10 things you need to know today: March 14, 2020

Trump declares state of emergency over coronavirus, House passes coronavirus bill, and more

Donald Trump.
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

1. Trump declares state of emergency over coronavirus

President Trump declared a national emergency related to the coronavirus outbreak on Friday afternoon. The new designation will allow up to $50 billion in additional funding for response teams to mitigate the effects of COVID-19, which now has more than 2,100 confirmed cases in the U.S. Trump has thus far sought to downplay the effects of the virus, saying it "will pass" and has disputed health experts' explanations that the virus is deadlier than the annual flu season. Trump also called for hospitals across the country to activate their emergency preparedness plans.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.