Coronavirus Watch: What to know about rare disease affecting children

Children are being diagnosed with a rare inflammatory disease that may be linked to the coronavirus.

Doctors are calling the new ailment pediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome, and it shares some traits with Kawasaki, which typically afflicts children under 5 years of age. Their common symptoms include:

• Prolonged fever
• Rash
• Conjunctivitis
• Swollen palms or soles of the feet, sometimes peeling of the skin in those areas
• Lymph node enlargement

It's Thursday and this is the Coronavirus Watch from the Paste BN Network. Here's the latest news, as of 1:30 p.m. ET:

• Whistleblower testifies: An immunologist who says he was unfairly ousted from the Department of Health and Human Services said the country will experience the "darkest winter in modern history" if the U.S. does not develop a plan to address a second wave of the virus. 
• Inflammatory disease: About two dozen children in Michigan and up to 100 children in New York are believed to have the new syndrome. Three children have died in New York.
• In a dramatic setback in the effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the state's stay-at-home order, raising the possibility that local officials may make their own restrictions.
• President Donald Trump was set to tour a medical supply distributor in Pennsylvania as he pressures the state's Democratic governor to move faster on reopening the economy.
• Virus may 'never go away': That's what Dr. Mike Ryan, the World Health Organization's emergencies expert, said Wednesday. It will take a worldwide "massive effort" to crush the coronavirus outbreak, he said. 
• Cats may transmit virus to one another: A recent study found that cats "can readily become infected" with the coronavirus and may be able to pass it on to their feline friends. 
• We're paying more at the grocery: Last month, Americans paid 4.3% more for meats, poultry, fish and eggs. Egg prices spiked 16.1%. It's the highest month-to-month jump in grocery prices in more than 40 years.
• Stocks opened lower again Thursday after tumbling about 4% the two previous sessions. Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell fed into those concerns, issuing a warning that "the path ahead is both highly uncertain and subject to significant downside risks."
• Jobless claims: Almost 3 million Americans filed new unemployment benefit claims last week. Stay informed on the latest financial news with our Daily Money newsletter. 

As the nation reopens, what questions do you have? Next week, we will be addressing your concerns in a new article. So submit your questions here on topics such as safety, returning to work, grocery shopping, wearing face masks and more. 

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– Rachel Aretakis, breaking news editor, @raretakis