This archive report was first published on 24 April 2020.
States Struggle to Meet Needs Amid Soaring Jobless Claims ¶
As President Trump prepares to sign a $484 billion relief package on Friday, states are facing a daunting challenge in meeting the needs of their residents. With jobless claims mounting and trust funds depleting, governors are stepping up their calls for federal assistance.
According to preliminary results, one in five New York City residents has tested positive for antibodies to the coronavirus, suggesting that the virus had spread far more widely than known. The results from random testing of 3,000 people raised the prospect that many New Yorkers - as many as 2.7 million - had been unwittingly infected by the virus.
While the reliability of some early antibody tests has been questioned, researchers in New York have worked in recent weeks to develop and validate their own antibody tests, with federal approval. State officials believe that accurate antibody testing is a critical tool to help determine when and how to begin restarting the economy and sending people back to work.
President Trump has long pinned his hopes on the powers of sunlight to defeat the coronavirus. On Thursday, he returned to that theme at the daily White House coronavirus briefing, bringing in a top administration scientist to back up his assertions and eagerly theorizing about the powers of sunlight, ultraviolet light, and household disinfectants to kill the coronavirus.
