Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CDC Walks Back Guidance On Risks Of COVID To Kids And Schools
The Hill: CDC Quietly Removes Guidance Pushing For School Reopenings
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has quietly removed controversial guidance from its website that pushed for schools to reopen in the fall and downplayed the transmission risks of COVID-19 to children and others. ... The CDC’s website now states that “the body of evidence is growing that children of all ages are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection and contrary to early reports might play a role in transmission.” The website also acknowledges that “teachers and students are in close contact for much of the day, and schools can become a place where respiratory diseases like COVID-19 can quickly spread.” (Hellmann, 11/17)
Fox News: CDC Suggests Americans Ditch Singing, Loud Music, Alcohol For Holidays Due To Pandemic
If you’re going to a holiday gathering and want to limit your chance of contracting the novel coronavirus, you might have to give up caroling, loud music and alcohol, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In a holiday-focused health and safety guideline published by the agency on Wednesday, the CDC offered detailed considerations people should take if they are hosting or attending a gathering or plan to stay or host guests overnight. These guidelines suggest people modify their holiday activities to minimize the spread of COVID-19. (Moore, 11/17)
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The Hill: Black, Latino And Native American People Being Hospitalized With COVID-19 At Roughly 4 Times Rate Of White Counterparts: CDC
New reporting from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that Black, Latino, Hispanic and Native American people are being hospitalized with COVID-19 at nearly four times the rate of non-Hispanic white persons. The agency said that between March 1 and Nov. 7, it received reports of over 70,000 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19-associated hospitalizations, of which 67,259 include race and ethnicity data. (Folley, 11/17)
The Hill: NIH Head: Masks Are 'Lifesaving Medical Instrument' Not 'Invasion Of Your Personal Freedom'
The head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is urging the public to abide by safety guidelines and socially distance, saying that while recent results for COVID-19 vaccine candidates are "encouraging," people must take extra precautions for at least "a few more months." (Choi, 11/17)
