Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
How Did His Inner Circle Get Infected? Rose Garden, Golf Club Events Scrutinized
CNN: Senior Administration Official: Coronavirus Outbreak Likely Began At Supreme Court Announcement
A senior administration official told CNN's Jake Tapper on Saturday that the cluster of coronavirus cases among top Republican officials likely began at President Donald Trump's Rose Garden event announcing the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. The official said it "seems highly likely this (outbreak) originated at the SCOTUS announcement last week. It may have come from the Hill. The next major concern will be securing Capitol Hill and protecting lawmakers." (Krieg, 10/3)
Stat: A Supreme Court Announcement Packed With Covid-19 Red Flags
The flags are so red they might as well be wailing like sirens. As more people in and around the White House test positive for the virus that causes Covid-19, no event is being more scrutinized than the Rose Garden event last Saturday, where President Trump announced the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. That gathering, as videos and photos of it make clear, violated so many of the recommendations that everyone else has been told to adopt this year. (Joseph, 10/3)
CNN: Inside Amy Coney Barrett's White House Reception
Since President Donald Trump announced his positive Covid-19 test, public attention has centered on the Rose Garden ceremony for Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court announcement and how a number of its attendees have since tested positive. But there was also a smaller, private reception inside the White House — one that did not include wearing masks and did not include social distancing. After the public event, dozens of attendees gathered inside the White House's Diplomatic Reception Room and the adjoining hallway. The reception lasted between 30 and 45 minutes, one source with knowledge of the event told CNN.CNN is told the attendees did not wear masks, and pictures of the event show no social distancing. (Bash and Bohn, 10/4)
Contract tracing continues for his fundraising event in Bedminster, New Jersey —
AP: NJ Officials Contact 206 People At Trump Event At Bedminster
State health officials in New Jersey have contacted more than 200 people who attended a campaign fundraiser at the Trump National Golf Course in Bedminster on Thursday, hours before the president announced he had COVID-19, as they try to contain the spread of the deadly virus. Somerset County officials were meanwhile contacting employees who worked the event, most of whom live in the county. In a joint statement issued Sunday, the officials asked guests and employees to monitor their symptoms and, if they were close to President Trump or his staff, to quarantine for 14 days. (Dale, 10/4)
CNN: President Trump Took Photos, Had Roundtable With Donors At Fundraiser Hours Before Testing Positive For Coronavirus
President Donald Trump's big-dollar fundraiser at his New Jersey golf club went on as planned Thursday night despite the President and staff knowing he had been exposed to coronavirus. Trump attended three events at the fundraiser: an indoor roundtable, an indoor VIP reception -- donors had a socially distant photo opportunity with him -- and an outdoor reception, according to an event invitation obtained by CNN. Donors that gave $250,000 were able to participate in a roundtable, photo opportunity and reception with the President, according to the event invite. The roundtable included 18 donors, according to a source, and was held indoors at socially-distanced tables. (Murphy, 10/4)
ABC News: For Some High-Dollar Trump Donors, Bedminster Hobnobbing Now Means COVID Tests
About 100 guests attended the event with some donating $50,000 to snap photos with the president on Thursday and roughly 20 sat with him at an hour-long roundtable discussion. Several said the president's diagnosis and hospitalization have been both bewildering and frightening. Four people at the club that day told ABC News they are quarantining or getting tests. "I stayed 6 feet away from the president at all times as well, but out of an abundance of caution have quarantined myself until I can be tested," said Daniel Hux, who attended the fundraiser, said in a statement to ABC News. (Rubin, Mosk, Faulders and Cohen, 10/4)
CNBC: Trump Covid Update: GOP Donors Panic After Coming Close To Trump At Fundraiser Before His Positive Test
Republican donors who attended President Donald Trump's fundraiser at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club are panicking after being around the commander in chief hours before he announced that he was infected with the coronavirus. GOP donors have been reaching out to Trump campaign and GOP officials for any guidance following the event, according to a person briefed on the matter. "The donors have been texting and calling. Freaking out," the person with direct knowledge said. This person declined to be named as the conversations were deemed private. (Schwartz, 10/2)
Concerns arise about his last rally in Duluth, Minnesota —
Politico: Trump’s Last Rally: A Catalog Of Worst Pandemic Practices
In retrospect, it was an ominous scene — the vapor in Donald Trump’s breath visibly condensing as he spoke at the rally in Duluth, Minn., a wisp of exhalant hanging in the frigid air. In a region where coronavirus cases are surging, a mask-less Trump stood before several thousand supporters on Wednesday, most of them mask-free themselves, pumping his fists and tossing hats to the tightly packed crowd. Two days later, Trump would be hospitalized. And Duluth — the site of his last rally before checking into Walter Reed National Military Medical Center — would become mired in a recovery of its own. (Siders, 10/4)
