Health

The number of COVID-19 cases in the United States exceeded 1.5 million on Monday, as total deaths caused by the new coronavirus approached 90,000, according to a Reuters tally of state and county figures.

Mexico registered 2,414 new cases of the coronavirus and 155 more deaths on Monday, the health ministry said, raising its overall number of infections since Mexico recorded its first cases in late February to 51,633.

China reported six new coronavirus cases for May 18, compared to seven a day earlier, the health authority said on Tuesday.

Deaths from the coronavirus in Latin America have surpassed 30,000, a Reuters tally showed on Monday. The figure represents 9.61% of all deaths worldwide, according to data compiled by Reuters.

The phased reopening of U.S. business and social life gained traction on Monday with more Americans emerging from coronavirus lockdowns and financial markets rising on promising early results from the first U.S. vaccine trial in humans.

Brazil recorded 674 new coronavirus deaths on Monday, the Health Ministry said, and announced a total of 254,220 confirmed cases, overtaking Britain to become the country with the third-highest number of infections behind the United States and Russia.

Some New York City neighborhoods have seen death rates from the novel coronavirus nearly 15 times higher than others, according to data released by New York City's health department on Monday, showing the disproportionate toll taken on poor communities.

The World Health Organization said on Monday an independent review of the global coronavirus response would begin as soon as possible and it received backing and a hefty pledge of funds from China, in the spotlight as the origin of the pandemic.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he is taking hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug that he has touted despite medical warnings about its use, as a preventive medicine against the coronavirus.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that some big announcements have been made and are coming on therapeutics and vaccines for dealing with the coronavirus.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he would issue a statement about the World Health Organization in the near future and said it had "done a very sad job" in its handling of the coronavirus.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) plans a nationwide study of up to 325,000 people to track how the new coronavirus is spreading across the country into next year and beyond, a CDC spokeswoman and researchers conducting the effort told Reuters.

Russia is working on getting reciprocal medical aid from the United States, Moscow said on Monday after the country reported its lowest overnight rise in coronavirus cases since May 1.

The phased reopening of U.S. business and social life gained traction on Monday with more Americans emerging from coronavirus lockdowns and stock markets rising on early test results of a potential vaccine.

Northern Ireland gently eased its coronavirus restrictions on Monday, allowing small groups to meet outside and churchgoers to pray alone, broadly keeping pace with Ireland where a partial lifting of the lockdown began.

AstraZeneca Plc said it was in talks with governments around the world to strike coronovirus vaccine production deals similar to one it agreed with Britain over the weekend.

Conditions in autumn and winter may provide an evironment in which the spread of the coronavirus picks up again, England's deputy chief medical officer said on Monday, warning the country may have to live with the virus in the long-term.

The following is a brief roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus.

The European Union may give an initial green light in the coming days for sale of the drug remdesivir as a COVID-19 treatment, the head of its medicines agency said on Monday, fast-tracking the drug to market amid tight global competition for resources.

Medical diagnostic firm PerkinElmer Inc faces a federal investigation into its role in an alleged Medicare fraud involving tens of thousands of unnecessary genetic cancer tests, according to three sources with knowledge of the probe and documents reviewed by Reuters.