coronavirus

The US Justice Department on Tuesday brought its first criminal charges against people it accused of defrauding the $660 billion Paycheck Protection Program aimed at dulling the coronavirus pandemic’s heavy hit on the economy. The small-business loan program is part of an unprecedented $2.2 trillion coronavirus economic package meant to reimburse businesses and households for …

NBCUniversal is slashing salaries because of the coronavirus, a day after the broadcasting giant’s surprise ouster of NBC News chairman Andy Lack. In response to the financial fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, NBCU is cutting the pay of its senior management by 20 percent and rolling back pay increases for employees making more than $100,000, …

Airbnb is reportedly laying off nearly 2,000 employees due to the coronavirus pandemic — effectively slashing its headcount by 25 percent. The 1,900 workers axed by the home-sharing startup will receive a four-month pay package, as well as accelerated equity vesting and health insurance for a year, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. CEO Brian …

The Trump administration is considering dissolving the White House coronavirus task force within several weeks, the New York Times reported Tuesday. Olivia Troye, a senior adviser to Vice President Mike Pence, has told officials on the task force to expect the group to complete its activities in the coming weeks. “We’re having conversations about that,” Pence …

New York on Tuesday announced 1,700 previously undisclosed suspected coronavirus deaths that occurred at nursing homes and adult care facilities. The new data from Governor Andrew Cuomo’s administration, which includes people who passed away before a lab test could confirm they had coronavirus, brings the state’s death toll from the virus to at least 4,813 …

Scientists at the Los Alamos National Laboratory published a study on Thursday that indicates the now-prevalent strain of coronavirus is a more contagious version of the pathogen first reported in Wuhan, China. The study, which is not yet peer-reviewed, was published on BioRxiv, a website used by medical researchers to speed up collaboration on studies …

Skylar Astin, Dolores Catania, Julian Edelman and Isiah Thomas are helping to raise funds to deliver meals to Holocaust survivors unable to leave their homes during the coronavirus crisis. The celebs and athletes have joined forces with 333 Charity and the UJA-Federation to teach a virtual total body conditioning workout class with Trooper Fitness to …

The US trade deficit rose in March as the coronavirus outbreak battered America’s trade with the world. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that the gap between what the US sells and what it buys abroad widened 11.6 percent in March, to $44.4 billion, from $39.8 billion in February. US exports fell 9.6 percent, to $187.7 …

Impossible Foods isn’t going to let a nationwide meat shortage stop Americans from making burgers. The maker of the plant-based Impossible Burger will start selling its signature patties in Kroger’s 1,700 supermarkets across the US, with the announcement coming a day after Kroger posted an alert on the meat section of its website warning that …

In rolling out their coronavirus tracking system to developers, Apple and Google have confirmed that it will ban location tracking by other official apps. But the decision, which prioritizes privacy and preventing governments from using the system to compile data on citizens, could complicate things for state governments looking to track coronavirus outbreaks. State governments …