【常速英语广播5分钟】 2020-4-7

VOA NEWS

April 7, 2020

This is VOA news. Via remote, I'm Marissa Melton.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who last week tested positive for coronavirus, was moved to intensive care after his condition worsened on Monday.

A statement from Downing Street said Johnson asked Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab to deputize for him "where necessary."

Johnson's office did not say on Monday what treatments the 55-year-old prime minister is receiving. It had previously said he was hospitalized with a persistent fever and was undergoing tests as his symptoms had not improved.

Britain has emerged as one of the latest hotspots in the pandemic, reporting more than 400 deaths on Monday.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday he is saddened to learn of Johnson's status. The two conservatives have been on friendly terms, with Trump backing Johnson's fight to get Britain to leave the European Union.

When questioned about the prime minister Monday, Trump said the situation is scary and called Johnson a fantastic person.

Trump also told reporters Monday that his administration is doing a great job of handling the COVID-19 pandemic. He exchanged heated words with reporters when questioned about a U.S. Health and Human Services report saying U.S. hospitals are desperate for supplies to deal with the outbreak.

Trump did, however, confirm he spoke Monday to former [price] Vice President Joe Biden, who's running for the Democratic nomination to challenge Trump's presidency in the November presidential election.

Trump said the two men had a warm, wonderful conversation in which Biden shared his point of view.

Biden's campaign also confirmed a phone call, saying Biden offered advice on dealing with the pandemic.

In the past, Biden has said the Trump administration was too slow in its response to the pandemic. He has also said Trump should stop talking [and listening] and start listening to the experts.

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams warned Sunday the coming week will be "our Pearl Harbor moment," "our 9/11."

VOA news.

The United States on Monday [had] topped 10,000 total deaths from COVID-19, making it the country with the third highest official death tally behind Italy and Spain.

About one-third of the U.S. deaths from COVID-19 have been in New York City, where makeshift field hospitals and a U.S. Navy medical ship are trying to take some of the strain off the city's health care system.

Other parts of the country are emerging as concerns with mounting case numbers, including Pennsylvania, Colorado and Washington, D.C., where about 1,000 cases have been confirmed.

A federal report finds three out of four U.S. hospitals surveyed are already [testing] treating patients with confirmed or suspected COVID-19.

Monday's Health and Human Services inspector-general's office report found hospitals expect to be overwhelmed as coronavirus cases rocket toward their anticipated peak by mid-April.

The Supreme Court in the state of Wisconsin has blocked the mover by the Wisconsin governor to postpone Tuesday's Democratic primary.

Governor Tony Evers, say Democrats, issued an executive order postponing the election until June 9. He acted in response to widespread demands that he unilaterally postpone the voting when he was unable to agree with the Republican-controlled state legislature on a plan for moving the vote to a later date and the terms of the balloting, such as whether to allow mail-in voting.

And just in the past hour, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled against his executive order, leaving the Wisconsin primary once again in limbo.

More than a dozen U.S. states have postponed Democratic presidential primaries in April and May between former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sandor Bernie Sanders until weeks from now in hopes that by then the effects of the virus will have dissipated enough to allow voters to show up at [pol...] polling places to cast ballots without endangering their health.

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said Monday the government there hopes to begin loosening coronavirus-related lockdown restrictions as early as next week.

Speaking at a news conference with his cabinet members, Kurz said Monday authorities will allow small shops up to 400 square meters in size, such as hardware and gardening shops, to open as soon as April 14. That's one week from tomorrow.

He said the shops that will be allowed to open do so under very strict safety conditions, such as requiring masks, disinfection and a limit on the number of customers allowed.

Kurz said the goal is to have all shops, shopping centers and hair salons open May 1. Restaurants and hotels would not be allowed to open until mid-May along with other service providers.

The Austrian chancellor said the restrictions on citizens' movements, put in place three weeks ago, set to expire April 13, will now stay in effect until the end of the month.

Marissa Melton, VOA news.