Hundreds of cars wait in line for a food bank distribution at the Big Butler Fairgrounds on Tuesday, April 28, 2020, in Prospect, Pa. The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank expected more than 1,500 vehicles to come to receive two 25-pound boxes of food each. (Andrew Rush/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP)
The Associated Press
On a day of economic gloom, scientists offered a ray of hope: the first effective treatment against the coronavirus.
The U.S. government said it is working to make the antiviral medication remdesivir available to patients as quickly as possible after a major study found it shortened the time it takes for COVID-19 patients to recover by four days on average - from 15 days to 11. The news came as the U.S. government reported that American output is shriveling at an alarming rate in the biggest and fastest collapse since the Depression.
Here are some of AP's top stories Wednesday on the world's coronavirus pandemic. Follow APNews.com/VirusOutbreak for updates through the day and APNews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak for stories explaining some of its complexities.
WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY:
- The U.S. economy shrank at a 4.8% annual rate last quarter as the coronavirus pandemic shut down much of the country and began triggering a recession that will end the longest expansion on record. Amid the economic fallout, the Federal Reserve signaled Wednesday that it will keep its key short-term interest rate near zero for the foreseeable future.
- President Donald Trump said Wednesday the federal government will not be extending its coronavirus social distancing guidelines once they expire Thursday. He also said he plans to resume official travel with a trip to Arizona next week and hopes to resume mass campaign rallies in the coming months.
- New figures show that out of 2,700 coronavirus tests across the federal Bureau of Prisons, nearly 2,000 have come back positive, strongly suggesting there are far more COVID-19 cases left undiscovered.
- As governments across the United States gradually allow businesses to reopen, leaders are grappling with how much legal protection to give companies in case their workers get sick from the coronavirus.
- Uncertainty in planning for the coronavirus pandemic has left the globe dotted with dozens of barely used or unused temporary field hospitals. Some public officials say that's a good problem to have.
- Derek Jeter, Larry Walker and the rest of this year's Baseball Hall of Fame class will have to wait for their big moment at Cooperstown. The Hall of Fame announced Wednesday that it has canceled the July 26 induction ceremony because of the coronavirus pandemic. This year's class will be included at next year's induction festivities.
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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death. The vast majority of people recover.
Here are the symptoms of the virus compared with the common flu.
One of the best ways to prevent spread of the virus is washing your hands with soap and water. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends first washing with warm or cold water and then lathering soap for 20 seconds to get it on the backs of hands, between fingers and under fingernails before rinsing off.
You should wash your phone, too. Here's how.
TRACKING THE VIRUS: Drill down and zoom in at the individual county level, and you can access numbers that will show you the situation where you are, and where loved ones or people you're worried about live.
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ONE NUMBER:
- 1,000: The number of coronavirus-related deaths in India, which has shelved a plan to give the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine to thousands of people in Mumbai's crowded slums to prevent coronavirus infections.
IN OTHER NEWS:
- POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE: LeBron James is putting together an all-star event to honor and celebrate the high school class of 2020, which has had its graduation season upended by the coronavirus pandemic.
- HURDLE INSPIRATION: Clint Hurdle began sending his daily notes of inspiration more than 10 years ago, during his days managing the Colorado Rockies. What used to be group text messages have turned into much more - every morning, his Daily Encouragement emails go out to some 5,000 eager recipients.
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Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
A passer-by wearing a mask out of concern for the COVID-19 coronavirus, background center, walks past mannequins in a clothing store, Wednesday, April 29, 2020, in Boston. Job cuts have escalated across the U.S. economy in recent days that remains all but shut down due measures taken to halt the spread of the virus. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
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A woman walks by a depiction of a medical staff wearing protective equipment, executed in the style of orthodox icons, in Bucharest, Romania, Wednesday, April 29, 2020. The artwork, among others depicting medical staff in the manner of religious icons, created by designer Wanda Hutira, is part of a campaign called Thank You Doctors, meant to raise awareness to the work of medical staff fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Following public pressure by Romania's influential Orthodox church the artworks, described as "blasphemous" will be removed from all locations in the Romanian capital, according to the agency behind the project. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
The Associated Press
A worker disinfects the roof terrace of the Atlantic hotel, in Rome, Wednesday, April 29, 2020. After seven weeks in lockdown to contain one of the world's worst outbreaks of COVID-19, Italians are regaining some freedoms, starting on May 4, public parks and gardens will re-open and people will be able to visit relatives who live in the same region. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
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A man wearing a mask and gloves walks along the corner of 18th Street and K Street in Northwest, an area usually packed with people this time of day, Wednesday, April 29, 2020, in Washington. The government is set to report another shocking level of unemployment claims Thursday even after nearly 10 million people applied for benefits in the previous two weeks because of business shutdowns from the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
The Associated Press
A residents from the Alexandra township gets tested for COVID-19 , in Johannesburg, Wednesday, April 29, 2020. South Africa will begin a phased easing of its strict lockdown measures on May 1, although confirmed cases of coronavirus continue to increase. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
The Associated Press
A man wears a face mask to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus as he sits on a Metro train, in Paris, Wednesday, April 29, 2020. France continues to be under an extended stay-at-home order until May 11 in an attempt to slow the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this March 2020 photo provided by Gilead Sciences, a vial of the investigational drug remdesivir is visually inspected at a Gilead manufacturing site in the United States. On Wednesday, April 29, 2020, the company says its experimental antiviral drug has proved effective against the new coronavirus in a major U.S. government study that put it to a strict test. (Gilead Sciences via AP)
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FILE - In this Thursday, May 26, 2016 file photo, glasses of beer stand on a serving tray in Bruges, Belgium. A university research survey has found that alcohol consumption in Belgium is remaining mostly stable during the country's coronavirus lockdown. A team of researchers at the University of Louvain said Wednesday, April 29,2020 that only one out of four respondents in their online survey this month reported drinking more while confined at home. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo, File)
The Associated Press
A woman sits in an empty market in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, April 29, 2020 as the lockdown to combat the spread of coronavirus continues. Official statistics show that Spain's unemployment rate rose to 14.4% in the first quarter of 2020, reflecting only the partial impact of the new coronavirus pandemic in Spain's job market. Spain's left-wing coalition government is poised to announce Tuesday further steps to ease the 7-week lockdown, one of the world's strictest. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
The Associated Press
A passenger walks at an empty domestic terminal of Haneda Airport in Tokyo, at the start of Golden Week holiday Wednesday, April 29, 2020. Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expanded a state of emergency to all of Japan from just Tokyo and other urban areas as the virus continues to spread. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
The Associated Press