New York to permit virus tests in pharmacies
The US state of New York, the epicentre of the country's Covid-19 outbreak, allows pharmacies to carry out tests for the virus, the governor says.
Andrew Cuomo said some 5,000 pharmacies can perform testing, with desire to to supply 40,000 each day.
The US has a lot more than 938,000 confirmed cases. Almost a third of the 53,751 deaths happened in NEW YORK alone.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump didn't hold his daily briefing, saying it was not worth his "time or effort".
Speaking on Twitter on Saturday, he blamed the media for asking "only hostile questions". He was heavily criticised after suggesting at Thursday's White House news conference that disinfectant could potentially be used as cure for the virus.
His remarks have already been condemned as dangerous by doctors and manufacturers, as disinfectants are hazardous substances and can be poisonous if ingested.
In NEW YORK, calls to the hotline for exposure to certain household chemicals a lot more than doubled in the 18 hours after Mr Trump's remarks - 30 cases in comparison to 13 for the same time frame last year.
The briefings with Mr Trump and the coronavirus task force could run for a lot more than two hours. But Thursday's performance caused embarrassment even among a few of his supporters, BBC THE UNITED STATES correspondent Peter Bowes says.
Mr Trump's tweet seems to confirm reports that the conferences could be coming to a finish because polls advise they have not bolstered the president's popularity among voters, our correspondent adds.
On Friday, the president's briefing was unusually short - lasting just over 20 minutes - and he took no questions from the media.
Meanwhile, Governor Cuomo announced on Saturday that antibody screenings will be expanded at four hospitals, you start with frontline medical workers. He also said independent pharmacies will be allowed to collect samples for diagnostic tests.
Hospital admissions in the state have also begun to fall, Mr Cuomo said, in what he described as an indicator the crisis was beginning to subside. However, he urged people to remain cautious.
On Friday, Georgia, Oklahoma and Alaska allowed certain businesses to reopen despite warnings from experts and President Trump that the move could possibly be prematurily . and spark another wave of infections.
With unemployment claims reaching 26 million persons since mid-March, or about 15% of the country's population, many states are feeling the pressure to ease the coronavirus measures.
Meanwhile, large numbers of individuals headed to beaches in Florida and California on Saturday, according to Reuters news agency.
