Fauci warns states of virus rebound
The nation’s top infectious disease expert said Thursday that new cases of the coronavirus are a certainty as states begin to roll back restrictions. States need to proceed carefully as they take steps to reopen businesses and allow greater freedom of movement, Dr. Anthony Fauci said.
“We will get blips … there’s no doubt,” Fauci told NBC’s “Today” show. “When you pull back there will be cases, and what we need to do is make sure (states) have in place the capability of identifying, isolating and contact tracing individuals.”
Fauci urged states that don’t have that capability to go very slowly.
“You can’t just leap over things and get into a situation where you’re really tempting a rebound. That’s the thing I get concerned about,“he said.
His warnings came a day after President Trump said the federal government would not extend its social distancing guidelines past Thursday, and Trump’s soninlaw and adviser, Jared Kushner, predicted that by July the country would be “really rocking again,“despite health experts assessing that as highly unlikely.
Subway to halt overnight service
New York City will shut down its subway system each day from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. to increase cleaning of trains and stations during the coronavirus crisis, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Thursday. Subway trains, which had been disinfected at least once every 72 hours, will be cleaned once every 24 hours starting May 6. Cuomo said buses, vans and other alternative transportation will be provided at no charge for essential workers to get around while the subway system is closed. Dozens of transit employees have died of the coronavirus and the system has become a haven for homeless people during the crisis. Ridership plunged by 92% since the start of the pandemic, Cuomo said, and most of the people commuting are health care workers, first responders and other frontline workers who’ve been keeping the city running.
Protesters decry stayhome order
Hoisting American flags and handmade signs, protesters returned to the Michigan Capitol to denounce Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stayhome order and business restrictions Thursday. Lawmakers met to consider extending her emergency declaration hours before it expires. This was a repeat of what occurred April 15 but with fewer numbers. The signs said, “Shut down the lockdown” and “No work no freedom.” Some wore the “Don’t Tread On Me” flag as a cape. Whitmer, a Democrat, wants GOP lawmakers to stretch her emergency declaration by 28 days to ensure that health care workers continue to have special legal protections.
Beef plant closes for deep cleaning
Tyson Foods said Thursday that it was temporarily suspending operations at a Nebraska beef processing plant that serves as the largest employer for neighboring Sioux City, Iowa, after a surge of coronavirus cases in the area. Tyson announced it would close the Dakota City plant Friday through Monday to perform a deep cleaning of the facility. State health officials have reported hundreds of new coronavirus cases in both Nebraska’s Dakota County, where the plant is located, and Woodbury County, Iowa, where Sioux City is located. Tyson previously disclosed that some workers at the plant had tested positive for the virus, but it has not said how many.
Capital’s death toll increases to 224
Washington health officials announced Thursday that 217 positive new COVID19 infections had been identified, bringing the total up to 4,323 with 19 new deaths for a total of 224. Mayor Muriel Bowser declared a state of emergency on March 11 and issued a stayhome order on March 30 for Washington’s approximately 700,000 residents. Bowser has also announced plans to turn Washington’s convention center into a 1,500bed field hospital.
Many feel lonely, anxious, poll finds
Roughly twothirds of Americans say they felt nervous, depressed, lonely or hopeless on at least one of their past seven days, the poll found. For each of the four emotions, close to 2 in 10 Americans said they felt that way on three or more days. Fourteen percent said they felt reactions such as sweating, becoming nauseous or hyperventilating when thinking about their experience with the pandemic. The poll conducted last week is the first wave of the COVID Impact Survey by NORC at the University of Chicago for the Data Foundation.