July 29 coronavirus news

Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo said her state "cannot move forward to phase four" due to the spread of coronavirus from parties.   

She said contacting tracing shows "we're partying too much, social gatherings are too large," during a weekly coronavirus briefing on Wednesday.  

Raimondo announced Rhode Island will remain in phase three for another month, with a change; social gathering limits will be lowered from 25 to 15 people.  

"We have cases traced back to a house party, with more than 50 people, and no one wearing a mask," she said.

The governor's listing of other gatherings with Covid-19 cases included a baby shower, several a large birthday parties and pool parties. 

Raimondo pleaded for residents "to knock it off, because people are getting sick people are dying, and it's unnecessary."  

The US could see coronavirus related deaths skyrocket “well into the multiple hundreds of thousands” if there is not a course correction, according to a warning from the Association of American Medical Colleges.

“We’re not on a good path at present,” AAMC chief scientific officer Dr. Ross McKinney Jr. told CNN’s Brianna Keilar.

McKinney also said that the crisis is putting a strain on hospitals, especially those in virus hotspots like Arizona, Florida and Texas.

The AAMC is calling for an increase in critical supplies, as well as improving testing, reopening schools safely, expanding health insurance and developing a vaccination distribution protocol.

The association is urging the Trump administration to invoke the Defense Production Act to address supply shortages.

“Essentially everywhere is short of the critical supplies and we as a country have not attempted, systematically, to upgrade our production of either PPE or of the supplies that are needed by the laboratories in order to meet the demands we have for testing. The demands we have for PPE,” McKinney said.

McKinney added, that the AAMC is calling for national standards for local stay-at-home orders and reopening protocols.

Each city or state “don’t necessarily have to have the same degree of lockdown, but they should use the same criteria to try and move from one phase to the next, so that we can learn what are the best standards to use, so we don’t get these continuous waves of infection,” he said.

With reporting from CNN's Jason Hanna, Madeline Holcombe and Shelby Lin Erdman

Watch the full interview here:

The US Open Championship will be held without fans at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, New York, on Sept. 14 to 20, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday.

The United States Golf Association (USGA) will have protocols — like social distancing, the use of face coverings, cleaning and testing — in place to protect players and staff, a statement released by the governor’s office outlined.   

"We are very grateful to Governor Cuomo and his team for their collaboration over the past few months. We are very proud to give our competitors and champions the opportunity to chase their dreams at the U.S. Open to Winged Foot Golf Club in September. While we will miss having fans on-site, we know this is the right decision to make for the players and the community," USGA CEO Mike Davis said in the governor's office statement.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Wednesday "we've got to follow the science" when asked about a viral video that promoted false coronavirus claims.  

The video included false claims about masks and hydroxychloroquine. Versions of it were shared by President Trump on Twitter. 

Speaking during an interview on MSNBC, Fauci said that amid the spread of misinformation, it's important to "follow the science."  

"When there's a video out there from a bunch of people spouting something that isn't true, the only recourse you have is to be very, very clear in presenting the scientific data that essentially contradicts that," Fauci told MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell. 

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey encouraged school districts Wednesday to phase back into in-class instruction.

"We don’t have the luxury of not getting our young people in school," she said during a news conference. 

Students from second grade to college will now be required to wear masks or face coverings while in school under Ivey's amended safer-at-home order.

Alabama reported 1,345 additional Covid-19 cases, bringing the statewide total to 81,687, according to Dr. Scott Harris, health officer with the state's Department of Public Health.  

Approximately 22,000 of the total cases were confirmed in the last two weeks, Harris said.

There are at least 848 new Covid-19 cases in Oklahoma, according to the latest numbers provided by the state's Department of Health.

This brings the state’s total to 34,623 cases. The state had reported more than 1,000 cases the past three days.

There are 14 new deaths in the state, bringing the total to 523. However, the health department says that none of the new reported deaths occurred over the past 24 hours. 

The health department also reported a total of 27,386 people have recovered from the virus while 663 people are currently hospitalized due to the virus.

Note: These numbers were provided by the Oklahoma State Department of Health and may not line up exactly in real time with CNN’s database drawn from Johns Hopkins University and the Covid Tracking Project.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state conducted 62,276 tests Tuesday with an infection rate of 1.1%. 

There are 619 New Yorkers hospitalized, which is the lowest number since March 15, according to the governor. 

Cuomo said there were unfortunately five deaths Tuesday from Covid-19 but overall, “all the news on numbers and our status is all very good.” 

The governor said they are focused and concerned about the national increase rate and the “inevitability that people get on planes and come here.” 

On Tuesday, the state liquor authority issued 29 violations on bars and restaurants that were not “following the law," Cuomo said.

The 2020 US Open golf championship will take place without fans at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck Sept. 14 through Sept. 20, according to the governor. 

The governor said beginning today the Department of Motor Vehicle will allow driving schools to begin conducting distance learning for pre-licensing courses.

Vice President Mike Pence has arrived at Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina. He is expected to visit a fourth grade class in Apex at 12:50 p.m. ET and participate in a roundtable on reopening schools afterward.

Later, he will participate in a roundtable discussion on vaccines at the NC Biotechnology Center. 

After he deplaned Air Force Two, Pence greeted North Carolina GOP state chair Michael Wheatley with an elbow bump. Everyone wore a mask.

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is traveling with Pence, as are Commissioner of Food and Drugs Dr. Stephen Hahn and Reps. Richard Hudson, David Rouzer and Mark Walker.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) and players' union announced Wednesday that none of the 344 players tested since July 20 tested positive for coronavirus.

The NBA is set to restart the 2019-2020 season on Thursday at the Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Florida, with a TNT doubleheader: Utah Jazz vs. New Orleans Pelicans and Los Angeles Clippers vs. Los Angeles Lakers.

Twenty-two of the league’s 30 teams will take part in the season restart.