May 6 coronavirus news

US President Trump has again leveled accusations that China could have stopped the global coronavirus pandemic, calling the spread "the worst attack we've ever had on our country."

Speaking from the Oval Office today, the President went on to say, "This is worse than Pearl Harbor. This is worse than the World Trade Center."

What we know: So far, more than 71,000 people in America have died from coronavirus. In comparison, more than 2,000 Americans were killed in the Pearl Harbor bombings during World War II. On September 11, 2001, a total of 2,977 people were killed in New York City, Washington, DC and outside of Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

But while Pearl Harbor and 9/11 were direct and targeted attacks on the United States, the coronavirus pandemic is impacting countries all over the world, including in China. As of today, Johns Hopkins University puts China's death toll from the virus at 4,637.

The President added: "And it should have never happened. Could have been stopped at the source. Could have been stopped in China. It should have been stopped right at the source. And it wasn't."

In recent days, Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have doubled down on the assertion that the virus originated from a laboratory in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the outbreak was first detected last December.

The claim has unsurprisingly drawn fierce rebuttal from the Chinese government, which described the accusation as "smear" intended to bolster Trump's reelection chances.

Intelligence shared among the Five Eyes network — an alliance between United States and the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada — also reportedly appears to contradict the Trump administration's assertion.

Trump's recent displeasure with China are a far cry from his past statements on the nation and its leader, Xi Jinping, whom he earlier praised for his transparency and management of the outbreak.

Last month, CNN identified at least 37 separate instances where Trump praised China since January, including one as recent as April 1. (Here is a timeline of those remarks.)

As recently has last month, Trump was touting his administration's trade deal with China during a White House coronavirus task force briefing. The president said the relationship with China is "very good" and the "biggest communication" is between himself and President Xi.

"So, look, the relationship with China is a good one, and my relationship with him is, you know, really good," Trump said on April 1.

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##Health#

The number of coronavirus patients in intensive care units in France has continued to steadily decline since April 9, data from the French Ministry of Health shows.

There are currently 3,147 Covid-19 patients in ICU in France, down by 283 from the day before, the ministry said on Wednesday.

A total of 23,983 people are hospitalized with coronavirus in France, which is down by 792 from the day before.

Blood thinning drugs may help save some patients worst affected by coronavirus, doctors reported Wednesday.

Their findings could point a way to help the virus-related issue of blood clots throughout the body. The team at Mount Sinai Hospital says it is now running experiments to see which anticoagulants may work best, and at which doses. 

Dr. Valentin Fuster, director of Mount Sinai Heart and physician-in-chief of the Mount Sinai Hospital, and colleagues looked at more than 2,700 patients treated at Mount Sinai in New York City, which has been hit hard by coronavirus. Starting in March, some patients were given anti-clotting drugs based on bedside decisions made by doctors.

The team started taking a systematic look at whether the drugs made a difference. They did, especially for patients who were put on ventilators to help them breathe.

They found 29% of patients on ventilators who were given blood thinners died, compared to 63% of patients on ventilators who were not given blood thinners.

The findings are not clear-cut enough yet to make solid recommendations. The team noted that patients who were already severely ill were more likely to be given the blood thinners.

The researchers did not find that the patients who got blood thinners were significantly more likely to have bleeding problems – one of the risks of the drugs.

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At least 30,076 people have died from coronavirus in the UK, the country's Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said on Wednesday. 

The country now has the highest confirmed death toll in Europe and the second-highest death toll in the world, behind the United States.

The number of people who tested positive for the virus stands at at least 201,101 with 13,615 people currently hospitalized.

The number of people who have died in Italy from coronavirus has risen again with a further 369 deaths reported in the past 24 hours. 

Italy has the second-highest death toll in Europe, behind only the UK. In Italy, 29,684 have died since the outbreak began.

There was also a jump in new daily infections with an increase of 1,444 diagnoses, which is rise of 369 since yesterday. 

But the number of active cases in the country has dropped from 98,467 yesterday to 91,528 today. The decrease of 6,939 cases is the biggest ever.

The sharp fall in active cases can be explained by a significant increase in recoveries of 8,014, raising the total number of people recovered from the virus to 93,245.

However, the Italian Civil Protection Agency warns that the high number of recoveries is due to an adjustment on numbers and some of the cases pertain to the past couple of days.  

The total number of cases in Italy, including deaths and recoveries, is now 214,457.

Eleven-year-old Jorja Bolla wanted to cheer up older adults in the nursing homes around her hometown of Beatrice, Nebraska.

When she thought of who makes her smile when she feels lonely, she knew her little pony Peanut would have to pay them a visit while they are isolated during the coronavirus pandemic.

Jorja and her 8-year-old sister Journee led Peanut up to the windows of the nursing homes. Staff on the phone helped facilitate conversations with the residents. 

"I would talk to them ... and Peanut was acting up so he put on quite a show," Jorja explained. "And of course, my sister was dancing around."

The residents really enjoyed seeing Peanut. Some would follow the girls and their pony from window to window. 

Jorja visited three nursing homes with Peanut and has promised to return. She is developing a program for the residents to be able spend more time with Peanut.

There will be grooming, petting and plenty of treats to feed him.

Pet therapy can help seniors combat social isolation and depression by improving their overall mood and quality of life.

Turkey has recorded its highest number of new Covid-19 positives since April 30 with 2,253 new cases in the last 24 hours, according to the latest figures by the Turkish health ministry.

Turkey’s new cases have been on a downward trajectory since mid-April and have reached as low 1,614 per day.

The country is entering what the Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has called the second phase in its fight against the pandemic. In a news conference on Wednesday, he called this period a “controlled social life,” which will impose fewer restrictions.

Turkey is due to start lifting some restrictions on May 11, including reopening hairdressers and barber shops.

The 12th person infected by coronavirus in Vatican City works for Pope Francis, the Holy See Press Office said today. 

The person has been working remotely since early March and is now under observation at home, the Holy See Press Office Director Matteo Bruni said. 

Vatican City is the seat of the Catholic church and has been a sovereign state in the middle of Rome since 1929. It has 605 residents, all with a Vatican City passport and who are out of Italy's legal jurisdiction. 

The pandemic has radically changed the way the Vatican operates, with the Pope celebrating Palm Sunday mass in an empty church and the sites normally packed with tourists empty.

The 83-year-old Pope, who has a damaged lung from an infection in his 20s, has twice tested negative for coronavirus. He is being distanced from anyone who might be carrying the virus, takes his meals in his private quarters, and uses hand sanitizer before and after meeting any guests, the Vatican press office said last month.

The Spanish Parliament approved the extension of the country’s state of emergency for a fourth time on Wednesday, continuing severe restrictions on movement and business until at least May 24 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision, approved by 178 votes against 75 and with 97 abstentions, came after Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez negotiated last-minute votes to secure the extension, despite the main opposition Popular Party, PP, abstaining.

The extension gives the Socialist Party-led minority government the power to continue enforcing restrictions under the state of emergency rules decreed on March 14th. 

During the parliamentary debate ahead of the vote, opposition and right-wing parties harshly criticized the socialist minority-led government, accusing  Sánchez of holding Spanish citizens "hostage" by curtailing fundamental rights. 

The Spanish prime minister said he will request 15-day extensions throughout the country’s de-escalation period, expected to last until the end of June.

Most of Spain began "Phase Zero" of the government's de-escalation plan on Monday, by lifting some of the confinement restrictions to additional sectors of the work force to return to their jobs, such as restaurants for take-away service, small stores and hair salons with clients by appointment only.

It is expected that next Monday, some regions will advance to “Phase One” if they show infections rates are low and that their health facilities are able to react quickly to any new outbreaks.

The government says the state of emergency during the de-escalation plan is crucial.

The state of emergency was first declared on March 14 and extended for the first time on March 27.