Telemedicine system crashes, Trump issues 'coronavirus guidelines,' SF and France order 'stay home'

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• Global cases: More than 181,000, according to Johns Hopkins University.
• Global deaths: At least 7,113, according to Johns Hopkins University.
• US cases: At least 4,281, according to Johns Hopkins University.
• US deaths: At least 74, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Effective Tuesday, March 17, Sutter said it will will postpone all elective procedures at local hospitals that can be safely rescheduled. "This decision was made in an effort to help preserve capacity to address critical needs as they arise," the health system told CNBC. Over the weekend, Sutter said it planned to go ahead with these procedures but has subsequently shifted the policy. —Christina Farr

The country may be prepared to shut its schools, concerts, sporting events, shops, and even bars and restaurants, but one industry that is deeply resistant to shutting down is Wall Street.

 "It is important for the markets to remain open, and for them to function in a fair and orderly manner, as they have been," Stacey Cunningham, New York Stock Exchange president, tweeted out this afternoon.

She's not alone. The directive to keep open the markets goes as high as Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin. "We intend to keep the markets open," he said Friday on CNBC. "That's a sign of confidence to people. There are people who want to come in and buy. We want to have markets open." —Bob Pisani

General Motors and Ford Motor are offering new vehicle financing programs to spur sales amid the coronavirus outbreak, which is hurting consumer confidence and slowing dealer showroom traffic. 

GM, through its GM Financial arm, is offering 0% financing for seven years – two years more than recent programs – and four months deferred payments for those with A+ credit. People with a lower rating of A1 can qualify for the deferment, however not the 0% financing, the company confirmed Monday.

The new programs come as many expect the COVID-19 pandemic to significantly impact U.S. auto sales. —Michael Wayland, Phil LeBeau

Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg on Monday said no one knows how big the impact coronavirus will on the marketing industry.

Asked by Bloomberg's Emily Chang on Monday how Facebook's ad business is positioned to weather the downturn caused by the spread of COVID-19, Sandberg offered the following: "This is not going to business as usual, and the marketing industry is certainly going to see a real impact. I don't think anyone knows how big. So we're going to watch and look."

"We know that we can keep paying our employees, paying our contractors, we know we can keep the lights on," Sandberg said. —Sal Rodriguez

At first, U.S. retailers were most concerned about manufacturing facilities being disrupted by COVID-19 in China, where the virus originated. While some manufacturing operations are getting back up and running, much of the rest of the world is in distress.

The disruption is already starting to impact the shipment of goods to retailers for the back-to-school season, analysts say. And if the situation persists, it could end up hitting the holiday shopping season, when many retailers make the bulk of their profits.

"In 25 years, I have never seen anything like this," parcel managing and logistics platform ShipMatrix President Satish Jindel said. "There is a psychological element, which is very hard to predict. ... This is an unprecedented situation." —Lauren Thomas

McDonald's on Monday is asking its U.S. franchisees to close their dining rooms as the company responds to the coronavirus outbreak.

The fast-food giant plans to close the dining rooms in its company-owned locations in the U.S. Customers will be able to order their food and drinks for takeout or delivery or via the drive-thru. McDonald's owns about 5% of its roughly 14,000 U.S. restaurants. —Amelia Lucas

Telemedicine services are more important now than ever. But some hospitals say their technology tools are breaking down, as huge volumes of people try to consult with a doctor about their symptoms. 

At Cleveland Clinic, which is encouraging patients worried about coronavirus symptoms to use a virtual service called Express Care Online, three providers told CNBC that the technology has been spotty all day, crashed multiple times, and resulted in delays of more than an hour.

The hospital chain has asked via social media that patients avoid going straight to the emergency room, so the ER could be saved for critical cases. Instead, it has asked them to use Express Care Online so that patients who can remain home to recover can do so without infecting anyone else. —Christina Farr

Late-night comedy sketch show "Saturday Night Live" has decided the March 28 episode of its show will not air and has halted production of future episodes until further notice, NBCUniversal said. "The safety of our employees continue to be our top priority," the company said in a statement. "We will monitor the situation closely and make decisions about future shows on an ongoing basis as further information develops." The March 28 episode was going to be hosted by actor John Krasinski and feature musical guest Dua Lipa. Krasinski last week announced that his film "A Quiet Place Part II" had postponed its release date, as moviegoers were not going to be able to enjoy the film in large groups. —Sarah Whitten

Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.

President Donald Trump on Monday announced a strict set of guidelines for Americans to follow for the next 15 days to try to "slow the spread" of the growing coronavirus pandemic. The recommendations call on people to sharply limit their normal behaviors when it comes to eating out, shopping and socializing.

Trump laid out the guidelines at a White House press conference on a day that saw the number of reported coronavirus cases in the United States rise above 4,000. At the same time, stock market indices posted record-breaking losses as states and cities took dramatic actions in efforts to reduce the rate of transmission. —Dan Mangan

Regal, a subsidiary of Cineworld, said that starting Tuesday it would close all its 542 movie theaters to the public."Any time, at any Regal, it's our goal to provide a safe and healthy environment for our employees and guests," Mooky Greidinger, Cineworld CEO, said in a statement. "At this time, we have made the difficult decision to close our theatres. We value our movie-loving customers and have no doubt we will be serving them again as soon as possible with a full slate of Hollywood blockbusters." The company did not provide a timeline for when theaters would reopen. —Sarah Whitten

The U.S. government is better suited to respond swiftly to the coronavirus than it was to the 2008 financial crisis, Morgan Stanley's Michael Zezas told CNBC on Monday.

"Unlike the financial crisis, there really isn't much of a moral hazard issue here," the bank's head of U.S. public policy research said on "Squawk on the Street." "You're not sort of rescuing folks from making poor decisions from themselves." —Kevin Stankiewicz

Amid the bad news piling up from COVID-19, one positive development emerged on Friday: Interest on federal student loans would be waived until further notice.

That's never happened before and is an acknowledgment by the government of how tightly this pandemic could squeeze Americans' finances. Over the last decade, the average interest rate on federal student loans has been around 5.5%, according to higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz. Meanwhile, the typical monthly student loan bill is close to $400. —Annie Nova

The Federal Reserve Board announced an emergency rate cut on Sunday, March 15, lowering interest rates to near zero. This rate cut comes less than two weeks after the Fed cut interest rates by half a point and marks continued effort to minimize the economic impact of the coronavirus.

"The effects of the coronavirus will weigh on economic activity in the near term and pose risks to the economic outlook. In light of these developments, the Committee decided to lower the target range for the federal funds rate to 0 to 1/4 percent," the Fed said in a statement.

The latest Fed rate cut lowers interest rates by 100 basis points, compared to 50 basis points from the March 4 rate cut. This will likely cause a 1% decrease in interest rates on many financial products, such as credit cards, mortgages, loans, savings accounts and more.

But how much does a 1% rate cut really save you on existing debt? CNBC Select did the math and explains the effect that the Fed's emergency rate cut has on your credit card interest rates. —Alexandria White

Public health officers from six Bay Area Counties, including San Francisco, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Marin, Contra Costa and Alameda counties, signed on to support San Francisco Mayor London Breed's order to encourage residents to stay home. 

"We know these measures will significantly disrupt people's day to day lives, but they are absolutely necessary," Breed said. "This is going to be a defining moment for our city and we all have a responsibility to do our part to protect our neighbors and slow the spread of this virus by staying at home unless it is absolutely essential to go outside."

Across the state of California, there are more than 470 confirmed cases, according to Johns Hopkins University. The Bay Area's collective confirmed cases is more than half of California's total case count, the counties said in a statement. —Will Feuer

Amazon is hiring an additional 100,000 employees in the U.S. to meet the surge in demand of online shopping amid the coronavirus outbreak, the company said.

The company is looking to add extra warehouse and delivery workers. It will raise pay for these employees by $2 per hour in the U.S., £2 per hour in the UK, and approximately €2 per hour in many EU countries. Amazon currently pays $15 per hour or more in some areas of the U.S. —Annie Palmer

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said an employee of the agency tested positive for the coronavirus, the first known employee with the respiratory disease.

The CDC said the employee was not involved in the agency's COVID-19 response efforts and has not been present in the CDC workplace since March 6. The patient is in good condition and is isolated to prevent the spread of the infection to others.

"CDC is considering and taking all necessary actions to further protect the health and safety of our workforce," the agency said in a statement. "Our best wishes go to the employee for a rapid and full recovery." —Berkeley Lovelace

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended trading nearly 3,000 points down, marking the worst day since the 1987 financial crisis. Major stock averages extended losses late in the session after President Donald Trump said the coronavirus crisis in the U.S. could extend into August. He also told reporters the U.S. "may be" heading into a recession. —Sara Salinas, Fred Imbert

The Department of Defense announced it will keep the two highest-ranking officials, Secretary Mark Esper and deputy David Norquist, in the Pentagon physically separated from each other as a precaution to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The Pentagon reservation employs more than 22,000 people making it one of the largest office buildings in the world.

Currently, there are 37 known cases of COVID-19 within the Department of Defense: 18 active-duty service members, three civil servants, 13 dependents and three contractors. —Amanda Macias

Major stock averages fell toward their morning lows after President Donald Trump said the worst of the outbreak could last until August. The S&P 500 dropped 10.5% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2,646 points, or 11.4%. The Nasdaq Composite traded 10.4% lower. —Fred Imbert

President Donald Trump said the coronavirus crisis in the U.S. could stretch into July or August. That update comes one day after the CDC encouraged Americans to limit gatherings and events for the next eight weeks. 

Trump also said his administration may look at lockdowns for "certain areas" or "hot spots" in the nation, but said he wasn't considering a full national lockdown. "At this moment, no, we're not," Trump said. —Sara Salinas, Mike Calia

Major League Baseball pushed back opening day until mid-May at the earliest on Monday because of the new coronavirus after the federal government recommended restricting events of more than 50 people for the next eight weeks. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred made the announcement following a conference call with executives of the 30 teams.

"The clubs remain committed to playing as many games as possible when the season begins," the commissioner's office said in a statement. —Associated Press

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is working on a plan to pile at least $750 billion into efforts to combat the outbreak, his office said. The plan would "get money directly into hands of American people" and include health care affordability measures, forbearance on federal loans, a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures, assistance for small businesses and emergency child care, according to his office.

"We will need big, bold, urgent federal action to deal with this crisis," Schumer, D-NY, said in a statement. "The kinds of targeted measures we are putting together will mainline money into the economy and directly into the hands of families that need it most. Importantly, this proposal will also ensure our medical professionals have all the resources – including physical space and equipment – they need to provide treatment and keep Americans safe, among other people-focused initiatives." —Jacob Pramuk

Members of the task force created to address the deadly coronavirus outbreak are holding a press briefing at the White House as authorities take drastic measures to slow the spread of the disease. You can watch the White House update live here. —Yelena Dzhanova

Officials in San Francisco, California, and France have each ordered residents to stay home in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. 

San Francisco Mayor London Breed said, "Effective at midnight, San Francisco will require people to stay home except for essential needs. Necessary government functions & essential stores will remain open." Breed is expected to announce a "shelter-in-place" order for the next three weeks at a press conference later Monday, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

French President Emmanuel Macron issued nearly identical directives, saying French residents' movements would be severely limited for 15 days. Macron also said he would be closing the country's borders starting Tuesday afternoon. —Sara Salinas, Dawn Kopecki

Comcast is breaking with theatrical tradition amid the escalation of the coronavirus pandemic.

The company will begin to release new films online while they were still in theaters. The upcoming "Trolls World Tour" will be the first movie to open simultaneously online and in theaters for the company. Other films that are currently in theaters will be available for rental as soon as Friday. —Sarah Whitten

Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of CNBC and NBCUniversal.

The Trump administration is grappling with which industries to bail out as thousands of businesses in the U.S. grind to halt amid severe measures to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

The U.S. could lose 8.2 million international visitors this year. That's more than the country lost in the two years following 9/11. That's lost revenue not only for airlines and hotels, but also for restaurants, retailers and airports. In some states, malls, gyms and movie theaters are shuttering and officials are telling restaurants to offer only take-out options.

"I don't see how we get through this without wide-scale systemic solutions," said one top tier-investor. "We're going to have to rewrite the rules to get to the other side." —Lauren Hirsch, Leslie Josephs

The potential for COVID-19 to lead to a global economic downturn is the top concern for finance leaders in the U.S. and Mexico, according to a new survey of chief financial officers by PwC. Of those surveyed, 54% of respondents say the outbreak has the potential for "significant" impact to business operations, however 90% say their business would return to normal in less than 3 months if the COVID-19 outbreak were to end immediately. The survey included 50 financial leaders, 80% are whom are from Fortune 1000 companies. —Michael Wayland

How do you get your money back if your plans have been canceled? While some policies are straightforward, others may be less clear.

The first thing you should do is just wait and see, especially since it is hard to get through to companies right now, said Ted Rossman, industry analyst for CreditCards.com.

"Give it a week or two," he said. "There is a good chance you will see an automatic refund processed onto your card."

That may be true for large public events, like Broadway shows, but may not apply to smaller ones. Here's how to get money back if coronavirus forced the cancellation of your wedding or public event. —Michelle Fox

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said Monday he signed an emergency declaration temporarily shutting down bars, restaurants and other places of recreation statewide. He also banned public gatherings of more than 50 people. The move follows similar measures announced earlier Monday by New York and surrounding states. "Never since World War II have we faced a situation like this," Inslee said. "For the next several weeks, normal is not in our game plan." —Will Feuer

Germany reported a jump in coronavirus cases by more than 1,100 to now 6,012 compared to the previous day, the Robert Koch Institute for disease control said.

The number of confirmed deaths related to the coronavirus rose by one to now 13, with the three most populous states of North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria and Baden-Wuerttemberg among the most affected regions, the institute added. —Reuters 

Russia will ban the entry of foreign nationals and stateless people from March 18 to May 1 in response to the coronavirus outbreak, the government said. 

The ban will not apply to diplomatic representatives, airplane crew members and some other categories of people, it said. Russia has reported 93 cases of the virus so far. —Reuters 

Silicon Valley executives huddled on a conference call on Friday to discuss ways they can use their money and vast resources to help fend off the coronavirus that's spreading throughout the United States. 

CEOs and executives from Facebook, Apple, the San Francisco 49ers, Twitter, Netflix, Alphabet and Salesforce were invited to take part in the call, which was organized by Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins. Top Silicon Valley investor Ron Conway was also invited.  

Community leaders spoke to the executives on Friday about "what is happening 'on the ground' and the impact on providing services," as it pertains to helping combat the coronavirus, the notes say. —Brian Schwartz 

The coronavirus outbreak is prompting second thoughts about reaching for cash. 

As the number of cases tick up in the U.S., some are going cashless to avoid potential hygiene issues around handling banknotes. Regardless of  whether there's a proven risk, the "psychological factor" of people thinking of cash as "unclean" could change how they choose to pay, according to Bain & Co. partner, Thomas Olsen. 

"Merchants are encouraging people not to use cash, citing Coronavirus," Olsen told CNBC. "We would expect some trigger to accelerate behavior from cash to digital payments." —Kate Rooney

The first human trial testing a potential vaccine to prevent COVID-19 began Monday, U.S. health officials confirmed.

Finding "a safe and effective vaccine" to prevent infection from the new coronavirus "is an urgent public health priority," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in a statement Monday.  "This Phase 1 study, launched in record speed, is an important first step toward achieving that goal."

The National Institutes of Health, an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services, has been fast-tracking work with biotech company Moderna to develop a vaccine using the current strain of the new coronavirus. The trial is taking place at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute in Seattle, Washington, where COVID-19 cases have surged and authorities have banned mass gatherings. The early-stage, or phase 1, trial will test the vaccine on 45 males and non-pregnant females between the ages of 18 and 55, according to trial details on NIH's website. —Berkeley Lovelace

GOP Sen. Mitt Romney proposed sending every American adult $1,000 to ease the financial pain of the coronavirus pandemic that has tanked global markets and threatened to grind U.S. economic activity to a halt. 

The proposal from the 2012 Republican nominee for president came as the White House and Congress work to reach an agreement over the necessary stimulus measures to contain the unfolding economic crisis.

"While expansions of paid leave, unemployment insurance, and SNAP benefits are crucial, the check will help fill the gaps for Americans that may not quickly navigate different government options," Romney said in a statement. —Tucker Higgins, Dan Mangan

Canada is closing its borders to non-citizens because of the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced.

"We can still slow the spread of this virus," Trudeau said. "It is time to take every precaution to keep people safe."

Canada will make some exceptions to the closure of its borders, including for U.S. citizens. —Dan Mangan

Stocks continued their down-day with the Dow Jones Industrial Average off 9% in midday trading. The S&P 500 was down 8.4%, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 8.2%. 

Monday's losses put the Dow down 28% from its all-time high and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq more than 26% below their records last month. At one point, the Dow was down 30% from its record. —Sara Salinas, Fred Imbert

U.S. airlines are seeking government assistance of more than $50 billion, including a mix of direct aid and loan guarantees, as the industry reels from the coronavirus outbreak, a lobbying group that represents 10 U.S. passenger and cargo airlines said Monday.

The aid, if received, would be the industry's first broad bailout since the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. It is also the clearest sign yet of the financial damage coronavirus and the draconian measures governments are taking to stop it are having on U.S. businesses. —Leslie Josephs

As fewer moviegoers venture out of their homes, more theaters cap the number of people allowed per showing and others shutter altogether, the box office is trending down 10.7% compared to 2019, to $1.78 billion. Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush, foresees the full-year box office falling 12.4% from 2019 to around $9.9 billion. That would be the lowest take domestically since 2008.

"We expect 2020 box office to end significantly lower than the last two years, as theaters are closed or unattended, and most releases are moved to an already robust 2021 film slate," Pachter wrote in a note to investors. "The current downturn is likely to persist well into the June quarter, but if the industry survives, we think there is potential for a significant rebound in 2021."

Already, films like "Mulan," "F9," "Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway," "A Quiet Place Part II," "No Time to Die," and others have been pushed from their release dates as the number of cases of COVID-19 continue to grow. —Sarah Whitten

The World Health Organization is considering "airborne precautions" for medical staff after a new study showed the coronavirus can survive in the air in some settings.

The virus is transmitted through droplets, or little bits of liquid, mostly through sneezing or coughing, Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, head of WHO's emerging diseases and zoonosis unit, told reporters during a virtual press conference on Monday.

"When you do an aerosol-generating procedure like in a medical care facility, you have the possibility to what we call aerosolize these particles, which means they can stay in the air a little bit longer." —Berkeley Lovelace, Will Feuer, Noah Higgins-Dunn

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the country on Monday to avoid all non-essential contact, after coming under fire for not doing more to stem the spread of the coronavirus in the country. 

"Now is the time for everyone to stop non-essential contact with others and to stop all unnecessary travel," Johnson said at a press conference. "And you should avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other such social venues." —Katrina Bishop

Alphabet's Verily coronavirus site screening website for Silicon Valley residents went live on Sunday evening. By Monday morning, it appeared to be overloaded and cannot currently offer appointments for screenings, according to the website.

President Donald Trump announced the site on Friday, which was reportedly before Alphabet was ready to go public with the launch, and got some details about the site wrong.

The site, built by Google sister-company Verily, is supposed to offer people who live in San Mateo or Santa Clara counties and think they are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms a way to schedule a test. Verily built the "Project Baseline" site in tandem with the California governor's office and other local, state and federal officials. —Todd Haselton

The market's blistering sell-off over the last month is so bad that investors have already pretty much priced U.S. stocks as if the economy is headed for a recession, based on a history of past declines around economic downturns by RBC.

The median and average recession-related market declines see the S&P 500 plunge 24% and 32%, peak to trough, respectively, RBC research shows. And with the broad index already down about 28% from its record close in February, it looks like investors think the U.S. is headed for a significant downturn in economic output.

The blue-chip, 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average is more than 29% off its own record close. —Thomas Franck

While the federal government weighs closing restaurants and bars amid the coronavirus outbreak, restaurant companies and at least 11 states are already closing dining rooms.

Photos of Americans in restaurants and bars circulated on social media over the weekend, leading many to call for mandated closures to enforce "social distancing."

Starbucks and Chick-fil-A, two of the three biggest U.S. restaurant chains by sales, are only letting customers receive their food and drinks to go. Both said Sunday that they will pause the use of seating in their restaurants. —Amelia Lucas

The World Health Organization's top official criticized some nations for not doing enough to detect and contain the deadly coronavirus that's infected more than 174,000 people across the world. 

There's been a rapid escalation of COVID-19 cases over the past week, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters at a virtual press conference Monday. "But we have not seen an urgent enough escalation in testing, isolation and contact tracing, which is the backbone of the response," he said.

"We have a simple message for all countries: test, test, test. Test every suspected case, if they test positive, isolate them and find out who they have been in contact with two days before they developed symptoms and test those people, too", Tedros said. —Will Feuer, Noah Higgins-Dunn, Berkeley Lovelace

If you don't have an emergency fund and are struggling to make ends meet during these uncertain times, here are eight steps to take.

1. Contact creditors right away
2. Create an "emergency" budget
3. Consider a personal loan
4. Use the product with the lowest interest rate
5. Send temporary hardship letters
6. Use community and government assistance programs
7. Draw on retirement savings
8. Avoid payday loans

With the coronavirus pandemic causing many workers to lose hours, it's more important than ever to know what financial options you have. —Alicia Adamczyk

A day after a dramatic move in interest rates, the Federal Reserve on Monday increased the amount of liquidity it's offering in short-term lending to the financial industry.

In a midday announcement, the New York Fed said it will conduct a $500 billion repo operation Monday afternoon, another move targeted at keeping money flowing through the system. —Jeff Cox

The National Football League canceled its 2020 draft event in Las Vegas due to the coronavirus outbreak, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced Monday.

The NFL said clubs will still select players as scheduled on April 23 through April 25, but added that the league is "exploring innovative options for how the process will be conducted and will provide that information as it becomes available. The selection process will be televised," the statement said. —Jabari Young

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned that the COVID-19 outbreak will stretch U.S. hospitals to max capacity, saying the nation doesn't have enough hospital beds to handle a pandemic.

"When we're going to have a real problem is when cases hit their apex and descend on the health-care system and we will not have enough hospital beds," he said at a press conference.

Cuomo said he sent a letter to President Donald Trump asking him to deploy the Army Corps of Engineers to the state to "start building temporary health-care capacity." —Berkeley Lovelace

The world will have to learn to live with COVID-19 as the virus will be "with us permanently," a former Bank of England official told CNBC on Monday.

Speaking to CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe," John Gieve, former deputy governor at the Bank of England, said policymakers had a "huge job" to stop businesses from just closing down.

"The difficulty here is that people are making their own decisions, so the government might be saying: 'Go to your bank, build up your debts,' but some businesses will be thinking: 'Well if I face three months of that, I'm never going to be able to pay this back, so I'd better close down now,'" he said. —Chloe Taylor

Stocks fell sharply Monday even after the Federal Reserve embarked on a massive monetary stimulus campaign to curb slower economic growth amid the coronavirus outbreak.

The S&P 500 dropped 6% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average