Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Biden Launching Winter Booster Boost, Free Home-Test Plan
AP: Biden Launching Winter COVID-19 Booster, Testing Campaign
President Joe Biden is set to kick off a more urgent campaign for Americans to get COVID-19 booster shots Thursday as he unveils his winter plans for combating the coronavirus and its omicron variant with enhanced availability of shots and vaccines but without major new restrictions. The plan includes a requirement for private insurers to cover the cost of at-home COVID-19 tests and a tightening of testing requirements for people entering the U.S. regardless of their vaccination status. But as some other nations close their borders or reimpose lockdowns, officials said Biden was not moving to impose additional restrictions beyond his recommendation that Americans wear masks indoors in public settings. (Miller, 12/2)
Stat: Biden's New Covid Plan: More Boosters, Free Home Testing, And 'Monoclonal Antibody Strike Teams'
President Joe Biden will announce a new plan this afternoon for combating the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. The plan includes a new campaign to increase uptake of booster shots, new policies meant to provide Americans with free at-home coronavirus tests, and more stringent policies on international travel. Public health officials still don’t know much about the Omicron variant, including whether it causes milder symptoms than other forms of the coronavirus, or whether it is more transmissible than other variants. The first case of the Omicron variant detected in the United States was announced by U.S. health officials on Wednesday Dec. 1. (Florko, 12/2)
The New York Times: Omicron Prompts Swift Reconsideration Of Boosters Among Scientists
As recently as last week, many public health experts were fiercely opposed to the Biden administration’s campaign to roll out booster shots of the coronavirus vaccines to all American adults. There was little scientific evidence to support extra doses for most people, the researchers said. The Omicron variant has changed all that. Scientists do not yet know with any certainty whether the virus is easier to spread or less vulnerable to the body’s immune response. But with dozens of new mutations, the variant seems likely to evade the protection from vaccines to some significant degree. (Mandavilli, 12/1)
