Coronavirus: Oklahoma health agency to no longer release detailed data

More than 6.2 million people worldwide – including almost 1.8 million in the United States – have been infected with the new coronavirus, and the number of deaths from the outbreak continues to rise. While efforts to contain the COVID-19 outbreak continue, states have begun to shift their focus toward reopening their economies.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is tracking cases in the U.S. here.

>> Coronavirus: Know the facts directly from the CDC

Live updates for Monday, June 1, continue below:

Oklahoma health agency to no longer release detailed data

Update 11:20 p.m. EDT June 1:The Oklahoma State Department of Health announced Monday it will no longer release specific information about COVID-19 infections and deaths in nursing homes, cities or by zip code.

Agency spokeswoman Donelle Harder said attorneys at the department and in the governor’s office agreed state law prohibits the release of such detailed information but that they did so under the powers granted to the governor under the Catastrophic Health Emergency Powers Act. Those powers, which include suspending state laws that might hinder the state’s ability to respond to a health crisis, were not renewed by the Legislature and expired on Monday.

“Now that the emergency declaration has expired, the governor no longer has the authority to waive state statute,” Harder said. “We are being instructed that we have to reverse course on these particular data points due to the interpretation of the state’s (Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act) laws.”

A recent analysis of the state’s 334 COVID-19 deaths shows nearly half have been residents of nursing homes or long-term care facilities.

Michigan lifts coronavirus stay-at-home order

Update 10:20 p.m. EDT June 1: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has lifted Michigan’s nearly 10-week coronavirus stay-at-home order, letting restaurants reopen to dine-in customers next week and immediately easing limits on outdoor gatherings while keeping social-distancing rules intact.

The governor on Monday moved regions comprising 93% of the state’s population to phase 4 — “improving” — two weeks after she announced that northern Michigan could advance to that stage. Businesses where close contact is necessary, such as gyms, hair salons, theaters and amusement parks, will remain closed under a new order.

Retailers can reopen to customers without an appointment on Thursday and restaurants can offer dine-in service on June 8, with capacity limits. Children’s day camps, pools, libraries and museums can also reopen June 8. Groups of up to 100 can gather outside if they stay 6 feet apart, up from a threshold of 10 people. In-home services such as housecleaning can resume.

People must continue to wear face coverings in enclosed public spaces.

Primaries become test run for campaigning during coronavirus

Update 9:20 p.m. EDT June 1: Tuesday’s primaries in eight states are the biggest test to date of campaigning during the coronavirus era, a way for parties to test-drive new ways of getting out the vote during a time when it can be dangerous to leave your home.

Voters from Pennsylvania to New Mexico will cast ballots in both the Democratic presidential contest, where former Vice President Joe Biden is the only contender with an active campaign, and a host of down-ballot primaries for everything from governors to state representatives. Of the eight, Iowa selected its presidential nominee early in the year and is focusing on other offices.

Many states postponed elections scheduled between mid-March and May to the date because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Unable to send candidates out to barnstorm the states or volunteers to knock on voters’ doors, campaigns have had to improvise. One Pennsylvania Republican congressional campaign recruited 100 people, including its candidate’s large extended family, to hand-write thousands of letters to voters urging support. Another organized “pop-up food banks” for the needy. Others moved up television advertising to capitalize on a captive audience locked down at home. Democrats have created a phone banking model almost along the lines of a technology support hub, where knowledgeable volunteers and staffers can guide confused voters, step by step, through the process of voting by mail.

“Any plan you had three months ago is out the window,” said Brock Lowrance, a Republican strategist working on two Montana races — Sen. Steve Daines’ reelection bid and Rep. Greg Gianforte’s bid for the GOP gubernatorial nomination. “Campaigns are having to adapt in the ways they’re talking to voters but also in the ways voters are going to vote.”

Some voting experts predict half or more of all ballots cast in the November election will be sent through the mail, as the Centers for Disease Control recommends as a way to lessen risk of exposure to the virus at polling stations. States have scrambled to adjust to the new reality with some sending every voter an absentee ballot request.

Congress confronts dual crises of protests, virus outbreak

Update 7:50 p.m. EDT June 1: Congress convened Monday confronting protests outside its door, and across the nation, over the treatment of black people in the United States. The civil unrest combined with the COVID-19 crisis that’s disproportionately striking African Americans sparked an urgent plea for understanding from some leaders as the world watches a nation in turmoil.

Notably, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell read into the Senate record the names of black people who have died at the hands of the police. George Floyd. Ahmaud Arbery. Breonna Taylor.

“To me,” McConnell, R-Ky., said in a speech in the Senate chamber, and to “millions of outraged Americans, these disturbing events do not look like three isolated incidents. They look more like the latest chapter in our national struggle to make equal just and equal protection under the law a fact of life for all Americans.”

As protesters gathered outside the Capitol, still partly locked down due to the coronavirus, the dual crises tested Washington. Some lawmakers urged comity and federal aid to prevent the country from slipping into further conflict. Others sided with President Donald Trump’s threat to use military force if necessary to end the protests.

House and Senate lawmakers swiftly began drafting legislation to address police violence and confront the inequities facing black Americans. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., proposed a sweeping overhaul of law enforcement procedures. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., pushed to establish the first U.S. Commission on Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation, backed by a civil rights icon, Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga.

“The murder of George Floyd and the current COVID-19 crisis illustrate once again the painful and dangerous legacy that white supremacy has had in our country,” Lee said in introducing the measure. “This inequality is at the heart of every crisis we’re dealing with right now.”

Even some conservatives who in the past have countered “Black Lives Matter” protests with “Blue Lives Matter” support for law enforcement acknowledged the concerns. After countless incidents of police being called to investigate black people doing ordinary things — most recently when a white woman in New York summoned 911 over an African American bird watcher in Central Park — many lawmakers agreed public attitudes and police tactics need review.

Fishing trawler in Washington state has 86 coronavirus cases

Update 5:25 p.m. EDT June 1: A fishing trawler in Washington state has 86 crew members who tested positive for the coronavirus, officials said.

Ship operator American Seafoods said the American Dynasty trawler first docked in Bellingham May 26, The Bellingham Herald reported Sunday.

The Seattle-based crew are not showing symptoms and remained on the ship while it was in Bellingham, the company said.

The results of nine tests are still outstanding.

The American Dynasty returned to the Port of Seattle and is under quarantine, American Seafoods said in a statement.

“The crew has access to any required medical care, and we are thrilled with the support that the agencies we are working with have provided,” American Seafoods CEO Mikel Durham said.

“We have also put in place preparedness procedures in the event of a virus outbreak,” Durham said.

The American Dynasty can carry a crew of 142 and is a factory vessel fishing for pollock, hake and sole. The ship was carrying a crew of 124, including a medic, American Seafoods spokesperson Suzanne Lagoni said.

A crew member tested positive for the coronavirus while the ship was docked in Bellingham and remains in a hospital for treatment after being admitted Friday.

American Seafoods said it activated its COVID-19 response plan, which includes testing all crew members on board.

Legendary Auburn football coach Pat Dye dead at 80

Update 4:35 p.m. EDT June 1: Pat Dye, who led Auburn’s football team to four Southeastern Conference championships during his 12-year coaching career at the university, died Monday. He was 80.

Dye had tested positive for the coronavirus while he was hospitalized in Atlanta with kidney issues, his son told ESPN last month. Dye’s death was first reported by 247Sports.

Protesters gather outside North Carolina chicken plant amid an outbreak

Update 2:35 p.m. EDT June 1: Demonstrators gathered outside a chicken plant in Morganton, North Carolina after at least two people tested positive for COVID-19, WSOC-TV reported.

On Monday morning, members of Asheville Animal Save gathered outside Case Farms to demand better work conditions for employees and ask the company to transition to non-meat products, according to WSOC-TV.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has not said the exact number of cases at the chicken processing plant, but officials said last month that having at least two cases in a place qualifies it as an outbreak.

>> Read more on WSOCTV.com

More than 6.2M cases of COVID-19 reported worldwide

Update 2:15 p.m. EDT June 1: More than 6.2 million cases of COVID-19 have been reported worldwide as of Monday, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.

The United States continues to lead the world with the most number of coronavirus infections reported. As of Monday, nearly 1.8 million people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with COVID-19. At least 104,000 people have died of the viral infection nationwide.

The second-most cases in the world have been reported in Brazil, where officials had confirmed more than 514,000 cases of COVID-19 by Monday.

The emergencies chief of the World Health Organization said Monday that Central America and South America are currently witnessing the most intense transmission of the coronavirus worldwide.

“I don’t believe we’ve reached the peak” in the Americas, Dr. Michael Ryan said, noting that several factors in the region, including the number of urban poor and fragile health systems, made outbreaks in those countries particularly dangerous.

Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Poison and Joan Jett postpone planned tour

Update 1:35 p.m. EDT June 1: An upcoming stadium tour featuring Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Poison and Joan Jett and the Blackhearts has been postponed until 2021, according to a joint statement released Monday by the bands.

“The official decision has been made to move all 2020 North American Stadium Tour dates into the summer of 2021,” the statement said. “The new stadium dates are being rescheduled, your tickets will be honored for all postponed shows and refund policy information will be made available shortly.”

Western New York expected to move to Phase 2 of reopening

Update 1:25 p.m. EDT June 1: Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York said Monday that Western New York will likely be able to begin the second phase of reopening on Tuesday as the number of deaths, hospitalizations and new COVID-19 cases continues to fall.

“What we have done with this COVID virus is a really amazing accomplishment, if you take a step back," the governor said at a news conference, according to WCBS-TV. "Remember where we were. We had 800 people die in one day. We had the worst situation in the United States of America. At one point we had the worst situation on the globe.”

On Monday, officials recorded the lowest number of new COVID-19 cases reported since March 16, according to WGRZ.

Phase 2 of reopening in New York state will allow for barbershops, salons, offices, in-store retail and other businesses to open their doors to customers again, WGRZ reported.

More than 40,000 coronavirus cases reported in Louisiana

Update 1:15 p.m. EDT June 1: Officials in Louisiana reported 425 new coronavirus infections Monday, raising the state’s total number of infections to 40,341.

Statewide, at least 2,690 people have died of COVID-19 and at least 31,728 people have recovered from the viral infection, officials said.

Spain reports no new coronavirus deaths for first time since March

Update 12:55 p.m. EDT June 1: For the first time since March, officials in Spain on Monday reported no new deaths due to the novel coronavirus, according to The Associated Press.

At a news conference Monday, emergency health response chief Fernando Simon called the development “very, very encouraging” and noted that only 71 new coronavirus infections had been reported in the last 24 hours.

“We are in a very good place in the evolution of the pandemic,” Simon said, according to the AP. “The statistics are following a trend. They are going in the right direction.”

As of Monday, officials said they’ve confirmed 239,638 cases of COVID-19 nationwide.

Gilead says remdesivir helped some moderate COVID-19 patients recover

Update 12:20 p.m. EDT June 1: Officials with Gilead Sciences shared mixed results Monday from its remdesivir trial which showed an improvement in moderate COVID-19 patients who received a 5-day course of the drug with no “statistically significant” difference in recovery time for those who took the drug for 10 days.

The trial compared the recoveries of patients who received remdesivir for five days, patients who got the experimental drug for 10 days and patients who were not treated with remdesivir. Scientists said that, by day 11, “a higher proportion of patients in the 5-day treatment group achieved improvement in clinical status versus the standard of care group.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration previously granted emergency authorization to allow remdesivir to be used to treat patients who have tested positive for COVID-19.

54 new fatal coronavirus cases reported in New York

Update 11:55 a.m. EDT June 1: Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York said Monday that 54 more people have died of COVID-19 statewide. The number is slightly lower than the 56 new fatal cases reported one day earlier.

Former CDC director predicts another 20,000 will die of COVID-19 in next month

Update 10:50 a.m. EDT June 1: Tom Frieden, who headed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under President Barack Obama, told Axios Health on Monday that he believes another 20,000 people will die of novel coronavirus infections in the next month.

Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University, told Axios that people are under the mistaken impression that we’re coming out from under the threat of the novel coronavirus. Businesses in all 50 states that were shuttered due to the pandemic have begun to reopen in recent days.

“We hit pause (on the virus), and now we’re hitting play, and we don’t know what the next song’s going to be,” she told Axios.

Stocks pull back on Wall Street as trade worries flare again

Update 9:45 a.m. EDT June 1: Stocks opened lower Monday on Wall Street as traders worry that trade tensions could flare again with China and as protests spread across the U.S. against police brutality, potentially threatening more outbreaks of the coronavirus.

The S&P 500 index fell 0.4% in the first few minutes of trading Monday, led by declines in technology and health care companies.

The index is coming off its second month of solid gains. Overseas, Hong Kong’s market rose after President Donald Trump didn’t pull out of a trade truce reached earlier with China. But traders still worried that more trade friction was on the way.

Bars, nightclubs allowed to reopen in Georgia

Update 8:50 a.m. EDT June 1: Several more businesses will be allowed to reopen Monday across Georgia including bars and nightclubs, according to WSB-TV.

Gov. Brian Kemp announced the decision on Friday.

“Bars and nightclubs can decide to reopen if they comply with strict sanitation and social distancing rules, all crafted to reflect industry practices and mitigate health risk,” Kemp said, according to WSB-TV. “To open their doors, bars and nightclubs must meet thirty-nine mandatory measures to ensure patron well-being.”

WSB-TV reported summer schools and overnight summer camps will be allowed to resume, and pro sports will also be able to do team activities, but live entertainment venues will stay closed for now.

>> Read more on WSBTV.com

Global cases near 6.2M, death toll tops 372K

Update 7:26 a.m. EDT June 1: The global death toll attributed to the novel coronavirus reached 372,377 early Monday, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally.

In the four months since the virus was first identified in Wuhan, China, it has infected at least 6,189,560 people worldwide. Meanwhile, 16 nations now have total infection counts higher than China’s 84,147.

The 10 nations with the highest number of infections recorded to date are as follows:

• The United States has reported 1,790,191 cases, resulting in 104,383 deaths.

• Brazil has recorded 514,849 cases, resulting in 29,314 deaths.

• Russia has confirmed 414,878 cases, resulting in 4,855 deaths.

• The United Kingdom has reported 276,156 cases, resulting in 38,571 deaths.

• Spain has confirmed 239,479 cases, resulting in 27,127 deaths.

• Italy has reported 232,997 cases, resulting in 33,415 deaths.

• India has reported 191,041 cases, resulting in 5,413 deaths.

• France has confirmed 189,010 cases, resulting in 28,805 deaths.

• Germany has reported 183,508 cases, resulting in 8,546 deaths.

• Peru has reported 164,476 cases, resulting in 4,506 deaths.

Armenian prime minister tests positive for coronavirus

Update 6:48 a.m. EDT June 1: Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan confirmed Monday he has tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

“It appeared yesterday that I had tested positive for coronavirus. I had no symptoms, but considering my plan to visit military units, I decided to take the test and it came back positive,” Pashinyan said on Facebook, The Washington Post reported.

Pashinyan, who said he will be working from home throughout his illness, also confirmed his entire family has also contracted the disease, and the suspicion is that the virus was passed along by “a waiter, who brought us glasses of water” during a recent meeting.

“I saw that he was wearing no gloves and rebuked him, but I think they were working without gloves earlier. The waiter has also tested positive for coronavirus,” Pashinyan said.

Armenia has confirmed 9,282 cases of the coronavirus, resulting in 131 fatalities to date, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally.

2 Connecticut tribal casinos set to reopen amid lingering coronavirus concerns

Update 6:25 a.m. EDT June 1: Connecticut’s Foxwoods Resort Casino and Mohegan Sun are touting “limited” re-openings despite Gov. Ned Lamont saying he thinks it’s too early for them to do so, NPR reported.

"I think the idea of opening up on June 1 is early," Lamont said, adding, “It's earlier than Las Vegas. It’s earlier than any of our regional casinos want to do. I'd like to have more time."

Tribal leaders, however, feel they have done the due diligence required to open safely, such as mandating Foxwoods’ reopening is contingent on maintaining strict 25% occupancy.

“We feel like we’ve put forward a plan to mitigate the risk,” Rodney Butler, chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot tribal nation, told NPR. “Don’t go with the perception of what casinos were. Let’s focus on what we’re doing, and you have to come and see it.”

Meanwhile, nearby Mohegan Sun is implementing similar safety guidelines but also requiring table-game players to remain separated by plexiglass and dice to be disinfected between rolls.

Find answers to mortgage, rent relief options due to coronavirus

Update 5:48 a.m. EDT June 1: Homeowners and renters worried about mortgage and rent payments are not entirely alone.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, more than 8% of U.S. homeowners, or about 4.7 million households, have sought help through mortgage relief programs, representing a roughly 2,000% increase since early March.

Meanwhile, the number of the nation’s 40 million renters paying late has doubled since the novel coronavirus pandemic began, The Washington Post reported.

In fact, data analytics real estate firm Amherst estimates as many as 28 million renters, or nearly 23% of all U.S. households, are at risk of eviction or foreclosure as a direct result of the virus’ financial toll, the Post reported.

Click here for answers, compiled by the Post, to common questions about moratoriums on evictions and foreclosures passed due to the pandemic.

US coronavirus deaths top 104K, total cases near 1.8M

Update 12:28 a.m. EDT June 1: The number of novel coronavirus cases in the United States continued to climb past 1.7 million early Monday across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

According to a Johns Hopkins University tally, there are at least 1,790,172 confirmed U.S. cases of the virus, which have resulted in at least 104,381 deaths.

The hardest-hit states remain New York with 370,770 cases and 29,784 deaths and New Jersey with 160,445 cases and 11,698 deaths. Massachusetts, with 96,965 cases, has the third-highest number of deaths with 6,846, while Illinois has the third-highest number of cases with 120,260. Only 16 states and territories have confirmed fewer than 6,000 cases each.

Six other states have now confirmed at least 50,000 novel coronavirus cases each, including:

• California: 111,951 cases, resulting in 4,172 deaths

• Pennsylvania: 76,129 cases, resulting in 5,555 deaths

• Texas: 64,652 cases, resulting in 1,675 deaths

• Michigan: 57,397 cases, resulting in 5,491 deaths

• Florida: 56,163 cases, resulting in 2,451 deaths

• Maryland: 52,778 cases, resulting in 2,532 deaths

Meanwhile, Georgia, Virginia and Connecticut each has confirmed at least 42,000 cases; Louisiana, Ohio and Indiana each has confirmed at least 34,000 cases; North Carolina, Colorado, Minnesota, Tennessee and Washington each has confirmed at least 21,000 cases; Arizona and Iowa each has confirmed at least 19,000 cases, followed by Wisconsin with 18,403, Alabama with 17,952 and Mississippi with 15,523; Rhode Island and Nebraska each has confirmed at least 14,000 cases, followed by Missouri with 13,438 and South Carolina with 11,861; Utah, Kentucky, Kansas and Delaware each has confirmed at least 9,000 cases; the District of Columbia and Nevada each has confirmed at least 8,000 cases; New Mexico and Arkansas each has confirmed at least 7,000 cases, followed by Oklahoma with 6,418.

Click here to see CNN’s state-by-state breakdown.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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