Video shows hospital staff cheering for doctor who recovered from COVID-19
A heartwarming video shows employees at a New Jersey hospital cheering on a colleague after he recovered from COVID-19.
The video, recorded Wednesday inside St. Joseph Regional Medical Center in Paterson, shows hospital staffers clapping and holding signs for Dr. James Pruden, the hospital's director of emergency preparedness, with the theme song from the movie “Rocky,” "Gonna Fly Now," playing in the background.
In a statement to NBC News released by the hospital, Dr. Pruden thanked his colleagues and healthcare workers for their support.
“Your care made the difference for me and enabled me to beat this virus,” Dr. Pruden said. “I implore every healthcare worker across New Jersey to keep the faith and stay strong. You are giving everything – for people just like me. You are truly our heroes.”
Connecticut schools to remain closed through May 20, gov announces
U.K. PM Boris Johnson moved out of ICU, but remains hospitalized
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved out of the intensive care unit, where he was being treated for COVID-19, a spokesperson said Thursday.Johnson, 55, was admitted to London’s St Thomas' Hospital on Sunday and was moved into the ICU on Monday.
'Saturday Night Live' to air new content this week
The NBC comedy show will air remotely produced content at its usual Saturday time slot on the broadcast network, a surprise return from its coronavirus-induced hiatus, according to a spokesperson for NBC.
NBC is owned by NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News.
The show will include a version of "Weekend Update" and other skits from cast members, though it was not immediately clear if the performances would be live. It will air at 11:30 p.m. ET.
Federal emergency grants available for college students
College students whose lives and education have been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic are set to benefit from a more than $6 billion emergency grant, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said Thursday.
The funding is part of the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act that President Donald Trump signed in March. The money will be doled out by higher education institutions to help students with necessities, including course materials, technology, food, housing, health care and childcare.
Each school will have grants made available to them based, in part, on a formula that takes into consideration how many of its full-time students are eligible for Pell Grants. The schools then determine which students will receive funding.
More information can be found here.
Another member of Congress tests positive for COVID-19
Rep. Neal Dunn, R-Fla., tested positive this week for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, his office announced Thursday, making him the sixth member of Congress to receive a positive test.
"Congressman Neal Dunn, M.D. was not feeling well on the evening of Monday, April 6th and did go to the emergency room that night out of an abundance of caution. After meeting CDC criteria, he was tested for COVID-19 and has received notice that the results came back positive," his office said in a press release.
Dunn, 67, is "feeling great" and is quarantined at home, his office said.
Five other members of Congress that have tested positive during the outbreak, including Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., Ben McAdams, D-Utah, Joe Cunningham, D-S.C., and Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa. While she did not receive a test, Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., was a presumed positive last week.
Nursing home patient asked Amazon Alexa for help as she lay dying of coronavirus, sister says
A nursing home patient in Michigan who got sick with the coronavirus asked Alexa on an Amazon Echo device for help before she died, her sister said.
LouAnn Dagen died Saturday, shortly after she was transferred to a hospital in Grand Rapids. She was 66.
She was one of 31 residents and five staff members who tested positive for the virus at the nursing home, Metron of Cedar Springs, which is now called Mission Point, according to the facility.
The medical examiner's office said Dagen's death was caused by diabetes, hypertension and COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, according to her sister, Penny.
Penny was unable to visit LouAnn in person after the nursing home, like others around the country, restricted visitors due to the pandemic. So, Alexa became LouAnn's primary communications tool with her sister.
Afternoon roundup of coronavirus coverage
How California has avoided a coronavirus outbreak as bad as New York’s … so far [The Wall Street Journal]
7 answers to questions about the malaria drug Trump keeps pushing [The New York Times]
Hundreds of young Americans have now been killed by the coronavirus, data shows [The Washington Post]