U.S. Cases Stable; Trump Set to Expand Plasma Use: Virus Update

(Bloomberg) --

Florida passed 600,000 infections. President Donald Trump will announce that a new treatment involving blood plasma donated by people who’ve recovered from the disease has received emergency use authorization.

Coronavirus-related deaths in the U.S. rose by 998, the first time in five days the data showed fewer than 1,000 fatalities. Texas, Florida and Arizona all reported drops in cases and deaths.

Mexico exceeded 60,000 fatalities. Cases remained high in the U.K., France, Italy and Greece. Yulia Tymoshenko, a Ukrainian opposition politician and former prime minister, is in the hospital with the virus.

Key Developments:

• Global Tracker: Cases above 23.2 million; deaths surpass 806,000
• English rave organizers face fines of as much as 10,000 pounds
• EU trade chief fights to keep his job after pandemic stumble
• South Korea considers raising social-distancing restrictions
• A new Europe surge challenges Italy’s lockdown success
• Vaccine Tracker: where we are in the race for protection

Subscribe to a daily update on the virus from Bloomberg’s Prognosis team here. Click CVID on the terminal for global data on coronavirus cases and deaths.

Texas Cases, Deaths Slow (5 p.m. NY)

Texas reported its fewest number of new coronavirus cases in seven weeks. The Lone Star state recorded 3,493 new cases on Sunday and 577,537 overall, the Department of State Health Services said on its website. The state recorded 104 deaths, the lowest since Aug. 17, for a total of 11,370.

NFL Investigating Lab’s Positive Tests (3:50 p.m. NY)

The National Football League is investigating a series of positive Covid-19 test results processed by one laboratory that handles samples from multiple teams.

The league didn’t identify the teams impacted by the positive tests on Saturday but said in a statement that it’s working with lab owner BioReference to sort out the matter. The affected teams were working on verifying whether the positive results were accurate or in error, according to the statement.

None of the other labs used by the league for virus tests has had similar results, the NFL said. The Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns both received positives from Saturday’s round of tests, all of which turned out to be false, ESPN reported.

Trump to Announce Plasma Treatment (2:37 p.m. NY)

President Trump will announce on Sunday that a new coronavirus treatment involving blood plasma donated by people who’ve recovered from the disease has received an emergency use authorization from U.S. regulators.

Trump will make the announcement at a press conference due to start at 5:30 p.m. EDT, said two people familiar with the situation who weren’t authorized to speak publicly.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to clear for use with certain patients what’s known as convalescent plasma. The move would make it easier for patients to get the product, which Trump has touted even though its effectiveness hasn’t been proved.

California Reports Most Cases in Week (2:12 p.m. NY)

California reported 6,777 new virus cases on Sunday, the highest number in a week but still less than the seven-day average of 7,822. There have been 663,669 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the state, according to the health department’s website. The number of deaths climbed by 146 to 12,134

France Cases Highest Since April (1:53 p.m. NY)

France reported 4,897 new cases, the largest increase since the previous peak in mid-April. Deaths increased by one to 30,513 in the past 24 hours.

Greece Cases Hit Record (12:58 p.m. NY)

Greece reported a record 284 new coronavirus cases on Sunday. The total number reached 8,664, of which around 40% has been reported in August. The death toll reached 242. The nation extended restrictions, including the closure of bars and restaurants on the island of Lesvos from midnight to 7 a.m. starting Monday through Sept. 1.

Mexico Passes 60,000 Fatalities (12:43 p.m. NY)

Mexico, with the world’s third-highest fatalities from Covid-19, crossed the 60,000 milestone for deaths after losing 644 patients on Saturday.

The country trails just the U.S. and Brazil in total deaths and has the world’s seventh-highest number of cases at 556,216 as of Saturday.

Arizona Reports Fewest Cases Since June (11:59 a.m. NY)

Reported cases in Arizona dropped significantly, to an increase of 207, fewer than the nearly 1,000 reported the day before and the lowest increase since June 1. Total cases are now 198,103.

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey said on Twitter that the state’s transmission rate is at .83, which he said is the second-lowest in the nation. Even so, weekend data reporting often show lower totals than during the week. On July 1, the state reported 4,877 cases, the highest on record.

The state reported another 15 deaths, down from 68 the day before, in a week that peaked at 105 fatalities. Total deaths are now 4,771.

U.K. Doctors Call Pupils’ Death Risk ‘Small’ (11:40 a.m. NY)

The U.K.’s chief medical officers said that primary and secondary aged school children face an “exceptionally small risk” of dying from Covid-19, lending support the government’s efforts to re-open schools. For children aged 5 to 14, only 14 of 14 million risked dying from the virus, far fewer than from most seasonal flu infections, they said in a statement Sunday.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government wants schools to reopen in the coming weeks and is facing some push back from teachers. The medical officers also said that teachers are not at an increased risk of dying from Covid-19 compared with the general population. International studies show that teachers are more at risking of contracting the virus from other staff, than from pupils, the statement said.

Keeping schools shut risked increasing inequality, which can “reduce the life chances of children” and that home-based schooling has done anything to reduce those disparities, they said.

Biden Not Tested (11:39 a.m. NY)

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden hasn’t been tested for coronavirus, a top aide said on Sunday, as the campaign enters its busiest period.

“We have put the strictest protocols in place, and moving forward, should he need to be tested, he certainly would be,” Kate Bedingfield, deputy manager for Biden’s presidential campaign, said on ABC’s “This Week.”

She also said Biden hasn’t had the virus, although it’s not clear how this would be known without a test. President Donald Trump is receiving regular tests.

U.K. Cases Again Above 1,000 (11:37 a.m. NY)

New cases reported in the U.K. stayed above 1,000 for a fourth day, even as they dropped from a two-month high reported Saturday. The U.K. added 1,041 cases, bringing the total to 325,642, and reported another six deaths linked to Covid-19.

Italy Spike Continues (11:22 a.m. NY)

Italy reported 1,210 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, an increase from 1,071 the day before. That extends a series of increases since Aug. 17. There were seven deaths compared with three the day before.

Florida Cases, Deaths Slow (11:08 a.m NY)

Florida reported 600,571 cases on Sunday, up 0.5% from a day earlier, compared with an average increase of 0.7% in the previous seven days. Deaths among Florida residents reached 10,325, an increase of 51, less than the 106 reported the previous day, according to the state health department report, which includes data through Saturday.

New York Reports New Low for Hospitalizations (10:48 a.m NY)

New York reported that virus-related hospitalizations had dropped to 472 and intensive care patients to 110, both the lowest since mid-March. It also marked the 16th straight day of positive-test results under 1%.

The state reported 572 new cases, a 0.1% rise in line with the average daily increase of the previous week. Another five deaths were reported but none in New York City.

Swedish Leader Says Crisis Changed Society Forever (10:20 a.m. NY)

The prime minister of Sweden, which opted against strict lockdowns and many other restrictions, says now is the time to build something better amid the country’s worst pandemic in 50 years.

Speaking from his party’s retreat in Bommersvik Stefan Lofven, the leader of the Social Democrats said, “the coronavirus has shown that the welfare state we are so proud of has clear shortcomings.” The crisis, he said, is “a reminder that the society affected by the pandemic was not a perfect society, therefore we will not go back to how everything was before.”

The Nordic nation has seen an increased rate of infections in the first half of August after it declined rapidly during the prior month. But the country has so far chosen to avoid stricter lockdowns or even the use of face masks.

Former Ukrainian Premier Tymoshenko Sick (8:39 a.m. EST)

Yulia Tymoshenko, a Ukrainian opposition politician and former prime minister, has been hospitalized with coronavirus, her spokeswoman Maryna Soroka said on Facebook.

Tymoshenko’s condition is “serious,” Soroka said.

U.S. Deaths Under 1,000 (8:00 a.m. EST)

U.S. confirmed virus cases increased by 45,855 on Saturday, matching the 0.8% daily average increase over the previous week, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg.

Virus-related deaths rose by 998, the first time in five days the data showed fewer than 1,000 deaths.

U.K. Proposes New Fines for Illegal Raves, Gatherings (4:42 a.m. EST)

British authorities are threatening the organizers of raves, unlicensed music events, or illegal gatherings of 30 or more people with fines of 10,000 pounds, just before the country starts the last holiday weekend of the summer.

People who attend such events may be fined 100 pounds, which can rise to as much as 3,200 pounds, the Home Office said.

Nations Continue to Report Rises (4:22 a.m. EST)

Poland registered 581 new coronavirus infections on Sunday, increasing the total to 61,762, the health ministry said on Twitter. The biggest number of new cases comes from southern Poland, where the government has been considering re-imposing some virus restrictions. Deaths increased by four, and now total 1,955.

Germany said new cases fell to 781 Saturday from 2,034 a day earlier as testing slowed during the weekend.

In Asia, the Philippines reported that its Covid cases rose 2,378 to a total of 189,601, and said it’s had 2,998 total deaths. Singapore said it had 87 new cases.

Korea Cases Spur Fear of Distancing Rules (3:02 p.m. HK)

South Korea is considering raising social-distancing restrictions to the highest level as coronavirus cases spread beyond the Seoul Metropolitan area and Busan.

The government is currently studying the need to apply level 3 restrictions, said Jung Eun-kyeong, head of Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. New infections are expected to continue rising, Jung said.

Tokyo Records More Than 200 New Cases (2:25 p.m. HK)

The Japanese capital reported 212 new cases, down from 256 cases on Saturday. Despite the drop, that marks four straight days of more than 200 cases in Tokyo. The city’s total number of cases now stands at 19,333.

Hong Kong Official Touts Testing Service (1:20 p.m. HK)

Hong Kong’s Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung urged citizens to take part in a free testing service over the next two weeks in his Sunday blog. Community testing centers will be set up in all districts -- and samples will not be sent outside Hong Kong and will be destroyed after the test is completed -- he wrote.

Applications for the second phase of a wage subsidies program will be accepted Aug. 31 for the period September through November, Cheung wrote. Some HKD43.9 billion ($5.7 billion) of wage subsidies have been approved to help about 148,500 employers so far.

Separately, Hong Kong’s free testing program has been expanded to include foreign domestic helpers whose contacts have expired or been terminated and those waiting to take up jobs with new families, according to a spokesman for the Labour Department. The decision was taken in response to recently confirmed cases of foreign domestic helpers staying in boarding facilities.

India Passes 3 Million Cases as Outbreak Grows (12:32 p.m.)

India’s Covid-19 cases crossed the three million mark as the disease spread through the world’s second-most populous country. Infections rose by more than 69,000 and now stand at 3,044,940, according to data released by health ministry. The country’s epidemic is one of the world’s fastest-growing, with more than 65,000 new infections being reported each day.

China Grants Vaccine Emergency Use for Frontline Workers (11:35 a.m. HK)

China last month granted approval for the emergency use of a coronavirus vaccine for “special groups” that include medical workers and border-check officials. The purpose is to build an immune barrier among frontline workers to guarantee stability in urban operations, according to China National Biotec Group, the state-owned firm now conducting late stage trials for two inactivated vaccines.

China’s drug regulator yet to approve a coronavirus vaccine. The National Medical Products Administration stipulated in a recently published guideline that such shots need a protection rate of at least 50%, and preferably more than 70%.

More New Zealand Cases Emerge (9:27 a.m. HK)

New Zealand reported three new Covid-19 infections, a day before the government reviews its stance on the lockdown in the city of Auckland. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said this week that authorities will “stay the course” on the current strategy, and will consider information from the weekend in the next review.

Two of the new cases were imported, the health ministry said. New Zealand’s case total is now 1,324, as the country fights to quell a new outbreak following months of success containing the virus.

Vietnam Reports More Cases in Danang (9:23 a.m. HK)

Vietnam’s health ministry said late Saturday that the country had 5 more local cases and one death -- a 93-year-old man -- all in the coastal hotspot of Danang. Cases in the Southeast Asian country, once a model of containment in the region, now total 1,014. There have been 26 deaths.

South Korea Has Close to 400 New Cases (9:20 a.m. HK)

South Korea, which has been battling a new wave of the virus after seeing early success containing it, reported 397 new infections. That brings the country’s total to 17,399.

Mexico Has Thousands More Cases (8:38 a.m. HK)

Mexico reported 6,482 new infections, bringing the hard-hit country’s total to 556,216, according to data released by the Health Ministry. There were 644 more deaths.

The World Health Organization said this week that Mexico’s limited testing meant the pandemic was “clearly under-recognized,” and that Mexico was only performing about three tests per 100,000 people.

Read more on Mexico’s outbreak

Australia’s Queensland Finds Two Cases (8:31 a.m. HK)

The country’s Queensland state had two new virus cases the day after tightening restrictions due to an outbreak at a Brisbane youth detention center. Queensland’s case total stands at 1,105. Gatherings at homes and outdoors across the southeast of the state have been limited to 10 people, and 30 people across the rest of Queensland.

Meanwhile, New South Wales reported another 4 cases.

New Cases in Victoria State (8:05 a.m. HK)

Australia’s hotspot Victoria reported 208 new infections as lockdown in Melbourne continued. The state also had 17 more deaths, Victoria’s department of health and human services tweeted. The new figures came after Victoria reported 182 new cases on Saturday, the second straight day of infections under 200.

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