He is encouraged by the progress made.
President Trump began by outlining positive numbers on the level of coronavirus cases and deaths across the nation, saying there are encouraging signs. “The battle continues but the data suggests that nationwide we have passed the peak on new cases,” he said. “These encouraging developments have put us in a very strong position to finalize guidelines on states for reopening the economy.“
“We’ll be opening up some states—some states much sooner than others, and we think some states can actually open up before the deadline of May 1,” he added. “I think that will be a very exciting time indeed. Governors are looking forward, they’re chomping at the bit to get going.”
Task force testing expert Dr. Deborah Birx admitted the fatalities are still increasing, although the death rates in the U.S. are still better than most countries around the world.
She pointed to nine states which still have fewer than 1,000 confirmed COVID-19 positive cases and are showing fewer than 30 new cases a day. Those are likely to be the first states to be opened and they include, according to data, Nebraska, Maine, Vermont, West Virginia, Hawaii, Montana, North Dakota, Alaska, and Wyoming.
“Again,” President Trump said, “not all states are the same; they’re very different. Some are having very little problem, some are doing such a good job, they have very little problems, and they’re ready to go.”
He said he would be meeting with governors about guidelines on reopening on Thursday afternoon via teleconference.
Part of the equation, he said, is increased testing capacity. He said the U.S. has conducted more than 3.3 million tests to date and the FDA is working to approve more companies’ tests to increase the national capacity.
One company has already released a point-of-service, 5-to-10 minute test. They will bring a capacity of 20 million COVID129 tests to the nation, the president said.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- That the numbers of fatalities and new virus cases would precipitously decrease.
- For the president and Task Force to have discernment on the course of opening the country.
Sources: C-SPAN, WhiteHouse.gov
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