First Edition: March 1, 2021

KHN: ‘Into The Covid ICU’: A New Doctor Bears Witness To The Isolation, Inequities Of Pandemic 
This week marks a grim milestone: Half a million Americans have died of covid-19. KHN reporter Jenny Gold, in collaboration with Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, spent eight months following one first-year medical resident working on the front lines of the pandemic. Dr. Paloma Marin-Nevarez graduated from the Stanford University medical school in June, right before the virus began its second major surge. She’s one of more than 30,000 new doctors who started residencies in 2020. Just weeks after graduating, Marin-Nevarez began training as an ER doctor at Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno, one of the areas in California hardest hit by the pandemic. (Gold, 3/1)

KHN: Black Churches Fill A Unique Role In Combating Vaccine Fears 
In the hospital with covid-19 in December, Lavina Wafer tired of the tubes in her nose and wondered impatiently why she couldn’t be discharged. A phone call with her pastor helped her understand that the tube was piping in lifesaving oxygen, which had to be slowly tapered to protect her. Now that Wafer, 70, is well and back home in Richmond, California, she’s looking to her pastor for advice about the covid vaccines. Though she doubts they’re as wonderful as the government claims, she plans to get vaccinated anyway — because of his example. (Almendrala, 3/1)

KHN: When Your Chance For A Covid Shot Comes, Don’t Worry About The Numbers 
When getting vaccinated against covid-19, there’s no sense being picky. You should take the first authorized vaccine that’s offered, experts say. The newest covid vaccine on the horizon, from Johnson & Johnson, is probably a little less effective at preventing sickness than the two shots already being administered around the U.S., from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. On Saturday, the Food and Drug Administration authorized the Johnson & Johnson vaccine after reporting it showed about 66% effectiveness at preventing covid illness in a 45,000-person trial. No one who received the vaccine was hospitalized with or died of the disease, according to the data released by the company and FDA. As many as 4 million doses could be shipped out of J&J’s warehouses beginning this week. (Allen and Szabo, 2/28)

KHN: Connecticut Is Doling Out Vaccines Based Strictly On Age. It’s Simpler, But Is It Fair? 
With covid vaccines expected to remain scarce into early spring, Connecticut has scrapped its complicated plans to prioritize immunizations for people under 65 with certain chronic conditions and front-line workers. Instead, the state will primarily base eligibility on age. Gov. Ned Lamont pointed to statistics showing the risk of death and hospitalization from covid-19 rises significantly by age. Yet, shifting to an age-based priority system — after health workers, nursing home patients and people 65 and up have been offered vaccines — has frustrated people with health conditions such as cancer or diabetes who thought they would be next in line. (Galewitz and Heredia Rodriguez, 3/1)

KHN: Becerra Has Long Backed Single-Payer. That Doesn’t Mean It Will Happen If He’s HHS Secretary. 
A digital ad running in Georgia and New Hampshire says Xavier Becerra, President Joe Biden’s nominee for Health and Human Services secretary, supports “Medicare for All.” “Becerra supports Bernie’s government takeover of your health care, eliminating your employer-provided coverage,” the narrator says. The ad, funded by the campaign PAC of Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), is part of a blitz from conservative groups against Becerra’s confirmation. It first aired last week and will continue until the Senate’s confirmation vote. The gritty, foreboding ad includes a range of other attacks, including criticisms of California’s covid-19 response and Becerra’s role in legal cases on reproductive rights. (Knight, 3/1)

KHN: Looking To Kentucky’s Past To Understand Montana Health Nominee’s Future
The nominee to be Montana’s next health director faced an unwieldy disease outbreak and pushed Medicaid work requirements — two issues looming in Montana — when he held a similar job in Kentucky. Montana senators will soon decide whether to confirm Adam Meier, Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte’s pick for director of the state Department of Public Health and Human Services. He would earn $165,000 leading Montana’s largest state agency, which oversees 13 divisions and is a leader in the state’s pandemic response. (Houghton and Ungar, 3/1)

ABC News: US Begins Rollout Of Johnson & Johnson Coronavirus Vaccine 
Johnson & Johnson will ship the first batch of its coronavirus vaccine to states and pharmacies on Monday, just two days after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave Emergency Use Authorization. The pharmaceutical company said it planned to roll out 3.9 million doses to state and local governments based on the size of the local adult population as well as federal distribution sites and select pharmacies. Unlike the vaccines developed by Moderna and Pfizer, which require two doses for full immunization, the J&J vaccines only need one dose, according to the FDA. (Pereira, 3/1)

NBC News: J&J Covid-19 Vaccine Distribution To Begin Immediately
The first shots of Johnson & Johnson's coronavirus vaccine could be administered as early as Tuesday, senior Biden administration officials said Sunday. The drugmaker, which got sign off over the weekend for emergency use of its vaccine from both the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is expected to deliver 4 million shots this week. (Edwards, 2/28)

Stat: J&J Covid-19 Vaccine To Start Shipping, Early Supply Will Be Uneven
Health care providers will begin receiving the first 3.9 million doses of Johnson & Johnson’s newly authorized Covid-19 vaccine as early as Tuesday morning, though supply will be uneven in the coming weeks, senior Biden administration officials said. The first shipments account for the entirety of J&J’s current inventory. Officials expect another 16 million doses to be available by the end of March, though J&J told the federal government that the doses will be delivered mostly toward the second half of the month. (Cohrs, 2/28)

AP: First US J&J Vaccine Doses Shipping Sunday Night
Nearly 4 million doses of the newest COVID-19 vaccine will be shipped Sunday night, and will begin to be delivered to states for injections starting on Tuesday. The White House said the entire stockpile of the newly approved single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine will go out immediately. J&J will deliver about 16 million more doses by the end of March and 100 million total by the end of June, but the distribution would be backloaded. (3/1)

The New York Times: Supplies Of Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Will Be Limited At First, Officials Warn
One day after federal regulators authorized Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use, senior Biden administration officials warned Sunday that the supply of the new vaccine would be highly uneven for the next month. In an effort to lower expectations that the authorization of a third Covid vaccine will mean a steady new stream of doses, the officials said that the company will deliver 3.9 million shots this week but none the week after. The officials were speaking in an organized briefing with reporters but refused to be quoted by name. (LaFraniere, 2/28)

CNBC: Fauci: All Three Covid Vaccines Highly Effective, Urges People To Take Available Shot
White House Chief Medical Advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Sunday he would take the newly approved Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine and urged Americans to take whichever shot is available when they are eligible. (Newburger, 2/28)

CBS News: Gottlieb Says Americans "Should Be Confident" About Taking Johnson & Johnson Vaccine 
Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the former head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), said Americans should be "confident" about taking the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson, with millions of doses set to join the fight against the coronavirus in the coming days. "There is more and more evidence that these vaccines are preventing transmission of infection, which makes them an even more important public health tool," Gottlieb said in an interview on "Face the Nation." "I think people should be confident about taking it. And it will be in the market this week." (Hayes, 2/28)

CNBC: J&J: 2 People Had Severe Allergic Reactions After Getting Covid Vaccine
Two trial participants suffered severe allergic reactions shortly after getting Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine, a J&J scientist told an FDA panel on Friday. J&J was first informed on Wednesday about the allergic reactions, Macaya Douoguih, head of clinical development and medical affairs for J&J’s vaccines division Janssen, told the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee. (Lovelace Jr., 2/26)

Bay Area News Group: Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Is A Game Changer For Hard-To-Reach Communities
From the isolated ranch towns of the eastern Sierra to the immigrant communities of San Jose and other cities, California’s health experts eagerly await the arrival of Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose COVID-19 vaccine, saying it will expand supplies and boost access for the state’s most hard-to-reach residents. “It’s like having a gun with 10 bullets in it — and now I have 10 more. That’s a better gun,” said Frank Laiacona, director of pharmacy for the rural Northern Inyo Health Care District, home to Mount Whitney and Death Valley, where residents may drive up to 200 miles to get a shot. (Krieger, 2/26)

CNBC: Fauci: Covid Vaccine For Elementary School Children Likely Coming In 2022
Elementary school-aged children will likely be able to receive Covid-19 vaccinations early next year, Dr. Anthony Fauci predicted on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. Fauci, the government’s leading epidemiologist, said that there are studies already underway studying vaccine safety for younger children. (Higgins, 2/28)

Axios: Fauci: Children "Very Likely" To Get COVID Vaccine At Start Of 2022 
Children under age 12 will "very likely" be able to get vaccinated for coronavirus at the "earliest the end of the year, and very likely the first quarter of 2022," NIAID Director Anthony Fauci told "Meet the Press" Sunday. (Allassan, 2/28)

Fox News: Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Trial In Kids Ages 12 To 17 Hits Full Enrollment
Moderna has completed enrollment for a Phase 2/3 study of its COVID-19 vaccine in adolescents ages 12 to 17. In an update posted Thursday, the company said it had completed enrollment "of 3,000 participants." The company has previously predicted that it will have results ahead of the upcoming school year. The two-dose jab received emergency use authorization in December for individuals ages 18 and older. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, also a two-dose jab, was approved weeks earlier for use in individuals 16 and older. Johnson & Johnson submitted an EUA request for use of its one-shot vaccine in individuals 18 years and older, with the decision pending. (Hein, 2/27)

Stat: ‘We’re Not There Yet’: Biden Officials Issue Somber Warning About Uptick In Covid-19 Cases
Biden administration officials on Friday warned of a “very concerning” uptick in Covid-19 cases this week, urging Americans not to let down their guard despite an ongoing vaccination campaign and case rates that are substantially lower than their peak last month. (Facher, 2/26)

CBS News: Fauci Warns Against Complacency As COVID-19 Cases Begin To Plateau Despite Vaccine 
Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Biden, warned Sunday that Americans shouldn't get complacent about following mitigation measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus, as the number of new cases is leveling off despite more Americans receiving vaccines. "We don't want to continue to prevent people from doing what they want to do. But let's get down to a good level," Fauci said in an interview on "Face the Nation." "Let's get many, many more people vaccinated. And then you could pull back on those types of public health measures. But right now, as we're going down and plateauing, is not the time to declare victory because we're not victorious yet." (Quinn, 2/28)

Fox News: UK Coronavirus Variant Now Accounts For 10% Of US Cases, CDC Director Says
The coronavirus variant first detected in the U.K. late last year now accounts for up to 10% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., officials said Friday. The 10% marks an uptick in prevalence, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said. Just a few weeks ago, the variant accounted for about 1-4% of illnesses, she added. Officials had previously predicted the B.1.1.7 variant, estimated to be about 50% more transmissible than the wild strain first detected in the U.S., would become the dominant strain in the country by mid-March. Walensky said that the U.S. "may now be seeing the beginning effects" of the variants in the most recent data, which reflected an uptick in several seven-day averages. (Hein, 2/27)

CIDRAP: Sharing A Home Brings A 10% COVID-19 Risk After Exposure, Study Says
People who share a household with a member who has COVID-19 have a 10.1% risk of infection, according to a research letter published today in JAMA Network Open. The retrospective cohort study used electronic records from the Mass General Brigham health system to track 7,262 COVID-19 index cases and their 17,917 household contacts from Mar 4 to May 17, 2021. During the study period, 1,809 household members (10.1%) were diagnosed as having COVID-19 a median of 3 days after the index diagnosis. (2/26)

Politico: Biden Urges Senate To Take 'Quick Action' On Coronavirus Relief Package 
President Joe Biden on Saturday called for the Senate to quickly pass his $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, which the House approved early Saturday morning. “I hope it will receive quick action,” Biden said. “We have no time to waste. If we act now, decisively, quickly and boldly, we can finally get ahead of this virus, we can finally get our economy moving again and the people of this country have suffered far too much for too long. We need to relieve that suffering.” (Leonard, 2/27)

The Washington Post: Democrats Abandon $15 Minimum Wage Hike Backup Plan 
Senior Democrats are abandoning a backup plan to increase the minimum wage through a corporate tax penalty, after encountering numerous practical and political challenges in drafting their proposal over the weekend, according to two people familiar with the internal deliberations. On Thursday, the Senate parliamentarian said that the $15-an-hour minimum wage included in President Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus plan was inadmissible under the rules Democrats are using to pass the bill through the Senate. (Stein, 2/28)

CNBC: Covid Relief Bill May Trigger Cuts To Medicare, Student Loan Programs
A Covid relief bill backed by Democrats could trigger billions of dollars in cuts to Medicare and other federal programs, like ones that support unemployed workers and student-loan borrowers, if it’s ultimately passed. The funding cuts would take effect in 2022 and last for several years. (Iacurci, 2/27)

Roll Call: Medicare Fixes, Amtrak Boost In Draft Senate Aid Package 
Senate Democrats were honing a substitute amendment to the House-passed $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid package that chamber plans to take up this week, with one early version circulating that would add money for Amtrak, cybersecurity and Medicare payments for ambulance services and certain hospitals, among other changes. (Krawzak, 2/28)

AP: Fraud Overwhelms Pandemic-Related Unemployment Programs
With the floodgates set to open on another round of unemployment aid, states are being hammered with a new wave of fraud as they scramble to update security systems and block scammers who already have siphoned billions of dollars from pandemic-related jobless programs. The fraud is fleecing taxpayers, delaying legitimate payments and turning thousands of Americans into unwitting identity theft victims. Many states have failed to adequately safeguard their systems, and a review by The Associated Press finds that some will not even publicly acknowledge the extent of the problem. (Mulvihill and Welsh-Huggins, 3/1)

Axios: Scammers Seize On COVID Confusion 
The pandemic has created a prime opportunity for scammers to target people who are already confused about the chaotic rollouts of things like stimulus payments, loans, contact tracing and vaccines. Data shows that older people who aren't digitally literate are the most vulnerable. (Fischer and McGill, 2/28)

CNBC: Covid Symptom ‘Long Haulers’ Can See Lasting Financial Impact
It’s been 10 months since Laura Crovo has felt entirely normal. Since testing positive for Covid last April, the 41-year-old Marylander has yet to shake off all of her symptoms. And on top of battling them — mostly a racing heart (tachycardia), occasional fatigue and a lingering cough — she and her husband, parents of two children, are still paying off the thousands of dollars in debt that they racked up last year due to her persisting illness. (O'Brien, 2/28)

Becker's Hospital Review: Health Insurers Have To Cover COVID-19 Tests For Asymptomatic People, CMS Says
CMS issued a guidance Feb. 26 that requires group health plans to waive cost-sharing for COVID-19 testing even if a person doesn't have symptoms or a suspected exposure, among other requirements. ... The guidance clarifies that private group health plans generally can't use medical screening criteria to deny coverage for COVID-19 tests for asymptomatic members or those without a known exposure. (Haefner, 2/26)

Modern Healthcare: CMS: Group Health Plans Must Cover COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing
The Biden administration on Friday made clear that private group health plans and issuers cannot deny coverage or impose cost-sharing for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, regardless of whether the patient is experiencing symptoms or has been exposed to the virus. According to CMS, the new guidance should make it easier for people to access COVID-19 diagnostic testing. For instance, the agency said people can get tested for COVID-19 before visiting a family member and pay no additional out-of-pocket costs. The guidance also instructs providers on how to get reimbursed for diagnostic testing or administering COVID-19 vaccines to people without health coverage. (Brady, 2/26)

Axios: U.S. Sets Weekend Records For Daily COVID Vaccinations 
Just over 2.4 million coronavirus vaccinations were reported to the CDC on Sunday, matching Saturday's record-high for inoculations as seen in Bloomberg's vaccine tracker. (Rummier, 2/28)

CBS News: How The United States Plans To Increase The Pace Of COVID-19 Vaccinations 
As impressive as the scientific advancements have been, getting shots into people's arms has been plagued by bad weather, bad logistics and bad information. The Biden administration's coronavirus coordinator Jeff Zients, in his first television interview since taking the job, tells us there has been real progress over the past month on vaccine distribution. But with just over 50 million vaccine doses given since President Biden took office, the American public still needs patience. (Whitaker, 2/28)

The New York Times: In Quest For Herd Immunity, Giant Covid-19 Vaccination Sites Proliferate
The sites are one sign of growing momentum toward vaccinating every willing American adult. Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine won emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration on Saturday, and both Moderna and Pfizer have promised much larger weekly shipments of vaccines by early spring. In addition to using mass sites, President Biden wants pharmacies, community clinics that serve the poor and mobile vaccination units to play major roles in increasing the vaccination rate. (Goodnough, 2/28)

Axios: Most States Aren't Prioritizing Prisons For COVID Vaccines 
Jails and prisons have seen big outbreaks and a higher death rate than the general public, but with supplies still limited, most governors aren't putting prisoners at the top of the list for vaccines. (Fernandez, 3/1)

AP: Utah Cancels Vaccine Appointments After Registration Error
Utah is canceling about 7,200 coronavirus vaccine appointments after an error in the state health department’s registration website allowed people without qualifying conditions to register for the shots. Department spokesman Tom Hudachko said in a statement that the error allowed residents who are not 65 or older or who don’t have an underlying medical condition to sign up. (2/28)

NPR: Obesity Specialist Says BMI Is A 'Good Measure' For Vaccine Priority Group
Several cities across the country that count obesity as an underlying condition have opened COVID-19 vaccine appointments to people with a body mass index of 30 or higher — the medical benchmark for obesity. While BMI isn't a foolproof standard by which to assess potential health risk factors, obesity medicine physician Dr. Fatima Stanford told NPR, "overall, it's a good measure" in this case. It would be dangerous for people with obesity to not get vaccinated, she said, given that obesity is a risk factor for both severe illness and hospitalization from COVID-19. (Garcia-Navarro and Bowman, 2/28)

NBC News: Why Big Tech Isn't Dominating The Vaccine Rollout
As the nation takes on one of the largest logistical challenges in history with the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccination program, many Americans have asked why Big Tech can't run the operation. If Amazon can deliver a phone charger in two days, why can’t it use its logistical prowess to speedily vaccinate a nation? With all of the data that Google collects about its users, why can’t it track down and identify who needs a vaccination? That’s largely because when it comes to getting a phone charger delivered, a company like Amazon handles every step of the process, from taking the order to delivery. But when it comes to vaccine distribution, tech companies have learned they have far less control. The federal government is paying for the needed medication and is managing the supply to the states. Then, states, counties and corporations take over and figure out how to get vaccines into arms. So while Big Tech is certainly playing a role in the vaccine rollout, it’s not exactly how people may expect. (Farivar and Glaser, 2/27)

Bloomberg: Microsoft Says Vaccine Tools Have ‘Fallen Short’ After DC Snags
Widely-used Microsoft Corp. vaccine scheduling software that has run into difficulties in states like Iowa and New Jersey is being blamed for problems that left some residents of the nation’s capital unable to book appointments. After three straight days of issues with the District of Columbia’s online vaccination registration, the Redmond, Washington-based technology company released a statement along with the city government acknowledging “that our efforts have fallen short” and vowing to address the problems. “We understand the frustration of individuals who attempted to utilize the District’s vaccination appointment portal this week,” they said. “We are committed to address technical issues so that the vaccination appointment portal is properly functional and accessible.” (Natter and Bass, 2/28)

The Washington Post: Covid Vaccine Selfies Are Drawing Backlash
Given a shot at a coronavirus vaccine, many Americans say they would roll up their sleeves. But the decision to post a photo of the moment isn’t as black and white. People are divided over “vaccine selfie” etiquette. ... Some people despise the smiley selfies, as the virus that has killed more than 2.5 million people worldwide continues to take its toll. And most Americans who want to be vaccinated still are unable to get a dose. (Kornfield, 2/27)

The Wall Street Journal: Covid-19 Vaccines Yield Breakthroughs In Long-Term Fight Against Infectious Disease 
The pandemic has opened a new era for vaccines developed with gene-based technologies, techniques that have long stumped scientists and pharmaceutical companies, suggesting the possibility of future protection against a range of infectious disease. Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine, which was authorized Saturday for use in the U.S., is at the vanguard of a class of shots designed to mobilize a person’s immune defenses against the disease. It will be the first Covid-19 vaccine administered in the U.S. that uses viral-vector technology, which employs an engineered cold virus to ferry coronavirus-fighting genetic code to the body’s cells. (Loftus, 2/28)

CNN: Travel Nurses Deal With Stress, Loneliness And Mistrust While Serving As A Covid-19 Rapid Deployment System 
After another workday marked by unimaginable death, Veronica O'Kane would return to a hotel room -- empty except for the dumbbell she brought from home. The travel nurse from Ontario, Canada, took a contract in Maryland to provide support to a hospital struggling under the demands of the coronavirus pandemic. Isolated, to keep herself and her patients safe, O'Kane spent the time she wasn't tending to critical care coronavirus patients working out alone in her hotel room or calling her loved ones to cry. (Holcombe, 3/1)

Crain's New York Business: New York State Nurses Association Report Finds Over 26,000 Nurse Understaffing Complaints Filed In 2019 And 2020
Nurses filed 26,219 complaints to hospital and nursing home managers about understaffing in 2019 and 2020, according to numbers released Wednesday by the New York State Nurses Association. With multiple signatories on each complaint, there were 97,715 nurse signatures total, the data showed. NYSNA receives a copy when such "protests of assignment" are filed, and the numbers are tracked and reported annually, a spokesman said. "Both before and during the pandemic, understaffing at our public hospitals has been severe and puts patients in jeopardy," said Judith Cutchin, NYSNA board member and president of the union's NYC Health + Hospitals/Mayorals executive council. "This condition in our hospitals continues today, and our nurses must care for far too many patients." (Sim, 2/26)

The Wall Street Journal: When Covid-19 Hit, Mayo Clinic Had To Rethink Its Technology
Mayo Clinic, like many health providers, has been pushed to its limits by the Covid-19 pandemic. Its intensive-care units were often filled to or near capacity in 2020. And while doctors throughout the health system rushed to find ways to care for the wave of sick patients infected by the new virus, many of the medical and support staff were being sent home to work remotely. The information-technology team led by Mayo Clinic Chief Information Officer Cris Ross faced immense challenges. Practically overnight, remote, secure and fast access to multiple systems had to be provided to thousands of workers, including doctors. The influx of Covid patients, meanwhile, needed to be able to communicate with the outside world while being kept in isolation. And it all had to be done on the fly. Adapting the healthcare system’s networks and building new tools to meet these demands required planning, decisions and execution at speeds undreamed of a short time before. (McCormick, 2/21)

NBC News: Inside 'Post-Covid' Clinics: How Specialized Centers Are Trying To Treat Long-Haulers
As the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. appears to be turning a corner, another health crisis is brewing: Covid-19 survivors struggling to bounce back to their former selves. Of the more than 28 million Americans diagnosed with Covid-19, an estimated 10 to 30 percent — possibly as many as 8.4 million people — fall into the category commonly known as "long-haulers." (Edwards, 3/1)

Axios: FDA Approves Device Intended To Reduce Traumatic Brain Injuries 
The Food and Drug Administration authorized a device called the "Q-Collar" that may help reduce the risk of traumatic brain injuries "associated with repetitive sub-concussive head impacts" sustained during sports. (Knutson, 2/27)

Stat: Cigna's Evernorth To Acquire Telehealth Company MDLive 
Riding a wave of pandemic-fueled momentum for virtual care, Cigna subsidiary Evernorth is acquiring telehealth provider MDLive, the companies announced Friday. The news marks a significant strategic pivot for MDLive — which had at one point planned to go public at the start of the year — and reflects broader shifts in the virtual care landscape as the public stage for telehealth companies grows increasingly crowded. (Brodwin, 2/26)

The Washington Post: Even Occasional Smokers Are 27 Percent More Likely Than Nonsmokers To Suffer A Certain Type Of Stroke 
People who smoke even occasionally are more likely than nonsmokers to have a serious type of stroke caused by a ruptured blood vessel — 27 percent more likely if they smoke up to 20 packs a year, according to research published in the journal Stroke. The average American smoker, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, smokes 14 cigarettes daily, which means about 255 packs a year. The type of stroke examined by the researchers, known as a subarachnoid hemorrhage, occurs when a weakened blood vessel ruptures and bleeds into the space between a person’s brain and skull. Most often, this results from an aneurysm, an abnormal bulge in a blood vessel. (Searing, 2/28)

Houston Chronicle: Blood Supply Critically Low Following Winter Storm
The Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center is issuing a desperate plea for blood donations following the devastating effects of winter storm Uri last week as it blanketed the area with snow, ice, and historic low temperatures.“ We were greatly impacted by the winter storm,” said Cameron Palmer, community development coordinator for the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center. “We went several days without the ability to collect and now we’re down to less than a one day’s supply of blood,” he said. The drive and walk-in donations were canceled, he said, because the facilities were dependent upon water and electricity. Without those, they couldn’t host the life-saving blood drives. (Taylor, 2/27)

The New York Times: Why Opening Windows Is a Key to Reopening Schools
The C.D.C. is urging communities to reopen schools as quickly as possible, but parents and teachers have raised questions about the quality of ventilation available in public school classrooms to protect against the coronavirus. We worked with a leading engineering firm and experts specializing in buildings systems to better understand the simple steps schools can take to reduce exposure in the classroom. (Bartzokas, Grondahl, Patanjali, Peyton, Saget and Syam, 2/26)

CNN: Why Kids Are Hitting The Pandemic Wall 
After almost a full year of grappling with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, including nearly nine months of virtual school, 11-year-old London Loree simply has had enough. Enough of Zoom classes and technology fails. Enough of social distancing. Enough of all of it. (Villano, 3/1)

Politico: Parents Erupt Over FDA Failure To Regulate Toxic Metals In Food 
When Congress released a report this month finding that popular baby foods contain worrisome levels of toxic heavy metals, the reaction was swift. Scary headlines blared from the New York Times to the Daily Mail, lawsuits were filed within days and throngs of parents, already beleaguered from the stresses of the pandemic, took to social media with the fire of a thousand suns. “You knowingly sell food that hurt babies for profit,” one mom wrote on a baby food company’s Instagram page. “You are MONSTERS.” (Evich, 2/28)

CBS News: New Jersey Girl Facing Food Insecurity Highlights Growing Problem 
When a New Jersey student said she hadn't had enough to eat, she highlighted a problem at home, and one that affects some 18 million children nationwide. A New Jersey third-grader burst into tears in the middle of her virtual class, confessing to teachers and fellow students that she was starving.  "This 9-year-old just couldn't take it anymore," said former New Jersey Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno, who manages the Fulfill Food Bank. That heartbreaking moment led an entire community to help, including Guadagno. (George, 2/28)

The Washington Post: Trader Joe’s Firing: Employee Says He Was Terminated After Calling For Coronavirus Measures
The Trader Joe’s employee appealed directly to the CEO. In a letter citing a medical journal and experts who study respiratory transmission of the coronavirus, Ben Bonnema called on the grocery chain’s head, Dan Bane, to adopt more stringent safety protocols. Among his requests: improving filtration, requiring masks without exception and adopting a “three-strikes” policy for removing uncooperative customers from stores. (Shammas and Knowles, 2/28)

Boston Globe: ‘Charlie, You’re Making A Big Mistake’: Experts Criticize State’s Monday Reopening
As Governor Charlie Baker eases more pandemic restrictions on restaurants and other businesses starting Monday, public health experts warn that the moves could backfire, upending the state’s progress against COVID-19 and risking a new surge in cases. “I’d say, ‘Charlie, you’re making a big mistake,’” said Dr. Robert Horsburgh, a Boston University professor of epidemiology. “Opening up these restaurants is going to prolong the epidemic, and increase the number of Massachusetts residents that die.” Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have both cautioned that states rolling back health measures now could face a resurgence of the virus. And local epidemiologists echoed those warnings over the weekend, saying that easing the way for people to gather indoors now could reverse the progress the state has made against the coronavirus. (Hilliard and Phillips, 2/28)

AP: Shaheen Introducing Bill To Improve Access To Health Care
U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire is introducing a bill to improve access to health care by lowering premiums and deductibles for low- and middle-income families. She said in a statement Friday the Improving Health Insurance Affordability Act would expand coverage to more than 4 million people who are currently uninsured and reduce health care costs for millions more who already have coverage. (3/1)

The Wall Street Journal: Advocates Back Legislative Effort To Legalize Marijuana In New York 
Proponents of legalizing recreational marijuana in New York are putting their weight behind a bill in the state legislature, saying they prefer it to the competing framework that Gov. Andrew Cuomo has included as part of his proposed $193 billion budget. Associations representing growers and medical marijuana companies that operate in the state as well as the Drug Policy Alliance, which supports legalizing the drug for social-justice reasons, issued a rare joint statement in support of the pending Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act, or MRTA. (Vielkind, 2/28)

NBC News: Virginia Lawmakers Pass Legislation That Would Legalize Marijuana In 2024
Virginia lawmakers approved a bill Saturday that would legalize the sale and recreational use of marijuana — but not until 2024. The move makes Virginia the first Southern state to vote to legalize recreational marijuana, joining 15 other states and the District of Columbia. The legislation now goes to Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam, who supports legalization, for his signature. (Atkins, 2/28)

Boston Globe: Mass. Marijuana Has To Be Ultra-Sterile. Just One Problem: It’s A Plant
At Holistic Health Group’s farm in Middleborough, dozens of vacuum-sealed bags full of marijuana flower — worth hundreds of thousands of dollars at retail — have been sitting in a secure vault for months, stuck in limbo. The problem? The marijuana, which was grown outdoors last season, flunked the strict laboratory tests for microbes that all legal cannabis in Massachusetts must pass before sale. The standards are intended to protect consumers from moldy or bacteria-contaminated flower. But farmers across Massachusetts have complained that the state’s unusually tight rules are based on flimsy science, discourage outdoor growing and other sustainable practices, add to the high cost of pot, and defy the simple fact that cannabis is a plant, one adapted to grow in soil rich with microorganisms. (Adams, 2/26)

CNN: Connecticut Man Accused Of Starting Molotov Cocktail Fires Targeting Ambulances
A 37-year-old Connecticut man who allegedly used a Molotov cocktail to start a fire at an ambulance facility is also responsible for starting at least four fires throughout the state, authorities said. Richard White, 37, is in custody in Pennsylvania on charges related to the fires, a press release from Meriden Police said. (Spells, Law and Akbarzai, 3/1)