Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Encouraged By Fewer Infections, Some Governors Ease Up On Restrictions
The New York Times: As Infections Dip, Governors Across U.S. Start Easing Restrictions
With the coronavirus slowly receding, governors around the United States are beginning to relax pandemic restrictions. But the rules are being eased much in the same way as they were imposed: in a patchwork fashion that largely falls along party lines. Republicans are leaning toward rollbacks, and Democrats are staying the course or offering a more cautious approach. On Thursday, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas said he was considering lifting a statewide mask mandate that has been in place since July. (Tumin and Wright, 2/26)
In nursing home news —
The Hill: New COVID-19 Cases Among Nursing Home Residents Fell 80 Percent In A Month
New coronavirus cases among nursing home residents have plummeted by nearly 80 percent from late December to early February, according to The New York Times. In an analysis of federal data, the news outlet found that outbreaks at long-term care facilities have dropped at a rate almost double that of the general population. (Jenkins, 2/25)
Stat: Cuomo’s Nursing Home Fiasco Shows The Ethical Perils Of Policymaking
The humbling of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on pandemic policy has been spectacular and swift. Within a matter of days, one of America’s most trusted voices in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic became a political pariah. (Cohrs, 2/26)
Boston Globe: Hot Spots No More: Nursing Homes Far Outpace Nation In COVID Declines
Throughout the pandemic, there has been perhaps nowhere more dangerous than a nursing home. The coronavirus raced through some 31,000 long-term care facilities in the United States, killing more than 163,000 residents and employees — more than one-third of all virus deaths since late spring. But for the first time since the US outbreak began roughly a year ago, at a nursing care center in Kirkland, Wash., the threat at nursing homes may have reached a turning point. Since the arrival of vaccines, which were prioritized to long-term care facilities starting in late December, new cases and deaths in nursing homes, a large subset of long-term-care facilities, have fallen steeply, outpacing national declines, according to a New York Times analysis of federal data. The turnaround is an encouraging sign that vaccines are effective and offers an early glimpse of what may be in store for the rest of the country as more people are vaccinated. (2/25)
In news about HIV/AIDS —
Charleston Gazette-Mail: Public Safety Committee Hears CDC Presentation, Drafts Harm Reduction Survey
For the second time in as many weeks, officials from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told Charleston city leaders Wednesday that urgent action is needed to avert a full-scale HIV outbreak. Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, head of the CDC’s division on HIV/AIDS prevention, shared data with members of Charleston’s public safety committee that showed no relationship between crime and syringe service programs, as well as the settled science on how such programs should run for community benefit. Daskalakis recommended a three-pronged approach to control the growing spread of HIV in the region: increased testing, ensuring medication and treatment is accessible for those who need it, and making clean syringes widely available for the at-risk populations. (Coyne, 2/25)
