Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Governors In Northeast Ask Colleges To Test Students Before Thanksgiving Break
Politico: Northeast Governors Call On Colleges To Provide Students With Covid Testing
Citing rising coronavirus cases nationwide, seven northeast governors are calling on colleges and universities in their states to provide Covid-19 tests for all students traveling home for Thanksgiving. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, along with the governors of Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Massachusetts on Wednesday announced they are encouraging residential colleges and universities in their respective states to make tests widely available to traveling students before they leave campus and to double down on isolation and quarantine efforts for those students who test positive. (Sitrin, 11/18)
Des Moines Register: COVID Test Before Thanksgiving? Colleges Fear Travel Will Spread Virus
After a semester battling the coronavirus, often unsuccessfully, college leaders have one final plea for students heading home for Thanksgiving: Get tested, please. What's unclear: whether the plea will work. (Quintana, 11/19)
Boston Globe: Mass. Set To Launch First Phase Of Rapid Coronavirus Testing In Schools In December
Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases, the Baker administration on Wednesday announced new testing guidelines and initiatives affecting a broad swath of Massachusetts students — from kindergarten through college — aimed at squelching infections before they spread. Under the plans, the state will roll out quick-turnaround tests to 134 public school districts, charters, and special education collaboratives in early December to screen students and staff who show any COVID-19 symptoms, however mild. (Lazar, Fernandes and Gans, 11/18)
The Washington Post: Long Lines And Delayed Results Again Plague Coronavirus Tests As Thanksgiving Approaches
Americans seeking coronavirus tests amid an unprecedented surge in cases are experiencing lengthier lines and waiting days to get test results — delays that complicate efforts to slow the pandemic and that are expected to intensify as people try to get tested ahead of family gatherings. Testing sites from New York to Wisconsin to Oregon are reporting lines stretching three to four hours, with results taking as long as five days. (Wan, 11/18)
In other testing and tracing news —
CIDRAP: Smartwatch Data May Help Identify Pre-Symptomatic COVID-19
A study in Nature Biomedical Engineering today shows that smartwatches and other wearable devices may detect pre-symptomatic COVID-19 infection and allow for early-stage interventions that reduce transmission. Among infected smartwatch users, 81% showed alterations in their heart rate, number of daily steps, or time asleep. Changes before symptom onset identified 63% of the COVID-19–positive individuals, showing that consumer wearable device data can recognize pre-symptomatic infection. (11/18)
KHN: People Proving To Be Weakest Link For Apps Tracking COVID Exposure
The app builders had planned for pranksters, ensuring that only people with verified COVID-19 cases could trigger an alert. They’d planned for heavy criticism about privacy, in many cases making the features as bare-bones as possible. But, as more states roll out smartphone contact-tracing technology, other challenges are emerging. Namely, human nature. The problem starts with downloads. Stefano Tessaro calls it the “chicken-and-egg” issue: The system works only if a lot of people buy into it, but people will buy into it only if they know it works. (Bichell, 11/19)
