DOCTORS EXHAUSTED
In Los Angeles, the city's massive convention center was being converted to a federal medical station by the National Guard, Mayor Gil Garcetti said on Twitter.
In California, the most populous U.S. state, the number of patients with the illness has surged over the past few days, with more than 7,400 cases confirmed as of Tuesday and more than 150 deaths.
The pandemic has taken a toll on doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers, who are overworked and lack the medical devices and protective gear needed.
"The duration itself is debilitating and exhausting and depressing," New York Governor Andrew Cuomo told a news conference where he revealed that his brother, CNN news anchor Chris Cuomo, had tested positive for the virus.
"I'm speaking to healthcare professionals who say, 'Look, more than physically tired, I'm just emotionally tired.'"
U.S. coronavirus-related deaths still trail those of Italy and Spain with more than 11,000 and 8,000 reported fatalities, respectively. China has reported 3,305. Worldwide, there are now more than 800,000 cases of the highly contagious illness caused by the virus and more than 40,000 deaths reported. (Graphic: https://tmsnrt.rs/2w7hX9T)
An intensive care nurse at a major hospital in Manhattan said he had been shocked by the deteriorating conditions of young patients with little or no underlying health issues.
"A 28-year-old, healthy fellow ICU nurse is currently so sick that he has difficulty walking up a single flight of stairs without gasping for breath," said the nurse, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
The medical surgery unit at New York-Presbyterian Hospital's Hudson Valley branch has 17 coronavirus patients, more than half its capacity, said nurse Emily Muzyka, 25.
"I had a meltdown and cried to my boyfriend," Muzyka said after a relatively healthy, 44-year-old patient declined quickly and required ventilation.
No-visitor policies mean very ill patients may die alone.
"I've held patients' hands through their final breaths in the past," Muzyka said. "It's a lonely death."
Congress debated whether to consider another economic relief bill after passing a landmark $2.2 trillion package last week that will send checks to taxpayers, inject cash into businesses and fund hospitals.
House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Congress should focus next on state and local recovery efforts, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell urged a "wait-and-see" approach.
Goldman Sachs on Tuesday revised down its already pessimistic outlook for the U.S. economy, forecasting it would shrink 34% in the second quarter and projecting unemployment would rise to 15%.
