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 New
York was one of several states, along with the nation as a whole, to
post their highest daily loss of life from COVID-19, the highly
contagious respiratory disease caused by the virus. A staggering 731
fatalities were reported in Cuomo's state alone.
But early statistical signs the crisis might be peaking provided
little comfort to weary doctors and nurses on the front lines of the
outbreak, as hospital emergency rooms and intensive care units
overflowing with COVID-19 patients.
"People are just so incredibly sick ... incredibly sick in a way
that I've never experienced or seen before," said Jacqueline
Callahan, 33, a New York City nurse who spoke to Reuters on
condition she not identify the hospital where she works.
"So every day is, honestly, the hardest day," she said. "You just
don't know how it's going to change, and you just hope it keeps
getting better, but - you know - we haven't turned that corner fully
yet."
In Wisconsin, voters on Tuesday braved the coronavirus outbreak to
wait 6 feet (1.8 m) apart in lines for hours and cast ballots in the
state's presidential primary and local elections.
For the United States, the tally of known coronavirus infections
approached 400,000 on Tuesday, with the number of deaths surpassing
12,700 in a record single-day jump of more than 1,800 nationwide.
New York state accounted for more than a third of U.S. confirmed
coronavirus cases to date, and nearly half the cumulative death toll
- 5,489 as of Tuesday.
But Cuomo said the rising number of deaths was a "lagging indicator"
coming days or weeks after the onset of infections.
He pointed instead to slowing rates of coronavirus hospitalizations,
intensive care admissions and ventilator intubations as signs social
distancing measures imposed last month were working.
CALIBRATED MESSAGES
The governors of Illinois and Louisiana - two other hot spots in the
U.S. pandemic - likewise paired reports of record jumps in COVID-19
deaths with data suggesting the contagion may be reaching a plateau.
The messages seemed calibrated to convey a sense of hope while
urging the public to abide strictly by stay-at-home orders imposed
by governors of 42 states.
"Let's not get complacent," Cuomo told a news conference. "Social
distancing is working. ... That's why you see those numbers coming
down."
Across the country, California Governor Gavin Newsom said the
infection curve in his state - the first to impose stay-at-home
orders - was "bending but it's also stretching," with the virus
outbreak there expected to peak in mid- to late May.
"The curve continues to rise, but now it is slower," he told a news
briefing.
In another glimmer of good news, the U.S. surgeon general, Jerome
Adams, said on Tuesday the pandemic may end up killing fewer
Americans than the range of 100,000 to 240,000 projected earlier by
the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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The latest research model from the University of Washington - one of several
cited by leading health authorities - has forecast U.S. coronavirus deaths
totaling fewer than 82,000 by Aug. 4.
Adams, who is black, also acknowledged early data showing African Americans more
likely to die from COVID-19, highlighting longstanding disparities in health and
inequalities in access to medical care.
REOPEN ECONOMY
The steps to curb the pandemic have hammered the U.S. economy, closing many
businesses while unemployment soars.
Trump reiterated at a White House briefing he wanted to reopen the U.S. economy
soon.
"We want to get it open soon, that's why I think maybe we're getting to the very
top of the curve," Trump said.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose city is the focal point of the state's
outbreak, said it was too early to declare a corner had been turned but cited
encouraging developments.
"The number of people showing up in our hospitals who need a ventilator - that
situation has improved a bit in recent days," he said.
In the nation's second-largest city, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Tuesday
ordered workers providing "non-medical" essential services, such as supermarket
employees, wear face coverings while on the job. The order, which takes effect
on Friday also requires customers of grocery stores and other essential
businesses to likewise wear face coverings.
That will come as some relief to Tomas Flores, a grocery worker at Northgate
Market in Los Angeles, who like many delivery workers, grocery staff and
cleaners, doesn't have a stay-at-home option.
"I do worry," Flores said, hours before Garcetti's order.
"I ask God to watch over me when I leave my home and to take care of me at work,
but I feel the need to come because many families depend on us," he said. "Not
only my family depends on me because I must earn money to bring home, but many
people depend on the work that I do."
Graphic: U.S. coronavirus, https://tmsnrt.rs/2w7hX9T
(Reporting by Maria Caspani in New York and Doina Chiacu in Washington.
Additional reporting by Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, Susan Heavey, Lisa
Shumaker, Peter Szekely, Daniel Trotta, Jan Wolfe, Stephanie Kelly, Makini
Brice, Brendan O'Brien, Brad Brooks and Idrees Ali; Writing by Will Dunham and
Steve Gorman; Editing by Howard Goller, Cynthia Osterman and Gerry Doyle)
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