First Edition: Nov. 4, 2020

KHN: No Winner For President Yet And Health Care Hangs In The Balance 
With the winner of the presidency and party control of the Senate still unclear the morning after Election Day, the future of the nation’s health system remains uncertain. At stake is whether the federal government will play a stronger role in financing and setting the ground rules for health care coverage or cede more authority to states and the private sector. Should President Donald Trump win and Republicans retain control of the Senate, Trump still may not be able to make sweeping changes through legislation as long as the House is still controlled by Democrats. But — thanks to rules set up by the Senate GOP — the ability to continue to stack the federal courts with conservative jurists who are likely to uphold Trump’s expansive use of executive power could effectively remake the government’s relationship with the health care system even without signed legislation. (Rovner, 11/4)

KHN: Lions And Tigers And Anteaters? US Scientists Scan The Menagerie For COVID
As COVID-19 cases surge in the U.S., one Texas veterinarian has been quietly tracking the spread of the disease — not in people, but in their pets. Since June, Dr. Sarah Hamer and her team at Texas A&M University have tested hundreds of animals from area households where humans contracted COVID-19. They’ve swabbed dogs and cats, sure, but also pet hamsters and guinea pigs, looking for signs of infection. “We’re open to all of it,” said Hamer, a professor of epidemiology, who has found at least 19 cases of infection. (Aleccia, 11/4)

KHN: ‘Is This Worth My Life?’: Traveling Health Workers Decry COVID Care Conditions 
David Joel Perea called from Maine, Vermont, Minnesota and, ultimately, Nevada, always with the same request: “Mom, can you send tamales?” Dominga Perea would ship them overnight. That’s how she knew where her 35-year-old son was. The traveling nurse had “a tremendous work ethic,” routinely putting in 80 hours a week, said his brother, Daniel. But when Perea took a job at Lakeside Health & Wellness Suites — a Reno nursing home that has received dozens of safety citations since 2017 from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services — Dominga was “scared silly.” (Cahan, 11/4)

KHN: It’s Open Enrollment. Here’s What You Need To Know
California’s annual health insurance enrollment season for individuals and families kicks off this week against a dramatic backdrop: the hotly contested presidential election; a pandemic raging out of control in much of the U.S.; and, on Nov. 10, a Supreme Court hearing of a case that could end the Affordable Care Act and strand millions without coverage. The massive unemployment caused by the pandemic has already stripped employer-based health insurance from millions nationwide and induced severe financial anxiety as families struggle to pay rent and buy food. (Wolfson, 11/4)

The Wall Street Journal: Trump, Biden Locked In Close Election Contest 
President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden remained locked in a tight race that was expected to come down to a few key states that were still counting votes Wednesday morning. The president won Ohio, Iowa, Texas and the key prize of Florida, while Mr. Biden flipped an electoral vote in Nebraska and won Arizona, the first time the state has gone to a Democratic presidential candidate since 1996. That set up a showdown in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, which, along with states such as Georgia and North Carolina, weren’t yet called. (Bender, Siddiqui and Lucy, 11/4)

USA Today: Trump Falsely Claims He Has Won Election, Even Though Ballots Are Still Being Counted
President Donald Trump falsely claimed he had won the presidential election early Wednesday morning and threatened to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the counting of legally cast absentee ballots he described as a "fraud." Trump pointed to his early lead in the pivotal battleground of Pennsylvania and said it would be "almost impossible" for Democratic nominee Joe Biden to catch up there and in other states. In fact, there were enough votes outstanding in those states to swing the total back to Biden's favor. (Jackson, Jansen and Fritze, 11/4)

Politico: Twitter Flags Trump Tweet On Election Results For ‘Misleading’ Content 
Twitter pinned a warning label to President Donald Trump's early Wednesday tweet claiming he is "up BIG" in the presidential race and once again casting doubt on election results even as votes were still being counted across the country. "Some or all of the content shared in this Tweet is disputed and might be misleading about an election or other civic process," read the label Twitter attached to Trump's tweet. (Seligman, 11/4)

Politico: Biden: The Election ‘Ain’t Over Until Every Vote Is Counted’ 
Former Vice President Joe Biden early on Wednesday urged his supporters to remain patient as votes continue to trickle in in a nail-biter race, but he asserted that the presidential election “ain’t over until every vote is counted, every ballot is counted.” Speaking to supporters in his hometown of Wilmington, Del., just before 1 a.m., Biden asserted that despite President Donald Trump’s winning several key battleground states, “we believe we’re on track to win this election.” (Oprysko, 11/4)

The New York Times: Exit Polls Showed The Vote Came Down To Covid-19 Versus The Economy 
Reflecting a pervasive pessimism, nearly two-thirds of voters said they believed the country was heading in the wrong direction, according to an Associated Press canvass of those who had cast ballots — and those voters overwhelmingly picked Mr. Biden. And while Mr. Trump had attempted to focus the campaign on anything other than the pandemic, it remained a defining issue: More than four in 10 voters said it was the most important problem facing the country, far more than any other issue. (Medina and Russonello, 11/3)

The Wall Street Journal: Election Day 2020: Economy, Coronavirus And Race Split U.S. Electorate 
The portrait of America revealed in Tuesday’s presidential election was one of a deeply divided nation split between men and women, white and nonwhite voters, urban and rural residents, college graduates and those who didn’t graduate from college, and differing views on the importance of controlling the coronavirus pandemic versus preventing further damage to the economy. A national voter survey conducted for The Wall Street Journal and other news organizations showed President Trump with his strongest support among men, white voters without a college degree, rural residents and those who said the government should put a higher priority on the economy even if it increases the spread of the coronavirus. (McCormick and Day, 11/3)

The Washington Post: Republicans Clinging To Senate Majority
Republicans were clinging to their Senate majority early Wednesday, as they held narrow leads in key battleground states and fended off Democratic challenges that had emerged amid a challenging national environment for the GOP. ... Republicans defeated well-funded Democratic challengers in South Carolina and Texas while seizing leads in the battlegrounds of North Carolina and Iowa. Democrats successfully took out Republican Sen. Cory Gardner in Colorado and appeared to be on track to win Arizona, although the GOP picked up a seat of their own in Alabama and appeared to diminish the prospects of a Democratic majority as results continued to roll in early Wednesday morning. (Min Kimi and Kane, 11/4)

USA Today: Democrats Are Expected To Retain Control Of The House, But It's Not The Broad Expansion Analysts Predicted
Democrats are expected to retain control of the House of Representatives but optimistic projections that they would be expanding their already robust margin are falling short. Instead, Republicans have enjoyed some bragging rights, unseating freshmen incumbents in South Florida, New Mexico, Oklahoma and South Carolina, while successfully defending what looked to be several vulnerable seats in Texas and elsewhere. And early Wednesday, the GOP claimed its biggest prize by knocking off 15-term Democratic Rep. Collin Peterson of Minnesota. (Hayes, Morin and King, 11/4)

The Wall Street Journal: Oregon Votes To Decriminalize All Drugs, Allow Psilocybin For Mental Health Treatment 
Oregon became the first state in the nation to decriminalize the possession of all illegal drugs and also legalize the use of psilocybin—the active ingredient in hallucinogenic mushrooms—for mental health treatment, after voters passed a pair of ballot measures this week. Both are the first of their kind in any U.S. state and represent the next frontier in the relaxation of drug laws beyond marijuana. (Morrison, 11/4)

The New York Times: Recreational Marijuana Legalized By New Jersey Voters 
The vote allows New Jersey officials to begin the thorny, potentially lengthy process of establishing rules related to regulating and testing cannabis and issuing licenses, including how many permits to grant — and to whom. It also instantly raises the ante for neighboring states like New York and Pennsylvania, increasing pressure on lawmakers who support legalization to take action or risk losing the competitive edge to New Jersey in what is expected to be one of the largest marijuana markets in the country. (Tully, 11/3)

AP: Push To Relax Drug Laws Gains Big Victories On State Ballots
A nationwide push to relax drug laws took a significant step forward Tuesday as more states legalized marijuana for adults and voters made Oregon the first state to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of street drugs such as cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine. The drug measures were among 120 proposed state laws and constitutional amendments that were on the ballot in 32 states. They touched on an array of issues that have roiled politics in recent years — voting rights, racial inequalities, abortion, taxes and education, to name a few. (Lieb, 11/4)

Politico: 1 In 3 Americans Now Lives In A State Where Recreational Marijuana Is Legal 
Some 16 million Americans were added to the list of places that allow adults to use marijuana legally, after voters in New Jersey, Arizona, South Dakota and Montana on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved ballot measures on weed. They will join about 93 million Americans who live in states that already have legalized weed, meaning about 1 in 3 Americans now live in states where marijuana is legal for anyone at least 21 years old. South Dakota and Mississippi voters also approved measures to legalize medical marijuana on Election Day. (Fertig and Zhang, 11/4)

NPR: Louisiana, Colorado Voters Take Different Stances On Abortion Measures
Should Roe be overturned, the amendment would prevent the state courts from declaring abortion restrictions unconstitutional at the state level. The state isn't the first to amend its constitution this way -- Alabama and West Virginia did so in 2018, as did Tennessee in 2014. (11/4)

The Colorado Sun: Colorado Measure To Ban Abortions After 22 Weeks Of Pregnancy Fails 
A measure that would ban abortions in Colorado after 22 weeks of pregnancy, except in cases where the mother’s life is at risk, failed Tuesday night. Both supporters and opponents of Proposition 115 had predicted a tight battle over what supporters of the ban call “late-term abortion,” but opponents declared victory about an hour after the polls closed. The measure went down 41% to 59%, according to unofficial returns. The Associated Press called the race at 9:42 p.m. (Brown, 11/3)

The Hill: Louisiana Passes Amendment Stating Abortion Is Not A Right 
Louisiana voters passed an amendment Tuesday stating that the state constitution does not protect the right to an abortion or the funding of an abortion. With nearly 1.8 million votes tallied, about 65.5 percent of voters passed the amendment, while 35.5 percent of voters rejected it. (Axelrod, 11/3)

Politico: GOP State Legislature Candidate In North Dakota Who Died Of Covid Wins Election 
A Republican in North Dakota has won a seat in the state legislature — nearly a month after he died of complications from Covid-19. David Andahl was 55 when he died on Oct. 5, after winning a heated primary with an incumbent committee chairman. Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) had endorsed the Bismarck rancher, saying, “we need more Trump Republicans in the State Legislature.” (O'Donnell, 11/4)

NPR: Delaware’s Sarah McBride Becomes Nation’s First Openly Transgender State Senator
Transgender activist Sarah McBride has defeated Republican Steve Washington in Delaware to become the nation’s first openly transgender state senator. McBride previously made history in 2016 when she spoke at the Democratic National Convention, becoming the first transgender person to do so at a major-party convention. McBride interned at the White House during the Obama administration and served as the national press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign. She celebrated her win tonight, saying on Twitter, “I hope tonight shows an LGBTQ kid that our democracy is big enough for them, too.” (Saxena, 11/3)

NPR: Marjorie Taylor Greene, Who Endorsed QAnon, Wins House Seat In Georgia
Marjorie Taylor Greene, a controversial Republican who has expressed support for the baseless QAnon conspiracy theory, has won her campaign in Georgia’s 14th Congressional District. Her victory had been expected ever since Greene won her party’s nomination; the district is heavily Republican, and her long-shot Democratic rival dropped out of the race in September. He still won 21% of the vote, according to The Associated Press. (11/3)

NPR: Voter Survey: U.S. Is On Wrong Track, COVID-19 Not Under Control
Almost two-thirds of Americans say the country is on the wrong track, a majority disapprove of the job President Trump is doing and more than half do not think the COVID-19 pandemic is under control, according to early data from AP VoteCast. VoteCast is not an exit poll. It is a massive set of pre-election polls that runs up through when voting closes Tuesday. VoteCast is conducted nationally and in key states and surveys some 140,000 voters. By comparison, a statistically significant and rigorously conducted national poll typically surveys about 1,000 people. We will be updating with results through the night. (Montanaro, 11/3)

The Wall Street Journal: How Coronavirus Changed Election 2020 Voting And Polling Stations 
Dennis Randall showed up to vote Tuesday at the Blue Valley High School gymnasium here and checked in with a poll worker seated behind a plexiglass shield. Then he waited for someone to disinfect the voting machine before stepping up to mark his choices with a disposable pen emblazoned with an “I Voted” slogan. “The thing that impressed me is you don’t have any physical contact with anything except the pen,” said Mr. Randall, 68 years old, who was one of the first to vote in this Kansas City, Mo., suburb after the school doors opened at 6 a.m. Tuesday. (Carlton, 11/3)

The Wall Street Journal: Voting in a Pandemic Brings Plexiglass, Cotton Swabs and Constant Cleaning
The lines to vote moved more slowly than usual in this Kansas City, Mo., suburb Tuesday, as poll workers wearing masks sprayed and wiped down the machines after each voter finished. For people used to the same election ritual every four years, it wasn’t the only strange sight. Election officials sat behind plexiglass shields, distributed masks to anyone who wanted them and gave each person a disposable pen emblazoned with “I Voted” to mark their choices. (Carlton, 11/3)

The Washington Post: Some Des Moines Voters Used Hand Sanitizer Before Casting Ballots, Jamming A Polling Scanner
Hand sanitizer meant to ward off the coronavirus caused havoc in a polling place in Iowa on Election Day when some voters disinfected their hands before handling their ballots, causing the wet paper to temporarily jam the ballot scanner. The machine at a voting location in Des Moines was fixed in about an hour, Iowa secretary of state spokesperson Kevin Hall confirmed to The Washington Post. Hall was unable to say how many ballots were involved in the mishap and referred The Post to Polk County election officials. The county auditor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Kornfield, 11/3)

AP: Record Early Vote Leads To Tranquil Election Day At Polls
Despite fears of clashes at polling places, chaos sparked by the coronavirus pandemic and confusion due to disinformation and swiftly-changing voting rules, millions across the U.S. cast ballots in a historically contentious election with few problems. About 103 million votes were cast before Election Day, an early voting push prompted by the pandemic. That took some of the pressure off polling places on Tuesday, which generally saw short or no lines as coronavirus cases were on the rise. Daily confirmed cases were up 43 percent over the past two weeks in the U.S., according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Cassidy and Riccardi, 11/4)

The Washington Post: USPS Disregards Judge’s Order To Conduct Ballot Sweep In 12 Districts Covering 15 States 
The U.S. Postal Service turned down a federal judge’s order late Tuesday afternoon to sweep mail processing facilities serving 15 states, saying instead it would stick to its own inspection schedule. The court order came after the agency disclosed that more than 300,000 ballots nationwide could not be traced. U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan of the District of Columbia on Tuesday had given the mail agency until 3:30 p.m. to conduct the “all clear” checks to ensure that any found ballots could be delivered before polls closed. His order affected 12 postal districts spanning 15 states. But in a filing sent to the court just before 5 p.m., Justice Department attorneys representing the Postal Service said the agency would not abide by the order, to better accommodate inspectors’ schedules. (Bogage and Ingraham, 11/3)

USA Today: Fact Check: Trump Ballots Were Not Thrown Out As Claimed By Fake Poll Worker
Fears surrounding ballots have circulated widely this election season and one viral social media post claims they are true. "Been working at a poll station in Erie county, PA all morning. A lot of people have already voted today :)" writes @omg_seabass in an Instagram story shared Tuesday. The innocuous comment is then followed by a remark of grave concern. "I've thrown out over a hundred ballots for trump already!! Pennsylvania gonna turn blue 2020!!" Screenshots of the story were quickly shared all over Twitter, where it gained significant attention among the Trump campaign's fanbase in a now deleted tweet, and Facebook, the latter especially where it has received over 650 shares. (Fauzia, 11/3)

Fox News: Was My Vote Counted? A State-By-State Guide To Tracking Your Absentee Ballot
Many states offer online tools where voters can check their ballot status, while others require voters to contact local election offices and representatives. Here's how to see whether your absentee ballot has been counted. (Conklin, 11/3)

Roll Call: Next President Will Need To Repair Trust In Health Agencies 
The winner of this week's presidential contest, regardless of the outcome, will be faced next year with the challenge of leading agencies whose reputations have suffered badly during the pandemic under the direction of President Donald Trump. Two agencies in particular, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, have been among the most high-profile during the COVID-19 pandemic, and have also been among the most heavily politicized, scrutinized, and criticized — even by Trump himself. (Siddons, 11/3)

Modern Healthcare: Trump Exec Order Could Stuff HHS With His Political Allies
A recent move by the Trump administration could further politicize HHS, severely disrupt the agency's decision-making and cause sizable policy swings each time there's a new president. Those changes would create significant uncertainty for providers, payers and the public, according to experts. President Donald Trump last month signed an executive order that would make it easier for federal agencies to hire and fire career officials "in positions of a confidential, policy-determining, policymaking or policy-advocating character … not normally subject to change as a result of a presidential transition" by reclassifying them under a new category of federal workers called Schedule F. It would let agencies sack attorneys, public health experts, regulators, scientists and other officials without cause, according to Donald Kettl, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin's Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs. (Brady, 11/3)

Modern Healthcare: Hospitals Expect Minimal Risks From Potential Election Turmoil
Hospitals are taking few, if any, extra precautions to prepare for any potential election-related civil unrest, deeming the threat unlikely or minimal. Hospitals and physician practices in New York, Illinois, California, Washington, Ohio, Washington D.C. and North Carolina are keeping an eye on their facilities, employees and patients, but haven't significantly bolstered their safety protocols. Most providers don't see the need for any "extraordinary measures" to address potential election-related issues. (Kacik, 11/3)

AP: Virus Hospitalizations Surge As Pandemic Shadows US Election
Americans went to the polls Tuesday under the shadow of a resurging pandemic, with an alarming increase in cases nationwide and the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 reaching record highs in a growing number of states. While daily infections were rising in all but three states, the surge was most pronounced in the Midwest and Southwest. Missouri, Oklahoma, Iowa, Indiana, Nebraska, North Dakota and New Mexico all reported record high hospitalizations this week. Nebraska’s largest hospitals started limiting elective surgeries and looked to bring in nurses from other states to cope with the surge. Hospital officials in Iowa and Missouri warned bed capacity could soon be overwhelmed. (Olson, 11/4)

Reuters: U.S. Coronavirus Hospitalizations Hit Three-Month High Over 50,000: Reuters Tally
The number of coronavirus patients in U.S. hospitals breached 50,000 on Tuesday, the highest level in nearly three months, as a surge in infections threatens to push the nation’s health care system to the edge of capacity. Texas reported the highest number of currently hospitalized patients with 5,936, followed by Illinois with 3,594 and California with 3,270 patients, according to a Reuters tally. While California has three times as many people as Illinois, new cases have been the highest per capita in the Midwest. (Abraham and B, 11/3)

The New York Times: Covid Experts Fear The Worst With Trump In Charge And Winter Coming
Regardless of the election’s outcome this week, President Trump will be the one steering the country through what is likely to be the darkest and potentially deadliest period of the coronavirus pandemic, and he has largely excluded the nation’s leading health experts from his inner circle. Mr. Trump will still have control of the nation’s health apparatus and the bully pulpit that comes with the Oval Office until Jan. 20, as infections approach 100,000 a day and death rates begin to rise as hospitals are strained to their breaking points. (Shear and Gay Stolberg, 11/3)

Modern Healthcare: Nursing Homes, Hospitals Urge Easing COVID-19 Testing, Reporting Rules
Hospital and nursing home leaders didn't hold back in their blunt criticism of CMS' new requirements around COVID-19 testing and data reporting, characterizing them as overly burdensome. CMS received almost 170 comments by yesterday's deadline on its interim final rule, which requires nursing homes to routinely test staff and residents for COVID-19. The rule also requires hospitals to report COVID-19 data daily or face losing their Medicare reimbursement, a penalty the industry said is unnecessarily harsh. (Bannow, 11/3)

Modern Healthcare: Medical-Device Industry, MedPAC Oppose CMS' Proposed Coverage Determination Changes
Medical-device associations are urging CMS to withdraw its proposal changing how Medicare determines if a service or item will be covered. In a proposed rule released in late August, CMS would modify Medicare's long-standing standards for coverage. Currently, CMS considers a service for coverage if it's a recognized Medicare benefit and "reasonable and necessary" for treatment or diagnosis, which isn't currently defined. CMS is proposing to define the "reasonable and necessary" stipulation as meaning an item or service is safe and effective, not experimental and appropriate. CMS then gave appropriateness several definitions including if a service or item is currently covered by commercial insurance. (Castellucci, 11/3)

CNBC: There's No Extra Covid Risk From Living With Kids, Study Finds
If you live with children, you’re not at a greater risk of contracting Covid-19, according to a large study carried out in the U.K. In fact, living with children was associated with a lower risk of dying from the coronavirus compared to those that didn’t live with children, researchers from the University of Oxford and London’s School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found. (Ellyatt, 11/4)

Fox News: Researchers Find Autoantibodies Behind Coronavirus Blood Clotting 
A new study suggests doctors have found the culprit behind serious blood clotting in up to half of hospitalized coronavirus patients. Researchers at Michigan Medicine studied blood samples from 172 hospitalized COVID-19 patients in search of eight types of clot-causing autoimmune antibodies. Autoimmune disease refers to when the immune system attacks healthy cells by mistake, per Johns Hopkins Medicine. Findings were published Monday in Science Translational Medicine. (Rivas, 11/3)

Live Science: COVID-19 Infects The Mouth. Could That Explain Patients' Taste Loss? 
The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 can infect cells in the mouth, which may spur the virus's spread both in the body and to other people, according to a preliminary study. In the new study, posted Oct. 27 to the preprint database medRxiv, researchers predicted which mouth tissues might be most vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. So the team examined RNA — a kind of genetic material that tells the cells' protein-making factories what to build — for different cell types in the mouth. They found that, compared with other oral tissues, cells of the salivary glands, tongue and tonsils carry the most RNA linked to proteins that the coronavirus needs to infect cells. Namely, these include the ACE2 receptor, which the virus plugs into, and an enzyme called TMPRSS, which allows the virus to fuse its membrane with that of the host cell and slip inside. (Lanese, 11/2)

Live Science: AI Can Detect COVID-19 From The Sound Of Your Cough
People with COVID-19 who are asymptomatic can spread the disease without any outward signs that they're sick. But a newly developed AI, with a keen algorithmic ear, might be able to detect asymptomatic cases from the sounds of people's coughs, according to a new study. A group of researchers at MIT recently developed an artificial intelligence model that can detect asymptomatic COVID-19 cases by listening to subtle differences in coughs between healthy people and infected people. The researchers are now testing their AI in clinical trials and have already started the process of seeking approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for it to be used as a screening tool. (Saplakoglu, 11/3)

Becker's Hospital Review: Hospital Floors 'Underappreciated' Source Of Bacteria Spread, Study Finds
Hospital floors may be a larger source of bacteria infection spread than previously thought, according to a study published Nov. 2 in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. The observational study took place in an acute care hospital and analyzed how quickly and where pathogens transferred after admitting 17 new patients. Before testing for pathogens, all rooms were thoroughly sanitized and enrolled patients screened negative for MRSA. Culture samples were collected from the floor, frequently touched areas, and patient socks and beds one to three times per day.  (Carbajal, 11/3)

Stat: Industry Payments To Physicians Have Changed Little Since OpenPayments Launch
Since the 2014 launch of a federal database to disclose industry payments to doctors, the share of physicians who received such funds has decreased, although the total value of those payments remained the same across all specialties, except for primary care, according to a new analysis in JAMA. In 2014, 52.2% of doctors accepted at least one industry payment from a drug or device maker, compared with 45% in 2018. (Silverman, 11/3)

Becker's Hospital Review: Mylan, Pfizer Get Federal OK For Merger With Upjohn
Mylan and Pfizer said they have received approval from the Federal Trade Commission for their deal to combine Mylan with Pfizer's off-patent drug business, Upjohn. The new combined business will be called Viatris, and its debut is expected to be Nov. 16. (Anderson, 11/3)

Bloomberg: McKesson Says Opioid Distributors May Pay $21 Billion In Deal
McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc. and AmerisourceBergen Corp. may pay as much as $21 billion -- $3 billion more than they offered last year -- to resolve lawsuits accusing them of mishandling deliveries of opioid painkillers and fueling a public-health crisis in the U.S. In a regulatory filing on Tuesday, McKesson said a group of state attorneys general have proposed the companies pay $21 billion over 18 years to settle more than 3,000 lawsuits filed by state and local governments seeking compensation for the costs of the opioid epidemic. The filing was first reported by Reuters. (Feeley, 11/3)

AP: More Americans On Diets From A Decade Ago, Report Finds
If it seems like more and more people are on diets these days, you might not be imagining it. A higher percentage of Americans said they’re on a special diet to lose weight or for other health reasons compared with a decade ago, according to a report Tuesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The increase comes as obesity rates have continued to climb. The CDC report found that 17% of Americans said they were on diets during the 2017-2018 survey period, up from 14% a decade earlier. Over the same period obesity rates rose in the U.S. to 42% of Americans, up from 34%. (Choi, 11/3)

The Wall Street Journal: Remote Learning? In Person? Families Second-Guess Their School Choices As Covid Cases Rise 
Over the summer, Jennifer Parnell told her kids’ school that she would send her second- and fourth-graders back as soon as their Denver elementary school reopened for in-person learning in late October. But as coronavirus cases mounted in the fall, she second-guessed her decision. “Cases were going up and we were entering colder season,” she recalls. “Things are still very uncertain.” She worried not only about catching the virus, but also about disrupting her kids’ routines once more if the school had to go all-remote again. By October, she had changed her mind: “I called them up and said, ‘I think we want to stay virtual.’” (Dizik, 11/3)

The Washington Post: Cruises Wont Sail With Passengers In U.S. Waters Until 2021 
Cruise ships will not return to U.S. waters with passengers onboard until 2021, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), announced Tuesday. The group has extended through Dec. 31 a voluntary suspension of U.S. operations that expired Saturday. CLIA includes Carnival Cruises, Disney Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean, and makes up 95 percent of the global cruising industry. (McMahon, 11/3)

The New York Times: Wisconsin Football Cancels Over Virus Cases. Again. 
For the second consecutive week, the University of Wisconsin canceled a football game because of a coronavirus outbreak in the program. Wisconsin, ranked No. 10 in The Associated Press poll, said on Tuesday that it would not host Purdue on Saturday. Wisconsin reported on Tuesday that at least 15 players and 12 staff members, including Coach Paul Chryst, had tested positive since Oct. 24. (Blinder and Brassil, 11/3)

The Washington Post: John Elway Tests Positive For The Coronavirus; Cowboys’ Andy Dalton On Covid-19 List 
The NFL continued to grapple with coronavirus-related issues Tuesday: John Elway and another top Denver Broncos executive tested positive, and the Dallas Cowboys placed quarterback Andy Dalton on their covid-19 reserve list. (Maske and Jhabvala, 11/3)

The Washington Post: Utah Officials Say Halloween Rave Partygoers ‘Absolutely Will Become Ill’ With Coronavirus 
Thousands of people gathered in the desert to party in costumes, many without masks, in Utah on Saturday at a rave that broke the state’s pandemic restrictions. They may have gotten away with it, too, if a crowd-surfing woman hadn’t fallen on her head, prompting other partygoers to call 911 after she was knocked unconscious for several minutes, KSTU reported. (Shepherd, 11/3)

AP: Poland Delays Implementing Abortion Ruling Amid Protests
Poland’s right-wing government is delaying the publication and implementation of a high court ruling that tightens the abortion law and that has triggered almost two weeks of nationwide protests. A government official said Tuesday that the leaders are taking time to debate the contested ruling and find a solution. (Scislowska, 11/3)

AP: South Korea OKs Single Test For COVID-19 And Flu
Health officials in South Korea have approved a new test that’s designed to detect both COVID-19 and seasonal influenza from the same samples, which would help prevent disruption at hospitals as the pandemic stretches into the flu season. The country has struggled to stem the spread of the coronavirus, which some experts say could spread more broadly during cold weather when people spend more time indoors. (11/4)

The New York Times: Coronavirus Study In Germany Offers Hope For Concertgoers 
Researchers in Germany may have some good news for frustrated concertgoers across the world whose activities have been constrained by the spread of the coronavirus. Analysis of an indoor concert staged by scientists in August suggests that the impact of such events on the spread of the coronavirus is “low to very low” as long as organizers ensure adequate ventilation, strict hygiene protocols and limited capacity, according to the German researchers who conducted the study. (Kwai, 11/3)

Bloomberg: Sweden Fights ‘Very Serious’ Covid Resurgence With New Curbs
Swedes face a new wave of restrictions after daily coronavirus cases hit a record, with the government warning of a grim winter ahead. Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, speaking to reporters on Tuesday, said his country is now facing a “very serious situation” that requires tougher measures if the virus is to be fought back. The resurgence of Covid-19 across Europe has caught the region off guard after a summer that left many countries assuming they’d brought the virus under control. But as citizens grew complacent and temperatures dropped, the pandemic has returned with a vengeance. (Rolander, 11/3)