Immune To COVID? New Study Suggests Why

Members of both the Senate and the House of Representatives will return to Washington D.C. after weeks away to resume meeting in person as the nation continues to reel from the coronavirus pandemic.

Their absence from the nation's capital was an attempt to distance the members of Congress to keep the virus from spreading, Politico reported. The House went on recess on March 14, the report said, while the Senate took off on March 26.

"Look, it doesn’t make sense for the Senate to sit on the sidelines while a lot of other people are going to work everyday and trying to get us through this," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Monday.

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(MORE: Six Coronavirus Symptoms Added to CDC's List)

Meanwhile, many other businesses in the U.S. are reopening this week as states begin lifting stay-at-home restrictions. At the same time, however, Dr. Deborah L. Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said Americans should expect some form of social-distancing guidelines to continue for months.

"Social distancing will be with us through the summer," Birx said Sunday on NBC’s "Meet the Press."

Worldwide, the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 climbed above 3 million, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. More than 210,000 people have died. More than 891,000 patients have recovered.

The U.S. has more than 985,000 confirmed cases. More than 56,000 people have died in the U.S., and more than 110,000 patients have recovered.

Latest Developments

United States:

-Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards extended the statewide stay-at-home order until May 15, he announced Monday. Places of worship can remain open if they adhere to a 10-person limit.

-California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a response to residents who flocked to the state's beaches over the weekend, packing the shoreline by the thousands. "This virus doesn't go home because it's a beautiful, sunny day around our coasts," he said, urging residents to continue social distancing, the New York Times reported.

-According to the Washington Post, the White House is reviewing expanded guidelines to allow phased reopening of schools and camps, child-care programs, certain workplaces, houses of worship, restaurants and mass transit. The document provides much more detail than was offered in the administration's three-phase plan for a gradual reopening that was unveiled earlier this month.

-In full-page newspaper ads defending its safety practices, Tyson Foods warns "the food supply chain is breaking" as processing plants across the U.S. close because of the pandemic. At least 13 meatpacking or food processing plants have closed at some point in the past two months, according to a news release from the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) International Union. House Agriculture Chairman Collin Peterson told CNN on Monday that the nation's pork supply is at serious risk. He estimated farmers, stuck with an oversupply, are killing 60,000 to 70,000 pigs a day to make space at farms. Bloomberg reported that meat prices are already starting to surge and consumers will notice shortages in their grocery stores.

-Harvard University announced it will be open for the fall 2020 semester. The goal is to have everyone return to campus, according to a news release, but because of the new coronavirus the school is not certain that it will be safe to resume all usual activities on campus by then.

-Less than an hour after the Small Business Administration on Monday morning started taking requests for another $310 billion in emergency aid for small businesses, its computer system for processing the loan applications crashed, the New York Times reported.

-Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine detailed plans for the state's reopening, the Columbus Dispatch reported. Dental offices and veterinarian clinics are allowed to open Friday. General offices, distribution centers, manufacturers and construction companies can open May 4. Retail stores, consumer and service businesses — including barber shops, hair and nail salons and similar services — will be permitted to open on May 12. Restaurants’ dine-in service was not authorized for resumption and bars also will remain closed.

-Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said 77 of the state's 99 counties can partially reopen businesses on May 1. Restaurants, fitness centers, retail stores and enclosed malls will have to restrict capacity to 50%, KWQC reported. Reynolds also lifted a ban on religious gatherings of more than 10 people. The 22 Iowa counties where COVID-19 activity is higher will have their closures extended through May 15, the governor said.

-Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said all residents and staff in the commonwealth’s nursing homes and long-term care facilities will now be tested for coronavirus as part of new mandatory criteria that includes adherence to a 28-point infection control checklist and meeting personal protective equipment requirements, WHDH reported. More than half of Massachusetts' COVID-19 deaths have been residents at nursing homes and long-term care facilities.

-Wisconsin extended its stay-at-home order until May 26. "Part of the criteria [to reopen] is making sure we have adequate testing so we can get about 80,000 tests per week," Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes said. "We don't have that yet."

-ESPN reports the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the NBA's most profitable franchises, have returned about $4.6 million that they received from the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program — intended to help small businesses weather the economic burden caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

-Today in Georgia, theaters and dine-in restaurants can reopen. On Friday, Gov. Brian Kemp allowed gyms, barber shops, hair salons, tattoo parlors and bowling alleys to reopen. Kemp said businesses that reopen must follow social distancing guidelines, maintain sanitation and screen their employees for symptoms such as fever and respiratory illness.

-Apparently not wanting to draw the wrath of President Donald Trump the way Kemp did when he reopened his state, at least two governors are moving more slowly with their plans. In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis said he is not ready to give a specific date on when he will lift restrictions. South Carolina's Gov. Henry McMaster is set to issue a new order Monday calling for an extension to restrictions in the state. "We’re still facing a very serious disease and contagion," McMaster said Sunday. "We must realize that the disease is here. We have to be very careful."

Worldwide:

-Spain plans to examine 90,000 people in one of the largest studies worldwide into the spread of the novel coronavirus, The Washington Post reports. Researchers will use the findings to calculate the percentage of the country's population that has been exposed to the virus and to detect active infections. The first results are expected in a couple of weeks. Fernando Simon, who heads Spain’s Coordinated Emergency Health Response, said the results will guide the government’s decision how to relax the nationwide lockdown.

-A thinner-looking British Prime Minister Boris Johnson returned to work Monday after a bout with the coronavirus and warned strongly against easing the country's lockdown, the Associated Press reported. "I refuse to throw away all the effort and the sacrifice of the British people and to risk a second major outbreak and huge loss of life and the overwhelming of the NHS," or National Health Service, he said. "I ask you to contain your impatience."

-In Italy, factories, construction sites and wholesale supply businesses can resume work when they implement safety measures, according to Premier Giuseppe Conte's timetable for reopening the country. Starting May 4, parks and gardens will reopen, funerals will be allowed, and people can visit relatives in the same region. Stores and museums reopen May 18, and professional sports teams can resume training the same day, while restaurants, cafes and salons will be back in business on June 1.

-More than a year after a fire damaged Notre Dame Cathedral, workers are rearranging the Paris construction site to deal with coronavirus restrictions. Showers and locker rooms are being rearranged to allow more distance between workers, who will stay in nearby vacant hotels so they won’t have to take public transport, Notre Dame rector Monsignor Patrick Chauvet told reporters.

For the latest coronavirus information in your county and a full list of important resources to help you make the smartest decisions regarding the disease, check out our dedicated COVID-19 page.

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