An internal investigation at the Department of Health and Human Services into why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shipped defective coronavirus test kits to public health laboratories in February – a failing some experts have cited as a hindrance to America’s critical early efforts to combat the outbreak – has concluded, according to a final report obtained by Sinclair, that CDC scientists likely used a component in the kits that were “contaminated.”
Health officials have reported more than 3,200 new cases of coronavirus in Arizona in the last 24 hours. Arizona Department of Health Services said Friday morning that there were 3,246 new cases of COVID-19 since Thursday, bringing the total number of reported cases from 43,443 to 46,489.
Less than a quarter of hospital beds for intensive care patients are now available in Florida as the state grapples with a spike in coronavirus cases, data provided by the state revealed on Thursday.
The White House is taking a new position on the coronavirus pandemic: a daily count of 750 deaths is a testament to the federal government’s successful pandemic response. On Wednesday, when U.S. health officials reported nearly 27,000 new Covid-19 cases, President Trump said in a television interview that the virus was “dying out.” He brushed off concerns about an upcoming rally in Tulsa, Okla., because the number of cases there is “very miniscule,” despite the state’s surging infection rate.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday ordered all Californians to wear face coverings while in public or high-risk settings, including when shopping, taking public transit or seeking medical care, following growing concerns that an increase in coronavirus cases has been caused by residents failing to voluntarily take that precaution.
Health experts want a 9/11 Commission-style report on the US pandemic response. They say we must forecast and prepare for outbreaks as we do for wars or weather.