May 27 coronavirus news

By Jessie Yeung, Steve George, Zamira Rahim and Fernando Alfonso III, CNN

Updated 9:52 p.m. ET, May 27, 2020
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11:02 p.m. ET, May 26, 2020

Antibody tests for Covid-19 are wrong half the time, CDC says

From CNN's Maggie Fox

A health worker takes a drop of blood for a Covid-19 antibody test at the Diagnostic and Wellness Center on May 5, in Torrance, California.
A health worker takes a drop of blood for a Covid-19 antibody test at the Diagnostic and Wellness Center on May 5, in Torrance, California. Valerie Macon/AFP/Getty Images

Antibody tests used to determine if people have been infected in the past with Covid-19 might be wrong up to half the time, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in new guidance posted online.

Antibody tests, often called serologic tests, look for evidence of an immune response to infection.

"Antibodies in some persons can be detected within the first week of illness onset," the CDC says.

But these tests are not accurate enough to use to make important policy decisions, the CDC said.

"Serologic test results should not be used to make decisions about grouping persons residing in or being admitted to congregate settings, such as schools, dormitories, or correctional facilities ... Serologic test results should not be used to make decisions about returning persons to the workplace," the CDC said.

Health officials or health care providers who are using antibody tests need to use the most accurate test they can find and might need to test people twice, the CDC said in the new guidance.

Read more here:

10:34 p.m. ET, May 26, 2020

How many people have coronavirus? Sometimes, it's just a guess

From CNN's Maggie Fox

People get free Covid-19 tests without needing to show ID, a doctor's note or symptoms at a drive-through and walk up testing center in Arlington, Virginia, on May 26.
People get free Covid-19 tests without needing to show ID, a doctor's note or symptoms at a drive-through and walk up testing center in Arlington, Virginia, on May 26. Olivier Douliery/AFP/Getty Images

The young man admitted to the Newton-Wellesley hospital in Massachusetts was clearly very ill -- so ill that he needed the help of a ventilator to breathe.

The doctors treating him were certain he was infected with the new coronavirus. It was mid-April -- the height of the outbreak in the Boston area. The patient had trouble breathing and had other symptoms.

But the first swab test for coronavirus came back negative. A second test, 24 hours later, came up negative, too. So they tried a different approach.

"The clinical team reached out to me for help in testing a tracheal aspirate," Dr. Michael Misialek, a pathologist at Newton-Wellesley Hospital outside Boston, told CNN.

That's a test that takes a sample from deeper in the respiratory system. It uses a different technique, but doctors are increasingly reporting that they cannot find evidence of Covid-19 infection until they perform such tests.

This tracheal secretion came back positive. "That allowed the team to enroll the patient in a clinical trial," Misialek said. He was treated with one of several immune-based drugs being tried out on coronavirus patients, eventually recovered and was discharged from hospital.

Similar cases were taking place around the world. In London, New York, and elsewhere, health workers were seeing patients arrive with severe symptoms -- but then test negative for Covid-19.

Why is this happening? Some studies are beginning to indicate that when patients are severely ill, the virus is replicating deeper in the respiratory system, beyond the reach of the swabs used for most of the testing, experts say.

Dozens of tests are on the market, but their reliability varies greatly. 

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, which look for evidence of the virus, are usually reliable -- but not always.

Read the full story here:

10:25 p.m. ET, May 26, 2020

Peru reports more than 5,000 new coronavirus cases

From Helena DeMoura in Atlanta

A worker disinfects an area of El Angel crematorium in Lima on May 21.
A worker disinfects an area of El Angel crematorium in Lima on May 21. Ernesto Benavides/AFP/Getty Images

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Peru rose to at least 129,751 on Tuesday — a jump of 5,772 from the previous day, according to the country's health ministry. 

The country also registered at least 159 new related deaths, raising the national death toll to 3,788, the ministry said in a statement.  

Peru has the second-highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Latin America, behind Brazil.

Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra announced Friday that a national state of emergency, which includes mandatory social isolation measures, will be extended through June 30. 

10:20 p.m. ET, May 26, 2020

Coronavirus model now projects 11,000 fewer deaths in the US by August

From CNN’s Arman Azad

A medical professional administers a coronavirus test at a drive-thru testing site run by George Washington University Hospital, on May 26, in Washington, DC.
A medical professional administers a coronavirus test at a drive-thru testing site run by George Washington University Hospital, on May 26, in Washington, DC. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

A coronavirus model that has been cited by the White House now projects that fewer people will die in the United States by August.

In a Tuesday update, the model revised its forecast to 132,000 deaths— which is 11,000 fewer than it projected a week ago.

Built by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, the model is one of more than a dozen highlighted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on its website. An ensemble forecast from the CDC, which relies on multiple models, projects that US deaths will exceed 110,000 by June 13. 

The White House cited the IHME model often in April, but it has been criticized by some for its assumptions and performance. The model has undergone a number of revisions in the past few weeks.

As states began reopening, IHME upped its forecast for the number of US deaths, based in part on cell phone mobility data that showed people moving around more. But the institute began revising its projections downwards last week, saying an expected increase in infections had not yet occurred.

Dr. Christopher Murray, the IHME director, said that might have been because of behavioral changes such as mask wearing. The institute has since described its plan for gathering data on how many Americans wear masks. It’s not clear what drove down the model’s projections on Tuesday, however.

10:19 p.m. ET, May 26, 2020

Brazil surpasses US daily coronavirus death toll

From CNN's Shasta Darlington and Jonny Hallam

The Sao Goncalo Field Hospital houses 200 beds, 80 of them intensive care units and 50 respirators, on May 26 in Sao Gonalo, Brazil. The hospital will begin receiving coronavirus patients on Wednesday.
The Sao Goncalo Field Hospital houses 200 beds, 80 of them intensive care units and 50 respirators, on May 26 in Sao Gonalo, Brazil. The hospital will begin receiving coronavirus patients on Wednesday. Luis Alvarenga/Getty Images

Brazil’s daily coronavirus deaths have been higher than the number of reported fatalities in the United States over the last two days, as the country's health crisis grows and controversy swells around President Jair Bolsonaro.

The Brazilian health ministry said Tuesday that the country reported at least 1,039 deaths over the last 24 hours.

At least 683 people died from coronavirus in the US during the same time period, according to Johns Hopkins University’s tally of cases.

Brazil reported at least 807 coronavirus deaths on Monday. The US had 498 deaths during the same period.  

As of Tuesday night, the total national death toll in Brazil stands at 24,512.

The Brazilian health ministry on Tuesday said there were at least 16,324 new cases of novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide total of cases to at least 391,222. 

10:19 p.m. ET, May 26, 2020

Mexico sees largest single-day increase in new cases and deaths

From CNN’s Matt Rivers in Mexico City

Mexican Red Cross paramedics rush a patient suspected of being infected with the Covid-19 into Venados General Hospital in Mexico City, on May 26.
Mexican Red Cross paramedics rush a patient suspected of being infected with the Covid-19 into Venados General Hospital in Mexico City, on May 26. Pedro Pardo/AFP/Getty Images

Mexico has recorded its largest single-day increases in both newly confirmed cases and reported deaths from novel coronavirus since the outbreak began.

Mexican health officials reported an additional 3,455 cases on Tuesday, bringing the total to 74,560.

Officials also recorded an additional 501 deaths, bringing the death toll to 8,134. It is the first time Mexico has reported more than 500 deaths in one day.

Reopening plans: The new figures come as Mexico’s government moves ahead with plans for a slow, phased re-opening of certain parts of its economy in locations less affected by the virus.

10:18 p.m. ET, May 26, 2020

UK government minister resigns over lockdown controversy surrounding Boris Johnson's aide

From CNN's Nada Bashir

Junior UK minister Douglas Ross has resigned from the British government over the controversy surrounding Boris Johnson's senior adviser, Dominic Cummings, who traveled more than 250 miles from his London home during the nationwide coronavirus lockdown in March.

"I have just tendered my resignation from the UK government and my position as Under Secretary of State for Scotland," Ross wrote in a letter posted to his official Twitter account on Tuesday.
"There was much I still hoped to do in this role but events over the last few days mean I can no longer serve as a member of this government," he added. 

Some context: Ross' resignation follows a press statement made by Cummings on Monday, in which the aide admitted to travelling to Durham in northern England during the lockdown, despite the fact that his wife was ill.

Cummings said he made the trip to ensure the welfare of his child, asserting that while his wife had fallen ill in London, she did not have symptoms of coronavirus.

"I was worried that if both my wife and I were seriously ill, possibly hospitalized, there is nobody in London that we could reasonably ask to look after our child and expose themselves to Covid," Cummings said.

Ross said that while Cummings' intentions "may have been well meaning," the subsequent reaction to the news "shows that Mr Cummings interpretation of the government advice was not shared by the vast majority of people who have done as the government asked."

"I have constituents who didn't get to say goodbye to loved ones; families who could not mourn together; people who didn't visit sick relatives because they followed the guidelines of the government," Ross added.

"I cannot in good faith tell them they were all wrong and one senior advisor to the government was right."