Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Immunocompromised, Some Parents Of Small Kids Dismayed As Rules Lifted
The Hill: Biden On Whether People Should Mask On Planes: ‘That’s Up To Them’
President Biden on Tuesday said whether to wear a mask on an airplane should be an individual choice after a federal judge blocked a requirement for passengers on public transportation to be masked. “Should people continue to wear masks on planes?” a reporter asked Biden during a trip to New Hampshire to promote infrastructure projects. "That’s up to them,” the president responded. (Samuels, 4/19)
The Hill: Mask Mandate’s Sudden End Sparks Confusion, Mixed Messages
Biden wore a mask on Air Force One when he traveled to New Hampshire, a striking difference from the videos and images circulating of travelers taking their masks off in airports and on flights. The White House cited CDC guidance. ... White House press secretary Jen Psaki pushed back on the notion that it is a confusing time for travelers. “I would dispute the notion that people are confused, we are here to alleviate their confusion. The CDC continues to advise and recommend masks on airplanes,” she said on Air Force One on Tuesday. “We’re abiding by the CDC recommendations, the president is, and we would advise all Americans to do that.” (Gangitano, 4/19)
The New York Times: Concerns Rise As Passenger Masks Fall
Public health experts reacted with dismay to a federal judge’s ruling on Monday that struck down a mask requirement for plane, bus and train passengers, expressing concern that the case would set a precedent that erodes the authority of public health agencies and hampers their ability to respond to health emergencies. ... “If this ruling stands, it could put the American public at great risk,” said Dr. Richard Besser, president and chief executive of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and a former acting director of the C.D.C. He added that his concerns were less to do with the immediate consequences for mask mandates than with “the implications for future crises, of the ability to put in place simple public health measures to keep people safe.” (Rabin, 4/19)
For immunocompromised people and parents of small kids, the announcement hit hard —
Axios: America's New Mask Divide
America has a new divide. Many joyfully embraced Tuesday as the first full day of new mask freedom. But plenty are sticking with a practice that's now 2+ years old. ... Many parents fear for their kids who are too young for vaccines. "Here we are, trapped in the sky with our 8-month-old unmasked baby," tweeted Brooke Tansley of Nashville, who was on a plane when the rules changed mid-flight. (4/19)
The New York Times: Americans Watch Sweeping Mask Rules Vanish, With Joy And Fear
In interviews, older Americans, people with compromised immune systems, parents with young children and low-income workers who rely on public transportation worried that they would now be at even greater risk with every bus ride or plane trip. “It’s isolating,” said Catherine Muskin, a lawyer in Ithaca, N.Y., and a mother of a 3-year-old and 20-month-old. She said the end of airline mask mandates had killed any hopes she and her husband had of flying to Florida for a vacation. “We still have our protocols and we still have our rules. But now we’re the exception.” (Healy and Smith, 4/19)
Modern Healthcare: Mask Mandate Ruling Was 'Irresponsibly Abrupt,' Hospital Exec Says
Most health systems and physician groups are not adjusting their mask mandates after a federal judge struck down the law for airlines and public transportation. ... Trinity Health's chief clinical officer, Dr. Daniel Roth, said it jeopardizes the immunocompromised and those who can't be vaccinated. "Trinity Health has followed guidelines from the CDC to ensure the safety of our colleagues, clinicians and patients. Yesterday's court decision removing the requirement for face coverings on public transportation was irresponsibly abrupt and increases risk," he said in an emailed statement. Northwell Health will not change its masking rules in clinical settings, said Dr. David Battinelli, physician-in-chief of the New York City health system. "As a clinical facility, we're not public transportation. We're not the airlines. To me, there's almost no connection." (Kacik, Christ and Abrams, 4/19)
NBC News: Immunocompromised During Covid: How People Can Lower Their Risk Of Illness
As more and more Americans doff their masks, immunocompromised individuals may be concerned about their risk levels among largely unmasked crowds. ... But experts say that while immunocompromised individuals do remain at a greater risk of Covid, the landscape looks much different than it did even a year ago, with a number of tools available to provide the extra protection they need. Now, options including additional vaccine doses and boosters, preventative monoclonal antibodies injections and antiviral drugs may help some immunocompromised people take steps toward resuming a more normal life. (Lovelace Jr. and Syal, 4/20)
Most airlines seem to be relieved —
The New York Times: For Airlines, The Mask Mandate Couldn’t End Soon Enough
For flight attendants, pilots and others in the business, the mask mandate had become a source of frustration even as they acknowledged that it protected them during their extensive exposure to strangers. Flight crews had to enforce proper face coverings — a dangerous job in polarizing times. Some passengers refused to comply and became belligerent; in extreme cases, they even punched, kicked and bloodied flight attendants. “They don’t like being policemen on airplanes,” said David Neeleman, the founder of JetBlue Airways and now chief executive of a new company, Breeze Airways. “It’s not something that they signed up for, and I think it creates more agitation with customers.” (Chokshi and Murphy, 4/19)
The Washington Post: Delta Air Lines Initially Called Covid-19 An ‘Ordinary Seasonal Virus’ As Mask Mandate Was Lifted
After backlash on social media, Delta Air Lines has walked back a comment falsely claiming that the coronavirus, which continues to account for more than 35,000 new cases per day, has become “an ordinary seasonal virus.” The airline made the comment Monday in an announcement stating that it will no longer require masks — a move several U.S. airlines have made after a federal judge struck down mask mandates in public transportation settings. (Bever, 4/19)
