LAST UPDATE | 16 Apr 2020

EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you all the news you need to know as you start the day.

1. #MAIN POINTS: Here’s everything you need to know in Covid-19 news both in Ireland and internationally. 

2. #COVID-19: Two healthcare workers at St Luke’s General Hospital in Kilkenny have died after contracting Covid-19. 

3. #LOCK-OUT: A number of pubs across the country that were observed flouting regulations regarding Covid-19 and social distancing have shut their doors since gardaí were given powers of arrest.

4. #BALLYBOUGH: A man in his 20s has died following an assault in north inner city Dublin yesterday evening. 

5. #DEBUNKED: No evidence has been found for a Whatsapp message claiming criminals are dousing facemasks with chemicals in order to rob people. 

6. #UNITED STATES: President Donald Trump has promised to unveil plans to reopen the US economy, claiming the US had “passed the peak” of the coronavirus crisis despite a record daily death toll.

7. #UNITED KINGDOM: A 99-year-old British veteran who is walking 100 lengths of his garden to raise money for the NHS has been hailed as an “inspiration” as donations topped £12 million (about €13.7 million).

8. #COVID-19 VACCINE: A vaccine may be the only thing that can bring back “normalcy,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said, hoping for just that before the end of the year.

9. #NATIONAL STUDY: A third of Irish people, meanwhile, say they are unsure if they would accept a potential vaccine for Covid-19 if one was developed, according to a new study.