Number of Michigan coronavirus cases reaches 33

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The number of cases of coronavirus in Michigan has risen to 33, state officials said Saturday.

That’s eight more than the state had confirmed Friday. All of the newest cases are in southeast Michigan. One of them, notably, is in a Macomb County man with no known travel history and no known contact with someone with a confirmed case.



https://www.woodtv.com/health/coronavirus/saturday-michigan-coronavirus-cases-update/

Trump tests negative for coronavirus, White House doctor says

Source: USA

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump has tested negative for the novel coronavirus, the White House announced on Saturday evening.

The president’s physician, Sean P. Conley, said in a memo released by the White House that Trump decided to get tested on Friday after they conferred about matter. The virus is officially called COVID-19.

“Last night after an in-depth discussion with the president regarding COVID-19 testing, he elected to proceed,” the president’s physician, Sean P. Conley, wrote in a memorandum released by the White House Saturday evening.

“This evening I received confirmation that the test is negative,” Conley wrote.

Trump announced at a press briefing on Saturday that he had been tested for coronavirus following his recent exposure to two Brazilian officials who later tested positive for the virus.

Trump, who said his temperature was “totally normal,” told reporters he took the test Friday night but that it would take a few days to get the results because the test was sent to a lab.

Trump took the test around the time a White House doctor issued a statement saying the president does not need to get tested or self-quarantined for coronavirus because he had not exhibited any symptoms.

Travel ban expanded:Coronavirus travel: President Trump considering domestic travel restrictions, adds UK to ban

Trump is at low risk for the coronavirus because his contacts with one of the officials "was extremely limited (photographs, handshake)," and his interaction with the second person "occurred before any symptom onset," Conley wrote in a letter released late Friday.

The president had said earlier on Friday at a news conference in the Rose Garden that he would "most likely" be tested for coronavirus "fairly soon." He was pressed on the matter after it emerged that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's communications secretary tested positive for the virus. During his remarks, Trump continued to grip hands with business executives and health officials who continue to tell Americans one of the first lines of defense against the spread is to stop shaking hands.



Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/03/14/president-trump-tests-negative-coronavirus-white-house-says/5050710002/

tRumps response when asked about disbanding pandemic team

China Fights Virus With Ultraviolet Light

BEIJING (AFP) — Ultraviolet light is being beamed through public buses and elevators in China as the country fights the deadly coronavirus epidemic.

Companies are under pressure to meet strict prevention measures for the virus, which has killed more than 3,100 people in China. Shanghai public transport firm Yanggao has converted a regular cleaning room into a UV light disinfection chamber for buses, cutting a 40-minute process down to just five minutes.

“After the epidemic happened … we were actively searching for a more efficient disinfection method,” said Qin Jin, deputy general manager at Yanggao.

He said that normally the process required the full attention of two staff members, who sprayed disinfectant on surfaces in the bus before wiping them down.

“The problem with this was that it might not reach certain corners,” Qin said.

The group partnered with a technology supplier to set up an ultraviolet cleaning system, and now some of its buses are cleaned by UV rays.

Workers drive one bus at a time into the chamber, which has been equipped with 210 UV tubes, and leave the room before activating the system, bathing the vehicle in a blue-white hue.

Two cleaning rooms have been converted and each can disinfect up to 250 buses a day, Qin said.

With around 1,000 buses needing disinfection daily, the UV system has reduced the amount of overtime and manpower needed for regular public transport disinfection.

https://www.courthousenews.com/china-fights-virus-with-ultraviolet-light/

Iran asks IMF for $5bn to fight coronavirus as cases reach 10,000

Source: Financial Times

Iran said it has asked the IMF for $5bn of emergency funding to help it fight the social and economic impact of coronavirus, leaving the multilateral lender to take a decision on whether to lend to the Islamic republic that is currently subject to sweeping US sanctions.

Last week the IMF said it had allocated $50bn for countries struggling with the outbreak and Iran is one of the countries hardest hit. So far 429 people have died and more than 10,000 have tested positive in the country.

Abdolnaser Hemmati, Iran’s central bank governor, said in a statement on Thursday that he had written to Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF managing director on March 6 to request support from the emergency fund.

“Considering the widespread prevalence of coronavirus in our country and the necessity to forcefully continue preventive measures and medical treatment and to battle against its economic consequences, we demand to use $5bn from the fast financing facilities, given the size of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s quota in the fund,” he said.


Read more: https://www.ft.com/content/db67f794-645d-11ea-a6cd-df28cc3c6a68

Lawmakers worried overseas military bases lack coronavirus testing kits

Source: Military Times

Lawmakers are concerned that the military may not have an adequate supply of coronavirus testing kits at military installations deployed overseas, especially in the U.S. Central Command area of operations.
Rep. Mark Pocan, a Wisconsin Democrat, released a statement following a lack of a response from the Army regarding whether the military had sufficient coronavirus testing kits.
In a letter to defense officials, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Wisconsin Democrat, addressed concerns that deployed members of Wisconsin’s Army National Guard to Afghanistan were operating in areas believed to have confirmed cases of COVID-19 and that the unit may not have access to testing kits.

Read more: https://www.militarytimes.com/flashpoints/2020/03/12/congressman-worried-overseas-military-bases-lack-coronavirus-testing-kits/

C-SPAN accidentally kept airing tRump live after his "God Bless America" sign off and captured

more heavy breathing, a request by him for someone to go grab him a wipe for his hands, and the F-bomb he uttered. Just saw it on twitter, hope its posted soon.

https://twitter.com/knoweyedentity/status/1237910275946405888?s=21

CORONAVIRUS Trump to make prime-time address on coronavirus Wednesday night

Source: NBC

The president said he would be making "both" health and economic related announcements in the Oval Office address, which comes as the number of coronavirus cases across the country exceeded 1,000, with at least 33 deaths. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a pandemic, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 1,400 points.

He later tweeted that the address would take place at 9 p.m. ET.

Trump's earlier remarks came during what he described as a "very important meeting" with big bank executives in the White House.

The president was vague about what measures he might announce, but said, “We’ll be doing a lot of additional work with small businesses ... many billions of dollars” and "additional solutions."

He said he has “already made some decisions actually today but I'll be making some other ones that are very important.”

The president, who's been criticized for focusing on the financial impact of the virus's spread, told reporters, “Our number one priority is the health of the people of our country.”


He said he was optimistic the economy would get back to normal "in a short term period."

"We’re having to fix a problem that four weeks ago nobody thought would be a problem,” Trump said.

"This came out of nowhere, and actually it came out of China."

Asked by a reporter what he would "say to Americans who are concerned that you're not taking this seriously enough and that some of your statements don't match what your health experts are saying," Trump said, "That's CNN. Fake news."

Trump has only delivered a prime time Oval Office address once before, on Jan.8, 2019, when he called for $5 billion to build a border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border during a partial government shutdown.



Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-make-prime-time-address-coronavirus-wednesday-night-n1155941

First cases of coronavirus confirmed in Michigan. One each in Oakland and Wayne counties

Source: WXYZ

Posted: 10:07 PM, Mar 10, 2020 Updated: 10:33 PM, Mar 10, 2020
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(WXYZ) — The first cases of coronavirus and COVID-19 have been confirmed in Michigan, sources tell 7 Action News.

Sources tell us there is one case in Oakland County and one case in Wayne County.

We're expecting a statement from Gov. Whitmer around 10:45 p.m. with Chief Medical Executive and Chief Deputy Director for Health Dr. Joneigh S. Khaldun. Watch live here.

The state has a website set up specifically for COVID-19 and is at Michigan.gov/coronavirus.

Currently, 39 people have tested negative for COVID-19 and 63 others have had testing approved. There are hundreds of others in the state being monitored.

At the end of February, Gov. Whitmer activated the state’s Emergency Operations Center to coordinate the response to coronavirus, and in early March, she created four task forces to combat the spread of the virus.


Read more: https://www.wxyz.com/news/coronavirus/first-cases-of-coronavirus-confirmed-in-michigan-one-each-in-oakland-and-wayne-counties

Just heard a disturbing phone call on a progressive talk show, a mother of a National Guardsman

who is serving in Afghanistan said her son called, told her he is sick, everyone in his company is sick with fever, no one has been tested for covid, the nearest village had 5 to 6 reportedly sick with the virus. His commander was just sent to the states & has been visiting bases. I wonder if this is being covered up? I believe her because she has called the show before about her son joining the NG after serving in the Marines.

Thom said today he got Representative Ro Khanna in touch with her and his office is looking into it


https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142446246