Skip to main content

tv   Erin Burnett Out Front  CNN  May 4, 2020 4:00pm-5:00pm PDT

4:00 pm
was shot and killed by a customer after telling that customer to wear a state mandated face mask, and wolf, there have been threats in other states against people like wal-mart employees trying to do that very thing. >> brian todd reporting for us, thank vae thanks very much. and to ow viewers thanks for watching. erin burnett out front starts right now. out front next, breaking news. two models predict a massive spike in deaths in the next two weeks. plus a dangerous face-off tonight between the u.s. and china. the united states claims there's enormous evidence the virus was made in a chinese plab. the chinese tonight responding and airline stocks tumbling as one of the nation's largest carriers suggests it may be forced to layoff a third of its pilots. is this just the beginning? let's go out front. >> and good evening. i'm erin burnett. out front tonight the breaking news, two major projections both forecasting the number of deaths
4:01 pm
in the united states from coronavirus is about to double. one key model, this one often cited by the white house now predicts more than 134,000 deaths by the beginning of august. that is nearly double that same model's forecast from just days ago. the director of the institute behind the model says it, quote, this rise of mobility in the last week or ten days is likely leading to increased transmission. the administration is also privately projecting the number of deaths is about to spike. an internal document obtained by "the new york times" warns by early june 3,000 americans will die every day from coronavirus, and this is according to modeling by the cdc. again, that is nearly double the current number in just a month. so these are very, very grim projections. you're going to get there in that model by the end of may and the other model not even until august. both of them are doubling. why this surge in death? well, the administration is projecting the number of cases is going to spike 8 fold, to reach 200,000 cases in this
4:02 pm
country a day. that compare tuesday the current rate right now we have about 25,000 new cases in a day. the new projections are coming as president trump is assuring americans that it is safe to reopen. by the end of the week 42 states at least will have rolled back restricts even though many of them are not seeing a downward trend in cases. in fact the former commissioner under president trump scott gottlieb says in many states cases and hospitalizations are still rising. athena jones is out front to begin our coverage this monday evening. and athena, despite all of this and these models and predictions basically saying their forecast here of death is doubling because restrictions are being loosened, many states are still plowing ahead with those reopening plans. >> that's exactly right, and we've been talking a lot about in recent days about quarantine fatigue. people tired of staying at home.
4:03 pm
and with the beautiful weather this week and here in new york and places across the country we saw a lot of people out gathering in public places. even as the numbers show the coronavirus is still on the march here in the u.s. with more states seeing an increase in new cases than a decline. the reopening of america gaining steam. in florida restaurants and retail spaces allowed to open at 25% capacity. elective surgeries once again allowed. some state parks and beaches and popular spots like clearwater and man mucity now open at least for some part of the day. >> wow, just wow. it's been great to see people just really happy to just be released. >> reporter: but schools, movie theaters, bars, gyms and hair salons still shuttered. for now restrictions remain in place in the state's three hardest hit counties. >> be safe, smart and step by step is the appropriate way to consider that. >> reporter: in georgia simon
4:04 pm
malls opening their doors. in colorado nonessential offices can reopen today with increased cleaning and employee desks staying 6 feet apart, while nevada began allowing curbside pickup at stores and expanded outdoor activities late last week. by the end of the week more than 40 states would have begun lifting restrictions meant to stop the spread of the virus. this even as the picture across the country is mixed. with cases rising in more states than they are falling, and the number of new cases confirmed daily remains stubbornly high at around 30,000. in fact, an influential model cited by the white house now projecting nearly 134,000 covid-19 deaths in the u.s., nearly double their previous estimate due in part to their relaxation of social distancing restricts. >> this rise of mobility the last week or 10 days is likely leading to some increase in transmission. >> reporter: and "the new york times" citing an internal document reports the trump administration projects about
4:05 pm
200,000 new cases per day and some 3,000 deaths a day by early june. nearly double the current total. >> we're opening too early. i mean, i'm being honest about that. i'm not surprised at the projection. it's really based on how exponentially this virus can grow. >> with the nation's death toll surging past the 60,000 figure he estimated just two weeks ago president trump acknowledging the sobering reality. >> look, we're going to lose anywhere from 75, 80 to 100,000 people. >> even that number may be low. >> our projections have always been between 100 and 240,000 american lives lost, and that's with full mitigation and us learning from each other of how to social distance. >> still there may soon be promising news on the vaccine front with oxford university scientists predicting theirs could be available by this fall. >> we're pretty sure we'll get a signal by june of whether this works or not. >> reporter: a drug company roch
4:06 pm
it's been granted emergency use authorization for its new antibody test that it says is nearly 100% accurate. the fda has not yet confirmed it gave authorize to the test. >> as tough as this moment has been, as great as the price we have paid in this moment we know we don't want to do it again. >> and here in new york governor andrew cuomo said today he thinks local governments across the state should be enforcing his statewide order requiring people wear masks when they can't social distance. the governor saying you can literally kill someone because you didn't want to wear a mask. how cruel and irresponsible would that be? >> athena, thank you. and i want to go out front now to dr. jeremy and dr. david ruben, director of the policy lab at children's hospital of
4:07 pm
philadelphia. thanks very much to both of you. the model that the white house often cited or cites, right, revised its projections now saying 134,000 plus deaths from covid-19 by august, which is double that model's prediction from literally yesterday. one of the research tied to the model said the increase was due to basically relaxed social distancing, people getting out and about as we've seen them doing. are these reopenings we've seen in states really this risky? >> they very well may be. the thing about models is they tell you what you may think will happen in the future. models are about guessing the future. facts are about today. we need to be guided by the facts we see today which is increasing case loads. and a lot of states reopening have failed to reach even the white house's specifications for the next phase, so that is the problem as these models can
4:08 pm
change on a dime. but the facts on the ground do not. >> as we just were pointing out in 20 states that are going ahead here with relaxing social distance you have still an increase in caseload never mind the several weeks of a decrease which they were supposed to have had according to white house guidelines. dr. ruben, again according to that model the one the white house cites publicly they say it can help and so they are counting in they say some reduction from heat. does that all add up to you you would see such a stark increase, you know, without a full relaxation in social guidelines with summer? >> well, i think thereat, you know, fortunately we are moving towards summer and i think that's going to help us in terms of mitigating transmission as we move forward. but temperature alone is not going to bail us out. i think when i look at the forecast nationally i think they
4:09 pm
remind us just how dangerous this virus can be. but the factor that -- and i think those models can be really important to acknowledge that. but the x-factor they're not reporting is the individual choices we're going to make in this new phase. we're moving to a phase where people individually are going to have responsibility to remain vigilant and remain cautious. we have a personal blockade and that is our masks and our ability to wash our hands and how we protect our family, and how often we decide to mix in gatherings. and if people are smart i think we can beat those forecasts, but those models don't really know how to factor in exactly what our decisions are going to be made individually as we move forward, and i think that's an important factor to talk about. >> right, and it's very hard to predict. we can see in certain places not very much mask wearing and others much more.
4:10 pm
dr. faust, "the new york times" was talking about that trump administration model. president trump early on many times and we've all heard many people compare controversy to the flu simply because of the numbers. obviously when you look at those numbers we have passed any annual flu numbers of any recent outbreaks. i think it's important to note, doctor, you actually say flu deaths are much lower than cdc estimates anyway and you know this because you're a doctor, you've asked a simple question, have i seen someone who died from the flu. >> correct. it's one of those ah-hah moments when you see what the cdc says should kill 60,000 people a year. so it led me to dig in but they estimated. i'm worried people use the cdc has estimated the counts to be so high to shrug off the suvarlty of what we see today. it sort of feels like that scene in jaws where they say okay i
4:11 pm
want you back in the water now because it's not that common and this is the usual risk. we found covid is killing 20 times the number of people flu does at the worst part of flu season, and frankly it might be quite more than that. >> you're saying 20 times more than at the height of flu season. >> that's correct. >> so when the state of kentucky today, the governor says i never thought we'd be plateaued for 3 weeks sort of justifying this is way better than i thought it would be so it's okay to go ahead and relax restrictions. again the guidelines from the federal government said you need a decline not a plateau. is it possible governors may be right that opening up may not cause a surge. >> it's a big gamble and we'll have to see. right now we know that the number of cases is one thing, and the number of deaths is another. if 1,000 people who are young get it you might just have a few
4:12 pm
deaths. if 500 elderly people you might have more deaths. >> before we go the president has changed his projection on the number of deaths. he said 50 or 60,000 april 20th and may 3rd, 80 or 90. the number has gone up and up and up. i guess the bottom line from what you're both saying but just to be clear about, is no one really has any idea what the real numbers are going to be, but they will be significantly higher than we are right now given what's happening in terms of relaxation of standards. >> correct. when we see the numbers go down, it's interesting people say oh, why do we do all that mitigation, why do we have social distance, the answer is it worked. we should be proud of that not abandon the strategy. >> thank you both. i really appreciate it. >> out front next u.s. versus china, and it is getting extremely ugly between the two super powers. the president again saying the
4:13 pm
virus may have originated in a chinese lab, perhaps leaked out. now new intelligence from american allies does not seem to support that. we have breaking news coming into cnn. plus president trump predicting we will have a vaccine in a matter of months. this would be a record by a factor of years. is it possible? top former executive from the vaccine division is my guest. and one leader taking a page from trump's coronavirus play book and the outcome in his country has been deadly. feel the cool rush of new claritin cool mint chewables. powerful 24-hour, non-drowsy, allergy relief plus an immediate cooling sensation for your throat. feel the clarity and live claritin clear.
4:14 pm
only roomba uses 2 multi-surface rubber brushes to clean all your floors. and with patented dirt detect technology, roomba finds dirt throughout your home. if it's not from irobot, it's not a roomba. farmers is here for you. if you're off the roads for all of us, and if you're on the roads for us, well, we're here for you, too. we do things differently and aother money managers, don't understand why. because our way works great for us! but not for your clients. that's why we're a fiduciary, obligated to put clients first. so, what do you provide? cookie cutter portfolios? nope. we tailor portfolios to our client's needs.
4:15 pm
but you do sell investments that earn you high commissions, right? we don't have those. so, what's in it for you? our fees are structured so we do better when our clients do better. at fisher investments we're clearly different.
4:16 pm
they are compelled to step to the front lines. and into the unknown... for all of us.
4:17 pm
breaking news. u.s. allies are contradicting president trump's claim that coronavirus was leaked from a chinese lab. cnn is learning the intelligence assessment found no current evidence to suggest the virus leaked either by accident or on purpose. but evidence shows coronavirus came from the wuhan lab. so what are you learning this hour? >> for months now really intelligence agencies all around the world have been trying to pinpoint exactly where this virus came from and the two leading theories have been either that it was accidently released by the wuhan institute of veerology or that it appeared naturally in that market in wuhan. now, as you noted the trump administration for political reasons it appears has been
4:18 pm
pushing that notion that this virus came from the lab, but i was speaking with a western diplomatic official who is familiar with the intelligence who said that scenario is highly unlikely. rather that it's highly likely that this was a natural occurrence, that a human was infected by an animal in the wuhan market. now, this is an assessment that according to this official the countries of the five eyes intelligence sharing group of which the u.s. is part, they're generally coalescing around this assessment it did in fact come from the market. i spoke with another official from the five eyes. that official also agreed with this assessment. erin, this is an assessment and i use that word carefully because that means this is not 100%. what this means is they look at this intelligence, and this is what they see. we also spoke with a third official who said that while it's still a possibility that the virus actually came from a
4:19 pm
lab it is clear that the virus exploded in the market in wuhan. erin? >> all right, thank you very much, alex. an interesting point because of course all of this comes from the medical journal which had traced the epidemiology of this not to the market but it came to the market, and then would be consistent with what perhaps alex is saying, it exploded. but all of this bringing relations between the u.s. and china to a dangerous new low. i want to bring in david colver. you actually were showing us that lab, the wuhan institute of virology and how it's right there in the middle of the city. it's not a couple of hours outside. it is right there. and the chinese now after they've been, you know, accused here by mike pompeo and president trump calling mike pompeo evil, saying his claims about the lab are completely false. with all your extensive reporting what are you able to
4:20 pm
tell us about this lab? >> as you report out there with wuhan there's two labs in particular, the wuhan cdc, but the real folksis on the wuhan institute of virology. and it is just a few miles away from the seafood market whereas you mentioned that place explode where it seemed to go from person to person in a rapid manner. so that was believed to be kind of the original source of the outbreak here. one thing we do know is there's mostly circumstantial evidence that would suggest a leak. it's the location we pointed outs, and they study viruses there, it's a level 4 bio safety, and we know they include bats in those experiments too. some photos have surfaced, and those photos have not been verified by cnn but they seem to indicate substandard conditions. the chinese are coming out and
4:21 pm
saying to pompeo in particular, look, if you've got this evidence show it, otherwise we think you're bluffing. >> thank you very much. david is one of the few people that's actually been in there to give everyone a perspective of the physical proximity and what this lab actually does. i want to go to jim sciutto now an anchor and chief security correspondent. it's circumstantial, but you have a lab there that studies coronaviruses where the u.s. had reports at one point of substandard safety procedures. you have that article which says the virus came to the market, it didn't originate in the market. now you have the five eyes saying they don't see any evidence it came from a lab. are we ever going to know? >> listen, you have got to wait for the intelligence and more importantly you have to wait for a public statement on the intelligence as well. remember to this point the office of the director of the national intelligence their public statement today said, one
4:22 pm
with, we don't know this was developed intentionally. in other words to set aside the idea this was a bio weapon. they said they're still exploring two possibilities it originated in the market or lab. and now you have alex and kylie reporting saying the five eyes report which is sort of the collection of america's closest intelligence sharing allies is that they're leaning towards the closest explanation here. listen, because of the political element to this the trump administration's attempt to pin the whole outbreak on china, it suggests you wait for a public statement from the intelligence services on what their assessment is. i mean, that's going to be where a real answer will come from. >> do you think they'll come forth with that at one point and knowing if they feel quite confident thal never perhaps be fully sure because the chinese will be very good and focus 100%
4:23 pm
on covering their tracks if anything like this even happened. so will they come forth with any evidence if they have it? >> it'll be a squigz decision o senior most intelligence officials. they released a declassified version of the assessment to show the goods, to show how they reached that conclusion because they know this was quite a charge to make. will we see that from this current intelligence leadership, we don't know. but if they have the goods and they want to make that argument that would be a step they need to take. >> certainly if you've got your allies coming out and saying the allegations don't add up to them, you've got to kind of put up or shut your mouth. thanks very much, jim sciutto. and out front next doctors in france may have suggested they might have had their first coronavirus patient in december, which really changes the time
4:24 pm
line here and could tell us a lot about the spread of the virus. plus an internal memo from united airlines. we have it suggests up to a third of all pilots could be furloughed. a top official with united is out front. i just love hitting the open road and telling people that liberty mutual customizes your insurance, so you only pay for what you need! [squawks] only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ and your medicine, abbvie may be able to help. myabbvie assist has been providing free abbvie medicines to qualifying patients for nearly 30 years. and in today's difficult times, making sure patients have access to our medicines
4:25 pm
matters more than ever. find out if you're eligible at abbvie.com/myabbvieassist find out if you're eligible when bugs move in we stress out and spray. well, we used to. new ortho home defense max indoor insect barrier kills and prevents bugs for up to a year without odors, stains or fuss. new ortho home defense max. bugs gone. stress gone.
4:26 pm
4:27 pm
4:28 pm
tonight the race for a vaccine. scientists identifying 14 potential vaccines to focus on for president trump's, quote, operation warp speed. president trump predicting there could be a vax teen to develop in the united states in a matter of months. >> we think we're going to have a vaccine by the end of this year. and we're pushing very hard. >> and when they say ready to go they means millions and millions, tens of millions of doses. out front now the former chief operating officer for the vaccine division at merk and develops and produces vaccines. currently i know your a consultant for some bio tech companies but they are not producing vaccines at this point. when you hear the president say they are producing a vaccine by
4:29 pm
the end of year. you have done this process from testing to conception to production and manufacturing, how hard will this be to do? >> well, that guideline is only optimistic. if you were to break down that whole vaccine development process there are four components to it. the first you have to develop a study to show the vaccine works and it's safe. and that step is really hard to compress. you can't compress that step. then you need to get ready to get approval from the fda. and that takes time. it takes a year or more. but that can be compressed. finally you make the vaccine and you have to fill it and you have to deliver the vaccine to all the pharmacies and chains and you have to vaccinate a lot of people. but the vaccine manufacturing challenge is humongous.
4:30 pm
just to give you an example we make 150 million doses of flu vaccines every year. we'll have to make 600 million doses. that's four times what we currently make for flu. that's a huge challenge. >> so just even on that logistical standpoint that's incredibly difficult to imagine. you then also to this point you have affsafeof safety and effic there have been some concerns saying there is a risk of some of these vaccines instead of stopping the virus may may actually worsen the infection in some patients. they might do the opposite what they're actually intended to do. do you run these sorts of risks by speeding up the time line? >> i think we all run the risk of speeding up the time line, but that's why you conduct a phase three study which is placebo controlled study. you follow the patients for a sufficiently long period of time to make sure there are no safety signals and that's what good clinical practice is, and that's
4:31 pm
what is being done for all the vaccines being brought. safety is not something you can compromise. >> all right, i appreciate your time. thank you very much. as i said the former chief of vaccines for merk, and i want to go now to dr. sanjay gupta. here's what he's saying humongous was the word he used, just the manufacturing challenge putting aside his concerns for safety and efficacy, he's simply saying you've got people like bill gates out there saying i'll get all the plants together, the manufacturing plants, but that challenge is enormous. and it is not a sure thing that we would be able to even with all of the money and effort thrown at this to surmount that this quickly. >> now, that's true. i mean there's no guarantee here. a few of the different type of vaccine platforms that are being trialed right now are things that have never been done before, erin. if they work they could be maybe more easily manufactured than some of the more conventional vaccines.
4:32 pm
that could speed up the timeline. yeah, like the rna technology so you're not requiring as much of the material like the actual virus you used in the past to make vaccines. maybe that can be sped up. i think what dr. fauci talked about he said as we're going into phase 2 trials if we start to see efficacy signals, signals that it's working they may start actually manufacturing the vaccine ahead of time, and that's a gamble because you just got signals at that point. but it's the gamble i think they're willing to take so they can speed up the manufacturing process. and if doesn't work they lose that, but if it does work they'll be ahead of the game. i think that's what he's sort of describing. but some of what we're talking about has never been done. >> now this comes just to make the point as i know you so often do how little we know about the virus. we learn more and we learn more we don't know. one thing we still don't know is really how it got where it is
4:33 pm
which is everywhere. there's new evidence tonight the virus may have been in frances aurally as december. that was before it was in italy right, when the outbreak happened. that was when it was only kind of just starting to ramp up in wuhan according to what we knew. but now doctors from a hospital in paris they did find that a 42-year-old man had coronavirus at that time who had not been to china. what does this tell you? >> this is pretty significant, stunning even, erin. maybe not surprising. i don't know. i mean, i think we never thought for sure we caught the first patients, right? but now you're talking about two months perhaps because it wasn't until the end of january you had patients diagnosed in europe, and it wasn't until the end of february there was evidence of community transmission. now we're essentially saying there was evidence of community transmission in december? i mean, that's a lot earlier. and i don't know that it makes a
4:34 pm
difference necessarily in terms of how we go forward, but i think in the retroanalysis of this when exactly did this virus hit the world? i think it's clear, i mean it seems to be clear it first hit the world in china but even that, where did it come from exactly and when did it come i think is still an open question. >> all tright, sanjay, thank yo very much. and next the economic impact of this, the armageddon in some senses. are united airlines warning a thud third of its pilots could soon be furloughed. united airlines chief communication officer josh earnest out front. and plus one leader's response to the pandemic and it has had deadly consequences. and it appears you're quite the investor. i like to trade. well, td ameritrade has pros ready if you need help, say talking through a new strategy... ... just in case things, you know, get a little rocky?
4:35 pm
i'm sorry on the upside i think that's waterproof. maybe not... ♪ you get way more than free shipping. you get thousands when you shop for your home at wayfair of items you need to your door fast the way it works best for you. even the big stuff. you get a delivery experience you can always count on. you get your perfect find at a price to match on your schedule. you get free two day shipping on things that make your home feel like you! wayfair. way more than furniture. theand we want to thank times, the extraordinary people in the healthcare community, working to care for all of us. at novartis, we promise to do our part. as always, we're doing everything we can to help keep cosentyx accessible and affordable.
4:36 pm
if you have any questions at all, call us, email us, visit us online. we're here to help support you when you need us. take care, and be well. to learn more, call one eight four four cosentyx or visit cosentyx.com
4:37 pm
this virus is testing all of us. and it's testing the people on the front lines of this fight most of all. so abbott is getting new tests into their hands, delivering the critical results they need. and until this fight is over, we...will...never...quit. because they never quit.
4:38 pm
new tonight united airlines asking employees to, quote, seriously consider leaving the company voluntarily after the senior vp of flight operations warned in a memo that nearly a third of the airlines pilots will be displaced on june 30th. this as shares of the country's four major airlines tumbled.
4:39 pm
dr. buffet said he sold all his airlines stocks warning it could take years for the industry to recover. truly something happened here no one could have possibly imagined as i said in our lifetimes. out front now the united airlines chief communications officer josh earnest. josh, i appreciate your time. so when we see this, you know, senior vice president of flight operations warning you could have more than 4,000 pilots displaced by june 30th, how real is this risk? >> erin, it's a real risk. displaced does not mean they're leaving the payroll. we made a commitment to our employees and to the pax payers when we accepted government support from the cares act to keep everyone on the payroll through the end of september. the assistance we got in the cares act is deeply appreciated and makes a big difference. even if you include the amount of the cares act we have to pay back, it doesn't cover all our payroll costs. and just to put this in
4:40 pm
perspective for you, erin, most days in the month of april on an individual day we were flying fewer customers in an individual day than we had pilots on the payroll. so there is a significant disruption to our business, and it's happening all across the industry. and we're just doing our best to deal with it. >> so, you know, do you have any sense of where it goes from here? i mean, i understand that you're going to want more changes oo the taxpayer assistance, but there's also your business itself. today treasury secretary steve mnuchin said and i quote him, it's too hard to tell if international travel will even open back up this year. so basically people with urgent needs, that would be it. you all obviously can't continue as an operational business if you don't have things like international flights going. do you think that there'll be international flights this year, or are you assuming no?
4:41 pm
>> well, right now, erin, we actually are operating a number of international long haul flights now. we are improving connectivity around the world. that's the bread and butter of our business. right now if you want to travel to australia you can only do that by flying united airlines, and we're proud of the continuing essential connections we're improving around the world, but we're obviously not anywhere close to what we typically are flying around the world, so we are going to have to make some changes and we do expect by the time october rolls around we're going to be a smaller airline. the real question is how much smaller. >> so to that point you talk about the australia example, i know that you are now saying, you know, people who fly -- for example, you know, social distancing, no one's going to be flying side by side, you're going to have social distancing. just to state the obvious for people you have to maintain these planes, you have to fly a
4:42 pm
whole plane to get anybody from point a to point b, you have to fuel that plane, you have to pay for the labor on that plane, but you can't fly the plane full, and last i checked united airlines cannot make money and survive if you are flying planes tat are mostly empty, so what are you going to do in a world where social distancing is the norm? >> that's a great question, and that is why today we actually began requiring all of our crew and our customers to wear masks when they're onboard our planes. and we're able to provide our masks to customers who don't have them. we hope people would bring their own, but if we don't have them, we could provide them. we are overhauling our cleaning procedures. we bought 750 devices called electi election electi election and we're now boarding back to front so you don't have to walk by a bunch of people when you're getting to your
4:43 pm
seat. we're thinking really creative here and ways we can change the operate every single day to ensure that air travel remains safe for people. >> all right, josh earnest, thank you. >> nice to talk to you, erin. thanks for the opportunity. all right. up next brazil. it now has the highest number of cases in the southern hemisphere. and it's important for americans to follow this, because what does it say about warmer weather and the spread of coronavirus with relaxed social distancing? plus meet the poet with a message about life that has gone global about life after the pandemic. otts thick'r lawn 3-in-1 solution. with a soil improver! seed! and fertilizer to feed! now yard time is our time. this is a scotts yard.
4:44 pm
you should switch it to tracfone wireless to get more control over your wireless plan. they give you unlimited carryover data-- you pay for your data, you keep really? yeah, you just swap your sim card you can also keep your phone, keep your number, keep your network, $20 a month, no contract. oh, but that case- temporary- it's my daughter's old case- well, ok, you know. you do you. available 24/7 at tracfone.com
4:45 pm
tracfone wireless. now you're in control. especially lately. at farmers we've seen a thing or two. available 24/7 at tracfone.com we've seen you become sweat-pant executives, cat coworkers and pillow-fort architects. we've seen you doing your part. so, farmers will keep seeing you through. with fifteen-percent-reduced personal auto premiums and immediate savings through our signal app, which gives a discount for safe driving. and then we'll do the next thing, and the thing after that, until this is another thing we've seen and done.
4:46 pm
4:47 pm
brazil, reaching a grim milestone surpassing more than 100,000 coronavirus cases. the surge coming as brazil's president has routinely scoffed at both the virus and stay at home policies dismissing the pandemic as a quote fantasy driven by, quote, a little flu.
4:48 pm
>> reporter: like so many others the fam well will never be the same. here in this imp provised cemetery, this small family unit with some on inphone bidthe pho fair well to a father and grandfather who went to the hospital with a finger wound and tragedy though doesn't end with this family. here in the city of northwestern brazil escavators are digging trenches en masse, and while they bury their dead the president has compared the pandemic to a little flu, shaking his supporters hands and pressuring governors and mayors to loosen lock down measures. according to the secretary of
4:49 pm
health icu beds are at 85% capacity. and as the city's confirmed case count remains among the highest in brazil and rising hospitals buckle under the threat of covid. for sandra it's all too much. her mom was admitted after having a stroke, and now she says her mother's tested positive for covid. with icu beds in short supply many patients have been moved to maternity wards. this undercover video shows expecting mothers sitting face-to-face with covid patients.
4:50 pm
on this ward, a nurse is seen working without personal protective equipment. understandably it's taking a toll. >> reporter: and, erin, that nightmare you heard there, that is likely to continue with no end in sight as president jair bolsonaro continues to push for the lockdown restrictions to be loosened, basically saying that economic downfall will take a greater toll on the country.
4:51 pm
meanwhile, we've seen over the weekend his supporters have been out at some of his rallies, completely ignoring social distancing rules, and that have many people fearful, of course, that the number of cases in brazil could continue to rise. i can tell you in the last 24 hours, we had the numbers in the last few hours, more than 4,000 cases just in 24 hours, erin. >> all right. issa, thank you very much. and join being me now dr. jonathan reiner who advised the white house medical team under george w. bush. dr. reiner, so, brazil's president downplaying the virus, calling it "the little flu, a fantasy." those are his words. he attended a protest against social distancing. how dangerous is this? >> you know, it's super dangerous. he appears to be a pandemic soul mate of president trump. there are a lot of similarities.
4:52 pm
both presidents have called into question the seriousness of the flu. both have at least given tacit support to protesters of social distancing and stay-at-home measures. president trump on march 27th called the covid-19 virus a flu, and then three days later president bolsonaro did the same thing. so there are a lot of similarities. but both presidents are really failing to do something incredibly important. they're failing to get their people to rise to greatness. by failing to really enforce the hard measures of social distancing, they are very likely to cost lives in both their countries. ronald regan said that the greatest president is not necessarily the one who does the greatest thing, but is the one who gets the people to do the greatest things. and both of these leaders are really failing that right now. >> and when you look at brazil, you know, we've talked about the
4:53 pm
effects of whether the cdc study has shown that, we have talked to doctors about a lot of studies earlier this hour. warm weather can help. humidity can help. it can't eliminate, but it can help. when you look at other countries in the southern hemisphere, you do have outbreaks, but nowhere like you do in brazil. brazil is in a league of its own right now. does that raise more questions, especially given what you're hearing from bolsonaro? it's not what you're hearing from the leaders of other countries. >> yeah, you know, i think it was really magical thinking all along to believe that the on set of warm weather in this country or anywhere in the world was going to eradicate the virus. we do see hints in places, particularly in the united states, where the virus is a little bit less vigorous. it is a little less vigorous in places like miami than it is in new york. but the notion that it's going to disappear as the weather warms is really countered by the experience in brazil and also places like singapore. it's not going to happen. >> thank you, dr. reiner.
4:54 pm
>> sure. >> and next, jeanne on why people are rallying on one man's message that the coronavirus will be a good thing in hindsight. ♪ hey! that's mine. i'll buy you a pony. advanced hydration isn't just for kids. pedialyte helps you hydrate during recovery. that liberty mutual customizes your insurance, i just love hitting the open road and telling people advanced hydration isn't just for kids. so you only pay for what you need!
4:55 pm
[squawks] only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ ...under control. turns out, it was controlling me. seemed like my symptoms were... ...taking over our time together. think he'll make it? so i talked to my doctor and learned humira can help get and keep uc... ... under control when other medications haven't worked well enough. "dad!" "hey!" and it helps people achieve control that lasts. so you can experience few or no symptoms. humira can... ...lower your ability to fight infections. serious and sometimes fatal infections, including tuberculosis, and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened,... ...as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions,... ...and new or worsening heart failure. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start... humira if you have an infection. be there for you, and them.
4:56 pm
ask your doctor... ...about humira. with humira, control is possible. if you can't afford your medicine, abbvie may be able to help. daddy, i found you! if you can't afford your medicine, good job. now i'm gonna stay here and you go hide. watch your favorites from anywhere in the house with the xfinity stream app. free with your xfinity service. now any room can be a tv room. stream live tv, on demand shows and movies,
4:57 pm
even your dvr recordings. download the xfinity stream app today to stream the entertainment you love. here's jeanmost. >> reporter: celebrities ranging from michelle obama. >> miss maple seeds. >> reporter: to danny devito
4:58 pm
have been reading stories to kids during the pandemic. >> he coughed and he whiffed. >> reporter: the one who hasn't whiffed is an unknown british poet whose storytelling from the future has gotten millions of views. >> tell me the one about it again. >> reporter: the kid playing the son is actually tom roberts's 7-year-old brother. >> it was a world of waste and wonder, poverty and plenty back before we understood why hindsight's 2020. we always had our wants. but now it got so quick, you could have anything you dreamed of in a day and with a click. >> reporter: the poet's sister, his mom and his dad all work at british hospitals. >> but then in 2020, a new virus came our way. the government's reacted and told us all to hideaway. >> reporter: the story imagines phone obsessed families in a polluted past, transformed. >> and with the skies less full
4:59 pm
of voyagers, the earth began to breathe. so when we found the cure and were allowed to go outside, we all preferred the world we found, the one we left behind. >> reporter: viewers seemed submit en, loved, loved, loved , games me chills of sadness but then hope. >> i would love you to understand i'm not naive to thinking that coronavirus is in any way a good thing. maybe out of the bad there can be some good. >> reporter: drew barrymore posted the video, the great realization. jake gyllenhaal messaged him about working on a children's book. >> i'm overwhelmed because it is overwhelming. >> reporter: this from a 26-year-old who had a card from his mom posted behind him. >> go forth, act decent and call your mother from time to time. >> reporter: now he's getting calls. his little brother set up the clincher. >> but why did it ache a virus? >> sometimes you've got to get sick, my boy, before you start feeling better. >> reporter: kind of puts the
5:00 pm
doctor in dr. seuss for the covid generation. jeann jeanne moos, cnn, new york. >> thanks for joining us. ac 360 with anderson starts now. >> and good evening. thanks for joining us. as people begin to crowd public areas again, new modelling out today projects a sharp spike in both case loads and death koubts. according to at least one of those reports, the reason is partially the relaxation of social distancing guidelines. that report comes from an institute at the university of washington whose modelling has been cited by the white house and its director is going to join us shortly in a moment. dr. chris murray says, quote, this rise of mobility in the last week or ten days is likely leading to some increased transmission. this is what the rise in mobility looks like, all of this from the weekend. take a look at what happened in panama city beach in florida. as you can see, people at the beach are heading to the beach. there they are on the beach. clearly not