States across the U.S. are reopening after coronavirus-enforced lockdowns while protests erupted in places where stay-at-home rules remain in place. In California and Michigan, groups demanded the easing of restrictions. A big week of earnings are in, and tech giants Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft and Tesla have all reported, providing a first look at how the pandemic has affected some of the biggest companies in the U.S.
This is CNBC’s live blog covering all the latest news on the coronavirus outbreak. All times below are in Eastern time. This blog will be updated throughout the day as the news breaks.
- Global cases: More than 3.3 million
- Global deaths: At least 239,090
- US cases: More than 1.1 million
- US deaths: At least 65,068
The data above was compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
8:30 am: US hospitals increasing safety measures
A “prone team,” wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), turns a COVID-19 patient onto his stomach in a Stamford Hospital intensive care unit (ICU), on April 24, 2020 in Stamford, Connecticut.
John Moore | Getty Images
As parts of the U.S. begin to open up after coronavirus stay-at-home orders, hospitals are putting more safety procedures in place to help reassure people coming in for other kinds of treatment, Reuters reports.
Hospitals are using plexiglass dividers, testing patients in advance and limiting elevator traffic as part of a safety push before beginning elective procedures and nonessential operations, which were put on hold as hospitals dealt with a crush of Covid-19 cases, Reuters reported.
“We have to convey to the public that we are safe … and to defer medical care in urgent situations will cause more harm,” Mark Solazzo, chief operating officer at Northwell Health, New York’s largest healthcare provider, told Reuters.
Medical providers are starting to tell patients that they can return for non-coronavirus procedures. —Chris Eudaily
Read CNBC’s coverage from CNBC’s Asia-Pacific and Europe teams overnight here: Russia reports highest daily rise in cases; Singapore prepares to ease partial lockdown
