Thread by @mkraju

WH task briefed House members today, and some things that were said, per sources on call
- Fauci said the task force is working on guidance about reentry that will be issued in the next few days
- Birx reiterated that Philly and DC areas expected to be the new hot spots

-Birx also said that they are carefully watching the Houston area, and that Denver is looking better than before. Birx reiterated that mitigation strategy is working
- Fauci said that they don't need to accept that 100,000 death figure as inevitable because mitigation is working

- Fauci reiterated how difficult the week will be because of the increase in deaths, but noted that the rate of hospitalizations in ICUs is beginning to decrease, so he expressed optimism about that.

- Mnuchin acknowledged issues with the small business loan program, but he stressed that it's just day 4 and $98B in loans have been approved. He said the program will improve each day.
- Mnuchin expected about 60 percent of direct deposits from will go out by end of next week.

- Polowczyk discussed the supply chain: Nearly all gloves and gowns come from overseas, so it's taking time to come to the U.S. They expect more help from 3M on ventilators.

Seema Verma of CMS said that there have been $44 billion spent in accelerated payments for Medicare, and said that by Friday, $30 billion out of $100 billion in the CARES Act will go out for additional Medicare reimbursement. Her top focus is on nursing homes

- Among the questions: Pallone raised concerns about shortage of PPE and other supplies, Katherine Clark asked about how uninsured are being taken care of, and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said not enough people are being tested -- and she asked about the status of testing.

Pence said there is tremendous enthusiasm for the 15-minute test, noting there are 18,000 Abbot machines spread out across the country.
- Dr. Birx said that in February they were testing about 2,000 a day, but it’s dramatically increased today