Live updates: Illinois, California, Florida and New York increase restrictions because of coronavirus
By Siobhán O’Grady, Rick Noack, Marisa Iati, Alex Horton, Miriam Berger, Katie Mettler, Michael Brice-Saddler and Hannah Knowles March 20, 2020, 4:39 p.m. Refresh for updates
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Restrictions are dramatically ramping up amid the growing coronavirus pandemic, with Illinois and its 13 million residents — 10 million in the Chicago area — the latest to join California by moving closer to an effective lockdown. Meantime, New York told nonessential workers to stay home, Florida closed restaurants, bars and gyms amid spring-break revelry, and the U.S.-Mexico border is closing to nonessential travel. Restrictions are dramatically ramping up amid the growing coronavirus pandemic, with Illinois and its 13 million residents — 10 million in the Chicago area — the latest to join California by moving closer to an effective lockdown. Meantime, New York told nonessential workers to stay home, Florida closed restaurants, bars and gyms amid spring-break revelry, and the U.S.-Mexico border is closing to nonessential travel. Restrictions are dramatically ramping up amid the growing coronavirus pandemic, with Illinois and its 13 million residents — 10 million in the Chicago area — the latest to join California by moving closer to an effective lockdown. Meantime, New York told nonessential workers to stay home, Florida closed restaurants, bars and gyms amid spring-break revelry, and the U.S.-Mexico border is closing to nonessential travel.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) on Friday ordered residents to stay at home for nonessential activity. The order will take effect Saturday evening 13 million people in the state, until the end of April 7. People will still be able to go to the grocery store, get food or gas, go running or hiking or get to work.
Here are some significant developments:
- Italy announced another record-breaking death toll on Friday: 627, up from 427 the previous day. The country cited 9,600 people in one day for violating lockdown.
- New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo ordered all workers in his state to stay home, except for those in essential services. The move came after California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered 40 million residents to remain at home.
- The U.S. tax filing deadline has been pushed back from April 15 to July 15. “All taxpayers and businesses will have this additional time to file and make payments without interest or penalties,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Twitter.
- More than 250,000 cases have been confirmed across the globe. The World Health Organization noted that it took more than three months to reach 100,000 cases worldwide — but only 12 days to log the next 100,000. The number of deaths and confirmed cases continues to surge in Spain and Iran.
- For a second consecutive day, China reported no new local infections. But concerns are growing about a new wave of imported cases elsewhere in the region: Hong Kong reported its biggest daily jump in cases Friday, including many that involved recent travel.
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Illinois residents ordered to stay at home except for essential activities
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) on Friday ordered residents to stay at home except for certain essential activities, enforcing a measure two other states have taken to blunt the spread of the coronavirus. The order will take effect Saturday evening for 13 million people in the state, until the end of April 7.
“To avoid the loss of potentially tens of thousands of lives, we must enact an immediate stay at home order for the state of Illinois,” Pritzker said.
The announcement follows similar decrees in New York and California.
Pritzker said he expects cases in the state to rise rapidly. He said he did not come to the decision easily.
“As this epidemic has progressed we’ve had to make some hard decisions,” he said. “But ultimately you can’t have a livelihood if you don’t have your life.”
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot emphasized that the order was “not a lockdown or martial law,” noting many services will remain open. Officials said residents will still be able to go to the grocery store, get gas, get dinner from local restaurants and go running and hiking. Many will still be able to go to work, they said.
“Coronavirus will not go away by happenstance,” Lightfoot said. “We must be intentional about taking steps to ‘flatten the curve.’ ”
Municipalities will halt all evictions, authorities said.
By Michael Brice-Saddler
3:57 p.m.
Florida governor closes all restaurants and gyms, allowing kitchens to open for takeout only
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) issued a new executive order Friday afternoon that all on-premises restaurant sales must cease, and all gyms and fitness centers must close. Restaurants can keep their kitchens open for takeout and delivery services only, a dramatic escalation from DeSantis’s announcement earlier this week that restaurants were permitted to stay open at 50-percent capacity.
Friday’s announcement comes three days after the governor restricted bars, pubs and nightclubs, closing them for 30 days, although scenes of spring break revelry in Fort Myers, Siesta Key and Clearwater Beach continued this week, albeit at a more subdued pace. On Thursday on “Fox & Friends,” the governor conveyed a strong message to sun-seeking tourists: “The message for spring breakers is the party is over in Florida.”
DeSantis, however, does see the need for blowing off steam in the face of the coronavirus pandemic: The new executive order lifts some restrictions on restaurants to allow for the sale of to-go sealed alcoholic beverages accompanying meals.
Florida law previously prohibited restaurants from the sale of alcohol for delivery, takeout or off-premises consumption.
By Laura Reiley
3:46 p.m.
Army shutters all recruiting stations, shifting to virtual effort
The Army is closing all of its recruiting stations and will shift to virtual recruiting, officials said Friday, as the Pentagon finds its footing to keep a stream of new soldiers flowing during the coronavirus pandemic.
Thousands join the military every month, replacing troops who leave the service, but the logistical nightmare of sending recruits into confined spaces for months of training has sparked concern for some officials.
The Pentagon has said that training will continue, which was reiterated by Army Chief of Staff Gen. James C. McConville, in a news conference Friday, although additional screening and isolation measures have been put in place for recruits moving from hometowns to training sites.
But the digital shift in recruitment comes as the force reckons with how to socially distance in an inherently social institution. McConville said much recruiting is done through social media anyway. The Army, after sustained problems in meeting its recruiting goals, has looked online in recent years, for example creating its own esports league to reach pools of potential recruits.
Nearly two-dozen soldiers have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, along with eight family members, Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy said. McCarthy said he expects promising recruitment numbers this year will help offset reductions for now, but it is unclear at what point declining numbers will prompt concern.
By Alex Horton
3:42 p.m.
AP tests canceled, K-12 standardized testing suspended; student loan holders get a break
The organization that oversees the Advanced Placement program said Friday that regular AP testing will be canceled because of the coronavirus crisis and replaced by shorter online versions of the exams that can be taken in 45 minutes at home. The College Board’s announcement reflected the extraordinary upheaval in education, with schools across the country closing in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.
AP tests ordinarily occur in May. But disruptions in classes are occurring in many states, with no end in sight, posing unprecedented obstacles for teachers and students. Students will be able to take the 45-minute exams on computers, tablets or smartphones.
“To be fair to all students, some of whom have lost more instructional time than others, the exam will only include topics and skills most AP teachers and students have already covered in class by early March,” the organization said.
President Trump also said Friday his administration is waiving all federal requirements for standardized tests for students in kindergarten through 12th grade because the coronavirus pandemic has forced most schools in the country to close for an indefinite period during annual testing season.
He also announced that borrowers with college loans can opt to suspend payments, a move designed to ease the financial turmoil caused by the pandemic.
All states have an annual federal mandate under the Every Student Succeeds Act to test students in most grades annually for accountability purposes. Some states had already declared they would not administer the tests.
“The Department of Education will not enforce standardized testing requirements, very importantly, for students in elementary through high school for the current year,” Trump said. “They’ve been through a lot. They’ve been going back and forth. Schools open. Schools not open.”
“I think a lot of the students will be extremely happy,” he said. “Some probably not. The ones that work hard — maybe not.”
Separately, the administration announced a week after promising to waive interest on federal student loans that Americans contending with the economic impact of the pandemic can opt to suspend their payments altogether.
“These are anxious times, particularly for students and families whose educations, careers, and lives have been disrupted,” Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said in a statement. “Right now, everyone should be focused on staying safe and healthy, not worrying about their student loan balance growing.”
For at least 60 days, the 42 million Americans holding $1.5 trillion in federal student debt can ask their loan servicer to allow them to temporarily postpone their payments. Anyone who was more than 31 days behind on their bill as of March 13, or who becomes that delinquent, will have their payments automatically suspended.
All federal student borrowers, regardless of whether they choose to postpone their payments, will automatically have the interest on their loans set at zero for at least 60 days.
The new interest rate will be retroactive to March 13.
People in public service jobs will have to think twice about postponing their payments. Opting out for two months will result in a longer path to debt cancellation for people working toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness. The federal program cancels the remaining balance of a borrower’s debt after 120 on-time monthly payments, but postponing the bill will lengthen the process.
By Danielle Douglas-Gabriel, Valerie Strauss and Nick Anderson
3:32 p.m.
Drive-through testing location in Darien, Conn., changed after neighbors complain
Plans to conduct drive-through coronavirus tests outside Darien, Conn.’s town hall were canceled on Wednesday, four hours after the announcement sparked complaints from neighbors, the Darien Times reported.
A woman who said she lives near the town hall had written on the newspaper’s Facebook page that she was strongly opposed to the testing location because children live nearby and residents did not receive what she considered enough advance notice, according to the Darien Times. The comment appeared to have been deleted by Friday.
Other neighbors said they were also concerned about the testing spot being near their homes, the newspaper reported. When the cancellation was announced, dozens of people expressed frustration on Facebook and urged the town to reconsider.
First Selectman Jayme Stevenson wrote Thursday on Twitter that she was finalizing plans for a testing location “that will better handle vehicular traffics and queuing.”
On Friday, Darien officials announced that they had relocated the testing site to the town’s high school and that testing would begin Monday for people who have doctor’s orders and have passed an online screening process.
Darien, a town of roughly 21,000 people, was rated by Bloomberg News this year as the 10th wealthiest place in the country. By Marisa Iati
