Coronavirus Latest News
Instead of blasting you with coronavirus (COVID-19) news every hour, I’m putting together a roundup of news that I come across during the day. Here you can read about hoarder’s stockpile going to doctors and nurses, cruise bookings are on the rise for 2021, virtual tours of famous castles, Southwest refunding early boarding fees and no excise tax.
Hoarder’s Huge Stockpile of Masks and Gloves Will Now Go to Doctors and Nurses
The stockpile, slated for medical personnel in New York and New Jersey, includes 192,000 N95 respirators, 130,000 surgical masks and nearly 600,000 medical-grade gloves, the authorities said.
Cruise bookings are on the rise for 2021 despite coronavirus
China has concealed the extent of the coronavirus outbreak in its country, under-reporting both total cases and deaths it’s suffered from the disease, the U.S. intelligence community concluded in a classified report to the White House, according to three U.S. officials.
Virtual Tours of Europe’s Famous Castles
Google Arts & Culture has a huge array of amazing virtual tours that are perfect for people who are itching to travel, students in need of educational material, or anyone who has binge watched their favorite show from 10 years ago at least six times in the last two weeks.
Southwest Will Now Refund Early Boarding Fees
That early boarding fee has now been a big issue with many flights cancelled due to tghe coronavirus outbreak. Southwest is very generous with refunding cancelled flights, but they have a no-refund policy for EarlyBird fees, unless the airline cancels your flight. Passengers who canceled their flights have not received a refund or travel credit for the EarlyBird fee they paid.
No Excise Tax Until 01/01/2021 – Cheaper Flights, Miles
As part of H.R.748 – CARES Act there is no airline tax on domestic airline tickets until 01/01/2021 (7.5%). This doesn’t apply to tickets that have already been purchased but even if your travel is after 01/01/2021 then this fee will not be charged as long as the purchase is made before that date.
Latest Coronavirus Numbers
And here is a screenshot of the latest numbers in the United States and how it compares to other countries around the world.
