Bloomberg: Texas Lifts Mask Mandate Despite Dire Warnings About Fourth Wave
Texas Governor Greg Abbott lifted the mask mandate and other anti-pandemic restrictions, defying warnings from health officials about the perils of dropping those precautions too soon. Effective March 10, all businesses will be allowed to open at full capacity, Abbott said during a media briefing in Lubbock on Tuesday. Although his executive order allows counties to reimpose anti-virus rules should hospitalizations surge, it forbids them from jailing or fining scofflaws. “This will kill Texans,” Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement. “Our country’s infectious disease specialists have warned that we should not put our guard down even as we make progress towards vaccinations.” (Carroll and Stinson, 3/2)

Politico: Texas, Mississippi To Lift Mask Mandates, Let All Businesses Reopen At Full Capacity 
Texas and Mississippi on Tuesday issued separate executive orders to lift their states’ mask mandates and give all businesses the green light to reopen at full capacity, casting off restrictions meant to curb the Covid-19 pandemic. “We must now do more to restore livelihoods and normalcy for Texans by opening Texas 100 percent,” Gov. Greg Abbott said in a statement announcing the executive order, which will take effect March 10. (Din and Rayasam, 3/2)

Reuters: Texas Governor Lifts State's Mask Mandate, Business Restrictions 
The order lifts all mask requirements statewide and forbids local authorities from penalizing residents who do not wear a face covering. It removes all restrictions on businesses in counties without a high number of hospitalizations. Local officials can still apply limits to businesses where hospitalizations remain high, according to the order, but were prohibited from mandating that they operate at less than 50% capacity. (Whitcomb, 3/2)

ABC News: Texas, Mississippi To End Mask Mandates, Allow Businesses To Reopen At Full Capacity
"COVID has not suddenly disappeared," [Abbott] added. "But it is clear from the recoveries, from the vaccinations, from the reduced hospitalizations, and from the safe practices that Texas are using, that state mandates are no longer needed." Abbott's executive order is effective March 10, overriding a previous executive order issued in October. The new order mandates that if hospitalization rates exceed 15% hospital bed capacity for seven days, county judges may use mitigation strategies in their jurisdiction, according to Abbott. (Schumaker, 3/2)

AP: Texas And Other States Ease COVID-19 Rules Despite Warnings
The governors of Michigan, Mississippi and Louisiana likewise eased up on bars, restaurants and other businesses Tuesday, as did the mayor of San Francisco. “Removing statewide mandates does not end personal responsibility,” said Abbott, speaking from a crowded dining room where many of those surrounding him were not wearing masks. “It’s just that now state mandates are no longer needed.” (Weber and Webber, 3/3)

Michigan eases restrictions, as well —

AP: Michigan Loosens Virus Limits For Businesses, Nursing Homes
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Tuesday announced the further loosening of Michigan’s coronavirus restrictions, easing capacity limits in restaurants and a host of other businesses while also allowing for larger indoor and outdoor gatherings. The revised state health department order will take effect Friday and last through April 19. (Eggert, 3/3)

The New York Times: Texas And Other States Reopen As Covid Cases Fall 
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan said on Tuesday that she was easing restrictions on businesses and allowing family members who have tested negative for the coronavirus to visit nursing home residents. Gov. Charlie Baker of Massachusetts said that while residents should continue to wear masks in public, it was time for more limits on businesses to be eased. (Bosman and Tompkins, 3/2)

Leaders and Texans react to the news —

Houston Chronicle: Abbott's COVID Rollbacks Were 'Like PTSD' For Houston Doctors, Health Experts
Houston-area doctors and medical professionals reacted with dismay to Gov. Greg Abbott’s Tuesday decision to roll back the state’s mask mandate and other precautions against COVID-19. "I had a pretty strong visceral reaction — like PTSD," said Dr. Matt Dacso, an internist at the University of Texas Medical Branch. "I can think of no other word but incomprehensible... Everybody is hurting, but gosh, man. The masks were doing a lot for us.” Dacso said the order was a huge hit to morale, coming almost exactly one year after the first recorded case in New York. His team had been celebrating the progress made since then — until they heard about Abbott's order. (Downen, Gray and Wu, 3/2)

WFAA: 'This Is A Death Sentence For Many Texans': Families Who Have Lost Loved Ones To COVID-19 React To Texas Reopening
People across the state and country are reacting to news that Texas plans to fully reopen and lift the mask mandate next week. Among those sharing their thoughts are people impacted by the coronavirus. Fiana Tulip’s mom died of COVID this summer. Isabelle Papadimitriou was a Respiratory Therapist at Baylor Scott and White in Dallas. She passed away on July 4.  (Rozier, 3/2)

Politico: Newsom Calls Texas 'Absolutely Reckless' For Lifting Covid Rules
California Gov. Gavin Newsom chided his Texas counterpart on Tuesday for lifting coronavirus restrictions, saying the change risked a viral resurgence. While Newsom did not specifically name Texas or its Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, it was clear Newsom’s rebuke was aimed at Abbott’s decision to lift a mask mandate and allow businesses to operate at full capacity. Earlier in the day, Newsom reacted to Abbott’s move by tweeting, “Absolutely reckless.” (White, 3/2)

ABC News: How Falling Levels Of COVID-19 Tests Could Threaten Pandemic Fight
As the effort to vaccinate Americans intensifies, daily COVID-19 test numbers are falling nationwide, an alarming sign to public health experts who say the tests are still crucial to containing the virus. Testing has been a fraught and highly politicized issue from the beginning of the pandemic, with the first tests rolling out slowly, testing taking a while to ramp up and former President Trump wrongly claiming that an increase in testing was behind the world-leading level of coronavirus cases in the U.S. There have also been issues with testing access and the reliability of certain types of tests. (Vann, 3/2)

CNN: Experts Are Warning Of A Potential Covid-19 Surge While Several Governors Are Loosening Restrictions 
It's true that cases are down from their January peak and experts were encouraged by a steady decline in Covid-19 case numbers for several weeks. But it's important to note two factors: First, the steep weeks-long decline of cases that was reported in the US seems to have leveled off, according to the CDC director. And that plateau comes at still very high numbers -- with the US averaging more than 65,000 new cases daily for the past week. And second, fewer people appear to be getting tested although Covid-19 testing remains a powerful tool in the country's battle against the virus, according to the CDC. In the week that ended Monday, the US recorded an average of about 1.5 million Covid-19 tests daily, according to data from the COVID Tracking Project. (Maxouris, 3/3)

Fox News: COVID-Spurred Illness Behind Paralysis Of 23-Year-Old Florida Nurse: Report
A 23-year-old nurse from Tampa Bay, Fla., has been left paralyzed after developing an illness that was likely spurred as a result of the novel coronavirus, according to a local report. In July, Desmon Silva suddenly stopped breathing and was rushed to Mease Countryside Hospital in Safety Harbor. Silva was left paralyzed from the neck down and was placed on a ventilator. Later, he was transferred to Mass General in Boston where he could be better treated, according to a GoFundMe in his name. (Farber, 3/2)

KHN: Children’s Hospitals Grapple With Young Covid ‘Long Haulers’
A slumber party to celebrate Delaney DePue’s 15th birthday last summer marked a new chapter — one defined by illness and uncertainty. The teen from Fort Walton Beach, Florida, tested positive for covid-19 about a week later, said her mother, Sara, leaving her bedridden with flu-like symptoms. However, her expected recovery never came. Delaney — who used to train 20 hours a week for competitive dance and had no diagnosed underlying conditions — now struggles to get through two classes in a row, she said. If she overexerts herself, she becomes bedridden with extreme fatigue. And shortness of breath overcomes her in random places like the grocery store. (Heredia Rodriguez, 3/3)

In updates on the covid variants —

AP: More Contagious Brazilian Virus Variant Emerges In Oregon
A coronavirus variant that was first detected in Brazil has emerged in Oregon, the first known case of the new variant on the contiguous U.S. West Coast, medical authorities said Tuesday. The sample was sent to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at the end of January by medical officials in Douglas County, Oregon. They said they received the results back on Monday night, which showed the P.1 variant. (3/3)

The New York Times: Why Do Virus Variants Have Such Weird Names? 
20H/501Y. V2.VOC 202012/02. B.1.351. Those were the charming names scientists proposed for a new variant of the coronavirus that was identified in South Africa. The convoluted strings of letters, numbers and dots are deeply meaningful for the scientists who devised them, but how was anyone else supposed to keep them straight? Even the easiest to remember, B.1.351, refers to an entirely different lineage of the virus if a single dot is missed or misplaced. (Mandavilli and Mueller, 3/2)

The Wall Street Journal: Biden Expects U.S. To Have Covid-19 Vaccines For All Adults By End Of May 
President Biden said the U.S. would have enough Covid-19 vaccines for all American adults by the end of May, two months earlier than he had previously said, after regulators authorized the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine and Merck & Co. agreed to help produce it. Mr. Biden also called on states to give priority to teachers, school staff and child-care workers for vaccinations, as virtual learning continues for many students across the country. Several teachers unions have made vaccinations part of their negotiations for returning to in-person teaching. Mr. Biden said 30 states are giving priority to such workers for the shot. (Parti and Siddiqui, 3/2)

CIDRAP: With COVID Vaccine Maker Pact, Biden Vows Wide Vaccine Access By May
Biden will invoke the Defense Production Act to equip two Merck facilities to the standards necessary to produce the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, and is asking the Department of Defense to supply logistical support to Johnson & Johnson. Biden also said Johnson & Johnson will now be operating its vaccine facilities around the clock. Jen Psaki, White House press secretary, also announced today that the federal government was increasing states' vaccine supply next week to 15.2 million doses per week, up from 14.5 million this week. Of shots distributed this week, 2.8 million are the J&J vaccine. (Soucheray, 3/2)

The New York Times: Biden Vows Enough Vaccine ‘For Every Adult American’ By End Of May 
In a brief speech at the White House, Mr. Biden said his administration had provided support to Johnson & Johnson that would enable the company and its partners to make vaccines around the clock. The administration had also brokered a deal in which the pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. would help manufacture the new Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine. Merck is the world’s second-largest vaccine manufacturer, though its own attempt at a coronavirus vaccine was unsuccessful. Officials described the partnership between the two competitors as historic and said it harks back to Mr. Biden’s vision of a wartime effort to fight the coronavirus, similar to the manufacturing campaigns when Franklin D. Roosevelt was president. (Stolberg, LaFraniere, Thomas and Shear, 3/2)

Politico: Biden Accelerates Vaccination Timeline After Manufacturing Deal 
"About three weeks ago we were able to say that we'll have enough vaccine supply for adults by the end of July. I'm pleased to announced today, as the consequence of a stepped-up process that I've ordered and just outlined, this country will have enough vaccine supply ... for every adult in America by the end of May," Biden said in remarks delivered at the White House. The availability of vaccines is one piece of the massive effort to protect people against the coronavirus pandemic, along with actually getting shots in arms and assuring people they are safe and effective. In the meantime, Biden urged Americans to keep up with basic health measures such as mask wearing and social distancing. (Owermohle and Cancryn, 3/2)

CNBC: Covid Vaccine: White House Says U.S. Will Have Enough For Every Adult By End Of May
Biden’s good news — including that he’s ahead of schedule on the goal of administering 100 million Covid shots in his first 100 days — was tempered by a number of lingering unknowns surrounding the fight against the virus. “This fight is far from over,” Biden said in his speech, noting that new Covid variants are spreading in the U.S. “Things may get worse again.” (Breuninger, 3/2)

The Washington Post: Biden Promises Coronavirus Vaccine By May As States Reopen 
At the end of his remarks, Biden sought to project a sense of optimism when asked by reporters when he thought the nation would return to normal. After saying he had been “cautioned” not to offer such predictions, because of the uncertainty of the virus, he answered with a note of hopefulness: “My hope is by this time next year, we’re going to be back to normal,” the president said. (Wan, Shammas, Parker and Meckler, 3/2)

Also —

CNBC: J&J CEO On Merck Vaccine Deal: 'Extraordinary Times Take Extraordinary Efforts'
Johnson & Johnson CEO Alex Gorsky discussed Tuesday the company’s unprecedented partnership with rival Merck to boost production of its Covid-19 vaccine. “Extraordinary times take extraordinary efforts,” Gorsky told CNBC’s Jim Cramer in a “Mad Money” interview. (Clifford, 3/2)

CNBC: President Joe Biden Urges States To Vaccinate Teachers, School Staff This Month
President Joe Biden on Tuesday urged states to prioritize vaccinating teachers and school staff against Covid-19, with the goal of administering at least one shot to every educator and staff member across the country by the end of March. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has previously urged states to prioritize the vaccination of teachers, but some public health specialists criticized the agency for not making vaccination a prerequisite for reopening K-12 schools. (Feuer, 3/2)

Reuters: Biden Calls On States To Prioritize Vaccinations For Teachers 
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said Biden’s announcement was “great news for everyone who wants in-school learning.” Biden, whose new education secretary took office on Tuesday, said increased production of the three vaccines would boost what he called a “national imperative” to reopen U.S. schools given growing mental health concerns and widening disparities caused by the challenges of remote learning. (Shalal, 3/2)

NPR: Biden Says U.S. Will Have Vaccine Supply For All Adults By May, Prioritizes Teachers
"As yet another move to help accelerate the safe reopening of schools, let's treat in-person learning like an essential service that it is. And that means getting essential workers who provide that service — educators, school staff, child care workers — get them vaccinated immediately. They're essential workers," the president said. (Wise, 3/2)

In related news —

AP: Analysis: Biden Aims To Manage Expectations With Pandemic
President Joe Biden doesn’t just have to manage the coronavirus pandemic, he also has to manage people’s expectations for how soon the country will come out of it. And on the latter task, projecting too much optimism can be as risky as offering too little, requiring what one public health expert calls a “necessarily mixed message.” At every turn, as the Biden administration works to inoculate every adult American, the president is tempering bullish proclamations about the nation’s vaccine supply with warnings about the challenges ahead. (Lemire and Miller, 3/3)

Axios: Education Department Reopening Schools Summit To Be Held In March 
The Department of Education is planning a national summit in March on how to safely reopen schools, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona announced in a USA Today op-ed Tuesday. By announcing the summit, the Biden administration is trying to depoliticize an issue that some of the president's advisers worry will hurt them with suburban parents. (Knutson, 3/2)

Read the editorial by Education Secretary Miguel Cardona—

Here is my five-point plan to get students back in school full time

Los Angeles Times: CDC To OK Small, Maskless Gatherings With 2 COVID Vaccines
People who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 may soon be cleared to gather in small groups without masks, according to federal officials. The expected update to public health guidance, announced during a White House COVID-19 task force meeting, would mark the first sign of a return to normalcy since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading expert on infectious diseases, said that a small reunion of fully-vaccinated people presents a low risk of spreading COVID-19. (Shalby, 3/2)

Politico: CDC's Draft Guidelines For Vaccinated Americans Call For Small Steps Toward Normal Life 
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is set to release guidance this week on safe activities for people who have received both doses of the Covid-19 vaccine amid growing questions about when, and how, shots will enable a return to normal life. The recommendations will mark the first time the federal government has signaled to Americans that they can start taking steps back to the old rhythms of work, school and play, according to two senior administration officials involved in the drafting of the guidelines. (Banco, 3/2)

In other news about the federal government and the development of vaccines —

ABC News: 4 Former Surgeons General Join Call For 'National Vaccine Day' 
Four former surgeons general are joining a campaign calling for a National Vaccine Day to "focus our nation's attention on the importance of vaccination." In a letter exclusively obtained by ABC News, the doctors call on President Joe Biden to consider enacting the one-time federal holiday, which they say could feature telethons, radio messages and social media posts about the COVID-19 vaccines as well as widely available "opportunities for vaccination." (Magee, 3/2)

CNBC: Economists See First Signs In Data That Vaccine Is Working
Economists following the high-frequency data on virus infections are seeing initial signs that the vaccine is having positive effects on deaths and infection rates. While they caution that the signs are tentative, they point to two areas: the decline in the percentage of Covid-related deaths from nursing home residents and infection numbers running below their model forecasts. (Liesman, 3/2)

Axios: Pentagon Research Arm Looks To Fund Next Generation Of MRNA Vaccines 
A new initiative — funded by DARPA, the Pentagon's high-tech research arm — is aiming to make it much easier to scale up the next generation of RNA- and DNA-based vaccines. A consortium including GE Research, the Broad Institute and the University of Washington is announcing today that it's secured a $41 million grant from DARPA. (Baker, 3/2)

Axios: The U.S. Coronavirus Vaccines Aren't All The Same 
The U.S. now has three COVID-19 vaccines, and public health officials are quick — and careful — to say there’s no bad option. But their effectiveness, manufacturing and distribution vary. Any of the authorized vaccines are much better than no vaccine, especially for people at high risk of severe coronavirus infections. But their differences may fuel perceptions of inequity, and raise legitimate questions about the best way to use each one. (Owens and Snyder, 3/3)

The New York Times: Dolly Parton, Who Helped Fund The Moderna Vaccine, Gets A ‘Dose Of Her Own Medicine.’
The country music star Dolly Parton has another new gig: Singing the praises of coronavirus shots and getting vaccinated on camera. Last year, Ms. Parton donated $1 million to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, which worked with the drug maker Moderna to develop one of the first coronavirus vaccines to be authorized in the United States. The federal government eventually invested $1 billion in the creation and testing of the vaccine, but the leader of the research effort, Dr. Mark Denison, said that the singer’s donation had funded its critical early stages. On Tuesday, Ms. Parton, 75, received a Moderna shot at Vanderbilt Health in Tennessee. “Dolly gets a dose of her own medicine,” she wrote on Twitter. (Ives, 3/2)

More groups are made eligible in some states —

CNBC: Detroit Expands Covid Vaccine Eligibility To Autoworkers
Manufacturing employees in the city, such as autoworkers, are now eligible to receive the Covid-19 vaccine without any restrictions such as age or proof of preexisting conditions. The expanded eligibility for Detroit manufacturing workers marks a major expansion for autoworker eligibility for vaccination following similar actions by municipalities such as Boone County in Illinois. It should assist in keeping employees safe and auto plants up and running. (Wayland, 3/2)

AP: Arkansas Makes Food Plant Workers Eligible For Vaccine
Workers at Arkansas’ poultry plants and other food manufacturing facilities are now eligible for the coronavirus vaccine, Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Tuesday, in a move that opens up access to the vaccine for an additional 49,000 people. Hutchinson made the announcement as state health officials reported the first case in Arkansas of someone infected with United Kingdom variant of the virus. (3/2)

North Carolina Health News: People With Disabilities Moved To Vaccine List 
Linda Guzman has been lying awake nights, worried about her son JJ, a young man in his twenties who has autism. “It could be catastrophic for JJ if he contracted the virus with all his other health issues,” Guzman wrote in an email to John Nash, head of The Arc of North Carolina, an organization that provides services and advocacy for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. “I have done my best to protect him, but the stress and anxiety of doing so have been overwhelming at times,” the Chapel Hill mother wrote. (Hoban, 3/3)

Indianapolis Star: Indiana COVID-19 Vaccine: VA Will Vaccinate Some Vets As Young As 18
While most Indiana residents need to be 55 or older to be eligible for vaccination, veterans in the state 18 and older can sign up for the shot. Last week, veterans 45 and older who receive care through the VA could sign up for the vaccine at the Indianapolis Veteran Affairs Medical Center, according to Veteran Health Indiana's Facebook page. At that time, the Indianapolis VA had vaccinated more than 15,000 veterans. Monday, the VA opened eligibility for those 18 and over according to the Facebook page. Some designated caregivers also are eligible to receive vaccine, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (Rudavsky, 3/2)

Tampa Bay Times: DeSantis Dropped Off 3,000 Vaccines To A Pinellas Senior Community. But Was The Distribution Fair?
Gov. Ron DeSantis held a press conference on Feb. 18 at the Mainlands of Tamarac by the Gulf, announcing the arrival of 3,000 vaccines for the Pinellas Park senior community. But the process that followed after the cameras were turned off was chaotic and questioned by some. (LeFever and Contorno, 3/3)

Boston Globe: State Offered Leftover Vaccines To Civilians At A Clinic For First Responders, Prompting Questions
State officials invited nearly 300 civilians on three separate days in January and February to receive a shot at the Massachusetts State Police headquarters in Framingham, where officials said they had extra doses at a clinic and, in at least one instance, faced “limited time” to find arms to put them in before they would be wasted. Each of the individuals vaccinated — 292 in all — were either over the age of 75 or personal care attendants, all of whom were eligible to receive a vaccine, according to a spokesman for Governor Charlie Baker’s public safety office. Administration officials said Tuesday that they could not identify any of the civilians, citing legal restrictions on releasing people’s medical information. (Stout, 3/2)

But other groups are still waiting —

Stat: Pilots Flying Covid-19 Vaccines Call For Their Turn To Be Vaccinated
Thousands of UPS and FedEx pilots have flown around the globe for months to deliver doses of Covid-19 vaccines, their landings broadcast as breaking news in the historic vaccination effort. But many of those pilots have yet to receive the vaccines they’re transporting, because the aviation industry’s attempt to get freight pilots vaccinated early has struggled to gain traction as states take varying approaches to who can get immunized at each stage of the rollout. (Rapoport, 3/3)

KHN and KPCC: In California, Caregivers Of People With Disabilities Are Being Turned Away At COVID Vaccine Sites 
In California, confusion and botched communication has caused some eligible parents and family caregivers of people with disabilities to be turned away at covid vaccination sites. Oscar Madrigal is one of those caregivers. His two sons are on the autism spectrum and his youngest requires almost constant care. (Fortier, 3/3)

AP: California Clinics: More Vaccines Going To Rich Than At-Risk
Teresa Parada is exactly the kind of person equity-minded California officials say they want to vaccinate: She’s a retired factory worker who speaks little English and lives in a hard-hit part of Los Angeles County. But Parada, 70, has waited weeks while others her age flock to Dodger Stadium or get the coronavirus shot through large hospital networks. The place where she normally gets medical care, AltaMed, is just now receiving enough supply to vaccinate her later this month. Parada said TV reports show people lining up to get shots, but “I see only vaccines going to Anglos.” (Taxin and Har, 3/3)

USA Today: COVID-19 Vaccination Appointment System Is Broken. How Can We Fix It?
The nation's vaccine appointment system is broken in many places, leading to a race to find appointments that in many places works best for the lucky, the internet-savvy or the mobile. "I have plenty of neighbors who are driving hours to get to other counties where they can get vaccinated, but not everybody can do that," said Melissa McPheeters, a professor of health policy and biomedical informatics at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Even for those with options, sometimes the system doesn't work at all. In Washington, D.C., the city's vaccination portal was down over the weekend, unable to handle a surge as more than 36,000 people tried to get access to 4,300 appointments, according to a tweet by Lindsey Parker, chief technology officer for the D.C. government. (Weise, 3/2)

KHN: Rural Americans In Pharmacy Deserts Hurting For Covid Vaccines 
As the Biden administration accelerates a plan to use pharmacies to distribute covid-19 vaccines, significant areas of the country lack brick-and-mortar pharmacies capable of administering the protective shots. A recent analysis by the Rural Policy Research Institute found that 111 rural counties, mostly between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, have no pharmacy that can give the vaccines. That could leave thousands of vulnerable Americans struggling to find vaccines, which in turn threatens to prolong the pandemic in many hard-hit rural regions. (Hawryluk, 3/3)

Also —

San Francisco Chronicle: Good Samaritan Hospital CEO Resigns In Wake Of Teachers Jumping Vaccine Line
The chief executive officer for Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose has resigned “to pursue external career advancement opportunities” weeks after the hospital gave dozens of Los Gatos teachers and staff coronavirus vaccinations ahead of groups with priority and during a vaccine shortage. Joe DeSchryver, the hospital’s CEO, submitted his resignation on Tuesday morning, said Antonio Castelan, a spokesperson for HCA Healthcare, the hospital’s parent company. Castelan said DeSchryver was not leaving in connection to the vaccination scandal, but instead to pursue other career opportunities. (Hernández, 3/2)

NBC News: Granddaughter Vaccinates Grandparents Against Covid-19
Like so many of this country’s elders, Glenna and Eugene Luetgers of Plymouth, Minn., have spent most of the last year locked down, safe in their senior living center but unable to be with the rest of their family.Among the things they missed most was seeing their granddaughter, Lindsey Hawkins, regularly. "It was kind of traumatic at first," Glenna, 87, told NBC affiliate KARE. "When we couldn't have any visitors, that was a low point," agreed Eugene, who’s also 87. But, he said, he had an idea. He knew Lindsey, a pharmacist, was working with a Covid-19 vaccination team. So he made a special request: that she be the one to vaccinate her grandparents. (Ignacio, 3/2)

Axios: Vaccine Hesitancy Is Fading In U.S. And Europe 
Vaccine hesitancy is fading, according to a poll of six countries shared with Axios by strategic consulting firm Kekst CNC. Brits have embraced the national vaccination mission, with a whopping 89% willing to be vaccinated. (Lawler, 3/2)

Stateline: COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Slows Race To Defang The Virus
The goal is to reach herd immunity, a widely debated concept that most scientists say can be achieved by vaccinating roughly 80% of the adult population, leaving the coronavirus with so few hosts that it all but disappears. “We’ve never done that before with any other adult vaccine,” said Dr. William Schaffner, professor of preventive medicine at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. It’s a worthy goal, he said, but it will take a monumental effort. In some places, local health departments already are making inroads in minority and immigrant neighborhoods where people may mistrust the medical community and refuse vaccinations, he said. But even within the priority groups designated in the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidelines—health care workers, long-term care residents and staff, and people 65 and older—a substantial number of people are holding back. (Vestal, 3/2)

The Baltimore Sun: Hogan Doubles Down On Baltimore COVID Vaccine Comments As Data Reveals Most City Doses Going To Noncity Residents 
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan doubled down Tuesday on his comment last week that Baltimore received more COVID-19 vaccines than it was “entitled to,” though data released this week by his administration shows the majority of immunizations directed to providers in the city have been shot into the arms of people from other jurisdictions. (Mann and Kamidi, 3/2)

Tampa Bay Times: Publix Gets 1 Out Of 4 Florida Coronavirus Vaccines, Which Officials Don’t Track
State officials have shipped 70,000 COVID vaccine doses a week to Publix’s central distribution hub in Lakeland in Central Florida, without knowing exactly where the shots will go, a Miami Herald analysis of state vaccine distribution data from the past five weeks and interviews with state officials found. The grocery chain — a major financial supporter of Gov. Ron DeSantis — is the state’s single-largest vaccine supplier and receives nearly a quarter of Florida’s available doses without providing state officials a store-specific distribution plan ahead of time, according to Jared Moskowitz, the director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, the agency leading the vaccination campaign. (Blaskey, Conarck and Ross, 3/2)

Tampa Bay Times: New Federal Coronavirus Vaccine Site Opens In Tampa
Tampa Bay residents have another venue to get COVID-19 vaccine shots when one of the state’s first federally run vaccination sites opens Wednesday at the Tampa Greyhound Track. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has been working with states to open several large-scale vaccination sites around the nation in an effort to boost the administration of shots. (Ross, 3/2)

Bay Area News Group: Sutter Cancelling 90,000 Vaccine Appointments Because Of Supply Shortage
Sparking new frustrations over California’s vaccine rollout, Sutter Health on Tuesday said it may have to cancel about 95,000 coronavirus vaccine appointments across its system because it has not received enough supply. Many of the health care giant’s customers were surprised to discover their appointments had been cancelled by checking Sutter’s website, sparing some from hours-long drives to clinics as far away as Modesto. (DeRuy, 3/2)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin's COVID Vaccine Registry Site Delayed Due To Glitches
Wisconsin's promised vaccine registry site will be delayed for a second time as the state health department works out glitches with the Microsoft-designed software. And when the website does launch, it will likely feature just a few local health departments at first, health officials said. In a news briefing Tuesday, state Department of Health Services Deputy Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk said the department "ran into some components that were not functioning the way we anticipated" during pilot testing last week and over the weekend. "We made the decision that quality trumped speed in this one," she said. (Chen, 3/2)

Also —

Capital & Main: An Equity Conflict Shadows The Release Of A New Vaccine
On the face of it, the Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use authorization of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine appears a pure good. The vaccine requires only a single shot and can store in a standard refrigerator, and the White House said Monday that the manufacturer’s entire current supply – 3.9 million doses – will go out immediately, providing a short-term boost to the nation’s effort to get shots into arms as quickly as possible. The newly approved vaccine “is a much needed addition to our toolbox and increases the number of vaccine doses available,” Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), said at a video briefing. “We now have three safe and highly effective vaccines that prevent serious illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19.” (Kreidler, 3/2)

CNN: These Black Women Have Been On The Frontlines Of The Fight Against Covid-19 
They have administered Covid-19 vaccines on college campuses, provided testing at churches and spent long hours in labs developing an effective vaccine. Some have given up their regular jobs and personal free time to do this work. Black women have been at the helm of the nation's fight against the pandemic since the coronavirus hit US soil a little over one year ago. (Ellis, 3/2)

NBC News: Obamacare Would Get A Big (And Quiet) Overhaul In The Covid Relief Bill
The $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package that passed the House on Saturday would make one of the biggest changes to the Affordable Care Act in over a decade, and it could set the stage for a broader overhaul of the health care program — but don't be surprised if you haven't heard much about it. The reforms, which would include temporarily expanding subsidies to purchase insurance and making them available to people of all incomes for the first time, have gotten little attention from either party. (Sarlin, 3/2)

CBS News: Schumer Says "We'll Have The Votes" To Pass COVID Relief Bill In The Senate This Week 
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer expressed confidence on Tuesday that President Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill will pass in the Senate this week, saying the Senate will take up the legislation as early as Wednesday. The Senate is using the budget reconciliation process to pass the bill, which limits time for debate and allows legislation to pass with a simple majority. "We want to get the biggest, strongest, boldest bill that can pass. And that's what we are working to do," Schumer told reporters. "We'll have the votes we need to pass the bill." Schumer spoke to reporters after Mr. Biden addressed Democratic senators virtually during their caucus lunch. (Segers, 3/2)

Politico: Senate Dems Wrestle With Unemployment Benefits In Biden's Covid Aid Plan
Senate Democrats left the Capitol on Tuesday evening leaving a crucial policy disagreement unresolved as they hope to pass President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package this week. Privately, Democratic senators are suggesting that a last-minute push from Senate moderates to cut a weekly federal unemployment bonus from $400 to $300, while extending the money for a longer period of time, will fail. Biden prevailed on Senate Democrats to put their disagreements behind them during a private call on Tuesday and pass the bill quickly in its current form. (Levine, Emaa and Everett, 3/2)

CNBC: Congress' New Covid Relief May Help Keep Seniors Out Of Nursing Homes
The House of Representatives’ $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill includes a proposal that could help keep some seniors out of nursing homes. The bill calls for a 7.5% increase — or about $10 billion — in additional federal Medicaid matching funds for home- and community-based services. (Konish, 3/2)

In updates on the nomination of Xavier Becerra —

AP: Biden Health Pick Taking Heat For Support Of Abortion Rights
President Joe Biden’s pick for health secretary is taking heat from Republicans for his actions in support of abortion rights. They want to define him — and the new administration — as out of the mainstream. The nomination of Xavier Becerra faces a key vote Wednesday in the Senate Finance committee. It’s a test, too, for national groups opposed to abortion, trying to deny a president who favors abortion rights his choice to run the Department of Health and Human Services. (Alonso-Zaldivar and Beaumont, 3/3)

CBS News: U.S. Workplace Safety Enforcer Failed During COVID-19, Watchdog Says 
The nation's enforcer of safety in the workplace hasn't done enough to protect workers during the coronavirus outbreak, according to a watchdog report released Tuesday. During six months since the widespread outbreak of COVID-19 last year, inspections by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, the agency that regulates workplace safety, dropped by half — even as safety complaints to the agency increased by 15%, according to a report by the U.S. Labor Department's Office of the Inspector General. (Ivanova, 3/2)

CBS News: Michigan Lawmakers Slam "Highly Inadequate" Food Given To National Guardsmen Still Protecting The Capitol 
Michigan National Guardsmen tasked with continuing to protect the U.S. Capitol have said they're being provided food that's "badly undercooked, raw, moldy, and even filled with metal shavings," according to a letter from the state's House delegation obtained by CBS News on Tuesday. Some guardsmen have been hospitalized after eating the food, the letter said. (Albert, 3/2)

In news about Dr. Anthony Fauci —

AP: Fauci Presents His Personal Virus Model To Smithsonian 
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the face of the U.S. government’s pandemic response, has donated his personal 3D model of the COVID-19 virus to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The museum on Tuesday honored Fauci with its Great Americans Medal. ... The museum asked Fauci to contribute a personal artifact to mark the pandemic, and he chose the lumpy blue and orange ball that he used to explain the complexities of the virus in dozens of interviews. (Khalil, 3/2)

In news about the Trump administration —

CNN: Rep. Ronny Jackson Drank Alcohol And Took Sleeping Pills On Job As Top White House Physician, Watchdog Finds 
The Department of Defense inspector general has issued a scathing review of Rep. Ronny Jackson during his time serving as the top White House physician, concluding that he made "sexual and denigrating" comments about a female subordinate, violated the policy for drinking alcohol while on a presidential trip and took prescription-strength sleeping medication that prompted concerns from his colleagues about his ability to provide proper care. (Raju, Starr, Cohen and Liebermann, 3/2)

Axios: Pentagon Watchdog: Ronny Jackson Drank On Duty, Harassed Staff — Report
Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) allegedly made "sexual and denigrating" comments about a female staffer, drank alcohol and took sleeping medication while working as White House physician, according to a report obtained by CNN Tuesday night. The Department of Defense inspector general's report stems from a years-long investigation. Jackson has called the allegations "false and fabricated." (Falconer, 3/3)

CNN: More Americans Are Dying "In The Prime Of Their Lives," New Report Finds 
Younger and middle-age Americans have been dying at higher rates over the past three decades, marking what is becoming a public health crisis across the US workforce. Among the causes of death increasingly striking working-age Americans between 1990 and 2017 are drug overdose, alcohol use and suicides, according to a new report published Tuesday by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (Prior, 3/2)

Stat: Substance Use, Suicide, And Cardiometabolic Conditions Drive Rise In Working-Age Mortality, Report Finds
Increasing mortality rates among working-age Americans since 2010 have been mainly driven by drug- and alcohol-related deaths, suicide, and cardiometabolic conditions like diabetes and heart disease, according to a sweeping new report. The report, released Tuesday by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, examined data from 1990 to 2017, and revealed that the rise in deaths among working-age adults (those between 25 and 64) was seen across rural and metropolitan areas and racial and ethnic groups. The increase also appears to be behind the recent fall in U.S. life expectancy, which is significantly lower than in other high-income countries. (Sohn, 3/2)

In other public health news —

CIDRAP: First Fatality Noted In Listeria Outbreak Tied To Hispanic-Style Soft Cheese
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed a new case of Listeria monocytogenes in an outbreak associated with queso fresco made by El Abuelito Cheese Inc, raising the total number of cases to 11.The CDC also reported the first fatality linked to this outbreak, which was in Maryland. Ten of the case-patients sickened in this outbreak have been hospitalized in four states reporting cases: New York, Connecticut, Maryland, and Virginia. (3/2)

The Washington Post: The Flu Killed Nearly 200 Children Last Season. This Time, 1 Has Died.
In the shadow of the past year’s coronavirus surge came a less noticeable, but more positive infectious-disease trend: Influenza and other common viruses have nearly disappeared. The flu is circulating at such low levels that officials know of only one child in the United States who has died of it this flu season, a striking deviation from the dozens of pediatric deaths in other recent years. (Iati, 3/2)

CBS News: Experts Sound The Alarm On Declining Birth Rates Among Younger Generations: "It's A Crisis" 
New data is confirming a baby boom that some doctors expected was actually a "baby bust." Health departments in more than two dozen states provided records to CBS News, showing a 7% drop in births in December — nine months after the first lockdowns began. Researchers say it continues a much bigger plunge in fertility in recent decades. The number of babies the average woman in the U.S. is expected to deliver has dropped from nearly four in the 1950s to less than two today. (3/2)

Fox News: Hearing Loss Will Affect 1 In 4 People By 2050, WHO Estimates
Billions of people are expected to suffer from some degree of hearing loss by 2050, according to a report from the World Health Organization (WHO), said to be the first-ever global report on hearing. Some 2.5 billion people around the world — about 1 in 4 —  "will be living with some degree of hearing loss by 2050," the organization said when calling for better access to prevention and treatment methods worldwide. (Farber, 3/2)

Also —

The Washington Post: Cancer Charity Founder Whose Son Had Memorable TD Run At Nebraska Dies Of Brain Cancer
Andy Hoffman, whose young son, Jack, scored a stirring touchdown during a Nebraska spring game while battling brain cancer, died Monday of a different form of brain cancer. Hoffman, a 42-year-old lawyer who had devoted his time to the Team Jack Foundation to raise money for pediatric brain cancer research after his son’s 2011 diagnosis, received a diagnosis of glioblastoma, an especially aggressive form of brain cancer, after becoming ill while running in July. He understood that his time was finite and told The Washington Post in October that “it’s about maximizing time with your family.” (Boren, 3/2)

NBC News: Dr. Oz Springs Into Physician Mode To Help Save Man Who Collapsed At Airport
Dr. Oz demonstrated he's not just a TV doctor when he rushed to help save a man who had collapsed at a New York City-area airport Monday night. Dr. Mehmet Oz and police performed CPR on a 60-year-old man at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey just after 11 p.m., the Port Authority Police Department said. The man, who collapsed near a baggage claim, did not have a pulse and wasn't breathing, police said. (Helsel, 3/3)

Stat: Amazon Care’s Medical Partner Quietly Files To Operate In 17 More States
The clinical provider for Amazon Care, the tech giant’s virtual-first medical platform, is quietly gearing up to do business in 17 additional states, according to public documents viewed by STAT. Since 2018, Amazon has contracted with a Washington-based medical practice called Care Medical to offer staff in Washington state a combination of virtual and in-person visits through Amazon Care. (Brodwin, 3/3)

In other health care industry news —

Bloomberg: Prudential To Spin Off Jackson US Unit In Second Quarter To Focus On Asia
Prudential, which focuses mainly on life and health insurance, is looking to high growth markets in Asia and Africa for its future. After spinning off its U.K. business in 2019, the firm last year said it planned to separate Jackson via an initial public offering in 2021. The insurer abandoned that idea in January, announcing a demerger of the U.S. unit instead. The insurer will retain a near 20% non-controlling interest in Jackson following the spinoff. It then intends to monetize part of the stake to support investment in Asia, and to eventually own less than 10% of the unit. (Robertson, 3/3)

Modern Healthcare: Shareholder Group Calls Out HCA For Alleged Excessive Emergency Admissions
A union-linked investment group is demanding answers from HCA Healthcare after an analysis uncovered an alleged decade-long pattern of excessive emergency department admissions that may have netted well over $1 billion. CtW Investment Group cited an SEIU analysis that found the investor-owned hospital chain admits far more Medicare patients who visit its emergency rooms than the national average. The union estimates the practice may have netted HCA excess Medicare payments of $1.1 billion over the past five years and $1.6 billion since 2009. (Bannow, 3/2)

Modern Healthcare: OU Health Physicians, Oklahoma Blues Plan Fail To Reach New Contract
A disagreement over provider reimbursement rates will soon leave more than 830,000 patients out-of-network at Oklahoma's largest physician group. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma and OU Health Physicians were unable to finalize a contract for 2021. The health system and BCBS of Oklahoma have now entered a 120-day transition period, where BCBS of Oklahoma members can still receive in-network treatment through June 28. At that point, OU Health Physicians will be considered out-of-network for BCBS of Oklahoma members. The healthcare system said it provided services to approximately 131,600 BCBS insured patients in 2020. In a letter to these patients, Dr. John Zubialde, president of OU Health Physicians, said negotiations between the two parties have extended at least a year. (Tepper, 3/2)

Albuquerque Journal: Overhaul Of Medical Malpractice Law Debated
As the session enters its final weeks, New Mexico legislators are evaluating two starkly different proposals aimed at ensuring doctors can afford insurance for medical malpractice claims – while also protecting the rights of patients and families harmed by medical errors. It’s a debate that’s brought to the Roundhouse powerful testimony by physicians, hospital executives, trial lawyers and New Mexicans who have lost loved ones to medical mistakes. Each of the competing measures proposes to strengthen New Mexico’s patient compensation fund – an account that covers medical malpractice claims that exceed a certain amount. (McKay, 3/2)

NBC News: 'No Glass Ceiling': Tulane Doctor Files Discrimination Lawsuit Against Medical School
Dr. Princess Dennar of Tulane University was just a child in Southwest Philadelphia when she decided to become a doctor. ... Decades later, Dennar became the first Black woman to head the Tulane University School of Medicine's internal medicine-pediatrics program. ... Despite breaking well-established barriers through her position at Tulane, Dennar was suspended last month after she filed a federal lawsuit against the medical school in October. The lawsuit accuses Tulane of discrimination and "creating a race and gender-based hostile environment." (Thompson and Lozano, 3/2)

Boston Globe: A Friendly Dog Named Bob Brings A Bit Of Comfort And Connection To Patients
Bob is a mix of golden retriever and goldendoodle, tilted heavily toward retriever. And he’s an official Tufts Medical Center employee, complete with identification badge, who puts in an 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. shift after leaving Salem with his handler, Anne Marie Sirois, the hospital’s manager of volunteer services. Bob even has an Instagram account.“He’s probably the most popular staff member around. He’s a great co-worker,” Sirois said. (MacQuarrie, 2/2)

Bloomberg: Merck Prepares New Trial Of Covid Drug Gained In Acquisition
Merck & Co. is preparing to launch a fresh clinical trial of an experimental Covid-19 treatment gained in a November deal after U.S. regulators said results from a small study weren’t sufficient to seek clearance. The drugmaker will start a late-stage trial of MK-7110, a therapy for severely ill Covid patients, to address the concerns brought forth by the Food and Drug Administration, said Nick Kartsonis, senior vice president of clinical research for infectious diseases and vaccines at Merck Research Laboratories. The additional work will put Merck months away from potentially filing for emergency clearance and bringing the therapy to patients. The company hopes to generate the needed data before the end of the year. (Griffin, 3/2)

Boston Globe: Local Researchers Look At Antibody Response Role In COVID-19
A new study says that one type of antibody may be driving severe COVID-19 in adults, while a different type may be driving a rare but dangerous condition called multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) that children with COVID-19 can develop. Researchers at the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard and Massachusetts General Hospital published their results last month in Nature Medicine. “We noticed children who developed MIS-C after COVID disease or exposure had high levels of a specific type of antibody called IgG,” Dr. Lael Yonker, a pediatric pulmonologist at MGH and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, said in a statement last month from the institute. (Finucane, 3/2)

Stat: CRISPR Rivals Put Patents Aside To Help In Fight Against Covid-19
In early January 2020, Feng Zhang, a gene-editing researcher at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, started getting emails written in Chinese about a newly identified coronavirus that was spreading in China. Some were from academics he had met, but he also got an unexpected one from the science officer at China’s consulate in New York City. (Isaacson, 3/3)

In other research news —

Modern Healthcare: Drug Overdose Deaths See Largest Increase At Start Of COVID-19 Pandemic
The Government Accountability Office directed the federal government to boost national efforts to curb and recover from drug misuse, adding the recommendation to its biennial list of high-risk areas vulnerable to fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement. The largest recorded increase of drug overdose deaths occurred from May 2019 to May 2020, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noting a significant increase in overdose deaths from March to May that was likely fueled by the staggering economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the report. The GAO offered several recommendations to better address the drug misuse epidemic. (Kacik, 3/2)

CIDRAP: Study: Women Often Receive Improper UTI Antibiotic Rx
Nearly half of US women with an uncomplicated urinary tract infection (UTI) receive an inappropriate antibiotic prescription, and nearly three-quarters receive a prescription that is longer than necessary, according to a study last week in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. The study, led by researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, also found that women in rural areas are more likely to receive an inappropriately long antibiotic prescription. (Dall, 3/2)

Genomeweb: NIH, Partners Commit $74.9M To New Phase Of Alzheimer's Program
The US National Institutes of Health and a coalition of private-sector partners are committing nearly $74.9 million to Alzheimer's disease research over the next five years in the newly announced second phase of the Accelerating Medicine Partnership for Alzheimer's Disease (AMP AD) program. Called AMP AD 2.0, the new version of the 10-year-old program will support technologies including single-cell profiling and computational modeling to bring precision medicine to the development of new Alzheimer's treatments, NIH said Tuesday. "AMP AD 2.0 aims to add greater precision to the molecular maps developed in the first iteration of this program," NIH Director Francis Collins said in a statement. "This will identify biological targets and biomarkers to inform new therapeutic interventions for specific disease subtypes." (3/2)

Stat: Apple Watch Research Plows Ahead, Revealing The Device’s Health Potential
Apple has marketed its Watch for years as a tool to monitor and improve your health — and is working on a growing number of research projects to prove the device’s medical applications can be useful in both people’s everyday lives and in clinical contexts. (Aguilar, 3/3)

Stat: Beauty At The Micro-Scale: MIT’s 2021 Images Award Winners
Much of the world’s focus has been on health care at a global scale this year. The following images celebrate the work of researchers who have been toiling away on tinier work. The pictures are stunning visualizations of life sciences and biomedical research being conducted to find treatments and cures for cancer. (Ambrose, 3/3)

ABC News: No Big Gatherings For Saint Patrick's Day In Boston: 'We Are So Close To A Finish Line' 
As Saint Patrick's Day approaches, Boston's mayor is urging residents to avoid large gatherings, warning that they could become super-spreader events that would set back progress made in the fight against COVID-19. "There should be no large gatherings of any kind for Saint Patrick's Day," Mayor Marty Walsh said at a news conference Monday. "We are so close to a finish line here that what we don't need now is a step backwards." (Shapiro, 3/2)

Salt Lake Tribune: Utah Lawmakers Give Final Approval To Increased Regulation Over "Troubled Teen" Industry In The State
The Utah House gave final approval Tuesday to a bill that would enhance oversight of the state’s “troubled-teen” industry and place limits on their use of restraints, drugs and isolation rooms. Passage of the bill comes after celebrity Paris Hilton gave emotional testimony during a committee hearing earlier this session that detailed the abuse and mistreatment she says she endured while at a youth residential treatment center in Utah. If signed by the governor, this would be the first time Utah legislators have put more oversight in place on the nearly 100 youth residential treatment centers in 15 years. Rep. Brady Brammer, R-Highland, said Tuesday that the proposal was an “essential bill” to add “some guardrails and some oversight that, frankly, has been lacking.” (Stevens, 3/3)

AP: Initiative To Provide More Mental Health Services On Campus
A new initiative is aimed at providing more mental health services to college students. The initiative will use $1.5 million in federal relief funds to boost mental health on campuses as COVID-19 continues to drive stress and uncertainty among students, the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education announced on Tuesday. (3/3)

AP: Detroit To Help Firefighters After Drinking Incidents
The mayor of Detroit acknowledged Tuesday that the fire department has a “very serious problem” after two on-duty employees were involved in alcohol-related crashes. Mayor Mike Duggan said the city will conduct an audit in which employees can step forward and speak confidentially about alcohol use and other issues. He said firefighters who face the additional strain of serving as medical first responders will be provided with mental health services. Duggan said the stress of COVID-19 has been a contributing factor. (3/2)

Anchorage Daily News: Alaska Marijuana Control Board Is Considering Doubling The Amount Of THC Allowed In Edibles
Alaska marijuana regulators are considering loosening restrictions on edible marijuana products in the state. The regulation change would double the amount of THC, the plant’s psychoactive compound, allowed in a single serving. Proponents of the change say it would benefit the industry, giving manufacturers more flexibility and saving money for them and for consumers. Alaska’s limit on edibles is currently the strictest compared with other states where recreational marijuana is legal, and some states allow much higher doses. Still, some worry that the change could have a negative public health effect and cause an increase in accidental overconsumption and emergency calls related to marijuana. (Goodykoontz, 3/2)

Bloomberg: EU Vaccine Passports For Travel Are Months Away, Memo Shows
The European Union is still months away from issuing Covid-19 immunity certificates, raising the risk of another lost tourism season for the bloc’s aviation and hospitality industries. Technical work on a digital platform to authenticate travelers’ health status could take three to four months, according to a briefing note circulated to national delegations in Brussels on Tuesday. Beyond that, there are legal hurdles, the challenge of agreeing the scope of the program, and resolving thorny medical questions. The system being developed by the European Commission would confirm holders have recently tested negative, been fully vaccinated, or recovered from the coronavirus and are thus presumed to be immune. (Chrysoloras, 3/3)

The Washington Post: Royal Caribbean Is Starting ‘Fully Vaccinated’ Cruises From Israel 
As cruise lines await an uncertain future in the United States, one major player is announcing plans to sail from Israel with vaccinated passengers and crew. Royal Caribbean International announced Monday morning that its newest ship, Odyssey of the Seas, will start sailing from Haifa in May with Israeli passengers. The operator said it will be the first to offer “fully vaccinated sailings,” with crew and passengers older than 16 required to have a full course of the vaccine against covid-19. (Sampson, 3/1)

The Washington Post: Mexico’s Riviera Maya Eases Covid-19 Restrictions Ahead Of Spring Break 
The Mexican state of Quintana Roo is softening its coronavirus restrictions following a decrease in confirmed covid-19 cases in the area, officials announced Thursday on Twitter. The entire state, which includes the major tourist destinations of Cancún, Tulum and Playa del Carmen, will begin to permit hotels, restaurants, shops, theaters and theme parks to operate at 60 percent capacity next week. Previous limits on hotel and restaurant capacities were 30 percent. (McMahon, 2/26)

And in health news from other nations —

Bloomberg: Brazil Hits Record For Covid Deaths As Hospitals Near Collapse
Brazil reported a record daily number of Covid-19 deaths as a resurgence of the virus fills up hospital beds and pushes local governments to call for more drastic measures to contain contagion. The Health Ministry reported 1,641 people died from the disease in the last 24 hours. Brazil is among the hardest-hit countries globally, with 10,646,926 confirmed cases and 257,361 deaths from Covid-19. While the virus recedes in most of the world, Brazil is battling a spike in infections, which has been made worse by carnival and year-end gatherings. About 20 states have more than 80% of ICU beds filled, leading the National Council of Health Secretaries to call for tough measures including a national curfew and closure of airports to avoid a collapse of public and private healthcare systems networks. (Gamarski, 3/2)

Bloomberg: Stockholm Hit By 100% Spike In Covid Cases In Just 3 Weeks
In Sweden’s capital, the rate of coronavirus infections just doubled over the past three weeks, making a third wave seem almost inevitable. The surge in new cases follows a warning from the government of Prime Minister Stefan Lofven that Sweden might need to enforce legislation enacted earlier this year, allowing the authorities to impose what would be the country’s first lockdown since the pandemic erupted roughly a year ago. With the current infection rates, the capital area has seen a “small” increase in the number of people “so seriously ill that they are in need of hospital care,” Johan Bratt, the acting health and medical care director for the Stockholm region, said in a statement on Wednesday. (Daly, 3/3)

CNN: Kenya Receives More Than 1 Million Vaccines Through COVAX
Kenya has received more than 1 million Covid-19 vaccines as part of the global COVAX program, according to a news release from the country’s Ministry of Health on Tuesday. A plane carrying 1.02 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine touched down just before midnight Tuesday in Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. (3/3)

AP: Nigeria Receives Nearly 4 Million Vaccines From COVAX
Nearly 4 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have arrived in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, the third and largest delivery so far to an African country by the global COVAX initiative, which was created to ensure that low- and middle-income countries have fair access to vaccines. (Petesch, 3/2)

AP: Blast At Dutch Virus Testing Center; No One Hurt
Dutch police say a blast smashed windows at a coronavirus testing center in a small town north of Amsterdam in the early morning. Nobody was hurt. Police in the North Holland province tweeted that “an explosive went off” near the test center in Bovenkarspel just before 7 a.m. on Wednesday. (3/3)

In updates on the HIV/AIDS crisis —

Fox News: Scientists Find 'HIV Elite Controllers' Living In Congo, Possibly Paving Way For Vaccine, Cure
Scientists have claimed to discover a rare group of people in the Democratic Republic of Congo who have tested positive for HIV antibodies but are living with low to non-detectable levels of viral load without the aid of antiretroviral medicines, potentially paving the way for vaccine development or possibly even a cure. Abbott announced in a news release posted Tuesday that the prevalence of this group, dubbed HIV elite controllers, was 2.7%-4.3% in the DRC, compared to 0.1%-2% prevalence worldwide. Findings from the study, which was published in EBioMedicine, could help uncover links between natural virus suppression and future treatments. (Hein, 3/2)

Mlive.com: Michigan House Package Aims To Curb ‘Skyrocketing’ Prescription Drug, Health Care Costs 
A bipartisan group of state House representatives [last] Wednesday introduced health care reforms that aim to cap costs on medications and improve transparency in the price-setting process. House Speaker Jason Wentworth, R-Clare, joined state lawmakers from both parties to discuss the new plan during a Feb. 24 press conference in the Michigan State Capitol. Co-sponsors who joined him included Reps. Julie Calley, R-Portland; Abdullah Hammoud, D-Dearborn; Bronna Kahle, R-Adrian; and Sarah Cambensy, D-Marquette. (Dodge, 2/24)

(Kankakee, Ill.) Daily Journal: Illinois Lawmakers Could Take Up Prescription Drug Legislation 
Meetings have been taking place across Illinois on the subject of prescription drug legislation, which lawmakers could take up this year. House Bill 1745 would limit a patient’s monthly out-of-pocket costs for prescriptions. The legislation won’t save anyone money, but will make expenses more predictable. The legislation would also limit a beneficiary’s monthly or annual out-of-pocket financial responsibility for prescription drugs to a specified dollar amount. (Bessler, 3/1)

The State Journal-Register: Health Matters: Here's Suggestions On How To Save Money On Prescription Drugs
Nearly 10% of U.S. health care spending is for prescription drugs, totaling $370 billion in 2019. Remarkably, only half of that amount comes from insurance companies and the government; the rest is paid out-of-pocket by patients. On average, each American adult fills 17 prescriptions a year; the number doubles for those 65 and older. Paying for prescription drugs can place a substantial financial burden on patients and families. According to a report from Georgetown University, 40% of patients admitted to not filling prescriptions because of the cost, or cutting their spending on food, heat and other necessities so that they can afford their meds.  (Yang and Parker, 2/28)

Newsweek: Biden Must Restore Seniors' Access To Essential Medicines 
In its final hours, the Trump administration fired a parting shot at our nation's most vulnerable patients. On January 19, Medicare officials announced a new payment model that could wreak havoc on the chronically ill. The proposed model—technically put forward by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation—affects Medicare's Part D prescription drug benefit, which relies on private insurers to administer seniors' drug coverage. (Former Vermont governor Howard Dean, 2/24)

The Wall Street Journal: Supersizing ObamaCare Subsidies 
We’ve been telling readers about the progressive policy priorities hitching a ride on Congress’s “Covid relief” bill. That includes shoveling billions into the Affordable Care Act, with the goal of making government insurance a middle-class entitlement on the way to Medicare for All. Provisions of the $1.9 trillion bill moving through the House make Affordable Care Act subsidies more generous and available even to the affluent. Buying an ObamaCare policy makes sense if a subsidy shields you from fearsome premiums and out-of-pocket costs; more than 85% of enrollees receive such a subsidy. But those who earn too much to qualify for government subsidies have been fleeing the exchanges. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said last fall that unsubsidized enrollment dropped 45% between 2016 and 2019. (2/24)

Mankato Free Press: Our View: Health Care: Allow Prescription Imports From Canada 
Longtime Republican member of Congress Gil Gutknecht was considered a rebel in his party when he proposed making it legal to import prescription drugs from Canada. That was in the 1990s.Today, the market-based approach to lowering prescription drug prices remains illegal. But maybe not for long. A bipartisan plan by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, calls for opening up markets so individuals could buy prescription drugs from Canada. (2/26)

Forbes: Rebate Walls Stifle Prescription Drug Competition
Ever wondered why prescription drugs, such as biosimilars and specialty generics, that are therapeutically equivalent to their originator counterparts don’t get the kind of traction one would expect. Or, why in certain therapeutic classes newly approved drugs that offer distinct advantages over existing treatments don’t achieve the expected uptake. Rebate walls may be partly to blame. (Joshua Cohen, 3/1)

The Washington Post: Greg Abbott Is Endangering The Health Of Texas And Beyond 
The governor of Texas, Greg Abbott (R), is gambling with the health of his state and beyond. He announced plans on Tuesday to completely open establishments next week and lift a face mask mandate for public areas, retreating from the vital measures needed to fight the coronavirus pandemic. While everyone is eager for a break from restrictions, Mr. Abbott’s decision is premature and reckless. On Monday, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Rochelle Walensky, warned that the recent declines in daily new infections and deaths had stalled, a worrisome sign just as new virus variants are spreading. The number of new cases per day has been stuck nationwide at about 70,000 on a rolling average for a week, she noted, expressing concern that “more states are rolling back the exact public health measures we have recommended to protect people from covid-19.” (3/2)

Houston Chronicle: Ending COVID Restrictions, Abbott Plays Politics With Texans' Lives
The governor says it, so it must be true. Texans, in the words of Gov. Greg Abbott Tuesday, have “mastered” the safe daily habits that prevent the contraction and spread of COVID-19. Through Texans’ tireless efforts to obey public health guidelines and follow the governor’s statewide mask mandate, the pandemic is abating in the state, saving not only lives, but also allowing Abbott to slip the onerous bonds of responsibility and leave the fate of millions of our fellow Texans in the capable hands of the vigilant citizens of Texas. “Texans have wrestled with COVID, and they have learned best how to conduct their own lives,” Abbott said in a press conference in Lubbock. “State mandates are no longer needed.” (3/2)

The New York Times: How To Protect Yourself Against Coronavirus Variants 
The hospital where I work is now treating fewer people with Covid-19, after enduring a deadly resurgence of the coronavirus this year. In the United States, the number of people hospitalized with Covid-19 has dropped 29 percent in the past two weeks, most likely thanks to rising immunity resulting from vaccinations and prior infections, as well as the success of government-imposed restrictions. It feels as if we can begin to exhale. But the situation remains delicate. The number of new Covid-19 cases reported each day has declined substantially since the peak in early January, but more recently the rate has stabilized as new variants of the virus threaten to reverse our modest progress. Some of these new variants are more transmissible and may be more virulent. They may also be less susceptible to some vaccines than the previously dominant lineages of the coronavirus. A variant discovered in Brazil infected people who already had some immunity to Covid-19 because of previous infections. (Abraar Karan, 3/3)

CNN: Pediatrician: The Pandemic Is Taking An Alarming Toll On Children
Almost a year into the pandemic, what began as a public health emergency is turning into a mental health crisis among our nation's children and adolescents as they struggle with social isolation, grief, and the switch to remote learning. It is becoming increasingly clear that this crisis will endure well beyond the pandemic. (Lee Savio Beers, 3/2)

Stat: Using A Collective 'Virtuous Cycle' To Break The Pandemic
Medical schools teach students a four-part “virtuous cycle” in which one step positively reinforces the next: Assess the patient. Implement a therapeutic plan. Assess the patient’s response. Revise the therapeutic plan as needed. (Isaac S. Kohane and Jonathan Zittrain, 3/2)

Stat: Biden's Pandemic Plan Mustn't Ignore Antimicrobial Resistance 
What if another devastating pandemic came on the heels of Covid-19? Unfortunately, that looks increasingly possible. For years, the antibiotics used to fight various bacterial infections have grown gradually less effective. If current trends continue, these antibiotics could stop working altogether in the near future, leaving humanity vulnerable to deadly, drug-resistant “superbugs. ”Preventing this public health threat will require an aggressive, federally backed effort to develop new and more potent antibiotics. As the Biden administration begins thinking about pandemic preparedness, it should focus on jump-starting innovation in developing new antimicrobial drugs. (Michelle McMurry-Heath, 3/3)

Chicago Tribune: Gov. Pritzker, Protect ‘Health Care Heroes’ From Excess Litigation Over COVID-19
When the coronavirus hit U.S. shores in January 2020, few people, including President Donald Trump and top health officials in the federal government, began to prepare for a worst-case scenario — or any scenario. Even as the second U.S. infection of a Chicago woman returning from Wuhan, China, was confirmed in late January, Chicago health officials said risk to the general public “remains low. ”We now know how wrong those early assessments were. We now know that nursing homes would be hit especially hard by the virus, accounting for roughly 40% of deaths nationwide. And we now know that nursing homes and their employees are dealing with an additional complication due to the pandemic — the threat of mass litigation. (3/2)

Houston Chronicle: A Black Doctor And Scientist On Vaccinating Minorities
When it was first announced that a COVID-19 vaccine was authorized for emergency use by the Federal Drug Administration in the United States, the scientific community was finally able to exhale. As a Black physician and member of the scientific community, I was particularly encouraged because of the disproportionately higher rates of hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 among the Hispanic, Black and Indigenous American populations. My relief, however, was short-lived. We continue to see troubling inequities with new reports showing that many people from the minority community are among the lowest currently receiving the new vaccines, and the highest to be hesitant about its safety and effectiveness. According to Pew Research Center, just 42 percent of Black adults are inclined to get vaccinated, compared to 63 percent of white adults and 83 percent of adult Asian Americans. (Roderic I. Pettigrew, 3/3)

The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Is Failing At COVID Vaccine Racial Equity 
I won’t mince words: The state is failing its most vulnerable residents when it comes to protecting them from COVID-19 and foundering in its duty to ensure equitable treatment during a public health crisis. I have read all the challenges and even written about them myself. Distrust of the vaccine and the medical system in general. Obstacles to signing up for vaccine appointments and getting to them, as well. Jobs that make certain people more vulnerable to contracting the virus. Underlying health conditions that make virus exposure more dangerous. A health system that has historically practiced in inequitable treatment. (Andrea K. McDaniels, 3/2)

Boston Globe: Maine Makes Age The Vaccine Metric That Matters 
Janet Mills, the governor of Maine, is an unflappable hand at the helm, one who worries more about getting the policy than the politics right. So when Mills announced a new approach to delivering COVID-19 vaccines last week, it caught my eye. Henceforth, Mills said, the state will vaccinate according to age. On Wednesday, those 60 and older become eligible. In April, vaccine eligibility will extend down to 50, in May to 40, and so forth. By July, everyone will be eligible. Maine, like many other states, had factored occupation and individual medical conditions into its vaccination plan. So why the change? For Mills, it came down to the question of “who is most likely to die” if they come down with COVID-19. Age is the strongest predictor both of dying if one contracts COVID as well as of suffering serious effects. Further, age is closely associated with the health problems — comorbidities — that make contracting the coronavirus especially dangerous. (Scott Lehigh, 3/2)

The New York Times: The Case For Covid Optimism
Millions of Johnson & Johnson’s single-shot coronavirus vaccines are being shipped across the country this week, just days after the Food and Drug Administration confirmed that it was 85 percent protective against severe Covid-19 and 100 percent protective against hospitalization and death. That may sound like another bit of routine pandemic news, but it shouldn’t: If Johnson & Johnson’s had been the first authorized vaccine in the United States instead of the third, “everybody would be doing handstands and back flips and high fives,” Dr. James T. McDeavitt, dean of clinical affairs at the Baylor College of Medicine, told The Times. The addition of a third stream of vaccine supply also means that there will be enough doses for the entire adult population by the end of May, according to President Biden. Which raises a tantalizing question: Could life in the United States soon return to something approaching normal? Here are a few reasons to think so, along with a few reasons to keep your expectations in check. (Spencer Bokat-Lindell, 3/2)

Also —

USA Today: If Your Allergies Are More Severe, More Expensive And Last Longer, Blame Climate Change
Why are my allergies lasting longer than they used to?” The first time a patient asked this, I researched potential reasons. The second time, I was prepared with the answer.  And now, knowing what is coming, I preempt the question. The growing season, the period when trees, grass and weeds grow and produce pollen, has lengthened by about 17 days in Washington, D.C., as compared to 1970. In Detroit and Portland, Oregon, the season has lengthened by almost a month. A recent study published in PNAS, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reinforces what my patients are experiencing. Looking back approximately three decades, pollen seasons now last on average 20 extra days in North America, and pollen concentrations have increased about 21% over the years. The data shows that these changes in pollen allergy season are in part driven by anthropogenic global warming. (Neelu Tummala, 3/2)

The New York Times: Absolutists Are Taking Over The Anti-Abortion Movement 
South Carolina last month became the latest state to pass a so-called heartbeat ban, criminalizing abortion after fetal cardiac activity or a heartbeat is detected, typically between six and eight weeks into a pregnancy. A federal court promptly blocked the law from taking effect, underscoring the concerns of some abortion opponents that the approach was too extreme and would be counterproductive. Until several years ago, these early abortion bans struck many, even some red state lawmakers, the same way. But in 2019, state legislatures passed a wave of fetal heartbeat bills. About a dozen states, including South Carolina, have sought to put such a law on their books but have been blocked by the courts. At the moment, the Supreme Court’s case law rules out any ban before viability, the point at which survival is possible outside the womb. (Mary Ziegler, 3/3)