By Nectar Gan, Adam Renton, Meg Wagner, Mike Hayes, Zamira Rahim and Ed Upright, CNN
Updated 12:01 a.m. ET, September 16, 2020
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2:57 p.m. ET, September 15, 2020
New York removes six states from Covid-19 travel advisory list
From CNN's Laura Ly
A sign displays a Covid-19 travel advisory in New York City on September 1. Noam Galai/Getty Images
New York state has removed six states from its Covid-19 travel advisory list, according to a statement from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office on Tuesday.
Travelers from California, Hawaii, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada and Ohio no longer have to self-quarantine for 14 days upon their arrival to New York, Cuomo’s office said.
The Northern Mariana Islands have also been removed from the list, while Puerto Rico has been added, the statement said.
"When other states and territories make progress fighting COVID-19, that's good for New York and while I am glad to see areas removed from the travel advisory list, it still remains far too long," Cuomo said. "Make no mistake: We must continue to be New York Tough and stay smart. Wearing masks, social distancing and hand washing is what tamed this beast in New York and we must keep it up."
2:31 p.m. ET, September 15, 2020
The World Series will be played at a neutral site due to health concerns
From CNN's David Close
Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, will host the 116th World Series this October. Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
Major League Baseball announced on Tuesday that the home of the Texas Rangers, Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, will host the 116th World Series this October.
It will be the first neutral site World Series since the 1940s.
MLB’s 2020 postseason plan includes hosting games at four neutral site stadiums in California and Texas starting with the Division Series.
The league made the historical change “due to health, safety and competitive considerations.”
2:05 p.m. ET, September 15, 2020
New York revises nursing home visitation guidelines
From CNN's Kristina Sgueglia
Nursing homes in New York can resume limited visitations for facilities that have not have a Covid-19 case for at least 14 days as of Thursday, the New York State Health Department said.
This is an update to previous guidelines that asked for a 28-day window before eligibility.
According to the New York State Department of Health, this guidance would allow eligible visitation in approximately 500 of the states 613 nursing homes.
The guidelines also require visitors to present a negative test result within seven days.
Officials said the number of visitors to a nursing home must not exceed 10% of the resident census at any time, adding that only two visitors will be allowed per resident at any one time.
2:15 p.m. ET, September 15, 2020
University of Arizona is urging students to shelter in place until the end of the month
From CNN's Elizabeth Hartfield
Students pass in front of a sign that reads "Mask Or Face Covering Required To Enter" at the University of Arizona in Tucson on August 24. Cheney Orr/Bloomberg/Getty Images
The University of Arizona has issued a recommendation, in accordance with the local county health department, strongly urging students to shelter in place until Sept. 30, the university announced, following a large number of positive Covid-19 cases.
Exceptions include obtaining food, attending work, seeking medical treatment and going outside where social distancing is possible.
The school is also limiting in person instruction to “essential courses” only until Sept. 27.
"Proving that a vaccine works is easier than proving that it's safe," former CDC director says
From CNN Health’s Lauren Mascarenhas
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Tom Frieden testifies during a House subcommittee hearing on Covid-19 in Washington, DC, in May. Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“Proving that a vaccine works is easier than proving that it’s safe,” former US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Tom Frieden said Tuesday.
During an event hosted by the Infectious Diseases Society of America,Frieden said he has two safety concerns regarding a potential Covid-19 vaccine.
“First are the Kawasaki-like syndrome and illnesses that we've seen in children, and possibly similar illnesses in adults,” Frieden said. “That is an immune reaction, and therefore there's a theoretical chance that some vaccines could create that kind of reaction.”
Frieden, who is currently president and CEO of the global health initiative Resolve to Save Lives, emphasized that he is not predicting this will happen, but suggesting that we do due diligence in watching out for it.
“The second concern is sometimes called antibody-dependent enhancement,” Frieden said. “This has been seen in some old vaccines, half a century ago, but it also was seen in an animal model of one SARS vaccine.”
“The risk there would be some people – after vaccination, if they then became infected with Covid – could get sicker then they would have otherwise,” he explained.
Frieden said that we likely will not know everything we need to about vaccines until they are given to thousands, or maybe even millions of people.
“But we need to track safety at every step of the way and be completely open with the public about it,” he said.
1:34 p.m. ET, September 15, 2020
New York governor says he will not ban trick-or-treaters on Halloween
From CNN's Kristina Sgueglia
Children go trick-or-treating in New York City in 2019. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday he would not ban trick-or-treaters on Halloween amid the pandemic. Jeenah Moon/Getty Images
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday he will not ban trick-or-treaters on Halloween amid the pandemic.
Speaking on CNN affiliate News 12 Long Island, Cuomo said he didn’t think it was appropriate, according to his office.
“I would not ban trick-or-treaters going door to door. I don't think that's appropriate. You have neighbors — if you want to go knock on your neighbor's door, God bless you and I'm not going to tell you not to. If you want to go for a walk with your child through the neighborhood, I'm not gonna tell you you can't take your child to the neighborhood, I'm not going to do that — I'll give you my advice and guidance and then you will make a decision what you do that night,” Cuomo said, according to his office.
1:23 p.m. ET, September 15, 2020
Bill Gates says he thinks US will come around to funding Covid-19 vaccines for poor countries
From CNN’s Naomi Thomas
Bill Gates looks on during the New York Times Dealbook event in New York City in 2019. Mike Cohen/Getty Images for The New York Times
In an interview with the New York Times, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation co-chair Bill Gates described optimism that the United States would ultimately help provide Covid-19 vaccines for poor countries around the world.
“It’s my disposition,” Gates said in the interview, published Monday. “Plus, I’ve got to call these people up and make the pitch to them that this really makes sense – and I totally, totally believe it makes sense.”
The Times said Gates was referring to leaders in the White House and Congress, who he has lobbied for $4 billion for Covid-19 vaccines for poorer countries.
“As they say,” Gates said, “the US government – after it’s tried every other thing – does the right thing.”
The Goalkeepers Report from the Gates Foundation, which published Monday, showed that a large number of deaths could be prevented if Covid-19 vaccines were distributed to all countries based on their populations, rather than to rich countries first. But Gates acknowledged that this will not be soon.
Gates said it “looks selfish” that the US avoided joining global Covid-19 vaccine development efforts and focused on deals with vaccine companies that ensure millions of doses are allocated to the United States, but he did not feel it was unjustified.
“You’re not going to succeed in getting the US to treat itself as just a random 5% of the world’s population,” Gates said, noting that American taxpayers have covered much of the costs for clinical trials and vaccine manufacturing.
Gates told the Times he expected by next year, regardless of who wins the election, the US would come around to paying much of the estimated $4 billion needed to get Covid-19 vaccines to others around the world. Congress has repeatedly kept funds for AIDS, malaria and childhood vaccinations in the foreign aid budget, Gates said, despite attempts to slash them; with the idea that no country is safe from Covid-19 until every country is, “there’s a better global argument for generosity on this one than there is for H.I.V. or malaria,” he said.
12:59 p.m. ET, September 15, 2020
Entire Irish cabinet self-isolating and parliament suspended
From CNN's Hilary McGann
Seán Ó Fearghaíl, the speaker of the Dáil in Ireland, has announced that all Irish cabinet members are now self-isolating.
The Dáil, the Irish lower house, is also suspended until at least next Tuesday.
12:33 p.m. ET, September 15, 2020
NYU places entire dorm on quarantine following several reported cases of Covid-19
From CNN’s Meridith Edwards
A student moves belongings into NYU's Rubin Hall on August 19. Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images
New York University has instructed all residents and employees in one of their dormitories to quarantine until at least Tuesday night, following a diagnosis of six positive cases out of roughly 400 students living in the building, the university announced in its latest campus update.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we are also retesting all residents of Rubin Hall (and employees, too), and instructed them on Saturday to begin quarantining until at least Tuesday night,” administrators said. “We hope to have the results of Monday’s tests back by Tuesday evening and can evaluate, in consultation with the City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, what steps to take after that, which may well include extending the quarantine.”
NYU has reported a total of 65 cases since Aug. 1, according to the school’s coronavirus dashboard — returning an overall positivity rate of .19%. The school has reported 48 cases in the most recent 14-day period, returning a positivity rate of .31%.
