Today’s edition of quick hits:
* The latest milestone: “With more than 3,000 killed by the coronavirus in the United States, according to numbers released Tuesday, the U.S. death toll is approaching that of China where the pandemic broke out.”
* Ventilators aren’t the only area of concern: “Demand for drugs given to patients on ventilators is outstripping supply, according to Vizient Inc., a pharmaceutical-purchasing group that works with more than half of U.S. hospitals and health systems.”
* This struck me as significant: “Walmart will start taking employees’ temperatures when they report to work and tell them to stay home or seek medical care if they have a fever of at least 100 degrees. The retailer also said it has ordered masks for employees and will offer masks and gloves for them to wear, if they choose.”
* USS Theodore Roosevelt: “The commanding officer of the nuclear aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt sent a letter to the Navy on March 30 begging for help addressing the coronavirus outbreak aboard his ship, which has nearly 5,000 people on board and was forced to dock in Guam last week.”
* Heartbreaking: “FEMA is sending refrigerated trucks to New York City to serve as temporary morgues as the death toll from the coronavirus grows.”
* I’ll take glimmers of hope where I can find them: “Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a White House coronavirus task force member, offered a rare glimmer of hope amid surging confirmed coronavirus cases during an interview on CNN Tuesday morning.”
* Appeals court: “A Texas ban on abortions during the coronavirus pandemic is back on, at least for now. By a 2-1 vote, a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday granted a request from Texas to put the ban back in place while an appeal moves forward.”
* San Francisco: “State leaders and doctors are cautiously optimistic that the Bay Area’s early moves to lock down residents two weeks ago have prevented surges of coronavirus patients from overwhelming the region’s health care capacity thus far.” * Florida: “Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Monday morning that those living in Southeast Florida should stay home until mid-May to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus…. Then, three-and-a-half hours later at the press conference in Palm Beach County, DeSantis clarified that he meant April 15, not mid-May, for an end date to what he called the ‘safer at home’ order for millions of residents.” * FISA: “An inspector general uncovered pervasive problems in the F.B.I.’s preparation of wiretap applications, according to a memo released Tuesday about an audit that grew out of a damning report last year about errors and omissions in applications to target a former Trump campaign adviser during the Russia investigation.” * Speaking of federal law enforcement: “The FBI has reached out to Sen. Richard Burr about his sale of stocks before the coronavirus caused markets to plummet, a person familiar with the matter said Monday.” See you tomorrow.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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