Coronavirus updates: The Gateway innovates; Congress works through COVID-19

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SALT LAKE CITY — Here are the latest updates on COVID-19 from Utah and around the world.

If you’re on a mobile device and can’t see the updates below, click on this link.

Friday, 09:19 pm

Study finds 2 or 3 mask layers best to protect against virus

Home-made cloth face masks likely need a minimum of two layers, and preferably three, to prevent the dispersal of viral droplets from the nose and mouth that are associated with the spread of COVID-19, indicates a video case study published online in the journal Thorax.Viral droplets are generated during coughing, sneezing, or speaking. And face masks are thought to protect healthy people from inhaling infectious droplets as well as reducing the spread from those who are already infected.But worldwide shortages of personal protective equipment during the pandemic have led some health agencies, such as the US Centers for Disease Control, to recommend the use of home-made cloth face coverings as an alternative to surgical face masks.Several types of material have been suggested for these, but based on little or no evidence of how well they work.—CNN

Friday, 07:47 pm

The Gateway innovates as malls across America take a financial beating

It’s no surprise that many brick-and-mortar stores are taking it on the teeth right now. New research shows there’s one place where merchants are taking it particularly hard: malls.According to experts, malls are getting hit harder than most other brick-and-mortar stores. Last month, Coresight Research reported that retailers are projected to shutter as many as 25,000 stores this year “mostly in malls.”“We anticipate that approximately 55 to 60 percent of all store closures will be mall-based,” Coresight Research wrote in the report, provided to KSL-TV.And a former department store executive told CBNC that he expects “a third of America’s malls will disappear by next year."Brick-and-mortars have been losing ground to online retailers for years, but thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, analysts have warped forward their predictions on just how soon it could mean the demise of the classic shopping mall.Some mall bosses in Utah are embracing the news as a challenge, and adapting.—Matt Gephardt, KSL TV

Friday, 05:56 pm

Congress seeks to do its day job

Even as lawmakers stumble in their quest to pass another coronavirus response measure, both the House and Senate sought to return to some semblance of normal business this week, passing annual must-do measures on spending and defense policy despite the challenges of legislating during a pandemic.On Friday, the House passed a $259 billion funding bill for foreign aid and the Interior, Agriculture, and Veterans Affairs departments along party lines. The measure is the first annual spending measure to pass either the House or Senate this year, but it has scant chance of becoming law, serving instead as a springboard for negotiations down the line.The annual process of appropriating federal spending — which has been a refuge of bipartisan deal-making during Trump's presidency — has been eclipsed this year by coronavirus relief efforts. But funding the government remains the biggest must-do item for lawmakers on a legislative agenda that, due to the virus, has been trimmed back to the essentials.—Associated Press

Friday, 02:04 pm

863 new Utah COVID-19 cases, 6 deaths as governor calls for perseverance on Pioneer Day

Utah’s number of COVID-19 cases has increased by 863 on Friday, with six more deaths reported, according to the Utah Department of Health.The higher increase Friday comes after four straight days when Utah saw fewer than 600 new cases per day.The rolling seven-day average number of positive cases per day is now at 614, according to the health department. The positive test rate per day for that time period is now 9.1%.Friday's totals give Utah 36,962 total confirmed cases, with 2,188 total hospitalizations and 273 total deaths from the disease.For a full analysis of Utah's daily COVID-19 numbers, click here.— Jacob Klopfenstein, KSL.com

Friday, 01:02 pm

Extra unemployment aid expires as virus threatens new states

As public health officials warned Friday that the coronavirus posed new risks to parts of the Midwest and South, enhanced federal payments that helped avert financial ruin for millions of unemployed Americans were set to expire — leaving only threadbare safety nets offered by individual states to catch them.Since early in the pandemic, the federal government has added $600 to the weekly unemployment checks that states send. That increase ends this week, and with Congress still haggling over next steps, most states will not be able to offer nearly as much.— Associated Press

Friday, 11:34 am

With Florida part canceled, dozens of Utah GOP delegates left out of convention

President Donald Trump’s cancellation of the portion of the Republican National Convention planned for Jacksonville, Florida, means dozens of Utah GOP delegates won’t have an in-person role in the nomination process.Just six of the state’s 77 Republican delegates and alternates, led by Utah Sen. Mike Lee, are headed to Charlottesville, North Carolina, next month for a scaled-back convention limited to less than 400 people overall. There, Trump will be formally nominated on behalf of 2,500 delegates nationwide.— Lisa Riley Roche, KSL

Friday, 10:11 am

US new home sales jump 13.8% in June

Sales of new homes rose a sharp 13.8% in June, the second straight increase after two months when sales plunged as the country went into lockdown because of the coronavirus.The Commerce Department reported Friday that the June gain pushed sales of new homes to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 776,000, a better-than-expected performance. The increase follows a 19.4% jump in May.

Friday, 10:01 am

AP-NORC poll: Optimism fades jobs lost to virus will return

Nearly half of Americans whose families experienced a layoff during the coronavirus pandemic now believe those jobs are lost forever, a new poll shows, as temporary cutbacks give way to shuttered businesses, bankruptcies and lasting payroll cuts.It's a sharp change after initial optimism the jobs would return. In April, 78% of those in households with a job loss thought they'd be temporary. Now, 47% think that lost job is definitely or probably not coming back, according to the latest poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.— Associated Press

Friday, 09:05 am

Mandatory masks becoming the rule amid Europe's virus uptick

New rules on wearing masks in England came into effect Friday, with people entering shops, banks and supermarkets now required to wear face coverings, while Romania reported a record for daily infections and new cases nearly doubled in France.People in England can be fined as much as 100 pounds ($127) by police if they refuse. The British government had given mixed signals for weeks before deciding on the policy. Places like restaurants, pubs, gyms and hairdressers are exempt.— Associated Press

Friday, 07:49 am

Utah’s number of COVID-19 cases increased by 521 on Thursday, with seven more deaths — all from Salt Lake County — reported, according to the Utah Department of Health.

What will it take to reach Utah Gov. Gary Herbert's ambitious goal to get the state's seven-day rolling average of new COVID-19 cases under 500 by Aug. 1?

Parents and teachers rallied at the state Capitol Thursday morning to urge schools to enforce mask wearing and to implement other safety policies recommended by health officials as the state prepares to reopen classrooms this fall.

The Utah Department of Workforce Services reported Thursday that 7,067 people filed new claims for unemployment benefits last week, a similar number compared to the previous week.

If you plan on traveling this holiday weekend, here are some things you should know before you head out.

Coronavirus updates: The Gateway innovates; Congress works through COVID-19

By KSL Staff | Updated - July 24, 2020 at 9:20 p.m. | Posted - July 24, 2020 at 7:49 a.m.

(Jeffrey D. Allred, KSL)

Study finds 2 or 3 mask layers best to protect against virus

The Gateway innovates as malls across America take a financial beating

Congress seeks to do its day job

863 new Utah COVID-19 cases, 6 deaths as governor calls for perseverance on Pioneer Day

Extra unemployment aid expires as virus threatens new states

With Florida part canceled, dozens of Utah GOP delegates left out of convention

US new home sales jump 13.8% in June

AP-NORC poll: Optimism fades jobs lost to virus will return

Mandatory masks becoming the rule amid Europe's virus uptick

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Coronavirus updates: The Gateway innovates; Congress works through COVID-19

By KSL Staff | Updated - July 24, 2020 at 9:20 p.m. | Posted - July 24, 2020 at 7:49 a.m.

(Jeffrey D. Allred, KSL)

Study finds 2 or 3 mask layers best to protect against virus

The Gateway innovates as malls across America take a financial beating

Congress seeks to do its day job

863 new Utah COVID-19 cases, 6 deaths as governor calls for perseverance on Pioneer Day

Extra unemployment aid expires as virus threatens new states

With Florida part canceled, dozens of Utah GOP delegates left out of convention

US new home sales jump 13.8% in June

AP-NORC poll: Optimism fades jobs lost to virus will return

Mandatory masks becoming the rule amid Europe's virus uptick

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FDA narrows under-65 COVID vaccine eligibility, maintains full access for older Americans

CDC shooter believed COVID vaccine made him suicidal, his father tells police

Moderna gets full approval for COVID shot in at-risk children 6 months and older

KSL Weather Forecast