Quarantine measures will linger in US

The US has reported a total of 965,933 cases across its 50 states. However, Georgia, Oklahoma, Alaska and South Carolina are allowing businesses to begin reopening; Tennessee will allow restaurants to reopen on Monday 27 April; Mississippi's mandatory lockdown order expires on 27 April; and some churches reopened as of Sunday 26 April, although social distancing measures are still required.

White House coronavirus taskforce co-ordinator Dr Deborah Birx insisted that social distancing measures would remain in place throughout the summer, ‘to really ensure that we protect one another as we move through these phases’.

In Canada, where 47,147 cases have been confirmed, the provinces of Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick announced tentative timelines for a ‘return to normal’ last week; Ontario is due to unveil a framework for reopening the province’s economy in the coming days, as will Quebec.

On Monday 20 April, World Health Organization Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that easing restrictions did not signal the end of the epidemic in any country. “So-called lockdowns can help to take the heat out of a country’s epidemic, but they cannot end it alone,” he said. “Countries must now ensure they can detect, test, isolate and care for every case, and trace every contact.”