Coronavirus in the US: Latest COVID-19 news and case counts

The U.S. has now confirmed more than 1.48 million COVID-19 cases. To date, at least 8,564 individuals in the U.S. have died from the coronavirus causing COVID-19.

At least 28,232 of those COVID-19 deaths occurred in New York, 10,363 in New Jersey, 5,797 in Massachusetts, 4,891 in Michigan, 4,177 in Illinois and 3,240 related deaths reported in California. Worldwide, about 4.74 million cases have been reported and 315,622 related deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins virus dashboard.

-Most states have at least partially reopened (or about to reopen), with just a few that are still under statewide lockdowns: Delaware, Illinois, Michigan and New Jersey, according to The New York Times.

-President Donald Trump is pushing to reopen schools, criticizing the nation's top infectious diseases expert Dr. Anthony Fauci, who said in front of the Senate Health Committee on Tuesday (May 12) that reopening too soon could have serious consequences, The New York Times reported.

-The Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected the governor's extension of a stay-at-home order on Wednesday (May 13). Gov. Tony Evers had extended the order until May 26, but the court, in a 4-to-3 ruling, argued that the measure exceeded the authority given under state law to Wisconsin's top health official, the Times reported.

-The FDA has approved the first at-home saliva test for COVID-19, Live Science reported. The spit tests appear both more reliable (fewer false results) and less invasive than the current swab tests, which involve poking a swab way down the nose and throat.

-Gov. Andrew Cuomo described preliminary results from the antibody tests taking place in various counties in grocery stores. Overall, after a survey of 7,500 individuals completed by April 27, 14.9% of individuals had tested positive for antibodies specific to this novel coronavirus. Then, on May 1, once more than 15,000 individuals were tested, that number went down to 12.3% testing positive for antibodies to SARS-CoV-2.

Coronavirus antibody testing

About 7,500 individuals in New York state have received serological tests to see if their bodies have made SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies. The body makes these antibodies in response to an infection and so those who test positive are thought to have been infected with the virus recently. The hope is that people with such antibodies will be immune to the coronavirus. However, scientists don't have enough data to be able to say whether that's the case. In addition, the serological tests have been plagued by unreliable results.

In New York, the preliminary results suggest that overall 14.9% of people statewide tested positive for coronavirus antibodies. When broken out by region: 24.7% of people in New York City tested positive; 15.1% in Westchester/Rockland counties; 14.4% in Long Island 14.4%; and about 3.2% tested positive in the rest of the state.

After another antibody testing round, bringing the total number of participants to about 15,100, Cuomo reported the overall number of positive tests was lower, at 12.3%. Individual regions in New York showed a range of positive tests:

New York City:
Bronx: 27.6%
Brooklyn: 19.2%
Manhattan: 17.3%
Queens: 18.4%
Staten Island: 19.2%

Statewide:
Mohawk Valley: 2.7%
North Country: 1.2%
Hudson Vally (w/o Westchester/Rockland): 3%
Central NY: 1.9%
Southern Tier: 2.4%
Finger Lakes: 2.6%
Western NY: 6%

Live Science put together a guide of everything you need to know about the coronavirus antibody tests.

About 88,000 Americans have died to date from the novel coronavirus. A model that infectious disease experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, were using to forecast the total number of deaths from COVID-19 has been revised with better data. At the end of March, a COVID-1 model by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington and other models had forecast that even with stay-at-home and other social-distancing measures, 200,000 individuals in the U.S. could ultimately die from this virus.

However, the IHME model is constantly being updated with more and better information. As of May 4, that model projects 134,475 people will die of COVID-19 in the United States by Aug. 4. That updated model iteration also shows the U.S. just passing the peak daily deaths related to that virus, meaning we are in the slow downward phase of daily deaths.

States reopen

Most states have at least partially reopened (or about to reopen), with just a few that are still under statewide lockdowns: Delaware, Illinois, Michigan and New Jersey, according to The New York Times.

In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced limited reopening starting May 15 for five regions: Finger Lakes, Central New York, Mohawk Valley, Southern Tier and the North Country regions comprising the counties of: Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming, Yates Cayuga, Cortland, Madison, Onondaga, Oswego, Fulton, Herkimer, Montgomery, Oneida, Otsego, Schoharie, Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Delaware, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence, according to an executive order from Cuomo. A limited reopening allows certain business to open up while also following guidelines put forth by the state's department of health. Those business sectors include: Construction, agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, retail, which is limited to curbside or in-store pickup or drop-off), as well as manufacturing and wholesale trade.

California also began to reopen, starting May 12: In counties that have met certain state benchmarks for handling the pandemic, some businesses can open, The Los Angeles Times reported. These include: shopping centers (for in-person shopping); restaurants (for in-person dining); pet grooming establishments; and car washes. To get the green light for opening these businesses, counties in California must complete a risk assessment regarding COVID-19 spread and draw up protection plans to train employees on limiting virus spread, provide virus screenings of employees, disinfection protocols and social-distancing guidelines, the LAT reported. As of last week, the following counties had met those criteria: Amador, Butte, El Dorado, Lassen, Nevada, Placer and Shasta counties, the LAT said.

Amid protests to reopen Michigan, the state Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed executive orders to reinstate the "state of emergency" to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. The emergency measures will remain in place through May 28, the Times reported. During this time, all businesses must "suspend in-person operations that are not necessary to sustain or protect life, and all Michiganders must stay in their homes unless they're a part of that critical infrastructure workforce, engaged in an outdoor activity, or performing tasks necessary to the health and safety of themselves or their family, like going to the hospital or grocery store," the government said in a statement.

Ohio 's stay-at-home orders are set to expire on May 29. However, state Gov. Mike DeWine has allowed the reopening of certain industries - retail stores, outdoor dining at restaurants, manufacturing, construction, salons and offices - beginning May 12.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf is reopening in a similar manner to California, where it is happening by county and in progressive phases. About 49 counties are currently in the "yellow" phase of reopening as of May 15.

In yellow phase counties, the stay-at-home order is lifted and many business with in-person operations are allowed to reopen - however, bars, restaurants, gyms and entertainment venues will remain closed, and gatherings of more than 25 people remain prohibited. Read the governor's statement for more information on what the yellow phase entails. Currently, just 18 counties in Pennsylvania remain in the "red phase" of maximum social restrictions.

Two memorandums sent to President Donald Trump and the National Security Council by trade advisor Peter Navarro lay out alarming forecasts for how hard the spreading coronavirus could hit Americans, according to news sites that obtained the memos. In a memo dated Jan. 29 that was sent to the National Security Council, Navarro writes: "The lack of immune protection or an existing cure or vaccine would leave Americans defenseless in the case of a full-blown coronavirus outbreak on U.S. soil. ... This lack of protection elevates the risk of the coronavirus evolving into a full-blown pandemic, imperiling the lives of millions of Americans," The New York Times reported. In one of the worst-case scenarios that Navarro described, more than half a million Americans could die from the disease, the Times reported.

The other memo, dated Feb. 23 and addressed to President Trump, is also attributed to Navarro. In the memo, according to Axios and the Times, Navarro indicates the need for resources from Congress.

"This is NOT a time for penny-pinching or horse trading on the Hill," Navarro wrote, as reported by Axios. The memo also warned that an "increasing probability of a full-blown COVID-19 pandemic that could infect as many as 100 million Americans, with a loss of life of as many as 1.2 million souls."

At the time of both memos, the president was downplaying the severity of the not-yet-pandemic situation. In a tweet dated to Feb. 24, Trump wrote: "The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA," Axios reported.

USNS Comfort

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The hospital ship USNS Comfort entered New York Harbor on March 30; it passed the Statue of Liberty on its way to a Manhattan Cruise Terminal pier. The ship, which will be used to treat non-COVID-19 patients, is equipped with 12 operating rooms, with "hospital beds, a medical laboratory, a pharmacy, an optometry lab, digital radiology, a CAT scan, two oxygen-producing plants and a helicopter deck," the U.S. Department of Defense reported. A 1,200-strong medical staff from the U.S. Navy will operate the hospital.

Hospitals across the U.S. are desperate for medical supplies, including personal protection equipment (PPE), such as proper face masks, and ventilators, according to several news reports. In a recent Tweet, an internal medicine resident in New York City, said: "I feel I must tweet because the press does not reflect our reality. The deluge is here. Our ICU is completely full with intubated COVID patients. We are rapidly moving to expand capacity. We are nearly out of PPE. I anticipate we will begin rationing today."

However, on Thursday (April 2), just 20 patients were onboard because of the harsh criteria for who could and could not be treated there. That should change with updated guidelines: "screening for care on the USNS Comfort will be modified and will now occur pier-side in an effort to reduce the backlog at some of the nearby New York hospitals. The screening effort for the USNS Comfort will no longer require a negative test, but each patient will still be screened by temperature and a short questionnaire," the U.S. Department of Defense said in a statement.

President Donald Trump signed into law a $2 trillion rescue bill on Friday (March 27) in the Oval Office, after the House of Representatives passed it through a voice vote the same day; the U.S. Senate had passed the bill unanimously on Wednesday (March 25), The New York Times reported. There was concern that a representative in the House would demand a so-called "roll call" or recorded vote, in which each member's vote gets recorded through an electronic voting machine. But that takes time, and it means enough representatives voting yes must be present for the vote to pass.

Instead, the representatives used a "voice vote," in which the "presiding officer" states the question and those in favor say "Yea" and those against, "Nay." The presiding officer then announces the result according to their judgment, and the names of the representatives are not recorded.

Here's what the bill looks like, according to a breakdown of the bill by Bloomberg.com: About $532 billion would go to "big business, local government loans and financial assistance," including $61 billion that would go directly to airlines. About $377 billion would go to small business loans and grants. About $290 billion would provide direct payments to families in certain tax brackets; $260 billion in unemployment insurance; $290 billion in tax cuts; and $150 billion for state and local stimulus finds. The following "miscellaneous" funds are also part of the rescue bill: $126 billion to hospitals and other health care facilities; $45 billion for FEMA; $31 billion for education stabilization; $27 billion for vaccines and stockpiles; $25 billion for infrastructure; and $131 billion for "other."

The direct payments to families would go to low- and middle-income families/individuals and would include: $1,200 for each adult and $500 for each child in those households, Bloomberg.com reported.

Limited testing

As of April 27, 97 state and local public health laboratories in 50 states and the District of Columbia have working COVID-19 diagnostic tests, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced. As of April 27, the CDC and public labs in the U.S. had tested 491,815 specimens; that doesn't equate to that many individuals tested, as labs may run two tests per person to confirm an infection. When commercial labs are added in, a total of nearly 5.6 million COVID-19 tests have been run in the U.S. as of April 28, according to the COVID Tracking Project.

States differ in their rates of testing: California has completed 553,409 tests (about 139 per 10,000 individuals); New York has run 826,095 tests (about 425 per 10,000); 13,033 tests in Montana (120 per 10K individuals); and 53,171 in Oklahoma (134 per 10K)as of April 28.

To date, the FDA has granted at least 50 "emergency use authorizations" for COVID diagnostic tests as of April 27, the FDA reported. Most notably is an EUA for a new serological test, which looks for antibodies in a person's blood that are specific to the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2; such tests will help to identify who has been infected already by the virus and is potentially immune. On April 1, the FDA issued that EUA to Cellex Inc.'s qSARS-CoV-2 IgG/IgM Rapid Test, the FDA reported.

Other tests that received EUA's include: the San Diego-based Mesa Biotech's rapid diagnostic test for COVID-19 (called Accula SARS-CoV-2 Test), which delivers results in 30 minutes, Forbes reported. The firm's CEO said the device fits in the palm of your hand and can easily be sent out to point-of-care locations for testing.

Another EUA was granted to California-based company Cepheid for a rapid COVID-19 test whose results take 45 minutes, Live Science reported. There are 5,000 systems in the U.S. capable of running this rapid test, which Cepheid said it would start shipping out March 30.

LabCorp, which processes samples collected by state health departments and hospitals, said in an April 2 statement that the lab "has performed approximately 350,000 tests since first making our COVID-19 test available on March 5th. That number is increasing rapidly now that our lab capacity has reached more than 30,000 tests per day, with even more capacity expected over the coming weeks assuming adequate supplies."

In addition, Deborah Birx, a member of the president's coronavirus task force, said that the U.S. had granted emergency authorization for Roche holdings to release its automated test, which should rapidly scale up the ability to conduct testing. In a March 30 statement from Roche, the company said it began shipping the tests, called the cobas® SARS-CoV-2 Test, to U.S. labs on March 13 and expected to be able to ship about 400,000 tests per week.