Coronavirus pandemic in the US

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner pushed back on Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's decision to reopen state, saying there's no way to require people to stay home if businesses are opening.

He added: "So once you removed the enforcement mechanism, there's nothing you can do to enforce something that you can't enforce."

Marvin Odum, the appointed Covid-19 recovery leader for Houston, said the city will be adding 24 new testing locations by the end of May. It will be free and open to anyone who wants to get tested.

Nevada will begin reopening on May 9, Gov. Steve Sisolak said today. 

Starting at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, restaurants will be able to open for dine-in services with social distancing, and customers waiting for a table will have to remain outside. Most retail establishments will be able to open, including hair salons by reservation only. Retail businesses can operate at 50% of normal capacity.

Sisolak made clear that one of the industries that will not be opening in the first round is casinos. 

“Gaming operations shall remain closed until the Gaming Control Board determines that operations may safely resume,” the governor said.

Additionally, bars, bowling alleys, movie theaters and tattoo parlors are among the other businesses that will remain closed.

Frontier Airlines says it plans to begin temperature screening all passengers and crew next month. 

The airline announced Thursday that the screening regimen with a touchless thermometer will begin June 1 and “anyone with a temperature exceeding 100.4 degrees will be denied boarding.”

Passengers who test above that limit “will be given time to rest,” and if a second screening is also high, “a Frontier gate agent will explain to the customer that they will not be flying that day for the health and safety of others.”    

Tests will be conducted at the boarding gate by the agent.

CEO Barry Biffle said the temperature screenings are “an additional layer of protection for everyone onboard.” The airline is one of several US carriers requiring all passengers and crew to wear face masks. 

On Thursday morning, Frontier acknowledged it is no longer charging customers $39 and upwards to reserve an empty neighboring seat as part of a social distancing initiative. The airline said it will continue to block the seats but not charge customers. 

Frontier and other airlines say they are encouraging the federal Transportation Security Administration to include a temperature check at the security checkpoint. 

The Transportation Security Administration announced Thursday it is requiring employees to wear face masks at airport screening locations.

The agency had been providing the masks to screeners, but now it is requiring that facial protection be worn.

The TSA says this change will happen in the “coming days.” Wearing eye protection remains optional, it says. 

The TSA also says it is considering more measures to protect against coronavirus.

See how airports are trying to stop the coronavirus spread:

A JBS Greeley beef plant spokesperson said an 11-year employee will receive “the support she deserves" after her daughter told CNN Wednesday about her mother getting sick while working at the plant.

Tin Aye is now in a local Colorado hospital connected to a ventilator due to Covid-19, according to her daughter.

Aye’s daughter San Aye told CNN Wednesday her family filed a Family Medical Leave Act claim with JBS.   

CNN reported on Wednesday that Aye started feeling ill in March and went to a JBS clinic to be checked by plant staff, according to her daughter.

Aye said the clinic staff told her mother that her symptoms were that of a common cold and she could return to work on the plant’s production lines.

In a previous statement, Richardson said: “If this is true, it would be a clear violation of our culture and procedures, which puts team member health and safety first.”

White House staffers, US Secret Service agents and officers working at the White House were seen heading to the White House Medical Unit for testing Thursday in response to news that a presidential valet testing positive for Covid-19.

More than 100 special agents and uniformed division officers were dispatched to the White House Medical Unit located in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building across from the West Wing.

A law enforcement source familiar with White House security operation told CNN the hastily arranged testing was ordered under the direction of the White House Medical Unit.  

President Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and the senior staffers who regularly interact with them have been getting tested weekly for coronavirus, two people familiar told CNN.

Later on Thursday, Trump told reporters he would be tested daily, saying there were "a number of days missed" between when the valet was last tested and when the valet discovered he had coronavirus.

Thursday’s testing included any Secret Service agent or officer who could potentially be in the proximity of the President or the Vice President, this includes special agents of the presidential protection detail and a variety of specialized officers and agents.  

“White House Medical is calling all the shots," the source said.

A United States Secret Service spokesperson told CNN it would not be disclosing information on testing practices.

San Francisco will not lift stay-home restrictions until May 18, Mayor London Breed said.

The city will not join the rest of California in reopening on Friday.

“Retailers like bookstores, florists, & music stores will be the first allowed to operate storefront pickup,” she added.

The stay-at-home order for seven Bay Area jurisdictions, which began on May 4, still remains in effect. 

“The Bay Area orders do not currently permit curbside pickup from non-essential, non-outdoor businesses, and that is not allowed to begin on Friday, May 8,” the counties said in a statement. 

“We appreciate that the Governor recognizes that California communities are impacted differently by coronavirus and can make decisions at the local level,” they added.

The areas covered in the regional order are Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties, along with the city of Berkeley. 

“The coronavirus pandemic is still well underway,” the statement said. “Our communities will be dealing with it for a long time to come. We expect outbreaks to continue, especially among vulnerable populations.”

Following the announcement of Shanghai Disneyland's reopening on May 11, Disney announced today that Disney Springs, an outdoor shopping, dining and entertainment area in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, will begin a phased reopening on May 20. 

The statement said the reopening would include “increased cleaning procedures, the use of appropriate face coverings by both cast members and guests, limited-contact guest services and additional safety training for cast members.”

Theme parks and resort hotels will remain closed.

Florida began allowing restaurants to begin dine-in service on May 4, but restaurants at Disney Springs did not reopen on that date.

Dr. Richard Besser, former acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, issued a warning this afternoon on the White House's decision not to implement the latest CDC guidelines on when businesses could begin to safely reopen.

Besser's remarks came after reports the Trump administration had decided not to implement a 17-page draft recommendation from the CDC for reopening America, a document which provided more detailed suggestions beyond the reopening guidelines the administration had put forth last month, including specific suggestions for schools and churches. 

Besser went on to say that as states move to quickly reopen, they face the potential for further coronavirus outbreak.

“If you look at the trends around the nation, and you look at the number of states that are opening up their economy, it’s a really risky proposition,” Besser said. “I worry that we’re going to see very significant outbreaks in many of those places.”