Entilators will be taken from certain New York hospitals and redistributed to the worst-hit parts of the state under an order to be signed by Governor Andrew Cuomo.

New York saw its highest single-day increase in deaths, up by 562 to 2,935 - nearly half of all virus-related US deaths recorded yesterday. The White House may advise those in virus hotspots to wear face coverings in public to help stem the spread.

The US now has 245,658 Covid-19 cases.

A shortage of several hundred ventilators in New York City, the epicentre of the outbreak in the US, prompted Mr Cuomo to say that he will order the machines be taken from various parts of the state and give them to harder-hit areas.

Amid a deepening crisis, top health official Dr Anthony Fauci has said he believes all states should issue stay-at-home orders.

“I don’t understand why that’s not happening,” Dr Fauci told CNN on Thursday. “If you look at what’s going on in this country, I just don’t understand why we’re not doing that.”

“You’ve got to put your foot on the accelerator to bring that number down,” he added, referring to infection and death rates.

What’s the debate over masks?

Masks may also help lower the risk of individuals catching the virus through the droplets another person’s sneeze or a cough - and people can be taught how put masks on and take them off correctly they argue.

On Thursday New York mayor Bill de Blasio urged all New Yorkers to cover their faces when outside and near others, but not to use surgical masks, which are in short supply.

Meanwhile, residents in Laredo, Texas will know is face a $1,000 (£816) fine if they fail to cover their noses and mouths while outside, after officials issued an emergency ordinance to approximately 250,000 residents this weekend. However, more and more health experts now say they’re benefits. They argue that the public use of masks can primarily help by preventing.

Masks may also help lower the risk of individuals catching the virus through the droplets another person’s sneeze or a cough - and people can be taught how put masks on and take them off correctly they argue.

Both the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization are reassessing their guidance on face masks, as experts race to find ways to fight the highly contagious virus.

Covid-19 is carried in airborne droplets from people coughing or sneezing, but there is some dispute over how far people should distance themselves from each other, and whether masks are useful when used by the public.

The next day I came back to my team and said, This is what I just heard, we have to get ready, he said. We knew that it wasn’t going to be long before we were going to have to deal with it.

Mr. Hogan has also leaned on his wife, Yumi Hogan, a Korean immigrant, who was also at the governor’s convention, which included a dinner at the Korean ambassador’s home. As the first Korean first lady in American history, Ms. Hogan has become something of an icon in South Korea. I just grabbed my wife and said, Look, you speak Korean. You know the president. You know the first lady. You know the ambassador. Let’s talk to them in Korean, and tell them we need their help.