Covid-19: Live Updates – The New York Times

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The University of Notre Dame announced on Tuesday that it would move to online instruction for at least the next two weeks in an attempt to control a growing coronavirus outbreak and would shut down the campus entirely if those measures failed to stop the spread.

If these steps are not successful, we will have to send students home, as we did last spring, Notre Dames president, the Rev. John I. Jenkins, said in a video address to students, noting that he had been inclined to take that step before consulting with health officials.

The school will also close public spaces on campus and restrict dormitories to residents.

On Tuesday, the school reported that at least 147 people on campus had tested positive since students began returning on Aug. 3 for the start of classes a week later. Eighty of those confirmed cases were added on Tuesday.

The virus is a formidable foe, Mr. Jenkins said. For the past week, it has been winning.

On Monday, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill became the first large university in the country to shut down classes after students had returned. The school moved all undergraduate courses online after 177 students tested positive and another 349 students were forced to quarantine because of possible exposure.

U.N.C., with 30,000 students, started classes on Aug. 10, the same day that courses resumed at Notre Dame, a campus of 8,600 students near South Bend, Ind. Notre Dame tested all of its students before they returned to campus, with 33 positive results.

On Tuesday, Ithaca College in upstate New York said that it would extend remote learning through the fall semester, despite initial plans to bring students back to campus in waves starting this month. In a statement, Shirley M. Collado, the president of the college, called the reversal an agonizing decision but said that bringing students here, only to send them back home, would cause unnecessary disruption in the continuity of their academic experience.

Michigan States president sent a letter Tuesday telling undergraduate students who had planned to live in campus housing to stay home. He said the university would make all of its courses available online before school starts in two weeks, with exceptions for some colleges and graduate students. And Virginia Techs president, Tim Sands, sent a letter to students pleading with them to be responsible or risk outbreaks like those on other campuses.

Across the United States, Greek life has come under particular scrutiny amid reports of outbreaks at fraternities and sororities. On Tuesday, health officials in Riley County, Kan., reported a new outbreak of cases associated with the Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Kansas State University 13 members tested positive and recommended quarantine for anyone who had been in contact with those infected.

In the last few days, widely circulated images of young people congregating without masks near campus in Tuscaloosa, Ala., home of the University of Alabama, and around Dahlonega, Ga., home of the University of North Georgia, have raised concerns about students cavalier attitudes to social distancing measures

A Notre Dame spokesman said a significant number of its cases were connected to two off-campus parties where students, mostly seniors, did not wear masks or practice social distancing. Most of those who have tested positive live in off-campus housing, the spokesman, Paul Brown, said.

Both North Carolina and Notre Dame said athletic teams were unaffected. Notre Dame is ordinarily an independent in football but is planning to play this fall in the Atlantic Coast Conference, which also counts North Carolina as a member. Unlike the Pac-12 and the Big Ten, the A.C.C. has not yet abandoned its fall season.

Beyond the immediate matter of whether sports like football should be played this autumn, this weeks approach by North Carolina could ultimately factor into debates over players rights and whether the hyphen in student-athlete might be more properly replaced with or.

The optics arent very good, if you take the principle that all college athletes are students first, said Walter Harrison, a former president of the University of Hartford who once was chairman of the committee that evolved into the N.C.A.A.s top governing body.

More speakers at the Democratic National Convention discussed the pandemic.

In virtual addresses leading up to the formal nomination of Joseph R. Biden Jr. for the presidency on Tuesday night, the party faithful who spoke on the second night of the Democratic National Convention expanded the events focus beyond the coronavirus crisis.

But while the bulk of the speeches addressed themes like national security, presidential accountability and continuity between past and future leaders of the party, the virus still made a few high-profile cameos:

Mayor Tom Barrett of Milwaukee invited Democrats to come to his city once the coronavirus crisis had passed. Unlike the president, we never made fun of face masks, he said. We understand why we cant be together this week, and we hope you do too.

Former President Bill Clinton accused President Trump of downplaying the virus crisis, and of collapsing under the pressure of a real management challenge. At a time like this, the Oval Office should be a command center, he said. Instead, its a storm center. Theres only chaos. Just one thing never changes his determination to deny responsibility and shift the blame. The buck never stops there.

Jill Biden, Mr. Bidens wife and a former high school English teacher, expressed heartache over the losses from the coronavirus, as well as the frustration and fear it was inspiring among parents of schoolchildren. Like so many of you, Im left asking, How do I keep my family safe? she said.

The conventions central event its roll call vote was drastically revamped to accommodate the constraints imposed by the pandemic. This year, it consisted of a series of pretaped recordings of delegates listing their vote tallies, replacing the iconic and photogenic ritual of delegates shouting their states numbers into a hand-held microphone.

Earlier this summer, Trump administration officials hailed a new strategy for catching coronavirus infections: pooled testing.

The decades-old approach combines samples from multiple people to save time and precious testing supplies. Federal health officials like Dr. Anthony S. Fauci and Adm. Brett Giroir said pooling would allow for constant surveillance of large sectors of the community, and said they hoped it would be up and running nationwide by the time students returned to school.

But now, when the nation desperately needs more tests to get a handle on the viruss spread, this efficient approach has become worthless in many places, in part because there are simply too many cases to catch.

Pooled testing only works when the vast majority of batches test negative, among other drawbacks with the procedure. If the proportion of positives is too high, more pools come up positive requiring each individual sample to then be retested, wasting precious chemicals.

Nebraskas state public health laboratory, for example, was a pooling trailblazer when it began combining five samples a test in mid-March, cutting the number of necessary tests by about half.

But the lab was forced to halt its streak on April 27, when local positivity rates the proportion of tests that turn up positive surged past 10 percent. With that many positives, there was little benefit in pooling.

Its definitely frustrating, said Dr. Baha Abdalhamid, the assistant director of the laboratory. In combination with physical distancing and mask wearing, pooling could have helped keep the virus in check, he added. But the pooling window, for now, has slammed shut.

Still, the strategy has made significant headway in some parts of the country. In New York, where test positivity rates have held at or below 1 percent since June, universities, hospitals, private companies and public health labs are using the technique in a variety of settings, often to catch people who arent feeling sick, said Gareth Rhodes, an aide to the governor and a member of his virus response team. Last week, the State University of New York was cleared to start combining up to 25 samples at once.

Elsewhere in the U.S.:

More than 43,200 new cases and more than 1,340 new deaths were reported across the country on Tuesday. Officials in Kentucky reported 19 additional deaths today, a single-day record, for a total of 859 deaths in that state since the pandemic began.

After an outcry over cost-cutting moves at the Postal Service that prompted allegations that the Trump administration was trying to disenfranchise voters who planned to mail in their ballots for the 2020 election, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said Tuesday that those operational changes would be suspended until after the 2020 election. Mr. DeJoy, a major donor to President Trump, said in a statement that he was suspending the changes to avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail. The changes included reducing post office hours, removing postal boxes and eliminating overtime for mail carriers.

Idaho, one of the states where new cases peaked this summer, is doing the least amount of testing in the country necessary to understand and contain the virus, according to a New York Times database. The United States is testing 52 percent of what it should be to slow the spread of the virus, according to a model developed by Harvard researchers, and Idaho is hitting just 16 percent of the daily testing it needs to be doing.

The S&P 500 closed at a record high on Tuesday, a remarkable display of investor optimism despite an economic decline that has sent unemployment soaring. Technology stocks played a big role in the gains, which were also fueled by the trillions of dollars pumped into financial markets by the Federal Reserve and enormous spending by the government to protect American workers and businesses from the worst of the downturn.

Senate Republicans on Tuesday began circulating text of a narrow coronavirus relief package that would revive extra unemployment benefits at half the original rate, shield businesses from lawsuits related to the virus and provide funding for testing and schools. The draft measure appears to be an effort to break through the political stalemate over providing another round of economic stimulus to Americans during the pandemic. But it is unlikely to alter the debate in Washington, where Democrats have repeatedly rejected previous Republican offers as insufficient. The new bill would spend less money, in fewer areas, than those earlier offers.

Covid-19 strike teams apply an emergency response model traditionally used in natural disasters like hurricanes and wildfires to combating outbreaks in long-term care facilities. Composed of about eight to 10 members from local emergency management departments, health departments, nonprofits, private businesses and at times, the National Guard the teams are designed to bring more resources and personnel to a disaster scene.

The eight N.B.A. teams that did not qualify for the seasons restart at Walt Disney World in Florida last month can create bubbles and hold voluntary group workouts at their team facilities beginning in mid-September, the league and its players union announced on Tuesday. The announcement by the league is an indication that the N.B.A. has faith in its approach and feels comfortable expanding it, even as the pandemic continues to affect lives daily in the United States.

Australia signs a deal for a coronavirus vaccine, promising free doses for all citizens.

The Australian government has signed a deal with the drugmaker AstraZeneca to secure a potential coronavirus vaccine, and promised to offer it free to its 25 million citizens if clinical trials were successful.

The vaccine, a partnership between the British-Swedish drug maker and Oxford University, is in Phase III clinical trials. As of July, more than 10,000 participants in Britain, Brazil and South Africa had received doses.

The Oxford vaccine is one of the most advanced and promising in the world, and under this deal we have secured early access for every Australian, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said in a statement on Wednesday.

He added that the vaccine doses would be manufactured domestically for its citizens, and that his office was working to secure early access for countries in Southeast Asia and those in Australias Pacific family.

Australia has also signed a $17.9 million deal with the U.S. medical technology company Becton Dickinson to supply needles and syringes.

Mr. Morrison said that Australia had so far invested $185 million in coronavirus vaccines, but did not specify the value of the AstraZeneca deal. Local news reports have estimated that the countrys overall plan to acquire vaccines would be worth billions of dollars.

The partnership between Oxford and AstraZeneca is among the most closely watched coronavirus vaccine efforts in the world. It was also the first to enter Phase III trials, and several countries including Britain and the United States have already agreed to pay hundreds of millions of dollars for a total of two billion doses even before the vaccines efficacy has been proven.

On Wednesday, Mr. Morrison cautioned that there was no guarantee that this, or any other, vaccine will be successful, and that his government was casting its net wide to find a vaccine.

Australia has reported 23,773 cases and 438 deaths. A recent outbreak in Melbourne, the countrys second-largest city, led to a lockdown with some of the toughest restrictions in the world.

The Philippines largely reopened for business on Wednesday, against the advice of some health experts.

The Philippines has nearly 170,000 confirmed coronavirus cases, including nearly 30,000 that were reported in the past week, according to a New York Times database. Its total caseload is the highest in Southeast Asia.

Under the rules that took effect on Wednesday, more industries were allowed to open, limited church services were allowed to resume, and restaurants welcomed dine-in customers. The rules apply in and around Manila, the capital, and several outlying provinces, a region that has been under various stages of lockdown since March.

Almost all industries will reopen, except for those that attract mass gatherings like amusement parks, said Harry Roque, a spokesman for President Rodrigo Duterte.

The easing of the lockdown was designed to revive a flagging economy that has taken a beating from the virus and that has officially slipped into recession in the second quarter. Mr. Dutertes government has insisted that the majority of those infected in recent weeks have shown mild symptoms.

But health experts have warned that lifting lockdowns too quickly would lead to more cases and deaths. Nearly all of Manilas hospitals are under severe strain.

Its really counterintuitive to reopen the economy amidst the steep rise of cases and the presence of fully loaded hospitals, Dr. Anthony Leachon, a former adviser to Mr. Dutertes government on the pandemic, said in an interview.

Businesses are caught in the middle, and some are now reopening again in desperation.

We need to survive, said Ben Razon, the owner of the Oarhouse restaurant and bar in central Manila, as he reopened on Wednesday. He last closed for a lockdown that began on Aug. 3.

Mr. Razon said the restaurants regular crowd had evaporated in recent months because of nighttime curfews, forcing him to adjust to daytime dining.

I have had to assist my own crew from savings out of my own pocket in order for us to stay together as a small enterprise and be able to resume once regular operating hours resume, he added. In the meantime, we have to help each other.

In other developments around the world:

South Korea reported 297 new infections on Wednesday, its highest daily rise since March. Kim Gang-lip, a senior health official, warned that new infections in and around Seoul, the capital, could lead to massive nationwide transmission. The country of about 51 million people has reported more than 16,000 confirmed infections during the pandemic, including more than 1,300 in the past week, according to a Times database.

Sweden has temporarily recalled its diplomats from North Korea, citing increasing difficulties with travel and diplomatic postings, in part because of the pandemic. The Swedish embassy remains open with local staff, and Sweden is engaged in dialogue with North Korea on these subjects, a spokesman for the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs said.

A tropical cyclone that passed near Hong Kong on Tuesday night created an added complication for travelers, disrupting flights and delaying the results of virus tests that are conducted on arrival before passengers begin their compulsory 14-day quarantine. Collection points for the saliva samples that people are required to take on their 10th day in quarantine were also suspended.

Greece has locked down two facilities for migrants where new infections have been traced, after another overcrowded reception center was put under lockdown last week, the government said. The infections are part of a recent spike in the number of cases in Greece, which has weathered the pandemic relatively well so far, with just over 7,200 confirmed cases and 230 deaths. But the authorities this week introduced new restrictions to address local outbreaks and have warned of more measures if the upward trend continues.

Countries putting their own interests ahead of others in trying to ensure supplies of a possible coronavirus vaccine are making the pandemic worse, the director general of the World Health Organization said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. No one is safe until everyone is safe, the agencys leader, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said during a briefing in Geneva. The organization also said the pandemic was now being driven by young people, many of whom were unaware they were infected, posing a danger to vulnerable groups.

Teachers in at least six Tennessee public school districts who may have been exposed to coronavirus can be required to teach in person anyway, under policies approved by their districts.

The districts, located in six counties in eastern and central Tennessee, are adapting C.D.C. guidelines for essential workers, according to Beth Brown, president of the Tennessee Education Association, a teachers organization. District officials did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.

Under C.D.C. guidelines, most people are supposed to go into quarantine for 14 days after possible exposure. But the school districts say teachers may be expected to forego quarantine and keep working as long as they do not show symptoms, provided that additional precautions are implemented to protect them and the community.

Researchers have found that people who have caught the virus can spread it before they show symptoms, or without ever developing them.

John C. Bowman, executive director of Professional Educators of Tennessee, another teachers organization, said he expected more districts to adopt the same policies, because of a shortage of substitute teachers to cover for any who are quarantined. And he said he expected to see some teachers quit their jobs because of the policies.

Teachers are afraid, Mr. Bowman said. You can open up the school buildings all day long thats the easy part. But without healthy educators and staff available, theyre just buildings.

Some schools in Tennessee have been open for almost three weeks, and a few have seen virus-related disruptions. In Putnam County, at least 80 students have been quarantined because of a potential coronavirus exposure, and a middle school and a high school in Maury County postponed reopening by a few days because teachers were in quarantine.

The Tennessee Departments of Health and Education issued a joint letter to school superintendents in the state on Tuesday requiring that school districts adhere to mandatory measures for critical infrastructure school staff who have been exposed to the coronavirus. The measures include wearing a face covering at school, maintaining six feet of distance from others, and quarantining when not attending school.

With more than 400 shops, the Singapore Changi Airport would be the fourth-largest mall by the number of tenants if it were in the United States.

The combination of an often affluent and captive audience has made airport commercial square footage some of the most lucrative in the world. But the pandemic has crushed the commercial calculus at airports, and no one is sure what comes next.

The leading airport for concession and retail sales in the United States is Los Angeles International, with revenue of $3,036 a square foot, according to a 2018 report from Airport Experience News. By comparison, the average mall retailer is around $325 per square foot, according to 2017 data from CoStar.

But thats all gone now, said Alan Gluck, a senior aviation consultant at ICF. In general, sales are in the toilet, he said.

The very amenities that once made airports a standout for profit are the same things that are proving to be challenging.

So far, the pandemic has not paused terminals planned or in progress in the United States. Projects already underway, including at La Guardia Airport in New York and in smaller markets like Lafayette, La., are moving ahead, but taking a wait-and-see approach on adjustments.

New terminal construction should focus on space not just for the coronavirus but other respiratory illnesses, said Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

New terminals needed to allow enough space for people to spread out, offer high-efficiency particulate air filtration and distribute free masks. He would also like to see more health screening at airports.

You cant throw up your hands and say it is impossible, Dr. Fauci said.

The number of known deaths in prisons, jails and other correctional facilities among prisoners and correctional officers has surpassed 1,000, according to a New York Times database tracking deaths in correctional institutions.

The number of deaths in state and federal prisons, local jails and immigration detention centers which stood at 1,002 on Tuesday morning has increased by about 40 percent during the past six weeks, according to the database. There have been nearly 160,000 infections among prisoners and guards.

The actual number of deaths is almost certainly higher because jails and prisons perform limited testing on inmates, including many facilities that decline to test prisoners who die after exhibiting symptoms consistent with the coronavirus.

A recent study showed that prisoners are infected at a rate more than five times the nations overall rate. The death rate of inmates is also higher than the national rate 39 deaths per 100,000 compared to 29 deaths per 100,000.

The Timess database tracks coronavirus infections and deaths among inmates and correctional officers at some 2,500 prisons, jails and immigration detention centers.

The nations largest known virus cluster is at San Quentin State Prison in California, where more than 2,600 inmates and guards have been sickened and 25 inmates have died after a botched transfer of inmates in May. Its the perfect environment for people to die in which people are, said Juan Moreno Haines, an inmate at San Quentin.

After a substantial reduction in cases, the virus roars anew in France.

Faced with a recent resurgence of cases, officials in France have made mask wearing mandatory in business spaces across the country, pleading with people not to let down their guard and jeopardize the hard-won gains made against the virus during a two-month lockdown this spring.

The government on Tuesday announced the mandate for mask wearing in business spaces, building on mask policies that had been in place. France cannot wait for the health situation to get worse, Elisabeth Borne, the French labor minister, wrote on Twitter. With our business partners, we want to take every precaution to avoid the propagation of the virus, to protect workers and guarantee the continuity of economic activity.

The signs of a new wave of infection emerged over the summer as people began resuming much of their pre-virus lives, traveling across France and socializing in cafes, restaurants and parks. Many, especially the young, have visibly relaxed their vigilance.

In recent days, France has recorded about 3,000 new infections every day, roughly double the figure at the beginning of the month, and the authorities are investigating an increasing number of clusters.

Thirty percent of the new infections are in young adults, ages 15 to 44, according to a recent report. Since they are less likely to develop serious forms of the illness, deaths and the number of patients in intensive care remain at a fraction of what they were at the height of the pandemic. Still, officials are not taking any chances.

Updated August 17, 2020

The indicators are bad, the signals are worrying, and the situation is deteriorating, Jrme Salomon, the French health ministry director, told the radio station France Inter last week. The fate of the epidemic is in our hands.

France has suffered more than 30,400 deaths from the virus one of the worlds worst tolls and experienced an economically devastating lockdown from mid-March to mid-May. Thanks to the lockdown, however, France succeeded in stopping the spread of the virus and lifted most restrictions at the start of summer.

The course of the pandemic in Europe has followed a somewhat similar trend, with Spain also reporting new local clusters. But important disparities exist among countries. In the past week, as France reported more than 16,000 new cases, Britain reported 7,000, and Italy 3,000, according to data collected by The Times.

The young people crowded into the pool, standing shoulder to shoulder, as they listened to a D.J. No one was wearing a mask, and no one seemed to care.

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Covid-19: Live Updates - The New York Times