COVID-19 is still spreading, with the number of infected approaching the 2-million mark. The United States remains the worst-hit country with more than 608,400 confirmed cases and at least 26,992 fatalities, according to Johns Hopkins University. At the same time, Italy and Spain are the main centres of infection in Europe - with almost 156,000 and 166,000 cases respectively, according to the World Health Organisation.
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"This will not affect the ability for Mercy to receive patients at this time", the statement said.
As of Monday, Bolivia's Health Ministry has reported a total of 354 cases of COVID-19, with 28 deaths resulting from the disease.
In a statistical update of the country's COVID-19 dashboard, the ministry on Tuesday confirmed that 87 new cases of the disease were reported in the preceding 24 hours, raising the overall total to 2,070.
Thirteen more deaths have been registered in Algeria, taking the total COVID-19 death toll in the country to 326.
According to the update, the global count of confirmed COVID-19 cases has reached 1,844,863, with the majority of them concentrated in Europe (943,272) and the Americas (644,986).
As of Tuesday, the health authorities have registered over 1,000 cases of the coronavirus, including 101 recoveries.
According to the health authorities, the death toll stands at four, while 99 patients have recovered.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The number of coronavirus tests conducted in Russia daily increased to 90,000 now from just 2,000 a month ago, the country's chief public health official, Anna Popova, said on Tuesday.
"Over the past month, we have increased daily tests for the presence of coronavirus in humans to almost 90,000 today from 2,000 a month ago", Popova told the Channel One.
Russia is one of the world's leaders in the absolute number of tests and in terms of tests per 100,000 people, she said.
NEW YORK (Sputnik) - The US state of New Jersey reported 365 deaths due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) over the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 2,805, Governor Phil Murphy said in a press briefing on Tuesday.
"We must also sadly note that another 365 blessing souls have been lost due to COVID-19 related complications and the overall toll of this pandemic on our state in terms of loss of life is now 2,805 lost brothers and sisters of our New Jersey family", Murphy said.
The governor also said that there are 4,095 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases, whole noting that the total number of the New Jersey residents who have contracted the virus is 68,824.
New Jersey comes second in the United States in terms of the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases after neighbouring New York State with 202,208 confirmed cases.
PARIS (Sputnik) - The number of coronavirus cases reported in France has passed 100,000, the top French health official said on Tuesday.
"As of this evening, we have passed the 100,000 mark in terms of test-confirmed coronavirus cases", Jerome Salomon told reporters.
France now has 103,573 confirmed cases, with 5,497 new infections recorded in the past 24 hours.
The death toll is 15,729, of them 10,129 were hospital patients. The number of people who died in hospitals in the past day is 559.
President Emmanuel Macron extended the nationwide lockdown on Monday until May 11. Restrictions on public life went into effect on 17 March in a bid to limit the spread of the deadly coronavirus.
The number of COVID-19 infections in Turkey has grown by over 4,062 cases to a total of 65,111, while the death toll stands at 1,403, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said.
According to the minister, 4,799 Turkish patients with COVID-19 have recovered.
"We have registered 602 new deaths", Angelo Borrelli, the head of the civil protection agency, said at a press conference.
This brings the death toll to 21,067. The total number of infected now stands at 104,291, he added.
"The number of patients in intensive care units continues to decline. Today they are 74 fewer than yesterday", Borrelli continued.
TORONTO (Sputnik) - The number of Canadians confirmed to have contracted the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has increased to 26,163, while the virus-related death toll rose to 823, updated data from the Public Health Agency of Canada revealed on Tuesday.
Long-term care facilities remain the biggest area of concern, with dozens of reported outbreaks in care homes across the country. Officials have warned that the disconcerting picture in these facilities could give rise to projected death rates.
The province of Quebec continues to have the largest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Canada - 13,557 - and 360 deaths related to the disease.
According to projections from Canada’s Public Health Agency, 11,000 to 22,000 deaths are expected over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, at an infection rate of 2.5 to 5 percent of the total population. Data also revealed that up to 31,850 confirmed cases of COVID-19 are expected by 16 April.
2/ The District reported 15 additional COVID-19 related deaths:
— Mayor Muriel Bowser #StayHomeDC (@MayorBowser) April 14, 2020
31- male
37-male
51- male
51- male
58- male
62- male
67- male
77- male
79- male
81- female
81- female
82- male
83- female
87- female
93- female
67 District residents have lost their lives due to COVID-19. pic.twitter.com/PQpNRgsSb5
UPDATE: The @MDHealthDept is now reporting 9,472 confirmed cases of #COVIDー19 in Maryland.
— Kata D. Hall (@katadhall) April 14, 2020
We have added 536 cases since yesterday.
Negative tests: 44,261
Number of deaths: 302
Hospitalizations: 2,122 ever hospitalized
Released from isolation: 607https://t.co/1RfN0kNmTz
The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Portugal has risen by 514 to reach nearly 17,500 while 32 people died, taking the death toll to 567 people, the country’s Health Ministry said.
The north of the country, the city of Porto and its surrounding region, remains the most heavily affected with upward of 10,000 confirmed cases and 321 deaths.
At the same time, 70 additional people were discharged with recovery, making the total of those recovered nearly 350.
Earlier in the day, Interior Minister Eduardo Cabrita announced the border crossing with Spain will remain closed until at least 15 May.
"The Holy See, following the communiquе of 3 April, extends all the measures taken to date to deal with the COVID-19 health emergency until 3 May inclusive", the press office said.
The Vatican imposed emergency measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 on 10 March. In particular, the world-famous Vatican Museums, papal basilicas, archaeological sites and St. Peter's Basilica are closed for tourists.
The Vatican has so far confirmed eight cases of COVID-19. The Vatican and other European microstates, namely San Marino and Andorra, have the highest number of coronavirus cases per capita worldwide.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The coronavirus can be transmitted from person to person at a distance of up to four metres (13 feet), Chief Epidemiologist at Russia's Ministry of Health Nikolai Briko said Tuesday.
According to him, it has been confirmed by a recent study from the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
"It can be transmitted. Today there is new information - CDC experts conducted such studies for the World Health Organisation that it can be transmitted up to four metres. An infected person can transmit the virus at the distance of four metres", Briko said in a televised interview with Rossiya-24.
"The pandemic may not recede in the second half of this year, leading to a lingering containment period, worsening financial conditions and further breakdowns in global supply chains. In such cases, global GDP will fall even further by an additional 3 percent in 2020", International Monetary Fund Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said. "And if the health crisis rolls over into 2021, it can reduce level of global GDP by an additional 8 percent compared to the baseline".
The IMF said in its latest World Economic Outlook on Tuesday that Global economic growth is expected to slow by more than 6 percent to reach -3.0 percent in 2020 as a result of the new coronavirus pandemic.
GDP is projected to rebound to 5.8 percent next year if the pandemic is over in the second half of the 2020.
GENOA (Sputnik) - Italy penalised more than 40,000 people over the long three-day Easter "weekend" for violating quarantine measures related to the COVID-19 emergency, according to Tuesday's Interior Ministry statistics.
On Monday, 13 April, on the so-called "Pasquetta", the day after Easter, which is a state holiday in Italy and is traditionally a barbecue day for Italians, sanctions were applied to a record number of people (16,545), the Interior Ministry's daily report for 14 April says.
NEW DELHI (Sputnik) - Pakistan extended on Tuesday a nationwide lockdown for two more weeks but eased some of restrictions on public life, media reported.
The decision was approved by the federal cabinet and the national coordination committee and confirmed by Prime Minister Imran Khan, the Samaa television channel said.
The prime minister's adviser on information, Firdous Ashiq Awan, said the government would loosen restrictions to minimize the impact of the health crisis on the economy.
"It was felt that the restrictions need to be extended but certain relaxations related to low-risk economic activities should also be considered", she tweeted.
Rules will be relaxed for industrial and commercial entities that are part of the food and medicine supply chain, as well as construction, pharmaceutical, agriculture, and some other firms.
"It was mutually decided that all the industries, services and retail of all essential items shall continue to operate", she said.
Transport of all goods across the country will continue but restrictions on travel between the provinces will stay in place.
Schools, movie theatres and restaurants will remain closed, but provincial authorities can decide whether to allow street vendors, plumbers, electricians, carpenters and tailors to work.
"I wouldn't do it," says @NYGovCuomo, if Pres Trump ordered economic opening that Cuomo thought was contrary to public health. Says it would lead to Constitutional challenge to Pres Trump's authority. "And that would be the worst possible thing he could do," Gov tells @CNN.
— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) April 14, 2020
STOCKHOLM (Sputnik) - Sweden’s coronavirus death toll rose by 114 to 1,033 on Tuesday, with nearly 11,500 people infected so far, according to the health authorities' numbers.
Sweden stood out from its European neighbours for abstaining from taking drastic measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
"The number of infected in Sweden has reached 11,445 people. 1,033 have died", chief epidemiologist Anders Tegnell said.
The high death rate is a result of the coronavirus infecting an elderly home in the capital city Stockholm, he added.
Tegnell, who is leading the country’s coronavirus strategy, brushed off criticism of the Public Health Agency from leading Swedish scientists.
BRUSSELS (Sputnik) - An additional 262 people have died in Belgium over the past 24 hours due to complications related to COVID-19, raising the overall death toll in the country to 4,157, the national coronavirus response centre said on Tuesday.
The previous situation report indicated that there were 30,589 coronavirus cases and 3,903 related fatalities.
Belgium's health authorities said that 530 new cases of the disease were registered over the preceding 24 hours, taking the total number of cases in the country to 31,119.
A total of 5,536 COVID-19 patients remain in hospitals across the country, and 1,223 of them are currently in intensive care units.
"To allocate, in 2020, from the Russian Federation government's reserve fund budget assignations in the amount of 3,139 million rubles to federal executive agencies ... for ensuring incentive rewards ... to medical staffers providing medical assistance to coronavirus patients", the decree of Prime Minister Mishustin read.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - China has delivered more than 20 tonnes of humanitarian aid to Moscow to help the Russian capital in its fight against the coronavirus outbreak, the press service of Moscow's Department for External Economic and International Relations said on Tuesday.
"A total of 23 tonnes of humanitarian aid were delivered to Moscow from the People's Republic of China to fight the COVID-19 epidemic. The humanitarian cargo was provided by the province of Heilongjiang on a free basis", the press service said in a statement.
According to authorities in Moscow, the cargo includes over 220,000 face masks, over 100,000 medical gloves, 2,500 protective suits, 5,000 tests for COVID-19, and other equipment for medical facilities.
Moreover, a group of Chinese doctors has arrived in Moscow to share their experience in treating COVID-19 patients.
Russia has so far confirmed a total of 21,102 COVID-19 cases and 170 related fatalities. Meanwhile, the total number of recoveries has reached 1,694. The largest number of cases, 13,002, has been registered in Moscow, which is Russia's most populated city.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday said that it was inadmissible to criticise China for the coronavirus pandemic and to call on the country to provide any compensation, stressing China's readiness to share its experience.
The coronavirus outbreak began in China's Wuhan back in December and has since then spread to over 200 countries, with the global number of confirmed cases nearing 2 million.
"We see it, we hear it. This is sad, since our Chinese friends, who have overcome the peak of the epidemic in their country, who are now resuming the normal operation of their economy, are not retiring into their own shell. They aim to help other countries, they share their experience", Lavrov told reporters.
He added claims that China should "pay everyone" were inadmissible, as well as claims about its failure to timely inform other countries on the outbreak.
"I have heard that someone in London has already counted that China owes 3 trillion and 700 billion dollars or euros to the European Union for the damage done by the pandemic. Some people even say Chinese property abroad should be seized if China does not pay compensation. Such claims make my hair stand up on the back of my neck", Lavrov went on to say.
The Russian foreign minister noted that western officials were among those making such claims.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - A total of 180 government officials, businesses, and activists from across Europe have signed a letter calling for a "greencovery" — using eco-friendly policies for economic recovery from the crisis caused by the global coronavirus pandemic.
"We call on a global alliance of cross-party political decision-makers, business and financial leaders, trade unions, NGOs, think tankers, stakeholders, to support and implement the establishment of Green Recovery Investment Packages acting as accelerators of the transition towards climate neutrality and healthy ecosystems", a letter co-signed by government ministers, CEOs, and activists said.
According to the letter, a global transition to a climate-neutral economy and the protection of biodiversity has the potential to quickly create jobs and increase economic growth.
The campaign for a "greencovery" was initiated by Pascal Canfin, the chair of the Environment Committee of the European Parliament.
"We are launching today at my initiative the European alliance for a green recovery with 180 ministers, MEPs, CEOs, NGOs, & Trade Unions. We will come out of this historic crisis stronger", Canfin tweeted.
The letter was signed, among others, by Italian Environment Minister Sergio Costa, French Ecology Minister Elisabeth Borne, Microsoft President Brad Smith, IKEA CEO Jesper Brodin, and Jean-Dominique Senard, the chairman of Renault’s board of directors.
Foreign Secretary Domonic Raab will announce that quarantine measures are to stay in place at least until the 7th of May, according to The Times.
The secretary, who is deputising for UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson during his recovery from coronavirus, previously stated there are positive signs, but warned that the peak of the pandemic in the country is still ahead.
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The daily number of coronavirus-related deaths in the United States has decreased for a fourth straight day, with 1,509 people having died over the past 24 hours, according to John Hopkins University.
Last Friday, the daily death toll from the disease exceeded 2,100 and this number has been declining ever since.
The coronavirus outbreak has so far killed more than 23,600 people in the United States, the highest number of fatalities among all countries.
A total of 582,580 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in the US, which is also the highest number of infections in the world, according to the university data.
"In order to strictly implement social distancing and curb the spread of the coronavirus, airlines are not allowed to sell tickets for flights from 16 April", Vietnam's civil aviation authority (CAAV) said in a statement.
Thailand has confirmed a total of 2,613 cases and 41 death, while 1,405 patients have recovered from the virus.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - A further 44 new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Australia, raising the overall total in the country to 6,366 since the start of the outbreak, the national Department of Health reported on Tuesday.
Health authorities in Australia have reported no new deaths, meaning that the death toll still stands at 61.
On Tuesday morning, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that it was too early to start lifting social distancing measures enforced to slow the spread of the outbreak.
"If you take your eyes off this thing, and it gets away from you, it writes its own rules. So we do need to understand what the prerequisites are and the things we have to achieve before we can start to ease some of those restrictions", Morrison said, adding that the government will meet on Thursday to discuss what needs to be done before lifting social distancing measures.
India's nationwide lockdown will be extended until 3 May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said. The current 21-day lockdown was set to end at midnight Tuesday.
According to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government will issue detailed lockdown guidelines on 15 April.
"From the economic angle, we have paid a big price. But the lives of the people of India are far more valuable", the prime minister explained.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a Tuesday speech noted that the country has been proactive in screening all incoming passengers from coronavirus-affected countries ever since the first case was registered in India, and had announced a 21-day lockdown when there were only 500 cases.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - New Zealand has extended its coronavirus disease-related state of emergency for a further seven days, the National Emergency Management Agency announced on Tuesday.
"The State of National Emergency to support the COVID-19 response will be extended a third time, for a further seven days", the agency wrote on Twitter.
A state of emergency in the country was first declared on 25 March for a one-week period. The emergency measures were thereafter extended twice.
Earlier in the day, New Zealand Director General of Health Ashley Bloomfield announced that 17 new confirmed or probable cases of COVID-19 had been reported in the preceding 24 hours, raising the total number of cases registered since the start of the outbreak to 1,366.
A total of nine people have died in New Zealand after contracting the disease, including four deaths in the previous 24 hours.
