July 13 coronavirus news

By Helen Regan, Steve George, Meg Wagner, Melissa Macaya, Mike Hayes and Veronica Rocha, CNN

Updated 8:15 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020
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8:05 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

Wyoming governor extends public health orders through July 31

From CNN’s Jennifer Henderson

Public health orders in Wyoming will be extended through July 31 due to the increasing number of Covid-19 case, Gov. Mark Gordon announced in a statement today.

The state announced 39 new lab-confirmed cases and three new probable cases today. The state has reported a total of 1,545 lab-confirmed positive cases of Covid-19, 359 probable cases and 21 deaths.

For the past two weeks, Wyoming has had an average of 27 lab-confirmed cases of Covid-19 with 342 new cases that have been confirmed since July 1. 

“I’m disappointed again that we continue to see case numbers rise,” Gordon said. “Wyoming residents only need to look at what Texas, Florida and Arizona are experiencing to see how much damage being careless, not wearing a mask, and failing to social distance can cause to our state’s economy, our citizens' health and our healthcare system. I am encouraged to see many of our businesses taking this responsibility seriously and both requiring staff and urging customers to wear face coverings.”

Note: These numbers were released by the Wyoming governor’s office, and may not line up exactly in real time with CNN’s database drawn from Johns Hopkins University and the Covid Tracking Project.

7:59 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

NFL players set to test new mouth shield prototype

From CNN's David Close

A new face shield for football helmets designed by Oakley.
A new face shield for football helmets designed by Oakley. Oakley via AP

In hopes of diminishing the possible spread of Covid-19, the National Football League will offer a new mouth shield prototype for players to start testing as soon as this week.

Depictions of the Oakley-branded shield, sent to CNN by the NFL, show a shield placed within the face mask featuring off-set vents combined with a filter, which is lined up directly in front of the mouth. Combined with a visor, one of the drawings depicts the entire face area being covered. 

A source with direct knowledge of the project told CNN that the shields are being sent to a select number of NFL teams with the expectation that players will test and offer feedback. Both the NFL’s chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills and NFL Players Association medical director Dr. Thom Mayer collaborated with Oakley in the design of the shield.

The league and the players union have yet to finalize health and safety protocols for the season.

The NFL announced Oakley as an official on-field partner in October 2019. CNN has reached out to Oakley for comment but has not heard back. 

 

7:27 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

Florida governor says people should be "diligent" about wearing face coverings

From CNN’s Lindsay Benson

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis puts on his face mask at a news conference at Jackson Memorial Hospital on July 13 in Miami, Florida.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis puts on his face mask at a news conference at Jackson Memorial Hospital on July 13 in Miami, Florida. Wilfredo Lee/AP

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis asked Floridians to listen to local officials, including Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Giménez, when it comes to taking precautions to prevent the spread of Covid-19 — including wearing face coverings.

"I think it's also important to listen and follow the guidance that's put out by local officials, such as Mayor Giménez. And so, you know here in Miami-Dade County, you know that means being diligent about wearing the facial covering. That means following the other directives that he and some of the other officials here have put on. It really will make a difference if everyone does their part," DeSantis said during a news conference with Giménez and Jackson Health System President and CEO Carlos Migoya.

"I know many Floridians are filled with apprehension as they wonder, you know, what does this mean? What do these trends mean for our health, for our families and for our jobs? How long is this going to go on for? What's going to happen with things like kids being in school?" the governor added. "I hear ya. And I along with our federal partners, our local leaders and our great medical community, we're working non-stop to be able to respond to this crisis."

DeSantis said the state has seen record Covid-19 numbers.

"The percentage of people who were testing positive has finally started to decline, we'll see if that's a trend, or whether that was, that will be something that is short lived. Certainly we can say that the percentage of people who come in and test positive has stabilized," he said.

7:23 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

KFC encourages restaurants in 4 states to stop dine-in services

From CNN’s Andy Rose

KFC restaurant in St. Augustine, Florida.
KFC restaurant in St. Augustine, Florida. Shutterstock

KFC is asking its franchisees in four states with a resurgence of coronavirus cases to stop dine-in services. 

The major fast food chain sent the guidance Monday to restaurant operators in Florida, Texas, Oklahoma and California. KFC is immediately stopping dine-in service in 40 Florida restaurants that are owned by the company. 

“This guidance is part of our continued efforts to prioritize the health of our team members, customers, and the communities where they live and work,” a KFC spokesperson told CNN.

The company said only 5% of its restaurants in the US have allowed dine-in seating since the pandemic began. The new guidance does not affect takeout and delivery options.

CNN’s Jessica Metzger contributed to this report.

7:14 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

Miami Beach mayor says face masks have become politicized

From CNN's Molly Silverman

Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber speaks with CNN's Wolf Blitzer on July 13.
Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber speaks with CNN's Wolf Blitzer on July 13. CNN

Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said the pandemic has become "a political thing" in regards to wearing face mask.

"This has become a political thing. That's sort of crazy that it's become a political thing. There is nothing political about this. It's a health care issue," he told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on The Situation Room Monday.

Gelber said he doesn't know why Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis hasn't issued a statewide mandate, saying that mask wearing is "how we are going to keep our economy open a little bit and that's how we are going to get out of this."

Asked if he agreed with a statement that an infectious disease expert in the Jackson Health System in Miami made saying the city is comparable to what was seen in Wuhan six months ago, Gelber said, "Well, I think clearly from the metrics. I mean, we have over 400 people in intensive care, 215 residents on ventilators. Those are way higher than anything previously." He then said that it was not an unfair comparison.

Gelber said the numbers are growing, but they have yet to feel the impact of the ICUs, ventilators, and deaths because "that's usually two to three weeks later." He went on to say that his county hit 3,000 positive cases today. 

Florida has 282,435 cases of Covid-19 and at least 4,277 people have died from the virus in the state.

6:43 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

Surging coronavirus cases cause delay in test results by as much as 7 days, leading lab says

From CNN’s Shelby Lin Erdman

Surging coronavirus cases across the United States are causing delays in obtaining test results from the nation’s laboratories, according to Quest Diagnostics, a leading provider of diagnostic services.

“Soaring demand” for a Covid-19 molecular test is “slowing the time” the company can provide test results even after rapidly scaling up its capacity, Quest said Monday.

The company is able to perform up to 125,000 molecular diagnostic tests a day, almost double its capacity two months ago, and expects to have the capacity for a 150,000 tests a day by the end of the month.

Despite the increase in testing capacity, Quest said in a statement it’s taking up to a day to process test results for its priority patients: hospital patients, pre-operative patients in acute care settings and symptomatic health care workers. In all other coronavirus test cases, it’s taking on average seven or more days.

“Specific drivers of demand include pre-operative patients undergoing procedures in hospitals and surgery centers; high-risk populations, such as those receiving care in federally qualified healthcare centers, nursing homes and correctional facilities; and individuals seeking testing from community drive/walk through events with government agencies and corporations.”

Quest said while it’s trying to ramp up Covid-19 testing even more than it already has, it is facing challenges.

“For instance, global supply constraints continue to be an issue. While our suppliers of test platforms and reagents continue to be responsive to our need to add capacity, they are limited amid surging demand in the United States and globally,” the company said. 

6:59 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

In call with governors, Pence makes it clear school decisions will be made at local level

From CNN's Ryan Nobles

Vice President Mike Pence speaks during a press briefing at the U.S. Department of Education July 8 in Washington, DC.
Vice President Mike Pence speaks during a press briefing at the U.S. Department of Education July 8 in Washington, DC. Alex Wong/Getty Images

In a call with state governors obtained by CNN, Vice President Mike Pence once again reiterated the administration’s desire that states move to open their schools in time for the fall semester, but made it clear that those decisions will ultimately be made at the local level.

“We'll be giving you additional information to support how that can be done safely. We want to reiterate the formulation of those plans and should be driven by the state education officials, local education officials, but we're here to help,” Pence said. 

The vice president went on to say that the administration is going to push for more funding for education in what they hope will be another Covid-relief bill that Congress is expected to discuss when they reconvene later this month.

“You should also anticipate we're in active discussions with leadership in the Congress about additional education funding support in the upcoming relief bill that we expect to be voted on before the end of January,” Pence said.

  

6:37 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

2 NBA players have tested positive for Covid-19 in the league's Disney bubble

From CNN's Kevin Dotson

The National Basketball Association and its players union said in a joint statement Monday that two players have tested positive for Covid-19 at the league’s Orlando campus and a total of 21 NBA players have tested positive for the virus since July 1. 

Two players returned positive Covid-19 tests while still under initial quarantine after arriving at the NBA’s campus in Orlando. Those players have left the league’s campus to isolate at home or in isolation housing.

The other 19 players tested positive before traveling to the league’s Orlando campus and are in self-isolation at home until being cleared to travel.

6:41 p.m. ET, July 13, 2020

"Tens of millions of vaccines" will be "put into American arms" by end of year, official says

From CNN's Wes Bruer

A senior Trump administration official said Monday that they are “very confident that by year end we will have tens of millions of vaccines put into American arms.” 

Under Operation Warp Speed, vaccine manufacturing will begin by the end of summer, the senior official said during a telephone briefing. “In many cases it’s already underway,” the official said. “We’re acquiring the equipment, we’re setting up the space, we’re acquiring, in some cases, the raw materials to do it. We have project teams that are assigned to go out to each manufacturing site.” 

The senior administration official added that Operation Warp Speed is not waiting on the results from the portion of the trial that determines whether the vaccine works: “We will be manufacturing hundreds of millions of doses long before phase three clinical trials are complete,” the official said. 

The goal of Operation Warp Speed is to deliver “300 million doses of a safe, effective vaccine for COVID-19 by January 2021,” according to a fact sheet on the US Department of Health and Human Services website.