lawmakers in Washington, saying the stimulus package working its way through Congress was inadequate and "terrible" for his state.The proposed $2 trillion in aid includes $3.8 billion for New York state and $1.3 billion for New York City, Cuomo said, which he called a "drop in the bucket." Lost tax revenue will cost Albany as much as $15 billion, Cuomo said.De Blasio said he'll press Trump to provide more aid."They gave us less than 1% of the money they were giving out to cities and states, and we have a third of the cases in the nation," he said during a call with the media on Wednesday. "That's just immoral."Cuomo has demanded that Trump invoke his national-security authority to speed production of ventilators and other medical equipment. He has also said that helping New York would also help other regions where the outbreak probably will flare up next."The apex highpoint will be sequential across the country," Cuomo said. "We're asking the country to help us, we will return the favor."The crisis was upon the city, with emergency calls spiking. By Tuesday, the volume was higher than on any day since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, according to Oren Barzilay, the president of a local of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees that represents paramedics and dispatchers.Barzilay attributed the surge to respiratory symptoms consistent with Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.Cuomo reported 5,146 new confirmed cases of the virus, for a total of almost 31,000. There were nearly 3,000 new cases in New York City, for a total of almost 18,000.Some news was hopeful. In spite of the skyrocketing numbers, Cuomo offered data showing that the health system has been able to handle the crisis so far.Only 3% of infections, fewer than 900, have required intensive care with ventilator support, below the state's current capacity of 3,000 beds -- with the ability to quickly add as many as 14,000 ventilators from a stockpile.Slowing DownAlso, the restrictions on daily life in New York have slowed the increase in hospitalizations. About 12% of confirmed coronavirus patients need hospitalization, he said, compared with 23% on March 18. The decrease could be attributed partly to expanded testing that has detected mild infections not requiring in-patient care."This is a very good sign and a positive sign. Again, I'm not 100% sure it holds or it's accurate, but the arrows are headed in the right direction," Cuomo said.The state hasn't had to call on volunteer medical staff. For the near future, medical workers have enough masks, gloves, gowns and other equipment to protect them, Cuomo said. And at the current rate, the governor said he doesn't anticipate having to make the grim choice of prioritizing ventilator assignments.Still, the governor said the state ultimately expects to be slammed with 140,000 infections, with as many as 40,000 requiring intensive care. The peak expected in about three weeks could outpace the state's ability to treat them, he said.In the event that morgues are overrun, the city medical examiner and Emergency Management department have devised a so-called mass fatality management plan to be distributed to hospitals, according to city disclosures.Morgue Space in Virus-Hit NYC Boosted With 45 Cooler TrucksOfficials have purchased 45 refrigerated tents and trailers to catch any overflow of coronavirus fatalities from the five morgues, according to Aja Worthy-Davis, a spokeswoman for the Office of Chief Medical Examiner.The plan includes detailed specifications for refrigerated mobile units, called body collection points, as well as a checklist of requirements that must be met by funeral directors and next of kin before bodies can be released for burial.Workers have already erected a large tent and installed trailers by the morgue in lower Manhattan, Worthy-Davis said."We're putting them out near major hospitals as a precautionary measure to prepare for the worst-case scenario," Worthy-Davis said. "We very much hope we don't need them."(Updated with de Blasio's comment in sixth paragraph)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Report: Navy ships need $400K 'flushes' to unclog toilets Posted: 25 Mar 2020 07:58 AM PDT  Toilets on two Virginia-based Navy aircraft carriers that have become repeatedly clogged could require treatments costing $400,000 each to get them working properly, a U.S. Government Accountability Office report found. The USS Gerald R. Ford and USS George H.W. Bush were made with sewage systems similar to those used on commercial aircraft, but increased to accommodate more than 4,000 people, The Virginian-Pilot said, citing the report. Navy maintenance crews determined both Norfolk-based aircraft carriers' sewage systems could require costly acid flushes, potentially regularly, to fix the problem, according to the report.
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| Chinese State Media Falsely Claim U.S. Army Athlete Brought Coronavirus to China Posted: 26 Mar 2020 07:43 AM PDT  Chinese state-run media are citing an American conspiracy theorist to push claims that coronavirus was brought to China by a U.S. military athlete.The Global Times claimed in an article Wednesday that the coronavirus, which was first discovered in Wuhan, was in fact manufactured in a U.S. military lab and brought to China by a cyclist who took part in the World Military Games in Wuhan in October.The CCP-run paper cites known U.S. conspiracy theorist George Webb as the source for the claim, which it admits lacks "strong evidence" but still raises questions about the U.S. athletes who traveled to Wuhan.The Global Times also quotes Li Haidong, a professor of U.S. studies at the China Foreign Affairs University in Beijing, who challenges the U.S. to release "relevant information regarding the athlete's health status and infection records to clear public doubts and help with the scientific study on the virus' origin."China has pushed propaganda to distance itself from blame for the spread of COVID-19, after suppressing initial reports of human-to-human transmission and silencing labs that discovered the novel virus resembled the deadly SARS virus of 2002-2003.On February 27, Zhong Nanshan, a primary pulmonologist said at a press conference, that "the coronavirus first appeared in China but may not have originated in China."The efforts have led to scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers, who have proposed holding China accountable for the coverup."Since day one, the Chinese Communist Party intentionally lied to the world about the origin of this pandemic. The CCP was aware of the reality of the virus as early as December but ordered laboratories to destroy samples and forced doctors to keep silent," Senator Josh Hawley (R., Mo.) said in the release of a resolution calling for an international investigation to determine how the Chinese Communist Party directly contributed to the emerging global pandemic.Multiple mainstream outlets have been complicit in serving the interests of Chinese state media.The Global Times also used footage this week from U.S. mainstream media criticizing President Trump's use of the term "Chinese virus" to suggest any scrutiny of China's handling of the coronavirus is racist.> The US President's rhetoric in using "Chinese virus" to describe COVID19, has sparked fierce public criticism from all walks of life in the US. pic.twitter.com/RMljngN7P3> > -- Global Times (@globaltimesnews) March 23, 2020The Daily Caller reported Wednesday that The Daily Mail, the popular British tabloid, has also been pushing Chinese propaganda by publishing dozens of coronavirus-related stories originating from People's Daily, the communist party's official newspaper.The Economist is running advertorials — ads designed to look like news stories — from the state-backed Beijing Review in its print issues, The Washington Free Beacon reported Thursday.
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| North Korea is secretly asking for coronavirus aid from other countries while publicly denying that it has any cases Posted: 26 Mar 2020 04:09 AM PDT  Officials in the isolated country have been privately asking other countries and aid groups for supplies like masks and test kits, reports say.
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| Pelosi says she doesn't think 'we've seen the end of direct payments,' calls for fourth coronavirus bill Posted: 26 Mar 2020 09:53 AM PDT  Pelosi said that House Democrats plan to take the lead on the fourth installment of economic and health care relief.
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| After Putin's Big Fail, Russia Braces for COVID-19 Onslaught Posted: 26 Mar 2020 03:18 AM PDT  Only days after the Kremlin assured the Russians that the coronavirus pandemic was under control, Moscow's Mayor Sergei Sobyanin told Russian President Vladimir Putin that "the momentum is high and a serious situation is unfolding." Contrary to the previously reported low rate of infection, "the real number of those who are sick is significantly higher," Sobyanin said. He added that the number of tests conducted to date has been extremely low "and no one on earth knows the real picture."Russia Swore It Whipped the Virus, and Fox and CNN Bought ItOn Wednesday, officially released statistics listed 658 coronavirus infections and no deaths. To date, there have been at least 3 known deaths of coronavirus patients in Russia, but they are being attributed to other causes and thereby deceptively omitted from government reports. The official bulletin about the coronavirus, released by Russia's federal agency Rospotrebnadzor on March 24, states that more than 112,074 people remain under medical supervision.Concerned Russian doctors sounded the alarm that potential coronavirus cases are being ascribed to pneumonia and seasonal flu without testing. For example, the city of St. Petersburg experienced a sharp jump of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) virus cases. During just one week in March, 63,000 SARS cases and 406 cases of pneumonia have been recorded, according to Interfax. The city's administration emphasized that the incidence of SARS is at the epidemiological threshold. The Interfax news report did not point out that the official name of the novel coronavirus is SARS-CoV-2.In light of the Kremlin's pandemic propensity for lying, the public disregarded initial claims that the government successfully curtailed the spread of the coronavirus. Panic buying ensued, leading to the rising prices of sugar, buckwheat, produce and other food items.As the coronavirus curve keeps on climbing, President Putin is on a mission to demonstrate his leadership. He postponed a nationwide vote on pending constitutional changes, which are meant to secure his lifelong presidency. The voting may take place later in the year and possibly be conducted by mail. The decision is being left solely to Putin.Putin Worries Coronavirus Could Screw Up His Constitutional 'Coronation'In a televised address to the nation Wednesday, Putin announced a sweeping array of measures, which he said were designed to prevent "what is happening today in many Western countries, both in Europe and overseas" from becoming Russia's future. Starting on March 28, Russians are getting one week of paid leave to stay home, in an attempt to "flatten the curve" of the pandemic. With exception of the Russians trying to return from abroad, Russia stopped all international flights.Russian pundits and medical experts described the fight against the coronavirus pandemic as a rehearsal for biological warfare. Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian army to carry out drills designed to increase its readiness to fight the novel coronavirus. The drills will include specialist medical units and nuclear, biological and chemical protection troops. Discussions are underway as to the potential cancellation of the Victory Day parade in May of this year, but final determination will be made depending on the efforts to curtail the spread of the coronavirus. There is a possibility the parade, commemorating the surrender of the Nazis in WWII, may be held without spectators. U.S. National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien is currently set to attend the event, in lieu of Donald J. Trump. Kremlin-controlled state TV shows are taking unprecedented measures to protect some of their most cherished assets: the hosts, whose full-throated support of Vladimir Putin is especially important during these challenging times. Popular Russian info-talk show 60 Minutes is now filming its segments without audiences. After the host Olga Skabeeva could be heard coughing during a commercial break, she was separated from her husband and co-host Evgeny Popov. The married couple are now hosting 60 Minutes separately, on different days. Likewise, they are staying apart during the off-work hours, because even if one of them falls ill, the show must go on.Speaking of performance art, Vladimir Putin embarked on a visit to Moscow's hospital for monitoring suspected coronavirus patients. Unlike U.S. President Donald J. Trump, who frequently claims that the threat of coronavirus is widely overblown, Vladimir Putin is an old Chekist who believes in science, facts and bio-warfare. Taking no chances, Putin donned a hazmat suit and visited only one patient— Dmitry Garkavi, who is a doctor and a social media influencer. The drop-in was not particularly risky, since Garkavi was hospitalized with pneumonia, and tested negative for coronavirus—twice. In his social media posts, Garkavi remarked that he communicated with Vladimir Putin for all of "10-15 seconds." After the brief exchange, Putin observed other patients through the glass of the hospital's control room, was helped out of his outfit and promptly left the building. The hazmat suit sported by the Russian leader was distinctly different than the protective attire worn by hospital workers. It was purchased for the Russian president by his staff especially for his hospital visit. Putin's yellow jumpsuit is now in high demand, but is completely sold out at the store where it was bought.Vladimir Putin's coronavirus photo op promptly made the rounds on Russian state television. During his show, The Evening with Vladimir Soloviev, the host beamed with pride when he pointed out: "Out of all of the world leaders, only [China'a President] Xi Jinping and [Russian President] Vladimir Putin went to visit the sick." For contrast, Soloviev introduced a clip of the U.S. President Donald J. Trump rapidly moving away from the White House's coronavirus task force response coordinator, Dr Deborah Birx, as soon as she mentioned her low grade fever.In spite of Russia's own issues with coronavirus testing, widespread shortages of medical equipment and protective medical gear, the Kremlin is posturing by offering to help other countries in fighting the coronavirus pandemic. Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov offered to help Washington in the fight against the outbreak of the novel coronavirus and complained about "rude" American media trying to switch the focus to other countries (like Russia).State TV host Vladimir Soloviev pompously predicted: "I have a feeling that we will end up saving humanity—again, like we've done more than once," an apparent reference to Russia's sacrifices defeating the Nazis in World War II. Russian state media are framing the failure by the Trump administration to offer help to its European allies in their fight against the deadly pandemic as the defeat of the United States, the end of NATO, and the virtual nonexistence of transatlantic unity. Russian experts believe that the outcome of the global fight against the coronavirus pandemic will change the entire balance of power in the world. Russian state media outlet Vesti described the course chosen by the administration of the U.S. President Donald J. Trump as "indecisive," "poorly coordinated" and hesitant to implement the tough measures recommended by the experts in curtailing the deadly pandemic.Vesti argued that "coronavirus will determine the winner in the rivalry between China and the United States." But the stakes are much higher. Kremlin-controlled media believe that on a larger scale, "the success or failure of the United States will form a global view of the effectiveness of democracy compared to autocracy. This, in turn, will affect America's global position, its ability to attract vacillating allies into its orbit from China's sphere of influence, and possibly determine the global geopolitical leader for years to come."Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Dakota access pipeline: court strikes down permits in victory for Standing Rock Sioux Posted: 25 Mar 2020 05:02 PM PDT  Army corps of engineers ordered to conduct full environmental review, which could take yearsThe future of the controversial Dakota Access pipeline has been thrown into question after a federal court on Wednesday struck down its permits and ordered a comprehensive environmental review.The US army corps of engineers was ordered to conduct a full environmental impact statement (EIS), after the Washington DC court ruled that existing permits violated the National Environmental Policy Act (Nepa).The ruling is a huge victory for the Standing Rock Sioux tribe of North Dakota, which rallied support from across the world and sued the US government in a campaign to stop the environmentally risky pipeline being built on tribal lands."After years of commitment to defending our water and earth, we welcome this news of a significant legal win," said the tribal chairman, Mike Faith. "It's humbling to see how actions we took to defend our ancestral homeland continue to inspire national conversations about how our choices ultimately affect this planet."In December 2016, the Obama administration denied permits for the pipeline to cross the Missouri river and ordered a full EIS to analyze alternative routes and the impact on the tribe's treaty rights.In his first week in office, Donald Trump signed an executive order to expedite construction. Construction of the 1,200-mile pipeline was completed in June 2017.The tribe challenged the permits – and won. As a result, the corps was ordered to redo its environmental analysis, which it did without taking into consideration tribal concerns or expert analysis.The pipeline continued to transport oil from North Dakota to Illinois. The tribe and EarthJustice, an environmental law not-for-profit group, sued again.In his ruling on Wednesday, the federal judge James Boasberg, an Obama appointee, said the environmental analysis by both the companies behind the pipeline and the corps was severely lacking.The abysmal safety record of the pipeline parent company, Sunoco, "does not inspire confidence", he added.The court-mandated EIS will be more in depth than the assessment already completed by the corps – and could take years. The court will next decide if the pipeline should be shut down until the EIS is done.The corps did not respond to a request for comment."This validates everything the tribe has been saying all along about the risk of oil spills to the people of Standing Rock," said Jan Hasselman, an EarthJustice attorney. "The Obama administration had it right when it moved to deny the permits in 2016."The setback for the pipeline comes as the Trump administration moves to severely curtail Nepa, the 1969 legislation which is widely considered the cornerstone of US environmental protection. Trump has repeatedly blamed Nepa for blocking fossil fuel projects.
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| Cases in Italy's Lombardy rise by some 2,500 on Thursday, data 'not good': official Posted: 26 Mar 2020 06:08 AM PDT  The number of coronavirus cases in the in the northern region of Lombardy, which includes Italy's financial capital Milan, increased by some 2,500 on Thursday, regional governor Attilio Fontana said. The number of cases in the region, which has borne the brunt of Italy's contagion, increased by some 1,643 to roughly 32,346 on Wednesday.
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| I’m a Doctor’s Husband, and I’m Begging You to Keep Medical Workers Like Her Safe Posted: 25 Mar 2020 09:50 AM PDT  A New York-based writer on what his physician wife she needs to do her job and save our lives.
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| The U.S.'s $13 Billion Aircraft Carrier Has a Toilet Problem Posted: 26 Mar 2020 07:28 AM PDT  It's yet another headache plaguing America's newest aircraft carrier.
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| Arizona appeals court upholds Jodi Arias' murder conviction Posted: 24 Mar 2020 03:15 PM PDT  The Arizona Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld Jodi Arias' first-degree murder conviction and life prison sentence in the 2008 killing of her former boyfriend. "We conclude that Arias was convicted based upon the overwhelming evidence of her guilt, not as a result of prosecutorial misconduct," the ruling said. The panel condemned Martinez's "argumentative phrasing of questions" to defense witnesses, adding that his "aggressive tone and combative, bullying behavior" were recurring issues in the trial and Arias' attorneys moved for a mistrial six times.
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| A Louisiana pastor defied state orders and held a service for hundreds of people. He says he has no plans of stopping. Posted: 25 Mar 2020 12:42 PM PDT  Pastor Tony Spell, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, held a service for 400 people on Tuesday. On Sunday, there were more than 1,000.
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| Dr. Birx told the heartbreaking story of her great-grandmother's death from Spanish flu while imploring Americans to social distance Posted: 25 Mar 2020 06:39 PM PDT  Dr. Birx said the issue of social distancing is personal for her as she told the tragic story of her great-grandmother's death from the Spanish flu.
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| Fact check: Not true that no Democrats voted for coronavirus stimulus package Posted: 25 Mar 2020 01:58 PM PDT  A viral meme on Facebook claimed March 22 that no Democrats had voted in favor of helping Americans through an economic stimulus bill. This is false.
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| Workers of color in the low-wage workforce taking major hit as the economy suffers Posted: 25 Mar 2020 12:30 PM PDT  People of color make up a disproportionate share of workers in the industries where layoffs are the most intense and only expected to get worse.
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| New York: Cuomo says early signs show coronavirus distancing may be working Posted: 25 Mar 2020 01:40 PM PDT  * Governor: efforts seem to have slowed rate of hospitalization * 'Single greatest challenge' is state's severe lack of ventilators * Coronavirus – latest US updates * See all our coronavirus coverageNew York's governor, Andrew Cuomo, has said officials are seeing very early signs that physical distancing may be starting to slow the spread of coronavirus in his state, but cautioned that the number of cases is still rising significantly and hospitals would soon be overwhelmed.The New York City metro area accounts for 60% of new Covid-19 cases in the US. Despite that, Cuomo said it was encouraging that hospitalizations were projected to double every 4.7 days on Tuesday, compared with Monday, when the number was doubling every 3.4 days, and Sunday, when the figure was every two days."The arrows are headed in the right direction, and that is always better than the arrows headed in the wrong direction," Cuomo said at a press conference Wednesday.But the virus still continues to spread quickly, and Cuomo said the "single greatest challenge" New York faces right now is a severe lack of ventilators, essential equipment for patients with potentially fatal Covid-19 infections. He said New York needs 30,000 ventilators but only has 4,000 in the current system.Cuomo said the state has purchased 7,000, and the federal government has now provided 4,000 as high-tier officials start to recognize New York's crisis. Cuomo has said doctors would start trialling the use of one ventilator for two patients.New York City on Wednesday took further steps to decrease the density of people, announcing that some roads would be shut to cars to allow pedestrians to use them, and encouraging social and physical distancing to be observed in playgrounds. Sports that involve "close contact" such as basketball should also be avoided.Cuomo warned that if these measures to reduce the density did not work on a voluntary basis, then the city would make the guidelines mandatory.The moves came after Dr Deborah Birx, part of the White House coronavirus taskforce, said on Tuesday that about 56% of all the cases in the US, and 60% of new cases, are in the New York metro area. Mike Pence called on people who have recently left New York for other parts of the country to self-quarantine for 14 days.The vice-president said: "We have to deal with the New York City metropolitan area as a high-risk area."Donald Trump tweeted on Wednesday that he had a good conversation with Cuomo, who later thanked Trump and his team for their cooperation. The tone was a considerable change from Tuesday, when Cuomo had fiercely criticized the federal government's response to the pandemic and balked at Trump's suggestion that restarting the economy superseded public health concerns.While Trump has said he would like to see parts of the US economy reopening for business by April, and see churches packed by Easter Sunday, on 12 April, New York officials have implemented extreme social distancing measures, having non-essential employees work from home, shuttering schools and only allowing restaurants to provide takeout and delivery.Still, more than one in every thousand New York residents has tested positive for the virus. The state confirmed 30,811 cases and 285 deaths as of Wednesday morning; 12% of cases have required hospitalization.New York's mayor, Bill de Blasio, said: "The world we knew is gone. And it's not coming back, not for the next few months. That's the blunt truth. We're gonna lose some people."New York state accounts for roughly 7% of all confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide, and De Blasio said it was likely more than half of all New Yorkers will get Covid-19. New York City alone tallied 17,856 cases and 199 deaths. The large number of cases could be attributed to New York's large testing numbers – it is testing more people per capita than South Korea.New York officials are scrambling to equip hospitals with basic necessities to combat the virus. The hospital system has been given a mandate to increase capacity by at least 50%, but even if all hospitals doubled their capacity, the state would still be 34,000 beds short to accommodate projected numbers once the outbreak reaches its peak in the coming weeks.There is also a severe shortage of space in intensive care units, where the most critical patients access ventilators. Right now, New York can support 3,000 ICU beds, but Cuomo said the hospitals will need 40,000 ICU beds – a more than 1,200% increase.The Jacob Javits Center – a landmark convention center in midtown Manhattan – is being repurposed as a temporary hospital for Covid-19, along with four other sites selected by the army corps of engineers. But those new facilities will only inject a few thousand hospital beds into the wider network."The inescapable conclusion is that the rate of infection is going up," Cuomo said at a press conference a day earlier, on Tuesday. "It is spiking. The apex is higher than we thought, and the apex is sooner than we thought. That is a bad combination of facts."Scott Weisenberg, an infectious diseases expert at NYU Langone, said hospitals are trying to create additional capacity with more beds and increased staffing. But he cautioned that a return to normalcy in a few weeks' time would be completely inappropriate, at least in New York."I would just say I would be very cautious about trying to reopen society too soon," he said. "Or you'll end up paying for it with a lot more cases and more deaths that could have been prevented."
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| U.S. playing dangerous game, China says, after warship sails through Taiwan Strait Posted: 25 Mar 2020 05:43 PM PDT |
| Coronavirus: US man dies after taking drug he thought stopped virus Posted: 24 Mar 2020 07:34 PM PDT  Health officials are warning people not to self-medicate with the common malaria drug.
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| Most Americans will get coronavirus stimulus check in April. Here's how the program works. Posted: 25 Mar 2020 11:19 PM PDT  The Senate unanimously passed a massive $2.2 trillion coronavirus emergency rescue package late Wednesday, and among its many tools to bolster the economy amid the COIVD-19 pandemic is $290 billion set aside for direct payments to most Americans. Assuming the House passes the bill, expected to happen Friday, and President Trump signs it, most Americans will get a one-time payment of about $1,200 sometime in April, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says.The payments will be based on tax returns from 2019 or 2018. Generally speaking, individuals with an adjusted gross income up to $75,000 will get $1,200 checks, or $2,400 for couples earning up to $150,000. Couples and "head of household" single parents will also get $500 per child. The checks taper off up to $99,000 in income per individual and $198,000 for joint filers with no children. The Washington Post has a calculator for estimating how much money your check should contain.About 125 million people, or 83 percent of tax filers, will get checks, says Kyle Pomerleau at the American Enterprise Institute. "The main people excluded from receiving a payment are: the wealthy, nonresident aliens (i.e. foreigners who do not hold a green card), and 'dependents' who can be claimed on someone else's tax return.," the Post reports.Many Americans won't actually get a paper check. The first people to get funds from the program will be those who have direct deposit information on file with the Internal Revenue Service from 2019 returns, filed this year, or 2018 returns. If the IRS does not have your direct deposit information, it will send a check to the mailing address it has on file. "People who don't pay taxes, such as those with very low incomes, may be hard to reach the way the program is designed," Politico notes."The last time the U.S. government did anything like this, back in 2008," the Post reports, "the payments went out in batches and it took about eight weeks for the final people to receive their checks."More stories from theweek.com What Trump's coronavirus briefings are really about Elton John to host 'Living Room Concert for America' with stars performing from home Trump campaign issues cease-and-desist letters over ad highlighting Trump's coronavirus response
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| Biden Suggests Dems Push for ‘Green New Deal’ Provisions in Next Coronavirus Stimulus Bill Posted: 25 Mar 2020 12:37 PM PDT  Former vice president Joe Biden on Wednesday suggested passing climate-change legislation as part of economic aid packages amid the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic."We're going to have an opportunity, I believe, in the next round [of economic aid] here to use…my Green Deal to be able to generate both economic growth as consistent with the kind of infusion of monies we need into the system to keep it going," Biden said in a live-streamed briefing on the coronavirus crisis.Biden then advocated for investment in infrastructure-related jobs to offset the economic impact of the pandemic."We're going to need new infrastructure going down the road here, and it's a way to generate economic growth. That's going to be, I think, the next round we have to be looking at."Biden in January released a climate-change plan based in part on the "Green New Deal" floated in 2019 by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) and Senator Ed Markey (D., Mass.).Democrats have already attempted to add environmental legislation to the massive $2 trillion economic stimulus meant to offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The legislation included measures requiring airlines receiving assistance to fully offset carbon emissions by 2025, as well as requiring airlines to report greenhouse gas emissions in order to display the results in a public database.On Monday, President Trump criticized House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and congressional Democrats for the attempt to add the legislation."Nancy Pelosi came and put a lot of things in the deal that had nothing to do with workers -- that had to do with an agenda that they have been trying to get passed for 10 years," Trump said during a Fox News virtual town hall. "[The Democrats said] 'We want green energy, let's stop drilling oil' -- they had things in there that were terrible…Windmills all over the place and all sorts of credits for windmills -- they kill the birds and ruin the real estate. A lot of problems."
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| Erdogan says Turkey will overcome coronavirus in two-three weeks through measures Posted: 25 Mar 2020 12:12 PM PDT  Turkey will overcome the coronavirus outbreak in two to three weeks through good measures, with as little damage as possible, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, adding that he expected patience, understanding and support from Turks in the process. "We have preparations for every scenario," Erdogan told a televised address to the nation.
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| 11 ways the novel coronavirus pandemic is eerily similar to the 1918 influenza outbreak Posted: 25 Mar 2020 01:27 PM PDT  In 1918, schools shut down, public gatherings were banned, and the US public was obsessed with masks. The same thing is happening now.
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| Cuomo Becomes Trump's Target After Demanding Ventilators Now Posted: 24 Mar 2020 11:33 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- As New York reported more than 5,000 new coronavirus cases and an infection rate doubling roughly every three days, Governor Andrew Cuomo lashed out at President Donald Trump for relying on corporations to fast-track the manufacture of life-saving ventilators."You can't do this on a voluntary basis," Cuomo said Tuesday during a news conference at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan, which is being converted into a temporary hospital. He warned that many victims of Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, will die needlessly without ventilation."You pick the 26,000 people who are going to die," he said.The president said in a televised town hall that the governor was ungrateful and had failed to prepare his state. "He shouldn't be talking about us," Trump said.Trump, unable to hold his mass campaign rallies at a time when most Americans are staying home, has turned to daily coronavirus briefings not only to impart information -- much of which contradicts his own experts' advice -- but to air grievances. During a Fox News appearance on Tuesday, the president, who thrives on having an enemy, found one in Cuomo.The governor, who's a Democrat, has gained national attention for his urgent yet modulated briefings on the state's virus response. He has walked a fine line between criticizing the Republican administration for disorganization -- which risks angering the mercurial president -- and forging a cooperative partnership. His tone Tuesday ranged from angry to incredulous.Ventilators are his latest worry. The complex devices pump air and oxygen into the lungs and remove carbon dioxide, assisting patients whose bodies can't perform the job. The most critically ill develop severe pneumonia, which can make the devices crucial.On their own, companies need capital and time to shift production to entirely new products, Cuomo said. And time is running short for New York, he said, with confirmed cases now exceeding 25,000 and peak infection rates expected as soon as 14 days from now.He called on Trump to use his authority under the Cold War-era Defense Production Act to compel manufacturers to make ventilators and provide seed money to retrofit factories."Not to use that power is inexplicable to me," he said. "It's not anti-business. The businesses would welcome it. I speak to the businesses, you know what they say? 'I'll do it, but I need startup capital.'"The companies would also have to contend with a shortage of components; makers say their factories can ramp up production only if suppliers across the globe send more circuit boards, tubes and other parts.Cuomo expressed disbelief over a shipment that New York is receiving from the Federal Emergency Management Agency: "FEMA sent us 400 ventilators. We need 30,000!" he said.Vice President Mike Pence said in the meeting that the administration Tuesday was trying to help by releasing equipment from the federal government's reserves. He said 2,000 ventilators had been sent to New York and another 2,000 would be on the way Wednesday.Trump said later that Cuomo should be happy with what he's getting."We're building him hospitals, we're building him medical centers, and he was complaining," Trump said. "He's supposed to be buying his own ventilators."Trump claimed, without citing evidence, that Cuomo had refused to order 16,000 ventilators five years ago "at a great price" and instead "established death panels and lotteries" rather than prepare for a pandemic.Minutes later, discussing the nation's lack of testing capacity, Trump said that no one could have predicted the coronavirus. "Nobody ever expected a thing like this," he said.Efforts to reach Cuomo for comment on Trump's assertion weren't immediately successful.The debate between the two leaders came as the rate of infections in New York continued to accelerate. The state has conducted more than 91,000 tests and had 25,665 positive results, the highest and fastest rate in the country, Cuomo said. A day earlier, its total was 20,875.Deaths attributed to the outbreak rose to 210 from 157 on Monday.New York has almost 10 times as many cases as California, with about 2,800 cases, he said. The apex of the New York infections will come in 14 to 21 days, higher and sooner than previously expected, Cuomo said."In many ways, we have exhausted every option available to us," Cuomo said.The state currently has 53,000 hospital beds and projects it will need 140,000 in two weeks when the virus reaches its apex. Cuomo has ordered hospitals to increase their capacity by 50%, and together with the city has identified an additional 14,600 beds. Cuomo's goal is to increase the number of beds to 100,000."These are troubling and astronomical numbers," he said.Earlier: Ventilator Makers Can Speed Up, But They Face Shortages of PartsNew York University is readying residence halls for use, university spokesman John Beckman said. NYU's 22 residence halls and apartments house approximately 12,000 undergraduate and graduate students during the academic year.Columbia University is discussing using some dorms for clinicians at nearby hospitals, according to a person familiar with the matter.Cuomo has also contacted hotel owners about using their properties, he said at the news conference.The state and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has also designated the State Universities at Stony Brook and Old Westbury and the Westchester Convention Center for temporary hospitals with 1,000 beds each. The state is also exploring sites at three other SUNY campuses, four campuses of the City University of New York, St. John's University in Queens and Fordham University in the Bronx.A week ago, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced early plans to create as many as 1,500 hospital beds, including 600 at a nursing home in Brooklyn, 270 in Bronx hospitals, 350 at a medical facility on Roosevelt Island, and 250 more in five small hotels. It isn't clear if any of the sites are operating yet.On Monday, the state announced it had leased the Brooklyn facility, and the Corps of Engineers arrived at the Javits Center to begin creating wards. The Navy's USNS Comfort is on its way to dock in Manhattan's west side yards to provide 1,000 additional beds for non-Covid patients."I will turn the state upside down to get the number of beds we need," Cuomo said.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Coronavirus: Pangolins found to carry viruses related to Covid-19 Posted: 26 Mar 2020 03:36 AM PDT  Pangolins smuggled into China were carrying viruses closely related to the one sweeping the world.
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| Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro reportedly charged by U.S. in drug trafficking scheme Posted: 26 Mar 2020 08:28 AM PDT  Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro will reportedly be charged by the U.S. in a drug trafficking scheme that involves much of the Venezuelan government.The U.S. is set to unveil charges against Maduro and other leaders of his government on Thursday, multiple sources tell The New York Times and CNN. The charges include narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine into the U.S., among other charges that are still unclear, per the Times.The charges come after a federal investigation involving authorities in New York, Washington, D.C., and Miami. Venezuelan intelligence officials, government leaders, and the Colombian rebel group FARC — a U.S.-designated terrorist group — will reportedly be charged alongside Maduro.Maduro still stands as the president of Venezuela despite the U.S. declaring opposition leader Juan Guaidó the legitimate president a year ago. Maduro's election was full of allegations of corruption, and it seemed a top priority of the U.S. to oust him. That pressing issue seemed to have faded, though Guaidó did attend President Trump's State of the Union address last month, where Trump declared "Maduro's grip on tyranny will be smashed and broken."More stories from theweek.com What Trump's coronavirus briefings are really about Elton John to host 'Living Room Concert for America' with stars performing from home Trump campaign issues cease-and-desist letters over ad highlighting Trump's coronavirus response
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| Tesla CEO says it bought hospital ventilators in China for U.S. Posted: 24 Mar 2020 12:23 PM PDT  Tesla bought hospital ventilators in China and shipped them to the United States, CEO Elon Musk said on Tuesday.
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| AP PHOTOS: Virus accentuates isolation of Spain's homeless Posted: 25 Mar 2020 12:26 AM PDT  While Spanish authorities tell the public that staying home is the best way to beat the coronavirus pandemic, some people are staying out because home has come to mean the streets of Madrid and Barcelona. Spain, which ranks fourth worldwide among the countries with the most virus cases, is under a government-imposed lockdown that has closed stores, emptied office buildings and left cities largely deserted, day and night. In typically bustling Barcelona, figures with boxes and blankets, mattresses or tents, punctuate the eerie emptiness.
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| Why are so few Germans dying from the coronavirus? Experts wonder Posted: 25 Mar 2020 09:06 AM PDT  "I would be happy if we can come back in two months' time and still be able to talk about what Germany did right," one expert said.
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| US coronavirus stimulus checks: are you eligible and how much will you get? Posted: 26 Mar 2020 07:00 AM PDT  Most taxpayers will get a check from the $2tn economic package, the largest in US history * Coronavirus – latest US updates * Coronavirus – latest global updates * See all our coronavirus coverageThe US has agreed on a $2tn stimulus package, the largest economic stimulus in US history, in response to the economic impacts of Covid-19. While corporations will be the biggest recipients of the bailout, some of that money will be paid directly to Americans hit by the pandemic.Most taxpayers will get a check in the mail, while those directly impacted by the economic effects of Covid-19 are slated to receive robust government support. Here's what we know so far about how the new stimulus package will directly affect Americans in the coming weeks: Who's eligible for a check from the government?Congress will spend about $250bn for checks up to $1,200 per person that will go directly to taxpayers.To be eligible for the full amount, a person's most recently filed tax return must show that they made $75,000 or under. For couples, who can receive a maximum of $2,400, the cutoff is $150,000.If a person makes more than $75,000, the amount given goes down incrementally by $5 for every $100 increase in salary. So a person who makes $85,000 would get $700 while a person who makes $95,000 would get $200.If a person makes above $99,000, or a couple makes above $198,000, no check will be given.The Tax Foundation, a DC-based thinktank, estimates that 93.6% of Americans will be eligible for a check coming from the stimulus package. What about parents?Taxpayers will be given $500 per child listed as a dependent on their latest tax return. When will I get this money?That is still unclear. Experts say that Americans will likely not get the money until May, given how long it takes the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to send out checks. Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin said the White House wants the checks out in two weeks but the logistics of sending them will likely make the wait a bit longer.This is not the first time the government has sent checks to Americans. The federal government gave up to $300 in 2001 and $600 in 2008 to taxpayers who met a certain income bracket to similarly stimulate the economy. Does the package help unemployed workers?Yes, specifically the bill will increase unemployment insurance by $600 for 13 weeks – about four months – for every person, added to the existing unemployment compensation a person gets from their state's program. The length and amount of compensation varies from state to state. A majority of states providing a maximum of 26 weeks of compensation, while average weekly compensation ranges from 20% of a person's wage to just over 50%. What about freelance and gig workers?While unemployment insurance typically does not cover people who are self-employed – freelancers, contractors and gig workers – the bill comes with a "pandemic unemployment assistance" measure that will extend insurance to those workers. Has there been any changes to paid leave?Not in this bill. Earlier last week, Donald Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, a bill worth about $100bn meant to expand paid sick leave and emergency paid leave, but it came with major loopholes. Companies with over 500 employees were not mentioned in the bill, while companies with under 50 employees can apply for exemptions.The bill mandates 10 days of fully paid sick leave for employees of companies with 500 employees or less. Parents of those companies affected by their children's school closing and those leaving for medical reasons can get 12 weeks of pay at 67% of their salary. Will there be anything to offset healthcare costs related to Covid-19?Again, not in this bill. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act included a measure that mandated all Covid-19 testing is free, but treatment for any symptoms (there is currently no cure for the illness) still comes at a cost. A few states have reopened enrollment for their health insurance programs to allow those concerned about costs to enroll, but there are still stories of people getting bills for as much as $34,000 to cover treatment of the virus' symptoms.
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| China's Shanghai orders all incoming travellers to undergo 14-day quarantine Posted: 26 Mar 2020 03:01 AM PDT  The eastern Chinese city of Shanghai will make all incoming travellers undergo 14 days of quarantine and observation from Thursday in a bid to prevent coronavirus transmission, the local government announced. Shanghai had previously required travellers to go into quarantine only if they had visited 24 badly hit countries in the two weeks before their arrival in the city.
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| Here is where airlines are parking all those grounded planes as travel dries up Posted: 24 Mar 2020 03:19 PM PDT  As the coronavirus outbreak squelchs travel demand, flights are being cancelled, airports are empty and grounded planes are turning remote airports into big parking lots.
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| Fox News Host Martha MacCallum Nails Kellyanne Conway for Rewriting Trump’s Coronavirus History Posted: 25 Mar 2020 07:31 PM PDT  White House counselor Kellyanne Conway was trashing New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Wednesday night when Fox News host Martha MacCallum hit her with a rude awakening. Conway accused the mayor of "lying to America" when he said he's "been on top of" the coronavirus crisis from the beginning, pointing to tweets in which he encouraged New Yorkers to go out despite early warnings to the contrary from medical experts as well as his decision to visit his gym "one last time" as the state was being quarantined. "I think it shows you the contrast in leadership when you have feckless leaders," Conway said, referring to de Blasio, "or when you have a president, who's publicly facing every single day, giving people information engagement they need."Kellyanne Conway Spars With Reporters Over 'Kung-Flu' Coronavirus SlurAt that point, MacCallum interrupted, saying, "But Kellyanne…" While the host didn't disagree with Conway's characterization of de Blasio, MacCallum couldn't stand by as the Trump counselor erased the weeks and weeks that the president spent downplaying the deadly virus."In terms of the things that you're mentioning, you could probably match up, some of those early statements from him with also similarly optimistic statements from President Trump, although they've handled it very differently since then," MacCallum said, arguably giving the president more credit than he deserves given his recent reversals on the value of social distancing. "There's no comparison between the two leaders," Conway insisted. "There's no comparison." "In terms of get out and live your life and go ahead and do what you're doing, back in early March?" MacCallum asked. While Conway was able to provide evidence of others in the White House taking the pandemic seriously, she did not deny that Trump was vocally optimistic about the situation just a few weeks ago. Instead, she pivoted to touting his relatively good approval ratings as evidence that he's handling the pandemic well now, given that it "came out of nowhere." Samantha Bee on Making Comedy Amidst 'Unimaginable' TragedyRead more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Putin calls for sanctions 'moratorium' at G20 summit Posted: 26 Mar 2020 09:35 AM PDT  Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday called for sanctions relief during the coronavirus pandemic, telling G20 leaders it was a matter "of life and death". "Ideally we should introduce a... joint moratorium on restrictions on essential goods as well as on financial transactions for their purchase," Putin said at a virtual meeting of G20 leaders Thursday. "These matters should be freed of any politics," Putin added.
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| California Gov. Newsom Says 4 Banks Agree to Waive Mortgage Fees for 90 Days Posted: 25 Mar 2020 02:18 PM PDT  More than 1 million Californians have filed for unemployment benefits since March 13
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| The coronavirus just indefinitely postponed truck drivers' most hated 72 hours of the year — and the unprecedented move shows how panic buying is slamming trucking Posted: 26 Mar 2020 09:17 AM PDT  The postponement is a sign of how truck drivers are being slammed with orders as shoppers panic buy and hospitals require more goods.
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| 'We should get on with this': Joe Biden says he's debated enough with Bernie Sanders Posted: 25 Mar 2020 03:18 PM PDT  Democratic presidential frontrunner Joe Biden said Wednesday he's debated enough times with Vermont U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders.
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