USA TODAY International Edition
HIGHLIGHT: CALIFORNIA
Los Angeles: With ample coronavirus tests and not enough sick people seeking them, the mayor recently did something on a scale no other major U. S. city had done: allow anyone to be tested as often as they want. A website to book a test was quickly swamped by area residents who couldn’t get tested under more stringent guidelines and were concerned they were infected or could be asymptomatic carriers unwittingly exposing others. “I applaud what they’re doing. The more people tested the better,” said Dr. Eric Topol, head of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, a San Diego- based medical research partnership.
ALABAMA Auburn: City officials are working on a phased plan to reopen all city facilities by June 1. The move comes a few days after Opelika officials announced they’ll open all city buildings Monday, under guidelines to limit exposure to the coronavirus.
ALASKA Juneau: A state lawmaker on Friday defended asking whether stickers that individuals may be asked to wear as part of a Capitol coronavirus screening process will be “available as a yellow Star of David.” Republican Rep. Ben Carpenter of Nikiski said he was serious in making the comment in an email chain with other legislators. He was responding to proposed protocols to guard against the virus as lawmakers prepared to reconvene Monday.
ARIZONA Grand Canyon National Park: Tourists roamed Grand Canyon National Park again after it partially reopened Friday, despite objections from Navajo officials and others that it could hurt efforts to control the coronavirus in the area.
ARKANSAS Little Rock: A state program that was created to process unemployment applications for selfemployed individuals or gig economy workers appears to have been illegally accessed and has been shut down, prompting an investigation of a possible data breach, officials said.
COLORADO Denver: Gov. Jared Polis said he expects to see many K- 12 public schools open this fall in his state and elsewhere despite the coronavirus threat, though “it’s not going to look like any other school year.” Polis told “Fox News Sunday” that Colorado schools will likely run in a “hybrid” fashion that limits social interactions in hallways and during lunchtime and has up to 20% of kids continue with online classes at home if that’s their parents’ preference.
CONNECTICUT Hartford: A federal judge is set to hear arguments this week in a lawsuit that attempts to force the state to take new measures to protect prison inmates from the coronavirus. U. S. District Court Judge Janet Bond Arterton will hold the hearing by video conference Friday.
DELAWARE Dover: A man is suing Democratic Gov. John Carney in federal court over restrictions he imposed on access to the state’s beaches and his ban on short- term rentals.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Washington: Metro and Metrobus riders will be required to wear masks or other face coverings in an effort to help prevent the spread of coronavirus. The Washington Post reports the requirement begins Monday.
FLORIDA Orlando: Guests flocked to a theme park shopping district, a casino fired up its slot machines, and businesses prepared for serving customers Sunday. It was the first weekend since Universal CityWalk reopened Thursday. The Orlando Sentinel reports visitors entered wearing obligatory face masks, having their temperatures taken by workers as stickers marked the 6- foot space required between guests.
GEORGIA Atlanta: Officials reported Friday that the state has surpassed 300,000 coronavirus tests, though that still represents a small fraction of Georgia’s overall population.
HAWAII Honolulu: Lawmakers plan to set aside more than half the money the state received in federal coronavirus relief to bolster the state’s unemployment insurance fund.
IDAHO Boise: The state is holding an entirely mail- in primary for the first time as it works to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Ballots must be requested by Tuesday and returned by 8 p. m. June 2 to local county elections offices, with results announced that evening.
ILLINOIS Chicago: State officials announced Friday that people working essential jobs can get tested for the coronavirus regardless of whether they show symptoms of COVID- 19.
INDIANA Indianapolis: Vehicles formed a line as long as 3 miles Saturday as people drove up to get boxes of meat, fruit and vegetables at the state fairgrounds.
IOWA Iowa City: University of Iowa researchers warned that the coronavirus would continue spreading through the state even before Gov. Kim Reynolds reopened restaurants and churches, a move they said would exacerbate the problem, documents released Friday show.
KANSAS Mission: Data on COVID-19 infections that had been trending downward, leading Kansas to begin reopening its economy, is beginning to fluctuate and flatten, Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly said Friday.
KENTUCKY Frankfort: State parks will start reopening June 1 as Kentucky continues to ease restrictions amid the coronavirus outbreak, Gov. Andy Beshear said Friday. People can make park reservations starting Tuesday, he said.
LOUISIANA New Orleans: After weeks of shuttered businesses and houses of worship, the city took its first steps Saturday to loosen restrictions in place for two months to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The rest of the state took that step Friday with many businesses and houses of worship allowed to reopen at 25% capacity. New Orleans is slightly more restrictive.
MAINE Augusta: The state Department of Education secured internet access and devices for all of the more than 20,000 students who needed them to continue learning from home, state officials announced Friday. The effort was launched to help students who didn’t have the tools to participate in online learning after the suspension of classroom- based instruction because of the pandemic.
MARYLAND Baltimore: State residents wanting to get married may now apply for marriage licenses by email, regular mail or at a drop- off as courthouses remain closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
MASSACHUSETTS Boston: Gov. Charlie Baker is urging companies to let as many employees as possible work from home to help limit the spread of the coronavirus, even after the state begins to restart the economy.
MICHIGAN Lansing: Nasal swabs, not wheel alignments, will be performed at a former Sears auto repair shop. Sparrow Health System is opening a drive- thru coronavirus testing site in the vehicle bays.
MINNESOTA Minneapolis: The state took further steps Friday to turn the dial on easing its restrictions meant to slow the pandemic. The state’s infectious disease director, Kris Ehresmann, told reporters it’s important with the state’s stayat- home order expiring Monday and some businesses reopening to follow social distancing guidelines.
MISSISSIPPI Ocean Springs: Federal agents seized more than 280,000 masks from a local pharmaceutical company last month under a law prohibiting the hoarding of in- demand equipment needed by health workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a recently unsealed search warrant.
MISSOURI St. Louis: City officials are handing out at least 75,000 masks as the region prepares to relax stay- at- home orders.
MONTANA Great Falls: U. S. Rep. Greg Gianforte, R- Mont., voted against the $ 3 trillion COVID- 19 package passed Friday by the House, saying it was “careless” and a liberal wish- list.
NEBRASKA Omaha: The state will require long- term care centers to develop formal plans outlining how they’ll keep the coronavirus from spreading among vulnerable residents, Gov. Pete Ricketts said.
NEVADA Las Vegas: The city has announced that downtown restaurants and businesses operating under the first two phases of state reopening orders are allowed to extend operations to the sidewalk during regular business hours. Outdoor dining and sidewalk sales are now permitted.
NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord: Lawmakers say they’re returning for legislative sessions in June but meeting outside their respective chambers at the Statehouse – the first time since the Civil War.
NEW JERSEY Trenton: Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration is citing a 2005 emergency powers law enacted after Hurricane Katrina to block some information about the state’s response to the COVID- 19 outbreak.
NEW MEXICO Santa Fe: The loosening of some restrictions imposed on nonessential businesses by the governor two months ago to slow the spread of the coronavirus outbreak took effect Saturday, along with a new edict that people wear masks in public under most circumstances. Wearing masks is needed to help produce “a safe environment,” but police will not ticket people not wearing some sort off ace covering, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said Friday.
NEW YORK New York: People who flouted coronavirus restrictions for a weekend night on the town got the mayor’s wrath Sunday. Mayor Bill de Blasio admonished people seen crowding outside bars, many with drinks in hand but no masks on faces, for putting lives in danger.
NORTH CAROLINA Greenville: A federal judge on Saturday sided with conservative Christian leaders and blocked the enforcement of restrictions that Gov. Roy Cooper ordered affecting indoor religious services during the coronavirus pandemic.
NORTH DAKOTA Fargo: While a task force of state and local officials wrestles with high COVID- 19 numbers in the city, one shuttered business is set to reopen Monday: a medical marijuana dispensary.
OHIO Columbus: Recent law school graduates will have the ability to temporarily practice law in the state under the supervision of an experienced attorney while they wait to take the bar exam, the state’s highest court has decided.
OKLAHOMA Oklahoma City: The state reopened bars Friday and allowed weddings, funerals and organized sports to resume under the next phase of Gov. Kevin Stitt’s statewide reopening plan.
OREGON Pacific City: Two motel owners in the city are suing Tillamook County, saying coronavirus restrictions that stopped their businesses from fully operating in the past two months violate their constitutional rights.
PENNSYLVANIA Harrisburg: State health officials are being “misinformed” about the availability of personal protective equipment at hospitals, one of the state’s largest nurses’ unions alleges in a letter, saying they “resorted to severe rationing” even as they resume elective surgeries.
RHODE ISLAND Central Falls: The American Civil Liberties Union filed a class- action lawsuit Friday seeking the release of dozens of detainees at a federal lockup where it says the virus is spreading “uncontrollably.” The number of detainees who have tested positive has more than doubled in recent days at the Wyatt Detention Center, the civil rights group’s Rhode Island chapter said.
SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia: With the reopening of close- contact businesses imminent, the governor urged the state’s residents to patronize local businesses shuttered for weeks, albeit with appropriate safety precautions. “Be safe, but go,” Gov. Henry McMaster said Friday. “Our economy is not made to be shut down.”
SOUTH DAKOTA Sioux Falls: State health officials reported 28 new confirmed cases of COVID- 19 on Sunday but no new deaths tied to the virus.
TENNESSEE Nashville: Restaurants and retail stores throughout most of the state will no longer need to limit capacity starting late this week. And large attractions, including racetracks, amusement parks, water parks, theaters, museums and auditoriums, will be allowed to reopen Friday, provided they practice appropriate social distancing.
TEXAS Houston: More than 3,000 nursing home residents have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to data released by the state Friday. The 3,000 positive tests represent about 4% of the estimated number of Texans in nursing homes, the Houston Chronicle reports.
UTAH Kaysville: Republican Mayor Katie Witt will allow a country music concert protest event, defying newly loosened health rules aimed at slowing the coronavirus pandemic. Witt acknowledged the May 30 event would violate current state directives but told the Salt Lake Tribune: “I believe I need to support people’s First Amendment rights.”
VERMONT Marshfield: Gov. Phil Scott relaxed his stay- home order and announced lodging and campgrounds may open Friday if they abide by safety guidelines and cleaning requirements while also limiting the number of people allowed in. At the same time, the Republican governor extended a state of emergency until June 15 to continue to fight the spread – albeit at one of the slowest rates in the country – of the coronavirus pandemic in Vermont.
VIRGINIA Virginia Beach: Warm weather drew crowds to the oceanfront Saturday even though the beach is considered closed under the state’s stay- at- home directives.
WASHINGTON Seattle: Two people in the state who recall being sick in December have since had blood tests showing they developed antibodies for the coronavirus, but health officials aren’t counting them in their official case counts.
WEST VIRGINIA Charleston: Gov. Jim Justice stressed Friday that medical experts are leading his plan to lift coronavirus restrictions, days after he widened his strategy at the request of business owners. The Republican has expanded the most aggressive stage of his reopening plan to allow the operation of gyms and tanning salons next week after he said the businesses bombarded his office with calls. Still, he said it’s “way out in left field” to suggest he is making decisions based on political pressure.
WISCONSIN Madison: Local health officials across the state began rescinding their stay- at- home orders Friday after attorneys warned the mandates could be vulnerable to legal challenges because the state Supreme Court wiped out Gov. Tony Evers’ statewide order last week.
WYOMING Jackson: A ski hill that shut down in March due to the coronavirus pandemic plans to reopen starting Memorial Day weekend. Snow King Mountain has developed an operations plan and will open for the summer season as scheduled May 23, officials said Thursday.