#	Country, Other	Total Cases	New Cases	Total Deaths
	World	18,693,259	+255,871	703,380
1	USA	4,918,420	+54,504	160,290
2	Brazil	2,808,076	+56,411	96,096
3	India	1,906,613	+51,282	39,820
4	Russia	861,423	+5,159	14,351
5	South Africa	521,318	+4,456	8,884
6	Mexico	443,813	+4,767	48,012
7	Peru	439,890	+6,790	20,007
8	Chile	362,962	+1,469	9,745
9	Spain	349,894	+5,760	28,498
10	Colombia	334,979	+7,129	11,315
11	Iran	314,786	+2,751	17,617
12	UK	306,293	+670	46,299
13	Saudi Arabia	281,456	+1,363	2,984
14	Pakistan	280,461	+432	5,999
15	Italy	248,419	+190	35,171
16	Bangladesh	244,020	+1,918	3,234
17	Turkey	234,934	+1,083	5,765
18	Argentina	213,535	+6,792	3,979
19	Germany	213,080	+760	9,232
20	France	192,334	+1,039	30,296
21	Iraq	134,722	+2,836	5,017
22	Canada	117,792	+761	8,958
23	Indonesia	115,056	+1,922	5,388
24	Philippines	112,518	+6,277	2,114
25	Qatar	111,538	+216	177
26	Egypt	94,752	+112	4,912
27	Kazakhstan	93,820	+1,158	1,058
28	Ecuador	87,963	+922	5,808
29	China	84,464	+36	4,634
30	Bolivia	81,846	+1,693	3,228
31	Sweden	81,181	+37	5,747
32	Oman	79,159		421
33	Israel	76,198	+1,768	561
34	Dominican Republic	74,295	+1,178	1,213
35	Ukraine	74,219	+1,061	1,764
36	Belgium	70,314	+465	9,850
37	Panama	69,424	+968	1,522
38	Kuwait	68,774	+475	465
39	Belarus	68,250	+84	574
40	UAE	61,352	+189	351
41	Netherlands	55,955	+485	6,150
42	Romania	55,241	+1,232	2,480
43	Singapore	53,346	+295	27
44	Guatemala	52,365	+823	2,037
45	Portugal	51,681	+112	1,739
46	Poland	48,149	+680	1,738
47	Nigeria	44,433	+304	910
48	Honduras	43,794	+597	1,384
49	Bahrain	42,132	+297	151
50	Japan	39,858	+1,171	1,016
51	Armenia	39,298	+196	768
52	Ghana	37,812		191
53	Kyrgyzstan	37,541	+412	1,427
54	Afghanistan	36,782	+35	1,288
55	Switzerland	35,746	+130	1,981
56	Azerbaijan	32,910	+226	473
57	Algeria	32,504	+532	1,248
58	Morocco	27,217	+1,021	417
59	Uzbekistan	27,047	+981	165
60	Serbia	26,738	+287	605

 

Source：https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

 

 

 

America is testing more. But the results are too slow, a survey finds.

 

Frustrated by a nationwide testing backlog, the governors of six states took the unusual step of banding together on Tuesday to reduce the turnaround time for coronavirus test results to minutes from days.

The agreement, by three Republicans and three Democrats, was called the first interstate testing compact of its kind. The six states — Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio and Virginia — agreed to work with the Rockefeller Foundation and two U.S. manufacturers of rapid tests to buy 3 million tests.

More than six months into the pandemic, the bipartisan plan highlights the depth of the testing problems in the United States as well as how the lack of a federal testing program has left municipalities and states to fend for themselves. The Trump administration has offered new support to hard-hit regions by providing free testing in cities through a “surge testing” program, but the bulk of government-sponsored testing has been provided by cities, counties and states that hire third-party contractors. As a result, the length of the delay varies between states, and within them.

The United States is testing about 755,000 people a day, up from about 640,000 per day a month ago, and far more than in April and May, according to the Covid Tracking Project. But numbers alone do not tell the whole story. With testing chemicals in short supply, and an increase in cases nationwide leading to skyrocketing demands, many people still have to wait many days for results, in effect rendering those tests useless.

Most who are tested for the virus do not receive results within the 24 to 48 hours recommended by public health experts to effectively stall the virus’s spread and quickly conduct contact tracing, according to a new national survey by researchers from Harvard University, Northeastern University, Northwestern University and Rutgers University.

The survey — representing 19,000 people from 50 states and Washington, D.C., who responded to an online questionnaire last month — found lengthy wait times among those who had been tested for the virus, about 18 percent of all respondents. Respondents in a vast majority of states reported a median turnaround time of at least three days, including residents of California, Florida, Texas and other hot spots. The survey also found disparities across racial groups, an indication that people who are hit hardest by the pandemic are also having to wait longer for test results.

“Testing is just not quick enough,” said Matthew A. Baum, a professor of public policy at Harvard University and one of the researchers in the group, which found that wait times were “strikingly similar” across the country. “This is an enormously widespread problem.”

 

 

Democrats and Republicans have agreed to work toward a deal on a relief package by the end of the week.

 

Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senator Chuck Schumer on Tuesday after a meeting with Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary, and Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff.Credit...Erin Schaff/The New York Times

Negotiators on Wednesday will reconvene on Capitol Hill to continue hammering out the details of a coronavirus relief package, having agreed to work toward an agreement by the end of the week and have legislative text prepared for the following week.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California is expected to again host Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff; Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary; and Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the minority leader, in her Capitol Hill suite. The four are also expected to meet with Louis DeJoy, the postmaster general, to “explain to us why there’s so many delays and how that might affect the election,” Mr. Schumer said on Tuesday.

The meeting with Mr. DeJoy, a Trump campaign megadonor, comes as mail delays fuel concerns over the politicization of the Postal Service and the administration’s moves to undermine mail-in voting ahead of the general election in November. Democrats are fighting for the inclusion of aid for the Postal Service and election security in an overall coronavirus relief package, while Republicans did not include any such funding in their $1 trillion proposal.

White House officials and Democratic leaders acknowledged some progress in talks on Tuesday. Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader, signaled he may be open to accepting a compromise measure, even if it contained provisions that he — and members of his conference — disagreed with, such as the extension of $600-per-week jobless-aid payments.

But it remains unclear whether negotiators would be able to adhere to the timeline they had agreed to, given the number of remaining policy divisions. Several Senate Republicans, particularly moderates facing tough re-election campaigns, have urged Republican leadership to keep lawmakers in Washington until a deal is reached, instead of departing for a scheduled monthlong recess at the end of this week.

 

 

Source：https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/05/world/coronavirus-covid-19.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-coronavirus&region=TOP_BANNER&context=storylines_menu

 

 

 

 

China virus outbreak subsides, with 22 new local infections

 

 

People wearing face masks to help protect against the spread of the coronavirus cross an intersection in Beijing, China, on Tuesday, August 4. Mark Schiefelbein/AP

China reported 27 new coronavirus cases and no new deaths on Tuesday, a sign its outbreak may be subsiding after a rise in figures in the past few weeks, according to the country's National Health Commission.

Five of the new cases were imported from abroad, and the remaining 22 cases were locally transmitted in Xinjiang province. There were no new deaths.

China also reported 24 new asymptomatic cases, which are counted on a separate tally.

That raises the country's total to 88,206 cases and 4,676 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

 

 

Dominican Republic government will "intervene" after 44 hospital staff test positive

From CNN's Jessica Hasbun in the Dominican Republic and Claudia Dominguez in Atlanta 

 

 

National Health Service personnel fumigates during an operation to curb the spread of COVID-19 in San Cristobal, Domincan Republic, on June 13, 2020. Erik Santelices/AFP/Getty Images

The Dominican Republic government on Tuesday said it will "intervene" at a hospital in the northern city of Nagua after 44 staff members tested positive for Covid-19.

The announcement comes after the director of Antonio Yapor Heded Hospital, Dr. Emmanuel Oscar Perez, on Monday said at least seven doctors, 18 nurses and 19 administrative employees at the hospital have tested positive so far. 

The minister said that a possible "biosecurity failure" could have caused the outbreak at the hospital. 

He added that experts from the capital, Santo Domingo, along with members of the Emergency Operations Center and local authorities will be heading to the hospital to assist to contain the outbreak.  

CNN has reached out to the hospital for comment. 

The Dominican Republic has so far registered 74,295 coronavirus cases and 1,213 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.

 

 

Japan reports more than 1,200 new cases as country struggles to contain spike

From CNN's Yoko Wakatsuki in Tokyo

 

People wearing face masks to help protect against the spread of the coronavirus walk on a street in Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday, August 4. Koji Sasahara/AP

Japan recorded 1,240 new coronavirus cases and six virus-related deaths on Tuesday, as the country grapples with a recent spike in infections.

Tuesday's figures raise the national total to 41,841 cases and 1,035 deaths.

Of Tuesday's new cases, abut a quarter came from the country's capital, Tokyo. This is the eighth straight day that Tokyo has recorded more than 200 new daily cases.

Two thirds of the city's Tuesday cases are untraceable, meaning authorities were unable to find out the source of infection, said the metropolitan government.

Other major cities like Osaka also saw high numbers of new cases, raising concerns among local politicians. The governor of Kanagawa prefecture, which neighbors Tokyo, said he expected the rise in Tokyo cases to also spread into his prefecture.

A spike in cases: For months, Japan seemed to have the virus largely under control. Throughout most of May and June, daily case numbers hovered around several dozen, ranging from around 20 to 60 a day.

But case numbers passed 100 on June 30, and have only continued rising since then, jumping by hundreds in a matter of weeks.

 

 

You’re more likely to die from Covid-19 in the US than almost anywhere in the world, expert says

From CNN's Shelby Lin Erdman

 

 

Ron Klain, former White House Ebola response coordinator, speaks during a House Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing in Washington DC, on March 10. Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg/Getty Images

People in the United States are at high risk of dying from coronavirus -- perhaps more than people anywhere else in the world, said Ron Klain, the former Ebola czar under President Barack Obama.

“America has one of the worst numbers on planet Earth. You are more likely as an American to die from Covid then you are in almost any other country,” said Klain, who was chief of staff to then vice-president Joe Biden, on Tuesday.

“The bottom line is we have people in this country contracting Covid at record rates, dying at record rates,” he said. “We’re losing Americans out here right now at about the same pace we were losing Americans in World War II. We certainly didn't hear FDR tell people ‘it is what it is.’”

"It is what it is": In an interview with the news website Axios on Monday, President Donald Trump responded to a question about the high Covid-19 death rate in the US by saying “it is what it is.”

Trump also argued that he’s doing a good job and that the US is doing better than any other country in responding to the pandemic.

 

 

Trump says he is "looking at" possibly using executive action on unemployment benefits

From CNN's Allie Malloy and Phil Mattingly

 

US President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at the White House in Washington DC, on Tuesday, August 4. Chris Kleponis/Polaris/Bloomberg via Getty Images

US President Donald Trump told reporters that he is “looking at” possibly signing an executive action if no deal is made by the end of this week on unemployment benefits but said that “progress” is being made on the Hill.

“We are looking at it. We’re also looking at various other things I’m allowed to do under the system, such as the payroll tax suspension. And so we’re allowed to do things,” Trump said in the briefing room Tuesday. 

Trump also sounded more encouraged by discussions today on the Hill saying, “We’re talking with the Democrats. They seem to be much more interested in solving the problems in some of the Democrat-run states and cities that have suffered greatly through bad management.”

“As far as the various things that I may or may not sign -- I may not have to sign. Progress has been made as you know, very well on the Hill. We’ll see what happens, including the payroll tax suspension,” Trump added.

It remains unclear what, if any, legal authority the executive branch has to address those issues in a substantive manner. Congressional aides and lawmakers, who remain in the dark on the details, are skeptical the efforts have any validity. 

 

 

Kosovo prime minister tests positive for coronavirus

From CNN's Sharon Braithwaite

 

 

Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti speaks during a news conference in Pristina, Kosovo, on July 24. Armend Nimani/AFP/Getty Images

Kosovo's Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti has tested positive for Covid-19, his press office told CNN on Tuesday. 

Hoti is in good health and will stay home for the next two weeks, following his doctor's recommendation, his press office said.

"Indeed, we have a difficult situation here, but the government and health institutions are doing everything they can to manage and prevent this pandemic," the press office told CNN in an e-mail.

 

 

Source：https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/coronavirus-pandemic-08-05-20-intl/index.html

 

 

 

France has again reported more than 1,000 new confirmed coronavirus cases in the previous 24 hours. There are now 184 active clusters under investigation, 13 more than the previous day.

Officials said the number of admissions to intensive care had risen for a second consecutive day, to 21, having been dropping since April. The latest government figures show a total of 30,296 people have died from the coronavirus in France.

The French government’s scientific committee has said the virus is under control but warned that the situation “could tip the other way” very quickly. The health ministry said in a statement:

The summer, the holidays, meeting friends and family, so many good moments that we wish to profit from: do not lower your guard and keep up the good reflexes including protection measures. The efficiency of a mask depends on everyone wearing it correctly.

The Paris mayor, Anne Hidalgo, is in consultation with police authorities with a view to making face masks compulsory in certain areas of the capital. There’s no suggestion this will be a blanket obligation, but it could include popular markets and the Canal Saint Martin, where young people gather to party at weekends, and some parks. One of the city’s deputy mayors who is in charge of health said the aim was to slow down the return of the virus.

A survey by YouGov suggested 62% of French people were happy to wear a mask in public places outside.

The Czech Republic reported its biggest daily jump in new coronavirus cases since the end of June on Wednesday as a recent uptick in infections persisted, Reuters reports.

The central European country of 10.7 million recorded 290 new cases on Tuesday, Health Ministry data showed, bringing the total number of cases detected to 17,286. Of those, 11,812 have recovered and 383 have died of COVID-19.

Almost a quarter of the new cases, 77, were in the eastern region of Moravia-Silesia, bordering Poland, where many cases recently appeared among miners and their families.
The overall number of active cases reached 5,091. Some epidemiologists have suggested that the virus has weakened, pointing to a relatively low number of people being hospitalised, currently totalling 123.

Also, the daily number of those who died in connection with the coronavirus has been below five since May 20.
However, health officials have cautioned that some measures taken to curb the illness are likely to return after the summer holidays when cities will be more crowded and the flu season will arrive.

Prague chief public health officer Zdenka Jagrova told daily paper Pravo that people in the capital will definitely be required to wear face masks again at some point inside public spaces such as shopping malls and on public transport.

Ireland has delayed reopening more pubs, extended use of face coverings and tightened its travel list amid concern at rising levels of Covid-19 infection.

The taoiseach, Micheál Martin, announced on Tuesday night that the government was delaying the relaxation of lockdown restrictions for the second time to ensure schools and colleges can open at the end of the month. He said:

I wish I was in a position to share better news today, but I am not. It is now clear that our cautious approach in mid-July was the correct approach. Evidence of increased transmission is now even clearer.

In recent weeks the number of daily new coronavirus cases has more than doubled, from 20 to 53.

Cafes, restaurants and pubs that serve food reopened in late June. So-called wet pubs that serve no food – about half of Ireland’s 7,000 pubs - were due to open next week but will now remain closed at least until September, with no guarantee they will open this year, said Martin.

Face coverings will become mandatory in all shops from next week. The “green list” of 15 countries from which passengers arriving into Ireland need not quarantine shortened with the exclusion of Malta, Cyprus, San Marino, Gibraltar and Monaco.

Publicans’ representatives slated the delayed reopenings, telling RTÉ the state had abandoned 3,500 pubs and that the sector needed urgent financial support to weather the crisis.

 

Summary

 

· The number of people who have died from Covid-19 has passed 700,000, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. More than 150,000 have been in the US, with Brazil accounting for more than 90,000.

· US health secretary Alex Azar will become the most senior American official to visit Taiwan since Washington shut off diplomatic ties in 1979. He will discuss the coronavirus pandemic and “celebrate the shared values” of the two democracies, a move likely to anger China.

· Donald Trump has been told to “do your job” by Joe Biden after the US president floundered badly in a TV interview when asked about America’s high number of deaths from Covid-19.

· UK Labour leader Keir Starmer has told Boris Johnson that he has a month to fix Britain’s failing test-and-trace system or risk sending the country into a second lockdown as schools go back in September.

· The Australian state of Victoria recorded another 725 cases of Covid-19 as the outbreak continued to wreak havoc in the country. Queensland has closed its borders with NSW and the ACT.

· Virgin Atlantic has become the latest corporate casualty of the pandemic after declaring itself bankrupt and has filing for protection from creditors in the US. The move means it can restructure its debt and plot a course back into operation.

· Gold has soared to a record high price of $2,030.72 per ounce as financial markets move money into ultra-safe assets that they think are less likely to lose value if the world slumps into a prolonged recession thanks to Covid-19.

 

Source：https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2020/aug/05/coronavirus-live-news-trump-pressed-on-false-death-rate-claim-as-europe-faces-second-wave?page=with:block-5f2a4b7f8f08ab0eb340080d#liveblog-navigation