People wait outside a supermarket to enter in small numbers, the result of citywide restrictions calling for people to stay indoors and maintain social distancing in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19, Saturday March 28, 2020, in New York. President Donald Trump says he is considering a quarantine affecting residents of the state and neighboring New Jersey and Connecticut amid the coronavirus outbreak, but New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that roping off states would amount to “a federal declaration of war.” (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews).

New York could exhaust ventilator stockpile in days

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned Thursday that the state’s supply of breathing machines could be exhausted in six days if the number of people made critically ill by the coronavirus outbreak continues at its current rate. The number of New Yorkers killed by the virus soared again, to 2,373.

A majority of the fatalities have been in New York City, but an increasing number of deaths are happening in the suburbs and elsewhere in the state. New data shows that the coronavirus pandemic is hitting especially hard in New York City neighborhoods that tend to be poorer.

Louisiana’s confirmed number of coronavirus cases spiked 42% higher Thursday as a backlog of test results poured in.

The spike in cases confirmed Gov. John Bel Edwards’ message that the virus’s footprint across the state is much wider than limited testing has been able to document so far.

Nearly 9,200 people have tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19, according to the latest figures released by the Louisiana Department of Health. That’s a jump of more than 2,700 confirmed cases from a day earlier and the largest single-day increase reported so far.

Edwards said many of the tests were done days ago, and he emphasized that most of those infected are self-isolating at home, not requiring a hospital bed.

The number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 did not show a similar jump. Louisiana’s death toll from the coronavirus disease grew to 310 in Thursday’s figures, 14% higher than the day before, recording an additional 37 people whose deaths from the virus have been confirmed.

Trump resists calls for a national stay-at-home order

President Donald Trump is resisting calls to issue a national stay-at-home order to stem the spread of the new coronavirus despite “sobering” new projections on Tuesday that 100,000 to 240,000 Americans will likely succumb to the coronavirus even if current social distancing guidelines are maintained.

Trump said Wednesday he wants to give governors’ “flexibility” on whether a stay-at-home policy is the best option for their constituents, but acknowledged that he’s looking at limiting air and rail travel between hot spots within the United States.

On Wednesday alone, five more states — Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Nevada and Pennsylvania — added or expanded their stay-at-home orders.

Republican governors in states like Florida, Texas and Nebraska have questioned the necessity of applying strong social distancing rules to rural or exurban areas that haven’t reported much evidence of the virus so far.

“There are some states that are different,” Trump told reporters Wednesday. “There are some states that don’t have much of a problem.”

Nearly 3,000 sailors to leave carrier amid virus outbreak

U.S. Navy officials say nearly 3,000 sailors aboard a U.S. aircraft carrier where the coronavirus has spread will be taken off the ship by Friday as military leaders struggle to quarantine crew members in the face of an outbreak. The USS Theodore Roosevelt is now docked in Guam. Navy leaders say fewer than 100 of the 5,000 sailors assigned to the Roosevelt have tested positive for the virus. But the Navy is moving sailors into various facilities and probably will begin using hotel rooms in the coming days. Navy leaders are talking with government officials to identify rooms for the crew members.

UN: Pandemic could shrink global economy almost 1% in 2020

The United Nations says the global economy could shrink almost 1% this year due to the new coronavirus, a sharp reversal from the pre-pandemic forecast of 2.5% growth. A report issued Wednesday warns that the decline could be even deeper if restrictions on economic activities extend into the third quarter and if fiscal stimulus efforts don’t support income and consumer spending. By comparison, it says, the world economy contracted 1.7% during the global financial crisis in 2009.

Two in Delaware cited for violating ban on group gatherings

Police in Delaware have cited two people for violating a prohibition on gatherings because of the coronavirus. Police responding a complaint about loud music at an apartment Wednesday night found 20 people celebrating a birthday.

The two tenants were issued summonses for violating the city’s noise ordinance and a March 16 ordinance that prohibits gatherings of more than 10 people. The guest were reminded of social distancing requirements. Gov. John Carney issued a similar restriction on gatherings of more than 10 people that was to take effect at 8 p.m. Thursday.

The prohibition applies to weddings, funerals and other activities.

Residents in one Texas city are being required to wear something that covers their nose and mouth when they’re out in public during the coronavirus outbreak – or else face a fine of up to $1,000.

Starting Today, all people over the age of 5 in Laredo will have to wear some kind of covering, such as a homemade mask, scarf, bandanna or handkerchief when entering a building open to the public. Residents will also have to cover their mouth and nose when using public transportation, taxis, ride shares or when pumping gas.

The new rule doesn’t apply to people riding in their own vehicles or if they are outside for exercise and following social distancing guidelines.

The mandate for wearing the covering was issued on Tuesday by Laredo’s city council. The South Texas city of more than 261,000 residents along the U.S.-Mexico border is about 155 miles (250 kilometers) southwest of San Antonio.

The Justice Department says it is distributing about 192,000 N-95 masks to frontline medical workers in New York and New Jersey that were found during an investigation by the new coronavirus hoarding and price gouging  task force

Officials say the masks, gloves, gowns, hand sanitizer and other personal protective equipment were found by the FBI on March 30. The Justice Department says it notified the Department of Health and Human Services, which compelled the supplies be turned over as part of the Defense Production Act.

Agents also found nearly 600,000 medical-grade gloves, 130,000 surgical masks, some N100 masks and disinfectant spray and towels.

Authorities said the owner would be paid “fair market value” for the supplies. The equipment is being sent to officials with the New York city and state health departments and the New Jersey Department of Health.

More dead in Italy due to the virus

Italy added another 760 dead to its coronavirus toll, bringing the count in the country with the most deaths to 13,915. But new infections continued to level off three weeks into the West’s first nationwide shutdown, with 4,668 new infections for a total official caseload of 115,242.

Pressure on hospitals in hard-hit Lombardy continued to ease, with more than 800 people recovered and 165 fewer people hospitalized with COVID-19 compared to a day earlier. Intensive care units are still saturated, but overall, Lombardy added just under 1,300 new positive cases, with about half of those infected being treated at home.

More than 10,000 medical personnel have been infected nationwide and 69 doctors have died, according to the National Institutes of Health and the Italian association of doctors.

Democrats delay nominating convention until week of Aug. 17

The Democratic National Committee is delaying its convention until the week of Aug. 17. The move comes after prospective nominee Joe Biden said he didn’t think it was possible to hold a normal convention in July because of the coronavirus.

The viral pandemic is forcing Democrats and Republicans to take a close look at at their summer conventions, which typically kick off the general election season. Biden made his statement in an interview Wednesday with NBC late-night comedian Jimmy Fallon.

Biden noted in a separate interview Tuesday that Democrats “have more time” to figure things out. Republicans are expressing confidence they can pull off their convention as scheduled in late August.

 U.S. calls for governments to release people jailed for practicing religion

The Trump administration is calling on governments around the world to immediately release hundreds of thousands if not millions of prisoners who have been jailed for peacefully practicing their religion.

The U.S. special envoy for religious freedom Sam Brownback said Thursday that the coronavirus pandemic had made the situation more urgent, particularly in authoritarian countries known for repression of religious minorities. He cited China, Indonesia, Iran, Eritrea, North Korea, Russia and Vietnam as having significant numbers of prisoners of religious conscience in jails.

“These are people who should not be in jail on the first place,” Brownback told reporters. “In this time of pandemic religious prisoners should be released. It’s good health practice and the right thing to do.”

Brownback also called for governments to push back on allegations from some quarters that religious minorities are to blame for the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

Olympic delay adds workload, costs and cash flow uncertainty

Postponing the Tokyo Olympics to 2021 will make the event more costly for all parties, the International Olympic Committee acknowledged on Thursday.

But it offered few details on what the final bill might be. Estimates of the extra costs range from $2 billion to $6 billion with Japanese taxpayers covering most of that.

Exactly how many billions of dollars the bill will be, or how the IOC will pay for its share, was not detailed by four directors of the Olympic body in a conference call Thursday. The IOC is waiting on receiving payments from broadcasters, and making payments to sports bodies who are due a share of those revenues.

The Czechs – the biggest beer drinkers per capita in the world – have been trying to save their beloved beer and bars amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Major brewers, including the Pilsner Urquell and Budweiser Budvar, are launching a campaign to help the establishments and watering holes struggling to survive a period of tough restrictions imposed to contain the outbreak.

The brewers say “the current situation is really critical.” They say some 250,000 jobs in the industry are under threat and “nobody knows how long it might take.”

The bars and restaurants have been ordered to shut down. Only some serve meals and drinks to go.

As part of the “Save a Bar” campaign, people can send money to their favorite bar or restaurant in exchange for vouchers they can use there once the crisis is over.

‘Top Gun Maverick’ postponed to December due to coronavirus

Hollywood’s summer movie season is all but finished. “Top Gun Maverick” is the latest would-be blockbuster to be rescheduled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Paramount Pictures on Thursday announced that “Top Gun Maverick” will now open Dec. 23 instead of June 24.

“Top Gun Maverick” follows an exodus of the big-budget spectacles that annually land in theaters in summertime. Most of the season’s top movies have in the last week have departed the summer, including “Wonder Woman 1984,” “Black Widow” and “Ghostbusters: Afterlife.”

Last year, summer ticket sales accounted for $4.3 billion in U.S. and Canadian theaters.  

What You Can Do to Keep Yourself and Your Family Healthy

• Take everyday preventive actions to stay healthy.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Stay home when you are sick.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
• Follow public health advice regarding school closures, avoiding crowds and other social distancing measures.