Mar 21, 2018

Spending bill will include gun background checks

Photo: Xinhua / Wang Ping via Getty

The large spending bill being voted on in Congress this week includes the Fix NICS bill, the bipartisan bill to strengthen existing gun background checks, as well as additional funding for school safety, according to two senior GOP aides. There will also be language that clarifies the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can do gun research.

Why it matters: The outcome is likely to disappoint the survivors of the Parkland school shooting and gun control advocates who were pushing for tougher measures, like a ban on assault weapons. We're sure to hear more about this at the March for Our Lives rally taking place this weekend.

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Bryan Walsh

The pandemic shows why we're never ready for the big one

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

As the confirmed number of COVID-19 cases passed 1 million on Friday, two words sum up the U.S. response to the coronavirus: not enough. Not enough hospital beds, not enough ventilators, not enough protective equipment. Not enough preparation.

Why it matters: COVID-19 has demonstrated our normal defenses aren't enough in the face of a low-probability, but high-consequence catastrophe.

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Rebecca Falconer, Orion Rummler, Marisa Fernandez

U.S. coronavirus updates: New York reports record 630 deaths in 24 hours

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

New York reported 630 new deaths in 24 hours, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Saturday — an "all-time increase" that beat the previous day's record of 562 deaths in a single day.

The big picture: As expected, COVID-19 death tolls are rising in the U.S., killing more than 7,100 people in total, and over 1,000 in 24 hours alone. The CDC is recommending Americans wear face coverings in public to help stop the spread, marking a significant change in messaging from the Trump administration.

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Axios

World coronavirus updates: Spain tracks more cases than Italy

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC and China's Health Ministry. Note: China numbers are for the mainland only and U.S. numbers include repatriated citizens and confirmed plus presumptive cases from the CDC

Spain overtook Italy in its number of coronavirus cases on Saturday, as the global death toll surpassed 60,000, per Johns Hopkins data.

The latest: About half the planet's population is on lockdown amid the coronavirus crisis. Fatalities are exponentially increasing across Europe, with roughly half of deaths worldwide located in Italy and Spain.

Go deeperUpdated 11 mins ago - Health