March 27 coronavirus news

New York City currently has at least 25,573 cases of coronavirus, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a news conference Friday.

De Blasio said the city has enough supplies to last through next week, but added that they will likely need more supplies as soon.

The city has received 2,500 ventilators in the last week, but still needs 15,000 more, he said.

De Blasio also said supply deliveries to hospitals across the city are underway, with 20 trucks delivering these items:

On Saturday, city trucks will be delivering 800,000 more N95 masks, and 2 million more surgical masks.

The Republic of Ireland will enter a nationwide period of lockdown as part of new "radical" measures to tackle the spread of coronavirus, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced Friday.

“With effect from midnight tonight, for a two week period until Easter Sunday, April 12, everybody must stay at home under all circumstances," Varadkar said.

The order limits travel for citizens and public and private gatherings.

Speaking during news conference on Friday evening, Varadkar confirmed that essential workers — including health and social care professionals — would be permitted to travel to and from work.

Members of the public, Varadkar continued, will also be allowed to leave their homes to purchase groceries and medicine; attend medical appointments; engage in brief, individual exercise; and for vital family reasons, such as providing care to children and the elderly. 

According to the Irish prime minister, all visits to hospitals and prisons will no longer be permissible, and public transport services will be limited to “essential workers" and those providing essential services.

Rep. Grace Meng shared her frustration over how President Trump is handling coronavirus with CNN on Friday.

The comments from the New York congresswoman were prompted by Trump's comments Thursday night questioning whether New York needed more ventilators.

Meng's frustration was punctuated in a tweet she sent Friday after speaking to a nurse at Elmhurst Hospital in New York.

"A nurse at my elmhurst hospital who i don’t know just called me crying. She said they need vents but more so need doctors and also doctors who are ICU trained. She told me they cry everyday bc they know they’re gonna die. They’re begging. Please," Meng tweeted.

What is happening in New York: Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo slammed Trump for his call to distribute federal ventilators the state had in storage as the two leaders' war of words over the coronavirus pandemic escalates.

Cuomo argued that the ventilators were stored in preparation for when New York hospitals exceed their capacity as the state has become the epicenter of the American coronavirus outbreak. 

Cuomo told CNN on Friday that Trump's assessment of the situation "incorrect and grossly uninformed."

Cuomo added that his office was planning for a peak in cases "in about 21 days — that's when we need the 30,000 ventilators, not today."

Trump had earlier tweeted that New York should distribute the ventilators immediately. That statement came hours after Trump said in a Fox News interview that he doubted states calling for tens of thousands of ventilators would need them.

"Thousand of Federal Government (delivered) Ventilators found in New York storage," Trump tweeted Friday. "N.Y. must distribute NOW!"

Montana is reporting its first coronavirus death, according to a statement from the Lincoln County Health Department.

Local officials say the victim was one of three Covid-19 cases confirmed in the county. All three of the county’s cases are believed to be related.

Montana is the 45th state to report at least one death due to coronavirus.

Kansas is short on testing swabs and transportation for patients, Kansas Secretary of Health Dr. Lee Norman said during a news conference on Friday.

Norman said he feels "relaxed" about dealing with the pandemic as the worst projections only has the state down 35 ICU beds.

Norman said he believes the peak will occur around April 24-28 and the state will see at least 900 cases.

New Mexico students will be staying home for the rest of the school year.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced the new order on Friday.

“Keeping schools closed is one of the most important tools we have to support the social distancing that can help us reduce and mitigate the spread of the virus,” the governor said in a written statement. 

The governor said all schools will be required to find new ways to teach their students at home starting on April 6.

Grisham also ordered Friday that anyone traveling by air into New Mexico will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days immediately upon arrival. People will only be allowed to leave quarantine for medical care.

President Trump discussed invoking the Defense Production Act against General Motors during an Oval Office signing ceremony for the $2 trillion economic stimulus bill.

Trump said he “did activate it with respect to General Motors and hopefully, maybe we won't even need the full activation. We will find out, but we need the ventilators.”

Trump said he has “enacted the act, and we’ve used it 3 or 4 times, I pulled it back 3 times because the companies came through in the end.” 

The President said a deal was in place with GM but said when that fell apart he decided to invoke the DPA.

An earlier statement from the White House said, "Our negotiations with GM regarding its ability to supply ventilators have been productive, but our fight against the virus is too urgent to allow the give-and-take of the contracting process to continue to run its normal course."

It continued: "GM was wasting time. Today's action will help ensure the quick production of ventilators that will save American lives."

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has issued a stay-at-home order for the state starting 5 p.m. ET Monday.

The order also limits gatherings to no more than 10 people.

The state has reported 763 cases of Covid-19 and three deaths.

Gov. Gavin Newsom has ordered all eviction enforcement and legal proceedings to stop.

The executive order issued today means landlords cannot evict tenants for nonpayment of rent due to Covid-19.