Global Updates
- Boris Johnson held a press conference on Sunday to announce Britain’s reopening plan, but many felt that it just left the country confused. Johnson said that people could return to work who were not capable of WFH, but encouraged those who can to continue to do so. He also announced that Britain will be imposing a mandatory 14-day quarantine for all international travelers arriving by air, except for travelers from France and Ireland. Johnson signaled that outdoor restaurants would probably open by July and some shops and schools in June. He relaxed some restrictions on outdoor activities but upped the fines for disobeying social distancing. Read below to learn more about Britain’s 3-phase reopening plan.
- Putin declared that he was ending the nation’s “non-working period”, but he has encouraged governors to decide if their region is ready for reopening, and to institute changes based on regional outbreaks. Some believe that Russia is severely underreporting their death-toll with and that 70% of coronavirus-related deaths have not been reported in Moscow.
- There have been 221,344 cases recorded in Russia making it the country with the 3rd highest # of cases worldwide. Russia has initiated a massive testing campaign which may be why the #’s have spiked in recent days.
- Ghana’s president, Nana Akufo-Addo, extended a ban on public gatherings until at least June 1. Ghana has some of the highest case #’s in Africa, but they are also seen as having one of the more robust testing and contact-tracing programs.
- Iraq’s restriction order was eased 19 days ago. In that time period, case #’s have risen 73%. A funeral in Basra and a birthday party in Baghdad are thought to have been two super-spreading events.
- India’s massive train network will begin running again on Tuesday, even though they recorded their highest single-day jump in cases. All passengers will have to wear masks and will have their temperatures checked before boarding.
- Germany’s Rt has risen to 1.13 after trending steadily below .8. Some schools in Germany are making students self-administer diagnostic tests every 4 days. The results are emailed to them overnight; if a student tests positive they must stay home for 2 weeks, if they are negative, the student wears a green sticker which allows them to go to school without a mask.
- French citizens can now leave their homes without a permission slip. Some schools, offices, and retail have reopened. France will be split into red and green zones, with lockdown measures stricter in red areas.
- The WHO and UNAIDS said that a 6-month disruption of antiviral medication and other medical supplies could lead to 500,000 extra deaths from HIV in sub-Saharan Africa. They are calling for international assurance that the pandemic will not divert investment away from HIV treatment in sub-Saharan Africa.
- New Zealand is set to reopen to a much greater extent on Thursday. Restaurants will be able to seat 100 customers and almost all retail and public spaces will reopen with physical distancing required. Schools are planned to reopen on May 18 and if no outbreaks occur, bars will reopen on May 21.
- Spain recorded the lowest 24-hour death toll (123 coronavirus deaths) since March 19th.
- Officials in Wuhan have announced its first new cluster of locally transmitted cases, confirming 5 cases all from the same residential compound.
- In five school districts in Beijing, high school and middle school students are wearing smart bracelets that detect body temperature and alert officials of a fever or rising body temp. Officials say that the bracelets are much less disruptive to students than forehead scanners.
- Officials in Seoul are scrambling to contain a new outbreak stemming from nightclubs in the Itaewon neighborhood. So far, more than 2,450 people have been tested but officials are still trying to track down 3,000 other people who may have been exposed. School openings have been pushed back for another week while officials try to contain the new outbreak.
- According to a new journal article published in the European Heart Journal, Men’s blood has higher levels than women’s of a ACE2, which is a key enzyme used by the coronavirus to infect cells. This may contribute to the higher death toll of men vs. women, but the report only studied patients with heart failure, so more research is needed.
Domestic Updates
- Many officials in the West Wing have entered into a two-week quarantine, as fears grow that the virus has spread throughout the White House. Dr. Fauci, as well as Dr. Redfield, the Director of the CDC, and Dr. Hahn of the FDA will isolate for two weeks. VP Pence’s press secretary has tested positive for the virus. VP Pence will not self-quarantine and says he is tested daily.
- 10,000 Hasidic women in New York City will donate blood plasma. The Orthodox Jewish community in NYC was hit especially hard by the disease, but now thousands have the antibodies needed for plasma treatment.
- Palm Beach County reopened restaurants today at limited capacity, and Miami-Dade and Broward are expected to reopen restaurants and beaches on May 18th.
- Mayor de Blasio has said that he doesn’t foresee NYC exiting out of its lockdown before June and that June will only see the first phase of reopening.
- Gov. Cuomo announces that a few upstate NY regions will partially reopen this weekend after they met the requirements set forth by Cuomo’s office last week. The first phase will see a reopening of limited construction, manufacturing, and curbside retail. This also includes the reopening of some recreational activities such as tennis. The regions include Southern Tier, Mohawk Valley, and the Finger Lakes.*Gov. Cuomo has ordered that for a region to begin their phased-reopening, they must meet 7 metrics. As of today, NYC has reached 4/7.
- Gov. Cuomo said that 85 children have been hospitalized around NY State with what public officials believe is the inflammatory pediatric syndrome linked to Covid-19. He announced that 3 children have died from this syndrome and that 2 more deaths are being investigated. None of the children who died had underlying health conditions and they were all from different NY regions: a 5 year old from NYC, a 7-year-old from Westchester, and a teenager from Suffolk County.
- Michigan has reopened car manufacturing plants today after 6 weeks of closures, bringing thousands of people back to work and the automobile industry back into production.
- Salesforce has created a new tool to help companies “safely reopen”. The tool will allow companies to send out health surveys to employees and it can map workplace locations visited by employees who test positive. Salesforce has partnered with NYC to bolster its contact-tracing program.
- Nebraska, Maine, Wyoming, and Minnesota are the only states in the US (right now), that have an Rt value of 1.0 or higher. Kansas, Maryland, and Wisconsin are close behind.
This list has been curated by @jamieplancher