as we kick off a new week with the coronavirus death toll surpassing 40,000 doubling in just a week, we're met with protests from many who desperately demand the economy re-open so they can get back to work. the government is close to approving a new bailout for small businesss across the nation as a new nbc news poll shows the majority of americans fear that we may loosen restrictions too soon. and then we'll have the latest on the mass shooting involved the suspected shooter impersonating a police officer "early today" starts right now

>> good morning, i'm phillip mena. >> and i'm cori coffman. the death toll reaches a grim milestone as clashes over testing begins it hr first confirmed case of coronavirus. and now more than 755,000 people are infected with the virus. over 40,000 americans have died from covid-19. >> at the epicenter in the empire state governor andrew cuomo is launching aggressive testing for antibodies this week and says new york has passed the high point of infection recording its lowest daily death toll in two weeks. here's a bright spot a patient getting a standing ovation as he leaves north shore university hospital on long island the 46-year-old was their 1,000th discharged coronavirus patient. can you see there doctors and nurses cheering him on. new york's finest are showing solidarity for those who lost their lives to coronavirus by wearing black bands across their shields.

so far 28 uniformed and civilian members of the nypd have died from covid-19. starting today, walmart employees will be required to wear masks the company says its evolving policy amid new cdc guidelines they can bring their own in or will be provided with one after they undergo temperature screenings inside. police in new york busted up a massive party in brooklyn. up to 60 people packed a barber shop for who was reportedly a music video shoot. two people were arrested and the rest of the crowd was given summons for violating social distancing guidelines. broadway star nick cordero had his leg amputated after suffering complications from coronavirus. he has been in the icu for 18 days his wife started a musical tribute after she played the elvis song "got a lot of living to do" and it seemed to lower his blood pressure. former first lady michelle obama doing his part to help parents at home. starting today at noon eastern she'll be reading classic

children's books on a live stream called "mondays with michelle." mila kunis and ashton kutcher raising a glass. they launched quarantine wine. they say 100% of the profits will go toward coronavirus relief charities at the nation's epicenter of the pandemic new hope that the worst is over. the latest data from new york shows the number of new cases is coming down. but other major cities are seeing a surge our kathy park has more. kathy, good morning. >> reporter: good morning from new york where the governor delivered days of encouraging news the caseload troubling in hot spots like massachusetts, los angeles county and the largest native american reservation on the country. new york on the mend after weeks of beating back a disease both deadly and devastating. >> the recent news is good we are on the other side of the plateau and the numbers are coming down. >> reporter: hospitalizations are down again but the governor warning the

fight isn't over the daily death toll still above 500. the state will issue 3,000 antibody tests that may tell us who is immune to the coronavirus. >> this will be the first true snapshot of what we're really dealing with >> reporter: neighboring new jersey has a second largest caseload in the u.s. on saturday, the death toll there passed the 4,000 mark. more than the last three flu seasons combined and another troubling sign that infections aren't slowing in massachusetts. the third highest ranking state with confirmed cases obituaries in the boston globe stretched 16 pages saturday marked a grim milestone in los angeles county. 81 lives lost, a one-day record. in one of the icus sick patients keep coming. >> we've been dealing with just a continuous wave of people this week, so it's been kind of crazy. i don't think it's been letting down at all. >> reporter: the virus is also

exposing vulnerabilities within the navajo nation. the largest native american reservation in the country has more than 1,000 positive cases in pre-pandemic days they faced challenges accessing health care and running water. now the crisis is threatening their culture deeply rooted in their elders >> our elders who are our first language speakers, they carry a lot of the knowledge and the ceremonies that we the young people are still learning, our cultures are in jeopardy right now if we lose our elders. >> reporter: back in new york the mayor announcing more help is coming to hot spots in the city 1400 health care volunteers will be reinforcing staff at hospitals and nursing homes where the need is greatest and with the weather warming up it's likely that more people will be outdoors and that's why officials in new york city will be setting up their enforcement making sure that people are still practicing social distancing in the public any violators could face a fine

of up to $1,000. phillip. >> all right, kathy, thank you. on capitol hill lawmakers are nearing a deal to inject another $450 billion into the economy. treasury secretary steven mnuchin says the package would shore up the e nbc's tracie potts joining us with the latest out of d.c we're hearing negotiations could wrap up today. >> reporter: right, cori in fact the treasury secretary says they could wrap up negotiations the senate could vote today. the house could vote tomorrow and then president trump could sign off on this and the small business loans could get started again on wednesday that's the ambitious plan. they do have $250 billion in to replenish ma paycheck protection program, the small business fund that's giving out loans so if businesses can pay their workers but it would also include some of the things that democrats wanted, namely, money set aside

for minority businesses and for rural businesses plus for help and $25 billion for testing which the president has insisted is up to the states. >> we're continuing to negotiate with the democrats to get our great workers and small businesses all over the country taken care of. i think we are getting close to a deal >> he hasn't lifted a finger he could have told mitch mcconnell there had to be money for cities and localities in this stimulus that's being debated right now and the president literally walked away from his obligation. >> reporter: there have been protests all over the country that we've seen, especially in the last few days. people who are worried about getting back to work but our latest poll shows that 58% think it's too soon to start loosening our restrictions and putting people back in the public 32% think it's taking too long and could really hurt the economy.

cori >> yeah, this latest relief package couldn't come fast enough tracie, thank you. this pandemic has infected nearly 2.5 million people around the world and killed more than 165,000 but some countries have weathered the covid-19 storm and are now preparing to re-open some businesses. joining me now from london with the very latest is cal perry hey, cal, good morning >> reporter: hey, good morning, phillip. so like the united states, europe will open in phases and it will open regionally. that's already what we're seeing in spain we're starting to see some ease of restrictions, keep in mind, though, spain's health care system has taken it the hardest in the world has the highest rate of infection, has the highest rates of death amongst health care workers but we are seeing some stores there re-open rdless of the easing, everybody will have to keep that social distancing, of course, even in spain there is some disagreement about what should open, what should not one region called it irresponsible that madrid is

opening. italy also starting to relax some restrictions on stores and certain industries we're seeing the forestry back to work related to construction as the economy in italy has taken it very hard eagle story get that back up and running here in the united kingdom we will see a lockdown continuing until at least may the 7th that coming from the government just a few days ago and we're hearing this morning on the morning shows that while school is up in the air for sometime maybe in a month, the pubs and restaurants will stay closed until at least winter. government officials here are afraid and are fearing looking at potentially a second wave if they re-open too quickly phillip, cori. >> that is the biggest fear all across is it too soon to open things up again. cal perry from london, thank you, cal. let's turn to canada 16 people were killed in a shooting rampage in nova scotia. they happened over a period of 12 hours in the town of portapique according to authorities the victims were ambushed by a gunman who posed as a police

officer. police identified that gunman as 51-year-old gabriel wartman. he worked in the province making dentures seen here after leading police on a 60-mile manhunt he was captured at a gas station and later killed the victims of the attack included a 23-year veteran of the royal canadian mounted police constable heidi stevenson was a mother of two. prime minister justin trudeau said his heart goes out to everyone affected in this situation. the south is getting slammed by another round of severe weather. just one week after a serious of deadly tornadoes powerful winds are again riping across the southeast and leaving behind a path of destruction. there have been reports overnight of serious damage in alabama, georgia and northern florida. before the winds picked up again alabama had already been hit by storms powerful enough to rip off roofs and bring down trees this weather also brings the threat of severe flooding and more than 90,000 people across the southeast have lost power. tracking all this wicked

weather for us, nbc meteorologist janessa webb good morning, janessa. >> reporter: hey, good morning, good to see you too. good morning, everyone we still have a very fluid situation that continues to roar through the south and southeast. finally seeing a little bit of a break for louisiana but we've been tracking this since yesterday morning and now tornado watches still in place across northern florida, the panhandle and southern georgia making its way into the carolinas. we still have that enhanced risk of these severe storms that will make its way across coastal areas of the carolinas south carolina, north carolina throughout your morning and hopefully it starts to push offshore by early afternoon. the flood damage is a real big concern right now across alabama where we've already seen about three inches of rain per hour forecasting another one to three

and toasty for san antonio with more sunshine throughout the day. charleston's storms headed your way. this is just round one we have a very active weather pattern. more of that coming up. >> all right, hear from you in just a bit thank you. in today's quick hits, blue ivy carter, the daughter of beyonce and jay-z has a psa, wash your hands. the 8-year-old demonstrated how soap and water can eliminate the coronavirus using a bowl of water with specks of pepper to represent the virus. the icelandic forest service is encouraging citizens to hug trees during quarantine to relieve stress one forest ranger saying you get a good relaxing feeling and you're ready to start the day with new challenges. nearly a thousand air force cadets took part in eithr graduation ceremony and sat eight feet apart and got a special message from the vice president.

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♪ with jam and bread and that will bring us back to doe ♪ a moment of unity, a u.s. army sergeant recruited army kids from across the country to sing along for a feel good virtual concert. >> now to the power of love and the special connection some nurses share their families working shoulder to shoulder in hospitals lifting each other up through the darkest of days. here's nbc's kate snow with their stories. >> reporter: it's the frontline photo inspired so many a married couple >> we met in 2007 in nurse anesthetist school. >> reporter: with team health at tampa general finding each other between surgeries, the moment captured by a colleague. >> we were just talking to each other and we just realized nothing like this had ever happened before like this in our life and were happy we could serve together as a couple >> reporter: ben and mindy both volunteers for the hospital's airway team putting themselves at risk given their close proximity to patients they

intubate >> we don'thave kids and we just felt like this is something that we were called to do and it's our time to step up and serve. >> reporter: in new york, three others answering that call to serve. >> i'm an intensive care nurse >> are you working with covid-19 patient. >> yeah, yeah. >> reporter: anissa, 22, amira, 25 and ismail, 27 all serving at hard hit montefiore hospital in the bronx. >> in the icu we're no stranger to death but the staggering amount of death we have seen is really sad and heartbreaking. >> i could be gone today and come back tomorrow and the patients i had yesterday are not there. i don't even want to ask sometimes like what happened but you know you know >> reporter: even as they care for patients, these frontline nurses care for each other they're not just colleagues at the same hospital, they are also siblings anissa, what is it like to have each other in this >> they're my main source of

comfort. i am lucky because i can talk to my siblings because they know exactly what we're going through and like exactly how like they feel. >> what they do is a source of inspiration. >> reporter: also at montefiore, he's worked for 29 years -- >> i feel if it's anything i'll always remember would be serving in this time with them >> reporter: families serving on the front lines caring for all of us and also each other. >> i'm praying none of us get sick and if we do we recover, god willing we recover >> reporter: kate snow, nbc news >> doing it together but still risking their lives. >> yeah, bless what they're doing. when "early today" returns, the stars align to raise millions for a good cause while in quarantine. the only player to leave fans afraid of how much they loved him,he t office's michael scott gets his own "30 for 30.

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the concert featured performances by billy eilish, taylor swift and many more. what if i told you the greatest michael wasn't jordan >> i don't know. i don't know you'd have to convince me whochlt is it? >> right here. >> maybe him >> it's all this celebration for the new michael jordan series releasing. espn "30 for 30" decided to reimagine the documentary on michael scott's basketball career from this iconic episode. the question, does this qualify as sports content for anybody who is craving sports content? >> not only does it but it's excellent. i went back and watched this episode because i was craving it so badly michael is horrible but, you know, phyllis needed more reps and kevin with the pure shot great episode. up next janessa is tracking the new coronavirus hot spots. speaking of nba, fans lace up for "the last dance," the hotly anticipated michael jordan documentary blasting onto the small screen no way!

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we continue to watch our regional growth rate of covid-19 and i haven't said this since march 28th look at this dramatic drop that we saw for sunday. today will be a vital day to see if we have an increase because we've seen that for the last four weeks, but, man, this is a dramatic -- we're now to 5% increase of our case totals per day, even the northeast to the midwest. that's really decreased percentagewise thanks. >> janessa, thank you.

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sit! i said sit! this year high school seniors missing out on a major milestone. many of them had their proms canceled so it'ssome stars decid to give them a big night together >> reporter: this year at prom unlike years past there are no boutonnieres, no deejays no limos ♪ >> reporter: the most star-studded prom ever from chance the rapper >> prom 2020

>> whoo! >> yeah. >> reporter: to billy oilish ♪ so you're a tough guy like a really rough guy ♪ >> reporter: all performing for the class of 2020. high school seniors who thought they missed out on their once in a lifetime prom memories the master of ceremonies >> prom rolls on, class of 202020 star of "the office" and "jack ryan." john krasinski who started a weekly youtube star to feature good news. >> this was the absolute scariest thing i've ever done in my career. >> reporter: across the country, seniors showed up dressed up, even posing with their families. corsages and all they danced along and sang along. for seattle area senior tessa martinez the experience meant everything. >> what do you think >> i wasn't expecting it to have all the celebrities involved in it i was expecting it to be just like some music playing or some deejaying and i think it was really cool seeing all the

social media people brought together. >> reporter: the parents glad she didn't miss out. >> you know, when you go through life and you graduate from high school prom is something that every student looks forward to >> reporter: finding creative ways to make the most of a tough situation. >> we are all going through this together this is a very, very weird time. but each and every one of you are missing something and this is the least i could do embarrassing myself to the full extent for you and i couldn't be more proud to do it. >> reporter: a prom like no other. memories that will last a lifetime >> they certainly will our thanks to jose for that report. >> our thanks to john krasinski for doing that some good news so great the nba season is on hold and fans are getting a preprieve wit "the last dance. the series went viral almost immediately after the producers dunkedn former president obama

by titling him as a former chicago resident t focuses on the bulls' ledge di run, parts one and two ran last night i'm so looking forward to it looking forward since last year. >> it's a ten-parter so you can enjoy. keep it right here re news most as we work to get through these times together, you may not be thinking about blood donation, but blood is needed to save the lives of people who are sick with a range of illnesses. it's easy and safe to give. if you are in good health, please donate. we need heroes now. visit red cross blood dot org

to schedule an appointment. as we kick off another monday this isolation, congress is close to approving a new multibillion dollar bailout for small businesses and the number of protests around the nation grows with people demanding to get back to work the fighting covid-19 on the front lines, we'll introduce you to virus trackers, the real life people going door to door to track the outbreak and why they may be key to reopening the nation we'll take a look at the long road to recovery for survivors and what happens after the hospital stay.

it's