First Edition: Nov. 5, 2020
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
KHN:
Longtime Health Advocate Donna Shalala Loses House Reelection Race
Rep. Donna E. Shalala of Florida, the first-term Democratic member of Congress and former Health and Human Services secretary in the Clinton administration, lost her campaign for reelection Tuesday. Shalala’s loss to Maria Elvira Salazar — a Republican and former television journalist who compared Democratic policy proposals to leftist oppression in countries like Cuba while campaigning in the Miami district — was a notable upset for House Democrats. While Democrats held onto control of the House, so far they have fallen short of expectations that they would secure an even stronger majority there. (Huetteman, 11/5)
KHN:
Coming Abortion Fight Could Threaten Birth Control, Too
Abortion opponents were among those most excited by the addition of Justice Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. And they had good reason to be. As a law professor and circuit court judge, Barrett made it clear she is no fan of abortion rights. She is considered likely to vote not only to uphold restrictions on the procedure, but also, possibly, even to overturn the existing national right to abortion under the Supreme Court’s landmark rulings in Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey. (Rovner, 11/5)
KHN:
Poor And Minority Children With Food Allergies Overlooked And In Danger
As Emily Brown stood in a food pantry looking at her options, she felt alone. Up to that point, she had never struggled financially. But there she was, desperate to find safe food for her young daughter with food allergies. What she found was a jar of salsa and some potatoes. “That was all that was available,” said Brown, who lives in Kansas City, Kansas. “It was just a desperate place.” (West, 11/5)
KHN:
Behind The Byline: How Do You Say …?
When KHN correspondent Victoria Knight began reporting on the coronavirus risk migrant workers brave to harvest crops, she struggled to find farmworkers willing to speak on record. Many of the workers who are undocumented worry about possible detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or fear the Trump administration’s “public charge rule.” The rule allows immigration officers to deny someone admission to the country based on the entry seeker’s lack of economic resources. (Knight, 11/5)
The Washington Post:
Coronavirus Cases Exceed 100,000 In One Day For The First Time, Even As The Nation Is Split On The Pandemic Vs. The Economy
The coronavirus pandemic reached a dire milestone Wednesday when the number of new U.S. infections topped 100,000 in one day for the first time, continuing a resurgence that showed no sign of slowing. The pandemic is roaring across the Midwest and Plains states. Seven states set records for hospitalizations for covid-19, the disease caused by the virus. And Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska and North Dakota saw jumps of more than 45 percent in their seven-day rolling average of new infections, considered the best measure of the spread of the virus. (Bernstein, Achenbach, Stead Sellers and Wan, 11/4)
The New York Times:
U.S. Records 100,000 Cases In A Day For The First Time
Five states — Maine, Minnesota, Indiana, Nebraska and Colorado — set single-day case records. Cases were also mounting in the Mountain West and even in the Northeast, which over the summer seemed to be getting the virus under control. North and South Dakota and Wisconsin have led the country for weeks in the number of new cases relative to their population. But other states have seen steep recent increases in the last 14 days. (11/5)
Philadelphia Inquirer:
U.S. Sets Record For Cases Amid Election Battle Over Virus
New confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the U.S. have climbed to an all-time high of more than 86,000 per day on average, in a glimpse of the worsening crisis that lies ahead for the winner of the presidential election. Cases and hospitalizations are setting records all around the country just as the holidays and winter approach, demonstrating the challenge that either President Donald Trump or former Vice President Joe Biden will face in the coming months. (Tanner, 11/5)
CNN:
The Time Is Now To Develop A Testing Strategy For Asymptomatic Covid-19 Cases, CDC Director Says
As the US recorded its five highest days of coronavirus cases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Robert Redfield said this is the perfect time to develop a strategy to better detect asymptomatic cases. (Vera and Maxouris, 11/4)
The New York Times:
A Vote That Flew In The Face Of Fear Itself
Struggling through one of the most devastating years in the history of the United States, a year of strife and suffering and loss, the nation’s people responded with resolve on the first Tuesday of November. Together but apart, they voted. ... Beyond those who, fearing infection, chose to vote by mail, many who cast a ballot on Election Day experienced firsthand the completeness with which the virus has altered everyday American life. Face masks were, if not mandatory, at least expected, and poll workers sometimes attended to the underpinnings of a democratic government behind transparent protective shields. But the pandemic did not suppress the vote. (Barry, 11/4)
NPR:
When Will We Know The Winner? Time Frames For Key States
The United States woke up the morning after Election Day not knowing who will be president for the next four years. It's not unprecedented, and with a slew of mail-in ballots to process, several key states are working to finish counting. ... The Nevada secretary of state's elections division says it will give its next update on results Thursday morning. As of Wednesday evening, the state had completed 75% of its tally, with Biden having a slight edge. (Gringlas and Chappell, 11/4)
USA Today:
All Eyes On Nevada: Election Officials Are 'Working Feverishly' But Won't Rush Vote Count In Presidential Race
Nevada’s potentially pivotal six Electoral College votes remained in limbo on Wednesday night, when elections officials in the state’s two largest counties said they would not add to preliminary presidential voting results until Thursday. Clark County Registrar of Voters Joe Gloria told reporters his office was “working feverishly” to process late-arriving mail ballots that could turn the presidential race decisively toward Democrat Joe Biden, who maintained a lead of fewer than 8,000 votes Wednesday. Several media outlets on Wednesday projected Biden was just six electoral votes shy of ending President Donald Trump’s time in the White House. (DeHaven, 11/5)
Politico:
How A Drawn-Out Election Fight Could Hamper A Biden Transition
Presidential transitions typically move at a breakneck speed even in smoother election cycles, given that teams have just over two months to stand up a federal bureaucracy staffed with more than 4,000 political appointees. Any delay in the election result this year will narrow that window, giving the Biden team an even shorter runway to begin formally vetting Cabinet nominees, laying out policy priorities and crafting an agenda. Some of their work can continue unfettered, even as ballots are counted and legal fights play out. The transition team has the ability, for instance, to conduct FBI background checks on potential Cabinet nominees. But officials do not have the ability to work with the Office of Government Ethics — a secondary step in the vetting process — until the election results are final. Past transitions have typically begun providing the OGE with names to review by early or mid-December. (Cassella and Miranda Ollstein, 11/4)
The Washington Post:
USPS Ballot Problems Unlikely To Change Election Outcomes In Contested States
The 300,000 ballots the U.S. Postal Service reported as untraceable are unlikely to affect the outcome of the presidential race in key swing states — even in a worst-case scenario where all are lost — according to a Washington Post analysis. On Tuesday, the U.S. Postal Service notified a federal judge in the District of Columbia that the affected ballots had been scanned in at processing plants across the country but had never received exit scans signifying they’d been delivered to vote counters. (Bogage and INgraham, 11/4)
Politico:
Pressure Rises On Facebook, Twitter To Rein In Trump As False Claims Spread
Facebook and Twitter struggled Wednesday to contain a deluge of false claims from President Donald Trump and his supporters that Democrats were trying to steal the election — sparking criticism from the left that their labels and fact checks weren't going nearly far enough. Trump has continued to incorrectly insist that he is the winner of Tuesday's vote, even though ballots are still being counted in four critical states and it is still unclear who will emerge the victor. (Overly, 11/4)
Politico:
Twitter Slaps Warning On Prominent Democrats' Tweets Prematurely Claiming Biden Wins
Twitter slapped warning labels Wednesday on a pair of tweets by prominent Democrats that prematurely claimed Joe Biden had won a key battleground state and the general election, the first enforcement actions of its policy against such declarations leveled against high profile liberal leaders. Ben Wikler, chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, claimed in a tweet Wednesday morning that “there's no realistic path for Trump to pull ahead” in the state, citing freshly reported absentee ballots. “Folks: Joe Biden just won Wisconsin,” he added. (Lima, 11/4)
FierceHealthcare:
3 Ways A Biden White House Could Impact Healthcare
No matter who wins, the next president will need to confront mounting job losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic that have had a direct impact on health coverage, experts say. An analysis from the Commonwealth Fund estimates as many as 14 million Americans could lose their health insurance due to job losses or because they are dependents of someone who holds an employer-sponsored plan. (King, 11/3)
Stat:
‘Science Was On The Ballot’: How Can Public Health Recover From A Rebuke At The Polls?
Results from Tuesday and early Wednesday underscore just how many Americans agree with a president who has called the nation’s top scientists “idiots,” openly mocked mask-wearing, and has insisted states must be “liberated” from lockdowns. No matter who wins the presidency, more than 67 million Americans already seem to have sided with Trump on public health. In preliminary exit polls, just 14% of Republican voters surveyed said the coronavirus pandemic was the deciding factor in who they voted for, despite the fact that the virus has killed more than 233,000 Americans and is spreading unabated across the nation. (Florko, 11/4)
PBS NewsHour:
Amid COVID-19 Pandemic, Wisconsin Voters Choose Biden Over Trump
Wisconsin voters who said they had lost a family member or friend to the coronavirus pandemic were twice as likely to support former Vice President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. Sixty-eight percent said they backed Biden compared to 32 percent who were for Trump, according to preliminary data from the Associated Press’ VoteCast survey Wednesday. Nationwide, 62 percent of Americans who had lost a loved one to the pandemic said they voted for Biden, according to VoteCast data. In recent months, Wisconsin has become a national hotspot for the virus. More than 250,000 Wisconsinites have gotten sick with COVID-19, and another 2,100 have died after becoming infected with the virus, according to data from the COVID Tracking Project.(Santhanam, 11/4)
Roll Call:
Voters Split On State Abortion And Drug Legalization Initiatives
Nearly two dozen of the 120 ballot measures before voters Tuesday had implications for health care, with tobacco, cannabis, and abortion among the key issues. All five states with cannabis on the ballot voted in favor of the initiatives, while other measures faced mixed results. Colorado voters rejected an anti-abortion initiative, while Louisiana voters approved language clarifying that the state constitution does not protect abortion rights. (Kopp and Raman, 11/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
Voters Back Legalized Drugs, Higher Wages, Voting Restrictions
Voters on Tuesday approved measures favoring legalizing drugs, raising the minimum wage and keeping noncitizens from casting ballots, among dozens of other ballot initiatives before the electorate. With the approval of Measure 110, Oregon became the first state to eliminate criminal penalties for possession of hard drugs. Possessing small quantities of heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, LSD, MDMA (ecstasy) or psilocybin (the psychedelic ingredient in magic mushrooms) will be a civil violation carrying a small fine that can be waived upon completion of a health assessment with an addiction-treatment professional. The measure, which also reduces criminal penalties for possession of larger amounts of illicit drugs, won close to 60% of the vote. Selling and manufacturing drugs is still a crime. (Gershman, 11/4)
The Washington Post:
Louisiana Passed Amendment One: Abortion Is No Longer A Right
Louisiana’s amendment will add new language to the state constitution, specifying that abortion is not a right. For now, it will change little about abortion access in the state: Women will be able to get abortions as they did before, with no additional restrictions. But the purpose of the new amendment is to lay groundwork for the future. If the Supreme Court were to overturn Roe v. Wade, the measure will provide additional protections to ensure abortion would be illegal in Louisiana. Some of those details were missed on Tuesday night, as a portion of voters across the state were left thinking their state had just outlawed abortion.(Kitchener and Wax, 11/4)
FierceHealthcare:
California Dialysis Measure Fails, Mixed Results For Tobacco Taxes In State-Level Ballot Measures
California voters resoundingly rejected a measure to require dialysis clinics to have an on-site physician as patients are treated. The ballot measure lost with 64% voting against it with nearly 70% of the votes being tallied. The rejection was a major win for provider groups that have been fighting the measure, which would have required clinics in the state to report data on any dialysis-related infections and get consent from the state health department before closing. (King, 11/3)
The Wall Street Journal:
McConnell Says Congress Should Pass Economic Relief Bill This Year
Congress should pass a new economic-relief package this year, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Wednesday, as prospects for Democrats’ multitrillion-dollar stimulus bill faded along with their chances for full control of the government. (Rubin, Davidson and Peterson, 11/4)
The Washington Post:
McConnell Wants A New Stimulus Bill When Senate Returns
McConnell’s comments could open the door to a new phase in economic relief talks that have sputtered off and on for months. Most recently the key players have been House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who spent many hours negotiating around an approximately $2 trillion package that McConnell and Senate Republicans viewed as too costly. (Werner, 11/4)
CNBC:
U.S. Economy Needs 'Really Big' Covid Relief Package, Says Paul Krugman
The U.S. may need several hundred billion dollars a month in “disaster relief” to keep the economy afloat as a raging coronavirus outbreak continues to suppress prospects for workers and businesses, Nobel prize-winning economist Paul Krugman said on Thursday. “We really are still very much in the disaster relief stage,” he told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia.” “A lot of people are going to be out of work, a lot of businesses are going to be stressed. We need to just make life tolerable for them,” he added. (Nee Lee, 11/5)
The Washington Post:
How A Contested Election Impacts Your Finances And The Economy
Americans woke up Wednesday morning to an undecided presidential election, which could be the case for some time, depending on legal challenges and recounts. For the economy, that means uncertainty is here to stay in 2020. Business leaders and investors tend to hate uncertainty, and this political situation adds more of it as the nation is already dealing with a second big wave of coronavirus cases and a contentious battle in Congress over another stimulus package. The early read among economists and Wall Street analysts is to buckle up for a wild few weeks. (Long, 11/4)
Fox News:
Coronavirus Kills 9th US Service Member As Military Infections Near 59,000
A ninth U.S. service member has died from the coronavirus, as total confirmed cases in the military approached 59,000, the Pentagon said Wednesday. The fatality was reported on the Pentagon's coronavirus case chart, which now lists nine military deaths due to COVID-19. That number includes Guard and Reserve service members. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said last month that only one active-duty service member (out of 1.3 million) had died from the virus. (Aaro, 11/4)
Modern Healthcare:
HHS Proposes Rule To Review And Eliminate Old Regulations
The Trump administration wants HHS to check its regulations every 10 years to see if they're still needed, according to a proposed rule on Wednesday. Rules would expire 10 years after HHS issues them if the agency doesn't assess and, if necessary, review a rule "in a timely manner," HHS said in a statement. The agency would carry out more detailed reviews of regulations that have significant economic effects on many small entities. (Brady, 11/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
AstraZeneca Expects Covid-19 Vaccine Trial Results This Year
AstraZeneca PLC said late-stage trials for the Covid-19 vaccine it is developing with the University of Oxford are on track to produce results “later this year,” with a potential rollout soon after, subject to regulatory approval. Timing of the much-anticipated results depends on community infection rates around the world, with around 23,000 volunteers now enrolled in the clinical trials in the U.S., the U.K., Brazil and South Africa, the British drugmaker said Thursday as it reported third-quarter earnings. (Strasburg, 11/5)
The Hill:
Oxford Scientist 'Optimistic' COVID-19 Vaccine Will Be Ready In UK By End Of Year
A researcher who's part of Oxford University’s COVID-19 vaccine trials said on Wednesday there is a small possibility that the results of the vaccine could be ready in the U.K. by the end of the year. “The first step is to reach the point where we can do an analysis and figure out whether or not the vaccine works. ... I'm optimistic that we could reach that point before the end of this year," vaccinologist Andrew Pollard told U.K. lawmakers, according to CNN. (Choi, 11/4)
FiercePharma:
Pfizer Goes Solo On US Shot Distribution, Opting Out Of Government Channels
Pfizer had already made it quite clear that it doesn’t need the U.S. government to help distribute its COVID-19 vaccine, should it be authorized by the FDA. Now it’s putting an exclamation point on that declaration. The company will not use the government’s chosen distribution partner, McKesson, but rather its own system to deliver the COVID vaccine directly to healthcare providers, said Tanya Alcorn, Pfizer's vice president for biopharma global supply chain, during a recent webinar from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. A Pfizer spokesperson confirmed that plan in an email to FiercePharma. (Weintraub, 11/4)
Stat:
Abbott Sues A Former Executive For Allegedly Planning To Take Covid-19 Diagnostics Secrets To A Rival
Amid its various efforts to provide Covid-19 tests, Abbott Laboratories (ABT) claims to have encountered a new problem: a key employee in its diagnostics business unexpectedly resigned last month to take a job with a rival company and planned to take trade secrets with him, according to a lawsuit. (Silverman, 11/4)
Stat:
Research Points To Potential Link Between Pollution And Covid-19 Death Risk
New research points to another potential factor that might play into a person’s risk of death due to Covid-19: prolonged exposure to high levels of air pollution. In a study published Wednesday in Science Advances, researchers estimated long-term air pollution levels for more than 3,000 U.S. counties, which also had Covid-19 mortality data available through June 2020. While the study wasn’t designed to show whether pollution exposure directly affected a person’s risk of death due to Covid-19, it did demonstrate an association between increased pollution levels and higher Covid-19 death tolls. (Runwal, 11/4)
CIDRAP:
Postmortem Lungs Of COVID-19 Patients Show Massive Damage
A study of the lungs of 41 people who died from COVID-19 in Italy has revealed extensive damage, persistent distortion of the normal organ structure, scarring of respiratory tissue, and massive blood clotting of the arteries and veins, which may help explain why it takes some people—so-called "long haulers"—months to recover from fatigue and shortness of breath. The results were published yesterday in The Lancet's EBioMedicine journal. While the researchers also examined brain, heart, and kidney tissues, those organs showed no signs of damage or viral replication. (Van Beusekom, 11/4)
The Washington Post:
Controversial Alzheimer’s Drug Gets Big Boost From FDA Staff
A drug that would be the first new treatment for Alzheimer’s disease in nearly two decades received a vote of confidence Wednesday from Food and Drug Administration clinical reviewers, who said “exceptionally persuasive” data showed the drug slowed cognitive decline caused by the devastating ailment. The FDA assessment also concluded the drug, called aducanumab, was safe. The document was released before an advisory committee meeting Friday during which outside experts will decide whether to recommend the agency approve the drug. (McGinley, 11/4)
Stat:
FDA Scientists Appear To Endorse Biogen's Alzheimer's Treatment
The commentary, which provides the first glimpse at how FDA scientists view the oft-debated treatment, comes ahead of a Friday meeting of outside advisers, who will issue a nonbinding vote on whether to recommend aducanumab’s approval. ... Biogen’s data from one large clinical trial were “robust and exceptionally persuasive,” FDA reviewers wrote, endorsing the drug’s effects on the cognition of Alzheimer’s patients. A second, nearly identical study did not show a significant benefit, but “upon closer review,” the FDA agreed with Biogen’s argument that the sum of all the data suggests aducanumab is helpful to patients. (Garde and Feuerstein, 11/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
Biogen, At A Crossroads, Surges On Promising Alzheimer’s Drug Assessment
Biogen Inc. received a big boost on Wednesday after U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulators appeared to give a positive assessment of the company’s experimental Alzheimer’s disease drug, sending shares up 44%.The biotech giant is at a crossroads as it seeks regulatory approval for its potential blockbuster Alzheimer’s drug aducanumab, while facing down generic competition to its biggest-selling treatment. (Walker, 11/4)
NPR:
Psilocybin Effective For Major Depression, Study Finds
The substance that makes some mushrooms "magic" also appears to help people with major depressive disorder. A study of 27 people found that a treatment featuring the hallucinogen psilocybin worked better than the usual antidepressant medications, a team reported Wednesday in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. "The effect was more than four times greater," says Alan Davis, an author of the study and a faculty member at both Johns Hopkins University and Ohio State University. (Hamilton, 11/4)
Stat:
After A Breast Cancer Diagnosis, Many Black Women Face Delays In Care
Tamiko Byrd was only 43 when she was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in October 2015. The diagnosis shook Byrd, who had spent years as a fitness instructor and health educator in underserved Black communities, to her core. So did the prospect of navigating cancer treatment. Byrd had just moved to Houston for graduate school, had kids to take care of, and also needed to keep her job as a Xerox technician, which gave her health insurance. (Runwal, 11/5)
FierceHealthcare:
Industry Voices—Will The Country Choose Virtual Care Post-COVID? Yes – But Only If It’s Better
The numbers are astonishing: The use of telehealth services in the U.S. has grown from 11% of consumers in 2019 to 46% in 2020. But telemedicine was not Plan A for many of these patients. They adopted it because of the difficulty of face-to-face physician visits during the spread of SARS-CoV-2.Telemedicine can do far more than suffice during an emergency. When virtual care becomes the catalyst for integrated care—and solves problems that have long plagued our current healthcare system—consumers will want a “virtual-first” model of healthcare delivery. (Ferguson, 11/4)
Stat:
Americans Are Spending More On Specialty Drugs, Despite Payer Rebates
Between 2010 and 2017, Americans nearly doubled their spending on pricey specialty medicines that they purchased at pharmacies or by mail. And this was after accounting for rebates paid by drug makers to health plans, according to a new analysis in Health Affairs. (Silverman, 11/4)
Stat:
Alphabet's X Falls Short On Goal To Find A Single Biomarker For Depression
X, the Alphabet subsidiary trying to use artificial intelligence to discover a biomarker for depression and anxiety in brainwave data, reported this week that its initiative had failed to home in on a single indicator that could make measuring mental health as simple as reading a glucose meter. (Ross, 11/4)
Modern Healthcare:
UnitedHealth Group Subsidiary Must Revamp Behavioral Healthcare Coverage, Judge Rules
A federal judge ordered a UnitedHealth Group subsidiary to revamp its behavioral health claims processing after the insurer wrongfully denied mental health and substance use disorder treatment coverage to tens of thousands of its members. Chief Magistrate Judge Joseph Spero wrote that United Behavioral Health manipulated internal guidelines to deny mental health coverage so it could "protect its bottom line." The company then lied to state regulators and UBH executives overseeing the guidelines, and deliberately attempted to mislead the court, Spero wrote in the Nov. 3 court filing. (Kacik, 11/4)
FierceHealthcare:
New York ER Docs Sue UnitedHealth For Alleged Underpayments
New York emergency room docs are suing UnitedHealth Group and provider network management firm Multiplan, alleging the two conspired to underpay them for out-of-network claims. In the lawsuit, the group of staffing firms, all of which are out of network for UnitedHealthcare, claim that the insurer and Multiplan worked together using Multiplan's Data iSight platform to set their own "reasonable" rates for out-of-network claims, which undercut payments to the docs. (Minemyer, 11/3)
NPR:
A New Hippocratic Oath Asks Doctors To Fight Racial Injustice And Misinformation
First-year medical student Sean Sweat "didn't want to tiptoe around" issues of race when she sat down with 11 of her classmates to write a new version of the medical profession's venerable Hippocratic oath. "We start our medical journey amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, and a national civil rights movement reinvigorated by the killings of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery," begins the alternate version of the oath, rewritten for the class of 2024 at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. (Boden, 11/4)
Fox News:
Anti-Inflammatory Diets Including Leafy Greens, Red Wine Linked To Better Heart Health: Study
Red meat or green, leafy vegetables? Sugary drinks or red wine? Researchers say opting for a diet with anti-inflammatory potential can lower the long-term risk of heart disease. Findings were published in the Nov. 10 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, among other institutions, followed over 210,000 people across various studies dating back to 1984. Participants answered a survey every four years about their diet. (Rivas, 11/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
Election Anxiety? TV Shows About Nothing Aim To Help America Chill
The entertainment industry is trying to meet our stressed-out national moment by making television that works like a sedative. Several new shows released during the pandemic and some old ones are pitched as background music for anxious times. In an era of binge-and-burn TV, these shows are the opposite, designed to be watched on repeat without a cliffhanger in sight. (Gamerman, 11/4)
The New York Times:
Weight Training May Help Ease Anxiety
Roiled by concerns about the pandemic and politics? Lifting weights might help, according to a timely new study of anxiety and resistance training. The study, which involved healthy young adults, barbells and lunges, indicates that regular weight training substantially reduces anxiety, a finding with particular relevance during these unsettling, bumpy days. We already have plenty of evidence that exercise helps stave off depression and other mental ills, and that exercise can elevate feelings of happiness and contentment. But most past studies of exercise and moods have looked at the effects of aerobic exercise, like running on a treadmill or riding a stationary bike. (Reynolds, 11/4)
The Washington Post:
An Iowa Airport Has A Plan To Screen Passengers For The Coronavirus. It’s Being Held Up By The FAA.
The Federal Aviation Administration has for months been weighing whether to allow the nation’s more than 500 federally subsidized airports to spend their money on screening passengers for the coronavirus, an issue teed up by a plan developed by a fairly small airport in Iowa. Marty Lenss, director of Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids, began working on the plan in the spring, when the spread of the virus and lockdown orders brought air travel to a near standstill. Lenss worked with a local hospital to craft a plan to quickly screen travelers before they passed through security. He figured he could cover the $800,000 cost by using some of the $23 million the airport received under the $2 trillion coronavirus relief package known as the Cares Act. (Duncan, 11/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
How Coronavirus Ravaged Travel In 2020
Is travel rebounding? The numbers say no, not really. In April, the Middle Seat tallied up the devastation in the travel industry from the Covid-19 pandemic, looking at key numbers that illustrated the impact. More than six months later, it’s time for another look at the numbers. (McCartney, 11/4)
AP:
In Virus Era, Bubbles Provide Game-Changing Lessons Learned
The NBA wants to be back in December. The NHL is aiming at games resuming in January. Baseball’s spring training may begin in February, like normal. They almost certainly won’t be in bubbles if and when any or all of that happens. But many of the lessons learned from being in some form of a bubble environment — where the NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball each crowned a champion after finding a way to finish their seasons in most unusual circumstances — could apply to whatever the new definition of normal is for those and other sports. (Reynolds and Whyno, 11/5)
AP:
Mob Figure Granted Compassionate Release From Prison
A former high-ranking member of the Patriarca organized crime family was granted compassionate release from prison Wednesday by a federal judge in Boston who ruled his poor health puts him at greater risk from the coronavirus if he remains behind bars. Robert DeLuca, 75, is also not a threat to the community and was serving time for nonviolent crimes, U.S. District Judge Denise Casper said in her decision. (11/4)
Axios:
The Coronavirus Raises New Challenges For The Homeless
The challenge of helping homeless people during the pandemic has spurred some cities to action and prompted bitter divisions in others, as shelters struggle with the new challenges of adhering to the CDC's social distancing, PPE and sanitary guidelines. Some cities have tried new ways to help, such as buying up vacant hotels, apartments and other buildings to use as housing. Some feel grief as outdoor homeless encampments grow. (Kingson, 11/5)
Des Moines Register:
Iowa Nursing Homes With Dozens Of Infections Were Cleared By Inspectors Weeks Before
Of the 20 Iowa nursing homes with the biggest, active COVID-19 outbreaks, 14 were cleared by state inspectors of any infection-control violations earlier this year. In some cases, facilities with as many as seven dozen confirmed COVID-19 infections have undergone two, three or even four infection-control inspections since the pandemic began and been cleared by state inspectors each time. (Kauffman, 11/5)
Houston Chronicle:
As Texas Colleges Plan In-Person Graduations, Faculty Push Back
A growing number of Texas colleges will have commencements this fall, with many offering multiple in-person ceremonies following enforced safety protocols and social distancing guidelines. The Texas Faculty Association, a group of more than 500 faculty from around the state, urged Gov. Greg Abbott in a release Wednesday to instruct state colleges and their boards to cancel or postpone fall in-person graduation ceremonies. The letter has also asked private colleges and universities to refrain from in-person commencements. (Britto, 11/4)
The Washington Post:
Australia Almost Eliminated The Coronavirus By Putting Faith In Science
The Sydney Opera House has reopened. Almost 40,000 spectators attended the city's rugby league grand final. Workers are being urged to return to their offices. Welcome to Australia, a pandemic success story. The nation of 26 million is close to eliminating community transmission of the coronavirus, having defeated a second wave just as infections surge again in Europe and the United States. (Patrick, 11/5)
The New York Times:
Denmark Will Kill All Farmed Mink, Citing Covid Infections
The Danish government will slaughter millions of mink at more than 1,000 farms, citing concerns that a mutation in the novel coronavirus that has infected the mink could possibly interfere with the effectiveness of a vaccine for humans. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen made the announcement at a news conference on Wednesday. There are 15 million or more mink in Denmark, which is one of the world’s major exporters of mink furs. She said the armed forces would be involved in the culling of mink. (Gorman, 11/4)
Reuters:
South Korea Tells People Who Attended Samsung Memorial To Get Tested After Coronavirus Case Emerges
South Korea said on Thursday it had alerted about 1,000 people who attended the memorial of the late Samsung Group patriarch Lee Kun-hee last week to get tested for the coronavirus after one person at the event tested positive. A local journalist who had covered the memorial developed symptoms two days later and tested positive on Monday, health authorities said. At least six new coronavirus cases, including two colleagues and two family members had been linked to the journalist, the authorities said. (Cha, 11/5)