Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CDC To Revise School Reopening Guidelines After Trump Blasted Initial Ones As Too Tough And Expensive
CNN: Trump Trashes CDC School-Reopening Guidelines -- Then CDC Updates Them
After President Donald Trump tweeted Wednesday that he disagreed with US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines for safely reopening schools because they are "very tough" and "expensive," the agency said it would issue new recommendations next week. The move came as the Trump administration makes a concerted push for schools to reopen by the fall, even as cases surge in some parts of the country. (Klein and Liptak, 7/8)
The Hill: CDC To Issue More Guidance On School Openings Amid Trump Criticism
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will issue additional guidance next week on reopening schools, Vice President Pence said Wednesday, hours after President Trump criticized the agency’s current guidelines as “very tough and expensive.” Pence appeared to frame the upcoming guidance as a response to Trump’s criticisms, saying they would offer “more clarity.” But just a day earlier he had said the CDC would be releasing additional guidelines on school openings that would address face coverings, symptom screening, school settings and “decisionmaking tools” for parents and caregivers. (Samuels and Hellmann, 7/8)
The Associated Press: Trump To US Schools: Reopen Or You May Lose Federal Funds
Determined to reopen America’s schools despite coronavirus worries, President Donald Trump threatened Wednesday to hold back federal money if school districts don’t bring their students back in the fall. He complained that his own public health officials’ safety guidelines are impractical and too expensive. (Binkley, 7/9)
CNBC: CDC Director Says There's No Data Children Drive Coronavirus Spread — But The U.S. Isn't Testing Many Kids
The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Robert Redfield, said Wednesday there’s no evidence that children drive the spread of the coronavirus. But that’s likely because the U.S. hasn’t tested enough kids to know one way or the other. “We really don’t have evidence that children are driving the transmission cycle of this,” Redfield said at a White House Task Force briefing to address school reopenings. (Feuer, 7/8)
The Hill: House Chairman Blasts Trump's Push To Reopen Schools As 'Dangerous'
House Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby Scott (D-Va.) on Wednesday blasted President Trump's push for schools to fully reopen in the fall despite rising coronavirus cases in the U.S. as a dangerous move that could pose health risks to students and educators. Vice President Pence said earlier Wednesday that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will issue additional guidance next week on reopening schools after Trump criticized the agency's current recommendations as "very tough and expensive." Trump also threatened to withhold funding for schools that don't fully reopen for in-person instruction. (Marcos, 7/8)
The Associated Press: Schools Or Bars? Opening Classrooms May Mean Hard Choices
President Donald Trump insists that schools reopen this fall. Many parents, educators, doctors and economists want the same thing. But getting children back to school safely could mean keeping high-risk spots like bars and gyms closed. A growing chorus of public health experts is urging federal, state and local officials to reconsider how they are reopening the broader economy, and to prioritize K-12 schools — an effort that will likely require closing some other establishments to help curb the virus spread and give children the best shot at returning to classrooms. (Smith and Johnson, 7/9)
In other news —
The Hill: States Say Education Department Is Illegally Diverting Pandemic Relief To Private Schools
A coalition of blue states sued the Department of Education on Tuesday, saying that coronavirus aid has been illegally diverted by department officials toward private schools, some of which have already received assistance during the pandemic. The Associated Press reported that five states led by California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (D) allege that the Education Department is using $13.2 billion in Title I funding set aside for low-income areas and attempting to distribute it based on total population, instead of targeting schools that need the aid the most. (Bowden, 7/8)
