US Domestic News Roundup: U.S. task force to tackle coronavirus market manipulation; For U.S. funeral homes, coronavirus is not great business and more

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. Forget politics.

Majority of Republicans, Democrats now agree coronavirus is 'serious threat': Reuters/Ipsos poll

Seven in 10 Americans now consider the coronavirus pandemic to be "a serious threat to me and my family," according to a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll that shows how wide, bipartisan segments of the country feel their lives have been turned upside down by the health crisis. The March 18-24 poll, released on Tuesday, found that 68% of U.S. adults agreed that the virus was a serious existential threat, up 14 percentage points from a similar poll that ran last week. This includes the majority of Democrats and Republicans, whites, minorities, young, old, urban, suburban and rural residents.

U.S. task force to tackle coronavirus market manipulation, hoarding

The United States is launching a task force to address market manipulation, hoarding and price gouging related to the coronavirus pandemic, following an order by President Donald Trump to crack down on such crimes. At the same time, federal law enforcement agencies across the country are prioritizing investigations into an array of coronavirus-related crimes following reports they have surged.

Layoffs and food lines: How the pandemic slams the poorest U.S. workers

Alberto Mendoza figures he can make it a couple of weeks on unemployment benefits before starting to decide which bills won't get paid. The 26-year-old father of three lost his job training cooks when all the local restaurants started closing their doors and laying off staff. "I have to pay rent, my truck bills; I have three children to support," he said.

Amid worsening pandemic, Trump pushes to re-open U.S. for business by Easter

U.S. President Donald Trump pressed his case on Tuesday for a re-opening of the U.S. economy by mid-April despite a surge in coronavirus cases, downplaying the pandemic as he did in its early stages by comparing it to the seasonal flu. Trump and his coronavirus team on March 16 put in place recommendations for people across the country to cut down social and professional interactions for 15 days in a bid to reduce the virus' spread.

Deadline passes for U.S. EPA to challenge court ruling on biofuel waivers

Time has run out for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to challenge a federal court ruling that would limit the agency's use of waivers exempting small oil refineries from the country's biofuels regulations. The EPA had until the end of March 24 to file a challenge, but by early March 25, no such filing had been entered, according to a Reuters review of the case docket though the U.S. government's electronic public access service for court records.

For U.S. funeral homes, coronavirus is not great business

The coronavirus has become bad business for U.S. funeral homes, even as fears grow of a wave of deaths. Like companies across the United States, funeral homes and mortuaries are limiting contact with customers in order to avoid spreading the highly contagious respiratory illness, in some cases livestreaming memorial services to extended family and friends.

Delivery drivers face pandemic without sick pay, insurance, sanitizer

On his delivery route through Orange County, California, Joseph Alvarado made 153 stops one day last week for Amazon.com Inc, touching the inside and outside of his van, more than 225 packages, and dozens of customers' doors and gates. In a global coronavirus pandemic that has infected about 420,000 people and killed nearly 19,000, delivery drivers like Alvarado have become as essential as first responders, providing food and other basics for millions of people who are isolating themselves under government stay-home directives. But unlike traditional emergency workers, today's delivery drivers typically have little or no health insurance, sick pay or job security - and many say they lack even the basics needed to stay safe on the job.

U.S. Congress, negotiators reach deal on $2-trillion coronavirus aid package

U.S. senators and Trump administration officials have reached an agreement on a massive economic stimulus bill to alleviate the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak, the negotiators said on Wednesday. The Senate will vote on the $2-trillion package later in the day and the House of Representatives is expected to follow suit soon after.

On the road through a pandemic, some truckers fear for their lives

At a truck stop here, a driver sprays his shoes with disinfectant to protect himself and his partner from coronavirus, another laughs and sees no threat, while a veteran trucker says he's heading for the hills, in fear for his life. They are some of the millions of U.S., Canadian and Mexican truckers tasked with hauling food and goods to keep grocery stores stocked and essential services running as over half the U.S. population is told to stay home to stop the virus' spread.

Coronavirus strain spreads across U.S. as Congress readies aid

The strain of the fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak accelerated across the United States on Wednesday beyond the hot spots of New York, California and Washington state as Louisiana and Iowa were declared federal disaster areas. Trump issued the disaster declarations late Tuesday night, freeing up federal funds to help combat the potentially lethal disease as it strains state and local resources nationwide.