US News Roundup: Gasoline becomes more affordable; American Airlines cutting international flights and more

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Gasoline becomes more affordable, just when Americans don't need it

At two gasoline stations in Scarsdale, a wealthy suburb of New York City not far from one of the nation's worst outbreaks of coronavirus, attendants whiled away the minutes on a rainy Friday morning at what would normally be their busiest time of day. "We've had one or two customers - that's it," said Julio Barrios as he sat under an umbrella at the full-service Shell station in downtown Scarsdale. "For more than a week, the business has been slow."

Georgia delays presidential nominating election due to coronavirus

Georgia elections officials have delayed the state's presidential primary set for March 24 until May 19 because of the coronavirus, the state's top election official said Saturday. Georgia is the second state to delay its election as public gatherings shut down across the United States in an effort to slow the pandemic's march.

U.S. hospitals say coronavirus school closures add to staffing pressure

U.S. hospitals, gearing up for a large surge in patients as the new coronavirus spreads throughout the country, are reaching out to temporary staff agencies and exploring other ways to maintain workforce levels as school closures add to pressure on doctors and nurses. "The biggest issue right now is we need to plan for a logarithmic increase in patient numbers," Dr. Jason Persoff, assistant director of emergency preparedness at UCHealth, Colorado's largest health system. "We are learning a lot from what happened in Washington state and in Italy ... there are a lot of issues with childcare."

American Airlines cutting international flights by 75% amid demand collapse

American Airlines Inc said Saturday it plans to cut 75% of its international flights through May 6 and ground nearly all its widebody fleet, as airlines respond to the global collapse in travel demand due to the coronavirus pandemic. The dramatic announcement by the largest U.S. airline came hours after the White House said the United States would widen new travel restrictions on Europeans to include travelers in the United Kingdom and Ireland, starting Monday night.

Trump tests negative for coronavirus, extends travel ban to Britain, Ireland

Donald Trump tested negative for the coronavirus, his doctor said on Saturday, as the U.S. president extended a travel ban to Britain and Ireland to try to slow the spread of a pandemic that has shut down much of the daily routine of American life. After White House officials took the unprecedented step of checking the temperatures of journalists entering the briefing room, Trump told reporters he took a test for the virus on Friday night. On Saturday evening, his physician, Sean Conley, said the results were negative.

U.S. city Hoboken announces night curfew, restricts service in bars, restaurants due to coronavirus

The U.S. city of Hoboken, across the Hudson River from New York City, on Saturday announced a night curfew starting March 16 and ordered bars and restaurants to conduct only delivery services amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. In a statement, Mayor Ravi Bhalla said all residents of Hoboken, New Jersey, will be required to remain in their homes between 10 pm and 5 am, "except for emergencies, or if you are required to work by your employer".

Like the flu? Trump's coronavirus messaging confuses public, pandemic researchers say

The coronavirus is not as bad as the seasonal flu. President Donald Trump is not worried about having had direct exposure to the virus. The United States is in far better shape than other countries.

Those are some of the messages from Trump to the American public in recent days Quarantined cruise ship passengers: 'We're being told next to nothing'

Laura and Don Davis, two former passengers of a coronavirus-stricken ocean liner now quarantined on a California military base, have little to do to pass the time but watch TV, play cards and - they add half-jokingly - avoid arguments. But more frustrating to the Modesto, California-based couple than the boredom, the stagnant indoor air, the lack of clean towels or their missing luggage has been what they describe as an almost complete lack of communication from their caretakers.

No milk, no bleach: Americans awake to coronavirus panic buying

In Union, New Jersey, a Target opened at 8 a.m. and had sold out of its full stock of milk and bottled water five minutes later. In Austin, Texas, some gas station pumps ran dry. Not a bottle of bleach could be found at a Home Depot in Fairfax, Virginia. As dawn broke across the United States on Saturday, thousands of shoppers lined up outside supermarkets and grocery stores before they opened, eager for a chance to buy essentials that have flown off shelves as the country hunkers down to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Democrat Biden tacks left, backs Warren bankruptcy plan with student loan relief

Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden has endorsed former rival Elizabeth Warren's plan to reform consumer bankruptcy laws including allowing relief of student loan debt, incorporating proposals by the party's progressive wing into the moderate frontrunner's campaign. "I've endorsed Elizabeth Warren's bankruptcy proposal, which ... allows for student debt to be relieved in bankruptcy and provides for a whole range of other issues," Biden said in a digital town hall in Illinois on Friday.

(With inputs from agencies.)