Thursday, March 26th, 2020
$2 Trillion Rescue, Latest Panic Buy & Big Tech’s Hackathon
(+ NASA Astronaut’s Isolation Advice)
All the news you need in less than 10 min:
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Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want perusing the latest happenings...
Coronavirus Stimulus Package
The enormous stimulus package, meant to alleviate the economic fallout from the new coronavirus, was approved unanimously in the U.S. Senate. The price tag is now $2.2 trillion. It includes individual payments: $1,200 for adults who make up to $75,000/yr and $500 payments for children in the household. Overall, the bill is 800 pages. It also includes money for the corporations, small businesses, hospitals, social programs and a lot more. Next, it goes to the U.S. House. A vote is scheduled there Friday morning, and then President Trump is expected to sign it into law.
Read More: CNN, WaPo, Politico, WSJ
Coronavirus by the Numbers
There are now more than 69,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and more than 1,000 deaths. The center of America’s outbreak is still New York, where the state is reporting almost half of the country’s cases. Still, the governor says the peak may still be three weeks away. Some New Yorkers are reportedly rushing to get out of the outbreak hot zone, but they’re facing scrutiny. Florida’s governor says the National Guard will question airlines passengers from New York when they arrive in the sunshine state. Over on the West Coast, California’s governor says more than half the state’s COVID-19 cases are people younger than 50. Still, the severe cases skew older.
Deadliest Day in the US: CNN, CNBC
New York Impact: NY Times, AP
Florida Tracking Travelers: Politico, Miami Herald
California Impact: CBS SF, Business Insider
International Updates
Both Italy and Spain each saw about 700 COVID-19 deaths in just 24 hours. Both have now seen more deaths from the virus than China, where the outbreak started. In Britain, the government plans to distribute millions of tests to see if people are immune to COVID-19. They’re still part of a trial, but if they work properly, they could clear the way for some people who caught the virus, and recovered from it, to return to work or volunteer to help others.
In Buckingham Palace, Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, was diagnosed with COVID-19. The 71-year-old’s symptoms are reportedly mild. Queen Elizabeth, 93, is still in good health.
World Death Toll: Al Jazeera, Johns Hopkins
Britain Antibody Tests: WSJ, Reuters
Prince Charles has Coronavirus: BBC, USA Today
Celebrities Donating
Celebrities are doing their part to help the world recover. Singer Rihanna’s foundation announced it’s donating $5 million to organizations like Feeding America, The International Rescue Committee and others. Married actors, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, are donating $1 million to food banks, and Reynolds is also providing relief through his business, Aviation American Gin, to out-of-work bartenders. Rosie O’Donnell’s streaming talk show, featuring a bunch of Broadway stars, raised $600,000 for The Actor’s Fund. Speaking of Broadway, the 74th annual Tony Awards had to be postponed because of the pandemic.
Read More: ABC News, Billboard, EW, Page Six, Variety, Axios
Tech Giants & WHO Partnership
The World Health Organization is partnering with some of the world’s biggest tech companies. Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter, Tik Tok and others are participating in a Hackathon, trying to develop software to help address the pandemic. The projects will reportedly focus on health, like how to protect vulnerable populations, advance telemedicine, or develop remote learning tech for schools. Tech companies have until Monday to submit their projects. The best will be announced April 3.
Read More: CNBC, Business Insider
Weather Channel Tracking Cases
The Weather Channel is using its storm-tracking software to track COVID-19 cases. Its app and website will now include maps and charts to explain how the virus is spreading in specific towns and cities. It’s pulling data from the World Health Organization as well as local and state government sources.
Read More: Engadget, The Hill
Latest Panic Buy
Americans seem to be stocking up on eggs right now. Earlier this month, sales were reportedly up 44% as compared to the same week in 2019. So, some grocery stories in New York say they’re paying their egg suppliers double; and agriculture experts say the burden is starting to be passed onto shoppers, with the prices of eggs, milk and ground beef all going up. Speaking of grocery stores, several are adding shields at checkout stands, so their cashiers and customers can avoid sharing germs. Some stores are also adding floor decals in checkout lanes to remind people to stand six feet away from one another.
‘Panic Buying' Eggs: CNN, Des Moines Register
Grocery Stores' Precautions: Fox News, ABC News
Companies Thanking Health Care Workers
Starbucks is giving free coffee to people on the front lines of the outbreak. Also, Uber is offering free meals and discounted rides for medical workers in some of the hardest-hit areas of the U.S. Also, Lyft says free and discounted bike-sharing passes are available for emergency workers, like first responders and hospital employees.
Read More: USA Today, CNBC, The Verge
Thing to Know Thursday:
NASA ASTRONAUT’S ADVICE ABOUT ISOLATION
Guest: Christina Koch
Christina Hammock Koch was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 2013 and completed astronaut candidate training in 2015. Koch most recently served as flight engineer on the International Space Station, and she set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman with a total of 328 days in space.