Houses of worship in Tennessee can reopen with limited capacity, governor says
From CNN's Hollie Silverman
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee speaks in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC on April 30. Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said houses of worships can reopen with limited capacity.
People were encouraged to wear face masks.
His guidance also suggested a phased approach to resuming worship gatherings among vulnerable populations, according to a statement from his office.
Services should be limited to 50% of maximum capacity with increased social distancing between families, the statement said.
People who may be symptomatic or in close contact with someone who is should stay home, according to the statement.
5:29 p.m. ET, May 1, 2020
South Carolina governor to lift "work-or-home" order next week
From CNN's Hollie Silverman
Gov. Henry McMaster speaks with reporters after the first meeting of accelerateSC, his advisory group about reopening the state economy, in Columbia, South Carolina on April 23. Meg Kinnard/AP
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said the state's "work-or-home" order that was set to expire May 14 will be lifted May 4, according to a statement from his office.
Outdoor dining service can resume May 4 as well, according to the statement.
McMaster also lifted the executive order that required people entering the state from coronavirus hotspots to self-quarantine for two weeks.
5:24 p.m. ET, May 1, 2020
Miami Beach issues more than 1,500 warnings for violating reopening rules
From CNN's Rosa Flores and Sara Weisfeldt
A Miami Beach Fire Rescue vehicle drives onto the beach in South Pointe in Miami Beach, Florida on April 29. Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images
More than 1,500 warnings have been issued to park visitors for violating reopening rules, according to the Miami Beach Police Department.
Miami Beach park rangers issued 899 verbal warnings to park visitors not wearing face coverings on Thursday, the police department said.
Park rangers also issued verbal warnings to 10 people for failing to social distance as well as 76 people being asked to leave the parks after closing time.
Miami Beach reopened parks on Wednesday with some restrictions, including face coverings and social distancing.
Park rangers issued 652 warnings on Wednesday to people not wearing masks and 23 warnings to people not social distancing.
5:12 p.m. ET, May 1, 2020
Central Park field hospital will stop admitting new patients on May 4
From CNN's Elizabeth Stuart
A medical worker at the field hospital run by Samaritan's Purse and Mount Sinai Health System in Central Park on April 21 in New York City. Misha Friedman/Getty Images
A field hospital in Central Park will stop admitting new coronavirus patients, Mount Sinai Health System announced Friday.
“As of May 4, Samaritan's Purse and Mount Sinai Health System have agreed to stop admitting new patients to the Central Park field hospital,” Samaritan’s Purse spokesperson Melissa Nystrom told CNN.
Nystrom said she anticipates the medical team at the field hospital will continue to treat patients for approximately two weeks.
The hospital opened to treat overflow coronavirus parents coming from the Mount Sinai Health System in New York.
7:23 p.m. ET, May 1, 2020
CDC official tells lawmakers about health concerns at food processing facilities
From CNN's Manu Raju
On a conference call with lawmakers this afternoon, Jennifer McQuiston, a top official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that there have been 115 meat and processing facilities reporting Covid-19 cases in 23 states.
Roughly 3% of the workforce has been diagnosed with Covid-19, or 4,900 workers, and there have been 20 deaths, sources on the call tell CNN.
McQuiston said that food processing facilities, along with the homeless and long-term care facilities, remain lingering concerns as they try to control the spread of the disease.
She said overall there have been 30,144 cases in the last 24 hours in the United States — and that roughly 319 people out of 100,000 in the country have contracted the disease.
Also, on the call, federal officials said said they were working with Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to implement President Trump's executive order to get the food processing plants reopened. They are also working with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to make sure that employees are working in a safe environment so they can reopen as quickly as they can.
5:34 p.m. ET, May 1, 2020
Tennessee governor orders mass testing in state prisons
From CNN's Chandler Thornton
Trousdale Turner Correctional Center is shown in Hartsville, Tennessee on May 24, 2016. Mark Humphrey/AP
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee is ordering mass testing at all state prisons after 1,246 cases were reported at Trousdale Turner Correctional Facility.
Lee said of the 1,246 cases, 22 are staff and the rest are inmates.
Ninety percent of the Trousdale prison cases are asymptomatic, the governor added.
4:55 p.m. ET, May 1, 2020
New York City has 13,000 confirmed coronavirus deaths
New York City has 13,000 confirmed coronavirus deaths and 5,231 probable coronavirus deaths, according to the city website.
The New York City Health Department defines probable deaths as people who did not have a positive Covid-19 laboratory test, but their death certificate lists as the cause of death “COVID-19” or an equivalent.
The total number of confirmed coronavirus deaths and probable coronavirus deaths in New York City is 18,231.
There have been 164,505 coronavirus cases in the city and approximately 42,417 people have been hospitalized, according to the city.
The data is from the New York City Health Department and was updated on May 1 at 1 p.m., according to the website.
4:58 p.m. ET, May 1, 2020
Stocks drop and end the week in the red
From Paul R. LaMonica
The US flag is seen at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City on April 30. Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images
The market fell sharply Friday, erasing Wall Street's gains for the week.
Concerns about increased tension between President Trump and China due to the Covid-19 pandemic weighed on stocks. A weak reading on manufacturing in the United States also hurt investor sentiment.
Here's where things stand:
The Dow fell 2.6% or 622 points.
The S&P 500 dropped by 2.8%.
The Nasdaq Composite ended the day 3.2% lower.
Amazon shares plunged after the company posted weaker-than-expected-earnings while Tesla fell after CEO Elon Musk tweeted that he thought the electric carmaker's stock price was too high.
5:06 p.m. ET, May 1, 2020
Trump joins Gilead CEO to discuss FDA emergency-use order for remdesivir
From CNN's Jason Hoffman
Daniel O'Day, CEO of Gillead Sciences Inc., speaks during a meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on May 1 Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images
President Trump met with the CEO of pharmaceutical company Gilead today and discussed the promising results of an experimental drug named remdesivir in treating patients infected by the coronavirus.
Trump called the treatment “a very promising situation.”
The Food and Drug Administration on Friday issued an emergency-use authorization for the drug, saying it could be used to treat hospitalized patients diagnosed with severe Covid-19.
“I’m pleased to announce that Gilead now has an EUA from the FDA for remdesivir,” Trump said. “An important treatment for hospitalized corona patients and something I spoke with Dr. (Stephen) Hahn and Dr. (Anthony) Fauci. I spoke with Deborah (Birx) about it. It is really a very promising situation,” Trump added.
Daniel O'Day, Gilead's CEO, said that the company is donating 1.5 million vials of the drug, which corresponds to approximately 140,000 treatment courses based on the treatment used in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) trial.
O’Day thanked the patients and caregivers who participated in early clinical trials saying, “And really the thanks go to the patients and caregivers that participate in these clinical trials.”
FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said remdesivir is the first authorized therapy drug for Covid-19.
“This is an important clinical advance that showed a statistically significant reduction in time to recovery for patients with Covid-19 and is the first authorized therapy for Covid-19.” Hahn said.
