Coronavirus pandemic in the US

A new study shows that hydroxychloroquine, the drug touted by President Trump, does not work against Covid-19 and could cause heart problems.

The study was the largest of its kind and was published Monday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. It follows a study published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine that also showed the drug doesn't fight the virus.

Even before these reports were published, the US Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health issued warnings about using the drugs for coronavirus patients. 

In the most recent study, researchers at the University at Albany looked at 1,438 patients with coronavirus who were admitted to 25 New York City area hospitals.

After statistical adjustments, the death rate for patients taking hydroxychloroquine was similar to those who did not take the drug. The death rate for those taking hydroxychloroquine plus the antibiotic azithromycin, was also similar.

The patients who took the drug combination were more than twice as likely to suffer cardiac arrest during the course of the study. Heart issues are a known side effect of hydroxychloroquine.

US stocks closed mixed on Monday, with the Dow giving back some of last week’s gains. 

Investors worried about a second wave of coronavirus infections following a spike in South Korea, which limited gains in Monday’s trading.

Here's where the markets closed on Monday: 

Both the S&P and the Nasdaq had started the day in the red but turned higher.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom backs regional modifications to the statewide stay-at-home order, essentially backing Alameda County, which was one of seven jurisdictions that held back on reopening.

Tesla recently filed a lawsuit to resume making cars.

The Tesla factory in Fremont, California, which is in Alameda County, appeared to reopen this morning, following a weekend battle between Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and California Congresswoman Lorena Gonzalez.

Noting that many of the restrictions lifted in California on Friday included manufacturing, Newsom indicated that Tesla can resume operations next week when Alameda County lifts those same restrictions.

“Over the weekend, as it relates to the health and safety of employees and that one particular facility, and the extent that they're moving forward, we will work with the county health officials but again it's county led enforcement," Newsom said.

“In these cases, and to the extent their modifications are being violated, I imagine Alameda County Health Department would be the first to check in with and we'll certainly be doing that as a follow up,” he added.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, not to hold anything back and to “let it rip” ahead of tomorrow's Senate Health Committee oversight hearing on the administration’s coronavirus response.

He also said that until now, the country has mostly heard from the members of the coronavirus task force “through the distorted lens of the White House press conference with the President often prevents them from answering fully, interrupts their response, or even contradicts their fact based advice.”  

“This is the kind of hearing we need, not once a week, but several a day,” he said.

Actor Matthew McConaughey discussed his nonpartisan public service campaigns to unite the nation to defeat the coronavirus pandemic with CNN’s Brianna Keilar.

McConaughey has launched a number of PSAs promoting social distancing measures and the use of face masks.

He and his wife have also donated about 80,000 face masks to first responders, according to Keilar. His most recent PSA calls for the nation to unite in order to fight the virus.

McConaughey added that the coronavirus doesn’t “give a damn who you voted for or who you’re going to vote for … we’re not going to going to let science catch up, we’re not going to beat this virus the way that we can, if we’re fighting each other.”

McConaughey said he believes that both Democrats and Republicans can be more responsible “with how they’ve used this virus for their own partisan, political advantage.”

Watch full interview:

As of Friday, at least 74 employees of the New York City Department of Education have died due to complications related to Covid-19, including 30 teachers, according to a spokesperson for the department.

The Department of Education said 70 were school-based employees, including the 30 teachers, 28 paraprofessionals and other food service staffers, administrators, facilities staff, school aides and guidance counselors.

The other four were central office employees.

The NYC Department of Education specified that the count includes an additional three employees from numbers released last week.

“In the course of continued outreach to families, we confirmed that one food service employee originally listed did not, according to their loved ones, pass away due to COVID-19 or related illnesses,” DOE spokeswoman Miranda Barbot said in an email to reporters.

“This individual has been removed from the total count. In this instance, a name was initially reported through other avenues and to be overly cautious and not undercount, we initially added this individual to our total count," the email added.

Note: These deaths are not confirmed by the Department of Health as related to Covid-19, because the DOH is no longer confirming individual cases due to community transmission, according to Barbot.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Senate Republicans and the White House will be unified on how and when to move ahead on a phase four recovery package that could give funding to state and local governments.

House Democrats plan to advance it as soon as this week. 

“We’re basically assessing what we've done already,” McConnell said. “I'm in constant communication with the White House. If we decide to go forward, we will go forward together."

Some context: Governors across the country have been saying they desperately need federal assistance as they face huge budget deficits from fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier today, the states in the Western Pact — California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado and Nevada — wrote a letter to Congress asking for $1 trillion in aid.

The Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Gen. Joseph Lengyel, tested negative for the coronavirus Monday, two days after he tested positive for the virus immediately prior to a White House meeting with the Joint Chiefs of Staff and President Trump.

Lengyel “was tested for COVID-19 today at Walter Reed Military Medical Center and received a negative result. This was the second negative test result since he received a positive test result during a routine screening prior to attending a Joint Chiefs of Staff meeting at the White House May 9,” the National Guard said in a statement.

CNN reported yesterday that Lengyel had tested positive at the White House, causing him to miss the meeting.

The Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday also missed the meeting and has self-quarantined due to his coming into contact with a family member who had tested positive for coronavirus.

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said if states continue to stay closed, it will lead the country into a depression, and that could cause joblessness, starvation and could cause millions of deaths.

There was "no choice in the matter" but to try and get back to work, Justice said at a news briefing Monday where he outlined more plans for how the state will reopen.

He also discussed how Vice President Pence "nudged" states to get back to work during a call with the nation's governors today.

When asked by a reporter about what Pence said about reopening the economy on the call, Justice said the vice president is encouraging states to start that process.

Justice said that starting Friday, guided fishing tours could reopen under strict guidelines.

On May 21, indoor dining at 50% capacity will be allowed, as well as large specialty retailers and some outdoor activities.

Other no-contact outdoor sports facilities, like baseball and soccer fields, will start to reopen on June 8.