Good evening,
Please find today's Daily COVID-19 Update for June 30th below and attached. Please let me know if you have any comments or questions.
Thank you,
Jeff Cohen
INFORMS Members in the News
Member: Pinar Keskinocak
Member: Julie Swann
Member: Murray J. Côté
U.S. Federal Policy Update
- The Food and Drug Administration provided guidance – entitled "Development and Licensure of Vaccines to Prevent COVID-19 – mandating that any COVID-19 vaccine would have to decrease the severity or block the spread of the disease in 50% of patients who receive it.
- At a news conference today, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) announced that the Senate Republicans are beginning work on another coronavirus relief package, with a goal to complete a bill before the August recess. Majority Leader McConnell stated that "the focus will be kids, jobs, and healthcare" – with a guarantee "that any bill that passes the Senate will have liability protections in it."
- National Institute Of Allergy & Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci, Centers for Disease Control & Prevention Director Robert Redfield, Assistant Health Secretary Brett Giroir, and Food & Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn testified this morning at a Senate HELP Committee hearing examining U.S. progress towards reopening. At the hearing, Director Fauci emphasized that he "would not be surprised if we go up to 100,000 [cases] per day if this does not turn around."
- Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar stated that the surge in coronavirus cases could be turned around "if we simply do three things – practice social distancing, wear facial coverings when we can't social distance and practice proper personal hygiene."
- House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) encouraged the American public to wear masks – stating that "wearing a mask is the opportunity for us to keep this economy open, keep us working, keep us safe and help us as we build toward that vaccine."
Global Response
- The Council of the European Union issued a recommendation to gradually lift temporary restrictions on non-essential travel into the European Union by allowing travelers from several countries including Australia, Canada, Japan, and others. The list is non-binding, and will be reconsidered every two weeks. However, the Council has strongly urged member countries to adopt the rules, and all countries voted in favor. Notably, the United States is not on the list. However, Chinese travelers will be permitted – on the basis of "confirmation of reciprocity."
- The Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a statement cautioning that "as the outcomes of foreign studies show, it appears to be an elusive hope to believe that herd immunity can be built in the community."
- Due to the spike in cases in the country, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that the population's "increasing negligence is a cause of worry," and "those not following the rules will need to be stopped and cautioned."
- New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters announced that they would move their scheduled hosting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit from in-person to an online forum. The event isn't slated to take place until November 2021, but Minister Peters stated that they're taking the utmost level of precautions because of the "large volume of high-level visitors" that they "simply couldn't guarantee these people would be able to enter New Zealand without being quarantined."
- The Australian state of Victoria re-imposed some of their lockdown measures due to a new surge in cases.
State Update
- Alabama, Florida, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Texas all reported their highest seven-day new coronavirus case average highs. This reporting was led by Florida, which reported 6,990 cases today. This was followed by Texas, which reported 6,975 cases.
- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo added eight additional states to his order mandating that travelers from certain states complete a 14-day self-quarantine upon entering the state. He tweeted this afternoon that this order will now apply to California, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada and Tennessee. As a reminder, this mandate already applied to travelers from Alabama, Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, Texas and Utah.
- South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem announced that they will not be abiding by social distancing protocols at the July 3rd Mount Rushmore event, which will be attended by President Trump. She stated in an interview that "[they'll] be giving out free masks, if attendees choose to wear one," but they "will not enforce social distancing."
- Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker announced that travelers into the state would be required to self-quarantine for 14 days – effective tomorrow. However, this will not apply to travelers from the following northeastern states: Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
- Alabama Governor Kay Ivey announced that she would be extending the state's "safer-at-home" order until July 31st, which was originally set to expire this Friday.
- California Governor Gavin Newsom stated during his news conference this afternoon that the state is planning to unveil further restrictions tomorrow.
- Colorado Governor Jared Polis announced that any bars and nightclubs not serving food are required to close during the month of July.
- Delaware Governor John Carney announced that the state would be closing all beaches ahead of the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
- Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber issued a statement mandating that face masks be work in all public spaces and places – effective today.
Economic Update
- U.S. stocks rose today, with all three indices reporting overall gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average grew by 0.9%, the S&P 500 by 1.50%, and the Nasdaq Composite by 1.90%.
Latest Impact Data
- In the United States: Over 2,723,218 cases and 130,069 deaths in 50 states, 4 territories, and Washington, D.C.
- Worldwide: Over 10,563,221 and 513,032 deaths in at least 204 countries and territories.
In the News
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Jeffrey M. Cohen, MBA
Director, Public Affairs & Marketing
INFORMS
jeff.cohen@informs.org------------------------------