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This week the US declared its first coronavirus "containment zone" in New Rochelle, a city in Westchester County, New York state. So far, the state has reported 325 cases, the most in the US, and 148 of them are in Westchester County.

Shares of Google parent Alphabet Inc closed up more than 9% after U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday the search giant would create a website to help determine whether individuals need a coronavirus test or not. “I want to thank Google. Google is helping to develop a website, it’s gonna be very quickly done, unlike websites of the past, to determine whether a test is warranted and to facilitate testing at a nearby convenient location…,” Trump said. “Google has 1,700 engineers working on this right now, made tremendous progress.” Vice President Mike Pence said the launch date of the...

The coronavirus is not as bad as the seasonal flu. President Donald Trump is not worried about having had a direct exposure to the virus. The United States is in far better shape than other countries. Those are some of the messages from Trump to the American public in recent days. They are textbook examples of disastrous communication during disease outbreaks, according to some researchers into the psychology of pandemics and how leaders can most effectively communicate to keep the public safe during them. Trump is known for his informal style in attempts to, for instance, calm markets amid trade...

Making emergency supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2020, and for other purposes.

Yesterday's thread is here: http://freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3823939/posts?page=1301

California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a sweeping executive order allowing the state to commandeer hotels and medical facilities to treat coronavirus patients as cases surged across the state. . . . It came just hours after Newsom signed a directive calling for all gatherings of more than 250 people to be cancelled until April

There is no doubt that the Coronavirus/Wuhan Virus/Wutang Clan virus or whatever you want or allowed by our media betters to call it, poses a real threat. It will spread, people will manifest symptoms and some will die. As of now, by and large, those who are dying, as with most outbreaks, are the most vulnerable amongst us. That could change and this could be the equivalent of the zombie apocalypse. It can be additionally stated with some certainty, that the Coronavirus has been an emerging issue since November of 2019. Many here and some in the media (named Tucker)...

For once, the conversation over closing the US-Mexico border is being driven b Mexican health officials who say they are considering shutting out Americans to keep coronavirus out of their country. There are currently more than 2,000 cases of the virus in the US and it is spreading rapidly. Forty-three people have died from it. By contrast in Mexico, there have only been 16 confirmed cases and no deaths. At a press conference on Friday, health minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell said: 'Mexico wouldn't bring the virus to the United States, rather the United States would bring it here. 'The possible flow...

President Donald Trump declared a national emergency on Friday, the most significant move yet by the U.S. government to head off the coronavirus outbreak. Trump’s declaration came as many public and private institutions have taken action — including canceling major events, temporarily banning large gatherings, closing schools and telling people to work from home — in an effort to slow the spread of the virus. The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled, soared, and then closed with a gain of 1,900 points after the emergency declaration. Wall Street had reeled Thursday afternoon after coronavirus fears drove the markets to their worst...

Ohio health officials announced Thursday that the state has five known cases of the coronavirus, but one expert said that the number is likely much higher and estimated 100,000 undiagnosed cases...Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, tweeted her comment to his followers, warning the state’s 11.7 million residents that about 1 % are infected...His office said the state expects cases to double every six days, News 5 Cleveland reported.

America has failed to meet the capacity for coronavirus testing that it needs, a top public health official publicly acknowledged Thursday. "The system is not really geared to what we need right now," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in a House hearing about coronavirus test kits in the United States, which were initially dogged by technical glitches. "That is a failing. Let's admit it." Fauci was responding to a question from Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Florida, who asked about a claim by trade organization National Nurses United alleging that "countless" health...

Amid the first signs that the novel coronavirus was spreading in the Seattle area, a senior officer at the University of Washington Medical Center sent an urgent note to staffers. “We are currently exceptionally full and are experiencing some challenges with staffing,” Tom Staiger, UW Medical Center’s medical director, wrote on Feb. 29. He asked hospital staff to “expedite appropriate discharges asap,” reflecting the need for more beds. That same day, health officials announced King County’s — and the nation’s — first death from the coronavirus. Now as cases of virus-stricken patients suffering from COVID-19 multiply, government and hospital officials...

Mild symptoms, a very weak runny nose, a slight fever, no headache, no cough, and very mild and isolated muscle aches. I work as a shuttle driver at the DFW airport. My two possible exposures could be a group of 14 elderly Japanese tourists returning from Costa Rica two weeks ago and staying the night before their departure back to Japan or an American caucasian couple in their 60's and live in the DFW area and had a 40 day cruise in the South Pacific and stated about 1/3 of the passengers were Chinese and that was last friday.

Yesterday the World Health Organization officially declared Covid-19 a pandemic (like we didn’t already know this.) As well, President Trump addressed the nation, closing American borders to all flights from Europe and announcing some ways he intends to help the people of the United States financially. In unofficial terms, this is sh#t getting real. Things are going to get worse – possibly much worse – before they get better. Illness completely aside, this will cause financial problems that many folks will feel for years after the pandemic is over. The biggest question people are asking now is, “When?” When will...

Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said cases in 30 or more states were linked to cases in Europe. During a House Oversight Committee hearing Thursday discussing the coronavirus response, Redfield said the "real risk in general right now, and this is why the President took the action he did last night, within the world now, over 70% of the new cases are linked to Europe. In the United States … 30 states or more were linked actually to cases in Europe." Redfield reiterated, “Europe is the new China.” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director...

Since the first case of coronavirus on 1st December 2019, there have been over 100,000 cases of the disease worldwide, in over 65 countries. Despite the extreme measures taken to try and reduce the spread, the WHO has been careful not to call it a pandemic at this stage. You may remember previous pandemics that have occurred over the last decade or more, including swine flu, bird flu, and SARS, but it can be hard to figure out how coronavirus compares. Take a look at our guide below to see how coronavirus compares to these outbreaks and historical pandemics that...

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, wife to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, has tested positive for the new coronavirus. In a statement Thursday night, Trudeau’s office said: “Following medical recommendations, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau was tested for COVID-19 today. The test came back positive.” The statement says she will remain in isolation.

The two big stories these days are the COVID-19 outbreak and the Democrat presidential primaries. The former is filled with the media’s apocalyptic hysteria about a disease that for now is less deadly than the yearly flu. The latter’s drama comes from the DNC’s and Democrat big donors’ success in neutralizing Bernie Sanders’ candidacy and all but ensuring that an addled mediocrity ends up being the Dems’ presidential candidate in November. The Democrat primaries, however, are in large part a manifestation of the political virus that has infected the body politic for over three years, and that in the long...

President Trump says a domestic travel ban within the United States is “a possibility” to fight the spread of the coronavirus from Wuhan, China. While answering questions at the White House on Thursday, Trump said he was not ruling out a plan to implement a domestic travel ban to stop state-to-state transmissions of the coronavirus. The exchange went as follows: REPORTER: Are you considering travel restrictions within the United States, such as to Washington State or California? [Emphasis added] TRUMP: We haven’t discussed that yet. Is it a possibility? Yes. If somebody gets a little bit out of control, if...

RUSH: I’m always interested in people’s reaction to this program. I think I have a lot of empathy, and I think one of the reasons why the relationship you and I have is good is ’cause I know how you hear this show. That, I think, is a key ingredient. It’s called empathy. I know how you hear it. So when I check emails and get questions from people, usually I’m not surprised, and I’m not surprised that I got beaucoup number of questions: “Rush, you don’t sound panicked over any of this. The last two days, you don’t sound...