Health News (Reuters)

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday pointed to research showing that strains of the novel coronavirus entered his state from Europe, not China, and said that travel bans enacted by U.S. President Donald Trump were too late to halt its spread.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday that there was currently "no evidence" that people who have recovered from COVID-19 and have antibodies are protected from a second coronavirus infection.

Indonesia reported on Saturday 396 new coronavirus cases, taking the total number to 8,607, data provided by health ministry official Achmad Yurianto showed.

Tokyo reported 103 new cases of coronavirus infections on Saturday, Kyodo news reported, amid concerns that the start of a holiday season could lead to an increase in infections.

Malaysia reported 51 new coronavirus infections and two deaths on Saturday.

The Philippines' health ministry on Saturday reported 17 new coronavirus deaths and 102 additional infections.

Germany's confirmed coronavirus cases increased by 2,055 to 152,438, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Saturday - a second day of deceleration after three days of acceleration in new infections.

Singapore has registered 618 new coronavirus infections, its health ministry said on Saturday, taking the city-state's total number of COVID-19 cases to 12,693.

Britain could hit the grim milestone of 20,000 COVID-19 deaths later on Saturday, when the daily count is added to the current toll of 19,506 people who tested positive for the new coronavirus and died in hospital.

Thailand reported 53 new coronavirus cases and the death of a 48-year-old Thai man who was infected with the virus along with four other family members.

Nearly 60 new cases of coronavirus infections were confirmed among crew members of an Italian cruise ship docked in Japan, domestic media reported on Saturday.

China's northwestern province of Shaanxi reported on Saturday seven new imported cases of the novel coronavirus, all in citizens returning home from Russia, even as domestic cases in the country were largely curbed.

China reported 12 new coronavirus cases on April 24 compared with six new cases on the previous day, National Health Commission data showed on Saturday.

U.S. President Donald Trump's musings about whether disinfectants and ultraviolet light can be inserted into patients' bodies to treat COVID-19 have alarmed doctors and drawn warnings from the makers of Lysol, Dettol and Clorox.

A key U.S. government trial of Gilead Sciences Inc's experimental coronavirus treatment may yield results as early as mid-May, according to the study's lead investigator, after doctors clamored to enroll their patients in the study.

Americans can avoid burdening an already stressed healthcare system by staying healthy, and experts said some simple practices help during the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Britain is to start trials to see whether plasma collected from donors who have recovered from COVID-19 could be an effective treatment for patients who are severely unwell with the disease.

World leaders pledged on Friday to accelerate work on tests, drugs and vaccines against COVID-19 and to share them around the globe, but the United States did not take part in the launch of the World Health Organization (WHO) initiative.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday cautioned against the use of malaria drug hydroxychloroquine in COVID-19 patients even as President Donald Trump, who has touted it as a "game changer," advocated for an additional review.

On January 21, the day the first U.S. case of coronavirus was reported, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services appeared on Fox News to report the latest on the disease as it ravaged China. Alex Azar, a 52-year-old lawyer and former drug industry executive, assured Americans the U.S. government was prepared.