BEAUMONT, Texas — Key updates for Wednesday, April 15, 2020:
- The U.S. has passed 600,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19. More than 3 million tests have been conducted.
- Poll: Nearly 3/4 of Americans say they will adopt a "wait and see" approach to returning to old habits after social restrictions are lifted.
- 2 House Democrats are proposing $2,000 per month stimulus for Americans.
- Reports: Trump's name will be added to stimulus checks at his suggestion.
- California has issued an outline for possibly reopening the state, but it will continue to include measures of social distancing.
- Look back at the Tuesday, April 14 blog at this link.
School Impacts | Business Impacts, Closures | Map of SE Texas cases | Coronavirus symptoms & prevention | Coronavirus questions answered
Latest local & Texas updates:
Here are the latest updates from around Southeast Texas, Texas, Louisiana and some from the world (all times are local Central Daylight Time)
April 15, 5:30 p.m. -- Beaumont ISD says an employee at Lucas Pre-K tested positive for COVID-19. The staff member helped pass out packets on April 3. "Until further notice, the Lucas Pre-K campus is closed for deep cleaning by a third party remediation company. Lucas Pre-K student instructional packets will be available for pick up on Wednesdays and Fridays from 10:00am-1:00pm at Martin Elementary School beginning April 17, 2020." MORE
April 15 5:15 p.m. -- President Trump on Wednesday during the White House Coronavirus Task Force press briefing said the United States "has passed the peak" on new cases. He said on Thursday he will have a discussion with governors and announce new guidelines for various states to open sooner than the May 1 deadline.
April 15 4:25 p.m. -- Beaumont is reporting two new cases on Wednesday. One of the patients is between the ages of 21 and 30, and the other is between the ages of 61-70.
April 15 2:29 p.m. -- Liberty County is reporting its first COVID-19 death: a woman between 80-90 years old. The county has three new confirmed cases, all from south Liberty County, bringing its total to 23.
April 15, 10:30 a.m. -- Beaumont Community Players is inviting up to three individuals at a time or groups who have already sheltering together to help create a “Mandala of Chalk” on the theater’s covered driveway.
Participants will work in one-hour blocks and social distancing will be enforced according to a news release from the theater. Gloves and masks will be provided if you don’t have them.
Visitors can work on the mandala weekdays from 11 a.m. through 2 p.m. Click here for more info.
April 15, 10:26 a.m. -- Entergy announced a $300,000 Southeast Texas relief fund that will be donated to local nonprofit organizations.
The money will go to nine nonprofit groups across 22 counties in Southeast Texas. The company says the fund will target grants to organizations that provide services to families and individuals that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and do not have financial resources for basic needs, such as food, rent and utilities.
More information on the relief fund and Entergy’s response to COVID-19 can be found here.
April 15, 7:30 a.m. -- Amazon threatened to suspend all activity in France after a French court found it wasn’t doing enough to protect its workers. Scroll down for more.
April 15, 7 a.m. -- This year’s Tour de France will start on Aug. 29 and finish on Sept. 20 and will be followed by cycling’s two other major races. Scroll down for more.
April 15, 5:30 a.m. -- A new Gallup poll finds 71% of Americans plan to wait to see what happens after social contact restrictions are lifted before deciding whether to return to their old habits. Another 10 percent said they will continue to limit contact with others and daily activities indefinitely. Scroll down for more.
Nation and world updates
The United States has more than 600,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to statistics from Johns Hopkins University.
As of midnight ET Wednesday morning, the U.S. had 609,240 confirmed cases with 26,033 deaths and 48,625 recoveries. Nearly 3.1 million tests have been conducted in the U.S.
Worldwide, there are nearly 2 million confirmed cases with more than 126,000 deaths and 486,000 recoveries.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
Tour de France rescheduled to start Aug. 29
This year’s Tour de France will start on Aug. 29 and finish on Sept. 20 and will be followed by cycling’s two other major races.
The International Cycling Union announced the new dates after consulting with race organizer Amaury Sport Organisation. The Tour could not start as scheduled on June 27 because of restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic.
The UCI also says the world championships will go ahead as planned from Sept. 20-27 and will be followed by the Giro d’Italia and the Spanish Vuelta. No official dates were given for those two major races.
The UCI says prestigious one-day road classics such as Paris-Roubaix and Liège-Bastogne-Liège will be maintained at dates still to be defined.
Amazon threatens to suspend shipments in France
Amazon threatened to suspend all activity in France after a French court found it wasn’t doing enough to protect its workers.
The online giant also announced plans to appeal Tuesday’s emergency ruling, which requires Amazon to stop selling nonessential goods for a month while it works out new worker safety measures.
Sales of food, medicine and hygiene supplies are still allowed under the ruling. However, Amazon France says the decision is so disruptive that it could prompt the company to suspend all activity at its six French warehouses.
The company stressed the importance of its services to the “thousands of French companies that sell on Amazon” and “millions of people around the country who want to have access to products they need during the crisis.”
Amazon insisted it is providing adequate security measures for staff, noting the implementation of temperature checks and mask distribution.
But the court found Amazon didn’t do enough to enforce social distancing, to ensure that turnstiles and locker rooms were virus-free or to increase cleaning of its warehouses. Unions say one worker infected with the virus is in intensive care.
Poll: 71% will 'wait to see' after restrictions are lifted
A new Gallup poll finds 71% of Americans plan to wait to see what happens after social contact restrictions are lifted before deciding whether to return to their old habits. Another 10 percent said they will continue to limit contact with others and daily activities indefinitely.
People in cities and suburbs were more likely than people in rural areas to adopt the "wait to see" attitude. Democrats and independents were also more likely than Republicans to go with that level of caution.
Regardless, a majority of every major demographic group said they would not immediately jump back into their old ways.
2 House Democrats propose $2,000 per month stimulus
House Democrats Tim Ryan and Ro Khanna have introduced legislation to give millions of Americans $2,000 per month during the coronavirus pandemic. The congressmen say the one-time, $1,200 stimulus going out to many Americans isn't good enough given skyrocketing unemployment.
Every American age 16 and older making less than $130,000 annually would receive at least $2,000 per month. Married couples earning less than $260,000 would receive $4,000 per month.
The payments would be guaranteed for six months and continue until the employment-to-population ratio for people age 16 and older is above 60%, the congressmen said.
Reports: Trump's name to appear on stimulus checks
In what is being called an unprecedented move, the stimulus checks many Americans will receive due to the economic effects of the new coronavirus pandemic will include President Donald Trump's name. That's according to reports by the Washington Post, New York Times and Bloomberg News.
The Post reports it will be the first time a president's name appears on an IRS payment. It will appear in the memo section of the check. The addition was made after Trump suggested it to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, the Post and Times reported.
Various officials, including a Treasury Department spokeswoman cited by Bloomberg, are denying a report by the Post that the addition of Trump's name could delay the checks by several days. The Post was citing unnamed senior IRS officials in that inference.
This affects only the physical checks that will be sent to tens of millions of people, not the direct deposits.
California governor provides complex outline for reopening
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday outlined a complex set of circumstances for the state to lift coronavirus restrictions and then described a possible startling new normal: temperature checks for restaurant customers, staggered start times for public schools to keep students separated and no crowds at sporting events, fairs or concerts.
It was a reality check for the state's 40 million residents after days of encouraging reports about the slow growth in new cases that had many hopeful for a reset of public life following a depressing early spring spent mainly indoors.
But Newsom said he won't consider loosening the state's stay-at-home orders until hospitalizations, particularly those in intensive care units, “flatten and start to decline” for at least two weeks. Even then, the governor listed six conditions that must be met, including expanded testing, more protective equipment for health care workers, better treatment and an improved ability to track and isolate those who have been infected — all things the state has struggled to accomplish thus far.
Alaska to lift ban on elective medical procedures
Alaska plans to lift restrictions on elective medical procedures in what Gov. Mike Dunleavy described Tuesday as an initial step toward reopening segments of the economy affected by concerns with the coronavirus.
State officials last week updated a mandate requiring non-urgent or elective procedures be canceled or postponed for three months. The update included surgical abortion under a section of surgeries that “could be delayed for a few weeks,” but made an exception if the woman's life or physical health was endangered.
Some saw the inclusion of abortion in the list as political. The mandate stated the overall goal was to preserve protective equipment for health care workers and patient care supplies; ensure staff and patient safety and expand available hospital capacity.
Alaska has 285 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and nine deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.