More than 14,000 people have tested positive for the virus in the U.S. and on Friday, deaths rose to 205, according to a tracker maintained by Johns Hopkins University. Officials have urged everyone to stay at home as much as possible to curb the virus from spreading and cautioned that if aggressive measures aren’t taken in the next two weeks, patients could overwhelm the hospital system.
On Friday, the White House Task Force will share information about the outbreak in the U.S. and take questions from reporters. It’s set to begin at 11:45 a.m. ET and can be streamed on the White House’s YouTube channel.
It’s possible officials could announce the closure of the border with Mexico on Friday, the latest in a number of international travel restrictions imposed by President Donald Trump. On Thursday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo posted on Twitter that he was working closely with Mexico’s Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard on travel restrictions. They sought to balance protecting citizens from being exposed to a new coronavirus that causes COVID-19 and economic harm.
By working together, Pompeo said the two countries and reduce public health risks and prioritize essential cross-border commerce and trade.
Ahead of the potential closure, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials had a conference call with business leaders on Thursday, according to the Associated Press. Paola Avila, chair of the Border Trade Alliance, a business group, was on the call and told the Associated Press officials said the announcement could come as early as Friday.
Newsweek reached out to the White House and State Department but did not receive a response in time for publication.
This would be the latest in a series of travel restrictions that Trump enacted during the outbreak. After a conversation with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Trump announced on Wednesday that the border with Canada would be closed to non-essential travel. There was no “tipping point” that caused the closure, according to Trump, but was a decision based on both leaders wanting to prevent people from being exposed to the virus.
Travel from China, Iran, 26 European countries, Ireland and the United Kingdom have already been restricted and Trump said domestic travel could be restricted.
