Our live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic has moved here.
China will not set a specific target for economic growth this year, said Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the 13th National People’s Congress in Beijing.
The NPC, China’s top legislature, opened its third session on Friday morning.
Not setting a specific target for economic growth would enable the government to focus more on achieving stability and security, he said.
Li added that China is expected to face great uncertain economic challenges following the pandemic, and that coronavirus was “the fastest spreading, most extensive, and most challenging public health emergency China has encountered since the founding of the People’s Republic.”
CNN’s global town hall on the coronavirus has now concluded.
Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta were joined by top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci and education experts, who discussed what it will take to get kids back in the classroom.
Plus, first lady Melania Trump shared a special message for students.
Check the Town Hall tab above to catch up on what happened during the show.
First lady Melania Trump thanked American students for keeping up their studies and helping to keep the country safe.
She acknowledged the many changes they’ve had to make during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Our the past two months, I know you have had to make many changes in your life. Many of you have had to attend classes in your homes and haven’t been able to see your friends,” Trump said.
The first lady went on to say she’s proud of them.
“So thank you for helping your families, your friends, your communities and our country to stay healthy and safe during these unusual times. Thank you for keeping up your studies and learning in new ways. As we navigate the days and weeks ahead, take care of yourself,” she added.
Trump encouraged students to “use this time” to read a book, practice their favorite sports, help out at home and reach out to friends and family.
“These are important and healthy habits that we can all easily practice and they are a reminder that we will only get through this with patience, compassion and care,” the first lady said.
“Please know that the President and I are with you during these challenging times and we continue to do everything we can to support you,” she added.
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Angela Duckworth, author of “Grit,” has some words of encouragement for children who feel like they are missing out on life while the US adapts to the new normal caused by the pandemic.
More on Duckworth: She is a 2013 MacArthur Fellow and professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Duckworth is a co-founder of the Character Lab, a nonprofit whose mission is to advance the science and practice of character development in children.
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New York school psychologist John Kelly joined CNN’s ongoing town hall on the coronavirus to talk about the pandemic’s impact on children and their education.
One viewer asked: Do you think there will be a major regression in children’s education and what they learned in the first half of the school year?
Schools are now having to make innovative changes to the way they operate to mitigate the impact, he added. “We are talking about reopening schools, setting up different strategies and systems of support … making sure we are prepared to support students when we reopen.”
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New York University marketing professor Scott Galloway joined CNN’s global coronavirus town hall tonight to explain the difficult position college students find themselves in as the US economy limps along during the pandemic.
Galloway contends that higher education has “raised prices faster than health care” while much of the university experience has remained largely the same.
“If you walked into a class today, it wouldn’t look, feel or smell much different than it did 40 years ago. So I think we’ve stuck out the mother of all chins and the fist of Covid-19 is coming for us. I think this involves huge disruption and I think it starts this fall,” he added.
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Rev. John Jenkins, the President of the University of Notre Dame, joined CNN’s ongoing town hall to discuss the college’s plan to bring students back by August.
“If we do not have testing capacity, we will not open,” he said at the town hall. “Everyone we have spoken to has given us confidence that we will … I believe we will be there by the time we welcome students back.”
Here’s how they’re doing it:
There are still some details to iron out – for instance, what to do about sports games where people crowd together in stadiums – but “our first priority is to get the kids in the classroom,” Jenkins said.
Some context: While some campuses plan to cancel in-person classes through the fall, students at Notre Dame will return earlier than expected.
Notre Dame plans to bring students back on August 10, two weeks earlier than originally scheduled, Jenkins said.
The school near South Bend, Indiana, will also skip fall break and end the fall semester before Thanksgiving, it announced Monday. Health officials say the US could see a second wave of coronavirus infections in the fall.
Notre Dame, which has an enrollment of more than 12,000, sent students home in March to complete the 2019-20 spring semester via remote learning.
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A Danish grammar school is holding some classes in a local church graveyard to follow social distancing guidelines because the numbers on gravestones can be used in math lessons.
CNN correspondent Frederik Pleitgen caught up with educators and students in Denmark during a segment aired tonight during the network’s global coronavirus town hall.
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The coronavirus pandemic is going to leave a lasting impact on the mental health of children around the US, especially for those who are poor.
Canada stressed that it is important for teachers to prepare for this harsh reality before schools reopen.
“We need to start thinking about this, but just think, I taught for 10 years and I’ve gotten my kids together, and now I have to keep all of my kids apart. That’s a skill that we have to practice, and we need time for teachers to begin to practice the kind of monitoring, the talking, the engaging that doesn’t really gather kids together in ways that we’re used to,” he said.
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Dr. Tanya Altmann, spokeswoman for the American Academy of Pediatrics, joined CNN’s ongoing town hall to answer questions from viewers on what the “new normal” might look like in schools across the country.
How are parents supposed to feel safe sending their children with underlying health conditions back to school? We will all have to rely on everybody following the same rules, Altmann said – meaning everyone must stay physically distanced, wear masks, and wash their hands. Parents with sick kids will have to promise not to send them to school. It all falls on us to keep each other safe.
How can preschools and day-care centers reopen when kids that young don’t understand social distancing or safe practices? Educators may have to split kids into smaller classes, and keep them in small groups of six to 10 students at a time, Altmann said. “We can also give them their own toys to play, frequently wash them, and make sure they have the recess time outside, separate from other classes.”
How can we teach physical education when we’re sharing equipment? What about other school activities like choir? If the weather permits, doing things outdoors is one way to carry out these activities while lowering the risk of transmission.
She added that at the school where she works, they’re thinking of holding choir and band in outdoor spaces or outdoor tents, instead of having students blow air at each other in an enclosed room.
Schools will have to adjust a lot of other activities – for instance, they may need to add more school buses so kids can socially distance on board, and encourage parents to drive their children to school when possible.
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CNN’s chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta warned viewers during CNN’s global town hall “things are going to feel a lot different next time you go to the airport,” but offered some practical advice on how to safely fly during the pandemic.
Here are some tips for flying safely:
“Turn it up as high as you can,” Gupta said. “That’s going to cause turbulent air in front of you and break up any clouds of virus.”
Gupta acknowledged that nothing you do will make you totally safe, but these tips could reduce your risk of catching coronavirus while traveling.
“These are small things,” he sad. “They may make a small difference, but it’s easy to do and it’s probably worth it.”
Watch:
Dr. Tanya Altmann, spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, shared three key areas of concern schools around the United States must address before reopening their doors.
Altmann shared this insight Thursday night during CNN’s global coronavirus town hall.
The three areas were as follows:
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The United States is no longer just looking at mitigation and containment, but is also taking a “harm reduction” approach to co-existing with the virus, said infectious disease epidemiologist Julia Marcus on CNN’s ongoing town hall on the coronavirus.
Encouraging people to be outside is actually one way to reduce risk, she said; the risk of transmission is lower outdoors when people have more space, as long as people are still following common-sense guidelines like wearing masks and staying 6 feet apart.
Staying home is still the safest thing to do. But the harm reduction approach allows people more sustainable ways to resume daily life by engaging in low-risk behaviors, she said.
Here’s how to do it properly:
Watch:
Don’t be surprised if you catch Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and member of the White House’s coronavirus, out hiking over Memorial Day weekend.
The country’s leading infectious disease expert shared words of encouragement and guidance Thursday night during CNN’s global coronavirus town hall, ahead of the holiday weekend.
Fauci shared a bit of his plans, saying he will “go out for nice walks and hikes over Memorial Day and I’m going to do it with care, with a mask on.”
Watch:
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, tonight acknowledged there had been a “lull” in public appearances from himself and top scientists on the White House Coronavirus Task Force, but suggested Americans could expect to hear more from the group soon.
“There was a period of time there was a little bit lull in being out there with the press but I believe that’s going to change,” said Fauci in a response to a question from CNN’s Anderson Cooper on why Americans are no longer hearing from the group on a daily basis.
Fauci has been absent from national television interviews over the last two weeks, as the White House moves ahead with reopening the economy.
Asked if the task force was still robust, despite the fact that it met for the first time today in six days, Fauci said the focus shifted to reopening and the economic impact, but the shift was not at the cost of studying scientific issues.
“We had a very good meeting today,” he said. “I was very pleased with it.”
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Covid-19 testing remains a crucial topic of discussion around the US as many people wonder whether they have contracted the virus.
One of these people is Nancy Isakson who submitted a video question for the nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Thursday night during CNN’s global coronavirus town hall.
Fauci: “That’s a question that a lot of people are asking. If you want to know if you are infected, then clearly you want the test for infection, namely, the test that determines you have virus in you. If you’re interested in knowing if you’ve been exposed and you have been infected and you’ve recovered, then the antibody test. Unless you have symptoms or have a reason to believe you have been exposed to someone, there really is no reason to have the test for the virus.”
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The nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, joined CNN’s ongoing town hall to discuss the promising early results of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine trial.
The biotech company partnered with the National Institutes of Health to develop the vaccine, and reported this week that volunteers are showing positive results. If future studies go well, the vaccine could be available to the public as early as January, according to Moderna’s chief medical officer.
Here’s how it works: This vaccine produces neutralizing antibodies, which bind to the virus, thus disabling it from attacking human cells and preventing infection.
The human body actually produces antibodies against coronavirus quite readily, Fauci said – that’s why a large number of people spontaneously recover from the virus by themselves.
The trial results: The Moderna trial vaccinated dozens of participants and measured antibodies in eight of them. All eight developed neutralizing antibodies to the virus at levels reaching or exceeding the levels seen in people who’ve naturally recovered from Covid-19, according to the company.
Read more about the trial results here.
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Memorial Day is around the corner and each state has unique rules and regulations around how people can celebrate at places like beaches and state parks.
CNN has produced a resource here that shows where each state stands on reopening.
First lady Melania Trump will take part in CNN’s weekly global town hall on coronavirus tonight.
Her remarks, which will be pre-recorded, are the first solo broadcast message from Trump since the onset of the pandemic.
It is anticipated she will specifically address the nation’s students, most of whom have had their academic lives altered by stay-at-home orders and other precautionary health measures.
This week’s town hall, hosted by CNN’s Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta, is focused, in part, on education and the disruption to schools and colleges because of Covid-19. The town hall starts at 8 p.m. ET.
How to watch: The town hall will air on CNN, CNN International and CNN en Español. It will stream live on CNN.com’s homepage and across mobile devices via CNN’s apps, without requiring a cable log-in.
You can also watch on CNNgo, and subscribers to cable/satellite systems can watch it on-demand.
We’ll also be covering it with live updates here.
