Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Another Covid Surge Appears Likely
CNN: Nearly Half Of US States Reported An Increase In Covid-19 Cases This Week. Here's What Experts Say Can Help Stop Another Surge
At least 21 states have recorded at least a 10% rise in daily average positive cases of Covid-19, according to Johns Hopkins University data Thursday, demonstrating that the fight against the pandemic is far from over. In Michigan, hospitals are increasingly overwhelmed and reaching full capacities in part due to the influx of new coronavirus cases. State and local officials across the country are attempting to avoid a similar situation and are pushing to increase vaccination levels among adults, which shows continuing signs of improvement. (Caldwell, 4/16)
CNBC: Daily U.S. Covid Cases Remain Above 70,000 Amid Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Pause
The rate of new U.S. coronavirus cases remains elevated as the country tries to ramp up its vaccination campaign following the distribution halt of Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine. The country is reporting about 71,200 new Covid cases per day, based on a seven-day average of data from Johns Hopkins University. That is far below the nation’s winter peak but in line with levels seen during the summer surge, when average daily cases topped out at more than 67,000. (Rattner, 4/15)
The Washington Post: Spring Wave Of Coronavirus Crashes Across 38 States As Hospitalizations Increase
The coronavirus pandemic in the United States has turned into a patchwork of regional hotspots, with some states hammered by a surge of infections and hospitalizations even as others have seen the crisis begin to ease. The spring wave of the pandemic has driven hospitalizations above 47,000, the highest since March 4. Thirty-eight states have reported an increase during the past week in the number of people hospitalized with covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, according to a Washington Post analysis of data provided by the Department of Health and Human Services. (Achenbach and Dupree, 4/15)
Michigan, Maryland and Pennsylvania cope with a surge in coronavirus infections —
AP: Virus Is 'Runaway Train' At Michigan Hospital System
Michigan’s largest hospital system is dealing with a “runaway train” as it confronts a crush of COVID-19 patients in suburban Detroit, even turning to outdoor evaluations as people show up for care, a doctor said Thursday. Beaumont Health, which has eight hospitals in southeastern Michigan, said it had more than 800 patients being treated for COVID-19, up from about 500 two weeks ago and just 128 at the end of February. The surge isn’t limited to Beaumont: The number of patients confirmed with COVID-19 was near 4,000 statewide. Four hospitals this week said they were at 100% capacity. (White and Eggert, 4/15)
Detroit Free Press: Beaumont Health Sets Up Triage Units, Tents To Manage COVID-19 Surge
Michigan's third COVID-19 surge is "like a runaway train," Dr. Nick Gilpin, Beaumont Health’s medical director of infection prevention and epidemiology, said Thursday. More than 800 coronavirus patients fill all eight of the hospitals in the state's largest health care system, "taxing our staff and our resources," Gilpin said, yet there's no policy in place this time to restrict in-person dining, sports or schools, where the virus is known to spread. (Jordan Shamus, 4/15)
The Baltimore Sun: ‘Deeply Concerning’: Baltimore City Emerging As A COVID Hot Spot; Officials Urge Vigilance
Cases of COVID-19 in Baltimore City have spiked in recent weeks, outpacing every county in Maryland and rivaling an infection level not recorded since the winter peak. The reasons aren’t entirely clear, but state and local data suggest the pandemic could worsen still in the city before it gets better this summer as vaccinations against the disease continue. (Cohn and Miller, 4/16)
Philadelphia Inquirer: As COVID-19 Cases Rise Among Children, Parents Wonder What’s Safe: ‘No Activity Is Risk-Free’
Coronavirus vaccines are becoming more available and businesses are reopening, yet COVID-19 cases among children are on the rise, as people begin to socialize more and highly contagious new strains spread. It’s a confusing combination of good news and bad news that has left parents unsure how to proceed, with summer just around the corner. Children who contract COVID-19 generally experience milder illness and often are asymptomatic. Still, the rise in cases among kids is a reminder of the importance of keeping up with safety protocol and making sure that those who are eligible get vaccinated in order to protect those who are unable to be vaccinated and could spread the virus, doctors said. (Gantz, 4/16)
Also —
AP: 2 Tigers At Virginia Zoo Test Positive For The Coronavirus
Two tigers at a zoo in Virginia have tested positive for the coronavirus. The Virginian-Pilot reported Wednesday that the Malayan tigers live at the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk. The zoo said it doesn’t know how its tigers were infected. It’s working with health officials and other experts to find out. The big cats are named Stubbley and Osceola. They started showing mild symptoms such as dry cough and wheezing last week. Testing later confirmed they have COVID. Test results for a third tiger are pending. (4/15)
Fox News: NY Health Department Surveyor Potentially Exposes NYC Nursing Home To COVID-19, Source Reveals
A New York Department of Health surveyor auditing a Bronx nursing home last week exposed residents and staff to COVID-19, a source told Fox News. According to an employee at Pelham Parkway Nursing Home, a team of health department surveyors began auditing the facility on April 5. While department guidance "strongly encourages" all visitors be tested before entering a nursing home facility in New York, the source said surveyors declined testing on-site. Four days later, nursing home staff were told one surveyor had tested positive with COVID and was quarantined. (Hasnie, 4/15)
Politico: Proud Boy Charged With Pepper Spraying Police During Capitol Riot Contracts Covid In Jail
A member of the Proud Boys charged with pepper spraying a line of police officers at the Capitol is urging a federal appeals court panel to free him from pretrial detention, citing a Covid-19 diagnosis he received while being held in a Washington, D.C., jail. Christopher Worrell is particularly vulnerable to Covid, his lawyer Allen Orenberg said, because he's also in the midst of treating non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and has a compromised immune system. Worrell had previously sought relief from U.S. District Court, citing symptoms that had emerged as a result of his lymphoma, saying that he had been unable to access his cancer medication while in the D.C. lockup. (Cheney, 4/15)
