Good evening,
Please find today's Daily COVID-19 Update for October 12th below and attached. Please let me know if you have any comments or questions.
Thank you,
Jeff Cohen
INFORMS Members In The News
Member: Sheldon Jacobson
Member: Julie Swann
Member: Julie Swann
Federal Policy Update
- House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) published an update that "due to the Trump administration's failure to reach an agreement on coronavirus relief, no votes are expected in the House this week."
- White House Physician Sean Conley published a memorandum that President Trump has tested negative for coronavirus.
- On Friday evening, the Departments of Defense and Health & Human Services announced that they had reached an agreement with pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca for AZD7442, which is the company's investigational product that may treat or prevent infection of COVID-19.
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that the pandemic in the U.S. "is on a trajectory of getting worse and worse," and "that's the worst possible thing that can happen as we get into the cooler months."
State Response
- Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) announced that they are sending a handful of state resources – 75 medical personnel and more personal protective equipment – to the city of El Paso, due to a rise in coronavirus cases.
- Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear (D) announced that he and his family will quarantine due to a member of his security team having tested positive for COVID-19.
- The city of New York announced that they have disseminated "over $150,000 in fines from 62 summonses" given to businesses over the weekend, due to COVID-19 protocol violations.
- A Wisconsin circuit court ruled against a lawsuit that was filed against Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers (D) – a case that was seeking to reverse the state's current mask mandate.
- West Virginia Governor Jim Justice (R) announced that there has been an uptick in coronavirus cases specifically among the elderly population.
Global Response
- World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus cautioned against the concept of herd immunity, stating that "allowing a dangerous virus that we don't fully understand to run free is simply unethical."
- UK National Health Service Medical Director Steve Powis cautioned that hospitals in the northeast and northwest regions of England have "witnessed a seven-fold increase in COVID-19 patients in their Intensive Care Units."
- The Belgian government announced that hospitals in the country will begin cancelling non-emergency surgical procedures due to an increase in coronavirus cases.
- The Czech government announced that they are implementing new COVID-19 restrictions, stating that they would reduce school class sizes and the number of people permitted at social events.
- The country of Honduras has extended their nationwide curfew for an additional week – now lasting until October 18th.
- Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Indonesia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a joint statement that they would authorize the partial reopening of cross-border travel between the two nations for essential reasons.
- Indian Health Minister Harsh Vardhan urged the nation's citizens to stay home amid the upcoming Hindu festivals this month, especially as virus cases are still on the rise.
- The French government announced that they would be adding the cities of Montpellier and Toulouse to their "maximum alert" list, which indicates a spike in coronavirus cases.
Economic Update
- U.S. stocks were on the rise today, with all three indices closing with gains. The Nasdaq Composite climbed by 2.56%, the S&P 500 by 1.64%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average by 0.88%.
Latest Impact Data
- In the United States: Over 8,037,193 cases and 220,010 deaths in 50 states, 4 territories, and Washington, D.C.
- Worldwide: Over 38,028,426 cases and 1,085,090 deaths in at least 204 countries and territories.
In the News
------------------------------
Jeffrey M. Cohen, MBA
Director, Public Affairs & Marketing
INFORMS
jeff.cohen@informs.org------------------------------