First Edition: July 7, 2020
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Kaiser Health News:
COVID Catch-22: They Got A Big ER Bill Because Hospitals Couldn’t Test For Virus
Fresh off a Caribbean cruise in early March, John Campbell developed a cough and fever of 104 degrees. He went to his primary care physician and got a flu test, which came up negative. Then things got strange. Campbell said the doctor then turned to him and said, “I’ve called the ER next door, and you need to go there. This is a matter of public health. They’re expecting you.” (Appleby, 7/7)
Kaiser Health News:
Lost On The Frontline
America’s health care workers are dying. In some states, medical personnel account for as many as 20% of known coronavirus cases. They tend to patients in hospitals, treating them, serving them food and cleaning their rooms. Others at risk work in nursing homes or are employed as home health aides. “Lost on the Frontline,” a collaboration between KHN and The Guardian, has identified 765 such workers who likely died of COVID-19 after helping patients during the pandemic. (7/7)
Kaiser Health News:
Life Beyond COVID Seclusion: Seniors See Challenges And Change Ahead
Months into the coronavirus pandemic, older adults are having a hard time envisioning their “new normal.” Many remain fearful of catching the virus and plan to follow strict precautions — social distancing, wearing masks and gloves, limiting excursions to public places — for the indefinite future. (Graham, 7/7)
Kaiser Health News:
‘Please Tell Me My Life Is Worth A LITTLE Of Your Discomfort,’ Nurse Pleads
When an employee told a group of 20-somethings they needed face masks to enter his fast-food restaurant, one woman fired off a stream of expletives. “Isn’t this Orange County?” snapped a man in the group. “We don’t have to wear masks!” The curses came as a shock, but not really a surprise, to Nilu Patel, a certified registered nurse anesthetist at nearby University of California-Irvine Medical Center, who observed the conflict while waiting for takeout. Health care workers suffer these angry encounters daily as they move between treacherous hospital settings and their communities, where mixed messaging from politicians has muddied common-sense public health precautions. (Almendrala, 7/7)
The New York Times:
Fauci Says Virus Cases ‘Never Got Down To Where We Wanted To Go’ As Deaths Pass 130,000
Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, warned on Monday that the country was still “knee-deep in the first wave” of the pandemic, as U.S. deaths passed 130,000 and cases neared three million, while Texas and Idaho set daily records for new cases, according to a New York Times database. Dr. Fauci said that the more than 50,000 new cases a day recorded several times in the past week were “a serious situation that we have to address immediately.” (7/6)
The Washington Post:
States Mandate Masks, Begin To Shut Down Again, As Coronavirus Cases Soar And Hospitalizations Rise
The pandemic map of the United States burned bright red Monday, with the number of new coronavirus infections during the first six days of July nearing 300,000 as more states and cities moved to reimpose shutdown orders. After an Independence Day weekend that attracted large crowds to fireworks displays and produced scenes of Americans drinking and partying without masks, health officials warned of hospitals running out of space and infection spreading rampantly. (Partlow and Miroff, 7/6)
The Hill:
Fauci: State Of US Coronavirus Outbreak 'Really Not Good'
He also compared the U.S. unfavorably with Europe, which was able to better suppress the virus after an initial spike. The comments contrast those made by White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, who on Monday said, “I think the world is looking at us as a leader in COVID-19,” citing a lower mortality rate than Europe. (Sullivan, 7/6)
Reuters:
U.S. To Force Out Foreign Students Taking Classes Fully Online
It was not immediately clear how many student visa holders would be affected by the move, but foreign students are a key source of revenue for many U.S. universities as they often pay full tuition. (Dwyer, 7/6)
AP:
New Rules: Foreign Pupils Must Leave US If Classes Go Online
International students will be forced to leave the U.S. or transfer to another college if their schools offer classes entirely online this fall, under new guidelines issued Monday by federal immigration authorities. The guidelines, issued by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, provide additional pressure for universities to reopen even amid growing concerns about the recent spread of COVID-19 among young adults. Colleges received the guidance the same day that some institutions, including Harvard University, announced that all instruction will be offered remotely. (Binkley, 7/7)
The Washington Post:
International Students Must Take Classes In Person To Stay In The Country Legally This Fall, ICE Announces
University officials scrambled Monday to adapt to new federal guidance that does not allow international students to stay in the country if they are taking classes online only. It also left some students expressing fears on social media that they risked being suddenly deported. “Our institutions right now are struggling to figure out what the fall is going to look like, how best to serve their students, while keeping everybody safe,” said Sarah Spreitzer, director of government relations for the American Council on Education. “This is just going to make things more complicated." (Svrluga, 7/6)
Reuters:
U.S. Pandemic Aid Program Saved 51.1 Million Jobs, But Wealthy And Connected Also Benefited
The gallery of well-connected names extended deeply into the world of America’s privileged and super famous. Sidwell Friends School, an exclusive private school which educated former President Barack Obama’s daughters, was approved for between $5 million and $10 million, as was Saint Ann’s School in Brooklyn, which - with tuition exceeding $50,000 per year - is attended by the children of hedge fund managers and celebrities. (Price, Lawder and Delevingne, 7/6)
AP:
Kanye West? The Girl Scouts? Hedge Funds? All Got PPP Loans
The government’s small business lending program has benefited millions of companies, with the goal of minimizing the number of layoffs Americans have suffered in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Yet the recipients include many you probably wouldn’t have expected. Kanye West’s clothing line. The sculptor Jeff Koons. Law firms and high-dollar hedge funds. The Girl Scouts. Political groups on both the left and right. (Rugaber, 7/7)
AP:
Trump Donors Among Early Recipients Of Coronavirus Loans
As much as $273 million in federal coronavirus aid was awarded to more than 100 companies that are owned or operated by major donors to President Donald Trump’s election efforts, according to an Associated Press analysis of federal data. Many were among the first to be approved for a loan in early April, when the administration was struggling to launch the lending program. And only eight businesses had to wait until early May before securing the aid, according to the AP’s review of data released Monday. (Slodysko and Kastanis, 7/7)
Reuters:
Kanye West's Clothing Brand, Hollywood Production Companies On Pandemic Loan List
Ventures backed by big-name entertainers Kanye West and Francis Ford Coppola were among those approved for loans under a U.S. government program to help businesses survive the coronavirus pandemic, according to a list released on Monday. Billionaire rapper West’s clothing brand Yeezy received clearance for a loan of between $2 million and $5 million under the Paycheck Protection Program, the U.S. Small Business Administration said. The company said the loan would save 160 jobs, according to the SBA. (Richwine, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
Small Business Administration Releases Records On Paycheck Protection Program Loans
Data released Monday by the Small Business Administration shows that businesses owned by members of Congress and the law practice that represented President Trump were among the hundreds of thousands of firms that received aid from the agency. As part of its $660 billion small-business relief program, the SBA also handed out loans to private schools catering to elite clientele, firms owned by foreign companies and large chains backed by well-heeled Wall Street firms. Nearly 90,000 companies in the program took the aid without promising on their applications they would rehire workers or create jobs. (O'Connell, Gregg, Rich, Narayanswamy and Whoriskey, 7/6)
Reuters:
Dozens Of Expensive Private Schools Received Millions In U.S. Pandemic Loans
At least six dozen expensive private schools, including one where former President Barack Obama’s children studied, got between $42 million and $104.25 million in loans under a U.S. program meant to help small businesses weather the coronavirus crisis. Other recipients include the Miami Country Day School, which received up to $5 million, and the Aspen Country Day School, which received $650,000. Their tuition is in the $30,000-$37,000 range. (Conlin and Pell, 7/6)
AP:
Virus Loans Helped Entities Tied To Trump Evangelical Allies
Churches connected to President Donald Trump and other organizations linked to current or former Trump evangelical advisers received at least $17.3 million in loans from a federal rescue package designed to aid small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. Those receiving loans include City of Destiny, the Florida church that Trump’s personal pastor and White House faith adviser Paula White-Cain calls home, and First Baptist Dallas, led by Trump ally and senior pastor Robert Jeffress. City of Destiny got between $150,000 and $350,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP, and First Baptist Dallas got between $2 million and $5 million, according to data released by the Treasury Department on Monday. (Schor, 7/7)
The New York Times:
Lobbyists, Law Firms And Trade Groups Took Small-Business Loans
The Trump administration, under pressure to reveal which companies received loans from a $660 billion program intended to keep small businesses afloat, on Monday released data showing that restaurants, medical offices and car dealerships ranked high among the top loan recipients. (Smialek, Tankersley and Broadwater, 7/6)
Stat:
Lobbyists Tied To Trump Represent Pharma Companies Working On Covid-19
More than a dozen companies developing Covid-19 vaccines, therapies or diagnostics — including several of the largest drug makers —are represented by lobbyists connected to President Trump, according to an analysis by Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy group. The lobbyists are among more than three dozen influence peddlers who are connected to the president through his campaigns, inaugural committee, presidential transition team, or his administration, and who are seeking government approval of client products and Covid-related aid from various programs. (Silverman, 7/6)
The Wall Street Journal:
Candidates Confront 2020 Election Campaigns Remade By Coronavirus
Politicians trying to campaign during the coronavirus pandemic are confronting the risks of courting voters in person and relying on newer, less-proven online operations that are fit for social distancing. The coronavirus lockdown forced campaigns online at an accelerated clip this spring, resulting in a flood of live-streamed candidate meet-and-greets, fundraisers via videoconference and virtual volunteer training sessions by Republicans and Democrats alike. (Glazer and Jamerson, 7/6)
The Hill:
McConnell Predicts Congress Will Need Fifth Coronavirus Bill
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Monday that he believes there will be a fifth coronavirus relief bill, as the country sees an uptick in the number of cases. "We will be taking a look at — in the Senate in a couple of weeks — another package based on the conditions that we confront today," McConnell said in Louisville, Ky. McConnell added on the potential for a fifth coronavirus bill that "I believe there will be one." (Carney, 7/6)
Politico:
Rep. Bill Pascrell Expected To Recover After Undergoing Heart Surgery On Sunday
Rep. Bill Pascrell underwent heart surgery on Sunday to relieve blocked arteries, days before New Jersey’s primary election. The 83-year-old New Jersey Democrat wrote on Twitter that he was feeling much better and is expected to completely recover. (Cohen, 7/6)
AP:
Medicare Nursing Home COVID Site Leaves Users 'In The Dark'
When the Trump administration required nursing homes to report their COVID-19 cases, it also promised to make the data available to residents, families and the public in a user-friendly way. But some facilities that have had coronavirus cases and deaths turn up as having none on Medicare’s COVID-19 nursing home website. Those data may be incomplete because the reporting requirements don’t reach back to the start of the pandemic. Numbers don’t necessarily portray the full picture. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 7/7)
AP:
NY Count: 6,300 Virus Patients Were Sent To Nursing Homes
New York hospitals released more than 6,300 recovering coronavirus patients into nursing homes during the height of the pandemic under a controversial, now-scrapped policy, state officials said Monday, but they argued it was not to blame for one of the nation’s highest nursing home death tolls. Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration, which has taken intense criticism over the policy, instead contended the virus’ rampant spread through the state’s nursing homes was propelled by more than 20,000 infected home staffers, many of whom kept going to work unaware they had the virus in March and April. Another 17,500 workers were infected through early June. (Villeneuve and Peltz, 7/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
Hospitals Struggle To Contain Covid-19 Spread Inside Their Walls
The University of Illinois Hospital in Chicago thought it was ready when the pandemic reached its emergency room in early March. Staff wearing protective gear whisked the first coronavirus patient into isolation, allowing the hospital to stay open for urgent operations. “We have response plans in place to minimize any continued risk to patients, staff or students,” the university said in a campuswide letter. (Gold and Evans, 7/6)
USA Today:
Despite COVID-19 Increase, Insurance Companies To Pull Back Telehealth
Cynthia Peeters' stomach started hurting in mid-February as COVID-19 began dominating the news. By April, the pain was overwhelming, but she was too anxious about the virus to go to the doctor. Her gastroenterologist did a cellphone video visit with her and suggested a diet change. When it got worse last month, Dr. Christopher Ramos did another video call and told Peeters to come in for a colonoscopy. The diagnosis: Colon cancer, caught just in time. (O'Donnell and Alltucker, 7/3)
AP:
The Latest: Young People Most Of Arizona's Confirmed Cases
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Arizona has now surpassed 100,000 and younger people, not the elderly, have comprised more than half of them, state health officials said Monday.The Department of Health Services said in a statement that more than 62,000 of the 101,441 reported cases involve people younger than 44. (7/7)
Los Angeles Times:
'Young Invincibles' Increasingly Infected By Coronavirus, Newsom Says
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday that the surge in coronavirus cases hitting California was due in part to younger people who might believe “they are invincible” but nonetheless are becoming sick from COVID-19. These are younger adults — who Newsom called “the young invincibles” — who are testing positive for the disease, a trend that has become apparent as the economy has reopened and working-aged adults return to work and had resumed social gatherings. (Lin II, Shalby, Kambhampati and Lee, 7/6)
CIDRAP:
Older People As Unwilling As Youth To Isolate During Pandemic
A survey of 72,417 adults in 27 countries, including the United States, suggests that, despite their increased risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes, people older than 60 years are no more willing to comply with infection-prevention measures than younger people. The results, published late last week in PLOS One, involved a 16-question Imperial College London and YouGov poll. It asked respondents if they would isolate themselves for 7 days if they felt unwell and had certain symptoms of COVID-19 or if they would do so if urged to by a healthcare or public health professional. It also asked how often they had taken infection-prevention measures such as handwashing, avoiding public transportation, and cleaning often-touched surfaces. (Beusekom, 7/6)
Reuters:
U.S. EPA Approves Use Of Lysol Disinfectant Spray Against COVID-19
UK-based Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc said on Tuesday that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved use of its Lysol Disinfectant Spray against COVID-19. The U.S. EPA said in a statement that the agency had approved two products, Lysol Disinfectant Spray and Lysol Disinfectant Max Cover Mist, based on laboratory testing that showed the products were effective against COVID-19. (7/6)
The New York Times:
A New Generation Of Coronavirus Tests Is Coming. Here's What To Expect.
Researchers around the world are working on the next generation of coronavirus tests that give answers in less than an hour, without onerous equipment or highly trained personnel. The latest so-called point-of-care tests, which could be done in a doctor’s office or even at home, would be a welcome upgrade from today’s status quo: uncomfortable swabs that snake up the nose and can take several days to produce results. (Wu, 7/6)
The New York Times:
Months Into Virus Crisis, U.S. Cities Still Lack Testing Capacity
In the early months of the nation’s outbreak, testing posed a significant problem, as supplies fell far short and officials raced to understand how to best handle the virus. Since then, the United States has vastly ramped up its testing capability, conducting nearly 15 million tests in June, about three times as many as it had in April. But in recent weeks, as cases have surged in many states, the demand for testing has soared, surpassing capacity and creating a new testing crisis. (Mervosh and Fernandez, 7/6)
CNN:
US Coronavirus: Contact Tracing Is No Longer Possible Across The South Due To Rapid Coronavirus Surges, Health Expert Says
Despite hopes for relief this summer, the US is battling the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic -- so much so that across the South and Southwest contact tracing is no longer possible, according to a health expert. "The cases are rising so rapidly, that we cannot even do contact tracing anymore. I don't see how it's possible to even do that," Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of tropical medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, told CNN's Anderson Cooper Monday. (Holcombe, 7/7)
Politico:
Early Covid-19 Tracking Apps Easy Prey For Hackers, And It Might Get Worse Before It Gets Better
The push to use smartphone apps to track the spread of coronavirus is creating a potential jackpot for hackers worldwide — and the U.S. offers a fat, loosely defended target. In the Qatar Covid-19 app, researchers found a vulnerability that would’ve let hackers obtain more than a million people’s national ID numbers and health status. In India’s app, a researcher discovered a security gap that allowed him to determine who was sick in individual homes. And researchers uncovered seven security flaws in a pilot app in the U.K. (Starks, 7/6)
The New York Times:
In Nick Cordero’s Death, A Reminder Of Covid-19’s Unknowns
The death of the Broadway actor Nick Cordero from Covid-19 has shaken people far beyond the theater world, in large part because he was just 41 and reportedly had no underlying health conditions. Medical experts said that Mr. Cordero’s death underscored a multitude of unknowns about the coronavirus — including the ways it could imperil even young, healthy people who did not appear to be at increased risk of contracting severe disease. (Wu, 7/6)
The New York Times:
Airborne Coronavirus: What You Should Do Now
The coronavirus can stay aloft for hours in tiny droplets in stagnant air, infecting people as they inhale, mounting scientific evidence suggests. This risk is highest in crowded indoor spaces with poor ventilation, and may help explain super-spreading events reported in meatpacking plants, churches and restaurants. (Mandavilli, 7/6)
Stat:
The Pandemic Has Exacerbated An Under-The-Radar Health Disparity: Period Poverty
Period poverty isn’t new: Menstrual hygiene products aren’t covered by national food stamp programs and are subject to sales tax in 30 states, excluded from the list of essential items exempt from taxes like food and medication. But the coronavirus pandemic and the economic downturn that followed have only exacerbated the problem, leaving marginalized populations who were already struggling to afford menstrual products at even more of a loss. (Gaffney, 7/7)
The Washington Post:
When One Pandemic Disrupts Another: The Story Of The Coronavirus And HIV
More than 20,000 HIV specialists, patients and activists convened Monday for their worldwide conference, a meeting held this year in the shadow of another virus that causes a deadly new disease with global reach. The novel coronavirus has disrupted two years of planning. Instead of highlights and challenges, the talk now is of locked-down people with HIV who cannot get treatment, preventive medication or even testing, of lost wages and health insurance. For the physicians and scientists still exploring therapies and a vaccine for AIDS four decades on, some research is threatened or postponed, their patients hunkered down at home. (Bernstein, 7/6)
The Hill:
Jonathan Sackler, Co-Owner Of Embattled OxyContin Maker Purdue Pharma, Dead At 65
Jonathan Sackler, the co-owner of embattled OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma, died at age 65 last week, the company confirmed to The Hill on Monday. He died on June 30 of cancer, a court filing read, according to The Associated Press. The co-owner was the son of Raymond Sackler, one of the brothers who bought the company in 1952 when it was called Purdue Frederick. (Coleman, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
Mildew In The Toilet May Indicate Someone Has Diabetes
People with diabetes cannot process glucose properly, causing urine to have excess sugar — an ideal food for mildew. (Huber, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
The Big Number: 795,000 People A Year Have A Stroke In The U.S.
Every 40 seconds, on average, someone in the United States has a stroke — amounting to 795,000 people a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most strokes, 80 percent or more, occur when blood flow to the brain is blocked by a clot. Known as an ischemic stroke, it results in brain cells not getting needed oxygen and nutrients, which causes the cells to start dying within minutes. (Searing, 7/6)
Stat:
Immunomedics' Breast Cancer Drug Delays Tumor Growth, Prolongs Survival
Immunomedics reported clinical trial results Monday showing its newly approved medicine, Trodelvy, reduced the risk of tumor progression or death by 59% compared to chemotherapy in patients with an aggressive type of metastatic breast cancer. Trodelvy also prolonged overall survival in the same patients, although the magnitude of the survival benefit is being withheld for now so the data can be presented at a later medical meeting, the company said. (Feuerstein, 7/6)
Stat:
J&J Lowers Price Of A TB Drug In Many Poor Countries, But Is It Enough?
After protracted criticism over its pricing for a game-changing tuberculosis medicine, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is lowering the price as part of a larger incentive scheme designed to increase usage in dozens of low and middle-income countries, but the effort was met with a mixed reaction. The health care giant is dropping the price for Sirturo by 15%, from $400 to $340 for a six-month treatment course, for more than 130 countries that are eligible to purchase the tablet through the STOP TB Partnership, a collective created by the United Nations that administers a global fund for distributing TB drugs. However, the cost could drop still more depending upon quantities that are purchased. (Silverman, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
After Covid-19, A Perdue Poultry Plant Worker Fears A Return To Work In Delaware
The poultry plant worker pulled into the clinic's parking lot to find it full of people in face masks. Some sat quietly in their cars while others paced the gravel anxiously. But all of their eyes were fixed on the white clapboard building in front of them. The low-slung structure had once been a church. Now its gabled roof offered another kind of salvation. (Miller, 7/6)
NPR:
U.N. Predicts Rise In Diseases That Jump From Animals To Humans
A new United Nations report warns that more diseases that pass from animals to humans, such as COVID-19, are likely to emerge as habitats are ravaged by wildlife exploitation, unsustainable farming practices and climate change. These pathogens, known as zoonotic diseases, also include Ebola, MERS, HIV/AIDS and West Nile virus. They have increasingly emerged due to stresses humans have placed on animal habitats, according to the U.N. Environment Program report Preventing the Next Pandemic: Zoonotic diseases and how to break the chain of transmission, released on Monday. (Neuman, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
Evictions Likely To Skyrocket This Summer As Jobs Remain Scarce. Black Renters Will Be Hardest Hit.
A backlog of eviction cases is beginning to move through the court system as millions of Americans who had counted on federal aid and eviction moratoriums to stay in their homes now fear being thrown out. A crisis among renters is expected to deepen this month as the enhanced unemployment benefits that have kept many afloat run out at the end of July and the $1,200-per-adult stimulus payment that had supported households earlier in the crisis becomes a distant memory. (Merle, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
MLB's Restart Upended By Coronavirus Testing Delays
As if Major League Baseball’s degree of difficulty in attempting to launch a 2020 season this summer amid a global pandemic was not already high enough, a critical apparatus underpinning the endeavor — the novel coronavirus testing program designed to prevent large outbreaks — has shown signs of failing just days into the opening of training camps. The Washington Nationals and Houston Astros, last year’s World Series participants, chose to cancel workouts Monday after having failed to receive results from coronavirus tests administered Friday — which they had expected to receive by Sunday. The St. Louis Cardinals also canceled their workout later Monday over testing delays, and the Oakland Athletics were waiting on test results before deciding whether to work out Monday evening. (Sheinin, 7/6)
AP:
MLB Releases Pandemic-Shortened Schedule Amid Testing Delays
Major League Baseball released its pandemic-shortened schedule Monday, featuring a tantalizing season opener between the New York Yankees and World Series champion Washington Nationals, even as some teams were still bogged down by coronavirus concerns. By the time MLB revealed each team’s 60-game slate Monday evening, the Nationals and Houston Astros — last year’s pennant winners — had canceled workouts because of COVID-19 testing delays that one executive worried could endanger the season. The St. Louis Cardinals also scrubbed their practice for the same reason. (Wilson, 7/7)
AP:
NHL, Players Announce Labor Deal, Plan To Resume Play Aug. 1
The NHL is in position to resume playing in less than a month — with 24 teams in action, all in Canada — and could be on the verge of enjoying labor peace through 2026. The National Hockey League and the NHL Players’ Association on Monday announced a tentative deal on a return-to-play format and a memorandum of understanding on a four-year extension of the collective bargaining agreement. (Wawrow and Whyno, 7/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
The Bank Drive-Through Makes A Covid Comeback
Even Brody, a Labrador retriever, is a new fan of the customer drive-through at the local Fifth Third Bancorp branch just north of Cincinnati. After the bank closed its lobbies during the pandemic, Brody’s owner, Julie Phillippi-Whitney, switched to the drive-through lane for her public-relations business, putting checks into cylinders that travel via pneumatic tube from the driver’s side of her car to a teller inside. (McCaffrey, 7/6)
The New York Times:
‘It’s Got To Stop’: Atlanta’s Mayor Decries A Surge Of Violence As A Girl Is Killed
Activists with Black Lives Matter had a vision for what the scorched remains of a Wendy’s restaurant could become: the Rayshard Brooks Peace Center, a gathering place in Atlanta with job training, counseling and youth programs that would be a living memorial named for the man whose fatal encounter with the police transformed the fast-food eatery into the heart of the city’s turmoil. But the lofty aspirations have been clouded by continuing violence. On Saturday, an 8-year-old girl, Secoriea Turner, was gunned down, the authorities said, after an armed group stopped her family’s car nearby. (Rojas, 7/6)
NPR:
Georgia Governor Calls Up National Guard, Declares State Of Emergency Due To Violence
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is activating up to 1,000 National Guard troops after a spate of shootings and protests in Atlanta over the weekend. Five people died, including an 8-year-old girl, and at least 30 people were injured. The Republican governor issued an executive order Monday that would send the National Guard to protect the state Capitol, the Governor's Mansion and the Department of Public Safety's headquarters, where close to 100 demonstrators set fire to part of the building early Sunday morning. (Fowler, 7/6)
The New York Times:
64 Shot, 10 Dead: Spike in Gun Violence Alarms An On-Edge N.Y.C.
A young father crossing a Bronx street, holding hands with his 6-year-old daughter. A 15-year-old who refused to talk to the police in Manhattan. A man in a Staten Island public housing complex, found prone in his apartment. They were among 64 people shot in a surge of shootings over the weekend in New York City, the police said. Ten of those shot lost their lives, including the young father and the Staten Island man — a wave of summertime violence that has given renewed urgency to a gun violence crisis that had been overshadowed this year by the coronavirus pandemic and by unrest over police racism and brutality. (Southall, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
Major U.S. Cities, Gripped With Crisis, Now Face Spike In Shootings, Including Of Children
As the nation faces a pandemic, financial catastrophe and massive social justice protests, it is suddenly also confronting a spike in violence in some of its major cities. Tragedies struck in urban centers thousands of miles apart, with 65 people shot over the weekend in New York and 87 in Chicago, and homicides climbing from Miami to Milwaukee. Though the summer months in the United States often augur more violence, the recent toll has been particularly devastating in communities where the victims included young children. (Berman, Jacobs, B. Guarino and M. Guarino, 7/6)
Politico:
Stark Racial Disparities Emerge As Families Struggle To Get Enough Food
Nearly four in 10 Black and Hispanic households with children are struggling to feed their families during the coronavirus pandemic — a dramatic spike that is exacerbating racial inequities and potentially threatening the health of millions of young Americans. The percentage of families who are considered food insecure has surged across all groups and is already much higher than during the depths of the Great Recession, according to new research by economists at Northwestern University based on Census Bureau data. (Bottemiller Evich, 7/6)
The New York Times:
Reopening N.Y.C. Schools Safely: A Huge Challenge
Mayor Bill de Blasio plans to reopen New York’s public schools in September, but students will almost certainly not return to classrooms five days a week, and they will probably have staggered schedules to fulfill social-distancing requirements. That could mean that the city’s 1.1 million students physically attend school a few times a week, or one week out of every two or even three, and continue their classes online the rest of the time. Math and English classes could be held in cafeterias or gyms, where there is room to spread out. Students may be asked to keep their distance from one another in once-boisterous hallways and schoolyards. (Shapiro, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
A Tuition Break, Half-Empty Campuses And Home-Testing Kits: More Top Colleges Announce Fall Plans
Princeton University announced Monday it will cut tuition 10 percent in the coming school year and bring no more than half its undergraduates to the campus in New Jersey, an extraordinary acknowledgment of how the coronavirus pandemic has hobbled the operations of a school that aims to provide education through experiences inside and outside of the classroom. “We do believe that being immersed in a learning environment matters,” Christopher L. Eisgruber, Princeton’s president, said. The discount from the previously announced rate will set tuition at about $48,500. (Anderson, 7/6)
The Hill:
Florida Orders All Schools To Open Next Month Despite Surging COVID-19 Cases
Florida's government has ordered all public schools to reopen for in-person instruction in the fall and laid out requirements schools must meet if they wish to provide remote learning. The Tallahassee Democrat reported Monday that the edict was issued by the state's education commissioner, Richard Corcoran. Local health officials can override his decision based on the rate of new coronavirus cases in their counties. “All school boards and charter school governing boards must open brick and mortar schools in August at least five days per week for all students," Corocoran said, according to the newspaper. (Bowden, 7/6)
AP:
Florida's Largest County Limits Restaurants As Virus Spikes
Florida’s largest county is again severely limiting its restaurants and fully closing gyms and other indoor venues weeks after they reopened because a spike in coronavirus cases is creating a shortage of intensive care unit beds at its hospitals. (Spencer and Gomez Licon, 7/7)
Reuters:
Miami Rolls Back Restaurant Dining As U.S. Coronavirus Deaths Top 130,000
Florida’s greater Miami area became the latest U.S. coronavirus hot spot to roll back its reopening, ordering restaurant dining closed on Monday as COVID-19 cases surged nationwide by the tens of thousands and the U.S. death toll topped 130,000. (7/6)