By James Griffiths, Adam Renton, Mike Hayes, Meg Wagner, Melissa Mahtani, Zamira Rahim and Ed Upright, CNN
From CNN’s Frank Pallotta
Disney is laying off 28,000 US employees at its theme parks as the coronavirus pandemic hammers its theme park business.
The layoffs will hit the company's Parks, Experiences and Products, the company said on Tuesday.
Disney added that 67% of the employees laid off will be part-time workers.
From CNN's Paula Newton
Canadian public health officials say they are increasingly concerned about the "acceleration" of Covid-19 in Canada but say it is not yet time for nationwide restrictions or lockdowns.
“The fact that cases are now at the same level as during the initial peak is worrisome but at the same time there are clear differences in the epidemiology with younger age groups predominating among cases and we are testing and detecting more,” said Canada's Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam.
Tam said this is a crucial moment for the country, especially in Ontario and Quebec. She warned Canadians that they need to cut down on social contacts as contact tracing is becoming more difficult and community transmission grows.
“This means the daily case count has now reached the peak of daily cases seen in April and the average daily case count has increased to 1,412 cases being reported during the most recent seven days,” Tam said.
“Things have escalated quickly and they can escalate further unless we all work together to slow the spread of the virus," Tam added.
According to Canadian government data, there are now more than 14,000 active Covid-19 cases across the country with daily, average case counts doubling in just over two weeks.
From CNN's Cheri Mossburg
Several populous counties in California are being allowed to reopen further as they move into less restrictive tiers, Health Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly announced Tuesday.
Sacramento, Fresno and Santa Barbara are among seven counties moving from the most restrictive purple tier into the next level, red. In the red tier, which indicates a substantial spread of infection, churches, museums, and movie theaters are allowed to reopen.
San Francisco moves from the red to orange tier, which shows a moderate infection rate, along with Amador and Calaveras counties. Bars, wineries, bowling alleys, and offices will now be allowed to reopen in those areas.
California has four tiers based on metrics including case rate and tests positivity over a number of consecutive weeks. Ghaly said that the state will be soon adding a health equity metric as well.
On the heels of a letter signed by 19 California legislators urging the reopening of theme parks, Ghaly echoed Gov. Gavin Newsom’s promise that new guidelines are coming soon.
“We’re working hard to get that out in a responsible way as soon as possible,” Ghaly said. “We are working with those industries to put out something that’s thoughtful, allows us to follow our framework in strong way, and really following those principals of slow and stringent to ensure those large activities are done responsibly. So, not quite yet, but we’re getting close.”
From CNN's David Close
Following the temporary closures of the Tennessee Titans and Minnesota Vikings team facilities due to Covid-19 precautions, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell issued a league-wide memo calling for all personnel to “remain diligent in implementing all of our health and safety protocols to the fully extent.”
In the memo, obtained by CNN from a source within the league office, Goodell acknowledged that he had expected coronavirus cases to arise during the season.
Now that two teams have had to halt in-person activities, Goodell reemphasized that all players and staff must wear personal protective equipment and to carefully regulate “behavior and contacts outside of the club facility.”
Some background: Earlier on Tuesday, the Titans revealed three players and five staff members tested positive for Covid-19. The Vikings, who played the Titans this past Sunday, have not announced any positive cases but closed their facilities as a precaution. The Titans are scheduled to host the Pittsburgh Steelers this Sunday.
Goodell said the league has reviewed contact tracing data for anyone who has come in close contact with the eight members of the Titans, including game officials, and has isolated the individuals.
"Each of us has a special responsibility to keep others safe and healthy. What each of us does affects not only ourselves and our immediate families, but many others on our own club and on other clubs," Goodell said.
From CNN’s Kay Jones
Indoor dining capacity in Philadelphia will increase to 50% on Friday, according to a news release by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health.
Current capacity is at 25% and the new limits are in line with current restrictions in Pennsylvania, the release said.
Restaurants choosing to expand their capacity must self-certify to follow state guidelines set by Gov. Tom Wolf, as well as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines and rules set by the city of Philadelphia.
The city rules include:
“The falling case counts we’re seeing show the success of our strategy,” Philadelphia Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley said in the release. “If folks continue to follow our guidance, I believe that we will be able to relax more restrictions.”
The total number of coronavirus cases in Philadelphia stands at 36,887.
From CNN’s Rebekah Riess
Florida's Tampa International Airport today announced a new pilot program, which makes it the first airport in the country to offer two different types of Covid-19 testing, PCR tests and rapid antigen tests, for any arriving or departing passenger, John Tiliacos, executive vice president of operations and customer service for the airport said.
“We’re going to build confidence on the part of the traveling public, by giving them an opportunity to have a test done right here at the airport before they get on a flight,” TPA airport CEO Joe Lopano said during a press conference Tuesday. “This is the only airport in the whole country that is doing these tests for anybody, going to any destination, on any airline, only TPA is doing this and we hope others will follow. Testing is the key to getting people back to travel.”
According to Tiliacos, testing will be available seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. ET. Tests will be administered by BayCare nurses and medical professionals, and passengers have the option of receiving the PCR test with results within 48 hours or the rapid antigen test that gives passengers results within 15 minutes, Tiliacos said.
“This is about taking a bold step to restarting air travel. This is about instilling even greater confidence in the flying public, and frankly it's about breathing life back into our industry that is very badly needed right now,” Tiliacos added.
From CNN's Melanie Schuman
New York City is reporting a spike of Covid-19 cases in nine neighborhoods in the city. The Department of Health released the zip codes where the 14-day average is higher than the citywide average.
The clusters across Brooklyn and Queens account for 25% of the overall city cases despite accounting for 7% of the city’s population according to Dr. Dave Chokshi, the Commissioner of the Department of Health.
Citywide, Health Department is reporting a 1.38% positivity rate over the last seven days.
Here are the neighborhoods identified by the Department of Health:
The city is also noting three more zip codes which are “showing increased growth of cases and test positivity between 2% and 3%.”
The city said to combat these rising positivity rates it is reaching out to non-public schools about implementing new guidelines, canvassing streets and "using soundtrucks to reinforce COVID-19 guidance an precautions," the Health Department said in a statement.
The city also said it has sent more mobile testing units to these neighborhoods.
From CNN’s Mick Krever
The Dutch government announced Tuesday that it is introducing stricter measures in an attempt to clamp down on the rising rate of coronavirus infections in the country. The daily rate of reported infections is now more than double the ‘first wave’ record.
The measures include:
Coronavirus infections in the Netherlands are rising at a significant rate. There were 43% more reported coronavirus infections over the seven-day period ending Tuesday compared to the previous week-long period, according to the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment.
The R-number is 1.27, according to the RIVM, and a further 3,025 infections were reported on Tuesday. (The ‘first wave’ record for single-day reported infections was 1,335, set on April 10.)
There are a number of exceptions to the rules, including for funerals, some businesses, and education.
From CNN’s Vasco Cotovio
The Finnish government will introduce a 1 a.m. curfew for bars and restaurants starting on Oct. 1.
The move, announced by the government in a statement Tuesday, is designed to curb the spread of Covid-19 in the country. It will be debated at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, and it is expected to be approved.
The new law will require catering establishments to close no later than 1 a.m. local time and to stop serving alcohol at midnight. It will be in place until Oct. 31. Bars and restaurants will have a transition period of a week to adapt to the new norms, which must be in full effect by Oct. 8.
In addition to the existing curfew, throughout the month of October, the Finnish government will be monitoring the spread of Covid-19 in regions across the country. Regions where the infection rate is increasing could see a further clampdown, forcing catering establishments to close no later than 11 p.m. and stop serving alcohol at 10 p.m.