There have now been 2,793 cases across all of Maine’s counties since the outbreak began here in March, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s up from 2,757 on Saturday.
No new deaths were announced Sunday. The statewide death toll still stands at 100.
Here’s a roundup of the latest news on the coronavirus and its impact on Maine.
— “ Major League Baseball appears headed to its shortest season since the 1870s. Continuing a contentious back-and-forth in a bitter dispute over pay, baseball players told the commissioner’s office on Saturday night that additional talks to start the season during the coronavirus pandemic are pointless and said owners should order a return to work.” — Ronald Blum, The Associated Press
— “The Ellsworth City Council on Thursday decided to cut the city’s direct share of the library’s annual budget from nearly $600,000 to approximately $460,000, a move that the library director says will result in cutbacks in services. The steep reduction comes at a time when many Maine cities and towns face severe revenue shortfalls because of the global COVID-19 pandemic and yet have to adopt annual operating budgets for the coming fiscal year, which for many begins on July 1.” — Bill Trotter, BDN
— “After months away from the campaign trail, President Donald Trump plans to rally his supporters this coming Saturday for the first time since most of the country was shuttered by the coronavirus. Trump will head to Tulsa, Oklahoma — a state that has seen relatively few COVID-19 cases. But health experts question the decision, citing the danger of infection spreading among the crowd and sparking outbreaks when people return to their homes.” — Carla K. Johnson and Jill Colvin, The Associated Press
— “New data on crossings from Canada into the United States through Aroostook County states plainly what County residents already know — the COVID-19 pandemic has all but severed connections between the region and its Canadian neighbors that each has taken for granted for decades.” — David Marino Jr., The Star-Herald
— “Several indicators of the spread of the coronavirus suggest that the deadly virus has declined in Maine over the past few weeks, although it is still too early to say whether recent large public gatherings might lead to an uptick in cases.” — Jessica Piper, BDN
— “Take the stairs, not the elevator, down from your hotel room. Encourage people to bring their own food and drinks to your cookout. Use hand sanitizer after banking at an ATM. Call ahead to restaurants and nail salons to make sure staff are wearing face coverings. And no high-fives — or even elbow bumps — at the gym. These are some of the tips in long-awaited guidance from U.S. health officials about how to reduce risk of coronavirus infection for Americans who are attempting some semblance of normal life.” — Mike Stobbe, The Associated Press
— Watch: “This video offers safety tips from the Bicycle Coalition of Maine on how to bicycle safely during a pandemic. It was produced by Frame Media Strategies of Portland.” — Natalie Williams, BDN
— As of Sunday evening, the coronavirus has sickened 2,091,348 people in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands, as well as caused 115,645 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University of Medicine.
— Elsewhere in New England, there have been 7,576 coronavirus deaths in Massachusetts, 4,186 in Connecticut, 833 in Rhode Island, 318 in New Hampshire and 55 in Vermont.
