AP News in Brief at 11:04 p.m. EDT

US infection rate rising outside New York as states open up

Take the New York metropolitan area’s progress against the coronavirus out of the equation and the numbers show the rest of the U.S. is moving in the wrong direction, with the known infection rate rising even as states move to lift their lockdowns, an Associated Press analysis found Tuesday.

New confirmed infections per day in the U.S. exceed 20,000, and deaths per day are well over 1,000, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University. And public health officials warn that the failure to flatten the curve and drive down the infection rate in places could lead to many more deaths — perhaps tens of thousands — as people are allowed to venture out and businesses reopen.

“Make no mistakes: This virus is still circulating in our community, perhaps even more now than in previous weeks” said Linda Ochs, director of the Health Department in Shawnee County, Kansas.

Elsewhere around the world, Britain’s official coronavirus death toll, at more than 29,000, topped that of Italy to become the highest in Europe and second-highest in the world behind the United States. The official number of dead worldwide surpassed a quarter-million, by Johns Hopkins’ count, though the true toll is believed to be much higher.

The densely packed New York metropolitan area, consisting of about 20 million people across a region that encompasses the city’s northern suburbs, Long Island and northern New Jersey, has been the hardest-hit corner of the country, accounting for at least one-third of the nation’s 70,000 deaths.

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What you need to know today about the virus outbreak

President Donald Trump visited a Honeywell mask factory in Arizona, but ignored guidelines to wear a mask. So did senior White House staff and Honeywell executives. Trump’s visit, meant to promote his message that it’s time to reopen the economy, came amid ominous signs for the country’s battle against the coronavirus.

An Associated Press analysis found that if the New York metropolitan area’s progress against the virus is removed from the equation, the rest of the U.S. is moving in the wrong direction, with the infection rate rising. Trump acknowledged that some people will “be affected badly” by the lifting of stay-at-home orders and other restrictions.

Elsewhere, Britain on Tuesday became the first country in Europe to confirm more than 30,000 coronavirus deaths, and infections rose sharply again in Russia. China and South Korea each reported only two fresh coronavirus cases.

Here are some of AP’s top stories Tuesday on the world’s coronavirus pandemic. Follow APNews.com/VirusOutbreak for updates through the day and APNews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak for stories explaining some of its complexities.

WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY:

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Whistleblower: US failed to prepare, sought quick virus fix

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration failed to prepare for the onslaught of the coronavirus, then sought a quick fix by trying to rush an unproven drug to patients, a senior government scientist alleged in a whistleblower complaint Tuesday.

Dr. Rick Bright, former director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, alleges he was reassigned to a lesser role because he resisted political pressure to allow widespread use of hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug pushed by President Donald Trump. He said the Trump administration wanted to “flood” hot spots in New York and New Jersey with the drug.

“I witnessed government leadership rushing blindly into a potentially dangerous situation by bringing in a non-FDA approved chloroquine from Pakistan and India, from facilities that had never been approved by the FDA,” Bright said Tuesday on a call with reporters. “Their eagerness to push blindly forward without sufficient data to put this drug into the hands of Americans was alarming to me and my fellow scientists.”

Bright filed the complaint with the Office of Special Counsel, a government agency that investigates retaliation against federal employees who uncover problems. He wants his job back and a full investigation.

The Department of Health and Human Services issued a terse statement saying that Bright was transferred to the National Institutes of Health to work on coronavirus testing, a crucial assignment. “We are deeply disappointed that he has not shown up to work on behalf of the American people and lead on this critical endeavour,” HHS spokeswoman Caitlin Oakley said.

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Where’s my check? Answers to common relief payment questions

The US government has distributed about 130 million economic impact payments to taxpayers in less than 30 days. The IRS anticipates sending more than 150 million payments as part of a massive coronavirus rescue package.

The distribution has had some hiccups, including an overwhelmed website, payments to deceased taxpayers and money sent to inactive accounts.

For those still waiting or with other questions, here are a few answers:

WHERE IS MY PAYMENT?

The government can’t logistically or physically make all the payments at once, so it’s doing so in steps.

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Justice Ginsburg in hospital with infection, court says

WASHINGTON (AP) — Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was hospitalized Tuesday with an infection caused by a gallstone, but plans to take part in the court’s arguments by telephone Wednesday, the Supreme Court said.

The 87-year-old justice underwent non-surgical treatment for what the court described as acute cholecystitis, a benign gallbladder condition, at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.

She is resting comfortably and expects to be in the hospital for a day or two, the court said.

Ginsburg took part in the court’s telephone arguments Monday and Tuesday. She initially sought medical care Monday, when the gallstone was first diagnosed.

She has been treated four times for cancer, most recently in August, when she underwent radiation for a tumour on her pancreas.

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Trump tours, touts mask factory — but no mask for him

PHOENIX (AP) — Making himself Exhibit A for reopening the country, President Donald Trump visited an Arizona face mask factory Tuesday, using the trip to demonstrate his determination to see an easing of stay-at-home orders even as the coronavirus remains a dire threat. Trump did not wear a mask despite guidelines saying they should be worn inside the factory at all times.

“The people of our country should think of themselves as warriors. We have to open,” Trump declared as he left Washington on a trip that was more about the journey than the destination.

In Arizona, Trump acknowledged the human cost of returning to normalcy.

“I’m not saying anything is perfect, and yes, will some people be affected? Yes. Will some people be affected badly? Yes. But we have to get our country open and we have to get it open soon,” he said.

Trump had said he would don a face mask if the factory was “a mask environment,” but in the end he wore only safety goggles during a tour of the Honeywell facility. Nearly all factory workers and members of the press as well as some White House staff and Secret Service agents wore masks. Senior White House staff and Honeywell executives did not.

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Judge restores New York Democratic presidential primary

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Democratic presidential primary must take place June 23 because cancelling it would be unconstitutional and deprive withdrawn presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Andrew Yang of proper representation at the Democratic convention, a judge ruled Tuesday.

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres in Manhattan ruled after lawyers for Sanders and Yang argued Monday that they otherwise would be harmed irreparably.

The judge said there was enough time before the primary to plan how to carry it out safely. She acknowledged that the reason it was cancelled — to prevent the spread of COVID-19 — was an important state interest but said she was unconvinced it justified infringing rights, especially since every voter can use an absentee ballot. She noted that no other state had cancelled its primary.

Torres wrote that removing presidential contenders from the primary ballot deprived them of votes for the Democratic Party’s nomination. She said it also diminished the delegates’ influence on the party’s platform and their ability to react to unexpected convention developments.

It also “deprived Democratic voters of the opportunity to elect delegates who could push their point of view in that forum,” she said. “The loss of these First Amendment rights is a heavy hardship.”

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Trump denies ties to Venezuelan attack with 2 US men jailed

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States had nothing to do with an alleged incursion into Venezuela that landed two U.S. citizens behind bars in the crisis-stricken South American nation.

Trump said he had just learned of the detention of the pair, accused by Venezuela of being mercenaries. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said they were part of an operation to kill him that was backed by neighbouring Colombia and the United States.

“Whatever it is, we’ll let you know,” Trump told reporters in Washington before departing from the White House to Arizona. “But it has nothing to do with our government.”

Authorities in Venezuela identified the two men as Luke Denman and Airan Berry, both former U.S. special forces soldiers associated with the Florida-based private security firm Silvercorp USA. Military records show both decorated soldiers served in Iraq.

A third U.S. ex-Green Beret and Silvercorp founder, Jordan Goudreau, claimed responsibility for leading “Operation Gideon,” which was launched with an attempted beach landing before dawn on Sunday. Officials said Tuesday that six suspected attackers were killed, giving a revised figure from the eight previously reported.

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Pint-sized driver surprises Utah trooper during traffic stop

OGDEN, Utah (AP) — A Utah Highway Patrol trooper got a pint-sized surprise when he pulled over a 5-year-old driver who was swerving so badly he thought the driver needed medical attention.

Trooper Rick Morgan said Adrian Zamarripa, who turns 6 next month, did not respond to his lights but pulled over when he hit his siren on Interstate 15 in Ogden on Monday.

“I approached the vehicle and I was expecting to find somebody who needed an ambulance or paramedics,” Morgan said.

But when the window came down Morgan said it was pretty clear that it was “a very underaged driver who was behind the wheel.”

The boy was sitting on the edge of his seat to reach the brake pedal, the trooper said.

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Mother’s Day this year means getting creative from afar

NEW YORK (AP) — Treats made and delivered by neighbours. Fresh garden plantings dug from a safe 6 feet away. Trips around the world set up room-to-room at home.

Mother’s Day this year is a mix of love and extra imagination as families do without their usual brunches and huggy meet-ups.

As the pandemic persists in keeping families indoors or a safe social distance apart, online searches have increased for creative ways to still make moms feel special.

Absent help from schools and babysitters, uninitiated dads are on homemade craft duty with the kids. Other loved ones are navigating around no-visitor rules at hospitals and senior-living facilities.

Some medical facilities are pitching in by collecting voice and video recordings from locked-out relatives when patients are unable to manage the technology on their own.