Update: As of 1:30 p.m. Saturday, March 21, 70 Maine residents have been confirmed positive for the coronavirus, according to the state. Read the latest story here.
Here’s the latest about the spreading coronavirus and its impact on Maine.
— Another eight cases of the new coronavirus were reported in Maine on Friday, bringing the overall total to 56. That includes 44 confirmed cases and 12 presumed positive.
— Five Maine residents have been hospitalized due to the coronavirus.
— Another 2,264 Maine residents have tested negative for the coronavirus, up from 2,004 on Thursday.
— By Friday evening, Ocean View at Falmouth announced a fifth resident had tested presumptive positive for COVID-19. The resident, who was connected to the initial two cases, was in self-quarantine and is now being treated at Maine Medical Center.
— A Portland police officer, a Bates College staff member and a staff member of the Colby College athletics department all tested positive for COVID-19.
— Bowdoin College on Friday announced three of its students had, over spring break, come into contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19. They have not returned to Brunswick or the Bowdoin campus and are self-isolating out-of-state.
— Governors of both parties are taking charge of the coronavirus pandemic, setting up rules and plans for their states as federal officials scramble to keep up.
— California, New York and Illinois have all issued stay-at-home directives for their residents, meaning they can only go outside for essential jobs, errands and exercise.
— The White House says a member of Vice President Mike Pence’s staff has tested positive for coronavirus. The person did not have “close contact” to either the vice president or President Donald Trump, according to Pence’s spokesperson Katie Miller.
— President Donald Trump and the government’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, publicly sparred Friday on whether a malaria drug would work to treat people with coronavirus disease. Currently, there is no medicine specifically approved for treating COVID-19.
— Leaders from Congress and the White House buckled down for high-stakes negotiations Friday on a mammoth $1 trillion-plus economic rescue package.
— Puritan Medical Products Co., which is a part of a Guilford manufacturing business with about 550 employees, is one of the top two makers of the specialized testing swabs that are desperately needed in areas hit by the virus, according to Kaiser Health News.
— Some grocery store workers say they’re on the frontlines of this pandemic, whether they like it or not.
— Through daily press briefings and memorable analogies, the Maine CDC director is the public face of the state’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.
— Want to visit some public trails parks during your social distancing? Here are some tips.
— Trying to make your food last during this time is hard. Have you tried making bone broth?
— First Tom Hanks and Idris Elba. Now former star of “The Bachelor” Colton Underwood and talk-show host Andy Cohen have joined the growing group of celebrities who have tested positive for coronavirus.
— Don’t know what to watch this weekend? This can help.
— “The City of Bangor should issue an emergency order requiring “ shelter in place” now because we are in a life safety emergency,” writes Noah Nesin, family doctor and public health advocate, and Sean Faircloth a former state senator and mayor of Bangor.
— Interactive map: Here are the confirmed cases of coronavirus in each state.
— The BDN has been compiling questions about the coronavirus submitted by our readers. You can find the answers to those questions here.
— The Maine CDC set up a coronavirus hotline. The hotline is available by calling 211 or 866-811-5695. It can also be reached by texting your zipcode to 898-211 or emailing info@211maine.org.
— Nationwide, there are 17,962 cases and 239 deaths from the coronavirus as of Saturday, according to The New York Times.