Coronavirus news: Boris Johnson set to make face masks mandatory in shops as WHO reports record global surge in infections
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Boris Johnson is set to make face coverings compulsory in shops and other indoor venues as the government indicated further relaxation of lockdown restrictions.
The prime minister said he was looking at ways of being “stricter” about masks as the culture secretary announced gyms, sports facilities and beauty salons will be allowed to reopen in England later this month.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation warned the coronavirus pandemic had still not reached its peak, with the organisation’s director general, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, saying the virus is not under control “in most of the world” and is in fact “getting worse”.
It comes as quarantine rules for people returning to or visiting the UK from a list of 76 countries are relaxed from Friday.
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Coronavirus deaths for under 65s more common with non-white people, CDC report says
Coronavirus deaths among Americans aged 65 and younger are more common among non-white people than among white people, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has said.
A publication released on Friday found 34.9 per cent of Hispanic patients who died were younger than 65, while 29.5 per cent of non-whites who died were under 65, compared to only 13.2 per cent of white, non-Hispanic descendants.
Researchers analysed 10,647 Covid-19 deaths between 12 February and 24 April from 16 public health departments in 15 states.
Most of those who died were older than 65 years and had underlying medical conditions such as cardiovascular disease or diabetes, according to the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
The percentages of Hispanic and non-white people under age 65 who died of coronavirus were greater than their share of the US population, the report said.
The researchers noted that more Hispanic and non-white people work in occupations or essential activities that do not allow physical distancing.
Florida records spike in daily coronavirus cases as Disney World prepares to reopen
Florida has reported its second sharpest daily rise in cases as Disney World prepares to reopen in Orlando to the chagrin of some employees.
The state recorded 11,433 new coronavirus cases on Friday, the state health department said, just short of its record high set last weekend.
On Saturday, the Walt Disney World theme parks in Orlando will open to a limited number of guests, with measures such as mask wearing and temperature checks in place.
About 19,000 people, including workers, signed a petition asking Disney to delay the reopening.
Meanwhile, the actors' union that represents 750 Walt Disney World performers has filed a grievance alleging retaliation against its members over the union's demand that they be tested for the virus.
Florida is one of the few states that does not disclose the number of hospitalised Covid-19 patients, but more than four dozen Florida hospitals reported their intensive care units reached capacity earlier this week.
Venezuela minister tests positive for coronavirus
Oil minister and economic vice-president of Venezuela Tareck El Aissami has revealed on Twitter that he has tested positive for Covid-19.
Mr El Aissami,who has been indicted in the United States on drug trafficking allegations, said he was beginning self-isolation.
"A new battle that I will take on, clinging to God and to life," he wrote.
It comes a day after the leader of the socialist party, Diosdado Cabello, tested positive for the virus.
Venezuela has so far reported 8,010 cases of the novel coronavirus so far, well below neighbouring countries like Brazil.
Earlier this week Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, 65, and Bolivian interim president Jeanine Anez, 53, also confirmed they had been infected.
US sets record high for daily cases
The US has reported record-high numbers of new coronavirus cases for a third day in a row.
Thursday, the US reported nearly 60,000 new coronavirus cases. In total, there are 3.1 million confirmed coronavirus cases nationwide.
Here's one of the few upsides to social distancing in the age of coronavirus, courtesy of the Independent's policy correspondent Jon Stone.
The latest updated statistics on the first 10,000 patients critically ill with Covid-19 have been published by the intensive care national audit and research centre.
Here are just a handful of details from the report - it's got a lot more detail on ethnicity, deprivation and associated illnesses.
Average age: 58
Male 70%
Female 30%
Discharged: 57%
Still receiving treatment: 4%
Died: 39%
PM 'set to make masks compulsory in shops'
Boris Johnson is reportedly set to order the public to wear face coverings in shops, having said earlier today that he was looking at ways to be stricter about their use.
A government source has since indicated it is a "fair assumption" that masks would become mandatory in shops and other indoor settings within a few weeks.
Execution delayed due to risk of Covid-19
A US federal judge has issued an injunction stopping what would have been the first execution of a federal prisoner in 17 years.
Daniel Lewis Lee was convicted of killing three members of an Arkansas family in 1996 and was due to be executed on Monday.
However the victims' family sued the Department of Justice in the US district court in Indianopolis, saying they feared that attending could expose them to Covid-19.
'The tsunami is here,' says Texas official
Texas surpassed 10,000 hospitalised patients for the first time today, having set new daily records for the coronavirus cases over the past week.
A further 95 deaths were also reported.
Republican governor Greg Abbott extended a statewide disaster order and told Lubbock television station KLBK: "Things will get worse."
He added: "The worst is yet to come as we work our way through that massive increase in people testing positive."
"Several months ago, I warned of a potential tsunami if we did not take this more seriously," said Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez, the top official in one of the largest counties on the Texas-Mexico border.
"The tsunami is here," he added.
Maxwell seeks bail over coronavirus risk in jail
Ghislaine Maxwell has filed court papers arguing she should be granted bail while awaiting trial over allegations she groomed young girls for convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Her lawyers said the 58-year-old socialite was at "significant risk" of contracting the coronavirus because 55 inmates and staff have tested positive for Covid-19 at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn where she is being held.
They also indicated that Ms Maxwell "vigorously denies" the charges of trafficking and exploitation of minors and perjury.
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