JUDY WOODRUFF: Major new developments in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The United States reaches 90,000 deaths out of 1.5 million cases, as more of the country
loosens restrictions. There is potentially promising news about a possible vaccine. And
President Trump drops his own medical bombshell.
John Yang begins our coverage.
JOHN YANG: While meeting with food industry executives at the White House today, President
Trump made a startling disclosure. He's been taking the controversial drug hydroxychloroquine
as a preventive against COVID-19.
DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States: So I'm taking it too, the zinc and the hydroxy.
And all can I tell you is, so far, I seem to be OK.
JOHN YANG: The president's use of the drug outside a hospital setting goes against the
Food and Drug Administration's warning about the risk of heart problems.
Mr. Trump has long touted the anti-malaria medication's potential, even though its effectiveness
is unproven. He made the disclosure amid possible signs of progress on a vaccine. Drugmaker
Moderna reported that limited data from early human testing suggests its experimental product
is safe and triggers an immune response.
This all comes as the nation takes tentative steps toward reopening. Before dawn in Michigan
today, Fiat Chrysler autoworkers returned to work for the first time since this plant
closed in mid-March due to COVID-19.
JODI TINSON, Spokeswoman, Fiat Chrysler: Everybody is going to have to take their temperature
daily and fill out that screening. And they will have to go through the same screening
process every morning when they come to work.
JOHN YANG: Michigan recorded 11 new deaths Sunday, the lowest since March 24. Governor
Gretchen Whitmer said that, in coming days, some counties could lift restrictions.
GOV. GRETCHEN WHITMER (D-MI): So, I want to encourage everyone I want to encourage everyone
to stay smart and to stay safe.
JOHN YANG: States like Florida and Massachusetts are issuing their own guidance on a gradual
reopening.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced gyms and fitness centers can resume operations
and restaurants can open at 50 percent capacity. San Francisco took a small step today, allowing
retailers to reopen with curbside pickup.
But in the epicenter of the country's outbreak, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio warned
that lifting safety measures too quickly will lead to more infections.
BILL DE BLASIO (D), Mayor of New York: We cannot have a boomerang. We cannot have something
where we have to shut down again.
JOHN YANG: But, across the country, some are defying measures meant to stop the spread
of coronavirus. Several protesters stood outside a New Jersey strip mall this morning in support
of a gym that opened in defiance of state guidance.
Gym co-owner Ian Smith insisted it's safe and that proper safety precautions were in
place:
IAN SMITH, Co-Owner, Atilis Gym: The gym has been sanitized top to bottom by a professional
cleaning crew. Everything in the gym is six feet apart. Everything is clearly marked.
There will be masks.
JOHN YANG: COVID-19 is taking center stage at the annual assembly, held by videoconference
this year, of the 194-member World Health Organization. China's President Xi Jinping
today pledged $2 billion over two years to support recovery worldwide efforts.
In Washington, the White House dismissed that as a token to distract from China's failure
to warn the world of what was coming. And the WHO is facing questions about how it handled
the pandemic. The European Union, along with countries like the United Kingdom and New
Zealand, are pushing for a probe into the response.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern:
JACINDA ARDERN, Prime Minister of New Zealand: Because this is one that does not seek to
lay blame. It seeks to learn from an experience that I think every citizen around the world
would know we would need to learn from.
JOHN YANG: Across hard-hit Italy, signs of new normalcy, as churches, shops and even
Venice's gondolas reopened today. A nun and a priest, both wearing masks, entered St.
Peter's Basilica today, open to the public for the first time in nearly three months.
And in Denmark, for this first time in months, some enjoyed a cup of coffee brewed outside
their kitchens, as cafes and restaurants resumed service. The country was the first in Europe
to enter a lockdown in March, and was the first to being easing those rules last month.
For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm John Yang.
JUDY WOODRUFF: Reports of positive results from an experimental vaccine boosted Wall
Street today. So did oil prices, closing above $30 a barrel for the first time in two months.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained more than 900 points, nearly 4 percent, to close
near 24600. The Nasdaq rose 220 points, and the S&P 500 added 90.