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Erin Burnett Outfront
Coronavirus Closures Hit Schools, Museums, Courts, Broadway, Disneyland, Major Sports, Campaign Rallies; Brazilian Official Tests Positive for Coronavirus Days After Meeting Trump; Trump Hasn't Been Tested; Top Health Official: U.S. "Failing" on Coronavirus Testing as Trump Says "The Testing Has Been Going Very Smooth"; Trump Was in Close Proximity To Brazilian Who Has Coronavirus; Stocks Plunge By Most Since 1987 Amid Coronavirus Fears. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired March 12, 2020 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Import note, tune in later tonight, 10 pm Eastern as Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta host a second "CNN Global Town Hall Coronavirus: Fact and Fears."
Erin Burnett OUTFRONT starts right now.
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next breaking news, shutting down in a matter of hours. Disneyland shut down, March Madness cancelled, three states counting shutting down all schools. What is next?
And breaking new details about the contact between President Trump and a Brazilian official who is now tested positive for coronavirus.
Plus, the worst day for stocks in more than 30 years, job losses and layoffs loom. Are we already in a recession?
Let's go OUTFRONT.
And OUTFRONT tonight, the breaking news, shutting down. A race against the clock to cancel events amid the coronavirus pandemic. Closing events and places that symbolize life in America all happening in a matter of hours.
Disneyland announcing it will shut down just moments after the NCAA canceled its biggest sporting event of the year, March Madness. And the markets in freefall, down more than 2,300 points today. That is nearly 10 percent in one single day.
One market watcher says we're already in a recession. Another longtime market analysts calls the economic damage deep and profound. Americans want answers now more than ever, which makes the White House's decision not to hold what has been a daily briefing with the nation's top health experts that much more disappointing and confounding.
Nick Watt is OUTFRONT. And Nick, in the span of just 24 hours, life as Americans have known it has completely changed because of coronavirus.
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Erin. It is changing by the hour. Let me just give you a few of the latest updates we've got. In Ohio, no more gatherings of a hundred people or more. That's the same in Utah. In Ohio also, every single school closed for at least three weeks.
The same just happened in San Francisco, Maryland, all of the schools closed for a couple of weeks. We should expect many, many more school closures. And Erin, all of these measures are designed to keep all of us as far away from each other as possible.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WATT (voice-over): Disneyland in California now closing Saturday morning through the end of the month and expect more announcements like this shortly, says the State's Governor. Also, there will now be no March Madness this year.
The NBA, the NHL, Major League Soccer as well as the global ATP tennis tour all now suspending their seasons. NASCAR and PGA tour golf go on but no fans in the stands. A second Utah Jazz player has now tested positive.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The majority of the NBA now has now come into contact with someone who has had direct contact with those Jazz players.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATT (voice-over): Status, no barrier to infection. Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson, just caught coronavirus while he was filming in Australia. Social distancing now key. Cleaning crews in action at Palm Beach airport after a passenger landed from New York then told officials their test just came back positive.
In New Rochelle, New York, there's a containment zone and uniforms on the streets.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was shocked with the National Guard, but the containment area, I'm OK with.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATT (voice-over): Over in New York City Broadway shows will now close, so will the Met Opera and the Met Museums of Art. No more gatherings of more than 500 people across the state. The Governor calls the financial impact incalculable.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D-NY): This State is not going to be able to compensate businesses for lost revenue. It would bankrupt the state.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATT (voice-over): State, cities, corporations increasingly taking the situation into their own hands. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): We do have in this executive order the ability to commandeer existing private sector assets, including hotels and motels.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATT (voice-over): The recommendation now across California cancel or postpone events of 250 people or more. For the elderly or infirm, don't attend the gathering of more than 10. And prepare for Starbucks to go only, as they did in China Starbucks might now limit in store seating.
And remember the Grand Princess cruise ship capped off the Coast of California last week after 21 positive tests on board, Vice President Pence said this on Friday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: All passengers and crew will be tested for the coronavirus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATT (voice-over): But today we hear ...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWSOM: All of these individuals will be tested, but not all of them have been tested.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATT (voice-over): And three days after she docked in Oakland some passengers are still stuck onboard. Meanwhile, the Princess cruise line has halted global operations all 18 ships for the next two months.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[19:05:00]
WATT: Now, some of the passengers coming off that Grand Princess cruise ship have been tested. We are told that some of them have tested positive for the Coronavirus, but they won't tell us how many. A state official tells me that they'll have some more information on that within a few days, Erin.
BURNETT It's pretty amazing. They won't even give those numbers.
All right. Thank you very much, Nick.
And OUTFRONT tonight, Dr. Ivan Walks, former District of Columbia Chief Health Officer, Dr. Seema Yasmin, CNN Medical Analyst and former U.S. Center for Disease Control Detective and Dr. Amesh Adalja, MD, a Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security. And I appreciate all of your time.
Dr. Adalja, you were on an advisory panel for the NCAA, just a week ago suggesting events like March Madness not be canceled, what changed?
DR. AMESH ADALJA, SENIOR SCHOLAR, JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR HEALTH SECURITY: We really have seen an evolving epidemic that's turned into a pandemic, more community spread occurring, more events being canceled and a real consensus among public health experts and infectious disease experts that mass gatherings could contribute to this spread of this virus and we did not want to have mass gatherings by the NCAA. Actually, making things worse, burdening health departments, burdening hospitals, so that decision was made based on that and it was really unanimous.
BURNETT So, unanimous, and Dr. Yasmin, I mean, I guess the big question people have and part of what's creating a lot of the fear and certainly on the economic side now, we're seeing some of the panic, is an uncertainty of how bad this is and how long these measures will last. How long do you think this will last? I mean, 24 hours ago, 48 hours ago, no one could imagine any of these things and now all of a sudden things have changed, so how long?
SEEMA YASMIN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Erin, epidemics are very dynamic situations, things change from week to week and even day-to-day. It's really hard to predict how long this will last and how long it will be until we return to normality, but that really emphasizes the need for daily news conferences. And we saw this done actually really well during the Ebola crisis of 2014 to 2016.
CDC officials would talk directly to the public every single day and even address mistakes I had made the previous day, own up to them and see what they had learned. I'm looking at the better responses happening in other countries. And South Korea is also having this really great idea of there's so much uncertainty, let's at least communicate clearly with the public.
That way, even if we can't project out two weeks from now or a month from now, at least people are hearing daily from officials that they can trust about where things might be headed.
BURNETT And Dr. Walks, what do you make of that? I mean, Vice President Pence had said we would hear from him every day and then today after the President gives his talk last night during which the markets plunged and then today, we saw more cancellations and more economic crisis and yet they didn't have their briefing. I mean, at best that seemed confounding.
DR. IVAN WALKS, FORMER DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CHIEF HEALTH OFFICER: Well, Erin, it's a continual eroding of our most precious public health asset and that's credibility. Folks need to be able to believe us when we tell them something. More importantly, when we actually know what it is that we need folks to do.
If they don't trust us and they don't believe that we care about them, they are not going to do what we asked them and that can make things worse. There is such a challenge right now with not only getting no information, but with getting bad information. It really is a problem.
And I am at a loss for understanding how it continues to come out of the leadership.
BURNETT So Dr. Adalja, there's also this sense of just uncertainty everywhere in part because different states and cities are doing things in different ways and that's the American way. But it can, at times like this, create confusion and perhaps a lack of confidence.
Now we're seeing large gathering, in some places it's 250, in some places it's 500 people, how do you know the right number?
ADALJA: You don't know the right number. This is kind of something that there's no playbook for. We're in a pandemic right now and we know that mass gatherings are something that are going to spread this disease. We want to practice social distancing as best as we can, but there's going to be some variation on how each state determines what's at risk.
And really we know that any kind of interaction between People can spread the virus and there's really no line to draw. It's not hard and fast, and it's going to be difficult, and it's going to be different and it's going to be disruptive to many people's lives. But we have to do things differently if we're going to bend this epidemic curve and try and avoid the worst of this pandemic.
BURNETT So speaking about the curve itself, Dr. Yasmin. Tonight, Italy has recorded the highest number of coronaviruses to date there, 15,113 people. They are reporting infected as of today. That's more than 2,600 more than the day before, so you're seeing big jumps.
Italy had the same number of cases that the United States has today on Sunday. OK, they're now at 15,000. We're at 1,000.
YASMIN: Right.
BURNETT THAT'S just a few days. Our population is obviously five times greater than there. So if you use that math on the virus spread, that would mean you were looking at 75,000 cases in the United States in just a few days, is that on the table?
YASMIN: Potentially it is. And that's why during a global health crisis like this, Erin, you look to other countries to see what they're doing, what they're doing wrong and exactly where we might be headed.
[19:10:04]
And we're hearing, quite frankly, horror stories from our medical colleagues in Italy. They're even talking about doing what we call battlefield triage and battlefield medicine, where you're basically putting your hands up and saying, look, I haven't got enough beds, I haven't got enough respirators for everyone, let's focus those efforts on the young and the more likely to recover.
And they're saying that we're not paying enough attention to what's happening over there in terms of just how quickly medical services and healthcare workers can become overwhelmed. So even though we don't know exactly where the numbers are going, we need to be looking at how potentially bad this could be. And then that speaks to preparedness.
And right now because we're not having that clear communication, we're really guessing as to how prepared we are and how prepared healthcare workers should expect to feel in the coming week.
BURNETT All right. All of you please stay with me.
Next, you cannot get a coronavirus test if you want one, despite what Trump says. How do we know? Well, we asked.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COURTNEY CHERRY, KATY, TEXAS: I did not fit one of the two CDC guides headlines.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT Plus, breaking news, sources say Trump is privately worried about coronavirus exposure. Could the man in this picture the one wearing the hat has something to do with it?
And the Fed steps in to calm the financial markets and stocks still collapse. There's no other word for it tonight. What comes next?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:14:54]
BURNETT New tonight, no test. We learned today that the man that you see in this picture with President Trump days ago at Mar-A-Lago, the man with the hat, has tested positive for coronavirus. He is the Press Secretary for Brazil's President. And as far as we know, Trump has not taken a coronavirus test.
But at least he can get one when he decides he wants one, unlike most Americans. Because the fact is, despite what Trump said again today, what he said was he's done a great job on testing for Americans. The truth is that coronavirus testing in America has been a failure and that is not my word.
That is the word used by one of the people leading the administration's response to the virus, Dr. Anthony Fauci.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: It is failing, let's admit it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.
FAUCI: The idea of anybody getting it easily the way people in other countries are doing it, we're not set up for that. Do I think we should be? Yes, but we're not. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT A blunt assessment. Well, one of those countries getting it right is South Korea. In South Korea, more than 230,000 people have been tested. You literally can roll down your car window and get a test done at one of many drive throughs.
That means more people know when they're sick, so they can self- quarantine. They cannot infect others. That means the number of new daily infections in South Korea has actually started to get smaller. It's declining.
And people who aren't sick, they can keep economic activity going. That knowledge breeds confidence.
Why the United States cannot do what South Korea has done is in comprehensible and it is going to be a blow to the whole world. And with stocks plunging and the economy in freefall, as one former Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Alan Blinder, says and I quote him, "The best, though imperfect, remedy is a massive expansion of testing. If most Americans who wanted to test could get one, and if people who tested positive stayed home and sought medical attention, fear of going out wouldn't disappear, but it would dissipate. Test kits are ridiculously cheap compared with the GDP and job losses they may forestall."
And even if President Trump doesn't understand that testing could slow the spread of disease and save the economy, he should set an example that taking a test is a good and responsible and smart thing to do. But when asked about whether he has been tested after dining with this man, taking that picture right next to him, and standing feet away from him at another party, here is what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We had dinner together in Florida and at Mar-A-Lago with the entire delegation, and we'll find out what happens, I guess they're being tested right now, right? I'm sure ...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, that's what I'm asking you. I'm asking you what update you can provide.
TRUMP: Let's put it this way, I'm not concerned, OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT In addition to Trump's personal testing failure, there is a much larger testing failure here as well. And Drew Griffin is OUTFRONT.
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT(voice-over): From every part of the country, CNN is being told that despite what's coming out of the White House and out of the Vice President's mouth this morning on CNN, what you're about to hear is just not true.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PENCE: There were some concern that the guidance that doctors had had at the time was, if you're only mildly symptomatic, it did not integrate that a test was appropriate. We changed that and that's when the President said that anyone who wanted to test could have one on a doctor's orders. There's no barrier to that now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN (voice-over): Now, not everyone who wants and even needs a COVID-19 test is getting one, even with a doctor's order. In Katy, Texas schoolteacher Courtney Cherry has been home with the flu-like symptoms since Monday. Her doctor told her she doesn't have the flu. She says her doctor doesn't know what she has, but she can't get a coronavirus test.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHERRY: She said that I did not fit one of the two CDC guidelines, which to her was one I've traveled somewhere where there's infection internationally is what they initially had asked me when I went to the doctor. And two, I had not come in contact with someone who was positive for coronavirus.
GRIFFIN: But that's only as far as you know, right?
CHERRY: Exactly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN (voice-over): While testing is increasing in some areas, healthcare workers tell CNN they are furious, they're not able to test their patients for Coronavirus because of a lack of tests and the restrictive CDC guidelines. That's led to rationing, which infectious disease experts say will only hurt our ability to fight this disease, because without tests, we have no idea where it's spreading.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. CAROLINE BUCKEE, HARVARD T.H. CHAN SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: We must start now testing people who are not just severe and hospitalized, but also have more mild symptoms so that we know the scale of the problem. Unless we know the scale of the problem, we really can't prepare or mitigates the outbreak.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN (voice-over): in Massachusetts, one doctor told CNN, "We are being crippled by our public health department and the CDC on our ability to combat this pandemic." Adding, "It's going to cost American lives."
An ER nurse from California says, "We should be swabbing everyone who walks in the door who has flu-like symptoms. This is absurd."
The lack of testing is so bad some firefighters in suburban Seattle fear they've been exposed, yet can't be tested unless showing symptoms.
[19:20:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GABE DEBAY, KING COUNTY FIREFIGHTER: I have a number of friends that have told me they've been in quarantine and have not been able to be tested.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN (voice-over): Health Departments say they are following CDC guidelines which call for testing if someone with symptoms has been to a foreign country, affected by COVID-19 or has had close contact with someone diagnosed with the Coronavirus.
Dawn Clements in Largo, Florida, has been sick since Friday. Her daughter went through it two weeks ago. She has all the symptoms, no flu and can't get tested.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAWN CLEMENTS, LARGO, FLORIDA: I didn't meet the criteria, because I did not travel out of the United States to one of the countries. In the meantime, I'm immunosuppressed with some health conditions and I live at an ALF I don't know what virus I have. I'm running a fever and I have chest congestion and nobody can test us here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN (voice-over): Florida Health Department official confirms tests are being prioritized, would not say if that's because of a shortage, only that Florida is trying to focus on those most likely to have COVID-19.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRIFFIN: And, Erin, as you pointed out, other countries doing a much more better testing job than we are in the U.S. As you said, South Korea has already tested more than 230,000 people, in the UK 26,000 people. As of yesterday, only 11,000 people in the United States have been tested. The unanswered question is why? Erin.
BURNETT And it just there does seem to be no answer to that. That make sense. Thank you very much, Drew.
And everyone is back with me. I mean, Dr. Walks, what is the why? I mean, why? Why? I mean, Dr. Fauci is very direct, this is a failure and it is a big failure. Why did this happen?
WALKS: I think that that question has to go to the people in charge. Dr. Fauci doesn't know. I don't know.
I think it's important for us to understand the consequences though. When we say to people, well, if you're young and you're healthy, you may have little or no symptoms. But you can transmit the virus if you're sick with the virus to someone who is in that high risk group, but then we won't test the young and healthy folks because they're not sick enough, it absolutely makes no sense.
You don't need to be a medical professional to understand that that doesn't make any sense. If that's what we're doing, it's an embarrassment. There's no other word for it. It's an embarrassment and we should do better.
So we're looking to the local public health folks. We have governors. We have mayors. We have people who - see, the health people aren't the policymakers.
BURNETT Right.
WALKS: The policymakers who are local and are working closely with the health people are making good decisions. They're using that space, that distance by closing schools and what have you to give us time, to give the health folks time to get more information to be able to now intervene in ways that makes sense.
But it's an embarrassment to answer your question.
BURNETT Dr. Adalja, I mean, it's an embarrassment and the United States - there's all kinds of issues as I understand it. There's an issue of how many tests there are. There's an issue of their ability to extract the information from the test. There's a shortage of the reagent needed to interpret the tests. There's problems across the board.
When Vice President Pence was asked why the United States decided to not use the Coronavirus test developed by the WHO, which was an option, he said, well, that's just not the way the United States does it. We always just do our own. Here's how we put it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PENCE: That's actually not the way we do it in the United States. Frankly, we're the world leader in infectious diseases. Our CDC and then our FDA produced and approved tests through our incredible health care system in this country. And so that's more of a reference of that decision, according to what Dr. Fauci said.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT What's your response to that data, Dr. Adalja? We just do it our own way and if it fail, so what?
ADALJA: No. That's the absolute wrong way to approach this. Pandemic preparedness, one of the key pillars to it is actually having robust diagnostic capacity and we have really failed. And when you look back in history at this pandemic, and years to come, this is going to be the story of failures of diagnostics.
We should be doing what South Korea is doing. That's the model for the world. We need to know who has this infection, so we can isolate them. That's the only way we're going to avoid what's happening in Italy, is to really be great at diagnosing this and being able to give people information to protect themselves and protect their loved ones.
It's really something that I was surprised happen and didn't expect to happen. I thought that we would be much better off at this and I think it really shows that we do have gaps in our pandemic preparedness even gaps that we didn't even know we had.
BURNETT So Dr. Yasmin, in terms of what the President is doing, the ramping up testing that there's all sorts of issues there. What he is doing is banning travel to and from most of Europe for most people. American citizens can come and go, and you can come and go from - but U.K., obviously, we all can understand how that would be incredibly leaky at best, even if it were a good idea.
[19:25:04]
YASMIN: Yes.
BURNETT What is your reflection on that? I mean, is this something that is the right thing to do from an infectious disease perspective at this point?
YASMIN: It's not, Erin. It's a misguided policy. And we can look back in history, see during Ebola travel bans that it worked, the World Health Organization told us so. But even right now, look at Italy, we're seeing how much of a crisis they're dealing with and they did have a travel ban for anyone traveling from China. Look how that worked out. It didn't.
But in the case of this particular policy, it's so leaky. There are so many loopholes to it. It doesn't ban everyone coming from Europe. It only bans foreign nationals.
That means American citizens and green card holders could go, become infected and come back. That doesn't make sense. But it also excludes the U.K., which we just saw quite significant jump in cases and even the U.K.'s own Health Minister is infected.
So it's a really bizarre policy. It's not backed by science and it doesn't make sense to be throwing these kinds of approaches towards this pandemic.
BURNETT And a virus, of course, doesn't care where you are from or what your nationality is.
YASMIN: Right.
BURNETT Dr. Adalja, quickly before we go, as an infectious disease specialist, the Brazilian Press Secretary with whom the President interacted took pictures, had dinner, was side by side with him. As far as we know President Trump has not yet been tested, should he be? The Brazilian Press Secretary to be clear does have coronavirus.
ADALJA: He is a high-risk contact and he really needs to monitor himself for symptoms. And there is some indication that we can test some of these mild cases or ones that have very, very minimal symptoms and you might get a positive because he could be an asymptomatic carrier. So I do think it's important that he'd be monitored and be tested at the slightest sign of any symptom.
BURNETT All right. And at best to show people there is no stigma in any way since this is something so many people are going to get, his best. People understand that. Thank you all so very much.
Tonight at 10, don't miss our special "CNN Facebook Global Town Hall" on coronavirus with Anderson and Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
And next, sources say the president is privately expressing concern about being exposed to the virus. Obviously, publicly he says he has no concern not even bothering to get tested. Privately, it's a different story.
And the Dow in freefall again today. Job losses and layoffs are now headline after headline after headline. Are we already in a deep recession?
We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:31:16]
BURNETT: Breaking news, CNN is learning now details about just how much contact the president had the Brazilian official who has tested positive for coronavirus. It comes as sources tell CNN that the president is growing concerned about exposure and whether he has been exposed to coronavirus.
Kaitlan Collins is OUTFRONT.
And, Kaitlan, what more can you tell us about this Brazilian press secretary. We told people about them a few moments ago, but you've learned a lot more about really how much contact he had with President Trump.
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and, of course, after we learned he tested positive for coronavirus today, the first thing we did was reach out to the White House about this, try to gauge their level of concern because this is the first time we know the president came in contact with someone who is testing positive for this. And they've been trying to downplay it, Erin, saying that they weren't that close, didn't have that much interaction.
But we spoke with several people who are at Mar-a-Lago over the weekend. They said that the president hosted this dinner for the Brazilian president. Of course, this top aide was there. They also took a photo together where he was standing next to the president.
And then the there was a birthday party later on that evening for Kimberly Guilfoyle, who's a campaign adviser, Donald Trump Jr.'s girlfriend, where the president spoken and this press aide was just a few feet from the president taking a video during that moment. So he was in close physical proximity with the president throughout the night.
And, of course, we know that even before any loosened and broadened the CDC standards for getting tested for coronavirus, one of the criteria was you had to be in contact with someone who had had coronavirus. Of course, we asked Dr. Fauci just a few moments ago who's a member of the president's coronavirus task force, doesn't that mean the president should be tested? He said he didn't want to comment one way or the other, Erin. He's going to leave it up to the White House doctor to make that decision because the White House said earlier said didn't feel the vice president who's also at Mar-a-Lago over the weekend but did not attend the dinner, or the president needed to get tested.
But, of course, there are going to be questions coming forward because this is the closest we've seen it come to the president so far as we see this take a foothold throughout the nation.
BURNETT: All right. Thank you very much, Kaitlan.
I want to go OUTFRONT now to Elizabeth Schneider. She's a 37-year-old from Seattle, works at a biotechnology firm.
And, Elizabeth, I know you were recovering from coronavirus right now. So, thank you so much for coming on with me. There are a lot of people watching who want to hear every word you have to say to understand what it was like, what you've been through. I know you believe you caught the virus at a small party. You say a lot of the people at the party were sick within three days.
So, tell us what happened. What your symptoms were and what made you think you might have coronavirus.
ELIZABETH SCHNEIDER, RECOVERING FROM CORONAVIRUS: Yes, thanks, Erin. It's a pleasure to be here. And I'm excited to share my story with everyone.
So, yes, that's correct. I do believe that I contracted the coronavirus COVID-19 from a house party that house party was on a Saturday. That was February 22nd. Three days later I was at work. I started feeling that general feeling that we're all familiar with where I was unwell, feeling tired, body aches, getting a headache, feeling a little bit feverish. And so, I decided to go home early and work from home. And I didn't think too much of it. I thought I was a little tired. I had been out a lot the previous weekend.
I went and took a nap. When I woke up I had a 101 degree fever. And by the time I went to bed it soared to 103 degrees. At that point, I just thought I had caught a nasty flu. I didn't think about the coronavirus at all.
One of the reasons why is that I did not have a cough. I didn't have respiratory symptoms, chest tightness or shortness of breath. That's a lot of the hallmark symptoms that we're seeing that are being circulated right now with this virus. The next day I woke up. The fever came down to 101.
Over the next several days, I just took care of myself, I stayed home, I rested took over-the-counter medications. I didn't really start to wonder it was coronavirus until I connected with a group of friends who attended the same party. And it turns out that about a dozen or so of us all got sick at the exact same day, roughly around the same time in the evening with very similar symptoms.
BURNETT: Wow. So --
SCHNEIDER: Interestingly --
BURNETT: Go ahead.
SCHNEIDER: No, go ahead.
BURNETT: So, I mean, I think it's kind of incredible as you describe that. But when you say one thing that stood out to me was you were taking care of yourself at home. And, you know, we've been talking a lot about how people can't get tests. And I want you to talk about that you got a test because there was an experimental study going on in Seattle that you found out about, right? So, how did you -- you had to get in a special study to find out you had it?
SCHNEIDER: Yes, that is correct. And once I was connected with those other friends, I found out that they had all -- not all of them but some of them had gone to their doctors. Their doctors thought they contracted the flu. And they were tested for flu and tested negative. So they were not tested for the coronavirus at the doctors' office.
At this point, we were frustrated they weren't allowed to be tested for coronavirus or the doctor wasn't even suggesting they were tested. That's when one of the friends that was part of the group brought our attention to the Seattle flu study. And this is a research study here in Seattle, and you can just volunteer and sign up online. They send you a nasal swab test kit and you do a nasal swab and mail it to them and then they let you know if you have the flu and what strain it is.
Now, just recently, a few weeks ago they started testing for coronavirus as well.
BURNETT: That's how you found out.
SCHNEIDER: So, that's how I ultimately found out, correct.
BURNETT: Quickly before we go you are measured and calm. I know you have a PhD in bioengineering. But I know you talked about how your mother cried when she found out you had this. You were perhaps more curious than upset.
But, you know, for people out there afraid of this, what do you say to them now you've been through it.
SCHNEIDER: Yes, that's a great question. So, first of all, yes, my mother cried didn't believe me I was feeling better. You know, mothers as going to be a mother even if you're a 37-year-old woman. But I think the big take away I want to tell everyone is please don't panic.
You know, this is an unknown, you know, infectious agent that is relatively new to the infected in humans. However, if you are healthy, if you are younger, if you take good care of yourself when you're sick, you know, you will recover, I believe, and I am living proof much that.
And I also want to say, the symptoms vary. I didn't have a cough or didn't have any respiratory symptoms.
BURNETT: All right. Well, Elizabeth, we appreciate your time and thank you so very much.
SCHNEIDER: Yes, it's my pleasure. Take care.
BURNETT: Thanks again, Elizabeth.
SCHNEIDER: Next, thanks again, Elizabeth.
And next, the markets nose dive again today, down more than 2,000 points. And chaos and confusion after the president announces a travel ban on Europe.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:42:08]
BURNETT: Tonight, the worst since 1987. The Dow plunging 10 percent. It was the worst one-day percentage drop since the 1987 Black Monday crash in the 1987 despite the Fed trying to pump $1.5 trillion to help the markets and committing to do it.
The problem is job losses are adding up. "The Washington Post" compiling examples, South by Southwest, that was cancelled, 50 people lost their jobs already there at a stage lighting company, focus on events, hundred workers have been laid off, another 150 they say soon.
A shipping company that transports cargo on the West Coast in Los Angeles port, 145 drivers laid up. This is adding up and it is across the country. And it is in all sectors.
OUTFRONT now, Jim Bianco, president of Bianco Research, and Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics.
Jim, you say we are in recession. This wasn't the case a week ago. I mean, the speed which this has happened is stunning and hard to comprehend. How bad could it get?
JIM BIANCO, ECONOMIC ANALYST: It could get bad in the short-term. I mean, you're right, a week ago I didn't think so. But now I do largely because of the widespread closures. This will pass. But then we have to worry about what kind of long term or even psychological damage something like this does to see what kind of recovery we have.
So, it's going to get worse before it gets better speaking economically as more businesses shutdown. The cruise industries close for 60 days and I assume everybody lost their job there. And then we have to see if we can round rebound or if there is lasting impact.
BURNETT: I mean, Mark, the Fed comes in pumping $1.5 trillion into banking system. It sounds like a lot of money. The Fed already cut rates. But the market falls by the most in 30 years.
There is not confidence in any of this at this point.
MARK ZANDI, MOODY'S ANALYTICS: No, no, I mean the Fed's going to be sidelined here pretty soon. They are close to zero. And they'll be there in the next few weeks. And they're all about trying to provide liquidity to markets so they don't freeze up. So, that's all about all they can do at this point.
So, the onus now turns to the president, President Trump, and Congress and we need to see a very large, very timely, well thought out fiscal stimulus package. Now, I agree with Jim, I don't think we are avoiding recession but the stimulus package is key to ensuring that this recession we're experiencing is relatively short lived and not too painful.
But obviously what happened -- the president's speech last night did not give confidence that he is getting it together fast enough to help the economy.
BURNETT: I mean, Jim, you know, last night during the speech, if you looked at Dow futures, as he began they were going up after the terrible plunge they were going up. Then when he spoke they tanked. He didn't announce any kind of economic relief. In fact, he announced another travel ban.
I mean, you can see it here. They were in the green then down it went. Jim, what do you do? Can't the government do anything?
[19:45:00]
BIANCO: I think if they were to pivot and think about this as a health problem instead of economic problem that would help. I think that's what the market wants.
Look, we're looking and horrified as to what's happening in Italy right now. And we don't want to be two or three weeks behind Italy we want off this path because it seems like we are. That would be if we started treating this like a health problem. It's better that we are trying to slow the disease, better we are trying to slow the number of cases to not overwhelm the hospital system.
But we have to start thinking in those terms and stop thinking how much did the stock market go down, how much is this going to affect GDP, what's the jobs report going to be next month? That will take care of itself if we take care of the health problem.
BURNETT: Right, right, because right now, we just don't know any of those names. I mean, it's a complete and utter void or vacuum.
Mark, is that safe to say. ZANDI: Yes, it's both a health problem and now it's an economic
problem. I think people are terrified because, you know it's about health and about their finances. I mean, they are watching their nest egg, retirement nest egg evaporate in front of them.
I think policy makers, the administration, Congress, have to pass a stimulus package that addresses both. They must immediately, Jim is right, it's a health issue, and that has to be addressed and requires a lot of resources and money. But we also have to turn to the economy making sure that people are made whole financially. Otherwise, they are terrified.
It's about confidence and we are only restoring confidence if we provide their health care and we help them financially.
BURNETT: All right. Thank you both very much.
And next, why is the president excluding the U.K. from that European travel ban? Cases there in the hundreds and growing.
And Tom Hanks and his wife diagnosed with coronavirus. Jeanne Moos on the global reaction.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:50:47]
BURNETT: Tonight, growing questions about the president's travel ban on Europe. President Trump failed to specify in his Oval Office address what his new policy means for Americans who are already in Europe.
Vice President Mike Pence, today, trying to clear it up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't think there was confusion. Americans coming home will be funneled through 13 different airports. They'll be screened. And then we're going to ask every American and legal resident returning to the United States to self-quarantine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Melissa Bell is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chaos and fear tonight in Europe after President Trump announces a 30-day ban on travel to the United States.
From Paris to Berlin to Rome and Madrid, Americans are scrambling to get home.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think a lot of people panicked last night when it wasn't clear that, like, American citizens could still return home. So I know a lot of people that were freaked out and trying to change their flights, like yesterday.
BELL: In Rome.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was pretty nervous about not being able to go home.
BELL: American citizens, permanent residents, and some immediate family members are exempt from the ban. But questions remain about how they will be screened upon their return.
In Paris, arriving Americans are concerned.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were on the plane. When we left California --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everything was fine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Everything was completely normal. And as soon as we're in the air, we land, and we get bombarded with messages from our families telling us Trump announced this and you can't come back, and the end of the world and all that good stuff. So --
BELL: The travel ban applies to 26 countries in Europe where people can move freely across international borders. Not included, Ireland and the United Kingdom.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: One of the reasons U.K., basically, has been -- it's got the border. It's got very strong borders. And they are -- they're doing a very good job. They don't have very much infection at this point. And hopefully, they'll keep it that way.
BELL: But according to the latest statistics, the United Kingdom has more than 590 cases. President Trump's former Homeland Security Advisor Tom Bossert tweeting, the travel restrictions will have little value. That it's a poor use of time and energy. And while the European Union expressed disapproval of Trump's decision to impose the ban unilaterally and without consultation, President Trump is unapologetic.
TRUMP: We had to move quickly. I mean, when they raise taxes on us, they don't consult us and I think that's probably one and the same.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BELL: Even as that chaos was building up at European airports today, Erin, the message from European leaders was pretty clear. This was a mistake on the part of the United States.
First of all, because travel bans have been shown to be ineffective in trying to keep the outbreak under control so far. Second of all, because what has seemed to work is cooperation, on what is a global problem.
And consider this: time, of course, is of the essence. This is the other point they've been making over and over again. There is no time for these kinds of mistakes. Here, in Italy, three weeks ago today, Erin, there were fewer than three cases of coronavirus. We are now at more than 15,000, a country entirely on lockdown, and an outbreak that is nowhere near under control.
BURNETT: All right. Thank you, Melissa.
And next, Tom Hanks and his wife both diagnosed with coronavirus. Does putting those faces make this less scary?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:58:04]
BURNETT: Here's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We think of Tom Hanks as a positive kind of guy. Not a guy who tests positive.
TOM HANKS, ACTOR: Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get.
MOOS: But to get coronavirus. Tom and his wife posted on Instagram we felt a bit tired, like we had colds and some body aches. Chills, slight fevers.
Hanks' rapper son Chet confirmed.
CHET HANKS: It's true, my patients got coronavirus. Crazy. They're not even that sick. They're not worried about it. They're not tripping.
MOOS: But fans were tripping. I've honestly never been more worried about someone I've never met.
Countered by, he'll be fine. The dude survived being stranded on an island, Vietnam, and a failed moon landing.
Hanks and his wife are listed in stable condition. In isolation in a hospital in Australia where coronavirus testing is widely available.
Hanks was shooting a movie about Elvis there, playing the role of Elvis' manager, Colonel Parker.
(on camera): Australia's premier says anyone who's had close contact with the couple must self-quarantine. But if you have just taken selfies with Hanks, no need to panic.
(voice-over): Speedy recovery, which has came from celebs like Ellen and Hanks' co-star from "Toy Story", Tim Allen, who voiced Buzz Lightyear. Woody, I should have made you two wear my space suits.
A story circulated that the hospital staff gave Hanks a volleyball named Wilson to keep him company in quarantine like the one from the movie "Castaway". HANKS: Are we OK?
MOOS: The story wasn't OK, it was satire, and the photo shop photo was taken from the time, Hanks was tossed a volleyball while on Jumbotron at a Rangers game. Wilson the volleyball is being replaced by the coronavirus and "get well" messages and even these flip cards.
But somehow knowing Tom Hanks is weathering the virus --
HANKS: Brace for impact.
MOOS: -- makes the impact a little easier to take.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: Thanks for watching.
Anderson starts now.
