Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Food Banks Struggle To Keep Up With Demand Ahead Of Holiday
The Hill: Long Lines Form At Food Banks Across Country Ahead Of Thanksgiving
Americans are lining up in historic numbers at food banks across the country this week as the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbates levels of food insecurity for millions of people. As the Thanksgiving holiday draws closer, news reports from states around the U.S. indicate that more Americans face food insecurity now than at any time in recent decades. (Bowden, 11/24)
Boston Globe: Surge In Demand At Food Pantries Called ‘Mind-Boggling’
Demand at food pantries often rises during the holidays, but rarely have so many been without the basic ingredients of a Thanksgiving dinner — or any meal — as this year. With so many unemployed, sick, or otherwise in need as a result of the pandemic, the calls for help have grown so much that food pantries have struggled to keep pace. It’s just a terrible time for a lot of people,” said Catherine D’Amato, president of the Greater Boston Food Bank, the largest hunger-relief organization in New England, which provides food to 190 towns and cities in Eastern Massachusetts. “We’re obviously in a crisis.” (Abel, 11/24)
Clarion-Ledger: Hunger Is Still A Big Problem In Mississippi And COVID-19 Is Making It Worse
As millions of Americans prepare for a slightly different Thanksgiving this year, limited access to grocery stores will cause families in Mississippi and across the country to struggle to put food on the table. According to research from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, hundreds of thousands of people in some of Mississippi's poorest regions — and even some in the Jackson metro area — lack access to fresh and healthy food. (Rowe, 11/24)
In related news on COVID's economic toll —
Bay Area News Group: Will The COVID-19 Pandemic Kill Black Friday This Year?
As it turns out, many retailers share shoppers’ concerns about mixing Black Friday and COVID-19, knowing the day traditionally encourages the crowds and jostling that could promote a “super-spreader event,” said Kirthi Kalyanam, a business professor and director of Santa Clara University’s Retail Management Institute. Health officials are concerned, as well. Big and small retailers in most Bay Area counties are under new public health restrictions to limit their occupancy to 25 percent. (Harrington and Ross, 11/22)
AP: Restaurant Workers Out Of Work Again As Virus Surges Anew
Waiters and bartenders are being thrown out of work — again — as governors and local officials shut down indoor dining and drinking establishments to combat the nationwide surge in coronavirus infections that is overwhelming hospitals and dashing hopes for a quick economic recovery. And the timing, just before the holidays, couldn’t be worse. (Webber, Peters and Melley, 11/24)
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Regulator Gives Guidance To Casinos For Capacity Restrictions
Nevada’s heavyweight casino operators aren’t saying how they are complying with the new capacity limits, but experts say the change isn’t likely to drastically alter casino operations, considering their floors were largely empty under the previous restrictions. It’s industry practice for casinos to track how many people are on their floors, even before the capacity limits in the age of COVID-19, according to former MGM Resorts International executive Rick Arpin. Industry operators will count through security cameras, hand counts, and in some cases nationally, artificial intelligence, though Arpin wasn’t sure of the latter’s local prevalence. (Shoro, 11/24)
KHN: Why Employers Find It So Hard To Test For COVID
Brandon Hudgins works the main floor at Fleet Feet, a running-shoe store chain, for more than 30 hours a week. He chats with customers, measuring their feet and dashing in and out of the storage area to locate right-sized shoes. Sometimes, clients drag their masks down while speaking. Others refuse to wear masks at all. So he worries about COVID-19. And with good reason. Across the U.S., COVID hospitalizations and deaths are hitting record-shattering new heights. The nation saw 198,633 new cases on Friday alone. (Norman, 11/25)
