Current Events in April 2020

Coronavirus (COVID-19) tally as compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Previous numbers in parentheses.)

Total U.S. confirmed cases: 226,374 (190,740)

Total U.S. deaths: 5,316 (4,127)

Total global cases: 981,221  (887,067)

Total global deaths: 50,230 (44,264)

Confiscated supplies distributed to those who need them

We all remember those early media reports about people buying up emergency products like hand sanitizer and masks and selling them for outrageous prices. When the government finds them, it’s confiscating them.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today said they are distributing supplies seized in the latest haul, including approximately 192,000 N95 respirator masks, and shipping them to first responders and health care personnel in New York and New Jersey.

The FBI recovered the supplies during an enforcement operation on Monday and alerted HHS, which used its authority under Defense Production Act (DPA) to order that the supplies be immediately furnished to the United States government.  

In addition to the masks, the supplies included 598,000 medical grade gloves and 130,000 surgical masks, procedure masks, N100 masks, surgical gowns, disinfectant towels, particulate filters, bottles of hand sanitizer, and bottles of spray disinfectant.

"If you are amassing critical medical equipment for the purpose of selling it at exorbitant prices, you can expect a knock at your door," said Attorney General William P. Barr. 

Long Island, N.Y., seeing a surge in coronavirus cases

New York remains a hot spot for coronavirus (COVID-19) cases, and now New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says there is a “troubling” increase in cases on Long Island. 

“You look to see in Nassau County 1,000 new cases, Suffolk County 1,141 new cases. That is troubling news,” Cuomo said at today’s news briefing.

Cuomo says the virus has been confirmed in every county in the state, and the number of cases is now over 92,000.

Trump considers grounding flights to ‘hot spot’ cities

President Trump says he’s considering an executive order grounding airline flights between cities that are considered “hot spots” for the coronavirus. At a White House briefing, Trump said he might soon consider that step rather than ordering a grounding of all flights.

“I am looking where flights are going into hot spots,” Trump told reporters. “Some of those flights I didn’t like from the beginning.” 

Some airlines have already canceled flights to and from areas with high concentrations of the virus. Spirit Air recently stopped flying to New York and Newark.

Less dire unemployment forecast

Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan predicts that the nation’s unemployment rate will peak in the low- to mid-teens because of economic damage from the coronavirus. That’s a significantly less dire forecast than the one issued Tuesday by the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, which said a third of the country could be out of work.

In an interview with CNBC, Kaplan said the jobless rate could fall to 8 percent by the end of the year; it was 3.5 percent in February. That said, Kaplan said he expects a “severe economic contraction” in the second quarter.

Dr. Fauci getting security detail

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAD), who is a leading member of the White House's coronavirus task force, has reportedly received death threats and now has beefed-up security.

According to the Washington Post, the request for a security detail for the physician who has emerged as the face of the government’s coronavirus response came from the Department of Health and Human Services.

Fauci regularly appears with President Trump, along with other task force members, at the White House’s daily briefings on efforts to contain the virus. He has repeatedly warned that the virus in the U.S. will get worse before it gets better.

Around the nation

• Massachusetts: State officials negotiated a deal with China for 1 million N95 masks, but China had no way to deliver them. Enter the New England Patriots, which offered its Boeing 767 team plane to go pick up the much-needed supplies.

• Ohio: Health workers in Ohio will test an over-the-counter mouth spray to see if it can help prevent medical personnel who are treating coronavirus patients from contracting the disease. The spray won Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval eight years ago.

• Washington state: The initial epicenter of the coronavirus in the U.S. is seeing a noticeable slowing of new cases. Dow Constantine, Executive of King County, told MSNBC that officials are “not seeing the exponential growth that epidemiologists expect at this point" after taking aggressive action to curb virus transmission. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has requested that all ranitidine products, commonly known as Zantac, be pulled from store shelves immediately. 

The agency, which launched an investigation into the over-the-counter heartburn medication in 2019, said on Wednesday that it found a contaminant called N-nitrosodimethylamine, or NDMA, at levels which increase over time. 

NDMA is classified as a probable human carcinogen. The agency expressed concern that improper storage of ranitidine products -- which are intended to help reduce stomach acid -- could potentially harm consumers.  

"We didn't observe unacceptable levels of NDMA in many of the samples that we tested," Dr. Janet Woodcock, director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said a statement. "However, since we don't know how or for how long the product might have been stored, we decided that it should not be available to consumers and patients unless its quality can be assured.” 

Consumers advised to stop taking ranitidine products

In its announcement, the FDA said it is sending letters to all manufacturers of ranitidine requesting that they remove products from the market as soon as possible. 

In light of its discovery, the agency is advising consumers to stop taking ranitidine tablets or liquid medications. Consumers who have the drugs in their possession should not bring them to a “drug take-back location” because of the COVID-19 crisis. Instead, the FDA recommends following disposal instructions in the medication guide or following its own guidance on safely disposing of unused medicines. 

The agency’s decision to have the products pulled from the market comes roughly seven months after CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart announced that they would halt sales of Zantac and other over-the-counter ranitidine medications following the FDA’s determination that the products may contain a low level of NDMA. CVS said at the time that it would withdraw the products “out of an abundance of caution”

The FDA said it will continue its efforts to “ensure impurities in other drugs do not exceed acceptable limits so that patients can continue taking medicines without concern.”

Thanks to the never-ending battle with robocalls, consumers are answering less than 20 percent of the calls that come their way, simply because the odds are that it's an unwanted telemarketer or scam call.

Now, at a time when the American public needs to know that the person calling them is someone important, one company has stepped up to make sure that calls from Essential Service Providers (hospitals, healthcare providers, pharmacies, banks, etc) get through to the people who are waiting for them.

On Wednesday, First Orion -- a communication transparency solution provider -- announced that it is working with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the White House to support the U.S. government’s request to display caller ID instead of the telephone number for critical government-run, toll-free hotlines, including the initial phone lines for COVID-19 test results ("Results Center").

"We are trained not to answer calls from unknown numbers, so when these ‘COVID-19 Essential Services’ call with critical information we too often let them go to voicemail,” Jeff Stalnaker, First Orion’s President and Founder told ConsumerAffairs.

“Furthermore, when we call the number back -- we are often told to leave our number for a call back and the cycle starts all over again. This is not acceptable for mission-critical calls especially during this time because lives are at stake and time is of the essence.”

That’s where First Orion’s “Inform” programmable business caller ID solution comes in. Inform enables businesses to properly identify themselves to their customers before they answer. The upshot is simple: crucial phone calls are answered the first time, eliminating the phone tag loop or the chance of important calls being missed completely. 

Free initial service

Through May 31, 2020, First Orion’s making the Inform platform available for free to all U.S. Essential Service Providers during the pandemic, “to help mission-critical calls get answered from hospitals, first responders, healthcare providers and others because lives are at stake and time is of the essence,” according to Charles Morgan, First Orion Chairman and CEO.

The best prospects? Here are the ones Morgan thinks are prime candidates:

• Hospitals / Healthcare Providers: These easily top the “essential” list as patients need to be informed about things like test results and appointments.

• Pharmacies: Getting medication on-time during the pandemic is critical and delays can be detrimental.

• Local, State and Federal Governments Officials and Municipal Organizations 

• Non-Profit Organizations: (e.g. American Red Cross)

Sign-up is fairly simple: all essential providers have to do is go to www.firstorion.com/inform-covid-19 to get qualified. Activation is free, no IT integration is necessary, and an organization can be up and running in a matter of hours.

Does Inform work as advertised? Well, it certainly seems to. First Orion says that in the first few days of operation, answer rates have increased to over 70 percent. 

The economic toll from the coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to accelerate. The Labor Department reports that initial claims for unemployment benefits surged to 6.6 million for the week ending March 28.

That’s double the number who sought unemployment benefits during the previous week, as the virus began to force businesses to close and lay off employees. The previous week’s number had also been a record.

In fact, the government revised last week’s number upward by 24,000 workers. The Labor Department’s four-week moving average was 2,612,000, an increase of 1,607,750 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 6,000 from 998,250 to 1,004,250. 

Financial analysts on Wall Street were not surprised at the number, and it seemed to have no effect on stock futures when it was announced. Some analysts expect as many as 20 million Americans could lose their jobs as a direct result of the pandemic.

This week, an analysis from the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank estimated that the nation’s unemployment rate -- which stood at 3.5 percent in February -- could reach 32 percent before the economy begins to recover.

Better benefits under new law

It may be small consolation to those who have lost jobs, but unemployment benefits have just gotten more generous. President Trump signed the CARES Act on March 27, increasing and extending jobless benefits.

In most states, employees laid off before December 31 can receive unemployment benefits for 39 weeks instead of the previous 26-week limit. The new law also waives the one-week waiting period that most states require.  

Those unemployment checks will also be bigger. The CARES Act adds $600 a week to workers’ benefits during the first four months of unemployment.

Finally, the law allows workers in the gig economy to file for unemployment benefits. Previously, these workers were not covered.

It should come as no surprise that new car sales tanked in March and the first quarter as a whole. But what may be surprising is that the carmakers who saw their sales plummet have nonetheless offered financial help to their customers.

One exception to a big drop in sales is Kia, which reported that the Sportage SUV – its longest-running nameplate in the U.S. – realized best-ever first-quarter sales of 20,057 units. Most of the increase, however, occurred before the coronavirus (COVID-19) began to batter the economy.

To respond to the crisis, Kia said it has launched a program that will help new and existing customers impacted by the pandemic. It has initiated payment deferral programs that will continue until further notice.  

“Our primary concerns are for the health of our employees, those that work throughout our nationwide network of Kia dealers and our customers, as well as the future of our business," said Bill Peffer, vice president, sales operations, Kia Motors America

Free extras from GM

General Motors reports that its first-quarter sales dropped by 7 percent. To help consumers cope with the huge hit to the economy, GM says it’s also offering its customers some extras.

"In this uncertain and challenging time, GM and our strong network of dealers are here to help, offering concierge service, providing courtesy transportation to customers in need and offering home delivery where permissible," said Kurt McNeil, U.S. vice president, Sales Operations.

GM has also enabled OnStar Crisis Assist services for all connected vehicle owners, as well as complimentary in-vehicle data for all Wi-Fi-equipped vehicles.

Mazda sales plunged in March by nearly 42 percent when compared to March 2019. Year-to-date sales totaled 67,670 vehicles, a decrease of 4.5 percent. 

Subaru took an even bigger hit last month, with March sales plunging more than 47 percent over last year. But at the same time, the company says its dealers have volunteered in their local communities, offering shopping services for seniors, supporting local blood drives, and contributing to food banks.

"Our March sales reflect the current trends in the marketplace, with government guidelines around social distancing and stay-at-home orders limiting car buying across the board," said Jeff Walters, Senior Vice President of Sales. "We thank our dedicated network of retailers for working to make their stores as clean and safe as possible. We will ease concerns for car buyers in this uncertain time and continue to support our owners with reliable and safe vehicles they can depend on."

After the virus, big changes

Clearly, automakers are looking ahead to when the threat of the virus has lifted and consumers return to the showroom. And when they do, they may find some big changes.

Michelle Krebs, executive analyst at Autotrader, says it’s likely that carmakers will take the opportunity to eliminate some models and even brands.

“Long-suffering brands like Fiat might not survive the crisis,” Krebs said. “We also anticipate that sales of subcompact and compact cars, as well as subcompact SUVs, will struggle the most in the coming year.”

That’s because those cars tend to be the choice of the least creditworthy consumers, who may find they are the most vulnerable to layoffs in the impending economic downturn.

T-Mobile announced on Wednesday that it has officially merged with Sprint. Under the $23 billion merger, the combined company will operate under the T-Mobile name. 

The completion of the merger follows a long period of debate between the carriers and state attorneys general, who argued that eradicating the fourth carrier would be anticompetitive. However, state officials have withdrawn their opposition to the merger in recent months. New York Attorney General Letitia James said in February that her state would not appeal the merger decision, in part because of the jobs T-Mobile promised to create.

“We are gratified that the process has yielded commitments from T-Mobile to create jobs in Rochester and engage in robust national diversity initiatives that will connect our communities with good jobs and technology,” James said at the time. 

“We hope to work with all parties to ensure that consumers get the best pricing and service possible, that networks are built out throughout our state, and that good-paying jobs are created here in New York.”

Expediting 5G rollout

The merger received approval from a federal judge back in February, with T-Mobile CEO John Legere calling the decision a “huge victory.” He thanked the court for its “thorough review of the facts we presented in our case.” 

“We’ve said it all along: the New T-Mobile will be a supercharged Un-carrier that is great for consumers and great for competition,” Legere said. “The broad and deep 5G network that only our combined companies will be able to bring to life is going to change wireless … and beyond. Look out Dumb and Dumber and Big Cable – we are coming for you … and you haven’t seen anything yet!” 

T-Mobile has argued that joining forces with rival Sprint will pave the way for a faster rollout of nationwide 5G. Earlier this year, T-Mobile promised to unveil “America’s first transformational nationwide 5G network and services” once combined with Sprint. The carrier said the change could “supercharge innovation throughout the U.S. economy.” 

Conditions of the deal

The FCC has been on board with the merger for some time now. Chairman Ajit Pai has expressed optimism that the deal will give the U.S. an edge in the race to deploying 5G.  

“After one of the most exhaustive merger reviews in Commission history, the evidence conclusively demonstrates that this transaction will bring fast 5G wireless service to many more Americans and help close the digital divide in rural areas,” Pai said in an August statement. 

As part of the merger, T-Mobile CEO John Legere has agreed to step down. COO Mike Sievert will take his place. 

The company has also agreed to help establish satellite TV company Dish Network as a fourth major wireless company for the sake of preserving competition. T-Mobile also said it would uphold its previous promise to offer "the same or better rate plans" for three years.

While researchers have highlighted the importance of infants’ diets, a new study is exploring how the switch to solid food earlier in life can affect infants’ health throughout childhood. 

Researchers from Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health found that when infants are introduced to solid foods earlier than the three-month mark, they experience changes in their gut bacteria that has been linked with an increased risk of obesity. 

“How the early introduction of solid foods would cause the later development of obesity has been unknown, but our findings suggest that disruptions to gut bacteria may be one explanation,” said researcher Noel Mueller, PhD. 

The effects of solid food

The researchers followed nearly 70 infants for the study, evaluating their stool samples at various intervals and also tracking when their caregivers introduced them to solid foods. 

The study revealed that giving infants solid foods either at three months or earlier was associated with several changes to gut bacteria. The primary takeaway was that infants given solid food earlier than recommended were more likely to have more diverse gut bacteria. 

They explained that these differences in gut bacteria, especially when the changes occur so suddenly, have been linked with metabolic issues, and it could put infants at a higher risk for childhood obesity. The diversity in gut bacteria was also linked to an increase of other molecules that are associated with a higher risk of diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure. 

Health care professionals recommend that infants stay on breast milk or formula for the first four to six months, at which point solid food can be safely introduced. Moving forward, the researchers plan to do more work in this area to better understand how the digestive changes infants are experiencing with solid food affect their health into childhood. 

The dangers associated with alcohol continue to be documented by researchers, as global health experts have even warned that no amount of alcohol consumption is safe. 

Now, researchers from University College London have found that excessive drinking into older age can contribute to larger waistlines and increase the risk for other health concerns. 

“Alcohol misuse, despite the common perception of young people binge drinking, is common among older adults, with alcohol-related hospital admission in England being the highest among adults aged over 50,” said researcher Dr. Linda Ng Fat. “Previous studies have focused on single snapshots of consumption, which has the potential to mask the cumulative effects of drinking. This study raises awareness of the effect of alcohol consumption over the life-course.” 

Risks of heavy drinking

The researchers had nearly 5,000 people between the ages of 59 and 83 participate in the study. The goal was to understand how drinking patterns, particularly those that lasted into old age, affected the participants’ health. 

The participants completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test for Consumption (AUDIT-C) for each decade of their lives, which gave the researchers insight into their drinking habits. Based on the responses, participants fell into various categories in accordance with their drinking. 

Though just five percent of the participants were considered “consistent hazardous drinkers,” which means their drinking was problematic throughout their entire lives, 56 percent of the participants were considered “hazardous drinkers” at some point in time. 

The study revealed that participants who drank heavily throughout their lives, either consistently or just for a period of time, had larger waistlines than those who were never heavy drinkers. Consistent heavy drinkers were at the highest risk, as the drinking was associated with a waistline four centimeters larger than those who were never heavy drinkers. 

“This suggests that the longer adults engage in heavy drinking the larger their waistline in older age,” said Dr. Ng Fat. “That is why it is beneficial, along with other health benefits, that adults reduce heavy drinking earlier rather than later.” 

Additional health concerns

The researchers also learned that those who drank into old age -- even if they stopped at some point in adulthood -- were at a higher risk for several health concerns, including stroke, higher blood pressure, and poorer liver function. 

Moving forward, the researchers recommend that healthcare professionals ask their patients about their alcohol consumption in an effort to promote better overall health among older people. 

“Early intervention and screening for alcohol consumption, as part of regular check-ups, could help reduce hazardous drinking among this demographic,” said researcher Annie Britton. 

Taste for Luxury is recalling Guffanti brand Taleggio DOP a Latte crudo incarto verde (cheese).

The product may be contaminated with pathogenic E. coli.

No illnesses are reported.

The following product, sold clerk-served from counters with or without a label or coding in Ontario, is being recalled:

What to do

Consumers who are unsure if they purchased the recalled product should contact their retailer.

Customers who purchased the recalled product should not consume it, but discard or return it to the place of purchase.

Consumers with questions may contact Taste for Luxury at (800) 503-1581 or by email at info@tasteforluxury.ca.

BMW of North America is recalling 49 motorcycle accessory brake fluid reservoir covers, part numbers 8405-752, 8405-753, 8405-754 and 9829547 designed to fit certain model year 2019-2020 BMW R 1250 motorcycles, and part numbers 8404-098, 8405-100, 8405-102, and 1542056 designed to fit certain model year 2018-2020 BMW Rnine T motorcycles.

The brake fluid reservoir cap may not clearly state the required type of brake fluid and the process for filling the reservoir, possibly leading to an improper maintenance procedure.

Improper brake system maintenance could affect braking performance and increase the risk of a crash.

What to do

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the brake fluid reservoir cap free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin May 11, 2020.

Owners may contact BMW customer service at (800) 525-7417.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) tally as compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Previous numbers in parentheses.)

Total U.S. confirmed cases: 190,740 (175,067)

Total U.S. deaths: 4,127 (3,415)

Total global cases: 887,067  (809,608)

Total global deaths: 44,264 (39,454)

Tests to determine who’s had the virus

Plenty of people have gotten sick over the winter but aren’t sure whether it was a cold or something else. Now, two companies in the U.S. are offering a quick test to detect whether a person has had the coronavirus and recovered.

Such a test could be important for two reasons. First, it could help health officials track the movement of the disease. Second, if someone has recovered, their blood plasma may contain antibodies that could be extracted and used to treat more seriously ill patients. The two firms -- BD and BioMedomics -- say their tests can render results in as little as 15 minutes.

Hard-hit companies cutting 401(k) contributions

If there wasn’t enough economic uncertainty among employees, some national businesses hit hardest by the economic fallout of the coronavirus have moved to cut contributions to employees’ 401(k) retirement accounts.

The Wall Street Journal names Amtrak, La-Z-Boy, Sabre, and Mattress Firm as companies that have taken that step. It says Macy’s -- which has closed all of its stores and laid off much of its workforce -- has joined Marriott International in delaying the employer match until September.

That could be just the tip of the iceberg. The Journal says attorneys and consultants in the field of employee benefits report that many clients have been asking how to reduce or delay the payments.

Here are the health conditions that make COVID-19 more serious

As we’ve reported throughout the coronavirus health crisis, most people who get sick have very mild symptoms and recover quickly. But some who get it also face a more serious illness, and a small number of those patients lose lung capacity and die.

In a new analysis, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has identified the underlying health conditions that are most likely to lead to a worse case of the virus. The agency found that nearly a third of patients admitted to a hospital ICU suffered from diabetes.

Another 29 percent had a history of heart disease, and 21 percent had chronic lung disease. The CDC says its analysis is consistent with similar studies conducted in China and Italy.

Cash for small businesses

The Treasury Department and Small Business Administration (SBA) are quickly rolling out emergency relief for businesses with 500 or fewer employees. The emergency loans have two objectives -- to keep businesses afloat and people employed.

Businesses may apply for an SBA 7(a) loan to pay rent, utilities, and payroll for eight weeks. At the end of that time, the loans may be forgiven if the business has not laid off any workers. Participants are eligible for a $10,000 cash advance as early as Friday.

Scam reports surge

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reports that there has been a huge increase in consumer grievances related to the coronavirus, with many of them focusing on scams. Since early January, the FTC has received more than 7,800 such reports, with the number doubling in the last week.

The top categories of coronavirus-related fraud reports include travel- and vacation-related reports about cancellations and refunds, reports about problems with online shopping, mobile texting scams, and government and business imposter scams. The agency estimates that coronavirus scams have cost victims $4.77 million so far.

Around the nation

• North Carolina: State officials report that there have been 1,536 cases of the coronavirus as of this morning and 10 deaths. More than 150 people in the state were hospitalized with the virus.

• Wyoming: As of today, Wyoming holds the distinction of being the only state that has not recorded a death from the coronavirus. But state health officials say the virus is spreading in the state, with new cases reported in Laramie, Natrona, and Fremont counties.

• New Jersey: Authorities in Ocean County have charged a couple with child endangerment after they allegedly held a party with dozens of guests, along with the couple’s five children. The couple is also accused of violating the governor’s lockdown order. “Everyone must respect and follow the law,” Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said in a statement.

It looks like consumers’ mad rush for essentials has turned the COVID-19 corner. After weeks of bustling foot traffic at Costco, Sam’s Club, Target, and Walmart, consumer behavior has started to shift toward a more normal pace.

According to data from Placer.ai, traffic at those big box stores has dropped dramatically since a mid-March spike when the coronavirus scare was creating a cause-and-effect impact on staples like toilet paper, sanitizing wipes, and hand sanitizer.

At the peak, the average foot traffic went up 24.25 percent at those four retailers. In week 13 of the pandemic, things started to slow down: the change in foot traffic at Costco is down 20.52 percent, 14.39 percent at Wal-Mart, 3.27 percent at Sam’s Club, and 33.54 percent at Target.

Is the impact driven by the pandemic or an indication of a company’s resurgence?

Ethan Chernofsky, vice president of marketing for Placer.ai, theorized that many consumers stocked up early on during the crisis and didn’t need to go out as often in the following weeks.

“There is a downside to stocking up for the long haul. Once you have all the things you need, there is little need for more visits,” he said in a blog post. “While some expected that the thrill of being able to get out could overcome a lowering demand for actual items, this may not be the case after all.”

“Following several weeks of massive year-over-year visit increases, Costco, Target and Walmart all saw traffic declines for the first time since the crisis began. While Sam’s Club still saw a year-over-year increase, it is likely to be as much an indication of the company’s overall resurgence as anything coronavirus related,” Chernofsky said.

Chernofsky’s fellow researcher, Tali Rozenman, thinks that what the big box stores are seeing as signs of a normal shopping pattern will also be seen at major grocery chains. Rozenman cited Albertsons as an example. 

“(As) one of the brands seeing especially strong performance of late, (Albertsons) saw Friday visits drop from a March 13th peak of 135.9 percent above the daily baseline, to visits the next Friday that were just 13.4 percent above. Assuredly, this is still impressive, but a far cry from the initial rush.”

Market watchers say the downward trend could continue

Whether consumers have gotten everything they need or not, stricter regulations recently imposed by local, state, and national governments might push this downward trend even further. 

And, then, there’s consumer confidence to worry about. 

Overall, the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index took a big hit in March, following a nice bump up in February. The Index now stands at 120.0, down from 132.6 in February. 

“Consumer confidence declined sharply in March due to a deterioration in the short-term outlook,” said Lynn Franco, Senior Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board.

“The Present Situation Index remained relatively strong, reflective of an economy that was on solid footing, and prior to the recent surge in unemployment claims. However, the intensification of COVID-19 and extreme volatility in the financial markets have increased uncertainty about the outlook for the economy and jobs. March’s decline in confidence is more in line with a severe contraction – rather than a temporary shock – and further declines are sure to follow.”

The U.S. government is scrambling to get much-needed cash into the hands of millions of consumers and businesses as the coronavirus (COVID-19) takes an increasing economic toll.

While Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has said stimulus checks will be in consumers’ hands before the end of the month, the Small Business Administration (SBA) is moving this week to get cash to struggling small businesses. 

In a way, that program also acts as relief for consumers since it carries incentives for businesses to not lay off employees as business dries up. A primary aim is to prevent people from becoming unemployed.

This week, the Treasury and SBA began mobilizing banks around the country to loan billions of dollars to small businesses over the next few days. The coronavirus relief act signed by President Trump last week allocates $350 billion for businesses with 500 or fewer employees.

Money for payroll, rent, and utilities

Eligible businesses can get loans of up to $10 billion to pay payroll, rent, and utilities for an eight-week period, and they can also get an immediate $10,000 advance on the loan.

At the end of the loan term, businesses will be eligible to convert those loans into outright grants if they meet certain conditions, such as keeping their payroll intact. Small businesses can begin the application process here.

“The SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program provides small businesses with working capital loans of up to $2 million that can provide vital economic support to small businesses to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue they are experiencing,” the SBA said on its website. 

“The loan advance will provide economic relief to businesses that are currently experiencing a temporary loss of revenue. Funds will be made available within three days of a successful application, and this loan advance will not have to be repaid.”

Express Bridge Loan

SBA’s Express Bridge Loan Pilot Program allows small businesses that already have a business relationship with an SBA Express Lender to access up to $25,000 with less paperwork. The loans are aimed at helping businesses cope with the dramatic loss of revenue they have experienced in recent weeks. In addition, the government wants to keep these businesses’ employees on the job.

“This legislation provides small business job retention loans to provide eight weeks of payroll and certain overhead to keep workers employed,” Mnuchin said. 

Mnuchin said the government agencies hope to have the program up and running by Friday, with the aim of offering same-day approval in many cases. The program is being run through the SBA’s existing 7(a) loan program, which dispenses loans to small businesses through local banks.

On Monday, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that pending home sales rose 2.4 percent in February. Ordinarily, the housing market would have celebrated a number like that.

But Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR, notes that the data does not capture the significant fallout from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic or the measures taken to control the outbreak. Now, all bets are off.

“Numbers in the coming weeks will show just how hard the housing market was hit, but I am optimistic that the upcoming stimulus package will lessen the economic damage and we may get a V-shaped robust recovery later in the year,” Yun said.

Tourist markets and vacation homes

In the meantime, home values may see sudden changes. Danielle Hale, chief economist at realtor.com, says the coming recession will be tough on housing but rougher in some markets than others.

"The biggest initial coronavirus hit will be felt in the tourism and hospitality industries,” said Hale, noting these markets are where people tend to buy vacation homes. "Second-home markets tend to be hit a bit harder in a recession. When people are cutting back, that's where they'll cut back.”

Markets where the virus has been especially severe, such as New York, New Orleans, and Detroit, may feel lingering pain. Although it remains to be seen, densely populated urban markets may see more sellers than buyers, at least in the short run.

Property values in upscale communities may also take a hit since the luxury home market is also expected to feel the pain.

"Luxury buyers [typically] have a lot of their money in the stock market, and the stock market has taken a huge hit," said Ali Wolf, chief economist at Meyers Research, a national real estate consultancy. "They're saying, 'Let's wait. Let's ride this thing out.' Buying a luxury, new home right now is something that can wait."

Strength on the East Coast and in the Midwest

If there are more sellers than buyers, those property values could see declines. At the same time, real estate brokerage firm Redfin predicts that more affordable East Coast and Midwestern cities may see home prices hold up well in a recession.

Rochester, N.Y., Hartford, Conn., and Raleigh, N.C. have the lowest overall economic risk in the downturn, while Los Angeles, Miami, and San Diego have the highest risk, based on an analysis conducted by Redfin economists.

That said, few expect a crash in home prices, as was seen after the 2008 financial crisis. That’s because the market was extremely strong heading into March, with a growing shortage of affordable homes in most markets.

"The U.S. housing market has entered truly uncharted territory, shaken by the COVID-19 pandemic and a corresponding, sharp economic contraction that has already caused millions of Americans to lose their jobs," said Zillow economist Jeff Tucker. "Rock-bottom mortgage rates have provided some small financial relief for homeowners and buyers, but it hasn't been enough to avoid a slowdown.”

For the second time in two years, Marriott International has disclosed that it suffered a massive data breach. The most recent breach of consumer data, which was disclosed on Tuesday, affects roughly 5.2 million guests. 

Information compromised in the breach included names, contact details, and addresses. The hotel chain said the data may have been accessed starting in January via the login information of two employees. 

“At the end of February 2020, we identified that an unexpected amount of guest information may have been accessed using the login credentials of two employees at a franchise property,” the company said in a statement. “We believe this activity started in mid-January 2020. Upon discovery, we confirmed that the login credentials were disabled, immediately began an investigation, implemented heightened monitoring, and arranged resources to inform and assist guests.” 

Marriott said its investigation into the matter is ongoing. However, company officials said they have “no reason to believe that the information involved included Marriott Bonvoy account passwords or PINs, payment card information, passport information, national IDs, or driver’s license numbers.” 

Affected customers received an email on Tuesday informing them of the discovery. Marriott has also set up a website where guests can submit a request to see if their information was involved in the breach. 

Second incident in two years

In 2018, Marriott announced that it suffered a data breach involving the names, addresses, contact information, and passport numbers of over 300 million guests who checked into one of its Starwood hotel locations. The company said at the time that an investigation revealed that unknown parties gained access to the database at some point during 2014. 

Following the most recent breach, Marriott outlined a number of steps that impacted guests can take to protect their information. The company said affected Marriott Bonvoy members will have their accounts automatically disabled and will need to change their password the next time they log in. 

For all guests who think they may have been affected, Marriott recommends signing up for credit monitoring, changing your password, enabling two-factor authentication, and keeping a lookout for potential fraud emails.

Room for improved cybersecurity practices

The latest breach calls into question improvements made in security in the wake of the breach that occurred in 2017, said Tyler Moffitt, a senior threat research analyst at Webroot. 

“While this breach is not as widespread as the previous incident, it is still worrisome, with names, phone numbers, emails and other sensitive information released,” Moffitt told ConsumerAffairs. 

“This second offense is apparently the result of two employees' credentials improperly accessing guest information, which further amplifies the need for companies to be aware of malicious insiders and put better cybersecurity practices into place for credential abuse and permissions.” 

Regardless of whether they are affected by this particular breach, consumers “need to be wary of the personal information they share with companies and make sure it’s protected, including regularly updating passwords and implementing credit monitoring,” Moffitt said.

With consumers gaining interest in electric cars, experts are now looking into the environmental benefits. 

Researchers from the University of Exeter have found that despite fears surrounding the environmental impact of electric cars, the climate in 95 percent of the world would benefit from the switch. 

“We started this work a few years ago, and policy-makers in the U.K. and abroad have shown a lot of interest in the results,” said Dr. Jean-Francois Mercure. “The answer is clear: to reduce carbon emissions, we should choose electric cars and household heat pumps over fossil-fuel alternatives.” 

Environmental impacts

The study focused on emissions from different kinds of cars and home heating options to better understand what kind of an impact these things have on the environment. 

The researchers utilized technology that allowed them to assess current emissions levels while modeling how they could change if electric vehicles became more widely used. They also divided the world into nearly 60 different regions in an effort to see where these changes would be the most effective. 

The researchers found that electric cars were already outperforming gas-powered vehicles from an environmental perspective in 95 percent of the world, and electric heating in homes had similar environmental benefits. 

They explained that the regions they analyzed -- which included the U.S., Europe, and China -- are hotspots for travel and heating needs. Emissions reductions in these areas would yield drastic environmental improvements. 

Electric energy myths

Because of this widespread reduction in emissions, the researchers are encouraging consumers to make the switch to electric vehicles and electric heating methods for their homes. They argue that any disparaging news surrounding electric cars should be ignored, as their work conclusively found otherwise. 

“In other words, the idea that electric vehicles or electric heat pumps could increase emissions is essentially a myth. We’ve seen a lot of discussion about this recently, with lots of disinformation going around. Here is a definitive study that can dispel those myths,” said Dr. Florian Knobloch.

“We have run the numbers for all around the world, looking at a whole range of cars and heating systems. Even in our worst-case scenario, there would be a reduction in emissions in almost all cases. This insight should be very useful for policymakers.”