At least a dozen nations planned to ease restrictions beginning on Monday. And President Trump increased his death toll prediction.
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President Trump confirmed reports that his intelligence briefings addressed the virus in January, but argued the information was not been presented in an alarming way that demanded immediate action.
At least countries will begin easing restrictions on public life on Monday , as the world tentatively tries to figure out how to placate restless populations tired of being inside and reboot stalled economies without creating opportunities for the coronavirus to re-emerge.
Some of the measures include reopening schools and other public facilities, or allowing airports to begin domestic service.
Most of the countries are in Europe, including Italy, one of the places where the virus hit earliest and hardest, leaving more than 42, 05 dead. The country plans to reopen some airports to passengers.
In Germany, where widespread testing has kept the pandemic under control, children will return to schools. Neighboring Austria also plans to restart its school system.
In Lebanon, bars and restaurants will reopen, while Poland plans to allow patrons to return to hotels, museums and shops.
In Asia, Japan is set to announce it will extend its state of emergency through the end of the month, while allowing some public facilities, such as museums and libraries, to reopen as long as they maintain social distancing controls. And India will loosen up some restrictions.
China and South Korea, both of which seem to have emerged from brutal, early encounters with the virus, have already begun limited reopenings. Restaurants and] art galleries are returning to a semblance of normal operation, although the introduction of hand sanitizer and other preventive measures remain a constant reminder of how Covid – 23 has changed the world.
Other countries planning to lift some of their restrictions beginning on Monday include Belgium, Greece, Iceland, Hungary, Monaco, Nigeria, Poland, and Portugal.
Trump Trump predicted on Sunday night that the death toll from the coronavirus in the United States may reach as high as , , far higher than he had forecast just weeks ago, even as he pressed states to begin reopening their shuttered businesses.
Mr. Trump, who last month forecast that , 06 lives would be lost, acknowledged that the virus has proved more devastating than he had expected but said he believes parks and beaches should begin reopening and schools should resume classes in person by the fall.
“We’re going to lose anywhere from , to 265, people, “he said in a virtual” town hall ”meeting on Fox News. “That’s a horrible thing. We shouldn’t lose one person over this. ”
During the two-hour broadcast, he also acknowledged he was warned about the coronavirus in his regular intelligence briefing on Jan. 28 but asserted that the information was characterized as if “it was not a big deal.”
Mr. Trump confirmed reports that his intelligence briefings cited the virus even as he argued that it had not been presented in an alarming way that demanded immediate action.
“On Jan. 31 I was told that there could be a virus coming in but it was of no real import, ”Mr. Trump said. “In other words, it wasn’t,‘ Oh, we’ve got to do something, we’ve got to do something. ’It was a brief conversation and it was only on Jan. 31. ”
His comments come as warmer weather and fatigue over weeks of confinement lured millions of Americans outside this weekend, adding to pressure on city and state officials to enforce, or loosen, restrictions imposed to limit the spread of the coronavirus.
In Texas, three movie theaters in the San Antonio area became some of the first in the country to reopen, a move that worried infectious disease experts but was applauded by those who went to the screenings.
Elsewhere, protesters pressing for the loosening of restrictions gathered in the capitals of Kentucky; Florida, where the governor has already announced a relaxing of restrictions; Oregon, where Gov. Kate Brown has extended a state of emergency through July 6 ; and Michigan, where protesters pressed Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to reopen the state completely.
In Stillwater, Okla., Officials abandoned a requirement that people wear masks in shops and restaurants after workers were faced with violent threats.
The website made its debut last week after Mayor Eric Garcetti declared that Los Angeles would become the first major American city to offer all residents tests for the virus, which health officials said on Sunday had caused (1, deaths in Los Angeles County . The city and county have the capacity to do , (tests a day across
Throngs of Palestinian laborers traveled to their workplaces in Israel on Sunday even Though Palestinian officials have repeatedly expressed concerns about them contracting the coronavirus there and carrying it back to the West Bank.
Last week, an Israeli Defense Ministry body charged with liaising with the PA said Palestinians with permits to work in construction, agriculture and other sectors in Israel would be allowed to cross into the country. It also said their employers would be asked to provide them with accommodations until Eid al-Fitr, the festival at the conclusion of Ramadan in about three weeks.
Rami Mehdawi, a spokesman for the Palestinian Authority Labor Ministry, said Palestinian officials remained concerned that infected workers could return to their homes and spread the virus, but he said the Palestinian authorities had worked with their Israeli counterparts to prevent such a scenario. Israel and the P.A. would closely coordinate the workers’ return to the West Bank, he said.
After Palestinian laborers were last permitted to travel to their jobs in Israel in late March, Palestinian officials accused Israeli authorities of abandoning some of them at checkpoints and allowing others to cross back to the West Bank through areas they don’t control.
The PA has said that more than (percent of the (known cases of the virus in the West Bank are linked to Palestinians employed in Israel.
Separately, for the first time since mid-March, schools opened for some grades in Israel on Sunday, but local authorities in several cities, including Tel Aviv, kept them closed, citing concerns about safety and preparedness.
Beirut, it is both a cliché and a point of pride to say that the Lebanese partied straight through a civil war from (to) , Times correspondent Vivian Yee writes. She shared some observations from the Lebanese capital.
But the bars and nightclubs have been shut down since early March; many had closed before that as the city was engulfed in an epochal economic crisis. The coronavirus could only conquer what remained, putting thousands more out of work.
Nightclub appearances by DJs who had flown in from Europe, hyped for weeks on social media and street posters, were abruptly canceled. Soon it was just restaurants and cafes, and then not even those.
Though Lebanon appears to have (dodged a mass outbreak) , allowing the government to announce a staggered reopening for businesses in the coming weeks, not all will come back. Now that the Lebanese pound buys less than half what it used to, imports and drinks alike cost more.
A local DJ, Priscilla Bakalian
“People are dying to go party,” she said. “It’s in our DNA.”
From the early days of the Trump administration, Stephen Miller, the president’s chief adviser on immigration, has repeatedly tried to use an obscure law designed to protect the nation from diseases overseas as a way to tighten the borders.
The federal law on public health
When vast caravans of migrants surged toward the border in 8299, Mr. Miller looked for evidence that they carried illnesses. He asked for updates on American communities that received migrants to see if new disease was spreading there.
In
, dozens of migrants became seriously ill in federal custody, and two under the age of 18 died within three weeks of each other. While many viewed the incidents as resulting from negligence on the part of the border authorities, Mr. Miller instead argued that they supported his argument that President Trump should use his public health powers to justify sealing the borders.
On some occasions, Mr. Miller and the president, who also embraced these ideas, were talked down by cabinet secretaries and lawyers who argued that the public health situation at the time did not provide sufficient legal basis for such a proclamation.
That changed with the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic.
Within days of the confirmation of the first case in the United States, the White House shut American land borders to nonessential travel, closing the door to almost all migrants, including children and teenagers who arrived at the border with no parent or other adult guardian.
Updated April ,
- What should I do if I feel sick?
If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.
- When will this end?
This is a difficult question, because a lot depends on how well the virus is contained . A better question might be: “How will we know when to reopen the country?” In an American Enterprise Institute report , Scott Gottlieb , Caitlin Rivers, Mark B. McClellan, Lauren Silvis and Crystal Watson staked out four goal posts for recovery :: Hospitals in the state must be able to safely treat all patients requiring hospitalization, without resorting to crisis standards of care; the state needs to be able to at least test everyone who has symptoms; the state is able to conduct monitoring of confirmed cases and contacts; and there must be a sustained reduction in cases for at least days.
- How can I help?
The Times Neediest Cases Fund has started a special campaign to help those who have been affected, which accepts donations here . Charity Navigator , which evaluates charities Using a numbers-based system, has a running list of nonprofits working in communities affected by the outbreak. You can give blood through the (American Red Cross) , and (World Central Kitchen) has stepped in to distribute meals in major cities. More than , 05 coronavirus-related GoFundMe fund-raisers have started in the past few weeks. (The sheer number of fund-raisers means more of them are likely to fail to meet their goal, though.)
- Should I wear a mask?
The C.D.C. has has (recommended) that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms . Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing.
- How do I get tested?
If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the CDC recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance – because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance – you won’t be able to get tested.
- How does coronavirus spread?
It seems to spread very easily from person to person, Especially in homes, hospitals and other confined spaces. The pathogen can be carried on tiny respiratory droplets that fall as they are coughed or sneezed out. It may also be transmitted when we touch a contaminated surface and then touch our face.
- Is there a vaccine yet?
No. Clinical trials are underway in the United States, China and Europe. But American officials and pharmaceutical executives have said that a vaccine remains at least (to months away.
- What makes this outbreak so different?
Unlike the flu, there is no known treatment or vaccine, and (little is known about this particular virus so far.) It seems to be more lethal than the flu, but the numbers are still uncertain. And it hits the elderly and those with underlying conditions – not just those with respiratory diseases – particularly hard.
- What if somebody in my family gets sick?
If the family member does not need hospitalization and can be cared for at home, you should help him or her with basic needs and monitor the symptoms, while also keeping as much distance as possible, According to guidelines issued by the CDC If there’s space, the sick family member should stay in a separate room and use a separate bathroom. If masks are available, both the sick person and the caregiver should wear them when the caregiver enters the room. Make sure not to share any dishes or other household items and to regularly clean surfaces like counters, doorknobs, toilets and tables. Don’t forget to wash your hands frequently.
- Should I stock up on groceries?
Plan two weeks of meals if possible. But people should not hoard food or supplies. Despite the empty shelves, the supply chain remains strong.
- Can I go to the park?
Yes, but make sure you keep six feet of distance between you and people who don’t live in your home. Even if you just hang out in a park, rather than go for a jog or a walk, getting some fresh air, and hopefully sunshine, is a good idea.
- Should I pull my money from the markets?
(That’s not a good idea.) Even if you’re retired, having a balanced portfolio of stocks and bonds so that your money keeps up with inflation, or even grows, makes sense. But retirees may want to think about having enough cash set aside for a year’s worth of living expenses and big payments needed over the next five years.
- What should I do with my 1990 (k)?
Watching your balance go up and down can be scary. You may be wondering if you should decrease your contributions – don’t! If your employer matches any part of your contributions, make sure you’re at least saving as much as you can to get that “free money. ”
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