October 19 coronavirus news

By Joshua Berlinger, Adam Renton, Melissa Macaya and Mike Hayes, CNN

Updated 12:03 a.m. ET, October 20, 2020
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5:25 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

Covid-19 situation in Brussels "close to a tsunami," Belgian health minister says 

From CNN’s Barbara Wojazer

A person walks past closed restaurants at the Grand-Place in Brussels on October 19.
A person walks past closed restaurants at the Grand-Place in Brussels on October 19. Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP/Getty Images

The coronavirus situation in the Belgian region of Wallonia and the capital Brussels is “close to a tsunami,” the health minister said in a televised interview on Sunday. 

Frank Vandenbroucke warned “the health situation in Wallonia and in Brussels is the worst and the most dangerous in the whole of Europe.” 

Belgium is now on Johns Hopkins University’s list of 10 countries currently most affected by coronavirus. 

It has the third-highest number of Covid-related deaths per 100,000 people in the world, sitting behind San Marino and Peru, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

Vandenbroucke called on all Belgians to protect themselves and their relatives, adding that the epidemic "is no one’s fault, but improving the situation is everyone’s duty." 

However, the health minister defended the government’s policy of installing a curfew from midnight, and not earlier in the evening, saying that the government “did not want to make life impossible." 

 

4:45 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

California will review any FDA-approved Covid-19 vaccine before it is distributed

From CNN's Sarah Moon

California Governor's Office
California Governor's Office

California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday announced the state will independently review the safety of any FDA-approved Covid-19 vaccine before it is distributed in the state.

An 11-member task force of health experts, dubbed the “Scientific Safety Review Workgroup,” will review the safety and efficacy of vaccines approved by the US Food and Drug Administration before distribution in the nation’s most populous state, Newsom said.

“A question I often get is: Are you going to take someone's word for it as it relates to vaccines?” Newsom said. “Of course, we don't take anyone's word for it. We will do our own independently reviewed process with our world class experts that just happen to live here in the state of California.”

The vaccines currently in development will initially be available in limited supply and will be prioritized to health care workers, first responders, and higher risk groups, according to Newsom. 

“We don’t anticipate mass availability until 2021,” Newsom said.

While the state is expected to receive about 1.5 to 2 million vaccines, Newsom said the state has approximately that many people working in the health care system. 

The governor also discussed the challenging storage requirements for these vaccines, which need to be stored with dry ice and in extremely cold temperatures. Each distribution of vaccination has to occur on a 21-day period, he said.

Newsom warned that the vaccines won’t end the coronavirus overnight, but will be a key tool to help manage the pandemic. He urged people to continue wearing masks and physically distance.

5:15 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

Ireland imposes strict restrictions to tackle surge in Covid-19 cases

From CNN's Hilary McGann

Pedestrians wearing face masks are seen in Dublin, Ireland on October 19.
Pedestrians wearing face masks are seen in Dublin, Ireland on October 19. Paul Faith/AFP/Getty Images

Ireland will move to "Level 5" alert — the country's highest level of coronavirus restrictions — for six weeks to tackle a surge in cases, Taoiseach Micheál Martin announced on Monday.  

The new restrictions will be imposed starting midnight local time Wednesday, but schools and childcare services will remain open unlike the lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic.  

Last week, Ireland's National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) recommended to the government for the second time this month that the country should impose stricter measures to stop the spread of the virus. 

In early October, the Irish government went against NPHET's recommendation, and instead chose to impose "Level 3" restrictions throughout the country for three weeks. 

Under the new restrictions, there should be no social gatherings at homes or in gardens, and restaurants, cafes and bars can only open to provide takeaway services.  

Despite the original outline for "Level 5" stating only six people could attend weddings, Martin said they will continue to allow an attendance of 25. The government is also asking people to work from home, unless considered an essential worker. 

Last week, Ireland recorded 7,495 new cases and 26 deaths. Two of those deaths recorded occurred in September, and one happened back in June. 

This marked a considerable jump in cases from the week before, where 4,510 cases and 17 news deaths were recorded. 

On Monday, the total number of cases recorded in the country since the start of the pandemic also surpassed 50,000. 

"The days are getting shorter and colder, but I ask you to remember this; even as the winter comes in there is hope, and there is light. If we pull together over the next six weeks, we will have the opportunity to celebrate Christmas in a meaningful way," Martin said during his address to the nation on Monday.  

  

4:20 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

States have their Covid-19 vaccine plans filed — but no money to pay for them

From CNN’s Maggie Fox

A participant for a COVID-19 vaccine trial receives a dose at the Research Centers of America in Hollywood, Florida, on August 13.
A participant for a COVID-19 vaccine trial receives a dose at the Research Centers of America in Hollywood, Florida, on August 13. Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty Images

Friday was the deadline for states to file their plans for distributing any coronavirus vaccine, but they still don’t have the needed federal money to help them do it, state health officials said Monday.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asked states to file their plans by last week. 

“As it stands now, we do not have any capability to fund the imminent implementation of the plan,” James Blumenstock, senior vice president for pandemic response and recovery at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), told reporters on Monday.

He said the CDC has distributed $200 million to states for preparedness and planning. “That certainly would not be sufficient at all for a campaign of this magnitude and duration that we are thinking of,” Blumenstock said.

ASTHO has asked Congress for $8.4 billion to help states distribute and administer vaccines to people, once they became available.

“Even if the money was appropriated today, it would take time for those funds to reach the jurisdictions that in turn would need it,” Blumenstock said.

He compared the current response to the rollout of vaccines for the H1N1 swine flu pandemic in 2009. What’s been provided now compared to what was provided then seems “woefully inadequate,” he said.

Dr. Nirav Shah, director of Maine’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said his state and likely others could probably get started vaccinating frontline health care workers once a vaccine became available, because they will be in easy-to-reach places such as hospitals and clinics. 

What will be more difficult, he said, will be reaching the people designated as high risk of severe complications for coronavirus who are not frontline medical and emergency workers, such as people with underlying health conditions.

States will face considerable difficulties distributing coronavirus vaccines, especially as some require special ultra-cold handling conditions. Record-keeping will also be complicated because some vaccines will require two doses. The vaccines made by different companies have very different formulations, so if more than one is authorized, clinics will have to keep careful note of which vaccines patients get so they get a second dose of the same brand of vaccine.

4:07 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

Carolina Panthers working virtually following inconclusive Covid-19 test result

From CNN's Kevin Dotson

 Grant Halverson/Getty Images/FILE
 Grant Halverson/Getty Images/FILE

The NFL’s Carolina Panthers instructed players, coaches, and staff to work virtually Monday and Tuesday after receiving an unconfirmed positive Covid-19 test result, according to a statement from a team spokesperson, who said the decision was made out of an abundance of caution.

The training room at the team’s Bank of America Stadium remains open to essential personnel and players. The team plans to return to its regular itinerary on Wednesday.  

The team also announced that there is no impact on early voting activities at Bank of America Stadium.

3:23 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

Mexican president getting tested for Covid-19 on Tuesday

From CNN's Fidel Gutierrez and Natalie Gallón in Mexico City

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador gives his daily, morning news conference at the presidential palace in Mexico City, on October 16.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador gives his daily, morning news conference at the presidential palace in Mexico City, on October 16. Marco Ugarte/AP

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador will be tested for Covid-19 on Tuesday following news that the Secretary of Marine, José Rafael Ojeda Duran, tested positive for the virus last week. 

Speaking at his daily morning news conference, López Obrador said he usually gets tested weekly to be sure. “I take care and keep safe distance, that is key. Fortunately, I have had no symptoms,” he said Monday. 

This is the first time he makes a public statement of getting tested on a weekly basis.

Several members of his cabinet have tested positive in recent weeks, including some in his inner circle such as Mexico’s finance minister, Arturo Herrera, and the director of the social health institute, Zoé Robledo.  

As of Sunday, Mexico has at least 851,227 confirmed cases of Covid-19 with 86,167 Covid-19 related deaths.

3:19 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

Dow sinks on dashed hopes for stimulus

From CNN’s David Goldman

Pedestrians pass the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday, October 14, in New York.
Pedestrians pass the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday, October 14, in New York. Frank Franklin II/AP

The Dow has swung wildly Monday. It opened slightly higher on China’s strong economic news and hopes that a stimulus deal could get done ahead of the election.

But those hopes were dashed later in the day.

The Dow is now trading down over 430 points.

3:16 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

More than 219,000 people have died from coronavirus in the US

From CNN’s Virginia Langmaid

The group Marked by COVID holds a vigil and listens to the stories of people who have lost close relatives from the COVID-19 pandemic in a public memorial for the dead on October 8 in Greely Square, New York.
The group Marked by COVID holds a vigil and listens to the stories of people who have lost close relatives from the COVID-19 pandemic in a public memorial for the dead on October 8 in Greely Square, New York. Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis/Getty Images

There are at least 8,180,502 cases of coronavirus in the US and at least 219,891 people have died from the virus, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

So far today, Johns Hopkins has recorded 25,908 new cases and 217 reported deaths.

The totals include cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases. 

3:08 p.m. ET, October 19, 2020

Speaker Pelosi lays out differences that remain on stimulus 

From CNN's Lauren Fox and Manu Raju

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks during a television interview at the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. on October 9.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks during a television interview at the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. on October 9. Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg/Getty Images

In a call with her caucus, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi highlighted the differences that remain between the White House and House Democrats in the stimulus negotiations according to two sources on the call.

While Pelosi told her caucus she continues to remain optimistic, she noted that there are a number of outstanding issues. She told her caucus that the White House is coming in their direction on the topline number, but Pelosi remains concerned that the White House and House Democrats have different ideas of how the money should be used. 

According to one source on the call, Pelosi told her caucus “I don’t want to keep repeating that they don’t share our values, but they don’t.”

Two sources on the call also told CNN that the message has been the same as her previous messages to the caucus: Criticizing the White House for not going far enough and saying that she's optimistic they can still get a deal.

Speaker Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are set to speak by phone at 3 p.m. today.

Read more about the latest on the stimulus negotiations here.