June 25 coronavirus news

Several of President Trump’s campaign staffers are quarantining this week after attending his rally in Tulsa last weekend and interacting with several colleagues who later tested positive for coronavirus, CNN has learned.

After eight staffers tested positive, several of the campaign’s top officials decided to quarantine for the week instead of going into the office, two sources familiar told CNN. Staff had only recently returned to the office after months of working from home because of coronavirus restrictions. 

The fallout from Trump’s push to hold a rally with thousands of attendees has continued in the days since he returned from Tulsa. CNN reported last night that multiple Secret Service officers were also instructed to self-quarantine after two of their colleagues who were on site for the rally tested positive. 

Several of the campaign’s surrogates who traveled to Tulsa have also undergone coronavirus testing out of an abundance of caution, two sources said. Many of the surrogates — including lawmakers, former lawmakers and campaign advisers — traveled on a chartered plane together without wearing masks. Trump’s campaign had urged many of them to come so Trump could have a show of force for his return to the campaign trail. 

Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser is urging residents to celebrate Fourth of July at home this year.

In a news conference Thursday morning, Bowser said that DC will still be in a public health crisis during the holiday, and that “our strong recommendation is that DC residents celebrate the Fourth of July at home or near their home in small gatherings.”

 “We have not eradicated the virus, we are still reporting new cases each day,” Bowser warned.

Although there has been a plateau in coronavirus cases, the government is “still not satisfied” with the number of cases, the mayor said. 

Bowser noted that the National Park service will still conduct the fireworks display at the National Mall, and that the District will continue to support the Park Service as they do yearly, but she added, “We hope that the crowds that come in non-pandemic years won’t materialize this year.” 

More measures — including road closures — for the firework display on the Mall will be announced next week.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced today that he will pause any further phases to reopen the state as Texas responds to the increase in Covid-19 cases. 

All businesses that were permitted to reopen under the previous phases can continue to operate at the level designated by the phase while still adhering to the minimum standard health protocols as stated by the Texas Department of State Health Services, according to a press release issued by the governor's office.

Here's what the governor said about the decision:

Where the state stands on reopening: Earlier this month, Abbott announced that the state was moving into its Phase III — meaning that "all businesses in Texas will be able to operate at up to 50% capacity, with very limited exceptions."

At least 29 states are seeing new coronavirus cases increase compared with the prior week. The nation's three most populous states — Texas, Florida and California —have set records for new Covid-19 cases.

CNN's John King reports that when it comes to the trajectory of the virus, other countries, including European Union nations, have had more success than the US in bringing the case numbers down. Meanwhile, New Zealand, South Korea and Taiwan, have flattened the curve.

Watch a break down of the latest US Covid-19 figures:

The Florida Department of Health is reporting at least 5,004 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the state's total to 114,018, according to data released on Thursday. 

Medical experts and elected officials have attributed Florida's rising numbers to a combination of more testing and more social contact as businesses reopen and, in recent weeks, to people's participation in large protests, although that has not been clearly established.

Watch CNN's Rosa Flores report on the ground from Florida:

Timing is key when it comes to getting accurate results from Covid-19 antibody tests that are used to determine if someone has been infected with the novel coronavirus, according to a new Cochrane Review paper.

Antibody tests are better at detecting Covid-19 in people two or more weeks after their symptoms started, but there is not yet enough evidence to determine how well they work more than five weeks after, or among people who had milder disease or no symptoms at all, suggests the review, published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews on Thursday.

"This is largely driven by when the samples are taken from the patients," Deeks said. "This isn’t a new science, but it’s something which has not been well thought through in a lot of the studies we were reviewing."

A Cochrane Review is a systemic analysis of published studies on a given topic, and often physicians, nurses, patients, researchers or funders turn to Cochrane evidence to help with decision-making or better understanding a medical issue.

The new review on the accuracy of antibody tests, spanning more than 300 pages, was authored by Cochrane researchers from institutions across Europe and led by experts from the University of Birmingham.

Churchill Downs Racetrack announced in a statement on Thursday that spectators will be allowed at the 146th running of the Kentucky Derby in Louisville on September 5 amid Covid-19 concerns.

The statement said:

Thursday's release did not indicate how many fans will be allowed at the track. Churchill Downs says they will disclose more details in the coming days.

The statement noted that the venue revised the “Fan Code of Conduct” to help address Covid-19 health concerns.

Churchill Downs will “consistently and frequently” encourage guests to wear a mask at all times “unless seated in their reserved seat.” Other guidelines for guest include washing their hands and social distancing when possible. 

Other changes revealed in the statement include: General admission tickets will be limited and only allow access to the infield area. The barn area will be “restricted to essential personnel” during morning workouts and on race days.

The 146th Kentucky Derby was originally scheduled for May 2  but was postponed until September 5 due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The number of people admitted to the hospitals in New York City in the past 24 hours was 60, remaining below the 200-person threshold, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced.

There were 329 people receiving care in the ICU below the 375 person threshold. 

The positivity rate of those testing positive for Covid-19 in New York city remained at 2% below the 15% threshold, the Mayor announced. 

An executive order was issued today by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott meant to ensure hospital bed availability for Covid-19 patients in parts of Texas.

The order suspends all elective surgeries in hospitals in 4 counties that are home to the cities of San Antonio, Dallas, Houston and Austin. 

Under the order, any procedure that is not immediately and medically necessary to correct a serious medical condition or to preserve the life of a patient will be postponed. 

Additionally, the Governor can add or subtract more counties from the list to address surges in hospitalizations.  

Texas is among at least 13 states that are reporting a 50% increase or higher increase in cases. There are fears of "apocalyptic" surges in major Texas cities if spikes in cases continue.