INDIANAPOLIS (TEGNA) — The latest developments on the coronavirus outbreak Wednesday:
Key updates:
- The U.S. has now reached 1,000 cases, according to an Associated Press tally.
- San Jose International Airport says three TSA agents have tested positive.
- Washington state governor Jay Inslee is expected to announce a ban on gatherings of more than 250 people in the Seattle-metro area.
- Wall Street futures for Wednesday are down about 2%.
- Coronavirus has now reached more than half the world's countries.
Canada to spend $730 million to fight virus
Canada is announcing $1 billion ($730 million) in funding to help health-care workers cope with the increasing number of new cases and to help Canadian workers who are forced to isolate themselves.
The money will help buy masks and other supplies for health-care workers as well as funding research for a vaccine.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he is also loosening restrictions on employment insurance payments for people who are off work due to illness by waiving the waiting period for benefits. Trudeau says Canada has been fortunate so far. Canada had 93 confirmed cases and one death as of Wednesday morning.
Stocks open sharply lower on Wall Street; Dow off 580 points
Stokcs are opening sharply lower on Wall Street as fears of economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak grip markets again.
Major indexes are off more than 2% in early trading Wednesday, taking 580 points off the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
European indexes were up slightly. The Bank of England cut its key interest rate as an emergency measure in response to the outbreak of the virus, following similar moves by central banks in the U.S. and Canada.
The European Central Bank is likely to offer support on Thursday. Countries are shifting into damage-control as infections spread, prompting sweeping controls on travel and other public activities.
Tokyo Olympic head shoots down comments about delaying games
The president of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee says he has received an apology from a board member who said the Olympics should be delayed a year to two because of the coronavirus.
Yoshiro Mori called a news conference to shoot down the comments. He says “there is no plan now to change our plans.” He was replying to comments form Haruyuki Takahashi reported in the Wall Street Journal. Mori says "I have spoken to Mr. Takahashi and he has apologized."
Mori said Takahashi was speaking for himself. The Tokyo Olympics are being threatened by the spreading coronavirus. Organizers and the IOC have repeatedly said the games will open on July 24 as planned.
Harvard among college campuses emptying out
Colleges nationwide are shutting down campuses with plans to continue instruction online, leaving some students distressed over where to go and professors puzzled over how to run higher education in the time of coronavirus.
Dozens of colleges have canceled in-person classes temporarily for the balance of the semester.
Harvard undergraduates were told Tuesday to leave campus by Sunday and stay home until the end of the semester. The Associated Press reports the abrupt order drew outrage from students who are also juggling midterm exams, senior projects and daily classes.
With more campuses canceling classes by the day, the potential impact looms large into the spring for final exams, new student tours and graduation ceremonies.
3 TSA screeners test positive for coronavirus in San Jose
Three Transportation Security Administration screeners at San Jose International Airport in California have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to multiple reports.
The Department of Homeland Security reportedly said the officers are receiving medical care and all employees who came in contact with them over the past 14 days are quarantined at home.
U.S. reaches 1,000 cases; Italy reaches 10,000
The U.S. caseload has reached 1,000 according to the Associated Press and outbreaks on both sides of the country are stirring alarm. Dozens of cases are being tied to a conference in Boston.
Italy has reached more than 10,000 infections and the death toll has risen to 631, mainly among among its aging population. Police there are enforcing rules that customers at businesses stay 3 feet apart.
Sunday Democratic debate to have no audience
The Democratic presidential debate Sunday in Phoenix between Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders will not have an audience, Democratic National Committee Chair Tom Perez has announced.
There will also be no media, CNN said in a statement. The spin room and press filing center are being eliminated "at the request of the campaigns and out of an abundance of caution."
More than 250 passengers from Grand Princess cruise ship arrive in Georgia
More than 250 passengers who were on the Grand Princess cruise ship off of California arrived at Dobbins Air Reserve Base early Wednesday morning.
The passengers will be quarantined at the base for 14 days after being possibly exposed to the novel coronavirus on the cruise ship.
More than 3,000 people were kept on-board the ship, which was not permitted to dock in California after 21 people tested positive for coronavirus.
Washington state to ban large gatherings in Seattle area
Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee will announce social distancing plans and new community strategies for Washington residents on Wednesday due to the coronavirus outbreak.
A source confirms to KING 5 News that Inslee will ban gatherings and events of more than 250 people in virtually the entire Seattle metro area to try to contain the coronavirus outbreak.
The source who spoke anonymously about the decision said the ban would apply to King, Pierce and Snohomish counties, which are home to almost 4 million people. The person said the order would not prohibit the operation of workplaces and is not expected to include school closures.
Santa Clara County in California, home to San Jose and Silicon Valley, on Monday had banned all gatherings of 1,000 people or more.
At least 24 people have died in Washington state from COVID-19, most in the Seattle metro area. There are more than 260 confirmed cases in the state, most in the three counties that would be affected by Inslee’s new order.
Wall Street futures show big drop at Wednesday's open
After gains of nearly 5% on Tuesday, the three major indices look to drop significantly at the open Wednesday.
As of 12:50 a.m. ET, The Dow Jones is set to open down 1.88%. The S%P is predicted to drop 2.05% and the Nasdaq is set to drop 1.92%.
Benchmarks in Japan, Australia and South Korea fell Wednesday, while those in China edged higher. In Asia, governments have announced billions of dollars worth of subsidies, tax breaks and emergency loans as stopgap measures.
Lawmakers resist Trump's payroll tax cut
President Donald Trump has pitched his proposed payroll tax break on Capitol Hill as pressure mounts on the administration and Congress to work more vigorously to contain the coronavirus outbreak and respond to the financial fallout.
Trump's economic team joined Tuesday in presenting the economic stimulus package privately to wary Senate Republicans. They've been cool to additional spending at this stage.
Democrats are preparing their own package of low-cost virus testing, unemployment insurance and sick pay for workers struggling to keep paychecks coming as the outbreak disrupts workplaces.
Coronavirus now in more than half of world's countries
Turkey has announced its first case of the new coronavirus.
Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said early Wednesday the case was a male patient who had returned from Europe. He would not provide more details on the patient, or say which country he had traveled to, citing the patient's right to privacy.
Koca said the patient was isolated and his family members and other people who had come into contact with him had been quarantined.
More than half the countries in the world now have confirmed cases of the coronavirus, which for most people causes mild illness.
