Residents of three states were due to be placed under house orders this weekend as health officials across the nation try to slow the spread of the COVID-19 community.
Illinois plans to request residents to stay as much as possible at home, in addition to meeting their basic needs, starting on Saturday night. New York plans to ban all non-essential travel starting Sunday evening. And California started on Friday. Connecticut and Oregon were preparing to do the same.
There are at least 260 deaths and over 19,600 confirmed cases in the United States worldwide, the death toll has exceeded 11,400, with 4,032 deaths in Italy, the country that has seen the most deaths. There are over 275,400 confirmed cases worldwide, according to the Johns Hopkins University data dashboard.
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Connecticut, Oregon tells residents to stay home
The governors of Connecticut and Oregon are telling residents to stay home.
“Tonight I will tell the Oregonians to stay home to stay healthy. Social distancing done well and done in advance can save lives,” Oregon Governor Kate Brown said at a press conference on Friday. Brown called the directive “both an order and a public awareness campaign”.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler he said on Twitter On Friday, he worked with the Governor and President of Multnomah County Deborah Kafoury to draft the specifications for the weekend. “This is not a blockade,” Wheeler said in the post. “This is an order” stay home unless you absolutely need to go out. “”
In Connecticut, Governor Ned Lamont announced on Friday an executive order that directs all non-essential activities and non-profit entities in the state to ban all in-person functions if they are able, in effect on Monday at 8:00 pm. Additional indications for businesses would be released on the weekend, he said.
Stocks are the worst week since the financial crisis
U.S. stocks fell on Friday, ending their worst week since the height of the financial crisis as investors remained nervous about the direction of the economy despite hopes for government and central bank action to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
The industrial average of Dow Jones fell by 913.21 points to close at 19,173.98, falling below 20,000 after wild price swings in the past week. The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell by 4.3% to end at 2,304.92. The Nasdaq Composite lost 3.8% to close at 6,879.52.
For the week, the Dow was down more than 17%, the worst percentage drop in a week since October 2008.
– Jessica Menton
Officials look to the malaria drug as experimental antivirals as COVID-19 therapies
President Donald Trump said this week that malaria-based chloroquine and experimental antiviral remdesivir are being tested as possible COVID-19 therapies and could slow the epidemic.
“It could have a very positive or positive effect, perhaps not much, but perhaps a positive one,” said Trump. “It’s very, very exciting.”
There is no current treatment for the virus other than supportive treatments which generally include intravenous fluids, oxygen, fever reducers and pain relievers.
Chloroquine has been in use since 1944 to combat malaria and has antiviral effects. Researchers believe it could interfere with the new virus’s ability to merge with cell walls and infect them.
Remdesivir is an antiviral drug used to treat the Ebola virus and is known to be effective against severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and middle eastern respiratory syndrome (MERS), both coronaviruses with similarities to SARS-CoV-2. It is an experimental drug developed ten years ago by Gilead Sciences, a California-based biotechnology company.
– Elizabeth Weise and Ken Alltucker
The border between the United States and Mexico will close for non-essential travel
The U.S.-Mexico border will be closed to non-essential travel to further help curb the spread of the new coronavirus, Trump announced on Friday.
“As we have done with Canada, we are also working with Mexico to implement new rules in our ports of entry to suspend non-essential travel,” said Trump. “These new rules and procedures do not hinder lawful trade and trade.” Trump said Mexico is also suspending air travel from Europe.
The expected announcement follows the closure of the US-Canadian border on non-essential travel, which was announced on Wednesday. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters that the closure would take place on Friday at midnight.
– David Oliver
The deadline for the tax day has gone back
The IRS will postpone the 90-day April 15 tax deadline for millions of people who owe $ 1 million or less and companies who owe $ 10 million or less, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said.
To be sure, Americans still have to meet the April 15th deadline if they expect a refund or request a six-month extension, but they can defer payment up to 90 days beyond.
“We encourage those Americans who can file their taxes to continue filing their taxes on April 15th because for many Americans you will get tax refunds and we don’t want you to lose those tax refunds,” said Mnuchin. “We want you to make sure you have them.”
“All you have to do is file your taxes,” said Mnuchin. “You will not be automatically charged interest and penalties.”
– Jessica Menton
The governor of Illinois issues a residence order for the entire state
The Illinois Government J.B. Pritzker on Friday announced a “home stay” order that will begin on Saturday and will last at least until April 7th.
Residents will still be able to go to the grocery store, walk their dogs and carry out all the essential activities. All non-essential businesses must close, and all people who can work from home must do so, Pritzker said.
All Illinois schools will remain closed until April 8th. Illinois is working with the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Wal-Mart and Walgreens to create drive-through test sites in the hardest-hit areas, state officials said.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the order “is not a blockade or martial law.” Pharmacies, grocery stories and clinics won’t close. Airports will be open and waste will be collected.
How many coronavirus cases in the United States?
The United States has had more than 19,600 coronavirus cases since Saturday morning and at least 260 deaths.
