“We continue to see a number of positive signs that the virus has passed its peak,” Trump told reporters at a daily briefing.
Some state governors have warned that they will not act prematurely to reopen their economies until there is more testing for the virus. Business leaders have also told Trump the country needs to have widespread testing in place before their companies can return to normal operations.
![A nurse administers COVID-19 testing at a drive-up facility at MedStar St. Mary's Hospital in Leonardtown, Md., on April 14, 2020. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.theepochtimes.com%2Fassets%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F04%2F15%2Fhealthcare-worker-600x420.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
On Saturday, Trump said “our testing is getting better and better.”
He said both Republican and Democratic governors “have announced concrete steps to begin a safe and gradual phased opening.” Texas and Vermont “will allow certain business to open on Monday while still requiring appropriate social distancing precautions,” he said.
![President Donald Trump speaks during a Coronavirus Task Force press briefing at the White House in Washington on April 18, 2020. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.theepochtimes.com%2Fassets%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F04%2F18%2FTrump-600x400.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
Several dozen protesters gathered in the Texas capital of Austin on Saturday, chanting “USA! USA!” and “Let us work!”
On Saturday morning, Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York, epicenter of the U.S. epidemic, said his virus-battered state may finally be past the worst of the health crisis there.
![New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaks at his daily CCP virus briefing in Albany, N.Y., on April 17, 2020. (Matthew Cavanaugh/Getty Images)](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.theepochtimes.com%2Fassets%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F04%2F17%2Fcuomo-in-albany-600x400.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
The Epoch Times refers to the novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, as the CCP virus because the Chinese Communist Party’s coverup and mismanagement allowed the virus to spread throughout China and create a global pandemic.