First Edition: Dec. 3, 2020

KHN: As LA County Sets New Infection Record, State Leaders’ Behavior Sends Mixed Messages
California, like the rest of the nation, is seeing a dramatic rise in COVID infections and deaths — and Los Angeles County has some of the most dire statistics. Health officials reported more than 7,500 new cases in the county on Tuesday, shattering the old record, set last week. Hospitalizations tripled in the past month, and on average 30 people are dying of COVID-19 in the county every day. (Fortier, 12/3)

KHN: NYC Hospital Workers, Knowing How Bad It Can Get, Brace For COVID 2nd Wave 
No single municipality in the country suffered more in the first wave of the pandemic than New York City, which saw more than 24,000 deaths, mainly in the spring. Medical staff in New York know precisely how difficult and dangerous overwhelmed hospitals can be and are braced warily as infections begin to rise again. Around the New York metropolitan area, public health leaders and health care workers say they’re watching the trend lines, as intensive care units fill up in other parts of the United States and around the world. They say it gives them flashbacks to last spring, when ambulance sirens were omnipresent and the region was the country’s coronavirus epicenter. (Mogul, 12/3)

KHN: During ACA Open Enrollment, Picking A Plan Invites New COVID Complications 
People buying their own health insurance have even more to think about this year, particularly those post-COVID-19 patients with lingering health concerns, the “long haulers,” who join the club of Americans with preexisting conditions. What type of plan is best for someone with an unpredictable, ongoing medical concern? That question is popping up on online chat sites dedicated to long haulers and among people reaching out for assistance in selecting insurance coverage. (Appleby, 12/3)

KHN: Feds Look To Pharmacists To Boost Childhood Immunization Rates 
Torey Watson is trained as a pharmacist but aims to do more than simply fill prescriptions. Pharmax Pharmacy — a small drugstore chain where Watson works as a clinical services coordinator, about an hour and 30 minutes southwest of St. Louis — will soon allow him to offer childhood vaccines to patients without a doctor’s prescription. This change came after the federal government expanded pharmacists’ ability to administer routine immunizations to children as young as 3. (Heredia Rodriguez, 12/3)

KHN: Come For Your Eye Exam, Leave With A Band-Aid On Your Arm
With multiple COVID-19 vaccines rapidly heading toward approval, optometrists and dentists are pushing for the authority to immunize patients during routine eye exams and dental cleanings. Across the country, these medical professionals say their help will be needed to distribute the vaccines to millions of Americans — and they already have the know-how. (Bluth, 12/3)

NPR: U.S. Surpasses 100,000 Coronavirus Hospitalizations
More than 100,000 Americans are in the hospital with COVID-19, at the same time the nation recorded its single-worst daily death toll since the start of the pandemic. Data from the COVID Tracking Project show 100,226 people were hospitalized on Wednesday with the disease caused by the coronavirus — a figure that has been steadily rising for weeks. Meanwhile, 2,760 new deaths were reported, surpassing the previous record from April 15 when 2,752 people died, according to The New York Times. (Diaz, 12/2)

The New York Times: Grim Day In U.S. As Covid-19 Deaths And Hospitalizations Set Records 
The United States on Wednesday recorded its single-worst daily death toll since the pandemic began, and on a day when Covid-19 hospitalizations also hit an all-time high, the pace of loss showed no signs of slowing any time soon. Not since spring, during the pandemic’s first peak, were so many deaths reported. The high point then was 2,752 deaths on April 15. On Wednesday it was at least 2,760. (12/3)

USA Today: How A Third Wave Of COVID-19 Engulfed The US
The spring surge was centered on New Orleans and urban areas in the Northeast. The summer surge primarily rocked Sun Belt states such as Texas, Arizona and Florida. Now, nearly every corner of America is getting hit with extraordinary case counts. Forty-five states reported more cases during one week in November than in any other week since the start of the pandemic, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University coronavirus data shows. Only Florida, Hawaii, Mississippi, New York and South Carolina had worse peaks in prior months. (Haseman and Stucka, 12/2)

Reuters: CDC Chief Warns Americans Face 'Rough' Winter From COVID-19 Surge
The head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned on Wednesday the COVID-19 pandemic, still raging with unprecedented fury nationwide, will pose the country’s grimmest health crisis yet over the next few months, before vaccines become widely available. CDC Director Dr Robert Redfield urged stricter adherence to safety precautions such as wearing face coverings, social distancing and good hand hygiene to slow the spread of a highly contagious respiratory virus now claiming well over 2,000 U.S. lives a day. (Gorman and Trotta, 12/2)

Boston Globe: Winter Could Be ‘Most Difficult Time In The Public Health History’ Of The US, CDC Director Says
The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday the upcoming months could be “the most difficult in the public health history of this nation” because of the stress on the country’s health care system from the coronavirus. “The reality is, December and January and February are going to be tough times,” said Dr. Robert Redfield, speaking at an event with the US Chamber of Commerce. “I actually believe they’re going to be the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation.” (Kaufman, 12/2)

The Wall Street Journal: How The U.K. Beat The U.S. And Europe To A Covid-19 Vaccine 
Britain’s first-in-the-West authorization of a Covid-19 vaccine thrusts its little-known medicines watchdog into the global spotlight—weeks before the U.K.’s split from the European Union adds to the regulator’s responsibilities. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency signed off Wednesday on a vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc. and Germany’s BioNTech SE, setting in motion its rollout in the U.K. It reached a decision ahead of higher-profile watchdogs, such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency. (Strasburg, Hinshaw and Pancevski, 12/2)

Politico: UK’s Speedy Coronavirus Vaccine Approval Sparks Hope (And Questions) 
The message from the U.K.’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) Wednesday was definitive. “No corners have been cut,” said Chief Executive June Raine during a televised briefing. Expert scientists and clinicians have been “working around the clock, carefully and methodically, pouring over tables and analyses and graphs for every single piece of data,” she said. That includes over a thousand pages of data. The work involved “critically analyzing pre-clinical evidence, clinical trials, manufacturing and quality controls and down to the final sampling,” Raine added. Asked how the process differed from the European Medicines Agency and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s own approval regime, Raine said the MHRA process was “equivalent to all international standards.” There will, she added, be longer term follow up on the vaccine.  (Collis and Furlong, 12/2)

Reuters: EU Criticises 'Hasty' UK Approval Of COVID-19 Vaccine
The European Union criticised Britain’s rapid approval of Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, saying its own procedure was more thorough, after Britain became the first western country to endorse a COVID-19 shot. ... In an unusually blunt statement, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which is in charge of approving COVID-19 vaccines for the EU, said its longer approval procedure was more appropriate as it was based on more evidence and required more checks than the emergency procedure chosen by Britain. (Guarascio, 12/2)

AP: Who, When And How? A Look At The UK's Vaccination Rollout
How much of the vaccine does the U.K. have? Not enough. The U.K. has put in orders for 40 million doses, which can inoculate 20 million people, since each person gets two doses 21 days apart. Other vaccines will be needed for all the 53 million or so people eligible for shots; the U.K. only plans to immunize the population over age 16. (Pylas, 12/2)

The Wall Street Journal: FDA Head Defends Covid-19 Vaccine-Approval Process 
Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn defended his agency’s vetting process for Pfizer Inc.’s Covid-19 vaccine, saying a thorough and meticulous review is needed to assure a skeptical public of the vaccine’s safety and effectiveness. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Dr. Hahn said his agency has had 150 people working days, nights and weekends in parallel teams to review the test data submitted by Pfizer and German partner BioNTech SE. (Burton, 12/2)

The New York Times: Moderna To Begin Testing Its Coronavirus Vaccine In Children 
The drugmaker Moderna said on Wednesday that it would soon begin testing its coronavirus vaccine in children ages 12 through 17. The study, listed Wednesday on the website clinicaltrials.gov, is to include 3,000 children, with half receiving two shots of vaccine four weeks apart, and half getting placebo shots of salt water. But the posting says the study is “not yet recruiting,” and Colleen Hussey, a spokeswoman for Moderna, said it was not certain when the testing sites would be listed or start accepting volunteers. A link on the website to test centers is not yet working, and Ms. Hussey said she was not sure when it would become active. (Grady, 12/2)

The Washington Post: When Will Children Get A Coronavirus Vaccine, And How Will It Affect School? 
As the United States eagerly awaits the availability of a safe, effective vaccine for the coronavirus that has plagued the nation for months, a significant group, making up more than one-fifth of the population, will need to wait longer than many others for immunization: children. On Sunday, Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, acknowledged it is going to take time, perhaps even months, before those younger than 18 can get a coronavirus vaccine, as trials to test the vaccine candidates’ immunogenicity are either underway or have yet to begin. (Kornfield, 12/2)

Modern Healthcare: HHS Estimates 100 Million Will Get COVID-19 Vaccine By March
Federal officials on Wednesday said they anticipate vaccinating as many as 100 million people by March once a coronavirus vaccine is approved and ready to be distributed. In a call with reporters, HHS Secretary Alex Azar said federal agencies have made preparations to begin allocating a vaccine, or vaccines, immediately after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration grants emergency use authorization for use. Among the most likely candidates to gain FDA approval first include vaccines developed by makers Pfizer and BioNTech, which won approval for use in Britain on Wednesday, as well as one developed by Moderna. (Ross Johnson, 12/2)

AP: Pence To Visit Tennessee, Talk Virus Vaccines
Vice President Mike Pence is scheduled to visit Memphis on Thursday to discuss the development and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines, according to his office. Memphis is home to shipping giant FedEx, which is helping in the national vaccine distribution. Pence will participate in an afternoon roundtable discussion, which will include Republican Gov. Bill Lee. (12/3)

Politico: Obama: I Will Take Covid Vaccine If Fauci Says It's Safe 
Former President Barack Obama said on Wednesday he would gladly take the coronavirus vaccine if top health officials deemed it safe. The former president said he had full faith in Anthony Fauci, the country’s top infectious disease expert, if he backed the latest vaccines as safe and effective. Obama’s remarks, made on SiriusXM’s “The Joe Madison Show” in an interview set to be released Thursday, come as candidates for vaccines have started showing promising signs of effectiveness. Britain on Wednesday granted emergency authorization for a vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. (Choi, 12/2)

AP: Stay Home For The Holidays Or Get Tested Twice, CDC Urges
Don’t travel over the upcoming holidays. But if you must, consider getting coronavirus tests before and after, U.S. health officials urged Wednesday. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the best way to stay safe and protect others is to stay home. (Tanner, 12/2)

AP: Attendees Of Thanksgiving Gatherings Urged To Get Tested
Vermonters who attended multi-household Thanksgiving gatherings against the governor’s order are urged to quarantine and get tested for the coronavirus. “It’s best to get tested right away and again on Day Seven or later,” Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said Tuesday during the governor’s virus briefing. (12/2)

Politico: Raimondo Emerges As Frontrunner For HHS Secretary 
Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo is now a top contender to be President-elect Joe Biden’s pick to run the Department of Health and Human Services, according to two people close to the transition. Raimondo’s rise comes as New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is no longer favored for the role, according to one of those sources and another familiar with the discussions. (Ollstein, Cancryn and Pager, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Leading Candidates To Preside Over Biden's Covid Response Are Central Players In Transition 
As President-elect Joe Biden makes fighting the raging coronavirus his most-urgent mission when he takes office next month, two figures already playing central roles in his transition are emerging as the most likely possibilities to preside over the new White House’s pandemic response. One contender for Biden’s coronavirus coordinator, envisioned as a powerful role in setting the agenda and orchestrating the work of federal agencies, is Jeff Zients, a co-chairman of the Biden transition team who led the Obama administration’s National Economic Council. Another is Vivek H. Murthy, a co-chair of the transition’s covid-19 advisory board and a former U.S. Surgeon General. (Goldstein and Olorunnipa, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Pompeo Invites Hundreds To Indoor Holiday Parties After Subordinates Are Warned Against Hosting ‘Non-Mission Critical Events’
Following a sharp spike in coronavirus cases across the country, State Department leadership sent out a notice to employees one week ago recommending that “any non-mission critical events” be changed to “virtual events as opposed to in-person gatherings.” That same week, U.S. event planners were told that the guidance did not apply to the upcoming functions they were working on: large indoor holiday parties hosted by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife, Susan, on the eighth floor of the State Department involving hundreds of guests, food and drinks. (Hudson, 12/2)

Politico: McEnany’s Husband Attends White House Press Briefing Without Mask 
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany’s husband, Sean Gilmartin, appeared without a mask in the White House briefing room on Wednesday and declined to cover his face after being asked to do so by a journalist. The interaction between Gilmartin and the White House press corps came after McEnany, who generally does not wear a mask at the briefing room podium, conducted a 24-minute news conference. (Forgey, 12/2)

Politico: McEnany Incorrectly Credits Trump With White House AIDS Ribbon 
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Wednesday falsely attributed the genesis of the towering red ribbon displayed in front of the White House in honor of World AIDS Day to the Trump administration. ... “The president honored World AIDS Day yesterday in a way that no president has before, with the red ribbon there, and I think he commemorated the day as he should have,” McEnany told reporters during a press briefing. The ribbon was first hung in 2007 under former President George W. Bush and has become an annual feature in the years since, including under both Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump. The idea was the brainchild of Steven Levine, a member of the Bush communications shop, who is gay. (Niedzwiadek, 12/2)

The Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus-Stimulus Efforts Pick Up Speed 
Democratic leaders signaled Wednesday they were prepared to reduce their demands for the next round of coronavirus relief, fueling hopes that an agreement could be reached with Republicans by year’s end to boost struggling businesses and households. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) and Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the chamber’s Democratic leader, said that a new, bipartisan $908 billion coronavirus relief proposal released Tuesday should serve as the starting point for talks to try to resolve months of disagreement with GOP leaders and the White House. (Peterson, 12/2)

The Washington Post: States Race To Craft Their Own Economic Relief Plans, Frustrated With Federal Inaction 
Governors and state lawmakers across the country are racing to authorize millions of dollars in new coronavirus stimulus aid, aiming to plug gaping holes in their local economies before the end of the year. The burst of activity has intensified in recent weeks after months of false starts in Washington, where congressional lawmakers repeatedly have failed to deliver additional support for a growing number of Americans who are still out of work, struggling to pay their bills or facing severe financial straits. (Romm, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Emotional Support Animals Not Required To Be Transported On Flights 
Airlines no longer will be required to accommodate travelers who want to fly with emotional support animals such as pigs, rabbits and turkeys under a final rule announced Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The new rule now defines a service animal to be a dog that is “individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability” and limits the number of service animals a person can travel with to two. It also requires airlines to treat psychiatric service animals as they would other service animals. (Aratani, 12/2)

Politico: Emotional Support Animals On Airlines Get Their Wings Clipped 
Your pet peacock may soon not be allowed to fly the friendly skies with you anymore, now that the Transportation Department is tightening rules on "emotional support animals" after a series of high-profile incidents on board airplanes. On Wednesday, DOT said it will no longer consider animal companions used by travelers on commercial flights for emotional support as "service animals," opening the door for airlines to ban them outright. (Beasley and Semones, 12/2)

Stat: Misguided Federal Regulations Are Likely To Cause More Pain In People Already Living With It
Hidden in the shadows of the Covid-19 pandemic is the U.S.’s drug epidemic, which is getting worse. One group that is paying the price for it, but shouldn’t be, are people who live with chronic pain conditions. (Vanila Singh, 12/2)

CIDRAP: Cancer Patients May Shed Viable COVID-19 Virus For 2 Months
A New England Journal of Medicine study yesterday of cancer patients with COVID-19 demonstrated viral RNA shedding for up to 78 days and live virus for up to 61 days, suggesting extended infectiousness in patients whose immune system is suppressed. Live-virus shedding in patients who are not immunocompromised is well-documented, but little is known about how long immunocompromised patients—including those receiving cancer treatments—are contagious. The presence of viral RNA does not always correlate with transmissibility, and previous studies have demonstrated lengthy periods of viral RNA shedding after patients are no longer infectious. (12/2)

Stat: How To Get The Most Of Covid-19 Vaccines — And Not Squander Our Chance
It appears science may have found the Covid-19 pandemic’s off-ramp. Two vaccines developed with stunning speed — and showing remarkable initial efficacy — are poised to be approved for emergency use in the United States in December. A number of other vaccines are expected to follow. Vaccines that prevent symptomatic Covid infection in roughly 95% of people vaccinated — as the data from clinical trials of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines suggest — should, over time, help the country and the world return to a life where we can travel without quarantining; where sporting events can be played before live audiences, not cardboard cutouts; and where snowstorms are the only reasons school gets canceled. (Branswell, 12/2)

The New York Times: Many Trial Volunteers Got Placebo Vaccines. Do They Now Deserve The Real Ones? 
In October, Judith Munz and her husband, Scott Petersen, volunteered for a coronavirus vaccine trial. At a clinic near their home in Phoenix, each got a jab in the arm. Dr. Petersen, a retired physician, became a little fatigued after his shot, and developed redness and swelling on his arm. But Ms. Munz, a social worker, didn’t notice any change. “As much as I wanted it, I couldn’t find a darned thing,” she said. “It was a nothing burger.” (Zimmer and Weiland, 12/2)

Stat: How The Rich And Privileged Can Skip The Line For Covid-19 Vaccines 
Athletes, politicians, and other wealthy or well-connected people have managed to get special treatment throughout the pandemic, including preferential access to testing and unapproved therapies. Early access to coronavirus vaccines is likely to be no different, medical experts and ethicists told STAT. (Goldhill and St. Fleur, 12/3)

Stat: Covid-19 Vaccines Will Arrive Before Health Data Interoperability
Scientists have produced Covid-19 vaccines in record time. But the digital connectivity needed to closely track doses, side effects, and continuing infections is still lagging behind — even though the technology is now widely available. This paradox of the pandemic was on display Tuesday during a meeting hosted by the Department of Health and Human Services. An official with the U.S. Digital Service said site visits to public health agencies around the country in recent months revealed a heavy reliance on paper documents and fax machines to collect and share data on Covid-19 tests. (Ross, 12/2)

The Washington Post: What We Know About Pregnancy And Coronavirus Vaccines 
None of the three companies that say they’ve developed effective coronavirus vaccines enrolled pregnant or breastfeeding people in their clinical trials. And that means initial guidance on who should get vaccinated likely won’t include pregnant people, public health experts say. Pregnant people have long been typically left out of major vaccine trials because of concerns that the women and their fetuses might face increased risk. That protocol has come into question in recent years as experts increasingly make the argument that leaving them out of trials puts them at greater risk. (Cirruzzo, 12/1)

Bloomberg: CVS, Walgreens Bracing To Give Covid-19 Shots At Nursing Homes
CVS Health Corp. and Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. are preparing to administer Covid-19 vaccines in tens of thousands of nursing homes and assisted-living facilities across the country, with shots possibly rolling out in just weeks. Federal advisers on Tuesday urged that residents at long-term care centers be first in line for the Covid shots, along with at-risk health-care workers. In making the recommendation, the advisers said the move would be well-supported by a new partnership formed between the Department of Health and Human Services and pharmacy companies to vaccinate at the centers. (LaVito, 12/2)

AP: Nurses Wanted: Swamped Hospitals Scramble For Pandemic Help
U.S. hospitals slammed with COVID-19 patients are trying to lure nurses and doctors out of retirement, recruiting students and new graduates who have yet to earn their licenses and offering eye-popping salaries in a desperate bid to ease staffing shortages. With the virus surging from coast to coast, the number of patients in the hospital with the virus has more than doubled over the past month to a record high of nearly 100,000, pushing medical centers and health care workers to the breaking point. Nurses are increasingly burned out and getting sick on the job, and the stress on the nation’s medical system prompted a dire warning from the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Schulte and Forliti, 12/3)

The New York Times: As Hospitals Fill, Travel Nurses Race To Virus Hot Spots
As the coronavirus cut a devastating path around the country, Laura Liffiton, 32, found herself racing along behind. She arrived in New York City in April, on one of the worst days of the pandemic, for a stint as a nurse in the overrun intensive-care unit of a crowded hospital. After her contract there ended, she flew in July to another hot spot with an urgent need for nurses: a hospital in Arizona where four of her patients died of the coronavirus on her first day. In October, Ms. Liffiton traveled on, to Green Bay, Wis., just as the virus was surging uncontrollably throughout the Midwest. (Bosman, 12/2)

CIDRAP: COVID-19 Disruptions May Have Fueled Hospital Superbug Outbreak 
A case report from a New Jersey hospital highlights how drug-resistant pathogens can take advantage of COVID-related disruptions to standard infection and prevention control (IPC) practices. In a paper published yesterday in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH), and Rutgers University report on an outbreak of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) at an unnamed 500-bed hospital that occurred during the spring surge of coronavirus infections in the state. (Dall, 12/2)

Reuters: The U.S. Has Spent Billions Stockpiling Ventilators, But Many Won’t Save Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients
With the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping across its shores earlier this year, the U.S. government in April announced orders for almost $3 billion of ventilators for a national stockpile, meant to save Americans suffering from severe respiratory problems brought on by the disease. But of the 140,000 machines added since then by the government to the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile, almost half were basic breathing devices that don’t meet what medical specialists say are the minimum requirements for ventilators needed to treat Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, the main cause of death among COVID-19 patients, according to a Reuters review of publicly-available device specifications and interviews with doctors and industry executives. (Bergin, 12/2)

The New York Times: Rapid Testing For Children Barrels Ahead, Despite A Lack Of Data 
A small but growing body of evidence, some of which has not yet been published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, suggests that some rapid tests for the coronavirus may falter in very young people, letting low-level infections slip by unnoticed. In a recent study of more than 1,600 people in Massachusetts, Binax NOW, a rapid test manufactured by Abbott Laboratories, caught 96.5 percent of the coronavirus infections found by a more accurate laboratory test in adults with symptoms. But the rapid test detected just 77.8 percent of the symptomatic cases in people 18 or under. Among people without symptoms, the test faltered further, identifying 70.2 percent of adults and 63.6 percent of children. (Wu, 12/1)

The Washington Post: The Covid-19 Symptoms To Watch Out For
Symptoms of covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, can range from mild to severe. The most common include fever, a dry cough or shortness of breath, but there are other indications you could need to be tested or have a conversation with your doctor. Not everyone experiences the same symptoms, and the order in which they appear can vary. Some people don’t show any symptoms — what health experts call “asymptomatic” cases — but still could spread the virus to others. (Fritz, 12/2)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Coronavirus Is Revealing Exactly What Obesity Does To The Human Body
The COVID-19 pandemic has thrust the obesity epidemic once again into the spotlight, revealing that obesity is no longer a disease that harms just in the long run but one that can have acutely devastating effects. New studies and information confirm doctors’ suspicion that this virus takes advantage of a disease that our current U.S. health care system is unable to get under control. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 73% of nurses who have been hospitalized from COVID-19 had obesity. In addition, a recent study found that obesity could interfere with the effectiveness of a COVID-19 vaccine. (Varney, 12/3)

Stat: Study: Elevated Stress Hormones Could Reawaken Dormant Cancer Cells
The recurrence of cancer months or even years after successful treatment is an all too common phenomenon, and scientists have been chipping away at understanding how undetectable cells can once again unleash disease on the body — often more aggressively than the first time around. In a new study published Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine, one group of researchers describes how a cascade of events set off by high levels of a stress hormone could cause dormant tumor cells to reawaken to once again cause cancer. (Chakradhar, 12/2)

The New York Times: Exercise 11 Minutes A Day For A Longer Life 
Walking for at least 11 minutes a day could lessen the undesirable health consequences of sitting for hours and hours, according to a helpful new study of the ways in which both inactivity and exercise influence how long we live. The study, which relied on objective data from tens of thousands of people about how they spent their days, found that those who were the most sedentary faced a high risk of dying young, but if people got up and moved, they slashed that threat substantially, even if they did not move much. (Reynolds, 12/2)

AP: NBA: 48 Players Positive For Coronavirus As Testing Resumes
The NBA said Wednesday that 48 players have tested positive for the coronavirus since testing resumed last week. The league and National Basketball Players Association said 546 players were tested between Nov. 24-30 in the initial phase of testing after returning to team markets. That means about 9% of the tests were positive. (12/2)

Fox Business: Amazon Workers Protest Outside Jeff Bezos' NYC Home For Better COVID-19 Protections
Amazon workers vying for stricter safety standards during the COVID-19 pandemic took their fight to Jeff Bezos' Manhattan home Wednesday. Protesters gathered outside the Amazon chief executive's multimillion-dollar Fifth Avenue residence to call attention to Bezos and other CEOs who they claim have made billions during the global health crisis while putting workers' lives at risk. (Genovese, 12/2)

NPR: Study: Lifting Of Eviction Moratoriums Linked To Thousands Of Excess Deaths
Like much of the response to the coronavirus across the United States, the approach to housing during the pandemic has been an uneven patchwork. Forty-three states and Washington, D.C., put in eviction moratoriums starting in March and April, but 27 of them ended in the spring and summer. Then in September, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ordered a national stop to evictions. The CDC eviction ban isn't automatic and doesn't cover everyone. Thousands of people are still being kicked out of their homes. (Kelly and Pao, 12/2)

Bloomberg: Climate Change And Health: Lancet Says Eating Less Beef Can Save Lives, Cut Heat
Getting more people around to world to cut down on eating beef could save lives by reducing heart attacks and curbing global temperature rises, according to The Lancet medical journal. Just as they were caught off guard by the Covid-19 pandemic, healthcare systems around the world are ill prepared to cope with the worst impacts of climate change, including heat-related illnesses, the journal’s annual Countdown on Health and Climate Change report concluded. (Shankleman, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Aide To Maryland Governor Larry Hogan: Korean Virus Tests Not Used 
A Maryland official acknowledged publicly Wednesday, for the first time, that none of the 500,000 coronavirus tests the state purchased from South Korea in April were used to diagnose whether people had the virus. More than 496,000 of the tests were handed back to the manufacturer as part of a deal for replacement tests, acting health secretary Dennis Schrader told the Board of Public Works. About 3,500 were used as lab workers tried to validate them. (Thompson, 12/2)

NPR: Virginia County Votes To Reject Gov. Northam's Coronavirus Restrictions
Campbell County, Va., is taking a stand against Gov. Ralph Northam's COVID-19 restrictions as its Board of Supervisors endorsed a measure Tuesday night that calls on county agencies not to enforce Northam's crowd-size limits and other orders. The board declared Campbell County to be a "First Amendment Sanctuary" and deemed Northam's orders to violate people's constitutional rights. The move echoes the county's declaration of itself as a "Second Amendment Sanctuary" one year ago in support of gun owners' rights. (Chappell, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Staten Island Bar Mac's Public House Shuttered Over Covid Violations, Owner Arrested
Hundreds of mostly maskless protesters stood shoulder to shoulder outside a Staten Island bar on Wednesday night to demonstrate against the state’s coronavirus restrictions and support a tavern that was forced to shut down for flouting those guidelines. The raucous scene of about 400 demonstrators in front of Mac’s Public House came a day after plainclothes city sheriff’s deputies busted the bar, which had been operating without a liquor license, for serving food and alcohol to patrons indoors past the 10 p.m. citywide curfew in exchange for a mandatory $40 “donation,” authorities said. The bar’s owners previously declared the establishment an “autonomous zone,” and had publicly taunted New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo (D) and Mayor Bill de Blasio (D). (Bella, 12/3)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. Issues Stay-At-Home Rules Amid COVID-19 Spike
The city of Los Angeles issued a modified stay-at-home order Wednesday night that mirrors L.A. County rules that went into effect Monday. The city order prohibits gatherings of people outside immediate households, with some exceptions such as religious services and protests. (Smith, 12/2)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. Mayor Announces $800 Stipends For Food Service Workers 
Los Angeles will offer a one-time $800 stipend to employees who work in food service industries, including restaurants, breweries and food stands, Mayor Eric Garcetti said Wednesday. The Secure Emergency Relief for Vulnerable Employees, or SERVE, initiative will give 4,000 workers the cash using money from the nonprofit Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles, Garcetti said in an evening briefing. The news comes as the number of Californians hospitalized with the coronavirus reached more than 8,000 and 40 more deaths were reported in L.A. County on Wednesday, leading to restrictions on outdoor dining. (Reyes-Velarde, 12/2)

The Washington Post: The Sacramento Sheriff Refused To Enforce Covid Health Measures. He’s Now Tested Positive For The Virus.
When California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) announced a statewide mask-wearing mandate in June, Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones said he would not enforce the order. In November, as the state neared a breaking point days ahead of Thanksgiving, Jones once again pushed back, refusing to enforce compliance with the state’s social distancing and gathering rules.“ We will not dispatch officers for these purposes,” Jones said in a statement. Now, he has tested positive for the coronavirus after being recently exposed to a colleague, according to a statement from the sheriff’s office on Wednesday. (Peiser, 12/3)

San Francisco Chronicle: Couple Who Tested Positive For Coronavirus At SFO Is Arrested After Taking Flight To Hawaii Despite Orders To Isolate
A couple was arrested for second-degree reckless endangerment after they knowingly boarded a flight to Hawaii despite receiving positive coronavirus test results at the San Francisco International Airport, Kauai police said. Wesley Moribe, 41, and Courtney Peterson, 46, of Wailua, Hawaii, boarded a United Airlines flight on Sunday headed from SFO to Lihue, Hawaii, “placing the passengers of the flight in danger of death,” officials said. The couple was traveling with a 4-year-old child. (Arredondo, 12/2)

AP: San Francisco Bans Smoking Inside Apartments; Pot Smoking OK
City officials in San Francisco have banned all tobacco smoking inside apartments, citing concerns about secondhand smoke. But lighting up a joint inside? That’s still allowed. The Board of Supervisors voted 10-1 Tuesday to approve the ordinance making San Francisco the largest city in the country to ban tobacco smoking inside apartments, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. (12/2)