/Coronavirus updates live: 14 dead across U.S.; Trump signs $8.3B bill

Coronavirus updates live: 14 dead across U.S.; Trump signs $8.3B bill

Two coronavirus cases in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania has reported its first two coronavirus cases, Gov. Tom Wolf said Friday.

One individual is an adult in Wayne County who traveled to a country where coronavirus is present, and the other individual is an adult in Delaware County who traveled to another area of the U.S. where coronavirus is present. 

Both individuals are recovering at home in isolation. 

Almost 16,000 people hospitalized in Iran, Health Ministry confirms

Facebook groups provide a haven for coronavirus misinformation

Facebook’s efforts to limit the spread of coronavirus misinformation are running into a problem: groups.

Dozens of public and private Facebook groups totaling hundreds of thousands of members have become a haven for conspiracy theories, medical equipment promotion and unproven cures related to the new coronavirus, according to an analysis by NBC News.

The groups present a difficult challenge for Facebook as it has moved to crack down on misinformation, scam artists and other bad actors while also promoting its groups feature, which the social network has emphasized in recent years.

‘Stay at work,’ says Trump’s top economic adviser

The virus “looks relatively contained,” said Larry Kudlow, President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser, adding that Americans should “stay at work.”

“I don’t want to panic on the economy and on the virus and on policy measures,” he told CNBC in an interview Friday morning. “With common sense, I would say if you are healthy and on the younger side, you should go about your business and not be afraid.”

“Most Americans aren’t at risk,” he said, noting that “folks should not run around grabbing masks.”

America does not necessarily need to follow the successful policies implemented in other countries, Kudlow said, pointing out Trump’s success in implementing travel bans, quarantines, and screenings.

He also doubled down on a comment that drew scrutiny earlier this week, telling CNBC Friday, “When we have these corrections in the market, I would repeat my view that long-term investors should think seriously about buying the dip.”

Apple rejects coronavirus apps that aren’t from health organizations

Apple is preventing developers from uploading apps related to the coronavirus outbreak that are not from governments or health professionals, according to CNBC.

The move comes as many tech companies are working to prevent their platforms from being used to spread misinformation about the new coronavirus.

Search results on Apple’s app platform show little in the way of obvious spam, though independent developers said Apple’s strict rules could reduce availability of software that would help peopel track the outbreak, according to CNBC’s Kif Leswing.

 

Precautionary measures in Bangkok

People walk through a ‘sanitizing gate’ spraying disinfectants against coronavirus before entering into a shopping mall in Bangkok, on March 6, 2020.Jorge Silva / Reuters

Despite robust jobs report, Dow falls 700 points as traders stay laser-focused on coronavirus

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by around 700 points at the opening bell, despite the release of a robust monthly jobs report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The economy gained 273,000 jobs in February, well above economist predictions, with the unemployment rate falling slightly to 3.5 percent. 

Markets barely blinked Friday morning, with traders continuing to focus on how the viral outbreak could hammer the economy as companies downgrade their financial forecasts for 2020, issue travel restriction policies for their employees, and test out remote work contingency plans.

Global coronavirus cases reach 100,000

More than 100,000 people have been confirmed to have contracted the new coronavirus as of Friday morning, a little more than two months since the outbreak began in China.

Johns Hopkins University, which has been tracking instances of the virus, said that 100,330 people had been infected as of 9 a.m. ET, 80,556 of whom were in Mainland China.

The news agency Reuters also reported the 100,000 mark had been passed, citing its own tally.

Of the total, 55,694 people made a recovery and 3,408 people died, suggesting a mortality rate of around 3 percent. Although when so-far unreported cases are taken into account, the death rate may be much lower.

There have been 14 coronavirus-related deaths in the U.S. so far, 13 in Washington State and one in California.

Trump signs $8.3B emergency bill to fight coronavirus

President Donald Trump on Friday morning signed the $8.3 billion emergency spending package to combat the coronavirus.

“We’re signing the 8.3 billion. I asked for 2.5 and I got 8.3, and I’ll take it,“ Trump said. “We’re doing well, but it’s an unforeseen problem,” he added.

The Senate passed the legislation in a 96-1 vote Thursday, a day after the House quickly and overwhelmingly passed it in a 415-2 vote.

Two private schools in Manhattan closed Friday

Two private schools in New York City — The Spence School and Collegiate School — will be closed on Friday as concerns grow over the virus in the city.

On its website, the all-girls Spence School’s said it closed on Friday “for a comprehensive sanitization of the entire campus.” Collegiate School confirmed it would also be closed on its website, although it did not state a reason.

NBC News has approached both schools for comment.

This comes a day after Westchester County closed a string of schools due to the outbreak.

There are currently 22 reported coronavirus cases in New York state.

In China, coronavirus rumors — and misinformation — swirl unchecked

The new coronavirus has presented perhaps the biggest challenge to the Chinese government in a generation, posing a test not seen before by its strongman president, Xi Jinping.

Now it appears Chinese officials are trying to change the narrative.

The exact origin of the virus — which has sickened close to 100,000 people worldwide and killed close to 3,500 as of Friday — has not been confirmed. But it is believed to have been transferred to humans at a market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the pathogen first broke out.

In recent weeks, however, Chinese officials have appeared eager to float the idea that the virus did not necessarily start in their country at all.

“No conclusion has been reached yet on the origin of the virus,” Zhao Lijian, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, told a briefing Thursday.

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