Health News Roundup: UK threatens to curtail outdoor exercise; Indonesia orders citizens to wear masks and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Indonesia orders citizens to wear masks as infections rise

Indonesia has ordered its citizens to wear cloth face masks when going outside as the numbers of coronavirus infections rise to 2,273 on Sunday, Health Ministry official Achmad Yurianto said. "Everybody must wear face masks. Surgical masks and N95 masks are only for medical workers, but wear cloth masks because many asymptomatic cases were found out there," Yurianto said told a news briefing.

UK threatens to curtail outdoor exercise if people flout lockdown rules

Britain will have to impose further restrictions on outdoor exercise if people flout lockdown rules designed to curb transmission of the coronavirus, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Sunday. "I don't want to have to take away exercise as a reason to leave home...if too many people are not following the rules," he told the BBC's Andrew Marr program.

Trump: 'Going to be a lot of death' in U.S. next week from coronavirus

President Donald Trump told Americans to brace for a big spike in coronavirus fatalities in the coming days, as the country faces what he called the toughest two weeks of the pandemic. "There's going to be a lot of death," Trump said at a briefing with reporters.

Greece quarantines second migrant camp after COVID-19 case confirmed

Greece has quarantined a second migrant facility on its mainland after a 53-year-old man tested positive for the new coronavirus, the migration ministry said on Sunday. The Afghan man lives with his family at the Malakasa camp along with hundreds of asylum seekers. He has been transferred to a hospital in Athens.

Philippines reports 8 additional coronavirus deaths, 152 new cases

The Philippine health ministry reported on Sunday 8 additional coronavirus deaths and 152 newly confirmed cases. The positive cases in the Philippines totalled 3,246, as of 0800 GMT, while the death toll has risen to 152, it said in the daily bulletin.

Death at home: the unseen toll of Italy's coronavirus crisis

It took Silvia Bertuletti 11 days of frantic phone calls to persuade a doctor to visit her 78-year-old father Alessandro, who was gripped by fever and struggling for breath. When an on-call physician did go to her house near Bergamo, at the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak in northern Italy, on the evening of March 18, it was too late.

Trump says he may take drug to treat coronavirus, questions states' ventilator needs

President Donald Trump on Saturday doubled down on his support for a drug that is still being tested to treat the coronavirus, saying he might take the medicine himself and encouraging others with doctor approval to do the same. At his daily press briefing, Trump also chided some states for requesting more ventilators from the federal government than he said they needed.

Tokyo reports 143 new coronavirus cases, highest jump in one day: governor

Some 143 more cases of the novel coronavirus have been reported in Tokyo, the city's governor said on Sunday, with the highest daily jump bringing the number of cases in the Japanese capital to more than 1,000. Tokyo's metropolitan government has strongly urged people to stay at home as the city of nearly 14 million has seen an uptick in the number of cases in recent days.

Malaysia reports 179 new coronavirus cases and four more deaths

Malaysia on Sunday reported 179 new coronavirus cases, raising the cumulative total to 3,662 cases as Southeast Asia's third-largest economy grapples with the highest number of infections in the region. The new cases include 4 deaths, raising the tally to 61 people who have died as of noon on Sunday, the health ministry said.

Exclusive: Pressed by Trump, U.S. pushed unproven coronavirus treatment guidance

In mid-March, President Donald Trump personally pressed federal health officials to make malaria drugs available to treat the novel coronavirus, though they had been untested for COVID-19, two sources told Reuters. Shortly afterward, the federal government published highly unusual guidance informing doctors they had the option to prescribe the drugs, with key dosing information based on unattributed anecdotes rather than peer-reviewed science.

(With inputs from agencies.)