First Edition: Nov. 23, 2020

KHN: Parents Complain That Pediatricians, Wary Of COVID, Shift Sick Kids To Urgent Care 
A mom of eight boys, Kim Gudgeon was at her wits’ end when she called her family doctor in suburban Chicago to schedule a sick visit for increasingly fussy, 1-year-old Bryce. He had been up at night and was disrupting his brothers’ e-learning during the day. “He was just miserable,” Gudgeon said. “And the older kids were like, ‘Mom, I can’t hear my teacher.’ There’s only so much room in the house when you have a crying baby.” (Kennedy, 11/23)

KHN: What Biden Can Do To Combat COVID Right Now
When Barack Obama was elected president in 2008, the country was in the midst of a dire economic crisis. Twelve years later, his vice president, Joe Biden, has been elected president in the midst of a dire economic crisis and a worldwide, worsening coronavirus pandemic. In 2008, Obama’s team and that of outgoing President George W. Bush worked together to allow the new administration to be as prepared as possible on Jan. 20, 2009. That’s not happening for Biden, as President Donald Trump continues to fight the election results and block the official transition. (Rovner, 11/23)

KHN: Were You Notified About Missing Tax Forms For Your ACA Subsidy? Blame COVID.
The notice from the federal health insurance marketplace grabbed Andrew Schenker’s attention: ACT NOW: YOU’RE AT RISK OF LOSING FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE STARTING JANUARY 1, 2021. As he read the notice, though, the Blacksburg, Virginia, resident became exasperated. Schenker, his wife and their teenage son have a bronze-level marketplace plan. Based on their income of about $40,000 a year, they receive tax credits that cover the $2,036 monthly premium in full. (Andrews, 11/23)

KHN: California Law Banning Toxic Chemicals In Cosmetics Will Transform Industry
A toxic chemical ban signed into law in California will change the composition of cosmetics, shampoos, hair straighteners and other personal care products used by consumers across the country, industry officials and activists say. The ban, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom at the end of September, covers 24 chemicals, including mercury, formaldehyde and several types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS. All the chemicals are carcinogenic or otherwise toxic — and advocates argue they have no place in beauty products. (Green, 11/23)

KHN: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Transition Troubles Mount As COVID Spreads
President-elect Joe Biden is still being blocked from launching his official transition while President Donald Trump contests the outcome of the election. That could be particularly dangerous for public health as COVID-19 spreads around the country at an alarming rate. Meanwhile, a second vaccine to prevent COVID — the one made by Moderna — is showing excellent results of its early trials. And unlike the one made by Pfizer, Moderna’s vaccine does not need to be kept ultra-cold, which could ease distribution. (11/20)

The Wall Street Journal: AstraZeneca, Oxford Covid-19 Vaccine Up To 90% Effective In Late-Stage Trials 
The Covid-19 vaccine being developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca PLC was found to be as much as 90% effective in preventing infections without serious side effects in a large clinical trial, the partners said Monday. AstraZeneca said there were no serious safety events related to the vaccine and it was well tolerated across different dosing regimens. Efficacy ranged from 62% to 90% depending on the dosage given, the partners said. AstraZeneca and Oxford said the average efficacy in the analysis was 70%. (Strasburg, 11/23)

CNBC: Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid Vaccine Shows An Average 70% Effectiveness In Preventing The Virus
One dosing regimen showed an effectiveness of 90% when trial participants received a half dose, followed by a full dose at least one month apart. The other showed 62% efficacy when given as two full doses at least one month apart. The combined analysis from both dosing regimens found average vaccine effectiveness of 70%. No hospitalizations or severe cases of the disease were reported in participants receiving the vaccine. (Meredith, 11/23)

Reuters: AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine Can Be 90% Effective, Results Show
No serious safety events related to the vaccine have been confirmed and it was well tolerated across both dosing regimens, AstraZeneca said. “This vaccine’s efficacy and safety confirm that it will be highly effective against COVID-19 and will have an immediate impact on this public health emergency,” Pascal Soriot, Astra’s chief executive, said in a statement.

Bloomberg: Astra-Oxford Shot Is Key To Escaping Pandemic For Many Nations
Trial successes from Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. have buoyed hopes that a Covid-19 vaccine is coming soon. But much of the world, outside of rich nations like the U.S., is counting on another company’s shot to escape the crisis. Findings from the final stage of AstraZeneca Plc’s vaccine studies are due to be released shortly, and the stakes for lower- and middle-income nations are immense. The shot developed with the University of Oxford accounts for more than 40% of the supplies going to those countries, based on deals tracked by London-based research firm Airfinity Ltd. (Paton and Ring, 11/22)

Reuters: COVID-19 Shots Could Reach First Americans By Mid-December, Top Health Official Says 
U.S. healthcare workers and others recommended for the nation’s first COVID-19 inoculations could start getting shots within a day or two of regulatory consent next month, a top official of the government’s vaccine development effort said on Sunday. Some 70% of the U.S. population of 330 million would need to be inoculated to achieve “herd” immunity from the virus, a goal the country could achieve by May, according to Dr. Moncef Slaoui, chief scientific adviser for “Operation Warp Speed.” (11/22)

CNN: White House Vaccine Chief Says First Americans Could Be Vaccinated Next Month
Moncef Slaoui, the head of the US government's effort to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, said the first Americans to receive a vaccine -- if all things go according to plan -- could be as early as the second week of December. "Our plan is to be able to ship vaccines to the immunization sites within 24 hours from the approval, so I would expect maybe on day two after approval, on the 11th or on the 12th of December, hopefully, the first people will be immunized across the United States, across all states, in all the areas where the State Departments of Health will have told us where to deliver the vaccine," Slaoui told CNN's Jake Tapper on "State of the Union" Sunday. (Thomas and Janfaza, 11/22)

Politico: 'The Train Is Running' On Covid Vaccines Despite Transition Delay, Warp Speed Adviser Says 
The delay in the presidential transition process won't impact the work of Operation Warp Speed, the public-private partnership to develop coronavirus vaccines, the operation's chief adviser said Sunday. "Frankly, the operation has been isolated from, from the administration, from the political environment and the political context," Moncef Slaoui said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "We worked very hard to make sure that’s the case. And therefore, all decisions are made, the train is running, whether one administration or the other doesn’t, frankly, make a difference. I hope there is no disruption in any way." (Parthasarathy, 11/22)

AP: FDA Allows Emergency Use Of Antibody Drug Trump Received
Regeneron said that initial doses will be made available to roughly 300,000 patients through a federal government allocation program. Those patients will not be charged for the drug but may have to pay part of the cost of giving the IV. (Marchione, 11/22)

NPR: FDA Grants Emergency Authorization For COVID-19 Treatment From Regeneron 
The treatment combines two antibodies — casirivimab and imdevimab — and administers them together by IV. In a clinical trial of about 800 people, the combination was shown to significantly reduce virus levels within days of treatment. In its authorization on Saturday, the FDA made clear that the drug is only for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 in people 12 years and older who are at high risk of developing more severe symptoms. It's not for patients who are hospitalized because of COVID-19 or who require oxygen therapy because of the virus. (Schwartz, 11/22)

AP: Nevada Governor Tightens Restrictions As Virus Cases Rise
Gov. Steve Sisolak announced plans Sunday to tighten restrictions on casinos, restaurants and private gatherings such as Thanksgiving dinner in an effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus. The new restrictions, which are scheduled to go into effect on Tuesday, come amid an unprecedented surge that has broken records in the state in terms of cases, deaths and infection rates throughout November. (Metz, 11/23)

Bloomberg: Most Infected U.S. County To Shut Down Restaurants, Again
America’s most infected metropolitan area will be shutting down outdoor dining again. The Greater Los Angeles area added 2,718 new coronavirus cases Sunday, with the five-day average exceeding the 4,000 threshold that triggered additional measures where restaurants, breweries and bars will once again limit their businesses to just pick-up and delivery. The new curbs will start at 10 p.m. Wednesday, right before the Thanksgiving holiday. (Chua, 11/22)

NPR: Public Officials Campaign To Keep People Home For Thanksgiving 
Across the country, public officials are urging people to stay home and stay safe during the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday amid a dramatic rise in new cases of COVID-19 in nearly every state. Experts warn that the holiday week will be a crucial time for fighting the virus, and that even limited family gatherings could result in devastatingly high numbers of newly infected people. Hospitals are already reaching capacity around the country, as the country hit the grim milestone of 12 million confirmed cases. (Lonsdorf, 11/22)

Politico: CDC Recommends Pre- And Post-Flight Testing For International Air Travel 
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is advising air travelers get tested before and after flights to help stop the spread of the coronavirus ahead of the holiday travel season. Those planning to fly should get tested 1 to 3 days prior to the flight and again 3 to 5 days after traveling, according to new agency guidance on international air travel released late Saturday. CDC also is recommending people stay home for 7 days following their trips, even if they test negative. They should stay home for 14 days, if they aren't tested after travel, the agency said. (Beasley, 11/22)

USA Today: Thanksgiving: More Are Flying Despite CDC Pleas Not To Travel
Americans are flocking to airports for travel ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, even as the COVID-19 pandemic rages across the country and after the Centers for Disease Control pleaded with Americans not to travel. More than 1 million air travelers passed through security checkpoints at U.S. airports on Friday for only the second time since the pandemic began, according to the TSA. On Saturday, the travel numbers neared one million, bringing the two-day total to more than two million passengers. (Alexander, 11/23)

Yahoo Life: Family Members Film PSA Urging People To Stay Home After 15 Of Them Get COVID-19 Following Birthday Party: 'We Feel Guilty For Gathering'
A family in Arlington, Texas has filmed a PSA pleading with others to take the coronavirus pandemic seriously after 15 of their family members tested positive for COVID-19 following a small birthday party held indoors. “I had family over at my house for some cake for my wife’s birthday. I didn’t think anything bad would happen,” says one member of the Aragonez family in a video they made to warn others of the seriousness of the virus. “Now I’m fighting coronavirus. ”In total, all 12 of the people who attended the Nov. 1 family gathering, contracted COVID-19, as well as three family members who were not at the event. (Sheppard, 11/22)

The New York Times: Covid-19 Live Updates: U.S. Airports See Rise In Travelers
The nation’s health experts on Sunday pleaded with Americans to stay home over the Thanksgiving holiday and forgo any plans to travel or celebrate at large family gatherings, even as airports have recorded a significant rise in passengers. Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the country’s top infectious disease specialist, and other health experts relayed a clear message on Sunday morning news shows: with coronavirus cases surging to record levels across the country, turning nearly every state into a hot zone of transmission, the risk of getting infected, whether in transit or in even small indoor gatherings, is high. (11/23)

The New York Times: Coronavirus Upends Thanksgiving, While Some Ignore Travel Warnings
Ginger Floerchinger-Franks typically invites 10 people to her home in Boise, Idaho, for Thanksgiving dinner and cooks the entire meal herself, including her specialty, pumpkin soup. But the pandemic has forced her to devise a new plan: a socially distant potluck. Three households will each prepare a dish, and Ms. Floerchinger-Franks will shuttle the platters between their homes. Then they will gather on Zoom to savor each other’s food. “This is kind of an adventure,” she said. (McDonnell Nieto del Rio and Wise, 11/22)

The Washington Post: Health Experts Urge Against Thanksgiving Gatherings As Coronavirus Cases Explode Nationwide 
Health experts continue to urge Americans not to travel and gather for Thanksgiving as a fall wave of the virus worsens across the country, with case counts nearing 200,000 a day. In the past week, the new daily reported case counts in the United States spiked nearly 14 percent, according to data tracked by The Washington Post. (Firozi, Sonmez and Sun, 11/22)

The Washington Post: Thanksgiving Marks A Mass Exodus Of College Students Leaving Campuses Like UW Madison 
They have endured the strangest fall term in memory, cooped up in dormitories and apartments, taking classes mostly online, seeing professors in person only occasionally, if at all, hanging out with just a few close friends and imagining how this lakeshore capital in a state swamped by the coronavirus might someday recover its boisterous college vibe when the pandemic subsides. Now thousands of University of Wisconsin students are making getaway plans, part of a mass pre-Thanksgiving exodus from campuses nationwide that could spread the dangerous pathogen in hometowns across the country if students and schools aren’t careful. (Anderson and Svrluga, 11/22)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Philadelphians Getting Tested For COVID-19 Before Thanksgiving Encounter Long Lines, Shortage Of Appointments
PJ Brennan, chief medical officer of the University of Pennsylvania Health System, said Penn-affiliated testing sites have seen demand increase in the past four weeks. Since Nov. 9, 1,073 tests have been administered at its community testing site at 4040 Market St. for symptomatic patients, Brennan said, and 3,132 tests have been administered at Sayre, which has a partnership with Penn. “Last month, on average, we were testing around 550 people per week at Sayre and 450 per week at the West Philadelphia site,” Brennan said by email. “We suspect that the news about the increase in cases is likely causing people to worry more about COVID and driving them to testing.” (Ao, 11/20)

The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Hospitalization Count Sets 13th Straight Daily Record
The U.S. reported 142,732 new cases of coronavirus and registered a record number of hospitalizations for the 13th straight day. The tally of Sunday’s new infections, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, was down from Friday’s record 196,004—but counts are generally lower over the weekend before rising midweek. The latest daily figure is the highest yet for a Sunday, and total cumulative cases now exceed 12.2 million. (Wen, 11/23)

Politico: Kelly Loeffler's Latest Coronavirus Test Comes Back Negative
An inconclusive coronavirus test for Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who had been self-isolating after testing positive, was retested overnight and came back negative, her campaign said Sunday. The Georgia Republican, who has been actively campaigning for the state’s Jan. 5 runoff against Democrat Raphael Warnock, took two Covid-19 tests on Friday morning before appearing with Vice President Mike Pence at a campaign rally. The rapid test came back negative, but Loeffler, 49, learned on Friday evening that her PCR test — a more accurate sampling — came back positive, according to Loeffler’s spokesman, Stephen Lawson. (Desiderio, 11/22)

The Hill: Connecticut Democrat Diagnosed With COVID-19 
A Democratic congressman from Connecticut tested positive for COVID-19, according to a statement released through his office Sunday. In the statement, Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) said that he was exposed to the virus by someone who did not know at the time they had contracted it. He said he was experiencing "mild" symptoms. (Bowden, 11/22)

Stat: Democrats Want Biden To Keep Trump’s Last-Minute Drug Pricing Reform
President-elect Joe Biden has already pledged to dismantle a number of Trump-era policies and regulations. Democratic advisers, however, say he’d be wise to keep one of the slapdash drug pricing reforms that Trump touted during a White House briefing Friday. (Florko and Facher, 11/20)

Modern Healthcare: Trump's New Drug-Pricing Plan Overhauls Outpatient Drug Pay Starting Jan. 1
The Trump administration is trying to overhaul some providers' payments for outpatient drugs in six weeks as it makes a last-ditch attempt to finalize drug-pricing policies that have languished in regulatory limbo. A model through the Center for Medicare and Medicare Innovation announced Friday would require mandatory participation from healthcare providers starting Jan. 1, 2021, though there are several categories of exceptions. The model would change providers' payment for administering drugs from a percentage of a drug's average sales price to a flat fee and tie reimbursement to prices charged in foreign countries. (Cohrs, 11/20)

Modern Healthcare: Trump Administration To End Unapproved Drug Initiative
The Trump administration plans to end the Unapproved Drug Initiative as officials look to close a loophole that inflated healthcare costs by billions of dollars a year and led to drug shortages. HHS withdrew guidance documents Friday afternoon that were issued as part of the initiative designed to boost patient safety, but instead was used as a means to profit off decades-old drugs. It is set to take effect in 30 days. (Kacik, 11/20)

The Washington Post: Trump Administration Finalizes Rule That Could Make Thousands More Organs Available For Transplant
The Trump administration has finalized major reforms in the way organs are collected and distributed for transplant, an effort aimed at making thousands more kidneys, livers, hearts and lungs available to the lengthy list of people waiting for them. The changes, announced Friday evening, are aimed primarily at “organ procurement organizations,” the government-chartered network of 58 nonprofits that collects organs from deceased donors and rushes them to surgeons at transplant centers. (Kindy and Bernstein, 11/21)

Modern Healthcare: New Quality Measures For Organ Transplantation Finalized
The rule updates the Organ Procurement Organization Conditions for Coverage needed to be reimbursed by Medicare and Medicaid. The final rule is designed to help the more than 100,000 people in the U.S. on a waiting list for a lifesaving organ transplant, according to CMS. The rule creates two new objective measures designed to increase incentives to use all available organs and to actually transplant them. One measures the number of organs an OPO has gotten from eligible donors in its donation service area. The other measures the rate of transplantation as opposed to procurement of the organs alone. The previous measures created a disincentive to go after all available organs. (11/20)

The Washington Post: G-20 Riyadh Summit: Global Leaders Focus On Coronavirus Pandemic 
Little was expected of this year's Group of 20 Leaders' Summit. It was a muted affair, presented virtually during a resurgent global pandemic. Its host, Saudi Arabia, was criticized by human rights groups for a record of abuses. And its most prominent participant was Donald Trump, an ardent opponent of the kind of collective global action the summit set out to achieve, who leaves office in less than two months. Even so, as the two-day conference ended Sunday, its organizers hailed it as a success. A final communique heralded achievements, including an offer of debt relief to developing nations and a commitment to ensuring equitable access to coronavirus treatments. But it also laid out a frightening litany of challenges facing economies and societies that the scaled-back summit, or any global gathering, would be hard-pressed to meet. (Fahim, 11/22)

The Washington Post: Palm Center Study: Transgender Ban Hurt Military Readiness 
President Trump’s order banning many transgender people from serving has eroded the military’s ability to fight and win wars by narrowing its recruiting pool and lowering morale among transgender troops exempt from the policy, former top military physicians said in a study. Defense Department regulations implemented April 12, 2019, prohibit anyone with gender dysphoria from enlisting but allow transgender service members who were serving before then to remain in uniform. (Horton, 11/22)

FierceHealthcare: Walmart Health Opens 2 More Locations In Chicago 
Walmart Health just opened two new locations adjacent to revamped Walmart supercenters in Chicago. The new Walmart Health clinic locations have primary medical care, optometry and hearing services with plans for other offerings—such as labs, X-ray and diagnostics and counseling—to be added in the future. (Reed, 11/20)

CIDRAP: MMR Vaccine May Help Prevent COVID-19
A small study today in mBio demonstrates that the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine may protect against COVID-19, as researchers found that levels of mumps immunoglobulin (Ig) G antibodies are inversely correlated with COVID-19 severity in MMR-vaccinated patients. Epidemiologic data point to low COVID-19 death rates in populations with high MMR vaccination rates, but the mechanism of protection is still unclear. This study compared 50 MMR-vaccinated COVID-19 patients with a control group of 30 COVID-19 patients with no record of MMR vaccinations whose antibodies come primarily from previous measles, mumps, and rubella illness. (11/20)

CIDRAP: COVID-19 Most Contagious In First 5 Days Of Illness, Study Finds
A study published yesterday in The Lancet Microbe shows that COVID-19 is most contagious in the first 5 days after symptom onset, underscoring the importance of early case identification and quarantine. Led by researchers at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, the systematic review and meta-analysis included 98 studies on 7,997 patients infected with coronaviruses that cause COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2), severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS-CoV-1), or Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS-CoV). Seventy-nine of the studies (81%) involved COVID-19 patients. (Van Beusekom, 11/20)

Stat: Data Show Hospitalized Covid-19 Patients Surviving At Higher Rates
Patients hospitalized with Covid-19 are surviving at higher rates than in the early days of the pandemic, gains that data and interviews with experts suggest are driven by a more refined understanding of the disease and how to treat it — and, crucially, less strain on hospitals that had been inundated at times... But clinicians warn that this progress won’t withstand what happens when crushes of patients again overwhelm hospitals, as is now occurring in dozens of U.S. states. (Joseph, 11/23)

The Washington Post: Coronavirus Vaccines Are Coming. Who Should Get Them First? 
A coronavirus vaccine is coming soon. The question now for the world is who will be at the front of the line for an injection. In the initial months, vaccines will certainly be rationed. Demand will outstrip supply. There will be millions of doses available, not billions. (Booth, Dou, Dixon and Beck, 11/21)

The New York Times: Are Covid-19 Vaccines Really 95% Effective? 
The front-runners in the vaccine race seem to be working far better than anyone expected: Pfizer and BioNTech announced this week that their vaccine had an efficacy rate of 95 percent. Moderna put the figure for its vaccine at 94.5 percent. In Russia, the makers of the Sputnik vaccine claimed their efficacy rate was over 90 percent. ... From the headlines, you might well assume that these vaccines — which some people may receive in a matter of weeks — will protect 95 out of 100 people who get them. But that’s not actually what the trials have shown. Exactly how the vaccines perform out in the real world will depend on a lot of factors we just don’t have answers to yet — such as whether vaccinated people can get asymptomatic infections and how many people will get vaccinated. Here’s what you need to know about the actual effectiveness of these vaccines. (Zimmer, 11/20)

Politico: How Thousands Of Scarce Covid Shots Could Go To Waste 
The Trump administration hopes to start delivering millions of doses of Covid-19 vaccines in December. But the short shelf life of Pfizer’s shots and uncertainty over how to get them to enough health care workers, frail seniors and other priority patients once vials with vaccines are taken out of cold storage and cracked open could mean thousands of doses go to waste. (Goldberg, Roubein and Lim, 11/22)

The Washington Post: How Doctors And Nurses Could Become Coronavirus Vaccine Advocates
Doctors and nurses, coping with the daily risk of coronavirus exposure, are expected to get top priority to receive vaccines that could become available as soon as next month. But it’s an open question how many will seize their place at the front of the line. Large health systems, medical societies and the federal government are launching an effort to persuade front-line health-care providers to take novel vaccines that were developed, and are likely to be granted emergency approval, in record time. (Rowland, 11/21)

Modern Healthcare: Supply Shortages Could Slow Hospitals' COVID Vaccine Distribution
As hospitals race to buy special freezers that can store Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine at extremely cold temperatures, the potential for supply shortages—a prevailing theme in the U.S. pandemic response—looms large. A number of manufacturers make ultra-low temperature freezers—Fisher Scientific and Helmer Scientific, to name a few. But as demand skyrockets with potential emergency use authorizations coming as soon as next month, one group purchasing leader said hospitals ordering today will likely wait up to four months to get their freezers. (Bannow, 11/20)

The Washington Post: Covid Vaccines Hold Promise But A Return To Normal Will Take Time 
For many Americans chafing to return to normalcy, recent reports that at least two experimental covid-19 vaccines are highly effective come as welcome news in the midst of a frightening surge of infections and deaths. The first shots may be given in mid- to late December, but that doesn’t mean you can hug your friends, stop washing your hands or throw away your mask any time soon. The return to many of our old familiar ways will take time, and how much time remains unclear. The answers await more research into the vaccines, how they can be distributed and how many people are willing to get them. (Cimons, 11/21)

The New York Times: The U.S. Has Lots Of Ventilators -- But Too Few Specialists To Mind Them 
As record numbers of coronavirus cases overwhelm hospitals across the United States, there is something strikingly different from the surge that inundated cities in the spring: No one is clamoring for ventilators. The sophisticated breathing machines, used to sustain the most critically ill patients, are far more plentiful than they were eight months ago, when New York, New Jersey and other hard-hit states were desperate to obtain more of the devices, and hospitals were reviewing triage protocols for rationing care. Now, many hot spots face a different problem: They have enough ventilators, but not nearly enough respiratory therapists, pulmonologists and critical care doctors who have the training to operate the machines and provide round-the-clock care for patients who cannot breathe on their own. (Jacobs, 11/22)

The New York Times: These Algorithms Could End The Scourge Of Tuberculosis 
In some of the most remote and impoverished corners of the world, where respiratory illnesses abound and trained medical professionals fear to tread, diagnosis is increasingly powered by artificial intelligence and the internet. In less than a minute, a new app on a phone or a computer can scan an X-ray for signs of tuberculosis, Covid-19 and 27 other conditions. (Mandavilli, 11/20)

ProPublica: National Ban On School Use Of Seclusion And Restraint Of Students Introduced In Congress 
Congressional Democrats introduced legislation Thursday that would make it illegal to put students in seclusion and would limit the use of physical restraint in schools that receive federal funds. The bill, called the Keeping All Students Safe Act, would enact a national ban on restraints that can restrict breathing, including prone restraint where students are held face down on the floor and supine where they are held face up. Other restraints in the standing or seated positions could be used only when there is an immediate risk of serious physical harm. (Cohen, 11/19)

ProPublica: New Data Shows The Use Of Seclusion And Restraint Increased In Illinois Schools During The 2017–18 School Year 
Illinois schools reported putting students into seclusion at least 10,776 times in the 2017-18 school year — up more than 50% from the last time districts sent seclusion data to the federal government, two years earlier. The number of school districts that reported using seclusion, the practice of forcibly isolating a student in a small room or other space, also increased to 138 from 133, underscoring how entrenched the practice has been in the state. (Smith Richards and Cohen, 11/17)

The Washington Post: Cooking Burns Increase As Covid Keeps People Home
For much of the pandemic, while Instagram feeds have filled with “stress baking” photos of sourdough bread and cakes, burn units have filled up with injured cooks. From Sacramento to Washington, D.C., and even as far away as Israel and Australia, more people have been spending more time in their kitchens, resulting in more fires and burns. (Ellison, 11/22)

The Washington Post: Homicides, Aggravated Assaults On Steep Rise Across U.S. During Pandemic
In Greensboro, N.C., the violence has gotten so extreme that a shootout erupted in front of the county courthouse the other day, across the street from the sheriff’s office, leaving a 20-year-old man dead. Greensboro set a city record with 45 homicides last year, and, as of Friday, already had 54 this year. “We’ve always had a level of gang activity,” Greensboro Police Chief Brian James said in an interview, “but it’s more prolific now. I’m not sure what’s changed, but the offenders are more bold than they’ve ever been.” (Jackman, 11/21)

The New York Times: Undocumented And Pregnant: Why Women Are Afraid To Get Prenatal Care 
Britani first learned there was something wrong with her pregnancy late one night in July 2019 when she started bleeding and rushed to an emergency room. The doctor on duty said she had an infection that could cause her to miscarry. Britani agreed to find an obstetrician to treat the problem, knowing that she would not keep her word. As an undocumented immigrant, Britani, now 20, had no health insurance and could not afford to pay for her treatment in cash. Her only option would be to apply for public benefits, but she had heard from friends that doing so could make her a target for deportation or jeopardize her pending green card application. So she sat tight, hoping the infection would go away on its own. (Dickerson, 11/22)

AP: Black Clergy, United Way To Launch Anti-Coronavirus Effort
Black clergy leaders are joining forces with the United Way of New York City for a new initiative designed to combat the coronavirus’ outsized toll on African Americans through ramped-up testing, contact tracing and treatment management. Details of the new effort, shared with The Associated Press in advance of its Monday launch, rest on harnessing the on-the-ground influence of church leaders to circulate resources that can better equip Black Americans in safeguarding against and treating the virus. Its rollout will begin in five major cities with initial seven-figure funding, focusing on expanded testing and public health education, with a goal of further expansion and ultimately reaching several hundred thousand underinsured or uninsured Black Americans. (Schor, 11/22)

The New York Times: Can We Make Our Robots Less Biased Than We Are? 
On a summer night in Dallas in 2016, a bomb-handling robot made technological history. Police officers had attached roughly a pound of C-4 explosive to it, steered the device up to a wall near an active shooter and detonated the charge. In the explosion, the assailant, Micah Xavier Johnson, became the first person in the United States to be killed by a police robot. Afterward, then-Dallas Police Chief David Brown called the decision sound. Before the robot attacked, Mr. Johnson had shot five officers dead, wounded nine others and hit two civilians, and negotiations had stalled. Sending the machine was safer than sending in human officers, Mr. Brown said. (Berreby, 11/22)

CNN: A Man Wearing Trump Gear Who Was Seen Deliberately Exhaling On Women Outside Trump Golf Club Has Been Charged 
A man wearing a Trump shirt and an inflatable Trump innertube around his belly who was seen on video deliberately exhaling on two women outside of President Donald Trump's golf course in Virginia has been charged with simple assault. Raymond Deskins, 61, of Sterling, Virginia, was charged with misdemeanor simple assault, the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. (Mallonee and Hoffman, 11/23)

ProPublica: New York Court Officials Complete Rare Review Of Cases Handled By Judge Forced Into Retirement By Dementia
In August, New York court officials made a sad and surprising announcement: ShawnDya Simpson, a 54-year-old judge, was retiring because of early onset Alzheimer’s disease. It was both a tragedy and a dilemma: How would anyone know whether the judge’s illness had affected her handling of cases in the months, maybe years before she was forced from the bench? n October, court officials announced they would do something rare: conduct a review of scores of the judge’s orders and decisions to see if there were obvious examples of mistakes or misguided judgments. This week, court officials announced the results of the review. Officials said a State Supreme Court justice had reviewed 40 of the judge’s decisions and orders, as well as 1,000 status conference orders on routine issues. (Sexton, 11/20)

The New York Times: Party At A Queens Sex Club With 80 People Is Shut Down By Sheriff 
By midnight on Saturday, about 80 guests had crowded into a sex club in Queens to drink and party. At around the same time, another group that grew to about 120 revelers was just starting to gather and dance at an illegal club in Manhattan. City sheriffs broke up both parties early on Sunday — the latest crackdown as officials try to rein in behavior that could fuel the second wave of the coronavirus. Seven people and one business face a range of charges in connection with the parties, including a failure to protect health and safety in violation of the city’s health code, the authorities said. (Closson, 11/22)

Politico: WHO COVID Envoy Warns Of Third Wave In Europe In 2021 
Europe could face a third wave of the coronavirus pandemic in early 2021 if governments repeat the mistakes that led to a second wave this year, a World Health Organization special COVID-19 envoy said Sunday. “[Governments] missed building up the necessary infrastructure during the summer months, after they brought the first wave under the control,” the WHO’s David Nabarro said in an interview with Swiss newspaper Solothurner Zeitung. “Now we have the second wave. If they don’t build the necessary infrastructure, we’ll have a third wave early next year,” said Nabarro. (Barigazzi, 11/22)

The Washington Post: Italy's Coronavirus Cases Have Roared Back. But The Reaction Is More Muted This Time.
In Italy, the scale of death no longer registers as a consuming national tragedy. But the tragedy is there nonetheless — playing out more quietly, in specific nursing homes, hospitals and living rooms. Some 10,000 people have died of the coronavirus in Italy this month — a per capita rate more than double that of the United States. (Harlan and Pitrelli, 11/22)

AP: Serbian Patriarch Buried With Few Virus Measures In Place
Thousands of people on Sunday attended the funeral of Serbian Patriarch Irinej who died after contracting the coronavirus, many ignoring preventive measures against the pandemic. Many mourners and most priests holding the funeral service in the massive St. Sava Temple in the Serbian capital, Belgrade, didn’t wear masks or adhere to social distancing inside the church, kissing the glass shield covering Irinej’s remains and even using a single spoon during Holy Communion. (11/22)