promoearn: Days to a vaccine: ___

Monday, May 18

Person with gloves and a face mask holding a coronavirus vaccine dose.

We may be getting closer to a coronavirus vaccine, but let's still keep our (social) distance from each other. It's Monday's news.

A restaurant is using "bumper boat" tables to socially distance. A coronavirus vaccine in its early trial stages shows positive results. And are in-person concerts a thing of the past?

It's Alex, taking over for Ashley in this week's Short List.

But first, news that is out of this world: The Space Coast's next launch will have astronauts on board. 🚀

The Short List newsletter is a snappy USA TODAY news roundup. Subscribe here!

Step 1: Develop a coronavirus vaccine. Step 2: Immunize millions of people.

Simple, right? No matter how well-prepared we are, there won't immediately be enough doses of a coronavirus vaccine to immunize all Americans . Choices will have to be made about who goes to the front of the line. Vaccine experts have spent years considering the best and most effective way to dole out immunizations. This could mean focusing on health care providers, first responders, the military, political leaders, older adults, pregnant women and children. Another approach would be to focus on hot spots where a disease is spreading and there are high transmission rates.

•	The kicker? Vaccines differ. One may be best for healthy adults, another better for children, and a third most effective for older adults or those with preexisting medical conditions.
•	Don't get your hopes up yet: Vaccine experts have consistently urged caution in presuming a vaccine will be available soon. The White House Coronavirus Task Force's Anthony Fauci said that although a vaccine is likely within the next year or two, the process takes time.

Since we're talking vaccines... 📈

Pharmaceutical company Moderna announced positive results Monday from the early stages of its trial for a potential coronavirus vaccine , prompting stocks to rebound on optimism that the U.S. economy might start to recover from the pandemic. The trial showed the production of antibodies to the virus in all of its 45 trial participants, Moderna said. A second phase of testing is likely to begin soon, which will include 600 healthy adults. The company expects to begin Phase 3 clinical trials in July that would involve thousands of people.

•	'This is a step along the way': Moderna's possible coronavirus vaccine delivers preliminary but promising data.

Who is taking hydroxychloroquine?

President Donald Trump said Monday he is taking hydroxychloroquine, a drug that he's repeatedly touted as a treatment for the coronavirus . The Food and Drug Administration has cautioned against the use of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine for COVID-19 treatment outside hospitals or clinical trials because of the risk of heart rhythm problems. Trump, who said he has been taking the drug daily for about a week and a half, said the White House physician "didn't recommend" the treatment but offered it to him.

In the meantime, we're social distancing (creatively)

A restaurant in Ocean City, Maryland, unveiled what can be described as an oversized inner tube to keep patrons at least 6 feet apart . The goal: A customer will stand in the center of the circular table surrounded by a rubber barrier that keeps them safely separated from other patrons. The tables sit on wheels that allow them to stay mobile. "It's like a bumper boat, but it's actually a table," Fish Tales owner Shawn Harmon said of the design. Now the question arises: Can I buy one online?

Fish Tales in Ocean City, Md., debuted bumper-style tables developed by Revolution Event Design and Production to keep customers 6 feet apart.

PSAY

Real quick

•	Tropical Storm Arthur threatens to stir up deadly rip currents as it approaches North Carolina's coast.
•	After enduring ventilators, body aches and fever, coronavirus survivors say states shouldn't be reopening.
•	'Something we've never seen before': Scientists are still trying to understand the baffling and unpredictable coronavirus.
•	Once the coronavirus pandemic subsides, will music lovers pick streaming over in-person concerts?
•	Sen. Elizabeth Warren on her brother's COVID-19 death: 'It just feels like something that didn't have to happen.'
•	Coronavirus is hitting the meat industry all the way up to animal breeders.

Multiple people walked through construction site before Ahmaud Arbery's death

Multiple people walked through the construction site where Georgia jogger Ahmaud Arbery stopped before being gunned down by two men, new surveillance footage reportedly shows . Homeowner Larry English confirmed to CNN that several people entered the construction site over the course of several months. Among the people seen entering the site on separate occasions: a man and woman, a man and even children. It is not known whether Arbery is shown in any of the videos taken before Feb. 23. One of the two men charged in Arbery's death told police he suspected Arbery was responsible for recent break-ins in the neighborhood. English said the house was wide open, and nothing was ever taken from the property.

What everyone's talking about

•	A federal lawsuit calls the officer in the shooting death of Breonna Taylor a 'dirty cop' with a 'vendetta.'
•	Federal investigators connect al-Qaida contacts to the deadly shooting at Pensacola Naval Air Station.
•	Ken Osmond, best known as Eddie Haskell on TV's 'Leave It to Beaver,' died at 76.
•	J.C. Penney says it plans to close nearly 29% of stores – or 242 locations – as part of its bankruptcy.
•	'The Last Dance' aired its final two episodes Sunday night. Here's what we learned about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls' dynasty of the 1990s.

This day in history

It's been 40 years since Mount St. Helens erupted in southwest Washington, one of the most destructive volcanic eruptions in U.S. history, resulting in the deaths of 57 people. In just minutes, the lateral blast scorched and flattened about 230 square miles of dense forest, and a plume of volcanic ash rose more than 80,000 feet. Since then, the volcano has become a living laboratory for the study of volcanoes and ecosystems. Here is a look back at photos from the day Mount St. Helens erupted.

Volcanic ash and steam rise from Mount St. Helens as it erupts in Washington on May 18, 1980.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! 🗞️

The coronavirus pandemic has revealed that not all heroes wear capes. USA TODAY's Sustaining America tells the stories of several people and companies helping to combat this disease and its crippling effects. On newsstands May 19.

This is a compilation of stories from across the USA TODAY Network. Want this news roundup in your inbox every night? Sign up for The Short List newsletter here.