Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Is Trump 'Immune'? Not So Fast, Infectious Disease Experts Say
The Washington Post: Trump Says He’s Not Contagious. Health Experts Say That’s Not Certain.
President Trump tweeted on Sunday that he is “immune” to the novel coronavirus and “can’t give it,” even though the White House has not released any negative test results and immunity to the virus remains poorly understood. The tweet was quickly flagged by Twitter, which said it contained “misleading and potentially harmful misinformation” related to the coronavirus. It was the latest example of the social media giant pushing back against the president’s posts on the deadly virus, and it appeared to refer to Trump’s claim to immunity. Some recovered patients with covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, have been reinfected, and experts say many questions remain about immunity, including how long it lasts. (Brulliard and Sonmez, 10/11)
AP: Trump Claims He's Free Of Virus, Ready For Campaign Trail
President Donald Trump on Sunday declared he was ready to return to the campaign trail despite unanswered questions about his health on the eve of a Florida rally meant to kick off the stretch run before Election Day. His impending return comes after the White House doctor said he was no longer at risk of transmitting the coronavirus but did not say explicitly whether Trump had tested negative for it. The president insisted he was now “immune” from the virus, a claim that was impossible to prove and added to the unknowns about the president’s health. “I’m immune,” Trump said in an interview on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.” “The president is in very good shape to fight the battles.” (Lemire and Yen, 10/11)
NPR: Trump's Doctor Says There's No 'Actively Replicating Virus' — So Is He COVID-19-Free?
Ask an infectious disease doctor whether the president still has coronavirus, and you quickly realize that "having" the virus is a concept that exists more among laypeople than doctors. "We try to avoid that question," says Dr. Amesh Adalja, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center of Health Security. "It becomes much harder to explain to people, well why is the test positive when you're saying he's not contagious? It's because, that far out, it's not viable virus." (Schwartz, 10/11)
CNBC: White House Physician Says Trump No Longer Considered Transmission Risk
“Now at day 10 from symptom onset, fever-free for well over 24 hours and all symptoms improved, the assortment of advanced diagnostic tests obtained reveal there is no longer evidence of actively replicating virus,” said Dr. Sean Conley in a memo. “Moving forward, I will continue to monitor him clinically as he returns to an active schedule.” Conley added that Trump had demonstrated “decreasing viral loads.” Viral load refers to how much virus is present in any sample taken from a patient, whether it’s blood or — in the case of Covid-19 — secretions collected during a deep nasal swab. (10/10)
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The Hill: Twitter Labels Trump Tweet On Coronavirus Immunity As 'Misleading'
A tweet from President Trump claiming that he was now "immune" to COVID-19 after his treatment for the virus last week was tagged by the platform as "misleading" on Sunday. The tweet in question, posted late Sunday morning, stated that the president received a "total and complete sign off from White House Doctors yesterday." "That means I can’t get it (immune), and can’t give it. Very nice to know!!!" he continued. (Bowden, 10/11)
