November 3 coronavirus news

By Zamira Rahim, Lauren Kent, Joshua Berlinger, Brett McKeehan and Emma Reynolds, CNN

Updated 12:22 a.m. ET, November 4, 2020

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5:43 p.m. ET, November 3, 2020

Covid-19 now third-leading cause of death in Arkansas

From CNN’s Rebekah Riess

Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson updates the media on the state's COVID-19 response on November 3. Governor Asa Hutchinson

Covid-19 is the third-leading cause of death in Arkansas, preceded only by cancer and heart attacks, according to Governor Asa Hutchinson.

So it is a deadly virus that takes people's lives. We want to make sure everybody understands the seriousness of it,” Hutchinson said during a news briefing on Tuesday.

The state today reported 878 new cases of Covid-19, bringing it to a total of 115,519 cases. Arkansas is also reporting 18 new Covid-19 related deaths, bringing the total to 2,003 deaths, according to the Governor.

Bed capacity in northeast and central areas of the state is currently “tight,” Bo Ryall, president and CEO of the Arkansas Hospital Association said Tuesday.

10% of occupied beds have Covid-19 patients in them
26% of occupied ICU beds have Covid-19 patients in them
31% of ventilators are in use by Covid-19 patients

Ryall said these were “some of the highest numbers that we've seen in those areas."

While hospitals are not currently seeing any major deficiencies in PPE or testing supplies, there is a shortage of healthcare workers caused by fatigue, competition from other states, increasing costs and community exposure, Ryall added.

“If we continue to see these cases escalate, we in turn will have hospitalizations increase, and the stress on the health care system will be felt. Hospitals are stretched thin in some areas and we ask that you please adhere to the safety measures again,” Ryall said.

4:41 p.m. ET, November 3, 2020

Iceland's President is quarantining after staff member diagnosed with Covid-19

From CNN’s Inga Thordar

President Guðni Jóhannesson seen in March. Michal Fludra/NurPhoto via Getty Images

The President of Iceland will quarantine until November 9 after a staff member at his official residence (Bessastadir) was diagnosed with Covid-19.

President Guðni Jóhannesson is showing no symptoms of the virus and his family does not need to quarantine, his office said in a statement Tuesday.

Iceland increased its coronavirus restrictions on October 31 as it tries to get to grips with a rise in daily infections. The new rules, including limiting gatherings to 10 people and a ban on all sports activity, will be in place until November 17.

Iceland has reported 4,957 coronavirus cases and 17 deaths since the pandemic began, according to government figures.

5:59 p.m. ET, November 3, 2020

France records most Covid-related deaths in 24 hours since April

From CNN’s Pierre Bairin in Paris

France has reported its highest daily tally of Covid-linked deaths since April 15, according to data released by the French Health Authority on Tuesday.

A further 854 people died from illnesses related to the virus in the past 24 hours -- an average of one person dying every 1 minute 41 seconds. That brings the country's death toll to 38,289.

The health authority also registered 36,330 new cases in the past 24 hours, taking France's total number of infections to more than 1.5 million.

There are currently 3,869 patients in intensive care units -- triple the number there were just a month ago, with 1,289 in ICUs on October 3.

4:46 p.m. ET, November 3, 2020

Netherlands shuts public gathering places and PM "urgently" advises against all foreign travel

From CNN’s Mick Krever and James Frater in London

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte speaks during a press conference on November 3 in The Hague, Netherlands. Niels Wenstedt/BSR Agency/Getty Images

The Dutch Prime Minister on Tuesday evening announced several measures to further strengthen the country’s partial lockdown.

It is not going badly, but certainly not going well enough,” Mark Rutte said during a news conference.

The new rules go into effect at 10 p.m. local (4 p.m. ET) on Wednesday.

In an effort to prevent new outbreaks brought into the country, Rutte said that the “urgent advice will therefore be, until mid-January, do not travel abroad unless it is really necessary.”

Other new measures announced by Rutte:

All publicly accessible buildings and places where people gather, inside and outside, must close for two weeks -- including theaters, cinemas, club houses, museums, monuments, zoos and theme parks.
Households are advised to “stay at home as much as possible."
People will be able to gather outside with at most one other person (down from three others), and receive at most two people per day at home.
Restaurants and bars remain closed for everything except takeout, as they have been since mid-October.

Gradual decline in cases: Data from the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) shows that the number of new cases being reported in the past four days is gradually declining.

Figures show the number of new daily cases reached a record high on October 30 with 11,097 cases. Since then, cases have consistently fallen, with 7,776 cases reported in the past 24 hours. On average in the past week, 9,155 new infections have been reported each day; an average of 9,640 new infections were reported each day in the previous week.

Hospital admissions continue to rise: Data from the Dutch National Coordination Centre for Patient Distribution (LCPS) shows 364 people were admitted to hospital in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 2,653 people now in hospital, 609 of who are in intensive care.

RIVM data takes seven days to be consolidated to allow for delays in receiving results from regional centers.

4:13 p.m. ET, November 3, 2020

Algerian president receiving treatment for coronavirus at German hospital

From CNN’s Taylor Barnes and Mohammed Tawfeeq

In this December 19, 2019 file photo, Algerian president Abdelmadjid Tebboune delivers a speech during an inauguration ceremony at the presidential palace in Algiers, Algeria. Toufik Doudou/AP

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is receiving treatment for Covid-19 in a specialized German hospital, according to a statement from his office on Tuesday.

The president “is responding to the treatment and his health condition is gradually improving,” the statement read.

The Algerian president’s office announced last Wednesday, October 28, that Tebboune had been transferred to Germany for medical examinations but did not specify at the time whether the treatment was for Covid-19.

Last week, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention warned that Covid-19 cases are accelerating in some parts of Africa and governments should step up preparations for a second wave.

3:55 p.m. ET, November 3, 2020

Italy reports highest number of coronavirus deaths since May

From CNN’s Livia Borghese in Rome

Italy reported 353 coronavirus-related deaths on Tuesday, the highest daily figure since May 6.

This brings the country’s total death toll to 39,412, the Health Ministry said.

Italy recorded 28,244 new Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours, up from 22,253 on Monday, taking the total case number to 759,829.

On Monday, the President of the Italian Association of Doctors Filippo Anelli warned Italy could reach the “saturation point” of ICU beds at the end of November if coronavirus cases continue to increase at the current rate.

The Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte addressed this fear on Monday, saying he hopes that the “more stringent measures” put into place in late October will limit the spread of the of the virus in the country.

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

Wisconsin forced to cancel second football game due to Covid-19 outbreak

From CNN's Kevin Dotson

The Wisconsin Badgers raise their helmets prior to kickoff on November 24th, 2018 at the Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, WI. Dan Sanger/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images

The University of Wisconsin has canceled its second football game due to a rising number of Covid-19 cases within the program.

The game against Purdue University, which was due to take place Saturday, will not be rescheduled.

The school said that five more members of the football program -- three student-athletes and two staff members -- have tested positive since October 31. This increases the total number of active cases within the team to 27 -- 15 players and 12 staffers.

All 27 positive tests have come since October 24. The Badgers have indefinitely paused team activities since October 28, canceling a scheduled game against Nebraska on October 31.

“I share in the disappointment of our student-athletes and staff,” Wisconsin Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez said. “We have seen a level of improvement in our testing numbers, but not enough to give us confidence to resume normal activities and play our game on Saturday. We will continue to test regularly, take the proper health-related precautions and look forward to getting our team back on the field as soon as possible.”

The Wisconsin team's next scheduled game is Saturday, November 14, at the University of Michigan.

The Badgers remain 1-0 for the 2020 season and are ranked 10th nationally.

2:45 p.m. ET, November 3, 2020

Arizona Covid-19 hospitalizations climb to highest level since August

From CNN's Kay Jones

Arizona's number of hospitalizations for Covid-19 patients has climbed to its highest level since August, according to the state's health department.

The latest report shows that 956 patients are hospitalized with the virus, with 227 of those in intensive care. The total number of patients hospitalized as of Tuesday morning is the highest in the state since August 25, when 967 patients were in the hospital, according to the dashboard.

The state's dashboard shows that 15% of the state's ICU beds are available while the inpatient adult bed availability stands at 16%.

The state reports 1,679 new Covid-19 cases, taking the total number of cases to 249,818, the dashboard shows.

Arizona Department of Health Services is reporting 38 new deaths due to the virus, bringing the total number of deaths to 6,020.

1:36 p.m. ET, November 3, 2020

New Jersey reports more than 1,000 coronavirus cases a day for two weeks

From CNN's Julian Cummings

People wait in a line to get tested for COVID-19 at an urgent care clinic in Newark, New Jersey on October 26. Seth Wenig/AP

New Jersey reported 1,832 new cases of Covid-19 and 18 new deaths Tuesday, according to its Covid-19 dashboard.

It has reported more than 1,000 coronavirus cases a day for the past two weeks, the state's Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said in a news conference Monday.

The state has now reported a total of 242,825 cases and 14,582 confirmed deaths.

There are 1,113 people hospitalized due to Covid-19 in New Jersey. Of those currently in the hospital, 216 are in intensive care units and 78 are on ventilators.