VOA NEWS

July 8, 2020

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



The University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation says if current trends continue, the coronavirus death toll in the United States could reach 208,000 by November. In a news released Tuesday, the institute said if 95 percent of people wear a mask in public, the death toll could be as low as 162,000.

The institute's director, Dr. Christopher Murray, said making masks compulsory could have, in his words, "huge economic benefits" by staving off the need to keep businesses closed.

Murray said the United States never experienced what he called "a true end" to the first wave of the virus. But he said that mean there won't be a second wave starting around September when cooler weather allows the virus to live longer and people staying indoors [make its] makes it easier for the virus to spread.

Murray said the second wave will hit hardest in states already seeing high rates of infection if conditions stay the same by November 1. The state of New York is expected to see a death toll up to 32,000. Florida could have a toll as high as 17,000. California is predicted to have a 16,000-person death toll and the estimate for Texas is 13,000 people.

Those estimates were made assuming social distancing mandates would go back into place if the states' death toll goes as high as 8 [per...] people per million.

[Institution] The institute says if conditions stay the same, Florida could hit that milestone by October 1.



Experts at the World Health Organization Tuesday acknowledged there is growing evidence the coronavirus can spread through the air and said they are preparing a brief on the subject.

(At) the U.N. agency's regular briefing in Geneva, the [w...] technical director for WHO said her committee is studying the matter. That's Maria Van Kerkhove.



From Washington, you're listening to VOA news.



The European Union's economy minister said on Tuesday that the EU's economy will shrink more in 2020 and recover less in 2021 than originally forecast.

At a Brussels news conference, EU Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni told reporters the COVID-19 pandemic has hit the European economy harder than previously expected. He is predicting the grouping of 19 EU nations that use the euro as their currency will see a record decline of 8.7 percent this year and growth of 6.1 percent in 2021.

The pandemic has prompted businesses to shutter, travel between nations to stop and citizens to stay home in most European nations. Gentiloni said the lifting of lockdown measures is proceeding at a more gradual pace than anticipated.

He said the forecast suggests France, Italy and Spain, who are among the nations hit worst by the pandemic, will see the most severe economic contractions, while Germany, the Netherlands and Poland will see milder economic downturns.

Gentiloni said the lack of a "Brexit" deal with Britain will leave its trade status with the grouping uncertain and "would be negative outcome for both sides though particularly negative for the U.K."



Russia and China vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution on Tuesday potentially shutting down a six-year-old [b...] cross-border aid operation that assists millions of Syrian civilians in the northwestern part of the country.

Belgium's U.N. ambassador vowed to keep negotiating for a consensus. Belgium and Germany drafted and guided negotiations on the failed resolution. The ambassador said the council should strife for unity to help Syrians in need.

The existing resolution expires July 10, so there are two more days for the 15-nation council to reach a compromise and keep the aid flowing.



The United States said Tuesday it was restricting visas to Chinese officials over [the ...] the issue of Tibet, renewing a call for "meaningful autonomy" in the predominantly Buddhist region.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he is taking the action against an unspecified number of officials under a new U.S. law that presses China to let Americans visit Tibet.

Pompeo said Beijing has systematically obstructed American diplomats access to the region while Chinese officials have far greater access to the United States.

(The) State Department declined to name the officials or say how many people were affected, citing U.S. confidentiality laws.



Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's [u...] due to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump on his first official visit to Washington on Wednesday.

Meantime, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has turned down the White House invitation, citing the pandemic.



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