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U.S. NEWS Wednesday 20 May 2020
States accused of fudging or bungling COVID-19 testing data

Continued from Front and he worries that other
states may also be pre-
Calls to health officials for senting data in a way that
comment were not imme- doesn’t capture the most
diately returned Tuesday. up-to-date information.
In Georgia, one of the ear- In other developments, the
liest states to ease up on White House scrambled to
lockdowns and assure the defend President Donald
public it was safe to go out Trump’s decision to use
again, the Department of the malaria drug hydroxy-
Public Health published a chloroquine to fend off
graph around May 11 that the coronavirus. The drug is
purportedly showed new unproven against the virus,
COVID-19 cases declining and the president’s move
over time in the most se- spurred fears that many
verely affected counties. Americans might start using
The entries, however, were the medication, which car-
not arranged in chronolo- ries potentially fatal side
gical order but in descen- effects. White House press
ding order. Georgia state secretary Kayleigh McEna-
Rep. Jasmine Clark, a De- ny emphasized that “any
mocrat with a doctorate use of hydroxychloroquine
in microbiology, called the has to be in consultation
graph a “prime example Ridley Goodside wears a rubber diving head covering along with goggles and a special air with your doctor.”
of malfeasance,” adding: filtration mask to protect himself from the spread of coronavirus as he sits in a designated circle More than 4.8 million peop-
“Science matters, and marked on the grass at Brooklyn's Domino Park during the current coronavirus outbreak, Monday, le worldwide have been
May 18, 2020, in New York.
data manipulation is not Associated Press confirmed infected by the
only dangerous, but leads virus, and about 320,000
to distrust in our institutions.” The U.S. has recorded 1.5 being commingled. Health governor’s office is not tel- deaths have been recor-
Democratic state Rep. million confirmed infections officials did not respond to ling the department what ded, according to a tally
Scott Holcomb likewise cal- and over 90,000 deaths. requests for clarification. to do and that officials are by Johns Hopkins University
led the department’s pre- Vermont and Virginia said Georgia’s Department of not trying to dress up data that experts believe is too
sentations “purposely mis- they stopped combining Public Health also regu- to make Kemp look better, low.Russia and Brazil are
leading.” the two types of tests in the larly publishes a graph that saying that “could not be now behind only the United
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s past few days. Still, health shows cases over time, ex- further from the truth.” States in the number of re-
office denied there was officials in Virginia, where cept new infections are As for the May 11 graph, ported infections, and ca-
any attempt to deceive Democratic Gov. Ralph not listed on the day they Broce said public health ses are also spiking in such
the public. Northam has eased up on came back positive, which officials were trying to high- places as India, South Af-
Guidelines from the Trump restrictions, said that com- is the practice in many light which days had seen rica and Mexico.
administration say that be- bining the numbers caused other states. Instead, Ge- the highest peaks of infec- New hot spots emerged
fore states begin reope- “no difference in overall orgia lists new cases on the tions. “It was not intended Tuesday in Russia, and the
ning, they should see a trends.” day the patient first repor- to mislead,” Broce said Tu- country recorded nearly
14-day downward trend in In Texas, where health of- ted symptoms. esday. “It was always inten- 9,300 new infections in 24
infections. However, some ficials said last week that That practice can shift the ded to be helpful.” hours, bringing the total to
states have reopened they were including some timeline of the outbreak Thomas Tsai, a professor at almost 300,000, about half
when infections were still antibody results in their and make it appear as if the Harvard Global Health of them in Moscow. Autho-
climbing or had plateaued. testing totals and case the state is moving past the Institute, said the way Ge- rities say over 2,800 people
States have also been in- counts, Republican Gov. peak. orgia reports data makes it with COVID-19 have died in
structed to expand testing Greg Abbott said Monday Kemp spokesperson Can- harder to understand what Russia, a figure some say is
and contact tracing. that the numbers are not dice Broce insisted that the the current conditions are, surely higher.q

Fed's Powell says new lending

programs to launch by June 1

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER programs, if not enough Treasury Secretary Ste-
and MARTIN CRUTSINGER companies or state and ven Mnuchin, who also
AP Economics Writers local governments seek testified, came under
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fed- to borrow the Fed would sharp questioning from
eral Reserve Chair Jerome consider changes to Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-
Powell said Tuesday that them. That could include Mass., who charged that
the Fed's lending pro- expanding their eligibility. he wasn't doing enough
grams for medium-sized The chairman's comments to force companies that
businesses and state and came before the Senate receive aid from the joint
local governments would Banking, Housing and Ur- Fed-Treasury program to
begin operating by the ban Affairs Committee, keep workers on their pay- In this March 3, 2020 file photo Federal Reserve Chair Jerome
end of this month. which held an oversight rolls. Powell speaks during a news conference in Washington.
Powell said that while the hearing on the $2 trillion "Will you require compa- Associated Press
Fed has received a "good federal relief package ap- nies that receive money dollar slush fund to keep Warren asked the Treasury
deal of interest" in those proved in late March. from this half-a-trillion- people on the payroll?" secretary. q