POLITICO NIGHTLY: PANDEMIC

By Renuka Rayasam and Ryan Heath

THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION DECLARED the coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic. The NBA suspended its season. Tom Hanks announced that he and his wife tested positive for the virus. And in a televised address from the Oval Office tonight, President Donald Trump dramatically expanded the administration's response. The president's headline decision was to suspend travel for foreign nationals from the European Union to the U.S. for 30 days starting Friday, with limited exceptions for American citizens . (The U.K., no longer in the EU and a Trump ally, is exempt.) It marks a doubling down on the travel restriction strategy, which health experts give mixed reviews. Falsely describing coronavirus as a "foreign virus" that carries a "very, very low risk" for most Americans, Trump accused the Europeans of failing to act to stem its spread. While the president insisted "this is not a financial crisis," he proposed federal government financial relief for ill workers, caregivers and those who may be quarantined. Effective immediately, the Small Business Administration was instructed to provide low-interest loans to businesses disrupted by the virus, to the tune of $50 billion. Trump also urged Congress to support "immediately payroll tax relief." WHAT WORKS (AND WHAT DOESN'T) — A GLOBAL TOUR: China's and Italy's extreme lockdowns came after governments there moved too slowly to stem the spread. India is awash in misinformation including from politicians. Cruise ships that criss-cross international waters are a regulatory black hole . But some governments seem to be getting it right. There are lessons here for American policymakers. South Korea — Testing: The virus is now under control thanks to a testing blitz supported by innovations like drive-thru testing (Koreans are 738 times more likely to have taken a test than an American resident.) This shows democracies can beat the virus. Singapore — Maps: The government adopted a radical transparency approach. Detailed maps help citizens and health workers manage their risk. U.K. — Communication: Prime Minister Boris Johnson is invoking both health experts and his own celebrity to deliver critical messages. Australia — Stimulus: Politicians Down Under are not waiting for official economic bad news. A package of around 0.5 percent of GDP was announced tonight, including $25,000 tax-free (spread over six months) to many businesses, and a one-off $750 payment to social security recipients and veterans. France — Targeted restrictions: By ministerial order, France banned visiting elderly people in hospitals and retirement homes. For more on the international response to coronavirus, subscribe to Ryan Heath's weekly Global Translations newsletter. Welcome to POLITICO Nightly: Coronavirus Special Edition. We'll provide a nightly intelligence brief from our global newsroom on the impact of the coronavirus on politics and policy, the economy and global health. Reach out: rrayasam@politico.com and @renurayasam.

A soccer match between Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund at Parc des Princes, being held behind closed doors as a precaution against the spread of coronavirus. | Getty Images

Talking to the Experts

Can we pass the test? For years hospitals have faced pressure to cut costs, partly because of Obamacare, POLITICO health care reporter Dan Goldberg told us. In the face of a massive public health crisis, the country may not have enough beds, staff or equipment. "On a good day, hospitals are filled with patients," Goldberg says. "It's not like there's a whole lot of excess capacity." New York Gov. Andew Cuomo announced on CNN today that the state may have to start looking at "secondary structures" to accommodate a surge in patients. The U.S. lags behind its international counterparts when it comes to hospital beds and physicians per capita, according to the World Bank. Goldberg says local hospitals are trying to be creative — one in Washington State stopped using respirators for emergency drills to leave them for real emergencies. And NYU's hospital is using video consults for patients to avoid drawing down stockpiles of protective equipment. But the coronavirus lays bare the pitfalls of the American health system, says Jason Helgerson, who served as a Medicaid director in New York and Wisconsin. Unlike other countries, no one U.S. entity is responsible for regulating and paying for the response. It's why local city and state governments have led the charge and private companies have been ramping up testing capabilities, while the Trump administration has still been trying to get a handle on the issue. Helgerson points to the U.K.'s National Health System, which, for all its flaws, can create and disseminate training materials to all health care facilities in a matter of days or Italy where the prime minister essentially shut down the country. The U.S. is still struggling to find a way to quickly test patients and cover their costs. Helgerson says he believes the fractured U.S. health care system means the virus will remain undetected for longer and spread much more rapidly in the U.S. than in other countries. Palace Intrigue Infighting — The crisis is revealing deep divisions within the White House as Trump is increasingly at odds with his own aides. Trump ripped into his own Treasury secretary Wednesday for not urging the Fed to take more drastic steps to keep the stock market from plummeting, according to the Washington Post. Trump and his own advisers aren't on the same page about other fiscal stimulus measures such as cutting the payroll tax. Federal agencies gear up — One sign the federal response is lagging: Agencies have been very slow to provide any rules of the road. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos told lawmakers today that her agency is still figuring out guidance for schools considering closing — even though many districts already have. HUD Secretary Ben Carson said that the agency sent information to public housing authorities and homeless shelters, but advocates worry the feds aren't doing more to stop the virus spread among people lacking shelter. The White House along with other agency heads are figuring out how to keep staffers working at home. It's a move a lot of workplaces are considering, but the White House is workplace like no other, POLITICO's Meredith McGraw and Nancy Cook report. A teleworking White House would present some logistical nightmares. Some White House staffers, including national security offices, often work on special computers and operate on classified networks. On Thursday, nearly a dozen top administration officials from health and defense agencies will continue to brief House members on their plans. Today a set of health officials warned lawmakers that cases will continue to rise in the country. State and local officials are taking matters into their own hands , enacting their own brand of severe measures to quell the spreading crisis and boost testing capability. Turning to Congress House Dems fire opening shot — Whatever crisis the country is experiencing hasn't led to a show of unity on Capitol Hill. Later tonight, Speaker Nancy Pelosi will unveil legislation designed to insulate Americans from the economic and health threat of the coronavirus, report POLITICO's Kyle Cheney, Sarah Ferris And Heather Caygle. The bill is an opening bid in tricky negotiations with the White House, which has been focused on payroll tax relief and targeted tax breaks to affected industries. Already, workers in tourism and other industries hard hit by the outbreak are starting to see layoffs and more are sure to come. The stock market today ended its 11-year bull run. The crisis has wreaked havoc on economies around the world, but there's one bright spot: it's pushing down mortgage rates allowing people to refinance their homes and lower monthly payments. Pelosi's proposal will land amid rising anxiety among lawmakers worried about remaining on Capitol Hill when health authorities have begun to recommend avoiding crowded spaces. The Capitol banned public tours through March. And a staffer in Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell's D.C. office tested positive for the virus. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the NIH, testifies during a House Oversight And Reform Committee hearing concerning government preparedness and response to the coronavirus. | Getty Images Transportation Meanwhile, the cruise industry, which has been at the center of the outbreak, is trying to write its own rules in an effort to escape the crisis unscathed. The industry is a regulatory black hole insulated by ship registrations in foreign countries and shielded by a powerful lobby with sway in tourism-dependent U.S. states like Florida, writes POLITICO's Tanya Snyder. 2020 Watch Coronavirus and the campaigns — Public gathering bans are causing chaos in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. Biden and Sanders have canceled campaign events and the DNC plans to stage the Sunday debate without a live audience. Both campaigns have taken Trump to task for his handling of the outbreak and Biden said he's creating a public health committee to help his campaign minimize risks to staff. The Trump campaign also responded , with Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham announcing late Wednesday night the cancellation of upcoming events in Colorado and Nevada. Around the Nation The NBA's move to suspend its season came after, in front of a full arena in Oklahoma City, officials pulled the Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz off the court right before tipoff and postponed the game, with PA announcers saying "You are all safe," as spectators left the venue. Utah Jazz player Rudy Gobert later tested positive. The NCAA also moved to protect spectators, saying its upcoming basketball tournament will be played in mostly empty arenas. Parting Words POLITICO's Italy correspondent Silvia Sciorilli Borrelli details how life in Rome under the country's lockdown is keeping families apart . Her daughter's school is canceled, but she can't rely on her elderly parents to help for fear they might become ill. Her husband is stuck in London. And at a dinner for her uncle's 70th birthday all the guests were separated by a meter.   Follow us on Twitter Renuka Rayasam @renurayasam   Follow us  POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA