USA TODAY International Edition
Texas halts reopening plans amid surge in cases
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday halted the state’s reopening plan and suspended elective surgeries in its largest counties in order to expand hospital bed availability for COVID- 19 patients.
The state broke its record for hospitalizations for the 13th day in a row and reported 5,551 new cases Wednesday. The state is in Phase 3 of Abbott’s plan to reopen, which allowed restaurants to increase occupancy levels to 75% and most businesses to move to 50% occupancy. Abbott declined to roll back those orders.
“The last thing we want to do as a state is go backward and close down businesses,” Abbott said. “This temporary pause will help our state corral the spread until we can safely enter the next phase of opening our state for business.”
The U. S. on Wednesday saw more than 34,000 new coronavirus cases — the highest daily count since April — with three of the nation’s most populous states also reporting record- setting highs in daily cases.
Risks to pregnant women
Pregnant women may be at increased risk for severe illness from COVID- 19 compared with non- pregnant women, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, breaking from earlier guidance that found no difference in risk between the two groups. The good news is that pregnant women who are infected with COVID- 19 aren’t at any greater risk of death than women who aren’t pregnant, said a CDC official. The worse news is that infected pregnant women are more likely to be hospitalized and are at increased risk for ICU admission and to require mechanical ventilation.
Tax deadline delay
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has left the door open to extending the July 15 tax deadline for a second time to Sept. 15. The Treasury already pushed back the traditional April 15 deadline for federal 2019 returns.