Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'A Really Dangerous Time': Task Force Warns Of Huge Surges Coming
Politico: Fauci Says U.S. Could See ‘A Surge Upon A Surge’ In Coronavirus Cases
Those who are traveling during the holiday weekend should quarantine and get tested for coronavirus if possible to “prevent further spread and further surge,” according to the government’s top infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci. “The travel that has been done has been done,” Fauci said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” “Right now as people go back, we want to urge them, if they've been in situations outside of the family setting in which they really don't know the level of exposure, to be really careful when you either return from the place that you went or other people come back into your house.” (Bice, 11/29)
The Washington Post: Bracing For A ‘Superimposed’ Holiday Surge, Top Health Experts Urge Americans To Take Restrictive Measures
America’s top infectious-disease expert sounded the alarm Sunday, warning of a “surge superimposed upon” a surge of coronavirus cases over the coming weeks due to Thanksgiving travel and celebrations. Anthony S. Fauci and other experts urged Americans to take aggressive action as the December holidays loom to mitigate the surge overwhelming hospitals across the country. As the number of coronavirus-related deaths per day rose to its highest point since April, Fauci and others highlighted the importance of complying with mask mandates and physical distancing. (Alemany, 11/29)
The Hill: Surgeon General: Pandemic Is 'Going To Get Worse,' Actions Now 'Will Determine How Bad It Is'
U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said Sunday that the coronavirus pandemic will "get worse" in the weeks ahead, but noted that the first vaccines would likely be available to vulnerable populations by mid-December. “I want to be straight with the American people, it’s going to get worse over the next several weeks, but the actions that we take in the next several days will determine how bad it is or whether or not we continue to flatten our curve,” Adams told guest host Bret Baier on “Fox News Sunday.” (Budryk, 11/29)
Fox News: Biden Coronavirus Adviser Makes Grim Prediction After Thanksgiving Holiday
A member of President-elect Joe Biden's COVID-19 advisory board on Saturday made a grim prediction about U.S. coronavirus cases in the coming weeks after millions of Americans traveled for Thanksgiving, despite warnings from public health officials. “We fully expect that in about a week or two after Thanksgiving we will see an increase in cases first, then about a week or two later you’ll start to see an increase in hospitalizations, and then another week or two after that you’ll start to see deaths,” Dr. Celine Gounder told CBS News. (Betz, 11/29)
And Dr. Fauci looks ahead to Christmas and New Year's —
USA Today: Fauci: Christmas Could Look A Lot Like Thanksgiving Amid COVID Surge
Dr. Anthony Fauci suggested Thanksgiving may be the beginning of a dark holiday season as the surge in coronavirus cases is likely to persist, or even get worse, through December, January and February. “If the surge takes a turn of continuing to go up and you have the sustained greater than 100,000 infections a day and 1,300 deaths per day and the count keeps going up and up ... I don’t see it being any different during the Christmas and New Year’s holidays than during Thanksgiving,” he said in an interview with USA TODAY last week. (Rodriguez, 11/27)
The Hill: Fauci: Restrictions Likely Won't Be Reversed Before Christmas
"I cannot see, all of a sudden, a relaxation of the kinds of recommendations or restrictions because we're getting into colder weather and an … even larger holiday season, as people travel to come back and forth for Christmas,” Fauci said on ABC News's "This Week." (Coleman, 11/29)
