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Trump admin orders suspension of personal protective gear shipments abroad President Donald Trump at Wednesday's briefing denied that the U.S. Agency for International Development was ordered to suspend shipments of protective equipment, or PPE, abroad, saying it was “not true.” But a USAID email obtained by NBC News makes clear that the administration has ordered a freeze on all shipments of personal protective gear overseas and that agency staff were told not to make public references to those shipments or post about them on social media. The March 23 email titled, "Worldwide Pause on PPE Shipments and Outreach," from a senior USAID official sent out to communications officers and other staff members at the agency states: “There is a worldwide pause on PPE shipments. As such, we have been directed to hold on all communications (events, press releases, and social media) about PPE and USAID. Therefore, please do not post any further PPE photos on social media (either people in PPE or of our PPE shipments) given that many U.S. hospitals lack PPE.” The hold on shipments comes amid desperate appeals from hospitals and state and local officials for protective equipment and accounts of shortages as the number of infections from the coronavirus continues to rise across the country. The suspension described in last week's email still stands, a source familiar with the matter told NBC News. Share this -







Tekashi 6ix9ine should be considered for early release because of coronavirus, judge says The judge who sentenced the rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine to prison said Wednesday he would have ordered home confinement instead if he had known about the coronavirus in December. U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer commented in a written order even as he rejected a lawyer's request that the 23-year-old performer, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, be confined at home for the remaining four months of his two-year prison term. He cited Tekashi 6ix9ine's heightened vulnerability to the virus because he has asthma. He said he didn't have legal authority to change the sentence, which prosecutors pointed out when they opposed the request. Tekashi 6ix9ine's testimony against members of the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods gang earned him leniency from charges that could have subjected him to a mandatory minimum 37 years in prison for crimes that included orchestrating a shooting in which an innocent bystander was wounded. Read the full story here. Share this -







George Washington University converts dorms to housing for healthcare workers fighting coronavirus The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., is packing up student belongings this week to free up dorm buildings, which will be used as temporary housing units for medical professionals treating COVID-19 patients. According to an email sent to students on Friday, students are not allowed to pack up their own belongings. Dorms will re-open by May to GW Medical Faculty Associates and GW Hospital staff who are unable to return home to their families during the pandemic. The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced new temporary federal rules on Monday that allow hospitals to transfer patients and staff to outside facilities, such as dormitories or hotels, while still receiving hospital payments under Medicare. George Washington University students have also received housing reimbursement credit in their student accounts, with the alternative option of a direct refund. Share this -







White House reporters block conservative network from coronavirus press briefings The White House Correspondents' Association said Tuesday it's removing a news organization, reportedly a conservative outlet friendly to President Donald Trump, from rotation in the daily coronavirus press conferences in the White House briefing room. The association cooperatively organizes coverage and last month began limiting reporters as a result of social distancing guidelines. The association made its announcement on Twitter, saying its board voted to remove a news outlet — which it did not name — from the room after its reporter twice violated rotation protocol. The Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday that Chanel Rion, a correspondent for San Diego-based One America News Network, was the reporter asked to leave. She said she was a guest of White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham, according to the publication. Rion was known for asking questions framed in a way that defended the administration and attacked critics of Trump. In March she asked the president, criticized for calling #coronavirus the "Chinese virus," if he thought using the term "Chinese food" is "racist because it is food that originated from China?" WHCA Statement on Removing News Organization from News Briefing Seat Rotation pic.twitter.com/KL3XcPq7Rt — WHCA (@whca) April 1, 2020 Share this -







Ohio health care company donating 2.2 million medical gowns to national stockpile With demand for protective equipment in huge demand because of the coronavirus pandemic, Cardinal Health is donating 2.2 million medical gowns to the U.S. national stockpile, Sen. Rob Portman announced Wednesday. The gowns are now being sent to coronavirus hots pots around the country, Portman's office said. The gowns were recalled by the company in January because they were supposed to be surgical grade, but were made in a non-compliant plant in China. “Approximately 2.2 million gowns remain in our inventory from the voluntary recall, which was announced because the sterility of the gowns could not be assured for use in a surgical setting," Cardinal Health said in a statement. Portman, R-Ohio, worked with the Trump administration to get waivers allowing the gowns to be used as non-surgical isolation apparel to help protect health care workers on the frontline. Share this -







More than 1,600 veterans test positive for coronavirus at VA, 53 deaths Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie speaks in the Briefing Room of the White House in Washington on Nov. 8, 2019. Andrew Harnik / AP file As of Wednesday evening, the Department of Veterans Affairs has administered nearly 17,000 coronavirus tests, with 1,602 positive results. The VA health system has recorded 53 deaths, an increase of 12 over Tuesday. The VA location with the highest number of veteran deaths to date is New Orleans, with 13. The location with the second-highest number is New York City, with 12. Share this -







U.K. man charged by U.S. prosecutors with selling bogus coronavirus 'treatments' This "cure" - later rebranded as "Trinity Mind, Body and Soul" - allegedly contained vitamin C, an enzyme mix, potassium thiocyanate, and hydrogen peroxide. United States Attorney Central District of California A British man was formally indicted by American prosecutors on Wednesday on charges of illegally smuggling a purported treatment for COVID-19, the disease associated with coronavirus. He was arrested in London on March 20 and remains in custody there. The suspect, Frank Richard Ludlow, hawked so-called “Trinity Remedy” kits, repackaging them as “Trinity COVID-19 SARS Antipathogenic Treatment.” Los Angeles-based federal prosecutors said in a statement that Ludlow sold these questionable “cures,” which allegedly contained “vitamin C, an enzyme mix, potassium thiocyanate, and hydrogen peroxide.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that there are no federally-approved “drugs specifically for the treatment of patients with COVID-19.” According to the criminal affidavit, buyers were told to add 18 ounces of water, “say a prayer, drink half of the solution, take a probiotic along with bee pollen, and then ingest the remainder of the solution.” United States Attorney Nick Hanna said in the same statement that federal authorities are “aggressively investigating all types of criminal activity associated with the current health emergency.” Share this -







Trump says cartels exploiting pandemic, announces new counter-drug operation Trump administration announces crackdown on international drug trade amid pandemic April 1, 2020 02:47 The Trump administration's coronavirus task force announced Wednesday a counter-narcotics operation to combat drug trafficking amid the pandemic. President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House briefing that Defense Secretary Mark Esper will lead the effort. Esper said that the operation will begin immediately in the eastern Pacific and the Caribbean Sea. He said additional ships, aircraft, and forces will deploy to the region. Esper said criminal organizations are attempting to “capitalize” on coronavirus outbreak. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said U.S. intelligence came upon information “some time ago” that drug cartels are trying to take advantage of the pandemic. “We’re at war with COVID-19, we’re at war with terrorists, and we’re at war with the drug cartels as well," Milley said. Attorney General Bill Barr said the Justice Department has had “successful visits and discussions” with Mexican officials about joint work towards combatting the cartels. Last week the department unsealed charges against the former president of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro Moros and several former members of his regime. Share this -





