Coronavirus Live Updates: U.S. Sets New Single-Day Case Record
Nearly 49,000 coronavirus cases were announced on Wednesday, the fifth single-day case record in eight days. More Republicans on Capitol Hill are recommending masks. President Trump said he believes the virus will “sort of just disappear.”
RIGHT NOWNew Zealand’s health minister resigned, saying that a public focus on his missteps was hampering the government’s response to the virus.
Here’s what you need to know:
Grim virus milestones continue to sweep across the U.S.
Texas cities are in crisis mode as caseloads surge.
More Republicans embrace masks despite resistance from Trump.
New Zealand’s health minister, who breached a lockdown, resigns.
California shuts indoor dining for more than 70 percent of the state’s population.
As cases surge, Trump says he believes the virus is ‘going to sort of just disappear.’
Late action on virus prompts fears over safety of U.S. diplomats in Saudi Arabia.
ImageA coronavirus testing site at Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wis., on Wednesday.
A coronavirus testing site at Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wis., on Wednesday.Credit...Lauren Justice for The New York Times
Grim virus milestones continue to sweep across the U.S.
The United States reported nearly 49,000 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, the fifth single-day case record in eight days. North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas also hit daily records, with Texas reaching more than 8,000 new infections.
As new cases rise, states and localities have reversed course on reopenings. New York City decided not to let its restaurants resume indoor service next week as originally planned. Miami Beach said that it would reinstate a nightly curfew beginning Thursday at 12:30 a.m., extending until 5 a.m., to try to curb the spread. And California shut down bars and halted indoor dining at restaurants in 19 counties that are home to more than 70 percent of the state’s population.
New outbreaks are erupting in the South and West, and areas that have made progress against the virus are showing signs of resurgence. Several Republican-led states that moved quickly to reopen this spring at the urging of President Trump are now reimposing some restrictions.
Arizona, which Mr. Trump visited in May and praised for its reopening plans, is now seeing record numbers of new cases, and Gov. Doug Ducey decided this week to close its water parks and to order bars, gyms and movie theaters in the state to close for 30 days. On Wednesday, Vice President Mike Pence visited Arizona to discuss the crisis as the state reported more than 4,700 new cases.
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California, which was the first state to shut down and which took some of the most aggressive actions to contain the virus, has seen a recent explosion in cases after it eased restrictions, leading the governor to move Wednesday to close bars and halt indoor dining in much of the state.
Mr. Pence told Mr. Ducey that the federal government would help the state with a request for 500 additional public health personnel by mobilizing doctors, nurses and technical personnel.
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And in Florida, which had more than 6,500 new cases on Wednesday, Miami’s biggest public hospital announced that it would stop non-urgent elective surgeries as of Monday. The caseload at the hospital, Jackson Memorial, has doubled over the past two weeks.
“If the trends continue the way we are, we will be inundated,” Carlos Migoya, the hospital’s president and chief executive, told the Miami-Dade County Commission.
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U.S. ROUNDUP
Texas cities are in crisis mode as caseloads surge.
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A Houston restaurant was busy with customers Friday after statewide closures were ordered.
A Houston restaurant was busy with customers Friday after statewide closures were ordered.Credit...Erin Trieb for The New York Times
Surging infection rates have thrown Texas cities into crisis mode ahead of the July Fourth weekend. The state has recorded more than 174,000 cases and at least 2,500 deaths, according to a New York Times database. More than 8,000 new cases were announced across Texas on Wednesday, surpassing the previous daily record set on Tuesday.
With some hospitals near capacity, officials have been forced to bring in health care reinforcements from out of state. Ambulances in Houston have been waiting up to an hour to unload patients at emergency rooms, officials said.
“The cases continue to increase in a manner that we just cannot sustain,” said Dr. Mark Escott, interim medical director of the Austin-Travis County Health Authority. “Cases are skyrocketing across the state of Texas.”
In Galveston, city officials announced the closure of beaches for the July Fourth weekend. Organizers announced the cancellation of the Austin City Limits Music Festival, describing the move as the only “responsible solution.” This year’s South by Southwest, the city’s internationally acclaimed film, music and interactive conference, was canceled in March.
The Texas Republican Executive Committee will meet Thursday night to consider shifting its in-person state convention in July to a virtual event, said the state party chairman, James Dickey. The Texas Medical Association has called for cancellation of the Houston event, which could draw 4,000 to 6,000 delegates.
Texas moved swiftly to reopen, but as cases surged, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said that Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, “doesn’t know what he’s talking about” when it comes to the state’s handling of the pandemic.
Mr. Patrick made the comments in an interview with Laura Ingraham, the Fox News host, after Dr. Fauci told lawmakers on Capitol Hill that some states were moving “too quickly and skipping over some of the checkpoints.”
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Elsewhere in the U.S.:
Officials rushing to contain a coronavirus cluster tied to a party in a New York City suburb used an unusual legal strategy: issuing subpoenas to partygoers.
In Pennsylvania, the governor announced Wednesday that the state would now require people to wear masks whenever they leave home, taking effect immediately.
More than 1,500 new cases were announced Wednesday in Tennessee, a single-day record.
Congress is investigating about a dozen medical laboratories and emergency rooms for potential virus test price gouging. In a letter sent Wednesday afternoon, the House Energy and Commerce committee asked 11 health care providers, including two laboratories that were the subjects of New York Times articles, to submit information on testing prices.
Correction: An earlier version of this item misstated the number of deaths related to Covid-19 in Texas. More than 2,500 deaths have been recorded there, not at least 24,000.
