Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
COVID Fears Can't Stop Standardized Tests, DeVos Says
Politico: DeVos To Enforce School Testing Mandates Amid Pandemic
The Trump administration plans to enforce federal standardized testing requirements for K-12 schools despite the pandemic, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced to state leaders on Thursday. DeVos told state school chiefs in a letter that they should not expect the Education Department to again waive federal testing requirements as it did this spring amid sudden school closures. (Stratford, 9/3)
AP: Nevada Lawmakers Fund Teacher Testing Plan As Schools Reopen
Nevada lawmakers allocated $6.2 million in federal relief dollars to a program that will test thousands of teachers across the state as they return to classrooms for in-person instruction. The program will pay for personnel, test kits, test processing and surveillance for up to 62,500 teachers and support staff throughout Nevada. It will be administered by the Clark County Teacher’s Health Trust, the largest public school employee health plan in the state. (Metz, 9/4)
In higher-education news —
The New York Times: A Few Students Threw Parties. Now An Entire SUNY Campus Is Shut Down.
In late August, less than a week after classes started, the State University of New York at Oneonta suspended five students who, officials said, had organized parties in the upstate town that might have led to a coronavirus outbreak on campus. But it was already too late. Five days later, the outbreak was out of control, with nearly 400 virus cases among a campus student population that is usually around 6,000. As a result, officials announced on Thursday that they were canceling in-person classes for the fall semester and sending students home, making Oneonta the first SUNY campus to shut down because of the virus after trying to reopen for classes. (Rose, 9/3)
AP: University Of Oklahoma Students: Virus Response Inadequate
More than a dozen students gathered outside the University of Oklahoma’s administration building Thursday to protest what they say is an inadequate response to the coronavirus pandemic. Students are violating the university and the city of Norman’s mask mandates at bars, restaurants and at fraternity and sorority functions, OU student Kellie Dick, a senior from Shawnee, told The Associated Press. (Murphy and Miller, 9/3)
Fox News: Colleges Curtail Coronavirus Outbreaks Through Wastewater Surveillance Systems
Sewage surveillance to detect coronavirus is being used on certain college campuses to determine if the novel coronavirus is present in dormitories and college communities. The University of North Carolina Charlotte and the University of Arizona have both confirmed to Fox News that they are using this surveillance system to help contain the spread of COVID-19. (McGorry, 9/3)
In other news —
The Hill: Democrats Urge CDC To Update Guidance To Encourage Colleges, Universities Go Tobacco-Free
Democrats on Thursday urged the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue new guidance to encourage colleges and universities to go tobacco-free in the fall during the coronavirus pandemic. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), the chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform’s Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy, and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) wrote a letter to CDC Director Robert Redfield urging him to revamp his agency’s guidelines for institutions of higher learning, citing studies linking tobacco use to COVID-19. (Axelrod, 9/3)
