Coronavirus: Navajo Nation extends emergency declaration until June 7

Nearly 4.2 million people worldwide – including more than 1.3 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 Tuesday, May 12, continue below:

Navajo Nation extends emergency declaration until June 7

Update 11:45 p.m. EDT May 12:The Navajo Nation has extended an executive order declaring a state of emergency and government closures to June 7 in an attempt to minimize the spread of the coronavirus.

A stay-at-home order for residents on the vast reservation also remains in place.

Tribal President Jonathan Nez announced the third extension of the executive order during an online town hall Tuesday.

The current emergency declaration that closes government offices and non-essential programs was set to expire May 17.

The tribe first implemented its order declaring a state of emergency and closing some government operations on March 13.

It was extended March 31 and then a second time on April 21.

The Navajo Nation covers part of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. The tribe has been hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic with at least 3,204 cases and 102 known deaths as of Monday night.

“I was hopeful we were flattening out ... but we need to start seeing the down numbers,” Nez said. “In order for us to do that, we have to keep everyone safe.”

South Dakota’s Noem asks tribes again to talk on checkpoints

Update 11:20 p.m. EDT May 12: South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem on Tuesday held off on her threat to sue Native American tribes that have set up highway checkpoints intended to keep the coronavirus away from their reservations, saying instead she would like to work out an agreement.

The Republican governor gave two tribes — the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and the Oglala Sioux Tribe — 48 hours from Friday afternoon to remove checkpoints from state and federal highways or face a lawsuit. She said her office has been getting complaints that the checkpoints have caused a headache for people trying to enter the reservations for ranching or store deliveries. But the tribes kept the checkpoints, citing the threat of the virus, combined with their vulnerable populations and poor medical facilities, as urgent reasons to control access.

Noem said she sent a letter Tuesday to Cheyenne River Sioux chairman Harold Frazier asking him to talk through an agreement on the checkpoints on the Cheyenne River Indian reservation in the northern part of the state. She said she planned a similar letter to Oglala Sioux president Julian Bear Runner on the Pine Ridge Indian reservation in the southwest corner of the state.

She described the conflict as a “sticky situation” between federal, state and tribal authorities.

Nebraska primary voters avoid polls, shatter mail-in record

Update 10:50 p.m. EDT May 12: Nebraska’s primary voters mostly steered clear of polling sites Tuesday while shattering the state record for absentee voting with nearly 400,000 mail-in ballots in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Republican President Donald Trump and presumptive Democratic challenger Joe Biden sailed to easy victories in the election, the first in-person primary since a heavily criticized election in Wisconsin five weeks ago in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. So did Republican U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse, who faced a GOP primary challenge because of his previous criticism of Trump. Sasse will face Chris Janicek, the owner of an Omaha cake-baking company, who won a nine-way Democratic primary Tuesday night.

In a closely watched Democratic primary for an Omaha-based congressional district, voters chose progressive Kara Eastman over a more conservative candidate. Eastman will once again face Republican Rep. Don Bacon, as she did in 2018.

In Nebraska’s Republican-dominated 3rd Congressional District, Rep. Adrian Smith easily won the GOP nomination for an eighth term. Smith will face Democrat Mark Elworth Jr., who was uncontested for his party’s nod.

Officials had encouraged people to vote by mail, though Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts and Secretary of State Bob Evnen both pledged to forge ahead with an in-person primary even though many other states have rescheduled theirs or switched to all-mail voting. Voters easily broke the previous mail-in voting record of around 70,000 in 2018, which includes people who requested early ballots and voters in early rural counties who receive them automatically.

Polling sites in the Omaha suburb of Papillion reported lower in-person turnout than normal. At First Lutheran Church, voters who walked into the basement polling station had plenty of space to cast their ballots.

Virus conspiracy-theory video shows challenges for big tech

Update 9:30 p.m. EDT May 12: One by one, tech companies across Silicon Valley scrambled to take down a slickly produced video of a discredited researcher peddling a variety of conspiracy theories about the coronavirus.It was all too late.

The 26-minute documentary-style video dubbed “Plandemic,” in which anti-vaccine activist Judy Mikovits promotes a string of questionable, false and potentially dangerous coronavirus theories, had already racked up millions of views over several days and gained a massive audience in Facebook groups that oppose vaccines or are protesting governors’ stay-at-home orders.

Its spread illustrates how easy it is to use social media as a megaphone to swiftly broadcast dubious content to the masses, and how difficult it is for platforms to cut the mic.

Mikovits’ unsupported claims — that the virus was manufactured in a lab, that it’s injected into people via flu vaccinations and that wearing a mask could trigger a coronavirus infection — activated a social media army already skeptical of the pandemic’s threat.

Amid uncertainty and unanswered questions about a virus that has upended everyone’s lives, and a growing distrust of authoritative sources, people shared the video again and again on the likes of YouTube, Facebook and Instagram until it took on a life of its own even after the original was taken down.

“The other video has already been deleted by YouTube. … Let’s get it to another million! Modern day book burning at its finest,” read one post on a private Facebook group called Reopen California.

“Once it’s available, it has an infinite lifespan,” said Ari Lightman, a professor of digital media at Carnegie Mellon University.

In a matter of days, two of Mikovits’ books became best-sellers on Amazon. Conservative radio talk show hosts and dozens of podcasts available on platforms like Apple began airing the audio from “Plandemic” to their listeners. Fringe TV streaming channels invited Mikovits on for interviews.

Mikovits did not respond to The Associated Press’ request for comment.

Arizona governor lifts stay-home order, allows gyms to open

Update 8:55 p.m. EDT May 12: Gov. Doug Ducey said Tuesday he’ll let gyms and public swimming pools reopen and will allow his stay-at-home order to expire this week as he continues easing the painful restrictions he imposed on businesses and individuals to tamp down on the coronavirus outbreak.

Gyms and pools, among the last remaining facilities not allowed to operate, can open their doors on Wednesday if they follow the recommendations from health officials. He also invited professional sports to resume without fans.

But Ducey warned that lifting the restrictions does not mean to a return to a normal way of life from before the pandemic, and he said social distancing is still important.

“This is not a green light to speed,” Ducey said. “This is a green light to proceed, and we’re going to proceed with caution.”

Ducey’s stay-home order was set to expire on Friday, and he said he won’t renew it. The announcement eliminates the threat of criminal penalties for people taking unnecessary trips away from home, but it’s still largely symbolic because he’d already carved out a lengthy and growing list of activities that were allowed despite the order. Last week, he opened retail businesses, salons and barber shops; restaurants were allowed to open their dining rooms on Monday.

Movie theaters and bars must remain closed.

With reservations, New Orleans prepares to open a bit

Update 7:15 p.m. EDT May 12: Dining in restaurants can resume in New Orleans beginning Saturday — with reservations.

Mayor LaToya Cantrell on Tuesday announced a loosening of restrictions on businesses adopted to combat the spread of the new coronavirus.

Restaurants, which have been limited to take-out orders in New Orleans, will be able to provide outside table service, and dine-in service at 25% capacity. But diners will have to make reservations, providing a name and phone number.

Walk-in diners will be allowed to enter but they will have to provide a name and number for an on-the-spot reservation. The information will have to be kept by the restaurant for 21 days to aid in contact tracing if needed.

“We know, keeping the data will matter,” Cantrell said. Zoos, museums and aquariums will also be limited to 25% capacity and will have to stagger admission by using a reservation system. Retailers can open if they have exterior entrances and maintain social distancing.

The reopening requirements announced by Cantrell resemble in many ways the plan going into effect Friday in the rest of the state, announced a day earlier by her fellow Democrat, Gov. John Bel Edwards.

First Oregon employer cited for violating COVID-19 safety rules

Update 6:55 p.m. EDT May 12: Oregon workplace safety regulators have cited an Oregon food processor for unsafe practices after nearly three dozen of its employees tested positive for the coronavirus.

The $2,000 penalty against National Frozen Foods in Albany appears to be the first since Gov. Kate Brown ordered businesses to ensure distancing between workers, the Democrat-Herald reported. The food manufacturer had employees standing as close as 2 feet apart, rather than 6 feet, as ordered by Brown.

National Frozen Foods has 30 days to appeal the citation.

The citation from Oregon OSHA stems from an inspection starting April 20 in response to complaints about the facility.

National Frozen Foods employs more than 300 people at its Albany plant, which opened in 1982. The plant puts out millions of pounds of frozen produce including beans, corn and squash, each year.

Massachusetts DPH announces 33 new COVID-19 deaths, 870 additional cases

Update 5:20 p.m. EDT May 12: The daily death total from COVID-19 in Massachusetts fell by nearly 100 deaths from Monday as the state’s Department of Public Health announced that 33 more people have died from the virus as of Tuesday afternoon. That increase pushes the total death toll in Massachusetts to 5,141 people.

Mass. DPH did note in their daily report that some deaths from COVID-19 in the state were included on Monday’s report instead of Tuesday’s.

“Due to a later reporting deadline on Monday, May 11, some deaths that might have been included in today’s report were instead included in yesterday’s report,” Mass. DPH wrote.

Additionally, Mass. DPH also announced 870 new cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth, an increase of nearly 200 cases from Monday’s daily total. That means that there are now 79,332 confirmed cases of the virus in Mass.; 818 of those cases - roughly 4% - are currently in the Intensive Care Unit at local hospitals.

The state also announced that 6,768 new COVID-19 tests have been administered since Monday, pushing the total number of tests performed in Mass. to 401,496.

California recommends masks for servers, disposable menus

Update 4:30 p.m. EDT May 12: California is recommending restaurants screen guests for symptoms, have servers wear masks and keep diners at least six feet apart once they reopen under guidance released Tuesday to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration didn’t set a strict limit on the number of diners allowed but gave suggestions on how to limit crowding such as using outdoor seating and encouraging take-out where possible.

The guidance will take effect only once counties are cleared by the state to move forward, with more rural areas with few virus cases expected to reopen dine-in restaurants more quickly than places like Los Angeles.

Restaurants have been walloped by the stay-at-home order in California, which has allowed take-out orders but not in-person dining due to concerns about the virus’s spread. Restaurant owners have been forced to layoff staff as these orders are often a fraction of their business and they have been rallying to reopen their doors.

Los Angeles County expected to extend stay-at-home orders for 3 months

Update 3:55 p.m. EDT May 12: Officials in Los Angeles County are expected to extend a stay-at-home order issued countywide for three more months, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.

The county’s public health director, Barbara Ferrer, said Tuesday during a Board of Supervisors meeting that the county would “with all certainty” extend the order, according to the Times.

“Our hope is that by using the data, we’d be able to slowly lift restrictions over the next three months,” she said, according to the newspaper.

Last month, the White House released guidelines for safely easing restrictions and letting businesses reopen amid the coronavirus pandemic. A key benchmark set by officials was a 14-day downward trajectory in new cases or positive test rates.

As of Monday, the last date for which data was available, 69,382 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in California. Nearly half of the cases -- 32,279 -- were reported in Los Angeles County.

As of Monday, 2,847 people have died of COVID-19 statewide.

3,403 more cases of COVID-19 reported in the UK

Update 3:15 p.m. EDT May 12: Officials in the United Kingdom reported 3,403 new coronavirus infections Tuesday morning, raising the country’s number of COVID-19 cases to 226,463.

Officials said that as of 9 a.m. local time, 32,692 people had died of COVID-19.

Numbers released by the Department of Health and Social Care showed the country had one of the highest numbers of cases in the world and the second-highest in Europe.

The U.S. has the most number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the world with over 1.3 million infections, according to numbers compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Authorities in Russia said Tuesday that more than 232,000 cases have been reported in the country. Officials in Spain reported more than 228,030 cases nationwide as of Tuesday.

Walmart to issue more bonuses for employees

Update 2:55 p.m. EDT May 12: Officials with Walmart on Tuesday announced the company’s hourly associates in the U.S. will get another cash bonus next month as they continue to work through the coronavirus pandemic.

“All across the country, (Walmart employees have been) providing Americans with the food, medicine and supplies they need, while going above and beyond the normal scope of their jobs – diligently sanitizing their facilities, making customers and members feel safe and welcome, and handling difficult situations with professionalism and grace,"” Walmart U.S. President John Furner said Tuesday in a statement.

Hourly associates will be eligible for the bonus if they’re employed by Walmart by June 5.

898 new cases of COVID-19 reported in New Jersey

Update 2:45 p.m. EDT May 12: Gov. Phil Murphy of New Jersey said Tuesday that 898 new coronavirus infections have been reported, raising the total number of COVID-19 cases in the state to 140,743.

Officials also reported 198 new fatal COVID-19 cases. Statewide, 9,508 people have died of coronavirus. In light of the numbers, Murphy urged people to be patient and safe about reopening businesses.

Virus spikes possible as states reopen, Fauci says

Update 2:25 p.m. EDT May 12: The nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, told a congressional panel Tuesday that Americans may see spikes in virus cases as businesses begin to reopen across the nation.

“I think we are going in the right direction, but the right direction does not mean we have by any means total control of this outbreak,” Fauci said during a hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

Appearing by remote video -- like all the other witnesses and most senators -- Fauci warned there could be further hot spots that flare, especially if states open too quickly.

“There is a real risk that you will trigger an outbreak that you might not be able to control,” Fauci testified.

New York investigating 100 cases of inflammatory illness in children

Update 2 p.m. EDT May 12: Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York said Tuesday that the state is investigating about 100 cases of an inflammatory syndrome children that might be linked to COVID-19.

Children elsewhere in the U.S. and in Europe also have been hospitalized with the condition, known as pediatric multi-system inflammatory syndrome.

195 new fatal coronavirus cases reported in New York

Update 1:50 p.m. EDT May 12: Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York said Tuesday that 195 more people have died of COVID-19 statewide continuing a generally downward trend.

The governor noted that the number was slightly higher than the 161 new fatal cases reported one day earlier, however “overall, the trend is down,” he said.

Coronavirus cases jump in Italy

Update 1:35 p.m. EDT May 12: The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 rose to 221,216 on Tuesday in Italy after more than 1,000 cases were confirmed in the country’s hardest-hit region, Lombardy, according to health officials and media reports.

The Guardian reported that 1,033 of the confirmed cases were registered in the Lombardy region. Authorities told the newspaper that about 420 of the cases had been detected over the last week and not the last 24 hours.

Health officials said there were 81,266 active coronavirus infections in Italy as of Tuesday afternoon. The virus has killed 30,911 people nationwide. Officials said 109,039 patients have recovered from COVID-19.

House expected to vote Friday on $3T coronavirus relief bill

Update 1:05 p.m. EDT May 12: House Democrats on Tuesday unveiled a new $3 trillion coronavirus relief package ahead of an expected vote on Friday.

The Heroes Act provides nearly $1 trillion for states, cities and tribal governments to avert layoffs and another $200 billion in “hazard pay” for essential workers, according a summary. It will offer $1,200 direct cash aid to individuals, up to $6,000 per household. There is $75 billion more for virus testing.

Nearly 6,500 cases of COVID-19 reported in DC

Update 12:30 p.m. EDT May 12: Mayor Muriel Bowser of Washington D.C. said Tuesday that 96 new coronavirus infections have been reported in the area, raising the total number of cases in the area to 6,495.

Bowser also said eight more people between the ages of 56 and 94 died of COVID-19. As of Tuesday, 336 Washington D.C. residents have died of coronavirus, officials said.

Broadway to remain closed until at least September

Update 12:15 p.m. EDT May 12: Broadway shows in New York City will remain suspended until at least September 6, a trade association for the Broadway community announced Tuesday.

Officials with The Broadway League said the decision was prompted by ongoing uncertainty around the novel coronavirus. The League had previously announced a cancellation of shows through June. On Tuesday, officials said they had no expected date for a return to Broadway.

"While all Broadway shows would love to resume performances as soon as possible, we need to ensure the health and well-being of everyone who comes to the theatre – behind the curtain and in front of it – before shows can return,” Broadway League President Charlotte St. Martin said in a statement.

White House to test reporters daily for COVID-19

Update 11:30 a.m. EDT May 12: The White House plans to test reporters with the White House press pool for COVID-19 daily, spokesman Judd Deere said Tuesday in a statement.

“Out of an abundance of caution and to further protect your health and safety as well as the entire complex, members of the restricted in-house pool should be ready in the briefing room at call time for a COVID-19 test to be administered in Lower Press by the White House Medical Unit,” Deere said.

“Moving forward, we expect to test members of the restricted in-house pool daily.”

The decision comes after two White House staffers tested positive for novel coronavirus infections. They were identified as Katie Miller, Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary, and one of President Donald Trump’s personal valets.

8 vaccines for COVID-19 in testing, Fauci says

Update 11:25 a.m. EDT May 12: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci told a Senate committee Tuesday that officials are testing eight vaccines for COVID-19 and that he hopes more than one will prove effective against the novel coronavirus.

“If we are successful, we hope to know that (a drug can be effective) by late fall or early winter,” he said.

Fauci said that without a vaccine, there would be no guarantees that children would be safe enough to return to school in the fall.

“I would have to be very realistic ... in this case the idea of having treatments available or a vaccine to facilitate the re-entry of students would be a bit of a bridge too far," Fauci said.

Fauci, Redfield and other officials testify before Senate committee

Update 10:15 a.m. EDT May 12: The nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, CDC Director Robert Redfield and other officials are scheduled to testify Tuesday morning at a hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

The hearing, in which Fauci is expected to focus on the importance of keeping businesses closed until the threat of the novel coronavirus passes, began at 10 a.m.

Pence and Trump ‘maintaining their distance’ due to coronavirus threat

Update 9:35 a.m. EDT May 12: President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence will be “maintaining their distance in the immediate future” after two White House staffers tested positive for COVID-19, NPR reported, citing an unidentified senior administration official.

During a news conference Monday afternoon, the president indicated he planned to talk to Pence about taking measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus after the vice president’s press secretary tested positive for COVID-19.

“It’s something probably, during this quarantine period, we’ll probably talk about,” Trump said. “I would say that he will -- he and I will be talking about that. Yeah, we could talk on the phone.”

The vice president said during a call with governors that he was taking extra precautions, including keeping himself isolated from Dr. Deborah Birx who was “in a situation room with some staff” on Monday while he was “in a separate room on my own,” according to CNN.

Trump told reporters last week that Katie Miller, the vice president’s press secretary, tested positive Friday for COVID-19. Previously, an official who served as a personal valet for Trump also tested positive for a coronavirus infection.

Russian government spokesman says he’s been hospitalized with COVID-19

Update 9:05 a.m. EDT May 12: Dmitry Peskov, the spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, told reporters Tuesday that he’s been hospitalized with COVID-19, according to multiple reports.

“Yes, I’ve gotten sick,” Peskov told the Interfax news agency on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press. “I’m being treated.”

Peskov is at least the fourth person in Putin’s administration to be diagnosed with COVID-19 after Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Minister of Culture Olga Lyubimova and Minister of Housing Vladimir Yakushev, CNN reported.

Putin has been working from his home outside Moscow in recent weeks, according to The Guardian. It was not immediately clear when Peskov last had contact with Putin, though the AP noted that reporters from the Kremlin press pool said he’d last been seen at a meeting with the president April 30.

It was not clear whether the April 30 meeting was via teleconference or in-person.

Peskov, 52, has been Putin’s spokesman since 2008. He started working with Putin in the early 2000s.

Fauci to testify before Senate panel

Update 8:55 a.m. EDT May 12: The nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, is scheduled to testify Tuesday morning as part of a Senate panel hearing on the safety of reopening schools and businesses that had been closed by the coronavirus pandemic.

“The major message that I wish tio convey to the Senate (Health, Education, Labor and Pensions) committee tomorrow is the danger of trying to open the country prematurely,” Fauci said late Monday in an email to New York Times reporter Sheryl Gay Stolberg.

"If we skip over the checkpoints in the guidelines to: ‘Open America Again,’ then we risk the danger of multiple outbreaks throughout the country. This will not only result in needless suffering and death, but would actually set us back on our quest to return to normal.”

The hearing, which will take place by video conference, will also include testimony from CDC Director Robert Redfield, Assistant Secretary for Health Adm. Brett Giroir and FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn. It’s scheduled to start at 10 a.m.

Worldwide cases surge toward 4.2M, total deaths approach 287K

Update 7:41 a.m. EDT May 12: The global death toll attributed to the novel coronavirus reached 286,669 early Tuesday, 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 4,197,142 people worldwide. Meanwhile, nearly one in every four deaths reported worldwide has occurred in the United States, and 10 nations now have total infection counts higher than China’s 84,011.

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

• The United States has reported 1,347,936 cases, resulting in 80,684 deaths.

• Russia has confirmed 232,243 cases, resulting in 2,116 deaths.

• Spain has confirmed 227,436 cases, resulting in 26,744 deaths.

• The United Kingdom has reported 224,332 cases, resulting in 32,141 deaths.

• Italy has reported 219,814 cases, resulting in 30,739 deaths.

• France has confirmed 177,547 cases, resulting in 26,646 deaths.

• Germany has reported 172,576 cases, resulting in 7,661 deaths.

• Brazil has recorded 169,594 cases, resulting in 11,653 deaths.

• Turkey has recorded 139,771 cases, resulting in 3,841 deaths

• Iran has recorded 109,286 cases, resulting in 6,685 deaths.

Russia now has second-most coronavirus cases in the world

Update 7:24 a.m. EDT May 12: After reporting nearly 11,000 new infections on Tuesday, Russia has leapfrogged both the United Kingdom and Spain to claim the second-highest novel coronavirus infection count in the world, according to a tally maintained by Johns Hopkins University.

According to The Washington Post, Russia has recorded daily case jumps of more than 10,000 cases per day since May 3, bringing the nation’s current total to 232,243 infections resulting in 2,116 deaths.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has left decisions on the resumption of economic activity to regional governors in coordination with health officials, the Post reported.

France extends state of emergency through July 10 as coronavirus lingers

Update 6:28 a.m. EDT May 12: France eased lockdown measures on Monday for the first time in more than 50 days, but a law extending the nation’s state of emergency through July 10 takes effect Tuesday.

The state-of-emergency statute allows government to enforce measures to avoid a second novel coronavirus wave, CNN reported.

Specifically, the law allows the state to enforce measures such as:

• Restricting travel to within 100 kilometers, or about 62 miles

• Requiring masks to use public transportation

• Banning gatherings of more than 10 people

Health officials link at least 102 coronavirus cases to South Korea nightclub cluster

Update 5:42 a.m. EDT May 12: Citing inadequate social distancing enforcement and spotty tracing capabilities, South Korea’s National Institute of Health has linked at least 102 coronavirus cases to a cluster of nightclub’s in Seoul’s Itaewon district.

“Lowering our guard can call in another infection. That’s the case with the infection in Itaewon clubs," Kwon Jun-wook, the institute’s chief, said, adding, “The distancing regulation wasn’t carried out properly, the list was not accurate, and therefore, the delay in voluntary report and tracing is very concerning.”

1,300 Hyatt employees losing jobs amid coronavirus crisis

Update 4:47 a.m. EDT May 12: Hyatt will begin laying off 1,300 workers beginning June 1, the company said Monday.

In addition, the company confirmed all corporate employees are facing either reductions in hours or temporary pay reductions.

According to The Washington Post, the United States is projected to lose 4.6 million travel-related jobs before the close of 2020 as a direct result of disruptions caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic.

English Premier League to resume season with heavy restrictions amid coronavirus

Update 4:19 a.m. EDT May 12: The United Kingdom announced Monday that the English Premier League will resume its season June 1, but substantial restrictions will be imposed to blunt the spread of the novel coronavirus.

“Cultural and sporting events to take place behind closed doors for broadcast, while avoiding the risk of large-scale social contact,” will be allowed, The Washington Post reported.

Fans looking for guidance on when they will be able to attend live matches learned only that they will not be allowed back into stadiums until “significantly later,” the Post reported.

Fourth of July weekend may welcome MLB’s return after coronavirus benched season

Update 3:32 a.m. EDT May 12: Opening Day for Major League Baseball’s truncated 2020 season could soon be on the calendar if the players’ union approves the owners’ proposal.

Should the proposal be accepted, spring training would start in early to mid-June with Opening Day falling somewhere near July 4, NPR reported.

In addition, the owners’ plan calls for only 82 games to be played in 2020, or roughly half the 162 played in a typical year, as well as a series of health and safety protocols for players and other staff attending games.

Toyota forecasts coronavirus-driven 20% drop in revenue

Update 2:37 a.m. EDT May 12: Toyota forecasts coronavirus-driven 20% drop in revenue

Toyota Motor Corp. told investors Tuesday the company should manage to remain in the black despite a projected 20% drop in 2020 revenue attributed to the novel coronavirus pandemic, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Specifically, Japan’s biggest automaker in terms of sales said it anticipates revenue will decrease by about $223 billion before the close of the current fiscal year in March 2021. Meanwhile, operating profit is forecast to decrease by nearly 80% to $4.65 billion, but projected net profits were not provided, the Journal reported.

DNC committee weighs virtual voting, other convention changes as coronavirus persists

Update 2:05 a.m. EDT May 12: The Democratic National Committee’s rules committee will vote Tuesday on whether the party’s convention committee should be given the authority to limit the convention’s scope due to the novel coronavirus.

If the leeway is granted by both the Rules and Bylaws Committee and the full DNC membership, the move could greenlight virtual voting, The Washington Post reported.

“During this critical time, when the scope and scale of the pandemic and its impact in August remain unknown, convention planners are exploring a range of contingency options to ensure all delegates will be able to cast ballots and accomplish their business, regardless of their ability to travel and participate in person,” a DNC official told the Post..

US coronavirus cases surge past 1.3M, deaths near 81K

Updated 12:39 a.m. EDT May 12: The number of novel coronavirus cases in the United States continued to climb past 1.3 million early Tuesday 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 1,347,881 confirmed U.S. cases of the virus, which have resulted in at least 80,682 deaths.

The hardest-hit states remain New York with 337,055 cases and 26,988 deaths and New Jersey with 140,206 cases and 9,340 deaths. Massachusetts, with 78,462 cases, has the third-highest number of deaths with 5,108, while Illinois has the third-highest number of cases with 79,007. Only 13 states and territories have confirmed fewer than 3,000 cases each.

Nine other states have now confirmed at least 30,000 novel coronavirus cases each, including:

• California: 69,329 cases, resulting in 2,779 deaths

• Pennsylvania: 60,459 cases, resulting in 3,832

• Michigan: 47,552 cases, resulting in 4,584 deaths

• Florida: 40,982 cases, resulting in 1,735 deaths

• Texas: 40,555 cases, resulting in 1,117 deaths

• Georgia: 34,002 cases, resulting in 1,444 deaths

• Connecticut: 33,765 cases, resulting in 3,008 deaths

• Maryland: 33,373 cases, resulting in 1,683 deaths

• Louisiana: 31,815 cases, resulting in 2,308 deaths

Meanwhile, Virginia, Ohio and Indiana each has confirmed at least 24,000 cases; Colorado, Washington state, Tennessee and North Carolina each has confirmed at least 15,000 cases, followed by Iowa with 12,373; Minnesota, Rhode Island and Arizona each has confirmed at least 11,000 cases; Wisconsin, Alabama and Missouri each has confirmed at least 10,000 cases, followed by Mississippi with 9,674 and Nebraska with 8,407; South Carolina and Kansas each has confirmed at least 7,000 cases; Kentucky, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Utah and Nevada each has confirmed at least 6,000 cases, followed by New Mexico with 5,069; Oklahoma and Arkansas each has confirmed at least 4,000 cases; and South Dakota, Oregon and New Hampshire each has confirmed at least 3,000 cases.

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

The Associated Press contributed to this report.