Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Biden Team Says Transition Delays Hurt Efforts To Battle Virus Surge
Politico: Klain: Delayed Transition Could Hamper Coronavirus Vaccine Preparations
The Trump administration's refusal to acknowledge Joe Biden's electoral victory could hinder the incoming team's preparations on pressing issues, including the distribution of a coronavirus vaccine, Biden's future chief of staff said Thursday. In his first public interview since being named chief of staff, Ron Klain called the current administration's stonewalling of Biden's transition "unreasonable," but added that the president-elect's preparations for the transfer were underway within legal limits. (Choi, 11/12)
The Washington Post: Democrats Allege GOP Refusal To Accept Election Results Is Imperiling U.S. Coronavirus Response
Congressional Democratic leaders accused Republicans on Thursday of refusing to confront the dramatically worsening coronavirus pandemic and instead acquiescing to President Trump’s false insistence that he won last week’s presidential election. Republicans dismissed the attacks and Trump didn’t weigh in at all, with his only public comments coming through a series of Twitter posts that included false claims of electoral success. As Washington has become paralyzed over the past 10 days, 1 million new people have tested positive for the virus as death numbers are climbing rapidly. (Werner, 11/12)
KHN: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Transition Interrupted
Five days after the election was called for President-elect Joe Biden, President Donald Trump has not conceded — and instead ordered his administration not to begin the transition of power. That could have serious ramifications for health care, particularly as nearly every state is experiencing a spike in COVID-19 cases. One piece of good news is that early results for a coronavirus vaccine made by Pfizer look promising. But that vaccine, even if it is approved soon, won’t likely be ready for wide distribution for several months. (11/12)
And comments swirl about the possibility of a national mask mandate —
ABC News: Biden Adviser Walks Back Earlier Proposal Calling For Lockdown
Dr. Michael Osterholm, an adviser to President-elect Joe Biden, said in a phone interview late Thursday that he has not discussed with the incoming administration his earlier proposal to lock down the country for several weeks to try to curb a rising tide of coronavirus cases. “I’ve never discussed any of this with them,” Osterholm told ABC News. (Tatum and Flaherty, 11/13)
The Hill: Biden's COVID-19 Strategy: Lockdowns, Mask Mandates And More
President-elect Joe Biden is likely to impose stiff COVID-19 response measures on America once in office. Biden staked his campaign’s closing argument on coronavirus, attempting to draw the starkest and most salient contrast with President Trump. Having narrowly won on this central commitment, he must not just confront coronavirus, but he must be definitively seen doing so. (J.T. Young, 11/12)
The Hill: Mississippi Governor Says He Will Fight National Lockdown If Biden Proposes One
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) said his state will not comply with a mandatory six-week national quarantine should President-elect Joe Biden try to enforce one when he enters office. “We’re not going to participate in a nation-wide lockdown,” Reeves said during a Facebook Live COVID-19 update on Thursday, citing a Biden adviser’s suggestion that a collective effort to quell the coronavirus for longer than a month could prove successful. (Polus, 11/12)
In other news related to the transition —
AP: Biden Has Room On Health Care, Though Limited By Congress
President-elect Joe Biden is unlikely to get sweeping health care changes through a closely divided Congress, but there’s a menu of narrower actions he can choose from to make a tangible difference on affordability and coverage for millions of people. With the balance of power in the Senate hinging on a couple of Georgia races headed to a runoff, and Democrats losing seats in the House, Biden’s proposals for a public health insurance option and empowering Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices seem out of reach. Those would be tough fights even if Democrats controlled Congress with votes to spare. (Alonzo-Zaldivar, 11/3)
The Wall Street Journal: Biden’s Penchant For Bold Stimulus To Test His Deal-Making Skills
When Joe Biden takes office in January, a main focus will be continuing to pull the country out of the economic hole caused by the pandemic. He has been there before, running the Obama administration’s recovery plan as vice president. The priorities Mr. Biden touted during the financial crisis 12 years ago, and the lessons his team learned from that downturn, offer clues to how he’ll handle this one. (Schlesinger, 11/12)
The Hill: Powell Says Economy Will Still Need More Support Despite Progress Toward COVID-19 Vaccine
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell warned Thursday that the U.S. economy will likely need further support from Congress and the central bank even if a coronavirus vaccine becomes available by the end of the year. Powell said that even if a vaccine is widely available, millions of people who lost their jobs to the pandemic will still struggle to find work as the economy attempts to recover from deeper long-term damage. (Lane, 11/12)
