Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Governors Tread Lightly Following Trump's Comments About Leaders Needing To Show Proper Appreciation
The Wall Street Journal: Governors Push For More Medical Gear To Fight Coronavirus
State governors, besieged by a flood of coronavirus patients amid scarce hospital resources, took to the airwaves on Sunday to plead for more equipment to fight the pandemic. Both Democratic and Republican governors highlighted acute shortages of equipment that medical professionals on the front lines need to do their jobs, including masks, gowns and face shields. One particular point of concern is the scarcity of the ventilators used to help restore breathing capability among severely stricken patients. (Burton, 3/29)
Los Angeles Times: Governors Shrug Off Trump's Insults As They Plead For Federal Aid
Wary of President Trump’s criticism that they were ungrateful for his management of the coronavirus crisis, governors of several of the hardest-hit states sought gingerly Sunday to avoid provoking him anew and risk losing desperately needed federal aid. Despite the drastic shutdown of much of the country, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious-disease specialist, warned Sunday that 100,000 to 200,000 Americans might die before the pandemic eases. More than 2,400 had died as of Sunday. (King, 3/29)
The Hill: White House Coronavirus Coordinator: All Governors And Mayors Need To 'Prepare Like New York Is Preparing Now'
The White House coronavirus task force coordinator said Sunday that the administration is “asking every single governor and every single mayor to prepare like New York is preparing now. ”Dr. Deborah Birx told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that state and city leaders need to know where each hospital in their jurisdiction is located, where the surgical centers are, where “every piece of equipment is in the state” and how to move equipment around the state “based on need.” (Coleman, 3/29)
Politico: Forget Washington — Corporate America Is Focused On Governors Right Now
When Goldman Sachs directed more than 12,000 employees in the New York City metro area to work from home two weeks ago, bank President John Waldron didn’t need to check with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin — he got on the phone with New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy. It’s one of many calls corporate executives have had to do with state and local officials over the last month as states from California to New Jersey shuttered their economies to prevent the spread of the virus. (Sutton, 3/30)
The Hill: California Governor: 170 Ventilators Sent From Trump Administration Were 'Not Working'
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said Saturday that 170 ventilators shipped by the federal government to help his state respond to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus were "not working" when they arrived. Newsom made the remarks during a press conference in which he noted that the number of coronavirus patients in intensive care units had doubled since Friday, according to the Los Angeles Times. Newsom said that the stockpile of ventilators had been sent to Los Angeles County by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). He noted that a company called Bloom Energy was fixing the equipment. (Wise, 3/29)
Los Angeles Times: Feds Sent L.A. County Broken Ventilators; Silicon Valley Is Fixing Them
California and other states have been stocking up on ventilators in anticipation of a shortage at hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Newsom said he learned about the problem with the federal government’s ventilators when he visited Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Friday. “Rather than lamenting about it, rather than complaining about it, rather than pointing fingers, rather than generating headlines in order to generate more stress and anxiety, we got a car and a truck,” Newsom said. (Luna and Lin, 3/29)
Boston Globe: In State’s Intense Chase For Protective Equipment, Coronavirus Isn’t The Only Rival — The Feds Are, Too
In the span of several days, Marylou Sudders and a team of state officials confirmed two separate orders last week: one for hundreds of N95 respirator masks and another promising shipments of 35 ventilators to Massachusetts, every week, for the “foreseeable future," the state’s health and human services secretary said. They represented victories, if relatively small ones compared to the millions of pieces of equipment the state is chasing. That is, until, it ran into a force seemingly as immovable as the novel coronavirus. (Stout and McGrane, 3/27)
Cincinnati Enquirer: DeWine: Trump Sees Urgency Of Face Mask Sterilization Technology
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine expects federal officials will expand new technology to clean face masks used by health care workers treating novel coronavirus patients. The Food and Drug Administration, in a letter sent Saturday, partially approved a new decontamination system by Columbus-based research nonprofit Battelle Memorial Institute. (Borchardt, 3/29)
