July 29 coronavirus news

By Nectar Gan, Adam Renton, Melissa Macaya, Meg Wagner and Mike Hayes, CNN

Updated 12:40 p.m. ET, July 30, 2020
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4:52 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

More than 50% of new Covid-19 cases in Maryland are in people under the age of 40, governor says

From CNN’s Jennifer Henderson

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan speaks during a press conference on July 29.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan speaks during a press conference on July 29. Office of Governor Larry Hogan

Fifty-six percent of all new Covid-19 cases in Maryland are in people under the age of 40, Gov. Larry Hogan said at a news conference today.

The positivity rate of Marylanders 35 and older has been declining for more than 12 weeks, but people under the age of 35 are testing positive at a rate 76.8% higher than that of people 35 and older. 

Hospitalizations have increased 28% in the past two weeks. A total of 571 people have been hospitalized, Hogan added. Maryland has 145 intensive care unit beds currently in use and has seen the uptick in acute care beds mostly in younger people.

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

4:44 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

South Carolina orders face masks to be worn in all government offices and buildings

From CNN's Pierre Meilhan

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, right, speaks during a press conference in Columbia, South Carolina, on July 29.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, right, speaks during a press conference in Columbia, South Carolina, on July 29. Pool

Face masks must be worn in all state government offices and buildings in South Carolina starting Monday, Gov. Henry McMaster announced Wednesday.

During a news conference in Columbia, McMaster told reporters that starting Monday, restaurants will be required to “limit customer service” and have no more than 50% occupancy.

“Restaurant employees and patrons will be required by law to a mask or face coverings” in order to slow down the spread of coronavirus. Tables are required by law to be six feet apart with no more than eight people per table, McMaster said.

The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control announced 1,666 new confirmed Covid-19 cases and 48 additional deaths on Wednesday. This brings the total number of confirmed cases to 85,423 and confirmed deaths to 1,551.

4:25 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

GOP congressman who contracted Covid-19 releases video discussing his prognosis

From CNN's Haley Byrd and Maggie Fox

Rep. Louie Gohmert questions Attorney General William Barr who appears before the House Oversight Committee on July 28 on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.
Rep. Louie Gohmert questions Attorney General William Barr who appears before the House Oversight Committee on July 28 on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. Matt McClain/Pool/Getty Images

Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert, who was supposed to travel to Texas with President Trump today but tested positive during a pre-flight screening, issued a video statement on Twitter saying, “The reports of my demise are a great deal premature.”

“I'm asymptomatic. I don't have any of the symptoms that are listed as part of Covid-19, but apparently I have the Wuhan virus," Gohmert said.

He went on to say that Republican Sen. Rand Paul told him that he should be “immune” in 10 days or so.

“Rand Paul was just texting me that the good news is that in 10 days or so I should be, really well, immune,” he said in the video statement.

CNN has reached out to Paul’s office.

4:07 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

US surpasses 150,000 coronavirus deaths

From CNN's Brandon Miller

More than 150,000 people have died in the United States from coronavirus, according to the latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

There are at least 150,034 deaths and 4,396,030 cases across the country so far.  

The first death in the US was reported on February 29:

  • The country reached 50,000 deaths 54 days later on April 23.
  • The country crossed 100,000 death 34 days later on May 27.
  • It has taken 63 days to add another 50,000 to reach the 150,000 mark.
4:06 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

A vaccine that stops severe illness from Covid-19 would still be a success, expert says 

From CNN's Naomi Thomas

Although the ideal Covid-19 vaccine would completely prevent infection, a shot that reduces severe illness and mortality is still a success, Naor Bar-Zeev, deputy director of the International Vaccine Access Center at Johns Hopkins University, said Wednesday.

“The best ideal candidate would be reducing infection and transmission in the community, and that would eventually result in herd protection,” he said, speaking at a Johns Hopkins briefing. “If we have a vaccine that reduces mortality and makes this whole pandemic a milder one, that’s also a success." 

Herd immunity, which is when enough of a population is immune to an infectious disease that the spread from person to person is unlikely, is not on the cards for the next few years, Bar-Zeev said, as the number of doses available of vaccine will be insufficient to produce it.

“What we want to do is reduce severe disease among the people at highest risk,” he said. “So a vaccine that does that but allows infection to carry on, you know causing a mild cold, fantastic, bring it on, that’s wonderful.”

He also pointed out that herd immunity would require more than just an effective vaccine. It also requires community participation and coverage.

“If 50% of Americans don’t want to be vaccinated, for example, because of hesitancy or safety concerns, then even a 100% effective vaccine won’t achieve herd immunity,” he said.

4:12 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

12 more New York City bars had liquor licenses suspended for Covid-19 violations, governor says

From CNN's Elizabeth Hartfield

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during the daily media briefing at the Office of the Governor of the State of New York on July 23 in New York City.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during the daily media briefing at the Office of the Governor of the State of New York on July 23 in New York City. Jeenah Moon/Getty Images

At least 12 additional New York City bars have had their liquor licenses suspended for “egregious violations” of Covid-19 regulations, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office announced Wednesday.

So far, 57 businesses have had licenses suspended for these violations, part of the state’s continued crackdown on businesses not enforcing coronavirus guidelines. 

The state police and the liquor board authority have done 1,131 compliance checks so far this week, and have cited 55 violations at establishments, which can carry a fine of up to $10,000 per violation.

4:11 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

Coronavirus "requires sustained pressure to reduce transmission," WHO official says

From CNN's Gisela Crespo

WHO Health Emergencies Program head Michael Ryan attends a press conference on July 3 at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
WHO Health Emergencies Program head Michael Ryan attends a press conference on July 3 at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. Fabrice Coffrini/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

Governments and individuals need to put "sustained pressure" on Covid-19 to reduce transmission and exposure, Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the World Health Organization’s health emergencies program, said on Wednesday.

Asked if countries are seeing a second wave of the virus, Ryan said during a Q&A on social media: "There has been this perception that this disease would behave a little bit like influenza, and it would have a natural peak and then it would disappear for a while, and then it would come back in the Northern Hemisphere in the autumn. I think we've always said that we didn't know that."

Ryan compared the behavior of the virus to a spring, explaining, "When we push the virus down, we suppress transmission. Release pressure, it bounces back up. Now you could call that a second peak, a second wave, you can call it what you like. What it means to me is this [virus] requires sustained pressure to reduce transmission, and it requires sustained commitment to reduce exposure."

"I would say that there is no second wave as such. What we're seeing is the virus naturally re-emerging when we take the pressure off," Ryan later added.

The WHO official called on governments to work on suppressing transmission through testing, contact tracing and quarantining, while communities and individuals "need to do everything they can to reduce their exposure to the virus." 

"In countries where we've seen well-managed efforts on the part of governments to suppress transmission. And where we've seen communities empowered to reduce their exposure, we see success," Ryan said.

4:08 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

First House Republican votes by proxy during the pandemic

From CNN's Haley Byrd

Rep. Francis Rooney conducts a television interview on October 18, 2019.
Rep. Francis Rooney conducts a television interview on October 18, 2019. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Rep. Francis Rooney, a retiring Florida Republican, became the first GOP House member to vote by proxy during the pandemic this afternoon.

Rep. Don Beyer, a Virginia Democrat, cast Rooney’s vote on a procedural matter for him.

Some context: Republicans have attacked the proxy voting rules for months, saying members should have to be physically present to vote.

Rooney had previously indicated he could make use of the remote voting provisions when he designated Beyer as his proxy, but he has not actually cast a vote by proxy until now.

Beyer’s communications director wrote that there were “audible gasps in the chamber” when Beyer cast Rooney’s vote for him. 

The last time Rooney voted in the House was in February, according to his House website. 

4:00 p.m. ET, July 29, 2020

8 Penn State student-athletes have tested positive for Covid-19 

From CNN's Dan Kamal

Penn State University has announced that eight student-athletes of the 466 tested as part of the school’s return to campus protocol have tested positive for Covid-19.

The tests were completed as of July 24, with 66 results still pending.

"The health and safety of our student-athletes, coaches, staff and the broader community are of the utmost importance," the university said in a statement. "Therefore, as part of the protocols established in the return to campus plan by the Penn State Athletics medical staff and in consultation with University, local and national officials and guidelines, individuals with a positive test have been put into isolation for 14 days and will be retested at that point."

In addition to the isolation measures, university officials said contact tracing measures have been implemented, which include quarantine and testing for individuals who might have been exposed.