Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that New York State is end all Covid-19 restrictions in business and social settings. Once a hotspot for the virus, New York has reached its 70% vaccination rate for adults across the state, Cuomo said. New York has administered more than 20.2 million doses of the vaccine to date, “more per capita than any other major state” in the United States, he said.
The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reclassified the Delta strain of Covid-19 as a variant of concern, saying it is more transmissible. The Delta variant, which was first detected in India, has spread to at least 66 countries, the CDC said. The Delta variant ravaged India earlier this year, sending the country’s case rates to record highs.
U.S. deaths attributed to Covid-19 have passed 600,000 four months after reaching half a million, reflecting a marked slowdown in new infections and hospitalizations due to the virus. Data compiled by Johns Hopkins University showed that 600,012 Americans have died from Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic.
California has lifted most Covid-19 rules on business activity and wearing masks, marking what has been called a “grand reopening” for the state. Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, laid out plans in April to reopen on June 15. And on Tuesday, California eliminated state-imposed social distancing requirements and capacity limits for restaurants, bars, grocery stores, gyms and other businesses.
Confidence among top U.S. leaders has rebounded to near record highs, new poll finds, paving the way for a hiring and increased investments in the coming months. The Business Roundtable, one of Washington’s leading lobby groups, said its economic outlook index climbed nine points between the first and second quarters to 116 points.
A fifth of coronavirus patients who reported no symptoms while infected said they were suffering from Covid says it all a month later, a study revealed. The most common ailments included pain, difficulty breathing, high cholesterol, fatigue and high blood pressure, said Fair Health, a US-based nonprofit that has studied more than 1.9 million of Covid-19 patients, including those under the age of 18, between February and December of last year.
Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon signaled on Tuesday that plans for a major easing of coronavirus restrictions will be suspended until next month. The Scottish government had previously hoped that restrictions could be reduced to the lowest level, known as level zero, on June 28. However, it was widely expected to follow the UK government’s Monday announcement of slower easing in England.
The companies have warned that the British government risks ‘falling at the last hurdle’ after refusing to extend major coronavirus support programs that begin to wind down at the end of the month. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decision to delay the final stage of ending the lockdown by one month means many businesses – including nightclubs, music festivals and theaters – won’t be able to open until the end of July. Pubs and restaurants will have to continue to operate with limited capacity.
The spread of the coronavirus has declined in India and Japan, according to the FT infection tracker, even if cases are increasing in other parts of Asia. Infections in India, which are due to the Delta variant, have been on the decline for several weeks. There were 6.3 cases of coronavirus per 100,000 people in India on June 13, up from a maximum of 28.6 cases per 100,000 people in early May.
