The latest on the coronavirus pandemic around the U.S. and the world.

NEW YORK — The nation’s top public health agency on Thursday revamped its list of which Americans are at higher risk for severe COVID-19 illness, adding pregnant women and removing age alone as a factor.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also changed the list of underlying conditions that make someone more susceptible to suffering and death. Sickle cell disease joined the list, for example. And the threshold for risky levels of obesity was lowered.

The changes didn’t include adding race as a risk factor for serious illness, despite accumulating evidence that Black people, Hispanics and Native Americans have higher rates of infection, hospitalization and death.

Agency officials said the update was prompted by medical studies published since CDC first started listing high-risk groups. They sought to publicize the information before Independence Day weekend, when many people may be tempted to go out and socialize.

“For those at higher risk, we recommend limiting contact with others as much as possible, or restricting contacts to a small number of people who are willing to take measures to reduce the risk of (you) becoming infected,” said CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield.

The same advice holds for people who live with or care for people at higher risk, Redfield added.

Read the full story about the CDC’s changes in risk groups here.

Families of 3 deceased workers sue Tyson over Iowa outbreak

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The families of three workers who died after contracting the coronavirus in an Iowa meat plant outbreak sued Tyson Foods and its top executives Thursday, saying the company knowingly put employees at risk and lied to keep them on the job.

The lawsuit alleges that Tyson officials were aware the virus was spreading at the Waterloo pork processing plant by late March or early April but kept that information from employees and the public.

As the outbreak grew, the company failed to implement safety measures, allowed some sick and exposed employees to remain on the production line, and falsely assured workers and the public that the plant was safe, the suit alleges.

“Tyson intended by these false representations to deceive workers in the Waterloo facility … and to induce them to continue working despite the uncontrolled COVID-19 outbreak at the plant and the health risks associated with working,” according to the lawsuit, which was filed in Black Hawk County district court.

Tyson spokesman Gary Mickelson said the company was saddened by the deaths and that its “top priority is the health and safety of our workers.” He said Tyson has implemented safety measures that meet or exceed federal guidelines.

Meatpacking plants have been hot spots for coronavirus because of their crowded conditions, prompting several to temporarily close. Thousands of workers have become infected and several dozen have died.

The largest union representing meatpacking workers said Thursday that more than 14,000 employees at unionized plants have been infected with coronavirus and 65 have died.

Meat companies including Smithfield Foods and JBS USA and retailers such as Amazon and Walmart have been sued by the families of workers who died from coronavirus. But the lawsuit filed Thursday against Tyson may be the first involving multiple victims at one workplace during the pandemic, according to news reports.

U.S. virus cases near all-time high as governors backtrack

NEW YORK — The number of new coronavirus cases per day in the U.S. stood near an all-time high Thursday at more than 34,000, hovering close to the peak reached in late April during some of the darkest and deadliest days of the crisis.

While greatly expanded testing probably accounts for some of the increase, experts say other measures indicate the virus is making a comeback. Daily deaths, hospitalizations and the percentage of tests that are coming back positive for the virus have also have been rising over the past few weeks in parts of the country.

Amid the disturbing new signs, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who has pursued one of the most aggressive reopening schedules in the nation, began to backtrack. And Nevada’s governor ordered the wearing of face masks in public, Las Vegas casinos included.

The U.S. recorded 34,300 COVID-19 cases Wednesday, slightly fewer than the day before but still near the high of 36,400 reached on April 24, according to a count kept by Johns Hopkins University. The daily average has climbed by more than 50% in two weeks, according to an Associated Press analysis.

Whether the rise in cases translates into an equally dire surge in deaths across the U.S. overall will depend on a number of factors, experts said, most crucially whether government officials make the right decisions. Deaths per day number around 600 after peaking at about 2,200 in mid-April.

“It is possible, if we play our cards badly and make a lot of mistakes, to get back to that level. But if we are smart, there’s no reason to get to 2,200 deaths a day,” said Dr. Ashish Jha, director of Harvard’s Global Health Institute.

But he warned: “We have consistently underestimated this virus.”

In the past few weeks, the nation’s daily death toll has actually dropped even as cases climbed, an encouraging sign that may reflect the advent of new treatments, better efforts to prevent infections at nursing homes, and a rising proportion of cases among younger adults, who are more likely than their elders to survive a bout with COVID-19.

Several states set single-day case records this week, including Arizona, California, Mississippi, Nevada, Texas and Oklahoma.

Read the full story on daily U.S. cases here.

Texas pumps the brakes on reopening as virus cases soar

AUSTIN, Texas — Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday halted elective surgeries in Texas’ biggest counties and said the state would “pause” its aggressive re-opening as it deals with a surge in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations that has made it one of the nation’s virus hotspots.

The suspension of elective surgeries is designed to protect hospital space in the Dallas, Houston, Austin and San Antonio areas. Statewide, the number of COVID-19 patients has more than doubled in two weeks. Texas has reported more than 11,000 new cases in the previous two days alone.

The pause on further re-openings does not roll back previous orders that already allowed much of the economy to reopen. But it would appear to slow down any planned expansion of occupancy levels at places like bars, restaurants and amusement parks and other venues.

“We are focused on strategies that slow the spread of this virus while also allowing Texans to continue earning a paycheck to support their families,” Abbott said in a statement. “The last thing we want to do as a state is go backwards and close down businesses. This temporary pause will help our state corral the spread until we can safely enter the next phase of opening our state for business.”

By reimposing a ban on elective surgeries, the Republican is returning to one of his first actions when the virus first emerged in Texas in March. He later rescinded the order during an aggressive reopening of the state in May that lifted lockdown orders ahead of most of the U.S.

Abbott this week has taken a newly urgent tone about the worsening trends and is now telling the public they should stay home. On Thursday, the number of hospitalizations climbed to nearly 4,400 patients, setting a new record for a 13th consecutive day.

Abbott has also urged Texans to wear masks in public. The governor hasn’t issued a statewide mask order, but the state’s cities and counties has imposed new orders on businesses to require customers and workers to wear face coverings.

Delta threatens permanent ban on passengers refusing to wear masks

The chief executive of Delta Air Lines said in a memo to all employees Thursday that any passenger who refuses to wear a mask or follow any other safety requirement on flights may be permanently banned from flying with Delta.

“We take the requirement to wear a mask very seriously,” Ed Bastian wrote. “So far, there have thankfully only been a handful of cases, but we have already banned some passengers from future travel on Delta for refusing to wear masks on board.”

Last month, Delta joined other U.S. airlines in mandating face coverings to help protect passengers and staff from contracting and spreading the coronavirus. Delta also has instituted several other safety measures to prevent the spread of the virus, including cleaning aircraft surfaces before every flight, blocking middle seats and capping the passenger capacity in the main cabin at 60 percent.

Despite the precautions, many Americans have abandoned travel plans. Bastian said that even as Delta has seen a steady increase in passenger volume as it adds flights, he expects summer demand to be just 25 percent of last year’s revenue.

A return to “normal,” he said, is probably years away.

Trump does not plan to abide by quarantine during visit to New Jersey

When he visits his Bedminster golf club this weekend, President Trump does not plan to abide by a new travel advisory in New Jersey and nearby states that are telling anyone coming from places hard hit by the coronavirus to quarantine for 14 days, the White House indicated.

Trump traveled earlier this week to Arizona, among the states designated as hot spots by the governors of Connecticut, New Jersey and New York when they announced their quarantine period Wednesday. Connecticut and New Jersey do not have plans to enforce the measure, while New York has made violations punishable by fines starting at $2,000.

“Anyone who is in close proximity to him, including staff, guests and press, are tested for COVID-19 and confirmed to be negative,” White House spokesman Judd Deere said in a statement.

“With regard to Arizona, the White House followed its COVID mitigation plan to ensure the president did not come into contact with anyone who was symptomatic or had not been tested,” Deere said. “Anyone traveling in support of the president this weekend will be closely monitored for symptoms and tested for COVID and therefore pose little to no risk to the local populations.”

As of Wednesday, the travel advisory applied to Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Utah and Texas.

During an appearance on CNN on Wednesday night, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) played down concerns about Trump’s plans, noting that “there is a carve-out for essential workers, and I think by any definition the president of the United States is an essential worker.”

“I think the bigger point here is we want folks to really be responsible in terms of thinking about not just themselves, but their family and their communities,” Murphy said. “And we’ve beaten this virus down to a pulp in New Jersey with an enormous loss of life. We’ve been through hell, and we don’t want to go through hell again.”

1.48 million  jobless claims filed last week, as the economic strain of the pandemic continues

WASHINGTON — The number of laid-off workers who applied for unemployment benefits declined slightly to 1.48 million last week, the 12th straight drop and a sign that layoffs are slowing but are still at a painfully high level.

The steady decline in claims suggests that the job market has begun to slowly heal from the pandemic, which shuttered businesses and sent the unemployment rate up to 14.7% in April, its highest level since the Great Depression.

Read the full story.

State officials, companies delay reopening measures after record high in new infections

As new coronavirus cases in the United States reached their highest single-day level yet on Wednesday, companies and state officials appeared to be taking matters into their own hands.

While Vice President Pence urged senators to focus on “encouraging signs,” several governors and CEOs were instead responding to mounting indications of a deadly surge in cases across the South and West. Nevada and North Carolina ordered residents to wear masks in public, and Virginia moved to implement new workplace safety rules that would force companies to protect workers from infection. Disneyland delayed plans to reopen, and the governors of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut announced a mandatory 14-day quarantine for visitors from certain hard-hit states.

The 38,173 new infections reported by state health departments Wednesday underscored the changing geography of the U.S. outbreak. The bulk of the cases were posted in Texas, Florida and California, while Oklahoma also set a new statewide record in infections. Since the start of the pandemic, the United States has recorded more than 2.3 million coronavirus cases and at least 119,000 deaths, while the global number of cases has soared past 9 million.

France to test some 1.3 million near Paris

PARIS — France is stepping up efforts to root out hidden clusters of coronavirus infections by offering tests to nearly 1.3 million people in the Paris region.

The expansion of France’s testing program was announced Thursday by the health minister, Olivier Véran, in an interview with the newspaper Le Monde. Health authorities will send out coupons that people can exchange for a test.

“The aim is to identify any sleeping clusters, that’s to say invisible concentrations of asymptomatic people,” Veran was quoted as saying.

The minister said France is also arming itself for the possibility of a second wave of infections, reconstituting its stocks of medicines and making plans to be able to treat 30,000 people in intensive care if necessary.

France had more than 7,000 patients in intensive care at the peak in April of its outbreak that has killed nearly 30,000 people. That figure is now down to under 700.

Eiffel Tower reopens to tourists — at least the ones who like stairs

France’s Eiffel Tower, which attracts an estimated 7 million visitors each year, reopened to the public Thursday after a three-month closure amid the global health crisis — although those visiting the landmark will have to take the stairs for now.

According to the tower’s official Twitter account, it takes approximately 10 minutes to climb each level, and just the first two floors are open at this time, with the top floor expected to open later this summer.

The attraction’s public spaces will be thoroughly disinfected daily, and the elevator will begin taking small groups starting next week.

Upon reopening, stringent health and safety measures are in place to stop further transmission of the virus, and face masks must be worn by all guests over the age of 11. Guests are asked to remain 1.5 meters (about five feet) apart and must enter and exit the venue at different locations.

The total number of people allowed on each floor will be capped.

Photos shared on social media Thursday showed visitors wearing face masks posing for selfies on the first and second floors.

The opening was celebrated with fanfare beneath the 324-meter (1,063-foot) tower on Thursday. Musicians stood spaced apart and wore face coverings as they banged drums and danced outside.

🇫🇷 Premiers visiteurs aux 1er et 2e étages 😃 10 mn de montée par étage seulement ! 💖
🇬🇧 Our first visitors arrive at the 1st and 2nd floors. 10 minutes only to climb each level 💪#tourEiffel #EiffelTower pic.twitter.com/GBf26ElSAD

— La tour Eiffel (@LaTourEiffel) June 25, 2020

At least 29,734 people lost their lives to the coronavirus in France, and the country has more than 197,000 confirmed cases. France began lifting its lockdown restrictions in May, while Phase 2 of easing the rules began earlier this month.

Last week, French President Emmanuel Macron made his first foreign trip since February and was greeted from a social distance in London by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and heir to the throne Prince Charles.

Macron’s visit was to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Charles de Gaulle’s radio broadcast from London in June 1940, when he sounded the first call for French resistance to Nazi Germany in World War II.

Tulsa records a record spike in cases

OKLAHOMA CITY — Tulsa health officials on Wednesday reported a record spike in COVID-19 cases in the county but said it’s too soon to attribute any increase in infections to President Donald Trump’s campaign rally.

The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported a one-day record increase of 482 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the confirmed total to at least 11,510. The previous record of 450 was reported last Thursday.

Tulsa Health Department Director Bruce Dart says the new cases have been linked to gatherings such as funerals, weddings and people going to bars. He says because the incubation period is anywhere from two to 14 days, the virus could be spread for weeks after that by anybody exposed during Saturday’s rally.

Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum says he’s concerned that residents of the city are getting lax in their daily lives, not socially distancing, not wearing face masks, or frequently washing hands. He says the uptick began long before the rally.

Philippine government seeks to extend Duterte’s emergency powers

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government will seek to extend a law granting emergency powers to President Rodrigo Duterte to deal with the pandemic as the threat of future outbreaks remains.

Congress granted Duterte extra powers in March that included the authority to realign huge budgets to provide aid to millions of poor families and make emergency medical purchases under the law, which expired this week.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said Duterte plans to call a special session of Congress to pass a law extending his powers.

The Philippines has reported nearly 32,300 infections, including more than 1,200 deaths, among the highest in Southeast Asia.

Pandemic ‘picking up speed very quickly’ on African continent

JOHANNESBURG — Africa’s coronavirus cases have surged to more than 336,000, an increase of nearly 10,000 infections from Wednesday evening.

That’s according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The jump is largely due to South Africa announcing its largest daily number of new cases: 5,688.

The Africa CDC chief says the pandemic on the 54-nation continent “is picking up speed very quickly” while shortages of testing materials and medical equipment remain severe in many countries.

More than 4 million tests for the virus have been conducted on the continent of 1.3 billion people, far short of the ideal.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, has more than 22,000 cases amid concerns that many infections there and elsewhere might not be recorded.

Dubai lifts curfew, bars open then are shut down

DUBAI — The skyscraper-studded city of Dubai has ended its monthslong nightly curfew set over the coronavirus pandemic.

The city-state in the United Arab Emirates made the announcement in a tweet from the government’s Dubai Media Office late Wednesday.

It said there would be “free move all day & night” as long as people wore masks and maintained social distancing.

However, the emirate also reportedly shut down all bars and pubs Tuesday after briefly allowing them to reopen, cutting into lucrative alcohol sales. Dubai police, which oversees alcohol sales, and government officials did not respond to requests for comment.

The curfew began in late March and for a while involved a 24-hour lockdown in which people needed police permission to move on the street.

A nighttime curfew in Abu Dhabi similarly lifted, though the sheikhdom remains closed off to other emirates over the pandemic.

New Delhi is worst hit as number of cases grow in India

NEW DELHI — India has counted another record daily high in new virus cases as New Delhi grew to its worst-hit city.

India registered 16,922 cases in the past 24 hours, taking the national total to 473,105. The Health Ministry on Thursday also reported 418 more deaths, taking fatalities up to 14,894. The ministry said the recovery rate was continuing to improve at 56%.

With New Delhi causing a major concern with 70,390 cases, authorities have decided to carry out a house-to-house screening in the capital over the next two weeks.

Officials will go to each household to record each resident’s health details and test those who show or report symptoms.

New Delhi’s government has projected that cases in the capital area alone could expand to more than half a million by late July, and is considering taking over luxury hotels and stadiums to convert into field hospitals.

Armed forces personnel are providing medical care and attention to coronavirus patients kept in railroad coaches that have been turned into medical wards at nine locations in the Indian capital.

Hawaii amends quarantine rules

HONOLULU — Starting Aug. 1, travelers arriving in Hawaii from out of state may bypass a 14-day quarantine requirement if they test negative for COVID-19.

Since late March, Hawaii has been requiring travelers from outside the islands to stay in their hotel rooms or homes for two weeks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The move has helped keep down disease numbers but has also contributed to the collapse of the tourism industry and sent unemployment soaring.

The plan announced Wednesday is like Maine’s  which allows travelers to avoid quarantine if they take a test within 72 hours before arrival and test negative. If the test result is not available upon arrival, travelers must stay in quarantine until the result is known.

Gov. David Ige hasn’t yet set a time limit for when the tests will need to be done, but he said 72 hours was reasonable.

“People do need to get back to work, but it must be done in a manner that protects the health of our community,” Ige said at a news conference.

Hawaii the lowest per capita infection rate of any U.S. state. As of Wednesday, the islands have had 835 cases and 17 deaths.

DOJ says Hawaii quarantine discriminates

HONOLULU — The U.S. Department of Justice says a traveler quarantine in Hawaii that was imposed to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus discriminates against out-of-state residents.

The Justice Department has filed a statement of interest in a federal lawsuit filed by Nevada and California residents who own property in Hawaii and are challenging the quarantine mandate.

Travelers arriving in Hawaii must quarantine for 14 days or face up to a year in jail and a $5,000 fine. Some tourists and residents have been arrested for breaking quarantine.

The Hawaii attorney general’s office says the Justice Department’s arguments and the lawsuit have no merit.

Australia deploys health worker to test in Melbourne suburb that is a hot spot

SYDNEY — Australian health workers will go door-to-door testing more than 100,000 residents in a coronavirus hot spot in suburban Melbourne that is threatening to undo the nation’s success in battling the virus.

Victoria state on Thursday reported 33 new cases, the highest daily number in more than two months.

Premier Daniel Andrews says the testing aims to collect samples from half of all residents in 10 suburbs. He says the goal is to test 10,000 people daily over 10 days. The tests are free and Andrews is urging people to see undergoing testing as a civic duty.

More than 1,000 military personnel are helping with the operation, while other states will help process the test results.

Australia has reported more than 7,500 cases of the virus, including 104 deaths.

Nevada will mandate masks as cases rise after restaurant casino openings

CARSON CITY, Nev. — Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak says the state will begin mandating the use of face-coverings in public places in an effort to stem a rise in coronavirus cases four weeks after casinos, restaurants and other businesses started reopening.

Nevada has reported more than 14,300 coronavirus cases and 494 deaths from COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic.

The governor says Nevada residents must make face coverings “a routine part of our daily life” in order to keep businesses open and people safe.

Nevada joins several states, including California, Washington and North Carolina, in mandating face coverings.

Seoul continues to see an uptick in case numbers

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea has reported 28 more coronavirus cases as the country strives to suppress a resurgence of the virus, mostly in the densely populated Seoul metropolitan area.

The figures released Thursday by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention bring the country’s total to 12,563 cases, with 282 deaths. The agency says 10,974 people have recovered, while 1,307 patients are still in COVID-19 treatment.

South Korea has seen an uptick in infections since easing its strict social distancing rules. But the daily increase hasn’t reached the level of late February and early March, when South Korea saw hundreds of new cases every day.

Most of recent cases have been associated with nightlife establishments, church gatherings, a huge e-commerce warehouse and door-to-door sellers.

China reports 19 new cases

BEIJING — China has reported 19 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus amid mass testing in Beijing, where a recent outbreak appears to have been brought under control.

Of the new cases reported Thursday, 13 were in Beijing and one in the neighboring province of Hebei. Officials say the other five were brought by Chinese travelers from outside the country. No new deaths were reported.

China has reported 4,634 deaths among 83,4449 cases since the virus was first detected in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.

This month’s outbreak in Beijing saw 249 people infected, most of them with links to the city’s biggest wholesale market. Since then, 3 million test samples have been taken from 2.43 million people in the city.

Copy the Story Link