Some state and city tourism officials have rearranged their summer marketing plans to keep potential visitors away as the coronavirus pandemic persists, AP reports.
The big picture: Overall travel spending in the U.S. is expected to drop by 45% by the end of 2020, according to the U.S. Travel Association's June forecast. A $389 billion loss in spending for domestic travel compared to last year is expected.
The environmental damage caused by our toilet paper-buying habits has worsened during the pandemic.
Why it matters: Most at-home toilet paper is made from virgin material produced by clear-cutting forests, unlike the office toilet paper, which is usually made from recycled fibers. As a result, the shift to doing business at home hasn't been good for forests.
Vice President Mike Pence's planned campaign appearances in Arizona and Florida have been postponed due to rising novel coronavirus infections in both states, NBC News first reported and Axios has confirmed.
Why it matters:NIAID director Anthony Fauci expressed concern this week about coronavirus surges in Arizona, Texas and Florida.
The mayor of Pinecrest, a small town in the Florida county with the most coronavirus infections, warned residents this week that "private house parties" are the area's most dangerous spreaders of the virus.
Why it matters: Florida on Friday reported nearly 9,000 new coronavirus infections over 24 hours — a massive spike that bumps the state's total to 122,960 cases, Axios' Marisa Fernandez reports. Most of the state's infections are in Miami-Dade County.
Lawmakers running for reelection are restructuring campaigns around frequent virtual town halls — a stretch for many Baby Boomers and older Gen X-ers who depend on staffers or grandchildren for their tech skills.
Why it matters: Virtual campaigning is replacing handshakes, hugs, baby-kissing and door-knocking, as voters quarantine and social distance. That can make it harder for challengers who lack built-in name recognition.
Schools across Italy are scheduled to reopen starting September 14, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and Education Minister Lucia Azzolina announced on Friday.
Nearly 54 million Americans have reached traditional retirement age, 65 years and older, in the U.S. — a 34% jump over the past decade, per 2019 Census Bureau population estimates cited by Bloomberg.
Why it matters: The older population is expanding at a faster rate than that of children and working-age Americans, driven by the aging of Baby Boomers born between 1946 and 1964. This means the country's dependency ratio has grown, Bloomberg notes, wherein federal, state and local governments are likely to feel the strain of older Americans' reliance on government services.
A new report shows that the COVID-19 pandemic has led a third of U.S. women surveyed to report that they want to delay childbearing or have fewer children.
Why it matters: Natural disasters and economic recessions often lead to a decline in fertility rates, and COVID-19 has aspects of both. With the pandemic and lockdown policies already putting enormous pressure on working parents, reproduction could take a major hit.
As colleges look to adjust to a lasting pandemic, they'll need to find new ways to service students in person and offline.
Why it matters: Colleges were forced to suddenly switch to online learning when COVID-19 struck and are now focusing on figuring out how to reopen safely. But the realities of the pandemic will demand an innovative mix of distance services and physical transformation.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said, "If I could go back and redo anything, it probably would have been to slow down the opening of bars," as he observes the "aftermath of how quickly the coronavirus spread..." in a radio interview on Friday cited by The Texas Tribune.
Why it matters: Texas has seen a recent surge in confirmed coronavirus cases as the state moved toward reopening, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Abbott allowed bars to reopen starting May 22, at 25% indoor capacity. His shift in tone could be one of many as other states also experience case count spikes and a possible second wave.
Government virus expert Anthony Fauci told reporters in a press briefing on Friday that contact tracing efforts to contain the coronavirus are "not working."
Why it matters: Without a vaccine, contact tracing of cases is the best tool available to stem the spread of an outbreak. But understaffed public health agencies, privacy concerns, disappointing technology, and the sheer size of the pandemic are limiting the technique's effectiveness.
