California, Texas, Florida, Arizona Among States Recording Highest Number Of New Cases; Virginia Orders Nation’s First Workplace Safety Rules

CNN: California Reports More Than 7,000 New Coronavirus Cases In A Day, Breaking Its Daily Record Again 
California, the country's most populous state and the first to implement a state-wide lockdown to combat the coronavirus outbreak, is setting daily records for new cases this week. The state reported Wednesday it broke a record Tuesday with an increase of more than 7,000 cases in a day, obliterating a record hit the day before when more than 5,000 new cases were recorded. (Maxouris, 6/25)

Kaiser Health News: As COVID Cases Spike, California Shifts Its Strategy
Coronavirus infections are rising so fast in Fresno County that California public health officials have identified it as one of nearly a dozen counties entering dangerous territory as economies reopen. Cases there have more than doubled over the past month, and county residents are testing positive at nearly twice the rate of Californians as a whole. Outbreaks at nursing homes and Avenal State Prison in nearby Kings County — where more than 900 inmates and workers have been infected — are big contributors. (Hart and Barry-Jester, 6/25)

San Jose Mercury News: Coronavirus: Cases Surge, But California Reopening Continues
At a news conference Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom attributed the spread of the virus to increased social interactions — and a lack of social distancing — as counties continue to reopen, admonishing people who he said have “taken their guard down” after more than three months of tight restrictions on daily life. “When we begin to go back to our old ways and our old habits, a consequence is we are spreading this virus,” Newsom said at a press conference Wednesday. “It is our behaviors that are leading to these numbers, and we are putting people’s lives at risk.” (Savidge and Deruy, 6/24)

The Hill: Texas, Florida, Arizona See New Highs In Coronavirus Cases 
In the past two weeks, more than half of the states in the country have seen a spike in their daily number of new COVID-19 cases. Some spikes have been worse than others, though, with multiple states last week setting new records in terms of daily new cases. As a result of the surge, 34,700 new cases of COVID-19 nationally were reported on Tuesday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The daily number of cases in the U.S. have not been that high since April, the initial peak of the pandemic. (Johnson, 6/24)

The Hill: Florida Sees 5,500 New Coronavirus Cases, Shatters One-Day Record 
Florida recorded more than 5,500 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, an all-time high that shattered the previous record set just last week. Cases of the virus in Florida have been surging, and more than 109,000 infections have been reported in the state since March 1. According to the Florida Department of Health, the new daily total broke the previous record high of 4,049 new cases, set just four days ago. (Weixel, 6/24)

ABC News: Idaho Governor Assures COVID-19 Testing, Tracing And Hospital Space As Cases Increase 
Idaho's governor joined ABC News' "What You Need to Know" to discuss his state's recent uptick in COVID-19 cases. The state reported 148 new cases on Tuesday, bringing the total number of probably and confirmed cases to 4,402. "We're trying to stay ahead of this and, as it is with most of the states, it's among our young population," Little explained. "We've got 100% of all businesses open and we're just seeing a lot of spread as a result of the bars being open to be real blunt about it." (McCarthy, 6/24)

The Hill: Virginia Becomes First State To Enact Workplace Coronavirus Safety Rules 
Virginia’s health and safety board voted Wednesday to create workplace coronavirus safety rules, becoming the first state in the country to take steps toward creating such rules amid the pandemic that has infected more than 2 million people in the U.S. The state’s 14-member board voted 9-3 to create the safety rules that the board will continue to work on and finalize in coming days, The Washington Post reported. Two members of the board reportedly abstained. (Klar, 6/24)

The Washington Post: After Sharp Declines, Virus Numbers May Be Starting To Plateau In The Region 
The District, Maryland and Virginia reported 36 new covid-related deaths on Wednesday, along with 884 new infections. The seven-day averages for both figures have been declining since early June but started to plateau this past week. The District added four deaths and 34 new cases. Maryland added 16 deaths — including six in Baltimore City — and 330 new infections, nearly half of which were in Prince George’s and Montgomery counties. (Tan, 6/24)

Bangor Daily News: Maine’s Coronavirus Cases Are Trending Younger
Younger Mainers are accounting for a larger slice of the state’s confirmed coronavirus infections, but state officials say that the change has not been nearly as dramatic as in some other states, where the virus appears to be flaring up partly as a result of teenagers and younger adults venturing back out into public. (Eichacker, 6/24)

The Hill: West Virginia's Top Health Official Ousted 
West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice (R) on Wednesday ousted Cathy Slemp, the commissioner of the state public health bureau, shortly after suggesting the state’s active virus numbers were overstated... Justice’s office said Bill Crouch, secretary of the state's health department, had asked for and received Slemp’s resignation after Justice expressed his “lack of confidence” in her. A spokeswoman for the state health department expanded on Justice’s criticisms, saying there were discrepancies in virus caseload data at Randolph County’s Huttonsville Correctional Center. (Budryk, 6/24)

ProPublica: The Governor Urged Businesses To Reopen Safely, But A Restaurant At His Luxury Resort Didn’t, Complaints Say
When West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice allowed restaurants and bars across the state to reopen in late May, he urged them to follow his administration’s guidance for avoiding the spread of the coronavirus. “I caution you again over and over and over to be careful in what you do and be cautious,” the governor, a Republican, said at that day’s media briefing.One of the businesses that has been the subject of repeated complaints for not reopening safely: an upscale steakhouse at The Greenbrier, the luxury resort owned by the governor. (Ward, 6/24)

Politico: New York City Reports No Protest-Related Upticks In Covid-19
New York City has not reported an uptick in Covid-19 cases many feared would come from weeks of mass protests against police brutality. The city’s daily Covid-19 indicators — cases, hospitalizations and deaths — in June have steadily declined to levels last seen in early March, when the city had not yet shut down in anticipation of the first wave that killed more than 22,000 people. (Eisenberg, 6/24)

The New York Times: ‘The City Fumbled It’: How 4 Families Took On The Virus
The Bronx has the highest rates of coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the city, and public housing residents have been frustrated with the conflicting messages from housing officials and the city about social distancing; delays in testing; and lack of cleaning and personal protective gear. Residents said local testing did not begin until mid-May, after thousands had already been infected. (Gonzalez, 6/24)

NPR: Denver's Sweeps Of Homeless Camps Run Counter To COVID-19 Guidance
Melody Lewis lives like a nomad in the heart of downtown Denver.Poking her head out of her green tent on a recent June day, the 57-year-old points to the place a few blocks away where city crews picked up her tent from a sidewalk median earlier this spring and replaced it with landscaping rocks, fencing and signs warning trespassers to keep out. (Rodgers, 6/25)

WBUR: Despite Strong Criticism Of Police Spending, Boston City Council Passes Budget
Mayor Marty Walsh's proposed budget survived a challenge from several Boston city councilors demanding more accountability from the city's police department. The council on Wednesday voted 8-5 to approve the $3.65 billion spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year. (Walters, 6/24)

Boston Globe: ‘No One Has Navigated Something Like This Before' 
We all were entering a weird time. The entrepreneurs in the room were part of the Entrepreneurship for All program (known as EforAll), run by a nonprofit that offers training in communities such as Roxbury, Holyoke, Lawrence, and Fall River. They were largely running nontech businesses: making hot sauce and raw honey, designing blazers for women, operating mobile billboards. And they were about to get some firsthand experience in trying to keep businesses alive amidst a pandemic and the closing of nonessential businesses — not to mention large-scale protests against police brutality and a national conversation about racism. (Kirsner, 6/24)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Legislature Passes Maternal Mortality Plan
Members of the Georgia House voted unanimously on Wednesday to send maternal mortality legislation to Gov. Brian Kemp’s desk. Legislators voted 114 to 0 to pass House Bill 1114, which would eventually extend Medicaid for low-income mothers from two to six months postpartum. (Hallerman, 6/24)

Dallas Morning News: More Rent, Mortgage Relief Coming To Help Those Affected By COVID-19; Council Approves New Housing Program
As many as 2,000 Dallas residents could soon get help paying their rent or mortgages. The City Council on Wednesday approved an additional $10 million from the federal government to expand its rental and mortgage assistance program that was launched in May. (Manuel, 6/24)

Burlington Free Press: Reopening VT Schools When Many Kids May Not Show COVID-19 Symptoms
A temperature check at drop off won't be enough to identify students who may be infected with COVID-19. As schools reopen, a strategy for stopping the virus at the front door is not feasible given that many infected children are unlikely to show symptoms but could still spread the disease. (Barton, 6/25)

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Nevada Tribal Nations Lacked Coronavirus Tests, Support 
Nevada’s 27 tribal nations say they were left behind for two crucial months as the coronavirus crept into every corner of the state. (Crosby. 6/24)

Detroit Free Press: Transgender Youth May Be Barred From Indiana Catholic Schools
Transgender students may be barred from attending Catholic schools in central and southern Indiana, according to a new policy from the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. Earlier this month, Archbishop Charles C. Thompson signed the “Policy and Norms on Sexual Identity in School Ministry,” which gives the 67 schools governed by the archdiocese guidance on how to address students that don’t conform to  binary gender norms. (Herron, 6/25)