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Teachers unions sued Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida over his emergency order pushing schools to fully reopen next month.
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New York City entered a limited fourth phase of reopening, with many indoor activities, like restaurant dining, still off limits.
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India recorded at least 40,000 new cases, a single-day record for the nation.
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Get the latest updates here, as well as maps and trackers for U.S. metro areas and vaccines in development.
New hope in the fight against the virus
More than four months into the pandemic, there are promising developments in the two areas that the world is betting on to halt the spread of the coronavirus: vaccines and treatments.
Two studies published today offer the most encouraging news yet on the vaccine front: A candidate from Oxford University and another from the Chinese company CanSino have produced immune responses in hundreds of people without causing dangerous side effects. (A third potential vaccine, from Moderna, has also elicited immune responses.)
Several Phase III trials, including one in the U.S. with 30,000 participants, are slated to begin soon, but the timeline for the vaccines’ results is uncertain.
The British biotech company Synairgen also made waves today with trial results for an inhaled version of a commonly available drug — interferon beta — that it said reduced the odds of Covid-19 patients becoming severely ill by 79 percent. But the study, which only involved 101 people and has not yet been peer reviewed or published, prompted calls for more details from scientists.
Unfortunately, it’s not all good news. Researchers in South Korea examined the extent to which children can be vectors of the virus, and their results did not inspire hope for seamless school reopenings this fall.
In a study involving nearly 65,000 people, the scientists found that, while children under 10 pass on the virus much less often than adults do, those 10 to 19 years old can spread the virus at least as well as adults.
Wrangling over the next stimulus bill
Top Republicans in Congress met today with President Trump in an attempt to reach an agreement about what should be in the next stimulus bill.
Over the weekend, the Trump administration tried to block billions of dollars that the Republicans had included in their draft proposal, including money for testing and tracing, and funding federal health agencies like the C.D.C. The move infuriated Senate Republicans, who are gearing up for what looks to be a grueling fight with the Democrats over the next round of relief.
The two parties don’t agree on many critical issues that need to be resolved by the end of the month, including expanded unemployment benefits that expire July 31 and money for schools.
The Democrats’ proposal would send aid to state and local governments and provide another round of $1,200 stimulus checks. The Republican opening bid, to be revealed in the coming days, is expected to include funding incentives for schools to reopen in the fall, liability protections for schools and businesses, another round of stimulus checks, and possibly a payroll tax cut that Mr. Trump has long sought.
What went wrong
Despite having weeks to prepare for the coronavirus after it first surfaced in China, the United States and Europe made serious errors in their early responses. Two reports from The Times suggest why.
In the United States, the White House embraced overly rosy projections in order to proclaim victory over the virus and reopen the economy. The Trump administration also tried to shift responsibility to the states in an attempt to escape blame for the crisis. It was, our reporters wrote, “perhaps one of the greatest failures of presidential leadership in generations.”
In Europe, overconfidence led to the downfall. European leaders overestimated the strength of their world-class health systems, which had been weakened by a decade of cuts; officials in some countries ignored national pandemic planning; and national stockpiles of medical supplies were revealed to exist mostly on paper only.
Resurgences
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Chicago is rolling back its reopening. Starting Friday, bars won’t be able to serve alcohol indoors, personal services that require removing masks will be banned, and indoor fitness classes will be limited to 10 people.
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More than 15,500 Indigenous people in Brazil have tested positive for the virus. They may have been exposed to it by the government health workers who were sent to protect them.
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In Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city, masks will be required whenever people leave home starting Wednesday. A violation could result in a fine.
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In Nicaragua, dozens of fiercely loyal members of the ruling Sandinista party, including mayors, judges and police officials, have died over the past two months — all thought to be victims of the virus.
Here’s a roundup of restrictions in all 50 states.
What else we’re following
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In the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, hospitals treating coronavirus patients are filling up. At times, there are dozens of ambulances lined up outside waiting for beds to become available.
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President Trump said that he planned to revive the daily virus briefing, beginning as soon as tomorrow.
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Six million Americans signed up for food stamps in the first three months of the pandemic — an expansion that is likely to continue.
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Janitors across the country say they have not been given enough resources, time or training to effectively fight the pathogen. Some are being asked to work with dirty rags, and without bleach.
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For months, residents at the Villages, one of America’s biggest retirement communities, appeared to have escaped the worst of the pandemic. But as cases spike across Florida, the virus appears to have caught up with them.
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A Times video investigation has found that Chinese companies are using a labor program that experts say puts members of the Uighur minority to work against their will in order to make personal protective equipment.
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Major League Baseball starts its season this week, without fans in the stadiums. But in four American cities, professional baseball has already returned.
What you’re doing
After being cooped up for a couple of months, my husband bought me a couple of hummingbird feeders, which we installed on patios that are easily visible. Who would have thought these little birds would be so entertaining? They are highly territorial and are constantly chasing each other off the feeders, doing aerial acrobatics that the Blue Angels would envy.
— Rosie Heil, Oakland, Calif.
Let us know how you’re dealing with the outbreak. Send us a response here, and we may feature it in an upcoming newsletter.
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