Thursday Morning C-19 Update

NOTE - Below is a radio-friendly notepad used on the Need To Know Morning Show on AM1100 The Flag WZFG.  Spelling, punctuation, etc are not edited. 

 HERE ARE THE KEY NUMBERS THIS MORNING.....

IN NORTH DAKOTA.... the 3 NUMBERS WE'RE WATCHING -- FIRST THE POSITIVE RATE  ....42 POSITIVE OUT OF 1,813 TOTAL TESTS....THATS 2.3 PERCENT - WELL below the 7 AND 14 DAY AVERAGE.......SECOND, THE HOSPITALIZED NUMBER IS UP 3 FROM THE DAY BEFORE AT 28... THIRD THE DEATH COUNT .... unchanged AT 19 .......OF THE 42 TO TEST POSITIVE TODAY, CASS COUNTY HAD 20 AND GF HAD 16 (2 WORLDS) .......

IN MINNESOTA - 463 POSITIVE OUT OF A SAMPLE SIZE OF 2900.....AT 15.9 PERCENT THAT'S ABOVE THE 7 AND 14 DAY AVERAGE.... .WEDNESDAY’'S REPORT SHOWS 18 DEATHS  - BELOW THE 7 DAY AVERAGE.......ALL 18 WERE FROM EITHER HENNEPIN OR RAMSEY COUNTIES IN THE TWIN CITIES METRO......IN ALL, 319 AVE DIED........FOR HOSPITALIZATIONS....439 IN ALL - 118 IN ICU..........IN CLAY COUNTY....10 IN ALL HAVE DIED, MOST IN LONG TERM CARE FACILITIES...152 TOTAL CASES…

IN SOUTH DAKOTA -....2 NEW DEATHS - NOW A TOTAL OF 13.....ABOUT 60  NEW CASES....2,373 IN ALL....THAT'S RIGHT AT THE 7 AND 14 DAY AVERAGES....69 ARE HOSPITALIZED, EVEN FROM DAY BEFORE.....AND NEARLY 15-HUNDRED HAVE RECOVERED, UP ABOUT A HUNDRED.

ACROSS THE U-S.....ABOUT 23-HUNDRED DEATHS .....VERY SIMILAR TO DAY BEFORE..........JUST OVER 61-THOUSAND HAVE DIED.......NEARLY 15-THOUSAND ARE HOSPITALIZED .....THERE ARE 23-THOUSAND NEW CASES TODAY....THAT'S UNDER THE 7 AND 14 DAY AVERAGES

ACROSS THE WORLD DOCTORS SAY 227-THOUSAND ARE DEAD ......UP 9-THOUSAND....AND OVERNIGHT, WE WENT OVER 1 MILLION WITH THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE RECOVERED…

ON THE TRENDLINE THIS MORNING......

US DEATH TRENDS....WE HAD BEEN SEEING ABOUT 22-HUNDRED A DAY FOR THE LAST 10 DAYS....BUT OVER THE WEEKEND WE HAD ONLY 12-HUNDRED.....TYPICAL OF WEEKEND REPORTING THAT RUNS LOWER...AND SO WE THOUGHT WE COULD SEE MORE THAN 3-THOUSAND YESTERDAY AND TODAY BUT IT DIDN'T HAPPEN....SO WE CAN SAFELY SAY OVER THE LAST 4 DAYS WE ARE DEFINITELY TRENDING DOWNWARD, ALTHOUGH ONLY SLIGHTLY....

HOWEVER THE OVERALL DEATH COUNT HAS NOW PASSED THE 61-THOUSAND MARK - THAT WAS THE NUMBER THAT AT ONE TIME HAD BEEN THE PROJECTED TOTAL BY THE UNIV OF WASH IMHE MODEL....THAT NUMBER HAS NOW BEEN REVISED UPWARD TO ABOUT 72-THOUSAND…

The ND HEALTH department announced 1,813 test results WEDNESDAY, marking the sixth straight day it has reported more than 1,000 test results...BURGUM SAYS HIS GOAL IS 6-THOUSAND TESTS A DAY BY THE END OF JUNE.

HERE ARE YOUR THURSDAY MORNING HEADLINES -

ND GOVERNOR DOUG BURGUM GAVE GUIDANCE WEDNESDAY ON HOW THEATERS COULD REOPEN TOMORROW....THE BIGGEST CHANGE IS THAT ONLY 20 PERCENT OF SEATS CAN BE FILLED....START TIMES WILL ALSO NEED TO BE STAGGERED AND FACILITIES WILL HAVE TO PROVIDE PROPER SPACING...BURGUM SAYS 20% SEEMS LIKE A REALLY SMALL NUMBER BUT IT MAKES SENSE...........SOT

 Burgum said he was not ready to allow such things as sports arenas and large concert venues to open...AND K12 SCHOOLS WILL STAY CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE AS WELL

MINNESOTA GOVERNOR TIM Walz SAID WEDNESDAY HE’LL ISSUE GUIDANCE TODAY ABOUT REOPENING MORE BUSINESSES….HIS CURRENT EXECUTIVE ORDER EXPIRES MONDAY….WALZ HINTED YESTERDAYthat more businesses will be allowed to re-open, including Main Street retail.....BUT SAYS THE PEAK IN MINNESOTA IS STILL LIKELY A MONTH AWAY....

The comment came the same day a group of small business owners sued the state over Walz's executive orders, which they said violated business owners' constitutional rights. Owners of seven businesses and a group called the Free Minnesota Small Business Coalition ALLEGE THAT the designations of essential or nonessential businesses ARE UNCONSTITUTIONAL....

VALLEY NEWS LIVE REPORTS THAT TWO AMBULANCE CALLS WERE MADE TUESDAY NIGHT TO A FARGO HOTEL WHERE HOMELESS COVID PATIENTS ARE RECOVERING….A SIMILAR SITUATION HAPPENED ON MONDAY NIGHT...THE UNNAMED HOTEL IS ONE OF SEVERAL ACROSS THE STATE THAT IS PART OF THE PROGRAM FOR PEOPLE WHO CANNOT ISOLATE AT HOMELESS OR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS OUT OF CONCERN FOR OTHERS… the statewide temporary shelter program has served over 35 people so far, MOST IN FARGO….ITS NOT KNOWN WHAT THE NATURE OF THE AMBULANCE CALLS WAS….

PRESIDENT TRUMP TODAY CELEBRATING GOOD NEWS FROM THE PHARMACEUTICAL COMMUNITY....White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said data from a TRIAL OF GILEAD'S REMDESIVIR SHOWED “quite good news” and sets a new standard of care for Covid-19 patients. Speaking to reporters from the White House, Fauci said he was told data showed a “clear-cut positive effect in diminishing time to recover.”...THE PRESIDENT SAYS HE WANTS THE FDA TO MOVE FAST TO GET APPROVALS ON THE DRUG....SOT

HE ALSO SAID Wednesday the federal government will not be extending its coronavirus social distancing guidelines once they expire Thursday...HE ADDED THAT HE plans to resume official travel with a trip to Arizona next week. And he said he's hoping to hold mass campaign rallies in the coming months with thousands of supporters, even though medical experts have said there is little hope of having a vaccine by then....

THE  North Dakota University System may be OPEN FOR BUSINESS THIS FALL...THE State Board of Higher Education PASSED A MOTION UNANIMOUSLY TO REOPEN campuses FOR FALL SEMESTER...The motion also allowed for some classes to happen on campuses during the summer….LEADERS SAY THINGS COULD CHANGE IF THE VIRUS ESCALATES AGAIN.

The Red River Zoo says IT WILL OPEN ON SATURDAY....DAILY HOURS WILL BE FROM 10 AM TO 6 PM...Many of the zoo's buildings, including the Carousel Pavilion, will remain closed.....Guests will be encouraged to wear face masks and to stay at least six feet away from other guests.

IT WASN'T ALL GOOD NEWS BUT IT WASN'T UNEXPECTED EITHER....But the government announced dismal new economic numbers as the pandemic took hold and shut down much of the country….The U.S. economy shrank at a 4.8% annual rate in first quarter of the year — a precursor to far grimmer reports that are expected this summer from the severe recession triggered by the pandemic.

NEW RULES AT COSTCO....Shoppers must wear a face covering or mask to be allowed in stores starting Monday.... All members, guests and employees must comply….Members who don't have a mask with them will be supplied a free one for the first week only….Costco is the first major national retailer to mandate mask wearing by customers..The requirement does not apply to children under the age of 2 or to individuals who are unable to wear a mask or face covering due to a medical condition,

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THE ND DEPT OF HEALTH SAYS  A total of 27 long-term care centers in the state have been hit with COVID-19 thus far, with a total of 130 confirmed cases among residents and staff statewide....

Two more cases were confirmed AT FARGO'S VILLA MARIA , for a total of 27 — the highest number of any senior care facility in the state.

SANFORD HEALTH HAS JOINED ESSENTIA IN SAYING THAT IT NOW CAN PROCESS ANTIBODY TESTS FOR PATIENTS WHO BELIEVE THEY'VE HAD THE VIRUS....SANFORD SAYS IT IS ABLE TO PROCESS 12-HUNDRED TESTS A DAY IN ITS SIOUX FALLS LAB....THOSE THAT HAVE THE ANTIBODIES CAN NOT ONLY RETURN TO SOCIETY WITH SOME IMMUNITY, BUT ALSO DONATE PLASMA THAT COULD HELP THOSE BATTLING THE VIRUS CURRENTLY. 

More than 564,00 Minnesotans have applied for unemployment insurance benefits since March 16,  There have been nearly 18,000 applicants this week, despite a move to relax restrictions on which businesses can operate during the pandemic.

WALL STREET HAD A GOOD DAY, WITH THE DOW UP MORE THAN 500 POINTS....THE SP 500 WAS UP 76 AND THE NAZ WAS UP 307.

Microsoft shares rose as much as 5% in extended trading on Wednesday after the company reported fiscal third-quarter sales growth of 15%, fueled by its cloud business......The company said in a statement that the coronavirus “had minimal net impact on the total company revenue” in the quarter and that “effects of COVID-19 may not be fully reflected in the financial results until future periods......TESLA AND FACEBOOK ALSO REPORTED GOOD NUMBERS TODAY..