June 30 coronavirus news

By Nectar Gan, Adam Renton, Melissa Macaya, Meg Wagner and Mike Hayes, CNN

Updated 12:02 a.m. ET, July 1, 2020
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8:25 a.m. ET, June 30, 2020

Australia's Victoria state reimposes lockdown on 10 suburbs

From CNN's Julia Hollingsworth

A member of the Australian Defence Force administers a Covid-19 test on June 29 in Melbourne, Australia.
A member of the Australian Defence Force administers a Covid-19 test on June 29 in Melbourne, Australia. Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

The Australian state of Victoria has reintroduced lockdown measures on 10 suburbs around Melbourne following a recent spike in coronavirus cases.

A stay-at-home order will come into effect at 11:59 p.m. local time on July 1 and last until July 29 in 10 affected postcodes, according to a statement from Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews.

"If you live in these locations, there will again only be four reasons to be out:
"Shopping for food and supplies, care and caregiving, exercise, and study or work – if you can’t do it from home," the statement said.

Beauty parlors, gyms, libraries and swimming polls in these areas -- which have only recently reopened -- will once again be restricted, while cafes and restaurants will revert to takeout and delivery only, according to the statement.

On Tuesday, Victoria reported 64 new cases of coronavirus, the 14th consecutive day of double-digit daily increase of new infections.

2:45 a.m. ET, June 30, 2020

Japan reports 111 new coronavirus cases

From CNN's Yoko Wakatsuki

Japan recorded 111 new coronavirus cases on Monday, the second consecutive day of more than 100 new infections, the country's health ministry announced Tuesday.

To date, Japan has reported a total of 19,305 cases, including 712 infections linked to the Diamond Princess cruise ship. The death toll in the country stands at 985, with 13 fatalities associated with the ship.

The country's capital, Tokyo, recorded 58 new infections on Monday -- the fourth consecutive day the city reported more than 50 new cases.

3:18 a.m. ET, June 30, 2020

More than 100 Covid-19 cases linked to one bar

From CNN's Amir Vera and Sheena Jones

Harper's Restaurant & Brew Pub in East Lansing, Michigan.
Harper's Restaurant & Brew Pub in East Lansing, Michigan. WILX

At least 107 coronavirus cases have been linked to a bar in East Lansing, Michigan, health officials said.

The Ingham County Health Department is asking patrons who visited Harper's Restaurant & Brew Pub between June 12 and June 20 to self-quarantine and report cases of Covid-19, the department said in a statement.

Of the more than 100 positive cases, 12 are from secondary transmission, Ingham County Health Officer Linda S. Vail said Monday night.

The number of positive cases linked to the bar has risen rapidly since it was first reported Tuesday. Initially, 14 positive cases were reported; that jumped to 34 on Wednesday. By Saturday, that had risen to about 85, Vail said.

The bar followed safety guidelines for employees, capacity guidelines and table spacing, Harper's Restaurant & Brew Pub said in a June 22 statement on Facebook.

"Harper's re-opened at 50% capacity on June 8th according to the Governor's executive order, and have welcomed back our employees and numerous customers to our restaurant and brewpub. The extraordinary exuberant response to our re-opening has been beyond our expectations," the statement on Facebook read.

Read the full story here.

9:43 a.m. ET, June 30, 2020

Arizona closes bars, gyms and other businesses after "brutal" increase in Covid-19 cases

From CNN's Kimberly Berryman and Theresa Waldrop

Medical personnel prepare to administer hundreds of coronavirus tests on June 27 in Phoenix, Arizona.
Medical personnel prepare to administer hundreds of coronavirus tests on June 27 in Phoenix, Arizona. Matt York/AP

In one of the most drastic rollbacks of reopenings yet, Arizona is closing bars, gyms, movie theaters and other businesses for 30 days amid a "brutal" increase in Covid-19 cases, Gov. Doug Ducey said Monday.

Water parks and tubing must also close, Ducey said at a news conference, and events with more than 50 people are prohibited.

The pullback comes as the state has seen a surge in Covid-19 cases recently. There are now almost 75,000 reported infections, up from 46,689 cases 10 days ago.

"Our expectation is that next week, our numbers will be worse," Ducey said. "It will take several weeks for the mitigations we are putting in place to take effect."

The largest increase is from those between the ages of 20 and 44 who now make up 22% of hospitalizations in Arizona, Ducey said.

Sixteen other states have either pulled back on reopenings or have put them on pause as their cases jump. Bars were ordered to close back down in Texas and parts of California. In some of South Florida, beaches were directed to close again during the upcoming holiday weekend, and on-premises alcohol consumption has been suspended in bars statewide.

Read the full story here

1:26 a.m. ET, June 30, 2020

Several baseball players are opting out of the 2020 MLB Season, citing "personal health and safety"

From CNN's Amanda Jackson, Jabari Jackson and Jill Martin

MLB players and staff will report to their respective teams starting Wednesday, with Opening Day games on either July 23 or 24.
MLB players and staff will report to their respective teams starting Wednesday, with Opening Day games on either July 23 or 24. Mitchell Leff/Getty Images

Several players have decided to opt out of the rescheduled Major League Baseball season due to health concerns amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Washington Nationals infielder Ryan Zimmerman and pitcher Joe Ross will not be playing the 2020 season, the team confirmed on Monday. Arizona Diamondbacks right-handed pitcher Mike Leake also has decided not to play this season, according to a statement from his agent.

Monday night, Colorado Rockies outfielder Ian Desmond posted an emotional message on Instagram stating he will also be opting out of playing this season. The 34-year-old, who is biracial, made reference to the ongoing racial tensions in the country and the pandemic as why his family needs him at home.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has made this baseball season one that is a risk I am not comfortable taking," his post reads.
"With a pregnant wife and four young children who have lots of questions about what's going on in the world, home is where I need to be right now. Home for my wife, Chelsey. Home to help. Home to guide. Home to answer my older three boys' questions about Coronavirus and Civil Rights and life. Home to be their Dad."

Read the full story:

12:47 a.m. ET, June 30, 2020

New Zealand to host virtual APEC summit in 2021

From CNN's Julia Hollingsworth

New Zealand will host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in 2021 using virtual platforms, the government announced Monday.

The summit was scheduled to be held in Auckland in November 2021.

The country's foreign minister Winston Peters said the decision to go virtual was made due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“COVID-19 has seriously impacted how we conduct international diplomacy. That includes hosting APEC. As has occurred with many other international government-to-government events, APEC21 will proceed using virtual digital platforms," Peters said.

The minister added the announcement was made now as it wasn’t practical to wait for several months to get a clearer picture of the virus’ spread.

“Given the current global environment, planning to have such a large volume of high-level visitors in New Zealand from late 2020 onwards is impractical,” Peters said.

12:13 a.m. ET, June 30, 2020

IHME slightly lowers US coronavirus death projection

From CNN Health’s Maggie Fox

The University of Washington has slightly lowered its projection of how many people are likely to die from coronavirus in the United States by October 1. 

The university’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) now forecasts 175,168 total deaths by October 1, based on the current scenario. But if almost everyone wears a face mask, that number would fall to just over 150,000, the IHME projected.

Last week, the IHME forecast 179,106 deaths by October 1 if nothing changed but said that would drop to 146,000 if 95% of Americans started wearing masks in public.

The current model shows daily deaths leveling out starting this week -- at 630 or so deaths a day -- and staying fairly constant if states continue to ease their restrictions on economic activity. It shows daily death rates dropping fast to just 71 deaths a day with universal mask requirements, however.

So far, according to Johns Hopkins University, more than 2.5 million Americans have been diagnosed with coronavirus infections and at least 126,000 have died.

11:51 p.m. ET, June 29, 2020

No proof partial closures will help stop resurging coronavirus, infectious disease expert says

From CNN Health’s Shelby Lin Erdman

There’s no proof reclosing bars and night clubs and other businesses will slow the resurgence of coronavirus in parts of the United States, according to Dr. Peter Hotez, an infectious disease specialist and dean of the school of tropical medicine at Baylor College of Medicine.

“So far, most of the governors have not been willing to do that full lockdown that was so successful in New York in the northeast back in March, April,” Hotez told CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
“So they’re trying to see if they can do this surgically, meaning just close bars or 50% restaurants and encourage use of masks or in some cases mandate masks and stop short of that full lockdown,” he said.

Many states such as Florida, Texas and Arizona are taking piecemeal steps on the local level in lieu of full lockdowns to try and flatten the curve again. Some cities and counties are mandating mask use while others are not. 

Hotez said they’re trying to “have their cake and eat it,” too.

“My point is, what's the evidence that that will work? Have they been looking at epidemiologic models, working with the scientists to actually see what the impact of all these surgical strikes are, whether they're going to have a reduction in the number of cases, and that I haven't seen.”
“So what they're trying to do is they're trying to keep the economic opening going, hoping that the surgical measures might also work,” he said.

Hotez also expects the thousands of new cases throughout the country will result in deaths over the upcoming weeks and he expects, once again, low-income minority communities will fare the worst.

“I'm pretty convinced that most of these cases, or a lot of these cases and deaths that will follow them over the next three weeks are happening in low-income neighborhoods, so African American populations, Hispanic, Latinx populations, Native American populations,” Hotez said.

1:26 a.m. ET, June 30, 2020

China reports 19 new coronavirus cases

From Vanesse Chan in Hong Kong

Workers direct people at a coronavirus testing station on June 30 in Beijing, China.
Workers direct people at a coronavirus testing station on June 30 in Beijing, China. Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images

China recorded 19 new cases of coronavirus on the mainland on Monday, the country's National Health Commission (NHC) announced Tuesday.

Out of the new cases, 11 were imported and eight were locally transmitted. The local cases include seven from Beijing, along with a case from Shanghai. No new deaths were reported.

The capital continues to post new cases despite local officials last week calling an outbreak at a wholesale food market “basically contained."

In addition, four new asymptomatic cases were reported by the NHC. Currently 99 asymptomatic patients are under medical observation.

China has, to date, registered 83,531 coronavirus cases, with 4,634 deaths.

A total of 78,469 patients have been discharged so far, the health agency said.

This comes as 400,000 residents in Anxin County, Hebei province have been placed under new lockdown measures amid a small increase in cases.

Anxin, a relatively rural and sparsely populated county, is located around 90 miles (145 km) south of Beijing, which had seen a spike in coronavirus cases linked to the Xinfadi market in the past two weeks.