Coronavirus US live: Georgia rushes to reopen as US cases near one million

The former first lady and US secretary of state weighed in on the Donald Trump’s incoherent suggestions that sunlight, UV rays and disinfectants could be used to treat patients battling the coronavirus.

The president’s remarks appear to be derived from Department of Homeland Security’s William Bryan, who said at Thursday’s White House briefing that researchers see “emerging results” suggesting solar light has a powerful effect in killing the virus on surfaces and in the air, not humans.

The president tweeted:

Ecuador had been hit hard by the coronavirus with more than 11,000 confirmed cases. The virus had been confirmed as the cause of 560 deaths, and more are suspected.

Interior minister María Paula Romo told The Guardian the true number was probably much higher, saying “the number of deaths is totally out of the ordinary”.

The US is struggling as well, despite Trump’s commitment to sending supplies to the embattled South American nation, the US is currently experiencing a shortage of ventilators, masks and other supplies as experts estimate the US is behind daily testing targets by the millions.

A new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found one-in-every-four American adults say someone in their household has lost a job to the coronavirus pandemic.

From the AP:

Forty-six percent of all Americans say their household has experienced some form of income loss from layoffs, reduced hours, unpaid leave or salary reductions.

Still, Americans remain mostly optimistic about the economy.

The AP reported 71 percent of Americans describe the national economy as poor, up from 60 percent three weeks ago and 33 percent in January. More than 60 percent called their personal financial situation good, largely unchanged since before the virus outbreak began.

The country is split on whether the economy will rebound over the next year, however. Forty-five percent of respondents expected the economy to improve, while 37 percent say it will worsen.

Just 17 percent expect it to stay the same.

The Environmental Protection Agency is reminding people to only use disinfectant on surfaces, issuing an update after Donald Trump suggested it might be helpful to inject disinfectant to combat the coronavirus.

The EPA says: “Never apply the product to yourself or others. Do not ingest disinfectant products.”

Reckitt Benckiser, which manufactures Lysol and Dettol, also put out a statement discouraging unintended use.

“As a global leader in health and hygiene products, we must be clear that under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion or any other route).”

The company added it had a “responsibility in providing consumers with access to accurate, up-to-date information as advised by leading public health experts.”

William Bryan of the Department of Homeland Security said at a White House briefing on Thursday “emerging results” from new research suggest solar light has a powerful effect in killing the virus on surfaces and in the air.

But he said there was no consideration of internal use of disinfectants. Trump’s hypothesis drew a flood of comments on Twitter.

Good morning, US blog readers, it’s Friday but that’s not going to slow the news cycle, so stay tuned for up-to-the-minute developments.

The state of Georgia is first to venture out from effective coronavirus lockdown this morning, allowing a host of businesses to reopen despite warnings against the move from public health officials, city mayors and even the president (who had earlier encouraged Georgia and other states to reopen).

This as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US comes close to a million and the official number of deaths is poised to reach 50,000. The unofficial totals of both cases and deaths are likely to be much higher, public health officials believe, especially in New York, the center of the US outbreak.

At 12pm Donald Trump will sign the latest rescue package bill passed by the House yesterday that provides a further $484bn in funds for small businesses, as well as hospitals and the sorely-needed ramping up of coronavirus testing.

The manufacturer of the popular home disinfectant brands Lysol and Dettol – Reckitt Benckiser – warned people against using disinfectants to treat the coronavirus, after Donald Trump suggested at the White House briefing last night that researchers try putting disinfectants into patients’ bodies. Experts immediately went public warning of the dangers.

“Under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion or any other route),” the company said.

And presumptive Democratic 2020 nominee Joe Biden said at a fundraiser last night that he believes Trump is going to try to delay the November presidential election, in order to offset the damage to his chances of re-election amid a tanked economy, following a botched response the outbreak of the pandemic.