Coronavirus pandemic in the US

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam extended the state’s current ban on elective surgeries by a week until May 1, according to a statement from the governor’s office today.

He also extended the closure of Department of Motor Vehicle offices by two weeks until May 11.

According to the statement, the ban on elective surgeries will continue while state officials evaluate Virginia’s personal protective equipment (PPE) supplies and how to safely ease restrictions on nonessential medical procedures.

He continued: “We have increased our supply of PPE, but before we allow elective surgeries to resume, we must first be assured that the doctors, nurses, and medical staff who are fighting this virus or conducting emergency surgeries have the necessary supplies. We are working with medical facilities on plans to ensure that we can resume elective surgeries safely and responsibly.”

President Trump was asked Thursday why he has stopped promoting hydroxychloroquine as a therapeutic treatment for coronavirus. He disputed that assertion, even though he has not brought up the drug, which he touted repeatedly, for over a week, with one exception Tuesday. 

“I haven’t at all. Why do you say I have? We’ll see what happens we had a lot of very good results and we had some results that perhaps aren’t so good, I don’t know. I just read about one but I also read many times good,” he said. 

Trump continued: “It’s a great – for malaria, for lupus for other things and we’ll see what it is, but I guess Deborah (Birx), they have many studies going on on that. So we’ll be able to learn.”

He claimed he had “not seen” a study of hundreds of patients at United States Veterans Health Administration medical centers released Tuesday that found that coronavirus patients taking hydroxychloroquine were no less likely to need mechanical ventilation and had higher deaths rates compared to those who did not take the drug.

On Tuesday, Trump was asked about the study.

“I don't know of the report. Obviously, there have been some very good reports and perhaps this one is not a good report. But we'll be looking at it. We’ll have a comment on it as soon,” he said at that briefing.

Watch:

President Trump said he hopes to sign the roughly $480 billion relief package tonight.

The package would deliver aid to small businesses and hospitals and expand Covid-19 testing. The measure passed the House earlier tonight.

President Trump said he may extend social distancing guidelines beyond May 1 if he doesn't feel the country is in a safe place.

"We may go beyond that," Trump said when asked whether he might need to re-up the guidelines when they expire at the end of the month. 

"People are gonna know just out of common sense," Trump said after saying he thought the worse would be over by early summer.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced in a news conference today that restaurants and retail outlets would be allowed to reopen.

However, he said, "Not every industry will be in a position to open safely immediately." 

Restaurants will be allowed to open next week at 50% capacity on Monday. On Wednesday, retail outlets would also be allowed to open at 50% capacity, according to the governor. 

David Salyers, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, also announced most of the state parks would be open Friday morning.

The House of Representatives voted today to approve a roughly $480 billion package to deliver aid to small businesses and hospitals and expand Covid-19 testing, the latest attempt by lawmakers to blunt the devastating impact of the pandemic.

The vote was 388-5 and passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. Just four Republicans and one Democrat voted against it. Independent Justin Amash voted present.

The members who voted no were Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Republican Reps. Andy Biggs, Ken Buck, Jody Hice and Thomas Massie.

The measure passed the Senate earlier this week and will now go to President Trump, who has expressed support for the legislation and indicated that he will sign it. 

Where the money is expected to go: The total price tag of the bill is approximately $484 billion.

It will add to the already historic levels of spending to deal with the pandemic by authorizing an additional $310 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program, which was set up to help small businesses struggling from the economic deep freeze triggered by coronavirus.

Funding for the program ran dry earlier this month, prompting an outcry from the business community.

In addition, the legislation provides $75 billion for hospitals and health care providers to address coronavirus expenses and lost revenue and $25 billion to facilitate and expand Covid-19 testing.

The increased funding for testing comes at a time when there is widespread recognition that testing capacity must increase and improve as states consider when to reopen businesses and lift lockdowns.

Referred to as an "interim" measure by lawmakers, the legislation is the latest historic effort by Washington to prop up the economy on the heels of a more than $2 trillion rescue package along with other relief measures already approved by Congress.

Vice President Mike Pence encouraged states to resume elective surgeries during the White House press briefing.

Pence also said Friday's call with the governors is expected to cover progress on testing and best practices.

“Our task force will convene a conference call with all of the nation’s governors to talk about their progress that they are making on testing, and we’re going to hear from governors about the practices and methods that they are employing to significantly increase testing following our briefing on capacity and laboratories this past Monday,” he said.

President Trump thanked Harvard University, as well as other colleges and large businesses, for agreeing not to take federal funding provided to them through the CARES Act.

“In a couple of cases, they’re sending ‘em back,” he added.

Trump said Harvard acted “quickly and decisively.” 

“They agreed when they heard the facts that they should not be getting it,” the President said. 

CNN reported Wednesday that Harvard, which has a $40 billion endowment, would not accept the $9 million in federal funds allocated to it under the CARES Act Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund. 

Larger businesses have been scrutinized for attaining multi-million dollar loans through the Paycheck Protection Program when smaller businesses couldn’t. The program received funding through the CARES Act.  

Rep. Anna Eshoo, the chairwoman of the House’s Health subcommittee, told CNN she plans to call in Dr. Rick Bright to testify before her panel as she reviews the circumstances of his removal from a key position after he raised concerns about the safety of a drug that President Trump touted as a potential vaccine to coronavirus.

Eshoo said she also wants to call Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Bob Kadlec, the assistant secretary for preparedness and response, to testify before her panel.

“I don’t know where this began, why, who where, when, why,” said Eshoo, whose subcommittee falls under the Energy and Commerce full committee. “But I think it deserves to be examined and the story told.”

Eshoo said she wants to have hearings as soon as it’s “feasible” and said she’s willing to return to Washington to probe the matter.

“I’m willing to come here, I think others will as well,” she said Thursday.

Eshoo appears to have backing from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Asked by CNN about the Bright situation, Pelosi directed an inquiry to Eshoo.

Some context: Bright had led BARDA, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, since 2016 until Tuesday, when he was reassigned to a narrower position.

"I believe this transfer was in response to my insistence that the government invest the billions of dollars allocated by Congress to address the Covid-19 pandemic into safe and scientifically vetted solutions, and not in drugs, vaccines and other technologies that lack scientific merit," Bright said in a lengthy statement issued Wednesday. "I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science — not politics or cronyism — has to lead the way."