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There’s a lot we still don’t know about the coronavirus outbreak. This newsletter does its best to put everything we do know in one place each day. Have questions you want answered? You can always get in touch. And to help keep high-quality news free for all, become a BuzzFeed News member.

And with that, here’s what we know as of Monday, June 1.

Coronavirus in the US

As of Monday afternoon, there have been 1,808,291 confirmed cases and 105,003 deaths in the US. These numbers were accurate when we sent this out, but they’re always changing. For the latest numbers and charts, check out our live-tracking page, where you can also look up the numbers by the state you live in.

What happened at the FDA

In March the Food and Drug Administration authorized the use of two malaria drugs that had been promoted by President Trump and his supporters as potential COVID-19 treatments. Trials of the drugs, chloroquine phosphate and hydroxychloroquine sulfate, have since been put on hold after evidence emerged that they could cause severe side effects and were not effective against the virus.

How did the FDA come to approve the drugs? The decision was based on limited evidence, according to documents obtained by BuzzFeed News. Just two studies of the malaria drugs were reviewed by the FDA, and they either showed negligible results or have since been called into question entirely.

“At least we have some hints now of what they were depending on" to authorize use of the drugs, said Peter Lurie, a former FDA executive who now leads the advocacy group Center for Science in the Public Interest. "It still seems to me to be a thin read and one is left with the question of whether the approval had something to do with pressure from the White House."

Crowds and the virus

The coronavirus looms in the background of the nationwide protests that have erupted in the last week, and could even spread further in the wake of the mass gatherings. While public health experts mostly agree that outdoor gatherings are less risky than spending extended periods of time in confined spaces, the combination of big crowds and a lot of yelling could be a real risk. In the early days of the outbreak in Italy, a cheering crowd at a soccer match played a central part in the spread of the virus.

There are ways to reduce risks and still protest — wearing a mask and maintaining social distancing, to begin with. Tear gas could be particularly risky, given that the coronavirus targets the lungs — while there's no research into its connection to COVID-19, a US Army study found recruits who had been exposed to tear gas were more vulnerable to respiratory infections like colds and the flu.

Officials are crossing their fingers that as people return to larger gatherings — protests or otherwise — the virus doesn't take off once again. This weekend officials in Missouri warned that at least one attendee of those now-notorious Memorial Day weekend pool parties has tested positive, and that fellow attendees should monitor themselves for symptoms.

Scott Pasmore/Twitter / Via Twitter: @scottpasmoretv

What we're reading

A new theory of the virus

One mystery of the coronavirus has been its baffling variety of symptoms — what was originally spoken of as mostly attacking the lungs has since turned out to cause serious problems throughout the body, in ways doctors cannot explain. But new theories are emerging. “Months into the pandemic, there is now a growing body of evidence to support the theory that the novel coronavirus can infect blood vessels,” reports Dana G. Smith. If the virus actually targets blood vessels, that “could explain not only the high prevalence of blood clots, strokes, and heart attacks, but also provide an answer for the diverse set of head-to-toe symptoms that have emerged.”

A growing American export

The US has struggled to produce its own supplies of masks, protective gear, and medicines, but it has become one of the world’s leading exporters of conspiracy theories around the coronavirus. The “Plandemic” video that blew up on US social media in May has since been banned by a number of video hosting services here, but it’s taking off around the world, Jane Lytvynenko reports. It’s now being shared worldwide in at least a dozen languages including Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, German, Polish, Armenian, and Tagalog.

The simple answer
Is America’s Pandemic Waning or Raging? Yes (New York Times)

They’ve been waiting to make their move

Cleaning Robots Have Their Moment in the Fight Against COVID-19 (Fortune)

Anti-lockdown protesters in Australia are eager importers of US coronavirus conspiracy theories. (William West / Getty Images)

Coronavirus around the world

As of Monday afternoon, there were 6,258,887 confirmed cases and 375,208 deaths globally. These numbers are changing by the hour. You can get the latest figures from our live tracker.

There were no coronavirus deaths in Spain today. It was the first day without a single COVID-19 death in almost four months.

With the outbreak slowing down in Europe, Asia, and the US, scientists may struggle to test their proposed coronavirus vaccines. They may have to look further abroad to find places where cases are growing.

Russia is easing its lockdown in Moscow, even as cases are still rising there. President Vladimir Putin said last week that the peak of the outbreak had passed.

Iran may be facing a new wave of infections. There were more than 3,000 new cases reported today, the highest level in two months.

One more thing

via @JamesGRickards

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