The first reported cases came from China in December, eventually spreading to nearly every other country on earth over the ensuing three months.

President Trump shied away Wednesday from issuing domestic travel restrictions or a national lockdown to try and beat back the rapid spread of the coronavirus pandemic that, in a best case scenario, is expected to kill between 100,000 and 240,000 Americans.

New data suggests the two West Coast states may have slowed the spread of coronavirus. How they did it.

US officials have accused China of spreading disinformation, and even some Chinese residents have expressed skepticism about the numbers.

On Saturday the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of two antimalarial drugs, hydroxychloroquine and a related medication, chloroquine, for emergency use to treat COVID-19. The drugs were touted by President Trump as a “game changer” for COVID-19. However, a study just published in a French medical journal provides new evidence that hydroxychloroquine does not appear to help the immune system clear the coronavirus from the body. The study comes on the heels of two others - one in France and one in China \- that reported some benefits in the combination of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin for COVID-19 patients who didn’t have severe symptoms of the virus.I am a medicinal chemist who has specialized in discovery and development of antiviral drugs for the past 30 years, and I have been actively working on coronaviruses for the past seven. I am among a number of researchers who are concerned that this drug has been given too much of a high priority before there is enough evidence to show it is indeed effective. There are already other clinical studies that showed it is not effective against COVID-19 as well as several other viruses. And, more importantly, it can have dangerous side effects, as well as giving people false hope. The latter has led to widespread shortages of hydroxychloroquine for patients who need it to treat malaria, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, the indications for which it was originally approved. The idea that the combination of hydroxychloroquine with an antibiotic drug, azithromycin, was effective against COVID-19 gained more attention after a study published on March 17. This study described a trial of 80 patients carried out by Philippe Gautret in Marseille, France. Although some of their results appeared to be encouraging, it should also be noted that most of their patients only had mild symptoms. Furthermore, 85% of the patients didn’t even have a fever – one of the major telltale symptoms of the virus, thus suggesting that these patients likely would have naturally cleared the virus without any intervention.In another study, posted on medRxiv, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, Chinese scientists from Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, in Wuhan, China, gave hydroxychloroquine to patients with only mild infections who were free of medical issues, similar to the Gautret study. The results showed that the 31 patients who received the drug showed a lessening of their symptoms 24 hours earlier than patients in the control group. In addition, pneumonia symptoms improved in 25 of the 31 patients versus 17 of 31 in the control group. As noted in several of the comments associated with the manuscript, there are issues related to the translation of the paper, thus clouding interpretations of some of the results. The paper also appears to focus more on pneumonia than COVID-19. However, these issues may cleared up or addressed once the paper finishes the peer-review process. But two other studies have conflicting results.A second French group, led by Jean-Michel Molina, has now tested the hydroxychloroquine-azithromycin combination treatment in 11 patients at the Hôpital Saint-Louis in Paris, France, and their results were strikingly different. Like the Marseille study, the Molina trial was also a small pilot study. Molina and colleagues used the same dosing regimen as Gautret. In contrast, however, to the Gautret study, eight of the 11 patients had underlying health conditions, and 10 of 11 had fevers and were quite ill at the time the dosing began. These Paris researchers found that after five to six days of treatment with hydroxychloroquine (600 mg per day for 10 days) and azithromycin (500 mg on day 1 and 250 mg on days 2 to 5), eight of the 10 patients still tested positive for COVID-19. Of these 10 patients, one patient died, two were transferred to the ICU and another had to be removed from the treatment due to serious complications. In addition, a similar study in China also showed no difference in viral clearance after seven days either with or without the hydroxychloroquine with the patients in the trial. This supports Molina’s findings. Thus, despite the recent approval of this drug for use against COVID-19, questions remain as to the efficacy of this treatment. As Molina and colleagues note: “Ongoing randomized clinical trials with hydroxychloroquine should provide a definitive answer regarding the alleged efficacy of this combination and will assess its safety.”[You need to understand the coronavirus pandemic, and we can help. Read The Conversation’s newsletter.]This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts.Read more: * Could chloroquine treat coronavirus? 5 questions answered about a promising, problematic and unproven use for an antimalarial drug * Medical supply chains are fragile in the best of times and COVID-19 will test their strengthKatherine Seley-Radtke receives funding for her research from the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tested negative for coronavirus on Thursday after his health minister was diagnosed with it, officials said, the 70-year-old leader's second infection scare this week. As a precaution, Netanyahu returned to self-isolation for six more days, they said. In between the two periods, Netanyahu went on national TV to announce new measures to curb the epidemic.

We've been searching for this celestial missing link for years.

For two years the Trump administration has been trying to stamp out one of Cuba’s signature programs __ state-employed medical workers treating patients around the globe in a show of soft power that also earns billions in badly needed hard currency. Labeling the doctors and nurses as both exploited workers and agents of communist indoctrination, the U.S. has notched a series of victories as Brazil, Ecuador and Bolivia sent home thousands after leftist governments allied with Havana were replaced with ones friendlier to Washington. The coronavirus pandemic has brought a reversal of fortune for Cuban medical diplomacy, as doctors have flown off on new missions to battle COVID-19 in at least 14 countries including Italy and the tiny principality of Andorra on the Spanish-French border, burnishing the island's international image in the middle of a global crisis.

Aeroplanes with a total insured value of more than $160 billion are grounded around the world, presenting risks for insurers, a report said on Friday. Singapore has the largest number of planes standing idle at airports, at 205, with Hong Kong second at 178, the report by insurance broker Gallagher said. There are 158 planes on the ground in Madrid though only 40 in New York, with planes at the world's 20 biggest airports having a total insured value of $164 billion.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday announced plans to nominate a vocal ally of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh to an influential federal appeals court in Washington. Justin Walker, 37, who has served as a federal district court judge in Kentucky since October, would replace Republican appointee Judge Thomas Griffith on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit if approved by the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate. Griffith, appointed by former President George W. Bush, had previously announced his plans to retire.

Reuters reported last month the Pentagon was increasing the amount of interim payments it makes to defense contractors in an effort to give them a financial boost. "As we all deal with the challenges of the health crisis, we will continue to perform and deliver critical products and capabilities for the United States and our allies, support job creation and help those in need wherever we operate," Lockheed said.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin tweeted his congratulations to the Small Business Administration (SBA) and Treasury early Friday morning. Community banks have already processed over 700 loans processed for $2,500,000. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Bloomberg TV that banks are "ready to go" with the loan program.

Face masks could help limit the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to researchers who studied the effect of surgical masks on the transmission of other corona and flu viruses. In the study, the use of surgical masks by sufferers significantly reduced the number of flu viruses detectable in droplets released through breathing and coughing. "Further research is needed to determine whether masks can specifically prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2," the scientists said.

1. Fauci: 'I don't understand why' every state hasn't issued stay-at-home orders  CNN
2. White House advisor Dr. Fauci works 20-hour days and his wife reminds him to eat, sleep and drink water  CNBC
3. Dr. Fauci forced to beef up security as death threats grow  CNN
4. Letter: Fauci is not trying to undermine the president  Salt Lake Tribune
5. Death threats lead to beefed-up security for nation’s top disease expert  Atlanta Journal Constitution
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1. Jared Kushner makes coronavirus briefing appearance, draws backlash for 'our stockpile' comment  USA TODAY
2. Kushner company stands to benefit from freeze on federal mortgage payments  POLITICO
3. Jared Kushner’s coronavirus briefing debut sparks outcry, confusion  The Washington Post
4. Jared Kushner Will Not Save Us From the Coronavirus  The New York Times
5. Jared Kushner's coronavirus overreach puts more American lives on the line  The Guardian
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1. Trump campaign declares war on Dems over voting rules for November  POLITICO
2. Georgia's GOP House Speaker says vote-by-mail system would be 'devastating to Republicans' | TheHill  The Hill
3. Wisconsin Democrats apoplectic over governor's handling of Tuesday primary  POLITICO
4. Don't let Trump and coronavirus ruin the election. High turnout is bipartisan and doable.  USA TODAY
5. Why in the world is Wisconsin still holding a primary on Tuesday?  CNN
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1. 3M warns Trump: Halting exports under Defense Production Act would reduce number of masks available to US  CNBC
2. Trump invokes Defense Production Act for ventilator equipment and N95 masks  CNN
3. Trump slams 3M after ordering company to make face masks for coronavirus fight  New York Post
4. Why Is Trump So Timid With the Defense Production Act?  The New York Times
5. Trump issues order on coronavirus ventilators  Los Angeles Times
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1. Americans support drastic efforts to stop coronavirus, expect crisis to last for months in Public Agenda/USA TODAY/Ipsos poll  USA TODAY
2. Fewer than half of Americans believe their daily routine will return to normal by June, as fears over coronavirus rise: POLL  ABC News
3. Most believe stopping virus is larger priority than saving economy: poll | TheHill  The Hill
4. AP-NORC poll: Widespread support for coronavirus relief package  AOL
5. Poll: Majority of Americans now disapprove of Trump's coronavirus response  POLITICO
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1. Driver who said woman coughed on his bus has died of coronavirus  USA TODAY
2. Detroit bus driver dies of coronavirus after posting video to take virus seriously  Fox News
3. Detroit bus driver, who ranted about a coughing passenger, dies from coronavirus  New York Post
4. Detroit bus driver who complained about a coughing passenger dies of coronavirus days later  The Washington Post
5. Detroit bus driver dies from coronavirus days after posting angry video about a passenger  Daily Mail
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1. Wisconsin doctor and educational consultant husband are found dead in a forest in targeted murder  Daily Mail
2. University of Wisconsin-Madison doctor, husband found dead in suspected homicide  New York Post
3. Arrest made in slaying of Wisconsin doctor, husband  Minneapolis Star Tribune
4. Friends remember husband, wife homicide victims whose loss leaves 'a large hole in so many hearts'  Channel3000.com - WISC-TV3
5. Police: University of Wisconsin doctor and husband found slain in a ditch were targeted  The Mercury News
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