The latest on the coronavirus pandemic around the U.S. and the world.

NEW YORK — President Trump has long been fond of crafting his own version of the facts. But when he said “if we stop testing right now we’d have very few cases” of coronavirus, he may have written a new line of attack for critics who question his commitment to following the science.

His statement overlooks other important measures of the ongoing coronavirus threat, including hospitalizations and deaths.

Trump’s comment Monday was part of a broader administration effort to play down the pandemic, a push that public health experts and Democratic officials worry is sending a dangerous message to the American public as some parts of the country have seen a surge in cases in recent weeks.

“An ostrich puts his head in the sand because he doesn’t want to see what’s around him,” said Lawrence Gostin, a public health expert at Georgetown University. “It’s the same thing with Trump.”

Last week, the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation published new projections that show COVID-19-related deaths in the U.S. could surpass 200,000 by Oct. 1. The institute said rising rates of infections, hospitalizations and death “are now occurring in the wake of eased or ended distancing policies.”

Trump offered more rosy talk Tuesday, predicting that a vaccine would be available by year’s end and adding that “even without it, it goes away.” He offered that optimistic outlook just one day after he attributed surging positive cases to testing in the United States that is “so much bigger and more advanced than any other country.”

Read the full story on the White House effort to downplay the pandemic here.

U.S. casinos push for cashless gambling payments, citing virus

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — The American casino industry wants gambling regulators to make it easier to adopt cashless payment transactions on the casino floor, citing a desire to help customers avoid handling money during the coronavirus outbreak.

In a report released Tuesday, the American Gaming Association, the gambling industry’s national trade group, called on regulators in states where gambling is allowed to update their rules or laws to integrate cashless options for gamblers.

The push follows an 18-month study of the issue by both commercial and tribal casinos, and equipment suppliers to try to pave the way for cashless transactions on a wider basis.

Currently, a small number of casinos use such payments, which include debit or credit cards, as well as apps like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal. Wider acceptance of these options has long been a goal of the gambling industry.

“Advancing opportunities for digital payments has been one of our top priorities since my first day at the AGA,” said Bill Miller, the gambling group’s president and CEO. “It aligns with gaming’s role as a modern, 21st century industry and bolsters our already rigorous regulatory and responsible gaming measures. The COVID-19 pandemic made it all the more important to advance our efforts to provide customers with the payment choice they are more comfortable with and have increasingly come to expect in their daily lives.”

Health officials say the coronavirus can survive on paper currency, but that risk is low compared to person-to-person spread, which is the main way people get infected. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says using touchless payment methods is a good idea where possible.

So far, there has not been widespread adoption of digital payment options at casinos or other gambling facilities in the U.S. Industry executives say this is due to several factors including limits imposed by state legislators or gambling regulators.

A handful of casinos in Nevada and some tribal casinos across the U.S. have digital options, but the technology is a new concept in many places.

The continued spread of the coronavirus in parts of the country as many casinos reopen after months of being idled due is another reason the industry wants to ramp up cashless payments quickly.

Florida’s virus cases hit another daily record high

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Florida’s confirmed coronavirus cases have risen sharply again and set a daily record weeks after the state began restarting its economy.

The state Department of Health reported 2,783 new confirmed cases on Tuesday, breaking the record of 2,581 new cases set on Friday. The numbers on both days are almost double the previous high of 1,601 set in mid-May.

The state also reported 55 more virus-related deaths for a total of 2,993.

Gov. Ron DeSantis last week said the upward trend in confirmed cases was mostly a reflection of more testing being conducted combined with spikes in some agriculture communities.

But the number of tests performed daily peaked three weeks ago, and the percentage of positive tests is now over 6%, more than double the 2.3% rate in late May.

The governor’s press office did not immediately return a call seeking comment Tuesday on the increase; the Florida health department has not responded to multiple phone and email requests for comment from The Associated Press since Monday.

Canada, U.S. extend border restrictions to July 21

TORONTO — Canada and the US have agreed to extend their agreement to keep their border closed to non-essential travel to July 21 during the coronavirus pandemic.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday’s agreement extends the closure by another 30 days. The restrictions were announced on March 18 and were extended in April and May.

Many Canadians fear a reopening.

Americans who are returning to the U.S. and Canadians who are returning to Canada are exempted from the border closure.

Canada sends 75% of its exports to the U.S. and about 18% of American exports go to Canada. The U.S.-Canada border is world’s longest between two nations.

First drug proves able to improve survival from COVID-19

Researchers in England say they have the first evidence that a drug can improve COVID-19 survival: A cheap, widely available steroid called dexamethasone reduced deaths by up to one third in severely ill hospitalized patients.

Results were announced Tuesday and researchers said they would publish them soon. The study is a large, strict test that randomly assigned 2,104 patients to get the drug and compared them with 4,321 patients getting only usual care.

The drug was given either orally or through an IV. After 28 days, it had reduced deaths by 35% in patients who needed treatment with breathing machines and by 20% in those only needing supplemental oxygen. It did not appear to help less ill patients.

Read the rest of this story here.

Retail sales up a record 17.7% for month, but still down 6 points for year

BALTIMORE — U.S. retail sales jumped by a record 17.7% from April to May, with spending partially rebounding after the coronavirus had shut down businesses, flattened the economy and paralyzed consumers during the previous two months.

The Commerce Department’s report Tuesday showed that retail sales have retraced some of the record-setting month-to-month plunges of March (8.3%) and April (14.7%) as businesses have increasingly reopened. Still, the pandemic’s damage to retail sales remains severe, with purchases still down 6.1% from a year ago.

The virus-induced recession not only diminished spending in most sectors of the economy. It has also accelerated shifts in where people shop and what they buy.

The changes have in many cases intensified the financial strain on traditional physical stores and boosted online purchases. Sales at non-store retailers, which include internet companies like Amazon and eBay, rose 9% in May after posting growth of 9.5% in April. Clothiers achieved a stunning 188% monthly gain, but that was not enough to offset a 63.4% drop over the past 12 months.

Read the rest of this story here.

Children are only half as likely to get infected by the coronavirus, research shows

Children and teenagers are only half as likely to get infected with the coronavirus as people 20 and older, and they usually don’t develop clinical symptoms of covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, according to a study published Tuesday.

The findings could influence policymakers who are facing tough decisions about when and how to reopen schools. Distance learning has been challenging for teachers, students and parents, and there is pressure on officials to restart in-person schooling to free up working-age parents who have been juggling work and child care.

“These results have implications for the likely effectiveness of school closures in mitigating SARS-CoV-2 transmission, in that these might be less effective than for other respiratory infections,” write the authors, based at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

Read the rest of this story here.

Germany says pets with virus must be reported

BERLIN — The German government plans to introduce an obligation that any cases of coronavirus in pets be reported to authorities. It says the move is needed to assist research into the virus.

Agriculture Minister Julia Kloeckner said Tuesday that the plan is for the move to be considered by parliament next month.

Kloeckner said that there will be no obligation for people to test their pets, but it would make sense to do so in certain situations – for example, if a cat living in a household with human coronavirus cases itself shows symptoms. She stressed there’s no evidence so far that pets can transmit COVID-19 to humans.

Germany has about 31 million pets and 83 million people. The head of the country’s animal disease research center said there has only been one known animal case there so far.

Britain will begin experimental immunization

LONDON — Scientists at Imperial College London will start immunizing people in Britain this week with their experimental coronavirus shot, becoming the latest entry into the race to find an effective vaccine to stop the pandemic.

In a statement, the British government said 300 healthy people will be immunized with two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed at Imperial, which has been backed by $51 million in government funding.

So far, the vaccine candidate developed by Imperial College London has only been tested in animals and in the laboratory, where it produced much higher levels of antibodies than would normally be seen in infected people.

Many scientists have warned that the pandemic might only be stopped with an effective vaccine, which typically takes years to develop.

Japan’s central bank ups support for corporate lending

TOKYO — Japan’s central bank echoed the Federal Reserve’s pledge of support for financial markets by beefing up its support for corporate lending. The Bank of Japan ended its policy meeting Tuesday without a change to its minus 0.1% benchmark interest rate and ultra-lax monetary stance.

It did expand its “Special Program,” including purchases of commercial paper and corporate bonds and its lending programs for commercial banks, from 75 trillion yen to 110 trillion yen ($690 billion to $1.02 trillion).

The Bank of Japan said the economy “is likely to remain in a severe situation for the time being due to the impact of COVID-19,” though it expects economic activity to resume gradually.

BOJ Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda told reporters that recovery for the world’s third-largest economy could come in the latter part of the year if the effects of the outbreak are mitigated. He stressed that the central banks board agreed on taking extra action if needed.

Wife of Ukrainian president hospitalized with virus

KYIV, Ukraine — The wife of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been hospitalized with double-sided pneumonia after getting infected with the new coronavirus.

Zelenskiy’s office said in a statement Tuesday that Olena Zelenska’s condition was stable and the president himself and the couple’s children tested negative for the virus on Monday.

Zelenska said she tested positive for the virus on Friday.

Ukraine’s authorities started to gradually ease lockdown restrictions in late May, resuming the operation of public transport, reopening malls and gyms. On Monday, the country’s authorities resumed international flights to several countries.

Finland lifts emergency powers act

HELSINKI — Finland says it has lifted the emergency powers act adopted by the lawmakers in mid-March to tackle the coronavirus crisis.

Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin said the measure to end the state of emergency, effective Tuesday, was taken as the COVID-19 infection rate has slowed down in the Nordic nation.

Marin said there was no need anymore for the exceptional measure act allowing bigger powers for the government and Finland would now gradually return to normal conditions.

She however stressed that “the end of the emergency act does not mean the threat of the epidemic is over” and urged Finns to continue practising social distancing and pay attention to hygiene.

Pakistan sealing off high-risk areas

ISLAMABAD — Authorities in Pakistan are taking action to seal off high-risk areas in the country’s 20 biggest cities after an increase in coronavirus infections.

Pakistan’s National Command and Control Center says raids are being carried out to impose fines and shut markets, industries and shops where social distancing regulations were being violated.

The sealing of high-risk areas began after Pakistan reported a big jump in COVID-19 deaths and a steady increase in infections.

Pakistan put its entire population of 220 million under lockdown from March until last month, when Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government loosened restrictions, saying it was necessary to save the country’s economy.

Critics say the government’s gamble resulted into a sharp increase in infections and deaths.

On Tuesday, Pakistan reported 111 new COVID-19 fatalities. It raised the overall death toll from the virus to 2,839 among 148,921 confirmed cases.

Turkey makes masks mandatory

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey has made the wearing of face masks mandatory in five more provinces, following an uptick in COVID-19 cases.

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted early Tuesday that the wearing of masks was now compulsory in 42 of Turkey’s 81 provinces.

In the remaining provinces, residents are required to wear masks on public transportation and in shops and malls, and are being advised to wear masks and keep to social distancing practices elsewhere.

Koca tweeted: “We cannot struggle against the virus without masks.”

Turkey is seeing an upward trend in the daily number of infections after the government authorized cafes, restaurants, gyms, parks, beaches and museums to reopen, lifted inter-city travel restrictions and eased stay-at-home orders for the elderly and young at the start of June. The daily number of infections climbed to above 1,500 in the past five days after hovering around 800-900 previously.

Africa reaches quarter million cases

JOHANNESBURG — Africa’s coronavirus cases are now above a quarter-million after South Africa registered a series of daily record-high new cases over the weekend.

South Africa further loosened its lockdown measures on June 1, allowing alcohol sales, more business openings and religious gatherings limited to 50 people.

The country has more than a quarter of the cases on the 54-nation African continent with more than 73,000. It saw its highest jump in cases on Sunday with more than 4,300.

South Africa’s struggle to balance measures to slow the spread of the virus and relieve economic pain are common throughout Africa, where the World Health Organization last week said the pandemic is now “accelerating.”

Greek health care workers march demanding more hiring

ATHENS, Greece — Hundreds of health care workers have marched through central Athens demanding the hiring of permanent workers for the health sector, while Greece’s hospital doctors’ union declared a 24-hour strike Tuesday.

The union for state hospital workers also declared a seven-hour work stoppage for the Greek capital and a 24-hour strike for the rest of the country with the same demands.

Greece’s center right government hired hundreds of workers for state hospitals on fixed-term contracts to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. Unions are demanding permanent hires, and for funding for the country’s health care system.

Indian infections swamp health services

NEW DELHI — India recorded another 10,000-plus coronavirus infections as patients swamp health services in its largest cities.

The Health Ministry on Tuesday also reported a 24-hour increase of 380 deaths due to COVID-19, driving the death toll to 9,900.

The 10,667 new cases raise the nation’s total to 343,091, fourth-highest in the world behind the U.S., Brazil and Russia. The actual numbers, like elsewhere in the world, are thought to be far higher due to a number of reasons such as limited testing.

Maharashtra, the western state that is home to Mumbai, India’s financial and entertainment capital, continues to have the highest state toll. Mumbai, Chennai and the capital New Delhi are seeing rising infections swamp their health services.

New Delhi is a growing concern with the federal government criticizing its contact tracing and hospital capacity. The capital has about 10,000 beds dedicated to COVID-19 patients, half of which are already occupied. Hotels and sports stadiums are being considered for use as field hospitals.

New Zealand records first positive test in weeks

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand is no longer free from the new coronavirus after two women who flew from London to see a dying parent tested positive.

The new cases sparked a round of testing for anybody who might have been close to them, including their flight’s fellow passengers and crew, staff members at a hotel and a family member.

The women are isolated and have delayed the funeral of their parent until they have recovered.

New Zealand has counted 22 deaths from COVID-19, and until Tuesday, everyone else among the 1,500 people known to have been infected had recovered.

Phillipine city goes back on lockdown

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine officials have placed a central city back under strict lockdown and retained quarantine restrictions in the capital for another two weeks as coronavirus infections continue to spike alarmingly.

President Rodrigo Duterte approved in a televised meeting Monday night with key Cabinet officials a recommendation to lock down Cebu city anew and retain quarantine restrictions in metropolitan Manila, where many of the nearly 26,500 infections and more than 1,000 deaths have been recorded.

First imposed in mid-March, the COVID-19 restrictions in metropolitan Manila have been among the longest in the world.

“The battle with COVID isn’t over,” Duterte said. “I can’t stop you from going out and I can’t catch all of you … don’t blame us. Do not forget that we warned you about the grave consequences.”

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