Coronavirus Watch: US economy sees steep drop

The U.S. economy turned in its worst performance in more than a decade.

The nation’s gross domestic product – the value of all goods and services produced in the U.S. – fell nearly 4.8% in the first quarter of 2020 as consumer spending tumbled. It marked the first drop in output since early 2014 and the steepest since late 2008 during the depths of the Great Recession.

It's Wednesday, and this is Coronavirus Watch from the Paste BN Network.

Here's the latest news, as of 12:30 p.m. ET:

• More than 1 million people have tested positive for the virus in the U.S., and more than 58,000 have died. See a map of confirmed cases here.
• New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that the number of deaths in the U.S. may be far higher than what states are reporting, a New York Times report says.
• A second wave of the coronavirus is "inevitable," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Tuesday.
• Speaking of Fauci, he's the official Americans cite most often as who they rely on for information regarding the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new study.
• Faced with worries of a meat shortage caused by the coronavirus, President Donald Trump on Tuesday ordered beef, pork and poultry processing plants to remain open despite safety concerns.
• Gov. Gavin Newsom said California's schools could return possibly as early as July or August to begin the next academic year.
• After a month of supporting New York City and New Jersey residents during the coronavirus outbreak, the U.S. Navy hospital ship Comfort will leave Thursday for its home port in Norfolk, Virginia. The ship served 182 patients during its stay.
• There's still no proven treatment for the coronavirus. But pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences on Wednesday reported potentially encouraging results from a trial for remdesivir, an antiviral drug that's being tested as a treatment for COVID-19.
• The acting Navy secretary has ordered a deeper investigation into the events surrounding the coronavirus-stricken USS Theodore Roosevelt and the firing of its skipper for seeking aid. 

Keep sending us your coronavirus questions through this form! Leslie from Stockton, California, asks: With the entire world racing to be the first with a vaccine, why is it taking so long?

A number of biotech companies, government agencies, universities and other organizations across the world have partnered in an effort to find a coronavirus vaccine. In early March, Dr. Fauci estimated that a vaccine was at least a year to a year-and-a-half away. Health experts have continued to echo that estimate.

Tests are conducted in phases. In preclinical tests, the vaccine is tested in animals to measure toxicity, efficiency of dosage and methods to administer it. Then tests enter three phases of clinical trials, which can takes years. The fourth phase is post-marketing surveillance, which monitors the long-term effects of the vaccine. 

Vaccine trials have a high failure rate, and some viruses mutate, rendering the vaccine useless. Some vaccines can even enhance disease. Vaccines for respiratory ailments have a history of setbacks. Click here for a graphic explainer and video on vaccine development.

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— Grace Hauck, Breaking News Reporter, @grace_hauck