COVID-19 Update, June 23, 2020: No Direction Home

The lack of a coordinated policy guarantees that COVID-19 will be checked in some parts of the country while spreading freely in others.

As the country reopens, many new coronavirus hotspots emerge -- in bars, strip clubs, churches, and summer camps, among others: tinyurl.com/y9j9myme.

"As you reopen ... you expect to see more cases. But what we're hearing, in terms of the public health model -- of testing people, through contact tracing, and then isolation and quarantine -- it doesn't sound like it's working as well as it really needs to," says former acting director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Richard Besser: tinyurl.com/yc9b5qfz.

Despite the back and forth, and the denials from the White House press secretary, the president admits that he wanted to slow testing for COVID-19: tinyurl.com/y7x2ea4r.

According to a federal analysis, income and race are key predictors of coronavirus infection; in other words, if you're black and poor, good luck: tinyurl.com/y7b44tsd.

The FDA warns that nine brands of hand sanitizer may be toxic: tinyurl.com/y9jpnhzh.

A new study suggests that 8.7 million Americans came down with the coronavirus in March, but 80% were never diagnosed: tinyurl.com/ybpg6aee.

For doing their jobs, public health officials are becoming public enemies: tinyurl.com/yc973b4z.

Cinemas, reopening, struggle with emphasizing safety measures without scaring away customers: tinyurl.com/y6u8tf44.

Around the country:

In Arizona:

What are the odds? The mayor of Phoenix urges the president to wear a mask during his visit today: tinyurl.com/y9m4ntx9.

In Florida:

Hospitalizations are rising in the center of the state: tinyurl.com/ydhjzj82.

Miami-Dade's largest cities will mandate the wearing of masks: tinyurl.com/y7je37rj.

The state's surgeon general quietly urges all Floridians to wear masks in public spaces: tinyurl.com/yayck8mn.

"This virus is not gone, unfortunately, it's only become worse in this state." So says a petition by Disney World workers, asking park management not to open as planned: tinyurl.com/ydbpg98e.

The women's soccer team Orlando Pride drops out of NWSL Challenge Cup after six players and four staff members test positive for the coronavirus: tinyurl.com/ycr5m7xn.

In Illinois:

The head of Broadway in Chicago says the theatre won't survive without relief: tinyurl.com/y7oho2yl.

Interestingly, despite extensive anti-racism demonstrations, the number of infections in Chicago is trending in the right direction: tinyurl.com/y9ccy39z.

In Michigan:

The University of Michigan is withdrawing from hosting one of the presidential debates, thanks to coronavirus-related fears: tinyurl.com/y8lwrx8w.

In New York:

It looks like Broadway is closed until at least January 3: tinyurl.com/y9s9g4l9.

A couple of Off Off Broadway theatres will experiment with live performance under some pretty odd conditions: tinyurl.com/yclxeq4j.

In Nevada:

Clark County, home of Vegas, registers the largest single-day increase in COVID-19 infections: tinyurl.com/y72wghd9.

In Texas:

The governor says the spike in COVID-19 infections is "unacceptable" but adds that the state remains "wide open for business:" tinyurl.com/yavvljpn.

American Airlines wants $3.5 billion to deal with the fallout from the pandemic: tinyurl.com/y7kmuo2n.

Around the world:

In Croatia:

Tennis star -- and noted anti-vaxxer -- Novak Djokovic and his wife both test positive for the coronavirus after hosting his controversial tournament across Eastern Europe: tinyurl.com/y8qv6bsz.

In Sweden:

The country, having gone it alone during lockdown, is no a pariah state in Scandinavia: tinyurl.com/y8re8bm6.

In the UK:

Cinemas, galleries, and museums can reopen as of July 4. And the 2m distancing rule will be reduced to 1m: tinyurl.com/ya4967vt.

Mobilizing:

The National Independent Venue Association takes the case for industry relief to Congress: tinyurl.com/ybaldrex.

Training:

Tomorrow's Elation Hour focuses on lighting for houses of worship. Elation Professional hosts John Dunn and Bob Mentele welcome Josh Holowiki, from E2i Design; Griffin McCravy, from Church of the Highlands; and Chris Eguizabal, from Harvest Christian Fellowship for a discussion about elevating the worship experience utilizing lighting and control technology. It takes place 10:00am PDT. RSVP at tinyurl.com/yczuqrjs.

New Martin by Harman webinar: "When Good Shows Go Bad with John Featherstone," June 25 at 11:00am CDT. Register at tinyurl.com/y8m7uguf.

Entertainment:

From Carnegie Hall: Mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard curates a program on Thursday, June 25 at 2:00pm EDT as she is joined by soprano Janai Brugger, trombonist Wycliffe Gordon, and pianist Emanuel Ax, performing and discussing her many musical interests with Living the Classical Life's Zsolt Bognár. She first performed on the Carnegie Hall stage in 2005 as a participant in Marilyn Horne's series of master classes and has since traveled the world as one of the most celebrated and multifaceted artists. Her varied repertoire ranges from operas by Vivaldi to Nico Muhly, from Spanish art songs to treasures from the American Songbook. Go to tinyurl.com/yaaknzc3.

The New York Philharmonic launches Concerts in the Parks @ Home, Presented by Didi and Oscar Schafer, four days celebrating the free annual summer series, culminating in a broadcast on June 25 at 7:30pm EDT on Facebook (tinyurl.com/yct9qddq) and YouTube (tinyurl.com/yct9qddq). The June 25 event will feature Luciano Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, Joshua Bell, and newly recorded Philharmonic performances. More information at tinyurl.com/y89bq9an.

Robert Lindsay, Joanna Lumley, and Michael Palin with take part in a live reading of Waiting for Godot. This is really interesting because for decades the Samuel Beckett estate would not allow women in the cast: tinyurl.com/y9rzzgnh.

For your pleasure:

A little bit of uplift from Idina Menzel: tinyurl.com/lznchr6.

That's all for today. Stay safe. -- DB.

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