U.S. hospital intensive care units in many parts of the country are struggling to handle the highest numbers of COVID-19 patients
THREE CONVERSATIONS TO BE INFORMED TODAY
– In the process of handling the highest numbers of COVID-19 patients, hundreds of the nation’s intensive care units are running out of space, supplies and staff. An Associated Press study of federal hospital data shows that, since November, the proportion of U.S. hospitals near the break-even point has doubled. More than 40% of Americans now live in areas that run out of ICU space – many of the facilities are concentrated in the south and west.
– The Chicago Teachers’ Union said its members voted to order a return order to the classroom over concerns about COVID-19, setting up a demonstration ceremony with district officials. Chicago Public Schools, the nation’s third-largest district, called for the return of about 10,000 kindergarten-through-eighth-grade teachers and other staff back to school Monday to prepare to welcome back about 70,000 students .
– Sunday’s basketball game between the University of Michigan women’s team at level 11 and Purdue was one of several athletic events abruptly postponed after positive tests for the new version of COVID-19 among individuals affiliated with the Michigan athletics department. The state Department of Health and Human Services issued a command Saturday stopping all school sports. The entire region could be in quarantine for two weeks.
NUMBERS: The U.S. receives an average of more than 176,000 new cases and about 3,100 deaths per day. The country’s death toll since the outbreak began is about 418,000.
QUESTIONNAIRE: “Someone was out there or someone inside was creating a parallel data set and graphics that were shown to the president. “- Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator of President Donald Trump’s coronavirus action group, has been embroiled in a rejection of COVID-19 in the White House.
ICYMI: Louisiana has released a free contact detection application for mobile phones that notifies people they have been around of someone who has been positive for COVID-19. Gov. John Bel Edwards that the COVID Defense mobile application was launched on Friday and encouraged its use.
ON THE HORIZON: The Miami Heat uses coronavirus sniffing dogs to screen fans who want to attend games. They’ve been working on the plan for months, and the well-trained dogs have been in place for some of this season’s games where the team has allowed a handful of guests – friends and family of mostly players and staff. Starting this week, there will also be a limited number of ticket holders in the sets, as long as they get past the dogs.
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Find the full AP coverage of the coronavirus pandemic at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic