The latest on the coronavirus pandemic

Texas has reported 8,839 new Covid-19 cases on Friday, bringing the total number of cases to 420,946 in the state. 

The state also reported 295 Covid-19-related deaths, bringing the total number to 6,569. 

Texas' health department recently reported that it had "improved" its Covid-19 fatality reporting. Texas Covid-19 fatalities are now counted from death certificates instead of local reports.

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

Alabama Department of Public Health is asking doctors to focus testing on the most vulnerable populations as a surge of coronavirus testing has resulted in a seven-day turnaround time, according to new release from the agency.

The longer turnaround time has prompted the public health agency to ask doctors to focus their testing on groups that are more vulnerable and cannot afford to wait the seven days for test results.

"The Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) recognizes that this is too long and asks for consumers and physicians and other providers to help in making sure that those who are most vulnerable become the focus for testing: the elderly, those in congregate living settings, healthcare personnel, those with symptoms consistent with COVID-19 and those with underlying medical conditions that place them most at risk," the release said.

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont and the state’s Public Health Commissioner Deidre Gifford say they’re concerned with recent Covid-19 clusters among teens and young adults in the state, according to a release from the governor’s office.

Data shows that 18- to 29-year-olds represent a significant number of newly reported infections in recent weeks, and on Thursday, Lamont said that the coronavirus infection numbers among 10- to 19-year-olds had “doubled” recently. 

As part of their release, the governor’s office also circulated a photo of young people socializing on boats in Stony Creek, Connecticut, appearing not to social distance.

Connecticut’s Health Department has also received “anecdotal, unconfirmed information regarding youth sports team travel to states on Connecticut’s travel advisory list,” the release said.  

Microsoft’s US workforce will have the option of working from home at least through Jan. 19, the company told employees on Thursday.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the announcement to CNN. It marks the latest sign that major businesses are bracing for a long pandemic.

Some context: Microsoft's decision follows Google, which said earlier this month that it will allow many of its employees to work remotely at least until the end of June 2021.

California's health department confirmed the first Covid-19-related death of a teenager in the state on Friday.

The Central Valley teenager had underlying health conditions, the health department said. Due to patient confidentiality, the department did not provide any additional information about the child's death.

Some context: In California, there have been no reported deaths in younger age categories, including children age 5 and under.

A total of 9,005 people have died from the coronavirus in California since the start of the pandemic, with 96 additional deaths being reported on Friday.

“Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones of this young person whose death is a tragic and powerful reminder of how serious COVID-19 can be,” said Dr. Sonia Angell, state public health officer and director of the California's health department.

Starting Saturday, all travelers coming to Germany will be able to get free coronavirus polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests up to 72 hours after entering the country, the German health ministry announced in a statement.

Germany is currently dealing with a new rise in coronavirus infections and believes travelers returning from abroad and carrying the virus are partially responsible. 

The German health ministry said it will also enact a directive making tests mandatory for people returning from so-called “high-risk areas.” The new rule will go into effect next week, the health ministry wrote, without specifying the exact date.

Germany has reported 210,399 coronavirus cases, including 9,147 deaths, according to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University. 

As an Indiana school district returned to in-person learning for its first day of the 2020-21 school year, one of its students tested positive for Covid-19, according to a letter sent to parents.

The Hancock County Health Department notified Greenfield-Central Junior High School on Thursday that one of its students, who had attended part of the school day, tested positive for Covid-19, Superintendent Dr. Harold Olin said in his letter to parents.

Olin said when they became aware of the positive result, the school enacted its “Positive Covid-19 Test Protocol.”

The student was immediately isolated within the school’s clinic, and the student’s schedule, including transportation and extra-curricular activities, were looked at to determine which students or staff would be considered a close contact. 

As part of the district’s return to in-person learning, “all areas of all schools” are already being disinfected professionally each evening, but the superintendent noted that special attention would be given to areas and classrooms that the infected student had been in.

Four crew members of the Norwegian cruise vessel MS Roald Amundsen have been hospitalized with Covid-19, a spokesperson for the University Hospital of North Norway told CNN on Friday.

Ship operator Hurtigruten said in a Friday statement that the four crew members were isolated several days ago because of other disease symptoms, with no symptoms of Covid-19. The employees were "routinely tested when the ship docked in Tromsø Friday morning," according to the company statement.

All 160 crew members onboard the cruise vessel have been quarantined and will be tested for coronavirus, and 177 passengers will be contacted with further information from health authorities, according to Hurtigruten.

The ship's scheduled trip to Svalbard, Norway, on Friday afternoon was canceled, and the next voyage with the MS Roald Amundsen is not planned until September, the statement said.

Norway has had 9,217 confirmed coronavirus cases, including 255 deaths, according to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University.

Brazilian minister Wagner Rosario tested positive for Covid-19, his office announced Friday. 

Rosario, who heads the Office of the Comptroller General, is the sixth minister in President Jair Bolsonaro's government to test positive for the virus. On Thursday, Brazil's science and technology minister Marcos Pontes announced on Twitter that he also tested positive for coronavirus.

Rosario will remain in isolation and perform his duty remotely until he is recovered, according to his office.