World Health Organisation needs $45 billion; Florida bans alcohol at bars as coronavirus cases soar
The World Health Organisation is seeking $45 billion to fight coronavirus, while Florida has banned bar alcohol consumption and Texas shut down bars completely.
Tubers prepare to float the Comal River despite the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in New Braunfels, Texas. Associated Press
World Health Organisation
Experts behind a global push to develop and roll out a vaccine and other treatment for the coronavirus say their ambitions require a big budget.
The WHO and its allies made a pitch for their ACT-Accelerator that aims to get a COVID-19 vaccine and treatment tools to the neediest people around the world, no matter the cost.
They were speaking a day before a European Union conference to drum up support and funds for the initiative that the United States has shunned so far.
Ultimately, WHO and partners say the project needs more than US$31 billion ($45 billion) through the end of 2021, for vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics to fight a disease that has caused more than 9.6 million confirmed cases and killed more than 490,000 people worldwide.
A patron wearing a protective mask leaves The Goat Bar and Grill restaurant in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Associated Press
Florida, USA
Florida has banned alcohol consumption at its bars after its daily confirmed coronavirus cases neared 9000, almost double the previous record set just two days ago.
The Florida agency that governs bars announced the ban on Twitter, minutes after the Department of Health reported 8942 new confirmed cases, topping the previous record of 5500 set Wednesday.
More than 24,000 cases have been reported since Saturday last week, more than a fifth of the 111,724 cases confirmed since March 1. The department had not updated its death total, which still stood at 3327.
Members of Orange County Fire Rescue and volunteers pass out personal protective equipment (PPE) items including disposable face masks, reusable masks and hand sanitiser to small businesses in Orlando, Florida. Associated Press
Texas, USA
Republican Gov. Greg Abbott shut down bars in Texas again today and scaled back restaurant dining, the most dramatic reversals yet as confirmed coronavirus cases surge.
Gov. Abbott also says rafting and tubing outfitters on Texas' popular rivers must close and outdoor gatherings of 100 people or more must be approved by local governments.
Texas has reported more than 17,000 confirmed cases in the last three days with a record high positive tests of 5996 on yesterday.
Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey speaks about the latest coronavirus data at a news conference. Associate Press
Thailand
Authorities in Thailand will decide next week whether to extend a state of emergency imposed to control the spread of COVID-19.
Taweesin Witsanuyothin of the Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration says the agency will consider the issue Monday and the Cabinet would decide Tuesday on its recommendation.
The National Security Council declared Thursday it will recommend the emergency decree be extended at least until July 31. It was first implemented in March and two extensions have kept it in place until the end of June.
The emergency decree allows the government to implement curfews, censor the media and disperse gatherings.
There were four confirmed COVID-19 cases announced today, bringing Thailand's total to 3162 and 58 confirmed deaths.
Funeral home workers wait their turn to pick up a body of a client who died from COVID-19, outside Almenara public hospital in Lima, Peru. Associate Press
Germany
Germany's federal and state governments have agreed that people from coronavirus hotspots will need to provide medical proof they've tested negative if they want to stay in a hotel elsewhere in the country.
German news agency dpa reported today that the medical certificate will need to be no older than 48 hours.
Several, but not all, German states imposed restrictions on people from two counties that have recently seen a spike in COVID-19 cases linked to a slaughterhouse.
Those unilateral decisions prompted fears of travel chaos – and a return to territorial fragmentation last seen in the early 19th century – as Germans scramble for some vacation respite after months of pandemic restrictions.
People watch a movie from inside their cars at a drive-in installed in the Palmeiras soccer stadium amid the coronavirus outbreak in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Associate Press
Authorities in western Germany have imposed a partial one-week lockdown on Guetersloh and Warendorf counties, home to over 600,000 people, because of an outbreak at a slaughterhouse that led to some 1400 confirmed positive tests.
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Reported with AAP.
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