NPR: FDA Warns Health Officials Not To Mess With COVID-19 Vaccine Doses Schedule
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning health care workers that any changes to the authorized dosing schedules of COVID-19 vaccines currently being administered significantly place public health at risk and undermine "the historic vaccination effort to protect the population" from the coronavirus pandemic. The first and second doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine are approved to be delivered within a 21-day window, while the Moderna injections should be spread over 28 days. When given at those intervals, both vaccines are about 95% effective, according to the respective drugmakers. But the FDA has heard suggestions that the number of limited doses could be stretched by cutting them in half, extending the length of time between doses, or mixing and matching vaccines in order to immunize more people against COVID-19. (Romo, 1/4)

CNN: FDA Says People Need Both Doses Of Coronavirus Vaccines 
Anyone who receives the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine must get two full doses, two top US Food and Drug Administration officials said Monday. They also dismissed other ideas for stretching the vaccine supply and said people who are speculating about the possibility of making do with just one dose or cutting doses in half are misinterpreting the data. (Fox, 1/4)

The Washington Post: U.S. Health Officials Say They Plan To Stick With Two-Dose Coronavirus Regimen 
The U.S. government’s top infectious-disease doctor, a leading drug regulator and the Health and Human Services secretary are dismissing suggestions that the second shot of authorized coronavirus vaccines could be delayed to make more doses available faster to more people. In recent days, some public health experts have debated whether it is worth taking a scientific gamble by altering the two-dose regimen that proved highly effective in trials to maximize the number of people partially protected with at least one shot as the pandemic surges. (Johnson, 1/4)

Bloomberg: FDA Sends Rebuke To Officials Seeking To Alter Vaccine Regimen
Moncef Slaoui, chief scientific officer of Operation Warp Speed, the U.S. government’s vaccine drive, asked Moderna and the FDA to cut in half the dose of the company’s vaccination for people 18 to 55 after finding evidence that it induces the same immune response. That would double the amount of vaccine available for the age group, while providing the same level of protection, he said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday. Meanwhile, a U.K. plan would allow for second doses of vaccines to be administered as many as 12 weeks after the first, longer than the timing determined as optimal for shots developed by Pfizer Inc. and Moderna. (1/5)

Tampa Bay Times: DeSantis: If Hospitals Don’t Give Coronavirus Vaccines Fast Enough, They’ll Lose Their Shots
Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Monday that Florida is watching closely to see whether hospitals are handing out coronavirus vaccinations quickly enough. At a news conference in Longwood, DeSantis said any hospital chain that fails to meet its vaccination goal will have its supplies redistributed to more expedient providers. (Wilson, 1/4)

Tampa Bay Times: Vaccine ‘Train Wreck’ Leaves Tampa Bay Seniors Scrambling For Shots
Ruth Kern began refreshing the Pinellas County health department website minutes before the vaccine registration portal went live at noon Monday. She couldn’t get through. The 66-year-old retired Gulfport resident was eager to sign up for a coronavirus vaccine, and Monday was supposed to be when she and other seniors across Tampa Bay finally could. But the day left local seniors feeling no closer to receiving immunization from a virus that’s killed hundreds of thousands across the country. Instead, the overwhelming demand jammed up phone lines and website servers for hours, leaving seniors without answers or any information on what to do next. (Reeves, LeFever and Dawson, 1/4)

Tampa Bay Times: Pinellas County Suspends Coronavirus Vaccine Appointment Scheduling
The Florida Department of Health in Pinellas County suspended registration for coronavirus vaccine appointments at the end of its first day, according to a tweet. The health department said registration for appointments by phone and online were suspended as of 6:49 p.m. Monday and that more details would come soon. (Ellenbogen, 1/4)

In news from New York —

Reuters: Most U.S. COVID-19 Vaccines Go Idle As New York, Florida Move To Penalize Hospitals 
In New York, hospitals must administer vaccines within a week of receiving them or face a fine and a reduction in future supplies, Governor Andrew Cuomo said, hours before announcing the state’s first known case of a new, more infectious coronavirus variant originally detected in Britain. “I don’t want the vaccine in a fridge or a freezer, I want it in somebody’s arm,” the governor said. “If you’re not performing this function, it does raise questions about the operating efficiency of the hospital.” (O'Donnell and Allen, 1/4)

CNBC: New York Governor To Propose Law Making It A Crime To Skip Vaccine Line
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he plans to propose a law that would make it a crime to sell or administer coronavirus vaccine shots to people who are trying to skip ahead in line. Providers in New York can already lose their license if they fraudulently administer vaccines, though the law would add criminal penalties if approved by the state legislature, he said. So far, health-care workers and people living in nursing homes and assisted living facilities are eligible for Covid-19 vaccines. (1/4)

The Hill: Operation Warp Speed Chief Adviser Admits To 'Lag' In Vaccinations 
Operation Warp Speed's chief scientific adviser conceded Monday that there has been a “lag” in the administration of coronavirus vaccines, but defended the federal government's handling of their distribution. Moncef Slaoui initially said on CNN’s “New Day” that “nothing has gone wrong” in the vaccination process. “What we had committed to is to have 20 million doses of vaccine available for the American people to be immunized,” he added. (Budryk, 1/4)

CNN Video: Operation Warp Speed Adviser Moncef Slaoui On Vaccines: Nothing Has Gone Wrong 
Operation Warp Speed chief adviser Moncef Slaoui tells CNN that vaccinating 20 million people against Covid-19 was a "hope" and not a promise. (1/4)

But one hospital system says planning was key to its smooth rollout —

CNBC: Providence Hospital System Defies America's Slow Vaccine Rollout Trend
Providence Hospital System has defied the country’s slow rollout trend and has given the first dose of the vaccine to more than half of its 120,000 employees in 51 hospitals across seven states. Dr. Amy Compton-Phillips, chief clinical officer for Providence, told “The News with Shepard Smith” that “planning is the antidote to panic.” She said that Providence began strategizing in September to identify caregivers with the highest risk and how to integrate technology like emails and texts to streamline the rollout process. (DeCiccio, 1/4)

Other nations are also facing criticism for their slow rollout —

AP: EU Rejects Criticism For Slow Vaccine Rollout Across Bloc
The European Commission defended its coronavirus vaccination strategy Monday amid growing criticism in member states about the slow rollout of COVID-19 shots across the region of 450 million inhabitants. Vaccinations programs in the 27 nation-bloc have gotten off to a slow start and some EU members have been quick to blame the EU’s executive arm for a perceived failure of delivering the right amount of doses. In Finland, health authorities are reportedly unhappy that the country only received about 40,000 doses in December, instead of the 300,000 that were expected. (Petrequin, 1/4)

AP: France's Go-Slow Coronavirus Vaccination Strategy Backfires
France’s cautious approach to rolling out a coronavirus vaccination program appears to have backfired, leaving barely 500 people inoculated in the first week and rekindling anger over the government’s handling of the pandemic. Amid public outcry, the health minister vowed Monday to step up the pace, and made a belated public plea on behalf of the vaccine, saying it offers a “chance” for France and the world to vanquish a pandemic that has killed more than 1.8 million people. President Emmanuel Macron was holding a special meeting with top government officials Monday to address the vaccine strategy and other virus developments. (Charlton, 1/4)

Globalnews.Ca: Canada’s ‘Slow’ Rollout Of Coronavirus Vaccine ’Embarrassing’: Experts 
A majority of Canadians should be vaccinated against the coronavirus by September 2021, according to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. But with the current pace of the country’s vaccination distribution, experts warn provinces may not be able to reach the target anytime soon. “Canada is definitely having a slower start,” said Kerry Bowman, a professor of bioethics and global health at the University of Toronto. “And each day and week goes by, we run the great risk of falling further and further behind.“ (Dangerfield, 1/4)

Atlanta Journal Constitution: Frustration Growing Over Georgia COVID Vaccination Efforts
[Around] Georgia, there are people who want to be vaccinated and can’t find out when and how they’ll get the shots. Meanwhile, some health care providers say they received hundreds more doses than they requested. Those issues are fueling anger and frustration about the state’s vaccination program, as Georgia continues to lag behind most states in the vaccination rate and as the toll from COVID-19 mounts. On Monday, Georgia for the first time surpassed 5,000 people currently hospitalized with the virus. (Berard, Teegardin, Edwards and Stirgus, 1/4)

Fox19.com: Beshear Takes Aim At Slow Vaccine Rollout, Announces Change For Providers
A new goal for Kentucky’s vaccination providers will allow them to distribute some amount of excess vaccines to people outside the rollout’s rigid phases, meaning a member of the general population could receive a dose before an at-risk person, a healthcare provider or an essential worker. Gov. Andy Beshear and Department of Public Health Provider Steven Stack, MD, announced the new goal for vaccine providers Monday. The goal encourages providers to inject 90 percent of the vaccine doses they receive in a week. Those deemed highest priority according to the rollout’s phases (below) will still get that priority, but excess doses should be distributed rather than remain in storage. (Planalp, 1/4)

Columbus Dispatch: What's Taking So Long? COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout In Ohio Slowed By Holidays, Unpredictable Shipments
As Gov. Mike DeWine applies pressure to get COVID-19 vaccines administered faster throughout Ohio, those charged with inoculating people against the virus say a combination of factors has contributed to a slow rollout. ... “This is not your routine stop by the primary care office to get a flu shot. This is a whole different operation,” said Dr. Andy Thomas, chief clinical officer at Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center. (Rouan and Kovac, 1/4)

WTVR.com: It's A Slow Rollout For The COVID-19 Vaccine In Virginia
"This is a vaccination campaign that is just unprecedented in its size, scope, and complexity," Dr. Laurie Forlano, with the Virginia Department of Health, said. Those factors have contributed to Virginia administering less than 100,000 doses of the 450,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine received so far. (Covil, 1/4)

The Washington Post: Coronavirus Vaccine Reporting Delays Cited In D.C. Region 
Coronavirus vaccinations are off to a sluggish start across the greater Washington region, with only a fraction of allotted doses being administered in the past three weeks. Delays in reporting might make the problem look worse than it is, officials said. In Maryland, less than one-quarter of the state’s initial batch of 273,875 vaccines has been used, according to state data released Monday. In Virginia, only one-fifth of the state’s allotment of 451,075 doses, or 89,326 vaccinations, had been administered, according to state figures. (Schneider, Brice-Saddler and Cox, 1/4)

The Baltimore Sun: Rocky Start To Maryland’s COVID-19 Vaccination Program Raises Concerns 
State and hospital officials offered myriad explanations for the slow start to COVID-19 vaccinations in Maryland, but the effort is drawing questions and concerns for a program that eventually needs to inoculate millions of residents. Officials said there were holiday interruptions, complex distribution issues and a purposeful staggering of the shots that could cause adverse reactions. Delayed reporting by contractors also has been a problem. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan plans to address the matter further during a news conference Tuesday. (Cohn and Wood, 1/5)

Boston Globe: Massachusetts Is Ramping Up Vaccine Drive After What Governor Calls A Rollout With ‘Bumps’
Massachusetts officials Monday outlined plans to ramp up COVID-19 vaccinations after what Governor Charlie Baker described as a state and national vaccine rollout burdened by “bumps.” Shots for more than 45,000 first responders, such as police, firefighters, and emergency medical technicians, will start next Monday at sites across the state, including four regional vaccination hubs that later could be used to vaccinate others, Baker said. And in a change from priorities outlined last month, the governor said he’ll adopt a proposal from his COVID-19 advisory panel to move state residents age 75 and over — a population deemed to be at higher risk for coronavirus — to the front of the vaccine line, along with residents with two or more chronic health conditions, in the second phase of inoculations slated to begin in February. (Weisman, 1/4)

Houston Chronicle: Houston Halts COVID-19 Vaccine Appointments After Slots Fill Quickly
Houston’s Health Department launched an online portal for residents to apply for an appointment at its COVID-19 vaccine clinic Monday but quickly ran out of available slots for the remainder of the month. “The response to Houston’s first COVID-19 vaccine clinic was massive, quickly filling the appointment slots for the department’s current vaccine allocation,” Mayor Sylvester Turner said at a City Hall news conference where he was about to get his own shot in the arm. “The vaccine clinic appointments are booked for the rest of this month, and the department is not taking additional appointments at this time.” (McGuinness, 1/4)

AP: Nebraska Expects Ramp Up Of Vaccinations After Slow Start
“Certainly we would like to see more vaccines go out more quickly, but if you look at relative to what’s going on in the rest of the country and the holidays and everything, we expect we’ll see a pickup in the pace of vaccines,” Gov. Pete Ricketts said at a news conference. Ricketts said the slowdown was compounded by health care workers who took time off for the holidays and weren’t available to get vaccinated. (Schulte, 1/4)

The Washington Post: Nebraska Governor’s Statement On Vaccines For Undocumented Immigrants Sows Concern — And Confusion
Asked Monday whether undocumented workers at meatpacking plants — known hot spots for coronavirus infections — would be included in vaccinations, Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts sidestepped. ... Later in the day, with confusion mounting over undocumented immigrants’ place in a mass vaccination campaign, a spokesman for the governor expanded on Twitter: “While the federal government is expected to eventually make enough vaccine available for everyone in the country, Nebraska is going to prioritize citizens and legal residents ahead of illegal immigrants.” (Knowles, 1/5)

The Oregonian: Oregon Is No. 41 In Nation For Its Slow Coronavirus Vaccine Rollout, Trailing U.S. Average 
Oregon trails 40 other states for its slow pace of getting coronavirus vaccine shots in arms, federal data show, leaving the vaccine deployment lagging as the state’s death toll hit 1,500 Sunday. Oregon has given 48,725 vaccine shots since the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was approved Dec. 11. But Oregon has received 190,500 doses, meaning that about 141,000 doses are still sitting in boxes as the virus continues spreading and mutating. The state health authority said 1,700 doses were given yesterday and another 1,700 shots were recorded from earlier days. (Davis, 1/3)

Los Angeles Times: Newsom: California COVID Vaccine Rollout Has Been Too Slow 
Only about 35% of the COVID-19 vaccine doses that have arrived in California have been administered so far, a rate Gov. Gavin Newsom acknowledged Monday was “not good enough” as he pledged new funding and efforts aimed at ramping up the rollout. (Money, Luna and Shalby, 1/4)

Hawaii News Now: Late Deliveries, Holiday Season Behind Slow Speed Of State’s Coronavirus Vaccine Rollout
The rollout of the state’s COVID-19 vaccination plan has been slower than first expected. As of Friday, roughly 25,900 doses of coronavirus vaccines had been administered across the state. The majority have gone to frontline caregivers, while work to immunize residents at long-term care facilities is also underway. ... The focus now is getting all healthcare providers who aren’t affiliated with a hospital signed up for the shot. All independent healthcare providers will need to register for the vaccine on the Hawaii Department of Health’s website. (Blair, 1/4)

The Hill: Moderna To Add 100 Million Doses To COVID-19 Vaccine Supply This Year 
Pharmaceutical manufacturer Moderna will increase its vaccine production from 500 million doses to 600 million for 2021 and allocate resources to hopefully produce one billion vaccine doses in total this year, the company announced on Monday. Previously, the company committed to 500 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine for federal distribution. (Kelley, 1/4)

Scientific American: New COVID Vaccines Need Absurd Amounts Of Material And Labor
Barely a year ago few people outside of a small network of scientists and companies had heard of mRNA vaccines. Today millions are pinning their hopes on these genetics-based immunizations, which have taken center stage in the fight against COVID. But deficiencies in needed supplies and materials for making the vaccines could lead to widespread shortages, some scientists say. (Schmidt, 1/4)

KHN: Eureka! Two Vaccines Work — But What About The Also-Rans In The Pharma Arms Race? 
As I prepared to get my shot in mid-December as part of a covid vaccine trial run by Janssen Pharmaceuticals, I considered the escape routes. Bailing out of the trial was a very real consideration since two other vaccines, made by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech, had been deemed safe and effective for emergency approval. Leaving the trial would be a perfectly sane decision for me or anyone who had volunteered for an ongoing covid experiment. Why risk getting covid-19 if I was given a placebo, a shot with no vaccine in it? The way tests are designed, I might not be told whether I received the vaccine until the clinical trial is over, months from now. (Allen, 1/5)

CIDRAP: Allergists Offer Guidance On COVID-19 Vaccines For Those With Allergies
The review, written by a team of US allergists, notes that despite some early reports of severe allergic reactions to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, safety data from the phase 3 trials of both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are strong, and to date there have only been 12 reported allergic reactions to the vaccines across more than 2 million administered doses. But they recommend that those with a history of anaphylaxis to an injectable drug or vaccine containing polyethylene glycol or polysorbate speak with their allergists before being vaccinated. (1/4)

Philadelphia Inquirer: What Cancer Patients Should Know About The New COVID-19 Vaccines
COVID-19 is twice as likely to be fatal for patients who also have cancer than patients without cancer. That’s why the American Association for Cancer Research last month recommended that cancer patients be considered for priority access to the two new COVID-19 vaccines. An AACR task force reviewed the medical literature and found that even when age, sex, and chronic illnesses were taken into account, cancer patients had a greater risk for severe COVID-19 disease and death. (McCullough, 1/5)

St. Louis Post Dispatch: Missouri May Consider Allowing Dentists To Administer COVID-19 Vaccine
A Missouri lawmaker wants to give dentists permission to help administer COVID-19 vaccines. As other states consider adding dentists to the roster of professionals deployed in the fight against the pandemic, Rep. Danny Busick, R-Newtown, filed legislation Monday that would give them the ability to volunteer as vaccinators during emergencies. (Erickson, 1/4)

In updates about the Wisconsin pharmacist accused of tampering with vaccines —

The New York Times: Pharmacist Accused Of Tampering With Vaccine Was Conspiracy Theorist, Police Say 
A pharmacist who was arrested on charges that he intentionally sabotaged more than 500 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine at a Wisconsin hospital was “an admitted conspiracy theorist” who believed the vaccine could harm people and “change their DNA,” according to the police in Grafton, Wis., where the man was employed. The police said Steven Brandenburg, 46, who worked the night shift at the Aurora Medical Center in Grafton, Wis., had twice removed a box of vials of the Moderna vaccine from the refrigerator for periods of 12 hours, rendering them “useless.” (Dewan and Nolan, 1/4)

NPR: Pharmacist Who Spoiled More Than 500 Vaccine Doses Said He Thought They Were 'Unsafe'
The Wisconsin pharmacist accused of intentionally sabotaging more than 500 doses of the coronavirus vaccine at Christmastime told police he did it because he believed the drug is somehow hazardous. "He'd formed this belief they were unsafe," Ozaukee County District Attorney Adam Gerol said of Steven Brandenburg on Monday during a virtual hearing, The Associated Press reported. Gerol did not offer more information on why Brandenburg was convinced the inoculations could be harmful, but he did paint a picture of a troubled man in the midst of personal turmoil. He explained that the 46-year-old is in the process of divorcing his wife, and he said a fellow Advocate Aurora Health employee reported that Brandenburg had taken a gun to work twice. (Romo, 1/4)

The Hill: Cuomo Says More Contagious Coronavirus Variant Found In Upstate New York 
The new, more contagious strain of coronavirus has been found in New York state, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday, making it the fourth known state with a case of the variant. An individual in Saratoga County in upstate New York has been confirmed to have the strain, sometimes known as the U.K. variant because it was first discovered in the United Kingdom. (Sullivan, 1/4)

The New York Times: New Variant Detected In New York Amid Growing Crisis Over Vaccine Rollout 
The confirmation of the variant in New York could complicate the planned inoculation of some 19.5 million residents, with criticism beginning to mount over the rollout. On Monday, Mayor Bill de Blasio called on the Cuomo administration to allow the inoculation of a broader array of essential workers and New Yorkers who are 75 and older. “There’s lots more we can do if we have both those categories approved,” Mr. de Blasio said at a news conference on Monday. (McKinley, Ferre-Sadurni and Fitzsimmons, 1/4)

In related news about the U.K. and South African variants —

The Washington Post: Third National Lockdown Announced In England Amid Coronavirus Surge Driven By Variant Strain
Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday ordered a third national lockdown for England amid a surging coronavirus outbreak driven by a U.K. variant that appears to be more contagious and may have greater implications for children. In a televised address to the nation Monday evening, Johnson said the new variant was 50 to 70 percent more transmissible, spreading at a rate he called “frustrating and alarming.” (Adam, Hassan and Guarino, 1/4)

Politico: South African Coronavirus Variant: What We Know So Far 
Countries across Europe have banned travel from South Africa as fears rise over whether current vaccines will be effective against a new coronavirus variant first identified in the country. The variant has rapidly replaced other strains in South Africa, with initial research linking it to higher viral loads and possibly increased transmissibility. The rise in cases in South Africa has pushed the country to the verge of another full nationwide lockdown as hospitals struggle to cope. (Furlong, 1/4)

Los Angeles Times: Ambulance Crews Told Not To Transport Patients Who Have Little Chance Of Survival
The situation in Los Angeles County hospitals is so critical that ambulance crews have been advised to cut back on their use of oxygen and to not bring to hospitals patients who have virtually no chance of survival. Officials say they need to focus on patients with a greater chance of surviving. The measures were taken as circumstances are expected to become even worse in coming weeks, when patients sickened over the Christmas holiday will need treatment, leaving officials desperate for ways to increase capacity and triage care to focus on the sickest patients. (Lin II, Money, Karlamangla and Wigglesworth, 1/4)

Fox News: Los Angeles County Ambulance Crews Told To Ration Oxygen Amid Surge In COVID-19 Cases
Los Angeles County hospitals are so overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients that EMS workers were told Monday to ration oxygen, according to reports. The L.A. County Emergency Medical Services Agency issued a directive Monday detailing the decision. "Given the acute need to conserve oxygen, effective immediately, EMS should only administer supplemental oxygen to patients with oxygen saturation below 90%," the directive said, according to the Los Angeles Times. The directive was made on the same day the county said 7,697 patients were hospitalized with the virus. Of those, at least 21% are in intensive care units. When the recent surge began, in early-November, there were about 791 people hospitalized with COVID-19. (Aaro, 1/5)

NPR: L.A. Paramedics Told Not To Transport Some Patients With Low Chance Of Survival
Speaking to the CBS affiliate in Los Angeles, [Dr. Marianne] Gausche-Hill said personnel would continue to do everything possible to save the lives of patients, both at the scene and in the hospital. "We are not abandoning resuscitation," she said. "We are absolutely doing best practice resuscitation and that is do it in the field, do it right away." (Diaz, 1/5)

Modern Healthcare: FDA Issues Alert About False Negative Results With Curative COVID-19 Test
The Food and Drug Administration on Monday issued an alert to patients and healthcare providers warning them of a risk of false negative results with a SARS-CoV-2 laboratory-based test from San Dimas, California-based Curative. The agency asserted that the test, to which it granted Emergency Use Authorization in April, must be performed in accordance with its labeling to ensure correct results. "When the test is not performed in accordance with its authorization or as described in the authorized labeling, there is a greater risk that the results of the test may not be accurate," the FDA wrote in a safety communication. (1/4)

KXAN Austin: Curative COVID-19 Test Can Have ‘False Negative Results,’ FDA Warns
The Food and Drug Administration warned patients and healthcare providers that some of Curative’s COVID-19 tests may be indicating people do not have the coronavirus when they really do. The notice posted on Monday urged healthcare providers to consider having their patients get “re-tested” if they received a test from this company recently. Curative said it is working with the FDA but is confident in its data. (Winkle and Travis, 1/4)

In other news about testing and quarantines —

USA Today: Testing Positive For Coronavirus After Getting A Vaccine? Here's How Likely That Is And What To Know If It Happens
It’s still possible to test positive for the coronavirus even after getting vaccinated, experts said. Both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines require two doses per patient to be fully effective. The first Pfizer-BioNTech dose is more than 50% effective in preventing COVID-19, and the second dose increases that protection to about 95%. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it can take weeks for a person’s body to build up immunity after getting vaccinated. (Rodriguez, 1/5)

Salt Lake Tribune: Health Officials Offering Free Rapid COVID-19 Testing Across The State
Free COVID-19 testing will be available this week in 15 counties across Utah. According to the Utah Department of Health, the free rapid antigen testing is being offered at locations chosen because they have a high rates of positive tests, have had lower numbers of tests conducted, untreated wastewater sampling shows the virus is spreading, and other surveillance data. UDOH is encouraging anyone with even mild COVID-19 symptoms to get tested, but the tests are available to everyone — even those who do not have any symptoms. (Pierce, 1/4)

CIDRAP: 7-Day Quarantine May Work For Some COVID Household Contacts
Interim study results published late last week in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) found that only 19% of people exposed to a COVID-19 patient in their home who had no symptoms nor a positive test result in the first 7 days of the patient's illness later tested positive—lending support for recently changed Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines. To shorten quarantine and improve compliance, a month ago the CDC revised its guidance and now recommends either 10 days of quarantine with no COVID-19 test or 7 days with a negative test result. But noting the risk of viral spread from people who develop symptoms or become infectious toward the end of the initially recommended 14-day quarantine, the researchers sought to quantify that risk. (1/4)

AP: A Final EPA Rollback Under Trump Curbs Use Of Health Studies
The Environmental Protection Agency has completed one of its last major rollbacks under the Trump administration, changing how it considers evidence of harm from pollutants in a way that opponents say could cripple future public-health regulation. ... The new rule would require the release of raw data from public-health studies whose findings the EPA uses in determining the danger of an air pollutant, toxic chemical or other threat. Big public-health studies that studied the anonymized results of countless people have been instrumental in setting limits on toxic substances, including in some of the nation’s most important clean-air protections. (Knickmeyer, 1/5)

The Wall Street Journal: EPA To Give Preference To Scientific Studies That Disclose Data 
Administrator Andrew Wheeler said the changes are aimed at increasing transparency so that the public has a chance to scrutinize findings that underlie major regulations. “By shining light on the science we use in decisions, we are helping to restore trust in government,” Mr. Wheeler wrote in a commentary published by The Wall Street Journal late Monday. “We want the EPA to be able to say, ‘you can check our work.’” (Puko, 1/5)

The Washington Post: EPA Finalizes Scientific Transparency Rule Limiting Which Studies Can Be Used To Protect Public Health
Many of the nation’s leading researchers and academic organizations, however, argue that the criteria will actually restrict the EPA from using some of the most consequential research on human subjects because it often includes confidential medical records and other proprietary data that cannot be released due to privacy concerns. “The people pushing it are claiming it’s in the interest of science, but the entire independent science world says it’s not,” said Chris Zarba, a former director of the EPA’s Science Advisory Board who retired in 2018 after nearly four decades at the agency. “It sounds good on the surface. But this is a bold attempt to get science out of the way so special interests can do what they want.” (Eilperin an Dennis, 1/4)

The New York Times: A Plan Made To Shield Big Tobacco From Facts Is Now E.P.A. Policy
Nearly a quarter century ago, a team of tobacco industry consultants outlined a plan to create “explicit procedural hurdles” for the Environmental Protection Agency to clear before it could use science to address the health impacts of smoking. President Trump’s E.P.A. embedded parts of that strategy into federal environmental policy on Monday when it completed a new regulation that favors certain kinds of scientific research over others in the drafting of public health rules. (Friedman, 1/4)

CNN: Biden Says Electing Georgia's Ossoff And Warnock Would Lead To $2,000 Stimulus Checks 
President-elect Joe Biden said electing Democrats Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock in Tuesday's runoff elections would end the gridlock in Washington and allow a Democrat-controlled Senate to provide $2,000 stimulus checks to Americans. "If you send Jon and the Reverend to Washington, those $2,000 checks will go out the door, restoring hope and decency and honor for so many people who are struggling right now," Biden said, making his closing argument for the Democrats at a campaign event in Atlanta on Monday. (Sullivan, 1/4)

Stat: Will The White House Empower Its Historic New Health Disparities Adviser?
President-elect Biden’s slate of high-level health care appointments includes an unprecedented selection: The first-ever presidential adviser with a sole focus on combating racism and racial disparities in health care. (Facher, 1/5)

In updates about the Trump administration —

The Washington Post: Trump Administration Pumps New Money Into Farmers To Families Food Box Program 
The U.S. government is pumping $1.5 billion into the Farmers to Families Food Box program to help supply food lines, which were running low on food or had shut down completely in early December, through May. The $4.5 billion program, which launched amid great fanfare in the spring with the backing of President Trump’s daughter Ivanka, started to run out of money in early December, just ahead of the holidays. (Jaffe and Reiley, 1/4)

The Washington Post: Mar-A-Lago Should Be Shut Down After New Year’s Eve Party Violated Covid Rules, State Lawmaker Says 
A Florida state representative wants Mar-a-Lago, President Trump's private club, shut down for violating local coronavirus safety restrictions during a New Year's Eve bash where attendees celebrated without wearing masks. It was at least the second holiday event during which guests violated local restrictions and disregarded authorities’ advice against large gatherings. In December, the conservative student group Turning Point USA held two large events in Florida, including one at Mar-a-Lago. (Rozsa, 1/4)

Modern Healthcare: Amazon, JPMorgan Chase, Berkshire Hathaway Disband Haven
Haven is ending about three years after Amazon, JPMorgan Chase and Berkshire Hathaway set out to improve outcomes and lower costs for their employees, the companies announced Monday. The independent company "free from profit-making incentives and constraints" aimed to improve employee satisfaction and reduce healthcare costs for Amazon, JPMorgan and Berkshire's around 1 million U.S. employees, but executives shared little detail about the joint venture. Haven will cease operations at the end of February, according to its website. (Kacik, 1/4)

Stat: How Haven's High Hopes Of Redefining Health Care Came To A Crashing Halt
The dissolution of Haven marks one of the most stunning collapses in modern health care history. The venture, led by Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JP Morgan Chase, was heralded immediately as a powerful new player to watch. Its January 2018 launch erased billions of dollars in value from health care companies within seconds. Even before it had a name, the company spawned a trade secrets lawsuit from the rival health care giant Optum. (Brodwin and Ross, 1/5)

Stat: Haven, Ambitious Health Venture Backed By Amazon, To Shut Down
Haven will cease operations at the end of February, Haven spokesperson Brooke Thurston confirmed to STAT. “The Haven team made good progress exploring a wide range of healthcare solutions, as well as piloting new ways to make primary care easier to access, insurance benefits simpler to understand and easier to use, and prescription drugs more affordable,” she said. Thurston said the three companies will “continue to collaborate informally” on programs for their individual employee populations. (Brodwin, 1/4)

The Washington Post: Haven Healthcare Startup Backed By Amazon, JPMorgan And Berkshire Hathaway Shuts Down 
Haven demonstrated plenty of ambition when it debuted in 2018. At the time, the three prominent executives put their names behind the effort, garnering massive media coverage for their efforts to address one of the most intractable challenges in corporate America. Reducing costs was a primary objective. JPMorgan declined to say how much it spent on Haven, except to note that the costs were “immaterial,” spokesman Joseph Evangelisti said via email. In a letter to employees, Dimon pledged to build on Haven’s accomplishments, even though he didn’t specifically detail them. (Greene, 1/4)

CIDRAP: Med Societies Ask That Healthcare Infection Penalties Be Suspended 
Warning that persistent staff and supply shortages in hard-hit hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to disruptions that could result in an increase in drug-resistant hospital infections, the heads of three US medical professional societies last week sent a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) requesting a suspension of reimbursement penalties for healthcare-associated infections (HAIs)."As the number of COVID-19 cases surge, hospitals are becoming overwhelmed with more patients than can be managed with typical care standards," the presidents of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), the Society of Infectious Disease Pharmacists (SIDP), and the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) wrote in a Dec 28 letter to HHS Deputy Secretary Eric Hargan. (Dall, 1/4)

AP: Hospital COVID-19 Outbreak Remains Under Investigation
A top health official said Monday he doesn’t know how a COVID-19 outbreak spread to 30 patients and employees at a Vancouver hospital. The cause of the December outbreak at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center remains under investigation, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. But Dr. Lawrence Neville, chief medical center for PeaceHealth Columbia Network, said the hospital’s COVID-19 cluster can be traced to one patient who initially tested negative only to test positive days later. (1/5)

KHN and The Guardian: Covid ‘Decimated Our Staff’ As The Pandemic Ravages Health Workers Of Color In US 
Last spring, New Jersey emergency room nurse Maritza Beniquez saw “wave after wave” of sick patients, each wearing a look of fear that grew increasingly familiar as the weeks wore on. Soon, it was her colleagues at Newark’s University Hospital — the nurses, techs and doctors with whom she had been working side by side — who turned up in the ER, themselves struggling to breathe. “So many of our own co-workers got sick, especially toward the beginning; it literally decimated our staff,” she said. By the end of June, 11 of Beniquez’s colleagues were dead. Like the patients they had been treating, most were Black and Latino. (Renwick, 1/5)

The Washington Post: ER Doctors On The Front Lines Against Covid Struggle To Find Jobs 
Owais Durrani does not have a job, a predicament that would have been almost unthinkable for a doctor with his skills a year ago.At University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, where he is training in emergency medicine, Durrani has treated hundreds of covid-19 patients. He has dosed them with steroids, given them oxygen and carefully turned them onto their bellies to relieve respiratory distress. ... Despite all that, the 29-year-old doctor cannot find a company in his hometown of Houston ready to hire him when he graduates next year. (Guarino, 1/4)

Also —

KHN: Hospital Prices Just Got A Lot More Transparent. What Does This Mean For You?
Hospitals face the new year with new requirements to post price information they have long sought to obscure: the actual prices negotiated with insurers and the discounts they offer their cash-paying customers. The move is part of a larger push by the Trump administration to use price transparency to curtail prices and create better-informed consumers. Yet there is disagreement on whether it will do so. (Appleby, 1/5)

Los Angeles Times: Hip Surgeon Lawrence Dorr, Founder Of Operation Walk, Dies
Lawrence Dorr, a surgeon who led early developments in joint replacement surgery and helped make Los Angeles an international destination for the repair of ailing hips and knees, has died at 79. Dorr also started the nonprofit Operation Walk to provide free joint replacement surgery for people in underserved countries such as Cuba, Nepal, and Guatemala. It has grown into an international charity. He retired from Keck Hospital of USC last year after a career spanning more than five decades. He died Dec. 28 in that same hospital from complications of bacterial pneumonia, his longtime nurse Jeri Ward said. (Vincent, 1/4)

Stat: HHS Rebukes Drug Makers For Curtailing Discounts To Hospitals That Serve Low-Income Populations
After months of controversy, the Department of Health and Human Services issued a stern rebuke to several large drug makers that have sought to curtail the discounts they offer through a federal program for safety-net hospitals and clinics. At issue is the 340B drug discount program, which requires drug makers to offer discounts that are typically estimated to be 25% to 50% — but could be much higher — on all outpatient drugs to hospitals and clinics that serve low-income populations. (Silverman, 1/4)

Modern Healthcare: Some Drugmakers May Not Comply With HHS 340B Opinion On Contract Pharmacies
HHS on Dec. 30 advised drugmakers that they must provide 340B discount prices to pharmacies that contract with covered entities, but the advisory opinion doesn't have the force of law. Eli Lilly and Sanofi have indicated the new opinion may not change their behavior. "We've reviewed the statement from HHS and we disagree with their conclusion. We continue to believe our 340B distribution program complies with all applicable laws and regulations, and we will continue to advocate for fixes to 340B that will help people access affordable medicines instead padding the bottom lines of hospitals and contract pharmacies that pocket discounts for themselves," an Eli Lilly spokesperson said in a written statement. (Cohrs, 1/4)

In other pharmaceutical and biotech news —

Stat: Pharma Rings In The New Year With 5% Price Hikes On Hundreds Of Medicines 
When it comes to prescription drug prices, what goes up often continues to go up – and 2021 is no exception. Each January, the pharmaceutical industry is known for raising prices. And this month, the median wholesale price increased 4.8% for 645 brand-name medicines in the U.S., according to a new analysis by 46Brooklyn, a market research firm. (Silverman, 1/4)

KHN: Many Health Plans Now Must Cover Full Cost Of Expensive HIV Prevention Drugs
Ted Howard started taking Truvada a few years ago because he wanted to protect himself against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. But the daily pill was so pricey he was seriously thinking about giving it up. Under his insurance plan, the former flight attendant and customer service instructor owed $500 in copayments every month for the drug and an additional $250 every three months for lab work and clinic visits. Luckily for Howard, his doctor at Las Vegas’ Huntridge Family Clinic, which specializes in LGBTQ care, enrolled him in a clinical trial that covered his medication and other costs in full. (Andrews, 1/5)

Stat: These 4 Startups Got Venture Funding A Year Ago. Where Are They Now?
In a typical year, a biotech startup might hope to raise enough money to keep things running for 18 months or more. But in many ways, this year was far from typical. Even in the middle of a pandemic, biotech companies have been able to raise a staggering amount of money for their operations. Some managed to squeeze in multiple financing rounds within 12 months; others decided to jump into uncommonly welcoming public markets. (Sheridan, 1/5)

The Washington Post: TSA On Sunday Screened Most Passengers Since The Coronavirus Pandemic Began 
More than 1.3 million people moved through U.S. airport security checkpoints Sunday — the most since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the Transportation Security Administration announced Monday. The number was far below what it was on the same day in 2019, when more than 2.4 million people were screened. Still, the increase came despite recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local health officials that people not travel during the holiday season. (Aratani, 1/4)

CNBC: Dallas Flights Delayed For A Second Time In A Week After Air Traffic Controller Tests Positive For Covid
The Federal Aviation Administration briefly halted departures at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on Monday to clean a facility after an air traffic controller tested positive for Covid-19. The FAA routinely shuts certain facilities to clean if staff test positive. DFW, the busiest hub for American Airlines, was experiencing flight delays of up to an hour the FAA said. (1/4)

Tampa Bay Times: Tampa Airport Seeing ‘Widespread Delays’ As Jacksonville FAA Office Closes
Tampa International Airport and other Florida airports were experiencing numerous flight delays Monday evening due to the sudden closure of a U.S. Federal Aviation Administration office in Jacksonville. Tampa’s airport tweeted Monday that the airport was experiencing “widespread delays” among flights into and out of the city, and that passengers should check with their airlines for updates. (Cridlin, 1/4)

In other public health news —

Bloomberg: U.S. Risks Years Of Higher Mortality On Covid’s Economic Fallout
The U.S. could see an elevated death rate for more than a decade as the economic fallout from the coronavirus persists, underscoring the long-term health impact of the deep recession. The nation’s mortality rate is forecast to increase 3% while life expectancy will drop 0.5% over the next 15 years, representing 890,000 more American deaths, according to a working paper from researchers at Duke, Harvard and Johns Hopkins universities. Over a 20-year period, that amounts to 1.37 million additional deaths. (Fanzeres, 1/4)

The Washington Post: March Madness 2021 Will Be Held Entirely In Indianapolis Area 
The NCAA announced Monday that its entire 2021 men’s basketball tournament will be held in the Indianapolis area amid the coronavirus pandemic, an expected development after the organization had announced in November that the event would be held in one location to cut down on travel and allow teams to play in a bubblelike environment. (Bonesteel, 1/4)

AP: NBA Tells Teams That Rules On Mask-Wearing Will Get Tougher
The NBA is adopting a tougher policy regarding masks, telling teams Monday that players on the active roster will have to wear the face coverings in the bench area until they enter games. That memo, obtained by The Associated Press, was released on the same day the Brooklyn Nets ruled All-Star forward Kevin Durant out for Tuesday’s game against Utah in accordance with the league’s health and safety protocols for dealing with coronavirus. (Reynolds, 1/5)

The New York Times: Surging Virus Prompts Call To Halt In-Person TV And Film Production 
Seven people working on “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” which was being shot at an NBC Universal stage in Studio City, Calif., tested positive for the coronavirus this fall. So did nine people working on the Netflix series “Colin in Black & White” in Gardena. And the Los Angeles County Public Health Department reported that a dozen people working on the sitcom “Young Sheldon” in Burbank got the virus, too. The entertainment industry is so vital to Los Angeles that film and television production were both allowed to continue even after outdoor dining was banned. But now, with the coronavirus surging across California and overwhelming hospitals, unions and industry groups are calling for in-person production to be suspended. (Stevens, 1/4)

The Hill: Alex Trebek Urges Compassion For COVID-19 Victims In One Of His Final 'Jeopardy!' Tapings 
Late “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek urged viewers to practice compassion for COVID-19 victims in one of his final tapings of the show, which aired on Monday. Trebek, who died on Nov. 8 after a battle with pancreatic cancer, had pre-taped several weeks of shows that have aired since his death. Monday’s show started his last week of recorded programs. (Coleman, 1/4)

Houston Chronicle: Second-Trimester Abortions Increased 61% After Texas Lifted Temporary Ban, Study Shows
Texas’ temporary abortion ban this spring amid the pandemic prevented some women from obtaining the services and delayed others until later in their pregnancies, exposing them to increased health risks, a new study has found. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s March 22, 2020 executive order to clear space for COVID-19 patients put a stop to all surgeries and procedures that were not considered “medically necessary,” which by the state's definition included abortion care. Abortion providers sued to overturn the ban — resulting in dizzying back-and-forth decisions as the case wound its way through the courts — but the issue became moot when the order expired in April 2020 and clinics resumed offering care. (Goldenstein, 1/4)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Overdose Deaths Butler County Northern Kentucky Soar In 2020 Pandemic
Four Cincinnati area counties saw double-digit percentage leaps in overdose deaths in 2020, preliminary records show. A surge in overdose deaths experienced across the country is a scenario that addiction treatment providers and advocates predicted as efforts to mitigate the opioid epidemic were altered or swept away while the COVID-19 pandemic raged across America. Northern Kentucky’s Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties as of Tuesday were on track to face a 20% jump in overdose deaths over 2019, Kentucky Injury Prevention Research Center records show. Butler County in Southwest Ohio had a 10.6% rise in suspected or confirmed overdose deaths over last year, coroner's records show. (DeMio, 1/4)

In covid-related news —

The Hill: CDC Says Arizona Has US's Highest Rate Of New COVID-19 Infections 
Arizona has become the state with the highest rate of new COVID-19 infections, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tracker reported Monday. The CDC's U.S. map indicated Monday evening that the Copper State had surpassed neighboring California as well as other hotspots in South Carolina and Tennessee to surge into the lead with a spiking rate of new cases. The state is now reporting an average daily case rate of more than 121 per 100,000 people, the only state in the U.S. averaging more than 100 new cases a day per 100,000 residents. (Bowden, 1/4)

Philadelphia Inquirer: The State Lawmaker Who Died Of An Aneurysm Had COVID-19, But Were The Two Conditions Related?
State Rep. Mike Reese was diagnosed with a mild case of COVID-19 a month ago, and his symptoms already were fading when he announced his positive test results on Dec. 7. On Saturday, the Republican who represented Westmoreland and Somerset Counties died of an apparent brain aneurysm, according to a statement from House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff (R., Centre/Mifflin). Were the two maladies related? COVID has been blamed for a variety of health problems outside the lungs — including in the brain. But not aneurysms, said Barbara Albani, medical director for neurointerventional surgery at the ChristianaCare health system in Delaware. (Avril, 1/4)

AP: Louisiana Lawmakers Consider COVID-19 Plan For Next Election
Louisiana’s top elections official is asking lawmakers Tuesday to back his proposal to broaden the mail-in balloting options for spring municipal elections and two upcoming special congressional elections because of the coronavirus pandemic. Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin wants to use the same expansion of absentee-by-mail voting that was in place for the summer and fall elections, including the November presidential competition. (Deslatte, 1/5)

CNN: Coronavirus-Free Palau Could Become The First Country Vaccinated 
A cluster of islands in the Pacific Ocean that's one of the few places on Earth entirely free from Covid-19 could become one of the first countries vaccinated against the disease. The Republic of Palau, an archipelago home to about 18,000 people, received its first shipment of the vaccine developed by US pharmaceutical company Moderna on Saturday. Vaccinations started the next day, Palau's Ministry of Health announced on Twitter. (Mogul, 1/5)

AP: Mexico Approves AstraZeneca Vaccine For Emergency Use
Mexico approved the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine for emergency use Monday, hoping to spur a halting vaccination effort that has only given about 44,000 shots since the third week of December, about 82% of the doses the country has received. The Pfizer vaccine had been the only one approved for use in Mexico, until Mexican regulators approved the AstraZeneca shot Monday. (1/4)

Reuters: China Doubles Down On COVID Narrative As WHO Investigation Looms 
As a team from the World Health Organization (WHO) prepares to visit China to investigate the origins of COVID-19, Beijing has stepped up efforts not only to prevent new outbreaks, but also shape the narrative about when and where the pandemic began. China has dismissed criticism of its early handling of the coronavirus, first identified in the city of Wuhan at the end of 2019, and foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday that the country would welcome the WHO team. (Stanway, 1/5)

Fox News: Global Polio Surveillance Declined Amid Coronavirus Pandemic: CDC
Reported cases of so-called acute flaccid paralysis dropped by 33% globally in the first nine months of 2020, suggesting polio surveillance also declined amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Acute flaccid paralysis, or sudden weakening of the muscles, is an overarching term including poliovirus, among other causes. Though the U.S. has steered clear of polio for over 30 years due to a vaccine, other countries--such as Pakistan, with its ongoing wild poliovirus circulation--still face the threat of polio. Poliovirus is mainly detected among children by testing stool or sewage samples for AFP and laboratory-confirmed polio, according to the CDC. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the multi-partnered Global Polio Eradication Initiative efforted a dashboard to mark any fluctuations in reported AFP cases. (Rivas, 1/4)

The Wall Street Journal: Congress’s Doctor Shortage
Hospitals in much of America are triaging Covid-19 patients because they are short of staff, especially doctors trained in emergency-care and anesthesiology. Blame Congress, which rationed the supply of new physicians two decades ago and is only now addressing its mistake, albeit not nearly enough. The $900 billion relief bill adds 1,000 new Medicare-funded graduate medical education (GME) positions over five years. A Congressional bill summary boasts about the doctor-training expansion, though it requires a microscope to find amid the spending fat. (1/4)

Stat: Proposed New Rules For A J-1 Visa Will Hinder U.S. Fight Against Covid-19
As Covid-19 infections once again surge across the United States, one of the biggest obstacles to saving lives is a shortage of doctors. A federal proposal to change the rules for foreign-born physicians working here will make the problem worse. For decades, foreign national physicians have come to the U.S. to complete their medical training in teaching hospitals. They enter the country with J-1 visas, which authorize them to remain in the U.S. for the full duration of their training programs, which can range from one to seven years. This program is good for the physicians, who are able to train in high-caliber teaching hospitals. It also benefits the millions of Americans who live in rural areas that face a shortage of physicians. (Kenneth L. Davis, 1/5)

The Wall Street Journal: Lockdowns Starve Mom And Pop
The latest lockdowns across the country will be deadly for the small businesses that have endured the pandemic this far. While there are no official numbers yet, business data show significant losses. Yelp’s Local Economic Impact Report found that, from March 1 through Aug. 31, nearly 100,000 businesses listed on Yelp had closed permanently due to the pandemic, an average of more than 500 a day. In addition to destroying the accomplishments of thousands of American entrepreneurs and the jobs they create, lockdowns are forcing retail to consolidate around large national brands, which are better positioned to survive the pandemic. (Andy Puzder, 1/4)

The Wall Street Journal: Why We’re Ending The EPA’s Reliance On Secret Science
The task of science is one of test and retest, analysis and comparison, over and over. It is slow and careful work, done in the open. Only rarely has science benefited from secrecy, and that is usually for reasons of national security. The geniuses of the Manhattan Project who built the atomic bomb, the mavericks of Cape Canaveral who sent men to the moon, these giants did their work behind high walls, and for good reason. But the work of the Environmental Protection Agency—to protect human health and the environment—shouldn’t be exempt from public scrutiny. This is why we are promulgating a rule to make the agency’s scientific processes more transparent. (EPA administrator Andrew Wheeler, 1/4)

The Washington Post: EPA Finalizes Scientific Transparency Rule Limiting Which Studies Can Be Used To Protect Public Health
In an opinion piece posted Monday night in the Wall Street Journal, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said the rule “will prioritize transparency and increase opportunities for the public to access the ‘dose-response’ data that underlie significant regulations and influential scientific information.” ...Many of the nation’s leading researchers and academic organizations, however, argue that the criteria will actually restrict the EPA from using some of the most consequential research on human subjects because it often includes confidential medical records and other proprietary data that cannot be released due to privacy concerns. (Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis, 1/4)

Los Angeles Times: Should COVID Relief Checks Only Go To The Truly Needy?
During last week’s congressional wrangling over COVID relief payments, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) held that $2,000 checks were not going to happen because it would be “socialism for rich people” to give so much money to Americans who didn’t need it. Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) jabbed back at Republicans via Twitter: “Funny. They had no problem giving a $1.4 billion tax break to Charles Koch and his family worth $113 billion.” McConnell’s handwringing represents a longstanding debate in American social policy that COVID relief highlights: Should public benefits be given universally, to all citizens, or be targeted to the truly needy? (Lisa Schweitzer, 1/5)

The Washington Post: New Coronavirus Variants Could Lead To A Surge. The Vaccine Rollout Is More Urgent Than Ever. 
The implications of new variants of the coronavirus, detected in the United Kingdom and South Africa, are potentially grave for the United States. We don’t say that to be alarmist, but to be realistic. Although the new variants do not appear to be more lethal or more able to evade vaccines, the epidemiological data in recent weeks strongly suggests the virus is more transmissible by 50 percent or so. In the United States, that could lead to a surge like nothing we have yet seen. It makes the vaccine rollout more urgent than ever. (1/4)

Stat: Hospitals: Compare 'First-Shot' Vs. 'Set-Aside' Vaccine Approaches
The FDA authorizations of two Covid-19 vaccines so far specify two-shot regimens, spaced three weeks apart for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and four weeks apart for the Moderna vaccine. But because these vaccines will likely be in short supply for many months, some experts have proposed using available vaccine doses under a “first-shot” strategy: give as many people as possible their first dose of the vaccine and then deliver the second booster shot when supplies catch up. The approach would be different from the current “set-aside” approach in the U.S., where one dose of booster is reserved in parallel with each first shot delivered. (Peter B. Bach, 1/4)

Bloomberg: The Politics Of Covid Just Got Even More Hellish
A new strain of Covid-19, more contagious than previous strains, is now circulating in dozens of countries. Other new strains, such as one first detected in South Africa, will almost certainly emerge. Aside from the challenges these mutations pose to public health, they will also be a test of our moral and political principles. As exhausted as we all are from making stressful judgments throughout this pandemic, we are about to face some of the most difficult trade-offs yet. (Tyler Cowen, 1/5)

The Washington Post: We Had The Tools To Fight Covid-19 Before It Arrived. Next Time We Might Not Be So Lucky.
Fighting the next virus might not be so simple — and there will be another virus. Bats and other species frequently shuffle coronavirus genes that can lead to human pandemics, and human exposure to such animals cannot be eliminated. Even though the next virus could be much deadlier — and could strike in a year or two or five — it is clear that people are unlikely to tolerate another round of stringent measures such as those employed this year to fight the pandemic’s spread. There is a scientific principle of induction that states that with enough similar data from independent but related experiments, one can infer in advance what the solution will be to a new problem. So we need to practice designing vaccines for new coronaviruses. (Andrew P. Feinberg, 1/3)

Stat: Decades Of Basic Research Paved The Way For Today’s Covid-19 Vaccines
The emergency use authorizations of mRNA vaccines by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna and the likely gradual rollout of multiple others is our collective best hope for curtailing the Covid-19 pandemic. The speed at which these vaccines has been developed is remarkable, both in absolute terms and compared to the multiyear time frame it normally takes to create and approve new vaccines. Great credit is due to the pharmaceutical industry and the university and government scientists who have worked directly and diligently on Covid-19 vaccine programs in the U.S., Europe, and elsewhere. They deserve accolades for their skillful hard work. But the Covid-19 vaccines did not come from nowhere. Decades of research by tens of thousands of scientists worldwide put in place the essential knowledge and methods that underpinned their rapid development. (John P. Moore and Ian A. Wilson, 1/5)

Los Angeles Times: Overdose And Addiction Epidemics Are Raging Alongside COVID 
While Americans have focused on the COVID-19 pandemic, another epidemic has also been killing people across the country in unprecedented numbers: overdose deaths. And the two crises aren’t unconnected. (Joseph Friedman and Morgan Godvin, 1/5)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. Needs To Stop The COVID Outbreak Among Homeless People 
For months during the pandemic, homeless people in Los Angeles seemed less susceptible to contracting COVID-19 — a combination of being spurned by others (the ultimate social distancing) and living by themselves in tents on sidewalks. It also helped that the city and county provided up to 4,000 motel and hotel beds to particularly vulnerable homeless people through a program called Project Roomkey. All that has changed now. The homeless population is having its own alarming surge in COVID cases. And 60% of those cases are in shelters of all kinds — from vast emergency shelters to the smaller-scale ones created under L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti’s A Bridge Home program. Nowhere a homeless person goes is completely protected from the virus these days. (1/5)