Coronavirus: Washington, DC extends stay-at-home order through June 8

Washington, DC, the seat of the federal government, extended its stay-at-home order through June 8, the district’s mayor told reporters on Wednesday.

The district’s stay-at-home order, intended to combat the coronavirus outbreak, had last been scheduled to end on May 15.

The announcement comes as the White House pushes for states to reopen businesses while public health experts urge caution.

The COVID-19 respiratory disease caused by the new virus has already infected more than 1.3 million Americans and killed at least 80,976, according to a Reuters tally.

A store worker offers hand sanitizer to shoppers, during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, as they wait in line on the sidewalk outside a grocery store in Washington on April 14, 2020. (Reuters)

That toll is projected to climb significantly in coming months.

The latest forecast from the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) is for more than 147,000 deaths from COVID-19 by early August, up nearly 10,000 from the last projection, as social distancing is increasingly relaxed, researchers said.

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