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Big commercial labs given priority for coronavirus testing equipment by feds

(CNN)President Donald Trump said Monday that he is confident the US is conducting enough coronavirus testing to begin rebooting the economy, declaring at the White House press briefing that “testing is not going to be a problem at all.” More than three months after the US confirmed its first coronavirus case, hospital and academic labs around the country said they’re still scrambling to find key supplies, from swabs to collect patient samples to protective gear for the medical workers taking the samples to the sensitive chemical reagents necessary to process…

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Biden says federal government should subsidize some salaries as part of coronavirus recovery

(CNN)Former Vice President Joe Biden called for the federal government to cover half of some workers’ salaries to help keep people employed during the coronavirus outbreak. “Keep people on the payrolls and just have straight flat payment, a flat payment where the government pays half the salary of everybody on there,” Biden later added. “You can keep everybody doing half the work they were doing but everybody stays employed.” Biden’s comments come as economic slide triggered by the coronavirus outbreak continues to worsen. Twenty-two million Americans have filed for unemployment…

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Michelle Obama is hosting a weekly story time for kids during the pandemic

(CNN)For all the exhausted families trying to keep their children entertained during the coronavirus pandemic, here’s some good news: Michelle Obama is hosting story time. “As a little kid, I loved to read aloud. And when I became a parent, I found such joy in sharing the magic of storytelling with my own children — and then later, as First Lady, with kids everywhere,” Obama said in a statement. “At this time when so many families are under so much stress, I’m excited to give kids a chance to practice…

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Heartland hotspots: A sudden rise in coronavirus cases is hitting rural states without stay-at-home orders

Washington (CNN)The test results came back on Easter Sunday. Tammy had been feeling “kind of crappy” when she went to her doctor in rural southeastern Oklahoma last week. A sign of possible pneumonia prompted her to get a coronavirus test later that day at the McCurtain County Health Department in Idabel. The bump in coronavirus cases is most pronounced in states without stay at home orders. Oklahoma saw a 53% increase in cases over the past week, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Over same time, cases jumped…

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Veterans Affairs denies reports of face mask shortages at hospitals

(CNN)The Department of Veterans Affairs is telling hospitals to decide which staff will receive face masks amid a shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE), according to internal memos seen by The Wall Street Journal, the news publication reported on Saturday. “The Wall Street Journal story you reference is extremely misleading,” Noel said in a statement. “All VA employees who need PPE have it.” “All VA facilities are equipped with essential items and supplies to handle coronavirus cases, and all VA employees have the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), as per…

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FEMA to restrict exports of critical supplies leaving US

(CNN)Companies will soon be blocked from exporting critical medical supplies needed by the US for the coronavirus response, unless the Federal Emergency Management Agency gives approval for overseas shipments, according to a federal draft regulation. In a joint statement Wednesday, the two agencies, both of which fall under the Department of Homeland Security, said they’re “working together to prevent domestic brokers, distributors, and other intermediaries from diverting these critical medical resources overseas.” CBP will be responsible for identifying exports at US air and sea ports, while FEMA will decide whether…

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Federal prisons will confine inmates to cells for 2 weeks due to coronavirus

Washington (CNN)The US federal prison system will move to a heightened state of lockdown as it fights the spread of coronavirus behind bars, the Bureau of Prisons announced. The federal prison system, composed of nearly 150,000 inmates in 122 facilities nationwide, had previously been in a moderate defensive posture, with a mandatory quarantine for new inmates and a ban on most visitation. At the direction of Attorney General William Barr, the Bureau of Prisons has also been taking steps to begin releasing especially vulnerable inmate populations who are nonviolent and…

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Cuomo calls Trump ‘incorrect and grossly uninformed’ about New York’s ventilator situation as fight escalates

(CNN)Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo slammed President Donald Trump for his call to distribute federal ventilators the state had in storage as the two leaders’ war of words over the coronavirus pandemic escalates. “So the point is, ‘well they’re in a stockpile, you must not need them’ is just ignorant — of course you don’t need them today!” Cuomo continued. “You need them when you hit the apex, which is 30,000. We’re not there yet.” Trump had earlier tweeted that New York should distribute the ventilators immediately. That statement…

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Sailors test positive for coronavirus at sea as US military leaders say crisis could last into summer

Washington (CNN)The Pentagon’s senior leadership broadcast a different message than President Donald Trump on Tuesday, with military leaders warning the coronavirus crisis could last well into the summer as the President seeks to open the economy back up. Milley was clear that “no one actually knows” when the crisis would be over, but that they were looking at “a variety of models.” On the same day that the President said at a Fox News town hall that he wants the country “opened up and just raring to go by Easter,”…

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North Korea says it received a letter from Trump

(CNN)North Korea said President Donald Trump sent Kim Jong Un a personal letter in which he expressed his willingness to help with “anti-epidemic work,” according to North Korea state-run media KCNA early Sunday. CNN has reached out to both the White House and National Security Council for comment. Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/21/politics/north-korea-trump/index.html

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Pompeo says State Department employees tested positive for coronavirus as he blasts Iran and China over ‘disinformation’

Washington (CNN)Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Tuesday a “handful” of State Department employees have tested positive for the coronavirus in the first official acknowledgement that his staff has been directly affected by the pandemic. Pompeo also focused on America’s geopolitical foes Iran and China in connection to the pandemic, claiming that Iran has been lying about the impact of the outbreak and, like China, has been falsely trying to blame the virus on the US. Iranian leaders have “lied about the Wuhan virus for weeks, the Iranian leadership is…

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Google says it’s not publishing a national-scale coronavirus site anytime soon after Trump announcement

(CNN)Google will not be publishing a national-scale website for coronavirus testing anytime soon, contrary to claims made by President Donald Trump during a Friday news conference. Verily’s statement sharply contrasts with Trump’s remarks Friday in the White House Rose Garden. “I want to thank Google,” Trump said. “Google is helping to develop a website. It’s going to be very quickly done, unlike websites of the past, to determine whether a test is warranted and to facilitate testing at a nearby convenient location.” The comment appeared to be a reference to…

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House passes Iran War Powers resolution opposed by Trump

Washington (CNN)The House of Representatives approved a War Powers resolution Wednesday, aiming to rein in presidential authority to use military action against Iran without congressional approval. The President warned the Senate not to green-light the measure last month ahead of its passage, tweeting, “It is very important for our country’s security that the United States Senate not vote for the Iran War Powers Resolution,” and adding, “If my hands were tied, Iran would have a field day.” The resolution “directs the President to terminate the use of United States Armed…

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Kamala Harris endorses Joe Biden for president

(CNN)US Senator and former Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris said Sunday she’s endorsing Joe Biden for president, the latest in a series of high-profile announcements from Democrats backing the former vice president. “Kamala — You’ve spent your whole career fighting for folks who’ve been written off and left behind — and no small part of that alongside Beau. From our family: thank you,” the former Vice President said in a retweet of her endorsement. The long-anticipated endorsement from Harris comes as a string of former 2020 presidential contenders have thrown…

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17 attorneys general ask administration to delay public charge rule during coronavirus outbreak

(CNN)A coalition of 17 attorneys general across the country, led by Washington state’s Bob Ferguson, have signed a letter asking the Trump administration to delay the new public charge rule for immigrants while the coronavirus outbreak is ongoing. Ferguson’s letter blasts the administration as discouraging people from accessing health care they are entitled to in the midst of a public health crisis. “DHS received warnings of the potentially devastating effects of the Rule if its implementation were to coincide with the outbreak of a highly communicable disease — a scenario…

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