President Trump Declares Coronavirus National Emergency, Making Billions Available For Relief

President Trump on Friday declared a national emergency, making available billions of dollars to states and cities to handle the fallout from the coronavirus outbreak.

The number of U.S. cases approached 1,300 Friday with more than three dozen deaths. Worldwide, the number of cases was approaching 138,000 with nearly 5,100 deaths.

Trump invoked the Stafford Act, which authorizes the delivery of federal aid to states and localities, coordinated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The governors of affected states must execute their own emergency response before seeking federal assistance.

"I am declaring a national emergency," Trump said.

The announcement sent stocks climbing again just before the bell, recouping more than half of Tuesday's loss.

Trump said Roche has received approval for a new test for the virus and 1.4 million should be available next week, 5 million within a month.

"We don't want everybody taking this test," Trump said. "It's totally unnecessary."

Google is developing a website to help determine whether a test is warranted.

Trump said "no resources will be spared" in fighting the virus.

Dr. Deborah Birx said the administration has been working feverishly behind the scenes to deal with the crisis and the "intense effort has resulted in innovative solutions.

Doug McMillon, president and CEO of Walmart, said the company would make parts of its parking lots available for drive-by testing.

Trump also waived student loan interest payments and instructed the Secretary of Energy to purchase "large quantities" of crude oil to fill the strategic reserve "right to the top."

The declaration comes as the administration reportedly worked to partner with the private sector to set up drive-through testing sites for the virus. Representatives from Target, Walgreens, Walmart and CVS, along with commercial labs and manufacturers were to meet at the White House Friday, the Washington Post reported.

The administration has been under fire for the slow roll out of testing, a problem that has enabled the virus to spread unchecked in some areas.

The action came as the finishing touches were being put on emergency relief legislation worked out between the White House and House Democrats. A vote on the package was expected later Friday.

The National Association of Manufacturers pushed against inclusion of paid leave in the coronavirus relief package. Robyn Boerstling, NAM’s vice president of infrastructure, innovation, and human resources policy, wrote in a letter to Congress the trade group supports emergency action that keeps “paychecks in the hands of workers,” but opposes including a paid leave requirement in the legislation.

The multibillion-dollar bill shores up the safety net, providing funds for food aid and expanded unemployment insurance, as well as free testing for COVID-19, the lung disease caused by the virus. Republicans have raised strong objections to Democrats’ proposed 14-day sick leave provision and a refundable tax credit for companies with fewer than 501 employees.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a speech from the speaker's balcony lawmakers are working together to come up with a bill that protects families and shows Republicans and Democrats can work together.

"The three most important parts of this bill are testing, testing, testing," Pelosi said.

Delta Airlines (DAL) said Friday it has sought financial help from the White House and Congress as its business has fallen off drastically in recent days and as a result would cut its schedule by 40% for the next few months, including the elimination of all service to continental Europe and the parking of 300 aircraft. Employees will be offered voluntary short-term, unpaid leaves and a hiring freeze will be imposed, the airline said.

Louisiana on Friday became the first state to postpone its presidential primaries. The primaries had been scheduled for April 4 but have now been put off until June 20.

"This decision has been made out of an absolute abundance of caution for Louisiana's voters, voting officials and the general public as a whole," Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin told a press conference. Voters were scheduled to go to the polls Tuesday in Airzona, Florida, Illinois and Ohio.

The Archdiocese of Chicago canceled all public masses and suspended Catholic schools indefinitely as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, which has sickened 32 of the state’s 12 million residents. The move followed Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s decision Thursday to cancel all public events of more than 1,000 people and urged that other gatherings be kept to less than 250 people.

Airbnb announced changes to its extenuating circumstances policy to allow cancellations without penalty in China, South Korea, Italy and the United States.

Apple said Friday it would move its annual developers’ conference online.

“The current health situation has required that we create a new WWDC 2020 format that delivers a full program with an online keynote and sessions, offering a great learning experience for our entire developer community, all around the world. We will be sharing all of the details in the weeks ahead,” Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, said in a press release.

Berkshire Hathaway still plans to hold its May 2 meeting in Omaha but without the presence of shareholders. Instead, the meeting will be streamed.