9 States Set 7-Day Records For Coronavirus Cases: BLOG

ACROSS AMERICA — Nine states have set seven-day records for new coronavirus cases this week, according to a USA Today analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University.

The record-setting states are largely the ones with the smallest populations: Alaska, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

In addition, 39 states reported an uptick in cases from the week prior, the analysis also found.

The record-high numbers, nearly seven months after the spread of the coronavirus was declared a pandemic, come as President Donald Trump — still infected with the COVID-19 virus — is not only back at the White House but out of isolation and in the Oval Office.

Just hours after shutting down negotiations on a new federal stimulus package, Trump backtracked on Wednesday, calling on Congress to pass new coronavirus relief for cash-strapped airlines and small businesses along with stimulus checks to Americans.

"The House & Senate should IMMEDIATELY Approve 25 Billion Dollars for Airline Payroll Support, & 135 Billion Dollars for Paycheck Protection Program for Small Business. Both of these will be fully paid for with unused funds from the Cares Act. Have this money. I will sign now!" the president tweeted.

On Tuesday, less than 24 hours after returning to the White House from a three-day hospitalization for treatment of COVID-19, Trump said he would put an end to negotiations over a new coronavirus economic stimulus plan until after the election.

Stocks dropped immediately following Trump's declaration that talks would be halted. The Dow Jones Industrial Average went down 300 points, a 600-point swing, in less than an hour. On Wednesday, the Dow rebounded and ended the day 530 points higher.

Meanwhile, a top U.S. immunologist has resigned from his post at the National Institutes of Health, claiming he's been sidelined after filing a whistleblower complaint against the Trump administration last spring.

Rick Bright, former director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, was reassigned to a lesser role at NIH after pushing back against Trump’s claims about hydroxychloroquine as a COVID-19 treatment.

In May, Bright filed a formal whistleblower complaint against his former employer, calling the demotion "political retaliation."

In an amended whistleblower complaint filed Tuesday, Bright's attorney said he has had "no meaningful work" to do since Sept. 4 and, despite requests to "contribute his talents" to the federal coronavirus response, he was never assigned new work.

The letter goes on to say the Trump administration “ignores scientific expertise, overrules public health guidance and disrespects career scientists."

"The public health crisis is worsening; there is too much at stake now for Dr. Bright to
continue to stay silent, and these latest efforts to stifle his work and force him to sit idle have
further harmed him and this nation as a whole," the letter says.

Also, in a quick reversal, the White House approved new, stricter rules that will make it nearly impossible for one to be ready for widespread use before the Nov. 3 presidential election.

The FDA immediately posted the new vaccine guidelines after their approval Tuesday afternoon, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Earlier in the day, reports surfaced from the New York Times and others that the White House was planning to block the new guidelines, which set forth the safety and efficacy trials that must take place before a vaccine is authorized.

Trump returned to the White House on Monday evening from Walter Reed Medical Center in nearby Bethesda, Maryland, just a day earlier as the number of coronavirus-related deaths in the United States surpassed 210,000.

Positive coronavirus cases inside the White House continue to be reported. On Tuesday, Stephen Miller, senior policy adviser to President Trump, tested positive for the coronavirus, the Washington Post reported. Others in Trump's circle who have tested positive include former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany and former adviser Kellyanne Conway. Christie, who entered a hospital Saturday, remained there as a patient Wednesday.

Vice President Mike Pence and California Sen. Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, will be in Utah Wednesday night for a debate ahead of the Nov. 3 election. Due to the coronavirus, a plexiglass shield will be used to separate the candidates, the Associated Press and others have reported.

At least 721 new coronavirus deaths and 42,553 new cases were reported in the United States on Tuesday, according to a New York Times database. Over the past week, there have been an average of 44,116 cases per day, an increase of 6 percent from the average two weeks earlier.

As of Wednesday, 30 states and Puerto Rico remained above the positive testing rate recommended by the World Health Organization to safely reopen. To safely reopen, the WHO recommends states remain at 5 percent or lower for at least 14 days.

More than 7.53 million people in the United States have tested positive for the coronavirus as of late Wednesday afternoon, and more than 211,500 have died, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

Stay up to date on current coronavirus news via The New York Times or Washington Post.

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