Parts of U.S. scramble to shut down as another daily coronavirus record falls

The United States saw another record-breaking day on Friday with 66,600 new coronavirus cases, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That’s up from the previous daily record of 63,200 cases on Thursday and marks the third time in less than a week the country has hit an all-time high for new, confirmed infections.

The U.S. has now seen over 3.18 million COVID-19 cases and more than 134,000 deaths due to the virus.

Parts of the country are scrambling to shut down once again as the virus spreads, Michael George reported for “CBS This Morning: Saturday.”

Bars, restaurants and the young made their way into the crosshairs of governors in southern states where the virus is surging.

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster issued an executive order Friday to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages at bars and restaurants in the state after 11 p.m. It goes into effect on Saturday, affecting about 8,000 locations.

“Many of the young people in our state as well as around the country seem not to be taking the virus as seriously as they should,” McMaster said.

“We know that young adults who are rapidly contracting the virus and spreading it into our communities frequently congregate in late-night atmospheres which simply are not conducive to stopping its continued transmission,” said McMaster.

At a Kentucky test site, bartender Michael Whitler knows what can happen after 11 p.m.

“Once it gets too late at night, it’s just unbelievable,” said Whitler.

“It’s been pretty nuts,” he said. “Enough to make you want to go get tested.”

In Tennessee, Shelby County restaurants require customers to fork over their contact information before they’re seated.

“It’s really important to have peoples’ names and phone numbers because if there was someone who was positive in that restaurant at the same time, then the owners can tell everyone else,” said infectious disease doctor Manoj Jain, who is on the local task force that mandated the rule.

Michael Patrick, chef and owner of Rizzo’s in Memphis, will hang on to the information and seating charts for the better part of a month to help trace patrons who test positive for COVID-19.

“I would hate for, God forbid, someone to get sick here, but I feel like it was a public obligation to let people know who ate here,” Patrick said.

Georgia set a new single-day record for new coronavirus cases on Friday, reporting more than 4,400 new infections. The skyrocketing case numbers prompted Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms to order the city to return to Phase 1 of reopening, effective immediately.

Meanwhile, increasing virus infections in Pennsylvania are being blamed in part on crowded bars, as well of out-of-state travel. The state reported more than 1,000 new infections Friday – the highest one-day tally there since May.

In Nevada, bars in seven counties were ordered to close again in an effort to stop the spread of the virus. It marks the second time the state has tightened restrictions since it started reopening.

In Texas, one of the hardest-hit states, Governor Greg Abbott warned Friday that he may have to implement a lockdown if the virus numbers don’t come down. The governor has reiterated several times this week that his statewide mask order must be followed.

“The worst is yet to come as we work our way through that massive increase in people testing positive,” Abbott told CBS News affiliate KLBK-TV. “The only way that we can keep our businesses open, the only way that we can continue to have a job they need to pay their bill is for everyone to adopt this practice of wearing a face mask.”

The number of coronavirus patients hospitalized in the state has quadrupled in the last month, CBS News’ Mireya Villarreal reported. The state surpassed 240,000 confirmed cases on Friday and has seen more than 3,000 COVID-19 fatalities.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-cases-united-states-record-daily-cases-shut-down/

Coronavirus rages in Orange County, but don’t tell that to Disney fans

For nearly 65 years, Disneyland was a place where millions came for a joyful reprieve from the outside world.

Then the coronavirus hit, and Fantasyland became impossible. Walt Disney Co. shut down its two theme parks and three hotels in Anaheim on March 13, furloughing tens of thousands of workers and vowing not to reopen until a safe plan to move forward was ready.

The theme parks are still closed, but Disney’s retail center, Downtown Disney, reopened this week to huge crowds and immediately became a flashpoint for the larger debate about whether California is reopening too quickly even as it sees record numbers of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations and rising death tolls. Orange County has been hit particularly hard, with hospitalizations increasing nearly 100% in three weeks.

At the same time, the county remains a hotbed of the coronavirus resistance. Cities sued to keep beaches open. Politicians openly scoffed at the suggestions of health officials that residents wear masks in public places. Residents hectored the county’s chief health officer into resigning; videos of customers who berated store employees for not allowing them in without a mask went, well, viral.

On Friday afternoon, hundreds of people wandered around Downtown Disney, a strip of restaurants and shops that ends at the gates to Disneyland and its sister park, Disney California Adventure. It had reopened the day before to such demand that security had to close the adjacent Simba parking lot to keep people away.

“We just wanted to get out and start living again,” said Kimberly Poff, an annual pass holder who proudly held up her newest purchase: a navy blue 65th anniversary long-sleeve shirt that sparkled in the sunlight. She was equipped with hand sanitizer and disinfectants.

“For those of us who love Disney, it’s sad to see the parks closed,” said Missy Pebley, who was there to celebrate her 48th birthday. “We’ve been waiting since the day it closed.”

At first glance — and ignoring the fact that everyone was wearing masks, per Disney’s requirement — the scene was like any other day at “the happiest place on Earth.”

Families wore T-shirts with Disney characters — Donald Duck, Stitch, Iron Man. Workers were chipper and dressed dapper. The wait to enter the World of Disney store ranged from 15 minutes to an hour.

But these attempts at normality only heightened how off everything felt.

All driveways into hotels were blocked off, with a five-layer barricade in front of the road that led to the theme parks. Guests had to pass through four checkpoints — a temperature-reading station, a K-9 dog, a security guard and a metal detector — before being allowed to enter. Workers stood around to see if any scofflaw took off a mask or got too close to a stranger.

And loud instrumental versions of Disney standards like “Turkey in the Straw” and “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” served as a dissonant soundtrack.

Art Yero of Fontana came to pick up his family’s favorite cookies after they had sold out the day before. His 4-year-old son, Peter, wanted to take pictures outside the park’s gates. Years ago, Yero sold popcorn in Disney California Adventure.

“There’s very much a nostalgia thing to it,” he said. “As far as health safety, I was not worried…. I was more worried about, ‘Am I going to be able to get in?’”

“I think as long as everyone stays away and respects each other’s social distancing, it should be good and continue to be good,” said Ashley Rodriguez, a Disneyland worker who wore Mickey Mouse ears along with a red Minnie Mouse mask, and a yellow skirt and black shirt decorated with the cartoon character to match. The Monterey Park resident and her husband, Nicholas, spent their first date, wedding and honeymoon at the park.

Nicholas said he felt safer in Downtown Disney than other public spaces.

“Here they’re scrubbing down things,” he said. “I’m not too sure the worker in JCPenney is really watching what’s going on.”

“I think right now the world could use a little happiness,” said Hayley Petzoldt, manager of the Salt & Straw ice cream shop in Downtown Disney. The store quadrupled expected sales during Thursday’s reopening. Inside, tape on the floor marked safe distances. Plexiglass separated workers from customers over the ice cream display.

“It’s a little different, but it’s a new reality we’re all starting to become accustomed,” the 31-year-old Santa Ana resident said, as the theme song to the Main Street Electrical Parade clanged outside. “We’re making it work. You can still smile with your eyes.”

Just a couple of hours later, Orange County health officials announced the county had experienced its second-highest daily coronavirus case total, and its fifth straight day topping 1,000 cases. Among cities in Orange County, Anaheim has the second-highest case total.

The Disneyland Resort’s continued closure over the last four months was a psychic wound for its fans, but it also hurts Orange County.

It’s the largest private employer in the county, with over 30,000 workers, most of them now furloughed. A 2019 Cal State Fullerton study found that the resort brought about $8.5 billion into the Southern California economy the year before.

Anaheim, long reliant on Disney for its tax base, faces a $75-million budget deficit. Storefronts outside the resort on Harbor Boulevard, usually bustling with tourists, are empty or boarded up.

Gov. Gavin Newsom originally exempted Disneyland from his order prohibiting large gatherings, sparking some outcry on social media. Disney announced it would voluntarily shut down later that same day.

In mid-June, Disneyland announced it would reopen in time for the park’s July 17 anniversary even as coronavirus cases in California began to rise again. But with the coronavirus surging, that’s now on hold.

The opening of Downtown Disney this week upset Ada Briceño, chair of the Democratic Party of Orange County and secretary of Unite Here Local 11, which represents the resort’s hotel workers.

“It’s very disappointing to see that they opened when Orange County is seeing super-high numbers of people with COVID,” said Briceño, who had to quarantine herself in March after her son contracted the disease. “Disney must think of protecting workers, their families, and our communities before profits in the middle of a pandemic.”

But she was a lone voice amid the rush to congratulate the move.

In a tweet, Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu hailed Disney’s plans to slowly resume business as a “major milestone in the recovery of Anaheim, California and our nation.”

The city’s chief communications officer, Mike Lyster, also expressed support.

“It’s a unique time for anybody reopening, and naturally it comes with a lot of concerns, but the way they’ve done it has been an example,” he said. “Of course that has to be done in a safe way, and we know we won’t go back to where we were a year ago.”

“It was very emotional,” Disney spokeswoman Liz Jaeger said of the reopening. “Guests were thanking us as they came in. We’ve been waiting for this day for a long time.”

For those who showed up, the coronavirus was just a passing thing — a joke, even.

“I know it’s stupid for us to be out during a pandemic, you know, we’re here today to catch it,” cracked John Cirelli, 38, who was browsing with his husband, Jarrod, for a place to eat.

Nearby, Jordan Parker waited in line with his family at the Lego store with his two daughters who were in need of some entertainment. He was “a little concerned” about the coronavirus but felt that it had died down.

But even Andrea DeAvila, a Whittier resident who came “every day” to Disneyland before the pandemic, felt that despite everyone’s best effort, things just weren’t normal.

“Downtown Disney is a subtle version of Disney,” said the 17-year-old, sporting mouse ears. “It starts to fade off as you walk through.”

Her friend, Maya Lee of La Habra, agreed. She said that her “only personality trait is coming to Disney.” “A lot of my friends were like, ‘What are you doing during quarantine?’” without trips to the theme park, said the 16-year-old.

Maya wore a bucket hat lined with Mickey Mouse’s silhouette. She wouldn’t normally spend so much time in Downtown Disney, but now she had no other choice.

“It feels different.“

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-10/coronavirus-disneyland-orange-county-downtown-disney-reopening

Disney World reopens as coronavirus cases surge in Florida

“The Most Magical Place on Earth” has reopened after nearly four months with new rules in place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom opened Saturday, while Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios will follow next week.

All of Disney’s Central Florida parks closed in mid-March in an effort to stop the virus’s spread.

Universal Orlando and SeaWorld Orlando closed around the same time but reopened several weeks ago after instituting similar rules to protect employees and customers from the virus.

The reopening comes as a huge surge of Floridians have tested positive for the new coronavirus in recent weeks.

Temperature checks will be given at park entrances, there will be no tram service in the parking lots, and face masks that loop around the ears are mandatory.

https://www.wesh.com/article/disney-world-reopens-florida/33282467

Biocon to market Itolizumab for emergency use in India

Biotechnology firm Biocon (OTC:BCNQY) landed approval from the Drugs Controller General of India for use of its biologic drug Itolizumab for the treatment of moderate to severe COVID-19 patients.

In a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange, Biocon indicates that it received DCGI approval to market Itolizumab injection 25mg/5mL solution for emergency use in India for the treatment of cytokine release syndrome in moderate to severe acute respiratory distress syndrome patients due to COVID-19.

Biocon moved from applying for commencement of trials on coronavirus patients to getting the final approval for commercialization in just 120 days.

https://seekingalpha.com/news/3590412-biocon-to-market-itolizumab-for-emergency-use-in-india

DeSantis breaks with Fauci, says Florida didn’t rush reopening

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) disagreed with America’s top infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci on Friday, saying he doesn’t think his state reopened too early.

“I think there was really no justification to not move forward,” DeSantis said according to The South Florida Sun Sentinel while discussing reopening phases of the state.

His defense comes amid criticism of the state as it sees climbing coronavirus cases, and also follows Fauci saying on FiveThirtyEight’s weekly “PODCAST-19” that he thought the state rushed through reopening phases.

“Despite the guidelines and the recommendations to open up carefully and prudently, some states skipped over those and just opened up too quickly,” Fauci said on the podcast. “Certainly Florida … I think jumped over a couple of checkpoints.”

Fauci also told The Hill that hard-hit states should not be moving forward with reopening.

“I would think we need to get the states pausing in their opening process, looking at what did not work well and try to mitigate that,” Fauci, a member of the White House coronavirus task force, told The Hill’s Steve Clemons. “I don’t think we need to go back to an extreme of shutting down.”

Florida again shattered records this week, hitting a high for its recorded number of coronavirus deaths on Thursday. It reported 120 new deaths as the state has quickly become one of the world’s epicenters for the virus.

Florida was one of the last states to impose a stay-at-home order, and one of the first to reopen.

DeSantis has encouraged Floridians to stay home and to practice hand-washing, mask use and social distancing, but has said he will not go back on reopening.

“We’re open. We know who we need to protect. Most of the folks in those younger demographics, although we want them to be mindful of what’s going on, are just simply much much less at risk than the folks who are in those older age groups,” he said late last month.

https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/506867-desantis-breaks-with-fauci-says-florida-didnt-rush-reopening

‘Mild’ cases of coronavirus may have serious long-term and recurring effects

July 11, 2020

• Most coronavirus cases are not severe and do not require hospitalization or special treatment.
• However, to call these cases “mild” may be an understatement.
• Some COVID-19 patients are experiencing symptoms for long periods of time or complications that appear months after their diagnosis.

Some reports of coronavirus cases suggest that most are not severe or are “mild.” However, the word “mild” may not accurately describe this group of cases; they may be more mild relative to the most severe cases requiring intensive care, but they may not be as moderate as the word implies.

Mild cases generally are ones that do not require hospitalization. But scientifically, it’s open to the interpretation of the experts who use the term.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says “most people infected with the COVID-19 virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says “fever, cough, and shortness of breath are more commonly reported among people who are hospitalized with COVID-19 than among those with milder disease (non-hospitalized patients).”

U.S. coronavirus data estimates put the number of hospitalized cases at around 102.5 per 100,000 people, according to the CDC. If the remaining cases are considered “mild,” there is a large range of what that can mean in terms of severity of illness.

But people who seem to have “mild” cases may not have an easy time getting through the disease and in some cases may eventually require special treatment. Health experts are still learning about the illness and what the virus does in the human body. There have been reports of blood clotting and strokes in people in their 30s and 40s. Young children are developing rashes and other symptoms in a syndrome that is being linked to the coronavirus.

People with “mild” cases are not coming out of it unscathed. Symptoms may reappear after a supposed recovery from COVID-19, and sometimes that can happen weeks or months later. “It’s almost like a blow to your ego to be in your 20s and healthy and active, and get hit with this thing and think you’re going to get better and you’re going to be OK. And then have it really not pan out that way,” says COVID-19 patient Fiona Lowenstein to The Guardian.

Another factor to consider is that some of the symptoms and health issues caused by the virus may not be apparent until later. Some individuals are discovering complications as long as two months after they’ve had SARS-CoV-2. CNN anchor Richard Quest says in an article on the site that he’s still discovering areas of damage, including a newfound level of clumsiness.

From a clinician’s point of view, knowing how many cases are severe helps to prepare for hospitalizations. But for a regular person, it could give a false impression that the risks from SARS-CoV-2 are low.

“From my point of view, this has been a really harmful narrative and absolutely has misinformed the public,” Hannah Davis, who helped lead a survey on long-term COVID-19 recovery, tells The Guardian. “It both prohibits people from taking relevant information into account when deciding their personal risk levels, and it prevents the long-haulers from getting the help they need.”

As we learn more about the range of illness caused by the coronavirus, it may serve the public better to use more accurate terminology to describe the range of symptoms and severity of disease.

People may be holding onto the numbers of “mild” cases as hope that they may not be affected by the virus, or if they do contract it that they can get through it easily. The truth is that in many U.S. states, cases are climbing higher than ever, and believing that you may not be affected very much may not protect you or the people close to you. Experts are not able to reliably predict who will truly have a mild case and who may have nagging symptoms lasting for a longer period of time, though that may change with more research.

Quest says, “Covid is a tornado with a very long tail.”

https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/prevention-cures/506752-mild-cases-of-coronavirus-may-not-be-as-mild-as