Health News (Reuters)

Australia on Sunday added to growing pressure on China over its handling of the novel coronavirus, questioning its transparency and demanding an international investigation into the origins of the virus and how it spread.

Russia on Sunday reported a record rise of 6,060 new coronavirus cases over the previous 24 hours, bringing its nationwide tally to 42,853, the Russian coronavirus crisis response center said.

Indonesia reported 327 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, taking the total number of infections to 6,575.

Malaysian health officials reported 84 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, taking the country's total to 5,389.

The Philippines' health ministry on Sunday reported 12 new coronavirus deaths and 172 new infections.

Doctors and health workers criticised the British government on Saturday for suggesting that personal protective equipment (PPE) worn while treating patients infected with coronavirus could be re-used, as supplies run low across the country.

Britain needs to do more to get personal protective equipment (PPE) to health workers on the frontline, housing minister Robert Jenrick said on Saturday after criticism about shortages in hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.

Demonstrations to demand an end to stay-at-home measures that have pummelled the U.S. economy spread to Texas on Saturday as the governor at the epicentre of the U.S. coronavirus crisis said his state of New York may finally be past the worst.

Brazil's central bank president Roberto Campos Neto said on Saturday that Latin America's largest economy will begin to recover from the coronavirus crisis in the fourth quarter, according to an interview in local media.

Egypt confirmed 188 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Saturday, bringing the total to 3,032, according to a health ministry statement.

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Saturday he would ask parliament for a 15-day extension until May 9 of the lockdown imposed in one of the world's worst coronavirus' outbreaks, but said the restrictions would be more flexible.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Saturday reported 690,714 cases of new coronavirus, an increase of 29,002 cases from its previous count, and said that the number of deaths had risen by 2,394 to 35,443.

France registered 642 more deaths from coronavirus infections on Saturday, although fatalities increased at a slower pace for the third day running and a downward trend in the number of people in hospital continued.

Indonesia's death toll from the new coronavirus has likely reached 1,000, nearly double the official figure of 535, Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI) chairman Daeng Faqih was quoted saying on Saturday.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Saturday that a recent drop in hospitalizations and other improving metrics indicated the state may be past the peak of its coronavirus crisis and on a path toward stabilizing its battered healthcare system.

France registered 642 more deaths from coronavirus infections on Saturday, bringing the total to 19,323, the fourth-highest tally in the world, although the number of people in hospital declined for a fourth day running.

As some U.S. states look to start reopening their coronavirus-battered economies amid protests from supporters of President Donald Trump anxious to get back to work, hardest hit New York state began mandating the wearing of masks or face coverings in public to contain the pathogen's spread.

Spain's death toll from coronavirus rose at a slower pace on Saturday but surpassed 20,000 fatalities as the government mulled whether to ask parliament for a third extension of the confinement imposed in one of the world's hardest hit countries.

Deaths from the COVID-19 epidemic in Italy rose by 482 on Saturday, the lowest daily increase since April 12, while the number of new cases was stable at 3,491, the Civil Protection Agency said.

Reverend Manuel Dorantes closed his eyes, took a breath to calm his fear and prayed when word came that Cardinal Blase Joseph Cupich had put out a call for volunteers.