The U.S. was back on a downhill track with respect to deaths Wednesday with reductions in most states. It was a neutral day for cases, with significant week-over-week increases in CA, FL, NC, AZ, all good retirement states.

In Europe, Sweden reported a major increase in cases, without an accompanying rise in deaths. We see there another of the common reporting glitches, obviously a catch-up day.

Regarding Sweden, a country with few restrictions on mobility, a recent report states that tighter restrictions would have saved lives there. Typically, however, the report neglects to quantify the additional economic cost of such an option. Note that the case data in the U.S. does not indicate eliminating restrictions based on earlier standards for case reductions. Nonetheless, the country is steadily opening up due to a growing appreciation for the economic effects of restrictions.