Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
A Case A Second. 1 Death Every 107 Seconds. US COVID Rates Shatter Records.
The New York Times: U.S. Coronavirus Cases Surpass 9 Million With No End In Sight
More than 2,000 new coronavirus cases in Colorado. More than 6,400 new cases in Illinois. And more than 1,000 new cases in New Mexico. All record-breaking numbers for those states — and all on a day when the United States as a nation reached two grim new highs. On Thursday, the country recorded at least 90,000 new cases (that’s the equivalent of more than one per second) and crossed the threshold of nine million cases since the start of the pandemic. (10/30)
USA Today: 'There's No Way To Sugarcoat It': COVID-19 Cases Are Surging; One American Dies Every 107 Seconds
The U.S. set a record this week for new coronavirus cases over a seven-day period with more than 500,000 infections. An American is testing positive every 1.2 seconds. Daily deaths are also climbing – one of us is dying every 107 seconds, according to Johns Hopkins data. And daily hospitalizations have been rising steadily for more than a month, from 28,608 on Sept. 20 to more than 44,000 on Tuesday. (Bacon, 10/29)
Reuters: Task Force Sees 'Unrelenting' COVID-19 Spread; Daily U.S. Cases Up By Record 91,000
The White House coronavirus task force warned that much of the country is in the grips of an “unrelenting” surge in COVID-19 cases and urged tough countermeasures, as the number of U.S. infections reported on Thursday hit a new daily record of more than 91,000. The hardest-hit regions in the West and Midwest encompass a number of battleground states expected to play a pivotal role in Tuesday’s U.S. presidential election contest between Republican incumbent Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden. “We are on a very difficult trajectory. We’re going in the wrong direction,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, a leading task force member and director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. (Chiacu and Michalska, 10/29)
CNN: US Coronavirus Cases Hit Record Daily High And Experts Warn Daily Death Rates Will Triple By Mid-January
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington School of Medicine says it is most likely that by the middle of January, 2,250 Americans will be dying every day from the coronavirus -- three times more than the current rate. And it could get much worse. "If states do not react to rising numbers by re-imposing mandates, cumulative deaths could reach 514,000 by the same date," the IHME said in its latest forecast. (Cullinane, 10/30)
The Washington Post: Coronavirus Cases Are Surging In Swing States That Will Decide The Presidential Election
Coronavirus cases are surging in every competitive state before Election Day, offering irrefutable evidence against President Trump’s closing argument that the pandemic is nearly over and restrictions are no longer necessary. In the 13 states deemed competitive by the Cook Political Report, the weekly average of new cases reported daily has jumped 45 percent over the past two weeks, from fewer than 21,000 on Oct. 14 to more than 30,000 on Oct. 28. (Stevens, 10/29)
And California's Bay Area reports its first dual case of COVID-flu —
San Francisco Chronicle: First Known Case In Bay Area Of Dual Coronavirus-Flu Infection Found In Solano County
The first known case in the Bay Area of a dual coronavirus-influenza infection was confirmed Thursday in Solano County, prompting health officials to urge residents to hurry up and get flu shots and double down on social distancing and mask wearing. The Solano County Department of Health and Social Services described the unlucky patient as an otherwise healthy individual under the age of 65, but the county did not release any personal information. (Fimrite, 10/29)
