ATHENS, Greece — Coronavirus cases hit new daily highs this week in Russia, and Germany and the U.K. announced plans Tuesday to expand virus testing as European countries battled rapidly increasing COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations.

Nations reintroduced restrictions to get ahead of a virus that has caused more than 1.2 million deaths around the globe, over 270,000 of them in Europe, according to Johns Hopkins University, and is straining health care systems.

New measures took effect Tuesday in Austria, Greece and Sweden, following a partial shutdown imposed in Germany on Monday and tighter rules in Italy, France, Kosovo and Croatia. England faces a near-total lockdown from Thursday, although schools and universities will stay open.

Infections spiked in Russia, where authorities reported 18,648 new cases Tuesday. It was the fifth straight day of more than 18,000 confirmed cases, compared to the country’s daily record of over 11,000 in the spring.

Russia has the world’s fourth-highest reported coronavirus caseload with over 1.6 million people confirmed infected, including more than 28,000 who died in the pandemic.

The country lifted most virus-related restrictions this summer, and Russian officials say the health care system can cope. However, alarming reports have surfaced of overwhelmed hospitals, drug shortages and inundated medical workers.

Sweden, where the government skipped the lockdowns other nations adopted for a much-debated approach that kept much of society open, set new nationwide limits on restaurants and cafes, ordering them them to serve only seated customers and with a maximum of eight per table. The Scandinavian country announced local restrictions in three more counties that include Sweden’s largest cities.

“We are going in the wrong direction. The situation is very serious,” Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said. “Now, every citizen needs to take responsibility. We know how dangerous this is.”

The country of 10 million people has 134,532 reported cases and nearly 6,000 deaths.

Amid the gloom, a partial lockdown in the Netherlands appeared to be paying off; Dutch officials reported the number of new confirmed cases fell 5 percent to 64,087 in the past seven days, the first decline in weeks.

The fall came three weeks after the government put the nation of 17 million on partial lockdown, including closing bars and restaurants, halting amateur sports for adults and urging people to work from home.

Dutch authorities remain concerned the number of COVID-19 patients is putting an unbearable strain on hospitals, and Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced further restrictions Tuesday night.

“It’s not going too bad but certainly not good enough. The infection numbers have to go down quicker,” Rutte said as he explained that the government was closing cinemas, theaters, swimming pools and museums for two weeks.

He warned that some regions could be placed under curfews if infection rates do not drop, and warned residents of the Netherlands not to travel abroad until mid-January.

In Italy, Premier Giuseppe Conte late Tuesday signed a decree putting more pandemic limits on the country, RAI state radio said. The government was poised to announce details Wednesday. But earlier in the week, Conte said the stiffer measures would include an overnight, nationwide curfew.

Italy’s new decree would also ban people from entering or leaving the nation’s hardest-hit regions and shut down all non-essential shops in those places. Just which regions will be determined Wednesday after health experts study the latest numbers on infections and hospital-bed capacity.

Virus hospitalizations surge as pandemic shadows U.S. election

Americans went to the polls Tuesday under the shadow of a resurging pandemic, with an alarming increase in cases nationwide and the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 reaching record highs in a growing number of states.

While daily infections were rising in all but three states, the surge was most pronounced in the Midwest and Southwest.

Missouri, Oklahoma, Iowa, Indiana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and New Mexico all reported record high hospitalizations this week. Nebraska’s largest hospitals started limiting elective surgeries and looked to bring in nurses from other states to cope with the surge. Hospital officials in Iowa and Missouri warned bed capacity could soon be overwhelmed.

The resurgence loomed over candidates and voters, fearful of both the virus itself and the economic toll of any new shutdowns to control its spread. The debate over how far to take economically costly measures has divided a country already sharply polarized over President Trump’s turbulent four years in office.

The pandemic colored who voters chose at the ballot box and how they did it. While many Americans took advantage of expanded access to mail-in voting, lines were long in many polling places, with record turnout expected and reminders of the pandemic were everywhere.

“It’s very serious that we have 400 people gathered in one space at the height of the pandemic here in Wisconsin. So, we’ve tried to take every measure to limit the movement throughout the room,” said Claire Woodall-Vogg, the election commission director of the city of Milwaukee, where poll workers were spread out into 12 different pods to limit contact.

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Vermont issues guidance for ski resorts, school sports

Vermont officials released guidance Tuesday on the operation of ski resorts and on school-based winter sports amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Skiers and riders must attest when they arrive at a ski area that they have read, understood and complied with Vermont’s existing guidance on travel and quarantining, and ski resorts must collect and maintain contract tracing information from every guest, as well as reduce their lodge and lift capacity, Ted Brady, deputy commerce secretary, said Tuesday during the state’s twice-weekly virus briefing.

“The guidance we’re issuing today aims to provide skiers and riders with the safest skiing and riding experience in the country,” he said.

Lift capacity must be reduced by half except for a party that is traveling together, and an enclosed lift, such as a gondola, may serve only one party unless it’s large enough to allow for 6 feet of distance between customers, like the tram at Jay Peak, Brady said.

“It requires the ski areas to considerably alter how they’re going to do business this winter,” he said. The Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing is going to work with the ski areas to educate skiers and riders.

School sports will also be different this winter. Spectators will not be allowed at indoor sporting events, and wrestling and indoor track will not take place, said natural resources Secretary Julie Moore.

“Fully appreciating the important physical and mental health benefits school-based sports provide to our students athletes, supporting in-person instruction remains a priority. And as we continue to see clear evidence of just how fragile this can be with growing case counts and positivity rates both regionally, but also here in Vermont, we are taking necessary precautions,” she said.

All players and staffers, as well as referees and officials, must wear masks for indoor sporting events. The guidance also strongly discourages in-person team-based social gatherings this winter. Practice may begin Nov. 30, and teams may have interscholastic games, meets and competitions starting Jan. 11, 2021.

“Providing six weeks between the start of practice and the first games is intentional, allowing time for health officials to look for any trends that may emerge and make further adjustments if and as needed,” Moore said.

Vermont reported 19 new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, for a statewide total to date of 2,237. The total number of deaths has remained at 58. Vermont has had the lowest fatality rate in the country since the pandemic began, said Michael Pieciak, financial regulation commissioner, who is managing the state’s COVID-19 data.

An outbreak linked to sporting teams at a Montpelier ice rink has grown to 112 cases. The outbreak has caused a subsequent one at St. Michael’s College, which has 65 cases, according to Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine.

NFL legend John Elway tests positive for the coronavirus

John Elway, the legendary quarterback who has become a Super Bowl-winning front office executive while overseeing the Denver Broncos’ football operations, has tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Elway and Joe Ellis, the team’s chief executive officer, were told Tuesday morning that they had tested positive, the Broncos said in a written statement.

“Other than mild symptoms, both Joe and John are doing well,” the team said in its statement. “They will continue to work from home in self-isolation and participate in virtual meetings while their health is monitored.”

Elway, 60, serves as the Broncos’ president of football operations and general manager. He won two Super Bowl titles with the team as its Hall of Fame quarterback, then was the roster architect of the Broncos’ Super Bowl triumph in the 2015 season with Peyton Manning at quarterback.

The Broncos said that Elway left the team’s training facility Monday morning “after experiencing minor symptoms that he quickly brought to the attention of our medical staff.”

Ellis, 61, is experiencing mild symptoms, according to a person familiar with the situation. The team said that Ellis was “not feeling 100 percent” Sunday morning, reported his symptoms to the Broncos’ medical staff and watched that day’s game from home. Ellis worked from home Monday before receiving his positive test result Tuesday, according to the Broncos.

All league and team facilities are closed Tuesday for Election Day.

“Based on a review of contact tracing data with the league, we are confident these cases originated independently outside team facilities,” the Broncos said. “There were minimal close contacts identified for each (no players or coaches), and those individuals have been notified.”

Broncos offensive lineman Graham Glasgow reportedly tested positive last week for the coronavirus and the team canceled its practice Friday. Three Broncos assistant coaches have been isolated under the sport’s coronavirus protocols in recent weeks.

Cruise industry throws in the towel on 2020, looks to 2021

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The cruise industry has jettisoned hopes of restarting operations this year.

Days after both Carnival and Norwegian extended a halt on cruises through the end of the year, the group that represents cruise lines with 95% of global ocean-going capacity said Tuesday that its members have agreed to extend the suspension of U.S. sailing operations for the rest of 2020.

The announcement comes just days after the U.S. government effectively lifted its no-sail order despite a global spike in coronavirus infections.

Cruise Lines International Association — which includes cruise giants Princess, Carnival, and Royal Caribbean — said that its members have voluntarily opted to maintain the current suspension of cruise operations in the U.S. through the end of the year.

Members “will use the remainder of the year to prepare for the implementation of extensive measures to address COVID-19 safety” with the guidance of public health experts and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the association said.

On Friday, federal health officials issued new rules that will enable large cruise ships to start sailing again in U.S. waters, though not immediately. Among the CDC’s requirements is that ship owners must test all passengers and crew at the start and end of all voyages, which are limited to seven days.

In mid-March, the CDC ordered cruise ships to stop sailing to U.S. ports after several outbreaks convinced officials that the vessels were potential cauldrons of infection. After being renewed several times the most recent order expired in October, with the new guidelines effectively bringing the no-sail order to an end.

The cruise industry has been essentially closed for business since mid-March, when it became clear that the deadly and contagious virus had already been sweeping through the U.S. unabated for weeks. The cruise association estimates that the suspension of cruises snuffed out more than $25 billion in economic activity, and 164,000 American jobs.

Shares in the major cruise line companies started to decline in February as the virus spread, and hit bottom in mid-March when the U.S. economy effectively shut down. Companies have suffered billions in losses this year, wiping out more than 70% of their value.

The CDC’s guidelines from last week say that in order to resume carrying passengers, the companies have to demonstrate they have procedures for testing, quarantining and isolating passengers and crew. They will have to build test labs on all ships, and make their own arrangements to isolate or quarantine passengers on shore if needed. Before being allowed to sail, they will have to conduct mock voyages with volunteers playing passengers who get sick, the CDC said.

Russia reports 18,000 cases for 5th straight day

MOSCOW — Russia reported more than 18,000 daily coronavirus cases for a record five straight days.

On Tuesday, the government’s coronavirus task force registered 18,648 confirmed cases. The previous record was more than 11,000 daily infections, set in the spring.

Russia currently has the world’s fourth-largest coronavirus caseload of 1.6 million. There’s been nearly 29,000 confirmed deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Russia has seen a surge in the past two months, with the number of new infections spiking from more than 5,000 a day in early September to 18,000 a day this week.

However, authorities have resisted a second lockdown or shutting down businesses despite reports about overwhelmed hospitals, drug shortages and inundated medical workers.

Fauci would be hard to fire, despite Trump crowd chants

As a career civil servant, Anthony Fauci is not an easy man to fire, despite the pleas of a crowd of Donald Trump supporters chanting at a weekend rally.

The latest tiff between Fauci and the president came following Trump’s campaign statements that the U.S. has “turned the corner” on the pandemic. Fauci, in a Washington Post interview on Saturday, said America “could not possibly be positioned more poorly” as it heads into the winter. The U.S. recorded nearly 100,000 new cases Friday, the most at any point in the pandemic.

Fauci also offered praise for the campaign of former Vice President Joe Biden, saying it was taking the coronavirus “seriously from a public health perspective.” Then came the “fire Fauci” chants from the crowd at a Sunday evening rally for the president in Florida, mirroring the “lock her up” rally chants targeting Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016.

“Don’t tell anybody, but let me wait until a little bit after the election. I appreciate the advice, I appreciate it,” Trump replied to the crowd. “No, he’s been wrong on a lot. He’s a nice man, though. He’s been wrong on a lot.”

Fauci, a member of the Trump’s Coronavirus Task Force, has led the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since being named in 1984 under then-President Ronald Reagan. Trump routinely muses about things in his rallies, and it isn’t clear whether he is considering firing Fauci. The president, though, has all but frozen out Fauci, who has lost influence to Scott Atlas, an adviser who downplays the risk of the virus.

It’s not the first time the issue of firing Fauci has surfaced. Speaking to reporters on Oct. 19, Trump said he didn’t want to fire Fauci. “I don’t want to, I don’t want to hurt him.” Trump said. “He’s been there for about 350 years.”

Biden, meanwhile, had a different message at a rally in Ohio. “Elect me and I’m going to hire Dr. Fauci,” Biden said.

Fauci is a Title 42 senior-level federal employee, covered under the performance management system for members of the Senior Executive Service. The White House declined to comment Monday on whether it believes it has the authority to fire him.

But Diane Seltzer Torre of the Bethesda, Md.-based Seltzer Law Firm, which concentrates on employment law, said that under Fauci’s current status, Trump can’t fire him directly.

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British government plans citywide virus testing program

LONDON — The British government plans to trial a new citywide coronavirus testing program in Liverpool, offering regular testing to everyone who lives and works in the city of 500,000 in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.

Testing will take place throughout the city using a variety of technologies, including new methods that can provide results in an hour or less.

The Department of Health says, “these more advanced tests will help identify infectious individuals who are not displaying symptoms … so they can self-isolate and prevent the virus from spreading.”

The Liverpool trial is seen as a test of how Britain may roll out mass testing across the country, which is facing a surge in coronavirus infections. England is scheduled to begin a second national lockdown on Thursday.

Liverpool has one of the highest infection rates in England, with more than 410 cases per 100,000 people.

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