Welcome to The Hill’s daily roundup of coronavirus news.
There are more than 1.5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide, including nearly 453,000 cases in the U.S. That includes 15,000 deaths.
The Trump administration and some governors are cautiously optimistic that the outbreak is slowing in some areas, mainly New York. At the same time, states in the South and Midwest are starting to see cases spike.
COVID-19 continues to grip the U.S. economy, but the administration hopes to get things back up and running as early as May. It’s debatable though if “opening up the country” means the same thing to President Trump and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin as it does to Dr. Anthony Fauci.
Here’s what you need to know today:
From the administration
- Trump administration officials are laying the groundwork for a possible May reopening of the economy. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on CNBC that businesses could reopen in May as long as Trump “feels comfortable with the medical issues.” Brett Samuels and Morgan Chalfant report.
- Roughly 6.6 million Americans filed new applications for unemployment benefits in the first week of April as the coronavirus pandemic devastates the U.S. economy and forces millions out of work, according to data released Thursday by the Labor Department. Sylvan Lane has the story here.
- A side effect of these record-high job losses: many also losing their health insurance, dealing a double whammy to suffering workers. Jessie Hellmann has more here.
- The White House said it would start administering a coronavirus test to all of the reporters attending the press briefings, “out of an abundance of caution.” Read more here.
- Dr. Anthony Fauci said the total number of U.S. deaths “looks more like 60,000” than earlier estimates of 100,000 to 200,000. Kaelan Deese reports.
State watch
- New York recorded its highest single-day death toll from coronavirus, at 799 deaths, though there are signs the curve of infections is flattening there. Rebecca Klar reports.
- New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) warned Thursday the state cannot handle the “worst-case scenario” of coronavirus infections and urged people to continue social distancing measures to slow the spread of the outbreak. Read more here.
- More states in the South and Midwest are starting to report their biggest one-day increases for coronavirus cases, at a time when parts of the Northeast are beginning to show progress. J. Edward Moreno has more here.
- State and local corrections departments are taking steps ranging from sequestering inmates to releasing low-level offenders in efforts to prevent the deadly coronavirus from spreading through prisons and jails. Reid Wilson has the story here.
From Congress:
- Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday again rejected the notion that the House might adopt a system of remote voting to protect the health of lawmakers during the coronavirus crisis. Mike Lillis has more here.
- Postmaster General Megan Brennan told the House Oversight and Reform Committee that the U.S. Postal Service would run out of money by the end of the fiscal year unless it received financial assistance from the federal government. Read Marty Johnson’s story here.
- Rep. Neal Dunn (R-Fla.) said Thursday that he has tested positive for the coronavirus, becoming the sixth member of Congress confirmed to have the disease. Cristina Marcos has the story here. And click here for The Hill’s list of lawmakers who tested positive.