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June 22, 2020 - Brief Issue 65

The Coronavirus Daily Brief is a daily news and analysis roundup edited by New America’s International Security Program and Arizona State University.

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Top Headlines

23 U.S. States See Rise in Coronavirus Cases as Global Cases Hit New High (Health & Science)

New Report Shows That Wildlife Trade May Have a Major Role in the Spreading of Coronaviruses From Animals (Health & Science)

HHS Confirms Contaminated Tests Were Distributed to State Labs (Health & Science)

Emerging Treatments for COVID-19 Deal with Both Viral Infection and Immune Response (Health & Science)

Three New Vaccine Candidates Enter Phase I Trials; AstraZeneca, Inovio, and Novavax Expect Early Data This Summer from Ongoing Vaccine Trials (Health & Science)

NIH Stops Two Hydroxychloroquine Clinical Trials (Health & Science)

European Countries Train “Army” of Medics for Second Wave (Around the World)

Spain Reopens its Borders, Launches Tourism Marketing Campaign (Around the World)

Coronavirus Detected in Italian Sewage as Early as December 2019 (Around the World)

Mumbai-based Pharmaceutical Company Gets Approval for Antiviral Drug to be Used as COVID-19 Treatment (Around the World)

China Suspends Imports from Arkansas Tyson Foods Plant (Around the World)

Brazil’s Indigenous Leaders are Dying from COVID-19; Brazil Hits 1 Million Cases, Passes 50,000 Deaths (Around the World)

Haiti Nears 5,000 Confirmed Cases as U.N. Security Council Calls for Constitutional Reform to Ease Pandemic (Around the World)

Cruise Lines Voluntarily Suspend Trips from U.S. Ports Until Mid-September (Around the World)

Trump Holds First Post-Pandemic Rally in Tulsa; Says He Slowed Testing; Advisers Say It Was a Joke (U.S. Government & Politics)

U.S. Navy Will Not Reinstate Captain Crozier After Removal from USS Theodore Roosevelt (U.S. Government & Politics)

New York City Struggles with Contract Tracing (U.S. Government & Politics)

Detroit Automakers to Return to Pre-Pandemic Production Levels (U.S. Economy)

Apple to Close Stores as Coronavirus Cases Spike (U.S. Economy)

New Yorkers Likely to Avoid Offices, Despite Being Able to Return on Monday (U.S. Society)

Catholics Weigh Online Worship as Churches Reopen (U.S. Society)

Health & Science

The World Health Organization reported a record daily increase in cases on Sunday, with the global total number of cases rising by 183,020 in just 24 hours (Reuters). There have been 2,280,969 coronavirus cases in the United States, and 119,977 people have died (Johns Hopkins). At least 622,133 people have recovered, and the United States has conducted 27,084,900 tests. Worldwide, there have been 8,970,977 confirmed cases of coronavirus, with 468,567 deaths. At least 4,443,796 people have recovered from the virus.

23 U.S. States See Rise in Coronavirus Cases as Global Cases Hit New High

On Friday, the United States reported a surge in new coronavirus cases, rising to 30,000 new daily cases. This is the highest daily increase since May 1, reports CNBC. As a result, White House director of trade and manufacturing policy Peter Navarro said on Sunday that the White House is preparing “for the possibility of a second wave of coronavirus in the fall” (NYT). Over the weekend, 12 states hit record high single day case rates (ABC). CNN reports that Johns Hopkins University data shows that “at least 23 states are trending upward in new cases compared to last week. Ten of those states reported more than a 50% jump.” On Saturday, Florida reported 4,049 new coronavirus cases, which is the third day in a row that Florida has surpassed its own single day record (Tampa Bay Times). More than half of Florida’s over 3,200 COVID-19 deaths have been from long-term care facilities. Texas recorded 4,430 new coronavirus cases and 2,165 deaths on Saturday (AP). This is up substantially from its reported 3,454 new cases one day prior. Arizona intensive care unit beds are at 85 percent capacity as of Friday, and Arizona had over 3,100 cases reported on Saturday (Newsweek, AZ Department of Health Services). North Carolina’s COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to set record highs for the fifth consecutive day. The state has 883 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, and a nine percent positivity rate for coronavirus tests (ABC11). Oklahoma’s Department of Health data shows that over the past two weeks, 54 percent of new coronavirus cases were 35 years old or younger, as it increased by another 331 cases on Saturday (USA Today). Other states have seen this younger demographic impacted as well. Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, and Texas are among the many states now seeing an increase in coronavirus cases in younger Americans (CNN). On Saturday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said new cases are “shifting in a radical direction” towards individuals below 40 years old, and happen to be primarily asymptomatic. Eighteen percent of South Carolina’s coronavirus cases are individuals between 21 and 30 years old. According to South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control physician consultant Dr. Brannon Traxler, “The increases that we're seeing serve as a warning that young adults and youth are not immune to Covid-19” adding, “They also tell us that younger South Carolinians are not taking social distancing seriously.” South Carolina saw 1,155 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, a new record for the state (NYT). The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) predicts that between 129,000 and 145,000 Americans will die from COVID-19 by July 11, while World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says, “The world is in a new and dangerous phase” after the global daily cases hit a one-day high at over 180,000 (CNN, Reuters). Bonus Read: “Yes, Wearing Masks Helps. Here's Why,” (NPR).

New Report Shows That Wildlife Trade May Have a Major Role in Spreading Coronaviruses From Animals

A study of wildlife trading in three Vietnamese provinces has found that “trading offers an ideal opportunity for viruses in one animal to infect another” (NYT). For example, when the researchers studied the supply chain of field rats that are consumed, they found that the percentage of field rats infected with at least one of six coronaviruses increased from 20 percent in the wild, to around 30 percent once in markets, to 55 percent when sold in restaurants. The likelihood of a field rat having a coronavirus increased as it came into more contact with others during the capture to selling process. The researchers also looked at wildlife farms and bat guano arms in addition to their field rat research. The researchers tested animals on 28 farms that raised Malayan porcupines and bamboo rats, and housed other species such as dogs, pigs, monitor lizards, and deer, among others. The researchers used both oral and anal swabs of the animals to test for coronaviruses. Researchers found “coronaviruses in all of the field rats at wildlife farms, in six percent of Malayan porcupines and about six percent of bamboo rats,” and 74 percent of animals at bat farms were infected. These tests were conducted between 2013 and 2014, reports the New York Times, but show “unequivocally how viruses spread from animal to animal as they are transported in crowded conditions to market.” The study was listed as a preprint manuscript on bioRxiv and has been submitted for peer review with a journal. University of Sydney infectious disease expert Edward C. Holmes says of the findings, “It is striking that the number of infected animals increases as you up the supply chain toward consumption.” Bonus Read: “What it means to come into close contact with a coronavirus case and your risk of infection,” (CNBC).

HHS Confirms Contaminated Tests Were Distributed to State Labs

On Friday, U.S. health officials confirmed that early coronavirus tests sent to 33 states’ public health offices were “likely contaminated in laboratories at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,” reports the New York Times. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) confirmed what an earlier U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) report said about contaminated tests after an inspection of laboratories in February. Also, as we noted in a previous brief, the FDA stated that in April, Atlanta-based CDC laboratories “violated their own manufacturing standards” while producing coronavirus tests, such as researchers not changing lab coats while going in and out of testing areas, and some “assembled ingredients for the tests in the same room where researchers handled positive coronavirus samples.” According to a spokesperson from HHS, Michael Caputo, the contamination of tests delayed the process for states to receive tests, but he says the U.S. never had a backlog of coronavirus testing, reports the Times.

Emerging Treatments for COVID-19 Deal with Both Viral Infection and Immune Response

“Breaking through the noise of poor-quality clinical studies are the first clear signals of a treatment paradigm for COVID-19,” writes BioCentury in a summary of 25 controlled trials for COVID-19. The two major therapeutic approaches are “attacking the virus and modulating the immune system,” and the timing of each approach is important. The recent findings on the anti-inflammatory steroid dexamethasone, along with findings on antivirals, primarily remdesivir, “support the prevailing hypothesis that antivirals are most effective early in disease, when viral replication is the primary driver, and that immunosuppressants are most effective later on, when an over-aggressive immune response takes over, often being the cause of death.” Among the antivirals studied, remdesivir has accumulated the strongest positive results and fewest negative results in clinical trials, as we have covered in several briefs. Although remdesivir’s effects are modest, it shortened recovery time in moderately ill COVID-19 patients by a few days. Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine stand out with the clearest negative results, and there is mixed data on other antivirals like ribavirin, meplazumab, and favipiravir, from small studies, often with weak controls. 

Severe COVID-19 seems to be “an immune disease as much as a viral infection, and immune modulation has emerged as the leading approach to COVID-19” in several clinical trials, writes BioCentury. A robust immune response is necessary to clear the virus from the body, but if the immune response is too strong, excess inflammation can become destructive, driving the lung damage that leads to the acute respiratory distress of severe COVID-10. While examining immune cell response in critically ill patients, scientists in Amsterdam found impaired T cell responses but strong B cell responses. This imbalance may shed light on “a deregulated immune response in critically ill COVID-19 patients,” they wrote in a preprint manuscript posted Thursday (bioRxiv). Recent findings on dexamethasone, which dampens the immune response, underlines this understanding of the disease. As we covered in Wednesday’s brief, in the U.K.’s RECOVERY clinical trial, the steroid lowered the rate of death by 35 percent in patients on ventilation and by 20 percent in patients on other oxygen support, but did not help less severe cases who did not require oxygen support, in a trial comparing over 2,100 patients on dexamethasone against over 4,300 control cases (Nature). The data from controlled studies on other immunosuppressants are mixed: Actemra tocilizumab showed benefits in some studies but not in others; Kevzara sarilumab failed to show benefits for severe and critically ill patients in a Phase II trial and was discontinued in a Phase III trial; small studies have hinted at efficacy in other immunosuppressants. “Ultimately, immune boosters may prove useful early in the disease along with antivirals, while late disease may benefit from immunosuppressants” or immune modulators that can “rebalance the immune response,” writes BioCentury.

Three New Vaccine Candidates Enter Phase I Trials; AstraZeneca, Inovio, and Novavax Expect Early Data This Summer from Ongoing Vaccine Trials

The New York Times’ vaccine tracker added three new vaccine candidates that have entered Phase I trials, bringing the total number of such candidates to 10. On Friday, Clover launched a trial in Australia, becoming the sixth Chinese vaccine developer with a candidate in human trials (Reuters). Germany’s CureVac started trials on its mRNA vaccine, as we mentioned in Wednesday’s brief (Reuters), and last week, Russia’s Gamaleya Research Institute launched a trial of a vaccine called Gam-Covid-Vac Lyo (ABC). Meanwhile, the Institute of Medical Biology at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences announced the launch of a phase II vaccine trial Sunday (Reuters). Worldwide, eight vaccine candidates are in Phase II trials and two are in Phase III, the final phase before the decision for approval. Some developers have announced early results. China’s Sinovac announced in mid-June that over 90 percent of the 600 volunteers in a Phase II trial generated neutralizing antibodies 14 days after receiving their CoronaVac. “The study is the most notable because of its size,” writes BioCentury, and “its rate is on par with the eight subjects in the 45-subject study reported by Moderna” in May, and “higher than the 75% rate of the high dose in the 108-subject study from China’s CanSino” the same month. AstraZeneca, Inovio, and Novavax have announced that they expect early vaccine data this summer. 

NIH Stops Two Hydroxychloroquine Clinical Trials

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced on Saturday that it will stop two hydroxychloroquine clinical trials. One trial was cancelled because of the numerous recent reports about the ineffectiveness of hydroxychloroquine, and the other only had 20 patients enrolled out of a requested 2,000. The NIH said that “an oversight board that monitors safety met Friday and ‘determined that while there was no harm, the study drug was very unlikely to be beneficial to hospitalized patients with Covid-19,’” reports the New York Times. The first study was run by the NIH’s National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. As we noted in a brief from last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that it is removing hydroxychloroquine from the list of drugs in its COVID-19 clinical trial (STAT). This decision came shortly after researchers leading a study in the United Kingdom announced that hydroxychloroquine did not help hospitalized COVID-19 patients (BBC, Politico, STAT, WSJ). That announcement arrived two days after the WHO re-started the hydroxychloroquine part of its large SOLIDARITY clinical trial (BioCentury). The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced last week that it will be “revoking emergency authorization of two malaria drugs to treat Covid-19, saying that they are ‘unlikely to be effective,’” reported the New York Times. A number of additional studies have shown the ineffectiveness of the malaria drug at successfully and safely treating COVID-19 symptoms (STAT, New England Journal of Medicine).

COVID-19 Is Causing Numerous Cancer Cases to Go Undiagnosed, Delaying Treatment

According to a new report by STAT, National Cancer Institute (NCI) director Ned Sharpless “believes the Covid-19 pandemic is posing a danger to cancer patients across a wide spectrum of care and research.” The NCI built a model to predict breast cancer and colorectal cancer and found that 10,000 Americans will die over the next decade because the pandemic delayed both diagnosing their cancer and subsequent treatment. That number is a one percent increase above expected deaths over the next 10 years, and the highest increase will be in the next two years. Sharpless said of the model’s prediction, “We think that [mortality] estimate we provided is very conservative and likely to grow if we continue to postpone screening treatment and other cancer care” adding, “We’re very worried about the consequences of … delaying therapy on our patients.” The NCI believes that mammograms have decreased by 75 percent since March, but the numbers could be higher, especially because an electronic health records company, Epic, predicts that mammograms have decreased by 95 percent. Sharpless said that should there be another coronavirus wave, hospitals should still be able to provide cancer treatments because cancer cannot be another public health emergency that is delayed while the pandemic continues.

Fraternity Parties Increase Coronavirus Cases in Mississippi

The Mississippi Department of Health updated its coronavirus cases to 381 new cases as of June 17, though notes that its “daily COVID-19 update will be limited as we work to resolve technical problems in our data reporting system.” On Thursday, Mississippi’s State Health Officer, Thomas Dobbs, said during a press conference that many new patients were tied to fraternity recruitment parties taking place on college campuses (CNN). “We recently have identified a cluster of cases and outbreaks in Oxford, Mississippi,” said Dobbs, noting that guidelines about social distancing and the number of people permitted to attend large gatherings were not followed. Governor Tate Reeves’ statewide order states that any indoor gatherings should be limited to 20 individuals (NBC). The University of Mississippi, which is located in Oxford, MS, confirmed that 162 studies have contracted the coronavirus since the start of June, and 81 percent of coronavirus cases in Oxford are of individuals between 18 and 24-years-old. What’s more, Mississippi is starting to feel pressure about more severe COVID-19 cases, as 465 people were hospitalized, with 159 in intensive care, and another 100 on ventilators across the state (CNN). Bonus Read: “What to know about the coronavirus and summertime activities,” (WaPo).

Could MMR Boosters Be the Next Preventative Measure to Prevent Severe COVID-19 Symptoms?

Researchers in the United States are starting to investigate whether or not measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccines could help prevent severe COVID-19 symptoms. According to CNN, researchers are “proposing giving a booster dose…to see if it ramps up immunity in general.” The MMR is a live vaccine because it uses weakened versions of the viruses to encourage the immune system to respond even more aggressively than simply creating antibodies. As Louisiana State University’s Paul Fidel and Tulane University’s Mairi Noverr stated in a letter to a journal called mBio, “There is mounting evidence that live attenuated vaccines provide nonspecific protection against lethal infections unrelated to the target pathogen of the vaccine by inducing 'trained' nonspecific innate immune cells for improved host responses against subsequent infections” adding, “A clinical trial with MMR in high-risk populations may provide a 'low-risk--high-reward' preventive measure in saving lives during this unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic.” Fidel and Noverr note that this is not a complete therapy for COVID-19, and may just prevent against the worst cases, which have already killed nearly 120,000 Americans. As we noted in a previous brief, existing live vaccines for polio and tuberculosis, which contain weakened versions of the viruses, have been shown to also help protect against a wide range of other viruses and may help protect against the coronavirus, a group of distinguished scientists argued in Science. Bonus Reads: “From Oxford to an Italian lab, one race for coronavirus vaccine is gaining backers,” (WaPo) and “Coronavirus Attacks the Lungs. A Federal Agency Just Halted Funding for New Lung Treatments,” (NYT).

Around the World

Europe

European Countries Train “Army” of Medics for Second Wave

Even as European borders continue to open and residents are enjoying relaxed restrictions, many European countries’ healthcare systems are preparing for the next wave of coronavirus infections (Reuters). Some intensive care specialists are hiring more permanent staff while other hospitals are creating a reservist “army” of medical professionals that can be deployed to wherever is hardest-hit by the virus. Many countries have been giving medics crash courses in dealing with COVID-19 patients and are now looking at retraining staff to avoid shortages of key workers in the future. “We need a healthcare army,” said Maurizio Cecconi, president-elect of the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM), which brings together medics from around the world who work in wards with extremely ill patients. Bonus Read: “Europe’s post-lockdown rules compared” (Politico).

U.K. Defends Decision to Send Patients to Care Homes

Releasing hospital patients into care homes without COVID-19 tests was not illegal, say lawyers for Matt Hancock, the U.K. health secretary, in response to a high court challenge to the government’s handling of the pandemic in relation to care homes (Guardian). Dr. Cathy Gardner lost her father to COVID-19 in a care home that accepted discharged patients and has now challenged the government, saying that Hancock misled the public when he claimed that the government was protecting care homes, where more than 16,000 residents have died across the U.K. since the beginning of the outbreak. She requested judicial review of the strategy, alleging that the government “failed to take into account the vulnerability of care home residents and staff to infection and death, the inadequacy of testing and PPE availability.” A response by Hancock’s legal team, seen by the Guardian, said: “The challenges arising from the Covid-19 pandemic have been unprecedented,” and that “those involved in government have been working tirelessly to find the best ways of dealing with these challenges, and taking steps to protect the lives of all those present in the UK.”

Spain Reopens its Borders, Launches Tourism Marketing Campaign

On Sunday, Spain reopened its borders to all European Union countries except Portugal, as well as Schengen area members outside the bloc and Britain. British tourists will not have to quarantine in Spain but they will be subject to 14 days of isolation after returning to England. Spaniards were also permitted to move freely around the country and many people, who have been home since March 14, were traveling to visit friends and family (Al Jazeera). The towns along the border with France saw visitors who came to buy alcohol and tobacco, since it is cheaper in Spain. The Spanish government also launched a publicity campaign in an effort to boost tourism to the country, which is the second-most visited country in the world and relies on tourism for about 12 percent of its GDP (Guardian). Called “Spain for Sure,” the campaign attempts to reassure visitors that the hospitality industry and the country as a whole are taking necessary precautions to prevent a further outbreak. Spain will decide later this week which visitors from other countries will be permitted (Reuters). Bonus Read: “The extreme hotel hygiene awaiting tourists in Spain” (CNN).

Coronavirus Detected in Italian Sewage as Early as December 2019

Scientists in Italy have found traces of the novel coronavirus in wastewater collected from Milan and Turin in December 2019, suggesting that COVID-19 was already circulating in northern Italy before China reported the first case (Reuters). The Italian National Institute of Health looked at 40 sewage samples collected in northern Italy between October 2019 and February 2020 and found that samples taken in Milan and Turin on December 18 showed the presence of the novel coronavirus. “This research may help us understand the beginning of virus circulation in Italy,” said Giuseppina La Rosa, an expert in environmental wastewater at the Italian National Institute of Health who co-led the research. The Netherlands, France, Australia, and others have found signs that the virus can be detected in sewage and have tested wastewater to track the disease. 

Asia

Mumbai-based Pharmaceutical Company Gets Approval for Antiviral Drug to be Used as COVID-19 Treatment

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd. said on Friday that it had received approval from India’s drug regulation body to sell its antiviral drug favipiravir as treatment for COVID-19 within India (NDTV). Its use is restricted and for emergency use only, which means that every patient must sign an informed consent document before beginning treatment (Times of India). The approval was part of India’s accelerated approval process and would only be used to treat mild-to-moderate COVID-19 cases.

China Suspends Imports from Arkansas Tyson Foods Plant

China is halting the import of poultry products from a Tyson Foods plant in Arkansas after an outbreak of the coronavirus among plant workers was identified. Tyson announced that tests of its processing plants in northwest Arkansas came back with 481 employees testing positive for the virus, accounting for 13 percent of its 3,748 employees. As we covered in previous briefs, the meat industry has already been hard hit from disruptions due to COVID-19, and the suspension of imports is another threat to an already battered industry. Tyson discussed the outbreak saying, "At Tyson, our top priority is the health and safety of our team members, and we work closely with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service to ensure that we produce all of our food in full compliance with government safety requirements" (Bloomberg, NPR). Bonus Read: “In Beijing it looked like coronavirus was gone. Now we're living with a second wave” (Guardian).

Americas

Brazil’s Indigenous Leaders are Dying from COVID-19; Brazil Hits 1 Million Cases, Passes 50,000 Deaths

The coronavirus is continuing to ravage Brazil and the country’s indigenous tribes are not being spared, with many elders falling ill and dying from COVID-19 (Guardian). Because many of the tribes rely on the elders for their decades of knowledge about the history of the tribe and local culture, it is feared the virus will take an outsize toll on the indigenous communities who are losing their chiefs, elders, and traditional healers. The Munduruku people alone have lost 10 sábios, or wise ones. “We always say they are living libraries,” said Alessandra Munduruku, a tribal leader. “It’s been very painful.” The indigenous organisation Apib has logged at least 332 COVID-19 deaths, and 7,208 coronavirus cases across 110 communities. “We are facing extermination,” said its executive coordinator, Dinamam Tuxá. In Brazil’s biggest reserve – the Yanomami – four people have died from Covid-19, and 146 cases of coronavirus have been detected. Many indigenous leaders say the country’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, is failing to protect the country’s 900,000 indigenous people as the agency responsible for distributing aid has taken too long to send emergency food kits to people isolating in their villages. Others blame the government healthcare workers for importing the virus into the remote areas. Last week, the Brazilian congress approved a law that guarantees emergency help for indigenous people but it still needs presidential approval.

Brazil became the second country to pass one million coronavirus cases on Friday, recording 54,771 new cases in a 24-hour period (NYT). The Health Ministry attributed the high single-day increase to a lag in reporting from three states. More than 50,000 people in Brazil have died of COVID-19 as of Monday morning and if the numbers continue to rise, some health experts believe the death toll in Brazil could surpass that in the United States by late July (Reuters). On Friday, the Ministry of Health presented a new plan with guidelines for how local officials could safely resume activities in their cities, but the ministry did not consult with the local officials in developing the guidance.

The Caribbean

The Caribbean Starts to Reopen to Tourists

Caribbean nations are starting to reopen their borders to tourists after two months of watching their tourism-dependent economies starve (JPost). Now that airports, beaches, and hotels are beginning to reopen, safety protocols and hygiene measures are critical. But the region’s residents are still concerned that tourists will cause a surge in cases in the Caribbean, which has mostly managed its outbreak and kept numbers low. Countries are trying to balance the need to stimulate their economy with the potential risk of more infections by screening tourists as they arrive. In Antigua and Barbuda, health officials will administer a rapid test to passengers upon arrival. St. Lucia and Haiti require a negative COVID-19 test before traveling there. “There is an expectation that if you are staying in the territory and you feel you have some of the known symptoms for the coronavirus, you report immediately to the government powers that be and then begin self-quarantine,” said Joseph Boschulte, commissioner of tourism for the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Haiti Nears 5,000 Confirmed Cases as U.N. Security Council Calls for Constitutional Reform to Ease Pandemic 

Haiti’s confirmed number of coronavirus cases was just shy of 5,000 on Friday, the Ministry of Public Health said (CNW). There were 288 new cases recorded on Friday, bringing the total to 4,916, with two additional deaths to bring the total number of fatalities to 84. The United Nations urged the country to undertake constitutional reform as a necessary step to easing the pandemic within the country. According to the U.N.: “Against the backdrop of longstanding fragility, exacerbated by 18 months of a protracted political, economic, social and institutional crisis, the pandemic is ‘stretching this country’s already fragile health system and testing its meager social safety net,’ Special Representative and head of BINUH, Helen La Lime, said via videoconference (VTC)” (UN). La Lime continued, saying: “A country of more than 11 million inhabitants, Haiti currently only has the capacity to treat a few hundred patients at a time,” she continued, also drawing attention to “suboptimal coordination within the State” and “inadequate funding of the national response plan.” 

Cruise Lines Voluntarily Suspend Trips from U.S. Ports Until Mid-September 

Major cruise lines have agreed to voluntarily extend a suspension of operations out of U.S. ports until September 15, according to a trade group, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) (CNBC, Bloomberg, CLIA). “Due to the ongoing situation within the U.S. related to COVID-19, CLIA member cruise lines have decided to voluntarily extend the period of suspended passenger operations,” CLIA, which represents the largest cruise companies in the world, said in a statement. “It is increasingly clear that more time will be needed to resolve barriers to resumption in the United States.” Cruise line companies haven’t been operating since March 14, when the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a no-sail order, which was then extended on April 9 until July 24. Members of the trade group include cruise lines such as Royal Caribbean, Carnival Corp., and Norwegian Cruise Line.

U.S. Government & Politics

Trump Holds First Post-Pandemic Rally in Tulsa; Says He Slowed Testing; Advisers Say It Was a Joke

On Saturday, President Trump held his first rally since the pandemic began. The rally's attendance was smaller than anticipated, and his remarks featured musings over the coronavirus pandemic. During the rally, he claimed that increased testing causes the nation to look bad and told the crowd that he told his aides to decrease the amount of testing. Trump stated: "Testing is a double-edged sword. When you do testing to that extent, you're going to find more people. So I said to my people, slow the testing down" (Bloomberg, Guardian). Administration officials sought to walk back the claim, which at least on its face appeared to be a statement that the administration delayed critical public health measures. One White House official told CNN later in the day that Trump was “obviously kidding” and White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro on Sunday said the comment was made in “jest” (CNN, Politico). Navarro said in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, “Come on now, that was tongue in cheek.” Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf similarly claimed, “What you heard from the President was frustration -- frustration in the sense of that we are testing, I believe we've tested over 25 million Americans. We've tested more than any other country in this world.” The statement drew strong criticism from Democrats with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, for example, commenting, that any slow down would mean “more Americans will lose their lives” and saying, “The President is ethically unfit and intellectually unprepared to lead” (WaPo).

The rally itself faced sharp criticism as a potential catalyst for virus spread, and the Trump campaign distributed masks (Hill, CNBC), but few attendees opted to wear them. Six members of Trump's reelection campaign involved in planning the rally tested positive for coronavirus but were not at the event in Tulsa, Oklahoma (WSJ, NBC). President Trump also employed derogatory language to link the coronavirus to China, stating, "It's a disease, without question, has more names than any disease in history. I can name -- Kung Flu. I can name -- 19 different versions of names" (Bloomberg, NYT). Bonus Read: “Former FDA commissioner urges public to wear masks: "It's really all we have" (Axios).

U.S. Navy Will Not Reinstate Captain Crozier After Removal from USS Theodore Roosevelt

Following an investigation, the U.S. Navy announced on Friday that it would uphold the firing of Captain Crozier, the head of the USS Theodore Roosevelt nuclear aircraft carrier who was relieved of command after sending a letter regarding the outbreak that leaked (WaPo, Yahoo, Reuters, Navy Times). The investigation faulted Captain Crozier for his handling of the outbreak. Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Mike Gilday stated that Crozier as well as the strike group’s commanding officer “did not do enough, soon enough, to fulfill their primary obligations and they did not effectively carry out our guidelines.” Gilday stated: “The email and letter sent by Capt. Crozier were unnecessary” adding, “Actions were already underway…those wheels were well in motion.” The decision does not sit well with some. Brett Odom, a former Navy officer and friend of Crozier’s, commented, “I think it’s very clear that once you’ve got more than two stars, you’re untouchable in the Navy. To me, it’s just unbelievable that the Navy would go from reinstatement to this. They’re trying to have it both ways.” Representative Adam Smith (D-WA), chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said he would conduct a separate investigation of the process, saying, “The Department’s civilian leadership portrayed Captain Crozier’s decision-making aboard the Roosevelt as the critical weakness in the Navy’s response, but the truth is that civilian leadership was also to blame.” The decision reverses the finding of a preliminary investigation that held that Crozier should be reinstated.

New York City Struggles with Contract Tracing

Even as it begins to reopen, New York City is struggling to set up and run a successful contact tracing effort, according to a Sunday report in the New York Times (NYT). The Times reports that “the first statistics from the program, which began on June 1, indicate that tracers are often unable to locate infected people or gather information from them. Only 35 percent of the 5,347 city residents who tested positive or were presumed positive for Covid-19 in the program’s first two weeks gave information about close contacts to tracers, the city said in releasing the first statistics.” Despite the challenges, Dr. Ted Long, who runs New York City’s effort, commented, “I do think that the program, especially because it is only two weeks old, is doing an outstanding job.”

U.S. Economy

Detroit Automakers to Return to Pre-Pandemic Production Levels

Ford and Fiat Chrysler announced plans to return to pre-pandemic manufacturing and output levels starting on June 22. General Motors intends to return to pre-pandemic output levels by the end of the month. The move by major U.S. automakers comes after higher than expected demand. According to research from Wards Intelligence, demand for pickup trucks and SUVs in May rebounded to 12.2 million from 8.6 million in April. Dan Levy, an auto at Credit Suisse, discussed the auto market in the U.S., stating, "The clear positive is that U.S. autos have passed the worst. Supply has started to get tight and will likely get tighter in June -- especially in large pickups" (Bloomberg, Bloomberg).

Apple to Close Stores as Coronavirus Cases Spike

Apple announced that it would shutter stores in 11 states including Florida, Arizona, North Carolina, and South Carolina, as coronavirus cases spike. An Apple spokesperson discussed the store closings with Bloomberg: "Due to current COVID-19 conditions in some of the communities we serve, we are temporarily closing stores in these areas. We take this step with an abundance of caution as we closely monitor the situation, and we look forward to having our teams and customers back as soon as possible."

Unemployment Hits Women More than Men Amid Pandemic, Hampering a Quick Recovery

Women have lost more jobs at a higher rate than men amid the pandemic. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, in April, the unemployment rate for women rose to 16.2 percent compared with 13.5 percent for men. Before the pandemic, unemployment rates for both men and women were similar at around 4 percent (WSJ). Female workers account for the majority of service sector jobs, which were some of the hardest hit during the nationwide lockdown orders. The increase in female unemployment, combined with increased childcare responsibilities amid the pandemic, could hamper economic recovery. Julia Pollak, a labor economist at ZipRecruiter, stated, "There were lots of occupations that were offering women very decent earnings and flexible schedules...that may not be able to return 100% for a long time" (WSJ).

Bonus Read: “Here are five charts that track how the U.S. economy is recovering from coronavirus” (CNBC).

U.S. Society

New Yorkers Likely to Avoid Offices, Despite Being Able to Return on Monday

On Monday, offices across New York City will be able to reopen after three months of lockdown, yet few companies or employees seem ready to return to the office, according to a Sunday report in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The Journal reports, “New York real-estate brokers and landlords say they anticipate only 10% to 20% of Manhattan’s office workers will return on Monday, though they expect that figure to increase gradually over the summer. Traders at financial-services companies are eager to return, these people say, but most of their other employees are staying away. Tech and creative companies are also taking their time.” The wariness regarding returning to the office may delay the city’s hopes for an economic recovery.

Catholics Weigh Online Worship as Churches Reopen

As restrictions on houses of worship are relaxing with many states and localities moving into Phase 2 and Phase 3, Catholics in the United States are weighing the risks of returning to physical worship and the benefits and costs of online worship (WSJ). While these questions affect many faith groups, as the Wall Street Journal notes, the “concern is especially acute for Catholicism, which places central importance on sacraments that aren’t considered valid unless minister and recipient are physically together.” The response of Catholic leadership so far has been varied. Bishop Marco Busca,who heads communication for the Catholic bishops of Italy’s hard-hit Lombardy region, conducted his last livestreamed mass, saying that online worship was a “provisional and extraordinary parenthesis on account of the emergency, as we waited to return to normal worship.” Meanwhile, Sarah Yaklic, the Los Angeles archdiocese’s chief digital officer, said they would continue live streaming mass, and suggesting there may be a role for it even after the pandemic ends. The Pope has issued no directive on the matter.

AMC Theaters to Require Masks

AMC Entertainment, the largest chain of movie theaters in the U.S., announced that they would require guests to wear masks inside their theaters. The announcement was a reversal of an original policy due to criticism of not mandating mask usage. CEO of AMC Entertainment, Adam Aron, discussed mask usage in theaters, stating, "This announcement prompted an intense and immediate outcry from our customers. It is clear from this response that we did not go far enough on the usage of masks" (NPR).

Spike in Florida Cases Causes Worry for NBA Reopening

The rising number of coronavirus cases in Florida is stoking concerns about whether the NBA will be able to hold a reopened basketball season (ESPN). The league plans to hold a season in Orlando, Florida, and thus the increase in cases has prompted worries. Such concerns were raised on a recent call with league executives, according to ESPN. Bonus Read: “The Summer Without Rodeos” (NYT).

Analysis & Arguments

The Washington Post Editorial Board discusses the importance of contact tracing across states in order to get ahead of coronavirus infections while reopening their economies.

As Americans look to road trips to break the stay-at-home blues, Nick Martin cautious about the potential impact on Native communities that are among the worst impacted by the virus (New Republic).

Martin Gelin writes that the pandemic has reshaped American fatherhood, but the question is whether it will last (NYT).

Melanie Warner profiles Hawaii’s response to coronavirus as a success story (Politico).

Jacob Schlesinger argues that the pandemic will roll back globalization gains and create more barriers for commerce and manufacturing (WSJ).

 Readers can send in tips, critiques, questions, and suggestions to coronavirusbrief@newamerica.org.

The Brief is edited by Peter Bergen and co-edited by Melissa Salyk-Virk, Emily Schneider, David Sterman, and Narisara Murray, with Brenden McMullen.

Read previous briefs here: https://www.newamerica.org/international-security/blog/new-america-coronavirus-daily-brief/

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