US retail sales dropped 16.4% in April, according to the Census Bureau. The dramatic decline was the largest since the data series began in 1992.
Excluding cars and parts, sales declined by 17.2%.
Coronavirus pandemic in the US
By Elise Hammond and Meg Wagner, CNN
Updated 8:03 p.m. ET, May 15, 2020
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US retail sales collapsed to record low last month
From CNN’s Anneken Tappe
Restarting college sports will be up to individual schools, NCAA president says
From CNN's Elise Hammond
As colleges and universities across the country decide if in-person classes will be held on campus in the fall, they will also have to decide if athletic programs will resume, NCAA President Mark Emmert said.
Emmert said the decision to restart college athletics will be up to each individual school, but he said he thinks at least some students must be allowed to return to campuses for some sports to be able to take place
"These are college students that are playing these sports. The one thing that we have been saying loud and clear is you can't put a student athlete at any greater risk than you would a normal student," he told CNN on Friday.
Emmert said the NCAA is working with medical advisors and experts to "try to set parameters that allow student athletes to return safely along with classmates."
"They're college students that were athletes on their campuses and so you have to have the campuses open in one fashion or another for students before you can have college athletics going on on those campuses," he said.
Emmert, who is a former university president, acknowledges the challenges universities face and said there is going to be many different systems in place in the fall, both academically and athletically.
"I think that we're going to see quite an array of openings this fall with schools opening in a variety of different ways. Some totally online, some partially online, some trying to do as much normal, if you will, as they can and mostly it's going to be a hybrid of all of those things," he said.
"Nothing I think is going to be typical this fall and sports are likely to be the same," Emmert added.
Watch:
It's Friday morning in the US. Here's where things stand now.
Here's the latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic to start your day:
- New case counts are dropping in almost half of US states: In 24 states, the number of new coronavirus cases reported each day is generally going down, according to Johns Hopkins University. But remember: that doesn't mean it's time to celebrate and take off face masks in public. As states remove more stay-at-home restrictions, it will take weeks to learn the health effects.
- Children and coronavirus: The CDC has issued a health advisory over the mysterious childhood disease doctors think could be linked to the coronavirus. The syndrome, which is being called multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, has been seen in kids across Europe and in at least 18 US states.
- The latest numbers. Almost 86,000 people have died in the US, and there are at least 1,417,889 recorded cases of the disease in total, according to the latest tally from Johns Hopkins.
- Beijing hopes to maintain bilateral ties with US: China's remarks come after President Trump heavily criticized the country on Friday.
- Nevada's casino restaurants permitted to reopen: Although casinos themselves remain closed in the state food outlets inside can open under phase one of the governor's reopening plan.
The focus is shifting from trying to eliminate coronavirus to reducing the risks, a doctor says
From CNN's Faith Karimi
The US appears to be changing its strategy from trying to completely eliminate coronavirus to reducing infection risks as the nation reopens, a health expert says.
With nearly all states easing social distancing, the nation has now shifted to harm reduction -- which focuses on ways to reduce the risk if it cannot be removed entirely, said Dr. Leana Wen, an ER physician and the former health commissioner for Baltimore.
"We had a strategy before. That strategy was we would reduce the number of infections and at the same time build up our capabilities to do testing, tracing, isolation," she said Thursday night during the CNN global town hall on coronavirus.
"We know that that's what's going to be effective, but we are reopening before those capabilities are in place. So in essence, we're saying it's too hard. We're not going to be able to get there. And so we're switching to a new phase. "
The new strategy includes ways to slow the spread of the virus such as social distancing, avoiding unnecessary gatherings, changing ventilation systems and increasing time outdoors, she said.
As of early Friday, more than 1.4 million people in the US have been infected with the coronavirus, and over 85,000 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Read more here.
China calls for stable bilateral ties with US after Trump criticizes Beijing
From CNN's Isaac Yee
China has called for stable bilateral ties to be maintained between Beijing and Washington after US President Donald Trump heavily criticized the country on Thursday.
"Maintaining stable development of bilateral ties serves the fundamental interests of both the Chinese and US people and is also conducive to world peace and stability," Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Zhao Lijian said.
"Now China and the US should continue to enhance our cooperation against the novel coronavirus to defeat the virus as soon as possible and to treat patients and resume the economic development and production, but doing this also calls for the cooperation on the US side.”
Trump has repeatedly attacked China as coronavirus cases rise in the US.
The US has increased military pressure on China over the last few weeks, amid increased tensions over the South China Sea.
Washington has also accused Beijing of seeking to leverage the coronavirus pandemic to extend its sphere of influence in the region.
Nevada's casino restaurants can reopen, state gaming commission says
From CNN's Joe Sutton
Restaurants in Nevada's casinos are now permitted to reopen for business, the Nevada Gaming Control Board has said.
Most restaurants in the state were permitted to open for dine-in services with social distancing from May 9, under the first phase of the state governor's reopening plan. But Nevada's casinos remain shut under the state's social distancing guidelines.
The casino restaurants will have to comply with the same industry-specific guidance the governor set forth for food establishments, the board said in a notice sent on Thursday.
Restaurants will need to inform the board “whether there is a separate entrance for the restaurant, apart from any entrance to the restaurant off the gaming floor," according to the notice.
"If there is not a separate entrance for the restaurant, the licensee must articulate to the Board how it will ensure that patrons are only able to enter the restaurant from inside the property without traversing the gaming floor," it added.
If there is no restroom inside the premises, restaurants will have to outline how customers can use a bathroom outside of the restaurant without stepping onto the casino's gaming floor.
The business will also need to provide a plan on how it will prevent customers from congregating outside of the restaurant prior to entering, if they are located in a county with a population of more than 100,000.
Almost 86,000 people have died in the US
From CNN's Joe Sutton
At least 85,906 people have died in the US from coronavirus, according to Johns Hopkins University's latest tally of cases. There are 1,417,889 recorded cases of the disease across the country.
The totals include cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases.
CNN is tracking the spread of coronavirus across the US here.
New coronavirus case counts are going down in almost half of US states
From CNN's Holly Yan and Faith Karimi
In 24 states, the number of new coronavirus cases reported each day is generally going down.
In 17 states, the numbers are holding steady, according to an analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University. And in nine states, the numbers of new cases are still rising.
But that doesn't mean it's time to celebrate and take off face masks in public.
As states remove more stay-at-home restrictions, it will take weeks to learn the health effects.
A poll shows most Americans aren't yet ready to return to their regular routines.
And a new study reveals the virus can be spread just by talking, with airborne particles lingering for eight minutes.
As of Thursday, more than 1.4 million people in the US have been infected with the coronavirus, and more than 85,000 have died, according to Johns Hopkins.
5 takeaways from Rick Bright's House hearing
From CNN's Melissa Macaya, Adrienne Vogt, Alex Rogers and Maggie Fox
Rick Bright, who filed a whistleblower complaint after being removed from his position as head of the agency in charge of pandemic response, testified for just under four hours Thursday before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce's health subcommittee.
Here are a few key points Bright made in his testimony:
- Bright 'alarmed' at lack of plans from federal agencies and the administration: Bright said there is still no "master, coordinated plan" and noted that a "comprehensive strategy" was needed to combat the coronavirus pandemic that included widespread testing, tracing and ongoing efforts to "develop a cure," as well as what to do with a vaccine once one is developed.
- Bright says his warnings about supply shortages were ignored multiple times: Bright said he began to get alerts that the supply chain for masks and other personal protective equipment was "diminishing rapidly" back in January. But when he forwarded the alerts to leadership in the US Department of Health and Human Services, as well as with national infrastructure and stockpile teams, he said they were ignored.
- "There were some attempts to bypass" a vetting process for hydroxychloroquine: The Trump administration rushed out recommendations about the drug hydroxychloroquine to treat coronavirus, Bright said. "We have a very rigorous scientific review process for all the investments that we make for the drugs, vaccines and diagnostics through BARDA and through our department," Bright said, a reference to the agency for which he used to be the director, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.
- He cast doubt on the 12- to 18-month timeline for a vaccine: Bright called the White House's vaccine timeline an "aggressive schedule" and warned that if the administration rushed too quickly to get out a vaccine, the country may not have a full assessment of its safety.
- GOP members question need for hearing and its timing: Some Republicans on the subcommittee said that the hearing shouldn't have been held at all, citing other needs for Congress to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic.