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WHO urges all countries: ‘Push this virus back’
Senate OKs $8.3B bill amid shortage of test kits in US
BANGKOK — The global march of the new virus triggered a vigorous appeal Thursday from the World Health Organization for governments to pull out “all the stops” to slow the epidemic, as it drained color from India’s spring festivities, closed Bethlehem’s Nativity Church and blocked Italians from visiting elderly relatives in nursing homes.
As China, after many arduous weeks, appeared to be winning its epic, costly battle against the new virus, the fight was revving up in newly affected areas of the globe, unleashing disruptions that profoundly affected billions of people.
The U.N. health agency
urged all countries to “push this virus back,” a call to action reinforced by figures showing about 17 times as many new infections outside China as in it. The virus has infected nearly 98,000 people and killed more than 3,300.
“This is not a drill. This is not the time for giving up. This is not a time for excuses. This is a time for pulling out all the stops,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in Geneva.
In Washington, the Senate passed an $8.3 billion measure Thursday to help tackle the coronavirus outbreak in hopes of reassuring a fearful public and accelerating the government’s response to the virus.
Thursday’s 96-1 vote sends the bill to the White House for President Donald Trump’s signature. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., cast the sole “no” vote. The House passed the bill Wednesday 415-2. Two Republicans, Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona and Ken Buck of Colorado, voted against the package.
The legislation comes as lawmakers in both parties had faulted a shortage of tests for the virus and contrasting messages from Trump and his subordinates. In an interview with Sean Hannity of Fox News on Wednesday, Trump downplayed the lethality of the virus, saying WHO’s updated estimate of a 3.4% death rate in coronavirus cases is “a false number.”
After a briefing Thursday by health officials, senators said the Trump administration won’t be able to meet its promised timeline of having 1 million coronavirus tests available by the end of the week.
Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida and other lawmakers said the government is “in the process” of sending test kits out and people still need to be trained on how to use them. The process could take days or weeks, they said.
Earlier this week, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen
Hahn told senators at a hearing that the U.S. would have the “capacity” to perform up to 1 million tests by the end of the week, a timetable reinforced by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar at a White House briefing Wednesday.
The senators were briefed Thursday by Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Seema Verma, head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and Ken Cuccinelli, acting deputy secretary of Homeland Security.
As Chinese manufacturers gradually reopened their factories, anti-virus barriers went up elsewhere.
In Italy, the epicenter of Europe’s outbreak, workers in latex gloves pinned “closed” notices on school gates, enforcing a 10-day shutdown of the education system. Italy’s sports-mad fans are also barred from stadiums until April 3.
A government decree that took effect Thursday urged the country’s citizens to stay at least 3 feet from each other, placed restrictions on visiting nursing homes and urged the elderly not to go outside unless absolutely necessary.
That directive appeared to be widely ignored, as
school closings nationwide left many Italian children in the care of their grandparents. Parks in Rome overflowed with young and old. Italy has the world’s oldest population after Japan.
Italy’s death toll climbed Thursday to 148, and its confirmed cases to 3,858.
Iran, which has registered 107 virus deaths, also closed schools and universities and introduced checkpoints to limit travel between major cities. Iranians were urged to reduce their use of paper money.
Virus fears also affected the Indian celebration of Holi, in which Hindu revelers celebrate the arrival of spring with bursts of color, including bright powders smeared on faces. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders said they wouldn’t attend Holi events and the Holi Moo Festival in New Delhi was canceled.
Off the coast of California, a cruise ship carrying about 3,500 people was ordered to stay put until passengers and crew could be tested because a traveler from its previous voyage died and two more were infected.