Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. Empty churches, food drive mark start of Easter weekend in coronavirus-hit U.S.

As American Christians began Easter weekend under threat of the coronavirus, political leaders and health experts on Friday cautioned the faithful not to gather in churches or relax social distancing practices. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious disease expert and other health officials pointed to declining rates of coronavirus hospitalizations and need for intensive care - particularly in hardest-hit New York - as signs that social distancing measures are paying off. U.S. coronavirus deaths top 18,000: Reuters tally

U.S. deaths due to the coronavirus topped 18,100 on Friday, according to a Reuters tally, although there are signs that Americans staying home was helping to curb new infections. U.S. officials warned Americans to expect alarming numbers of coronavirus deaths this week, even as there was evidence that the number of new infections was flattening in New York state, the epicenter of the U.S. outbreak. Harvey Weinstein hit with third sexual assault case in Los Angeles

Harvey Weinstein was charged in Los Angeles on Friday with a third sexual assault case, and prosecutors there said they have started the process of seeking his extradition from New York, where the former film producer is serving prison time for rape. The onetime Hollywood mogul, who tested positive for the coronavirus soon after being incarcerated in upstate New York but has since recovered, was newly charged with a single felony count of sexual battery by restraint. He smiled to comfort his COVID-19 patient - then he realized his mask was leaking

Sam remembers the moment he realized he could no longer smile at patients. He was helping a nervous man suffering from COVID-19 at the New York City hospital where he works as a nurse. The patient cracked a joke, and Sam laughed. Then he felt air in his eye. “It was a bleak moment,” he said. Millions filed for U.S. unemployment - many are still waiting for the cash

A shocking 16.8 million people filed for U.S. unemployment benefits in the last three weeks as the country shut down to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, overwhelming state labor departments and creating a large backlog of pending applications. A month after the virus was declared a pandemic, many newly jobless Americans are still waiting desperately for their unemployment checks. Trump to unveil council to re-open the country after coronavirus pandemic

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that he will soon be announcing a second coronavirus task force, creating a council to focus on re-opening the country after the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic passes. "We will be announcing that in a short while. Probably Tuesday," Trump told reporters during the daily coronavirus task force briefing. Trump says he thinks U.S. will lose fewer than 100,000 lives to coronavirus

President Donald Trump said on Friday that he thinks the United States will lose fewer than the initially projected 100,000 lives to COVID-19. Trump suggested that the United States is nearing its peak infection rate and said the nationwide number of new coronavirus cases is flattening, with the situations in New Orleans, Louisiana, and Detroit, Michigan, stabilizing. New U.S. projections show summer spike if coronavirus restrictions lifted: NYT

New U.S. government figures show novel coronavirus infections will spike during the summer if stay-at-home orders are lifted after 30 days as planned, the New York Times reported on Friday. If President Donald Trump lifts shelter-in-place orders after 30 days, the death toll is estimated to reach 200,000, the New York Times reported, citing new projections it obtained from the Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) and Health and Human Services. Outbid and left hanging, U.S. states scramble for ventilators

On the final Thursday in March the Arkansas team in charge of procuring ventilators thought they had scored a coup: a vendor had agreed to sell them 500 of the breathing machines critical to keeping COVID-19 patients alive at $19,000 each. The next day they were told the deal had vanished because a buyer representing New York was offering to purchase 10,000 units, pay cash upfront and double the price, a deal the vendor could not turn down. Reuters could not independently verify that New York bought the ventilators. New York 'cautiously optimistic' with first daily drop in ICU COVID-19 patients

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Friday that the number of coronavirus patients in intensive care units across the state dropped in the last day, offering a glimmer of hope that the surge in critical care hospitalizations might be leveling off. Cuomo said there were 17 fewer patients in the state's intensive care units on Thursday than a day prior. This was the first time that group of patients has decreased in a day since the outbreak took hold and a sign that social distancing measures are successfully reducing the virus' spread.