March 18 coronavirus news

The US has reported at least 6,135 cases and 112 deaths, according to CNN's tally.

70 cases are repatriated citizens -- like those evacuated from China or from the Princess Diamond cruise ship.

6,065 cases were detected and tested in the United States.

These cases, which include presumptive positive cases, are now coming from all 50 states across the country. West Virginia, the last uninfected state, confirmed its first case today.

112 people have died nationwide so far.

New York is the worst affected state, with more than 1,600 cases so far. Washington isn't far behind, with more than 1,000 cases.

California follows with close to 600 cases.

The European Union: European leaders have banned non-essential travel to the EU for 30 days.

United States: US-Canada border crossing limits are expected. Travel from the UK and Ireland suspended as well as the 26 countries in Europe's the Schengen Area free movement zone. Travelers from China and Iran in the last 14 days are also not allowed to enter.

Australia: Australia requires "all people" arriving in the country to self-quarantine for 14 days. Travelers who have been in China, Iran, South Korea or Italy in the last 14 days are not allowed to enter or transit for 14 days.

Cambodia: A ban on foreign nationals arriving from Italy, Germany, Spain, France and the US for 30 days from March 17.

Canada: Entry is denied to people who are not Canadian citizens, US citizens or permanent residents. US-Canada border crossing limits are expected.

Cape Verde: From March 17 a three-week suspension of all incoming flights from Portugal and all EU countries affected by the pandemic, and from the US, Brazil, Senegal and Nigeria.

China: All international arrivals to Beijing must undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine at designated facilities and at their own cost. Arrivals from Iran, Italy, Japan or Korea and traveling to Beijing, Guangzhou or Shanghai are subject to quarantine for 14 days. Shanghai has listed 12 countries from which arriving travelers will be quarantined for 14 days.

Colombia: Entry denied to people who are not Colombian citizens, permanent residents or diplomats.

Czech Republic: Visitors from China, South Korea, Iran, Italy, Spain, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, UK, Norway, Denmark and France, will be banned. Outbound travel to high-risk countries is also banned.

Egypt: Flights in and out of Egyptian airports suspended for two weeks starting March 19.

Germany: Shut its borders with Austria, Switzerland, France, Luxembourg and Denmark. Goods and commuters will be exempt from the ban.

Haiti: Beginning midnight local time on March 16, Haiti is suspending flights from Europe, Canada, the Dominican Republic and Latin America for two weeks.

Hong Kong: Starting March 19, Hong Kong will require all arriving travelers from foreign countries to be quarantined for 14 days at home.

Hungary: Closed its borders to non-nationals.

India: All travelers from the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland, Turkey and the UK are banned from entering. All tourist visas are suspended and a 14-day quarantine is enforced on all travelers.

Japan: Banning entry on passengers who have been in affected regions of China, South Korea or Italy within the last 14 days

Malaysia: Citizens are banned from traveling abroad, with foreign tourists and visitors restricted from entering the country.

Morocco: Suspended all international flights to and from its territory "until further notice."

New Zealand: All travelers, including New Zealand citizens and residents, entering the country will be required to "self-isolate" for 14 days. The only exemptions are the Pacific Islands.

Peru: From March 16, flights from and to Europe and Asia are suspended for 30-days.

Philippines: Cebu Pacific is canceling all flights -- domestic and international -- from March 19 through April 14. In Luzon all mass public transportation has been suspended.

Russia: Passengers who have been in China, France, Germany, South Korea or Spain and are planning to stay in Moscow must report themselves to the authorities by phone and stay self-isolated for 14 days.

Saudi Arabia: Apart from Saudi nationals, passengers who have transited through or have been in 30 countries and territories in the past 14 days are not allowed to enter. See the list here.

South Korea: Visitors who have been in China's Hubei Province in the past 14 days, and passport holders from that region, are not permitted entry.

Spain: A state of emergency has already been declared in Spain and restrictions on travel in and out of the country are expected. Several Spain-bound airplanes were turned back to the UK midair.

Sri Lanka: The South Asian nation has suspended all flights arriving into the country for two weeks, effective midnight today.

Bolivia: International and national flights into Bolivia will be suspended starting Friday. The country's borders will be closed from Thursday, with only Bolivian citizens, residents, and trade allowed to enter.

Thailand: Suspended its visa exemption policies for travelers from Hong Kong, South Korea and Italy, while visa on arrival has been stopped for 18 countries. See the list here.

Turkey: Halted travel to and from 9 European countries: Germany, Spain, France, Austria, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Belgium and the Netherlands. Nationals of those countries are not allowed to enter the country.

Vietnam: Travelers who have been in the 26 European countries in the Schengen Area, plus the UK, within the past 14 days will not be permitted to enter or transit. Visas upon arrival will also no longer be issued for all foreign nationals

See the full list here.

Members of Russian President Vladimir Putin's administration are being tested for coronavirus as a precautionary measure, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Pesksov told state media today. 

Peskov added that journalists planning to cover Putin’s trip to Crimea today are also being tested for coronavirus, and said journalists who had recently traveled outside Russia should avoid applying for accreditation for future events involving Putin. 

The Kremlin has been checking the temperatures of all journalists covering President Putin’s events for about a week now, Russian state media RIA added.

Russia has 114 confirmed cases, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Just yesterday, Putin said the Russian government had managed to bring the spread of coronavirus “under control,” even as cases in the country continued to rise.

Russia has closed its borders with China, restricted flights to and from the European Union, and will be partially and selectively closing its borders to foreign arrivals on Wednesday. 

After months on the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic, Hong Kong increasingly looks like a model for how to handle it.

Despite having numerous transport links with mainland China, where the first cases were detected, and a mobile population working on either side of the border, through intense efforts, including having millions work at home and exercising social distancing, Hong Kong has kept its number of cases comparatively low.

To date, Hong Kong, which is home to more than 7 million people, has fewer than 170 cases and four deaths, while other countries and cities have reported hundreds, even thousands, of infections.

The biggest visual sign of the city's continued effort has been the almost complete ubiquity of face masks, which began appearing soon after the first coronavirus cases were reported in China, (despite a technical ban on them related to last year's anti-government protests), and soon were seen everywhere, sparking concerns about shortages and long queues at pharmacies that did stock them.

But now, fears are growing of a potential second wave of cases -- imported from outside the territory.

Some who left the city early in the outbreak are starting to return, while others are being forced to -- many countries which attract large numbers of Hong Kong students are closing universities and going into lockdown -- raising concerns they will bring the coronavirus back with them.

On Tuesday, the city's government issued a red notice for all foreign countries, requiring anyone arriving from overseas to undergo a 14-day home quarantine.

Read the full analysis here.

A hockey player for the Ottawa Senators, part of the North American National Hockey League (NHL), has tested positive for the coronavirus.

The player was not identified, but a statement from the team said the player was experiencing mild symptoms and was in isolation. The team is now working with health officials to conduct contact tracing. All the other team members are also being isolated..

This is the first publicly known instance of an infected NHL player.

Season suspended: The NHL announced last week that it is pausing the rest of the season's games because of the pandemic.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said the move was directly related to the news that an NBA player for the Utah Jazz team had tested positive.

The NBA and NHL share facilities and locker rooms, leading to the suspension decision.

Taiwan is banning most foreign nationals from entering the country in an effort to prevent the spread of coronavirus, announced the island's Epidemic Central Command Center today.

They added that travelers coming to the island will be subjected to a mandatory 14-day home quarantine.

The restrictions will go into effect tomorrow local time.

The numbers: Johns Hopkins University, which is tracking cases reported by the World Health Organization and additional sources, puts the total number of cases worldwide at more than 198,000, with at least 7,900 deaths.

Emergency funding: The White House Office of Management and Budget is requesting the US Congress for an additional $45.8 billion in the face of a pandemic and Spain has approved a 200 billion euro (almost $220 billion) aid package.

More flights suspended: Sri Lanka has suspended all flights arriving into the country for two weeks, effective midnight today. Meanwhile, United Airlines is cutting even more domestic and international flights, following the US restrictions on travel from the UK and other European countries.

Travel restrictions widen: European leaders have decided to ban non-essential travel to the EU for 30 days. US-Canada border crossing limits are expected. Macao has banned all travelers from overseas countries from entering. And Taiwan is banning most foreign nationals.

Asylum seekers affected: The US administration is pushing to pass tough immigration restrictions including blocking entry to asylum seekers. A plan to turn back all migrants seeking asylum would have its most immediate effect on the US-Mexico border.

Saudi Arabia: All work in private sectors is being suspended for 15 days. On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia banned Muslims from conducting five daily prayers and Friday prayers inside mosques as a precautionary measure.

More action needed: Countries in Southeast Asia must “urgently scale-up aggressive measures” and widespread testing to prevent the coronavirus from spreading further, said World Health Organization officials.

As the coronavirus continues to spread across the US, states are taking emergency measures to combat the pandemic. Here are some of tonight's latest developments:

And the virus finally reached West Virginia, the last uninfected state, today. All 50 states now have cases of the coronavirus.

The World Health Organization didn’t offer Covid-19 tests to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic told CNN on Tuesday.

There were no discussions between the WHO and CDC on providing tests, according to Jasarevic, who added that the US typically has the capacity to manufacture its own tests, so it doesn't usually rely on the WHO for them.

Separate manufacturers: On January 17, the WHO published a protocol from German researchers with the instructions necessary for any country to manufacture coronavirus tests. 

The US pursued its own design and began testing for the coronavirus at the CDC in Atlanta. On February 5, the CDC announced it would begin shipping test kits to public health labs in the US.

One day later, the WHO said it had shipped 250,000 tests to more than 70 laboratories around the world.

Delays and stumbles in US testing: Days after CDC’s tests shipped, some labs reported that the test kits were not working as expected, which eventually required tests to be re-manufactured. 

On March 1, an official at US Health and Human Services said the agency had launched an investigation into a manufacturing defect in the CDC tests.

As of March 9, public health labs in all 50 states and Washington, DC, are able to test for the coronavirus.