US reaches 10M cases; states order restrictions

The U. S. surpassed 10 million coronavirus cases Monday as worldwide infections hit 50 million. In Europe, some countries have seen new cases beginning to level off while others are just now reintroducing lockdown and curfew measures this week.

South Dakota was the only state with fewer cases in the week ending Sunday compared with the previous week, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins data shows. And 43 states had a higher rate of people testing positive than the week before. Twenty- eight states broke their records for the number of new cases in a week.

The U. S. has recorded more than 100,000 new daily cases for several days during this third wave of the pandemic. More than 237,600 people have died in this country.

In Iowa, hospitalizations have soared 84% in two weeks. On Sunday, the state reported 1,034 in hospitals with COVID- 19.

Ben Carson tests positive

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson tested positive for COVID- 19, his office announced Monday. He was one of multiple Trump administration officials who attended an Election Day watch party at the White House and subsequently tested positive.

Carson “is in good spirits and feels fortunate to have access to effective therapeutics which aid and markedly speed his recovery,” the secretary’s chief of staff, Coalter Baker, said in a statement.

The news of Carson’s positive test comes just days after White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, who also attended the White House event Tuesday, tested positive.

N. J. to force bars, restaurants to close early

Bars and restaurants in New Jersey will have to close early under a new set of restrictions that were expected to be announced by Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday in an effort to curb rising cases.

The new restrictions, which take effect later this week, mean bars and restaurants must close inside by 10 p. m. as they head into what is typically one of the busiest times of the year, said Marilou Halvorsen, president of the New Jersey Restaurant & Hospitality Association. The state reported another 5,250 cases of coronavirus over the weekend.

“We’ll take some steps later today, but they won’t come close to what we were doing in the spring. This is not a lockdown,” Murphy said Monday morning on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” Instead, he said, “we’re going to shave at the edges.”

Utah governor issues statewide mask mandate

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert issued a statewide mask mandate late Sunday, hoping to stem a troubling spike in cases and hospitalizations. The orders went into effect Monday and were set to remain in effect until Nov.

23.

The mandate requires residents to wear masks in public and when they are within six feet of anyone with whom they don’t live. All casual social gatherings are restricted to household- only until Nov. 23.

Additional orders include weekly testing for students at public and private institutions of higher education who live on campus or attend at least one in- person class per week, starting by at least Jan. 1. All extracurricular activities, including athletic and intramural events, are on hold until Nov.

23.

That does not apply to intercollegiate athletic events or high school championships as long as teams and schools follow instructions for testing and crowd size