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President Donald Trump said Monday he is taking the anti-malaria drug despite warnings about its effectiveness.
USA TODAY
President Donald Trump told reporters he is taking the unproven drug hydroxychloroquine as part of his personal fight against the coronavirus, for which he has tested negative, despite warnings from his own government that it should only be administered for COVID-19 in a hospital or research setting due to potentially fatal side effects.
The president also issued a fiery letter to the World Health Organization, threatening to permanently withhold U.S. funding from the United Nations health agency. Later Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will likely come under tough questioning from senators about the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a small business lending program included in the government’s $2 trillion relief package.
The U.S. has the largest coronavirus outbreak in the world with more than 90,300 deaths and 1.5 million confirmed cases, according to the Johns Hopkins University data dashboard. Worldwide, the virus has killed nearly 320,000 people and infected more than 4.8 million.
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Here are some highlights to know Tuesday:
- President Donald Trump announced he was taking hydroxychloroquine, a drug he’s repeatedly touted as a treatment for coronavirus, despite warnings about its effectiveness and safety. He also threatened to permanently stop U.S. funding to the World Health Organization pending “major substantive improvements within the next 30 days.”
- MLB negotiations are supposed to resume this week, with perhaps the biggest hurdle being economic: Owners will ask players to assume part of the risk of playing with no fans. The hope remains that at least 82 regular-season games can be played beginning by July 4 with strict health protocols in place.
- The rate of infection in the U.S. – what experts are referring to when they talk about “flattening the curve” – has slowed. Even so, the nation is still averaging about 1,000 COVID-19 deaths a day, roughly twice the number of deaths from 9/11 every week.
What we’re talking about: Tingling in the hands or feet can be associated with COVID-19, but not the way you may think. It’s a symptom of the rare disorder Guillain-Barré syndrome. An April study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found five out of 1,200 coronavirus patients developed it.
Some good news: This Maryland restaurant’s inner tube social distancing tables are the actual best.
Staying Apart, Together: USA TODAY brings a newsletter about how to cope with these trying times straight to your inbox. 📥
‘This will kill you’: Fox News host, Pelosi warn against hydroxychloroquine
Fox News host Neil Cavuto had strong words for his viewers following President Donald Trump’s comments that he was taking hydroxychloroquine despite a lack of evidence of its effectiveness in fighting the coronavirus and warnings of adverse effects.
“This will kill you,” Cavuto said of patients taking the drug who are in a vulnerable population.
The Food and Drug Administration last month warned against the use of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine for COVID-19 treatment outside of hospitals or clinical trials due to the risk of heart rhythm problems.
Trump has touted the drug for weeks, citing unproven evidence of benefits in treating or preventing the virus. Cavuto said Monday he wasn’t trying to make a political point but one to protect his viewers.
“This is a leap that should not be taken casually by those watching at home who are assuming, well, ‘the president of the United States says it’s OK.'”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also criticized to Trump’s comment, saying she “would rather he not be taking something that has not been approved by the scientists.” Pelosi also took a jab at Trump’s weight, implying that he could be at an increased risk for complications because he is “morbidly obese
Bootleg barbershops and hair salons thrive
Carmelle Harris saw the man standing at the open front door of her house. “Are you here for the haircut?’’ she asked.
He was, and so Harris, wearing an N95 face mask, handed sanitary wipes to the man, and led him to the makeshift barber’s chair in the living room. “You’ve got a great set up here,’’ he said.
But it’s also illegal — and during the coronavirus pandemic, the hair industry is drawing legal scrutiny across the country as hairstylists like Harris have put their cosmetology licenses at risk citing financial pressure
The number of hairstylists setting up shop at home or coloring and cutting hair at customers’ homes is on the rise as stay-at-home orders in states like California have stretched beyond eight weeks, more than a dozen hair stylists and industry experts told USA TODAY.
– Josh Peter
Trump threatens to permanently stop US funding for WHO; China calls it ‘smear’
President Donald Trump has threatened to stop U.S. funding for the World Health Organization and withdraw the country’s membership pending “major substantive improvements within the next 30 days.”
In a scathing letter that he described on Twitter as “self-explanatory,” Trump alleged “missteps” in the agency’s response to the coronavirus outbreak and accused the WHO of an “alarming lack of independence” from China, the origin of the virus.
Trump concludes his letter to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus: “I cannot allow American taxpayer dollars to continue to finance an organization that, in its present state, is so clearly not serving America’s interests.”
In April, Trump said the WHO “got it wrong” and halted U.S. funding to conduct a review of the global organization’s handling of the pandemic.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Zhao Lijian, said Trump’s letter was “smearing and slandering China’s efforts in epidemic prevention and to shift responsibility in its own incompetence in handling the epidemic,” per Reuters.
– Kim Hjelmgaard
Mnuchin, Powell to face grilling over Payroll Protection Program
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will likely come under tough questioning from senators Tuesday about a small business lending program included in the government’s $2 trillion relief package.
Lawmakers from both parties have criticized the Payroll Protection Program, which initially provided $349 billion in forgivable loans to small companies but has been plagued by a host of problems. Many businesses were unable to get loans before the initial funding was exhausted. A second round of loans faced computer processing delays and a number of publicly traded companies ended up receiving money that Mnuchin demanded be paid back to the government.
Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will testify Tuesday at 10 a.m. before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee. The hearing is the first oversight review of the huge relief legislation approved in early March.
Missouri plans to carry out first US execution amid coronavirus outbreak
A Missouri death row inmate is scheduled to die by lethal injection on Tuesday for the 1991 killing of an 81-year-old woman. It would the first execution in the U.S. since March 5 and is scheduled despite coronavirus concerns that prompted other states to postpone lethal injections.
A federal appeals court on Sunday cleared the way for the execution of Walter Barton, 64. Barton has maintained his innocence in the killing of Gladys Kuehler, a trailer park operator who was beaten, sexually assaulted and stabbed more than 50 times in Ozark, near Springfield.
IHME coronavirus model revises US death projection to about 144,000
A prominent yet volatile coronavirus model that’s often been cited by the White House has again revised its death projection.
On the day the U.S. death toll topped 90,000, the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation on Monday lowered its prediction to 143,360 deaths by Aug. 4, down slightly from its projection of 147,000 a week earlier. The IHME model, at one point, had forecast 72,433 fatalities by early August, with a maximum range up to 114,228.
“We were pretty surprised,” Chris Murray, an IHME researcher said Monday night on CNN. “We were expecting to probably go up because of the big surge in mobility.”
Instead, Murray said, IHME researchers believe the use of masks and social distancing have helped lower death projections.
Reopening America: Kentucky, Ohio among states with changes this week
Monday brought significant change across the U.S. — including Arkansas, where movie theaters, casinos and bowling alleys reopened for business, and South Carolina, where gyms, barbershops and hair salons opened again.
Other states will take similar steps toward normalcy later this week: Kentucky will allow in-person worship services and horse racing without fans starting Wednesday and Ohio will allow dine-in restaurants and campgrounds to reopen on Thursday. Find the latest news in your state.
Some coronavirus survivors, however, are concerned that states are rushing to rescind stay-at-home orders, potentially setting the stage for a new wave of infections. Here’s what they have to say.
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Vaccine news: Moderna and Oxford trials show early but promising results
There is positive news from two COVID-19 vaccine candidates considered frontrunners, from Moderna in the U.S. and Oxford in the United Kingdom. But experts cautioned that both represent only early, though useful, steps on a long road rather than definitive proof these vaccines will work.
On Monday, Moderna announced its candidate vaccine appeared to be safe when given to eight humans and that it stimulated an immune response to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
More preliminary but positive news came out last week about a vaccine candidate from the Jenner Institute at the University of Oxford in England. However, the data released last week was only in monkeys and is very preliminary. It showed the candidate vaccine induced a protective immune response in six rhesus macaque monkeys. When we get a vaccine, who gets it first? Read more.
– Elizabeth Weise
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As families struggle in the new pandemic economy, here’s what you need to know about loans, providers and how to get the best deal.
USA TODAY
Will MLB’s 67-page safety and health protocol keep players safe?
MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association are scheduled to resume negotiations this week, with perhaps the biggest hurdle being economic as owners ask the players to assume part of the financial risk of playing with no fans. The hope still is that at least 82 regular-season games can be played beginning by the July 4th weekend.
If there is baseball in 2020, it may feel more like a boot camp. Players are being advised to shower only at home or in their hotel rooms. No more buffets at the ballpark. No saunas. And lots of deep cleaning.
“You can’t change having guys holding runners on first base. How about the catcher and the umpire and the batter all together at the plate? You can’t high-five?” said St. Louis Cardinals All-Star shortstop Paul DeJong on a 67-page draft proposal from the MLB that’s full of exhaustive details.
– Bob Nightengale
Apple is reopening some stores: Expect masks, temperature checks
Keeping in mind local guidelines, Apple is starting to open 25 locations across the U.S. that have been closed for two months. Some locations in Florida, Hawaii and California are among the first to reopen.
Every customer and employee is required to wear a face covering. If a patron doesn’t have a face mask when they arrive, they will be given a free one by Apple before they are allowed to enter.
Shoppers also must agree to a temperature check and may have to wait in line outside as the company curbs the number of people in its stores. Some locations will offer curbside pickup or storefront only.
– Dalvin Brown
More coronavirus news and information from USA TODAY
- We feel obligated to tell you about the Animal Crossing decor you can buy in real life.
- Pole dancing and hand sanitizer: Wyoming strip club reopens with ‘masks on, clothes off’ party
- How to reenter society: Your questions and advice from experts on life post-quarantine.
- ‘Cows will need bred’: Coronavirus is hitting the meat industry all the way up to animal breeders.
- How does the coronavirus cause COVID toes or loss of smell? Here’s how the immune system reacts.
Contributing: The Associated Press
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