Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Italy Reports 45% One-Day Jump In Coronavirus Cases And Country's Leaders Rush To Allay Panic
The Associated Press: Italy Sees Virus Cases Rise 45% In A Day; Deaths Up To 11
Italy reported a 45% one-day increase in people infected with the coronavirus as other countries in Europe recorded their first cases Tuesday, producing evidence that travelers are carrying the virus from the European outbreak's current epicenter. Italian officials reported 11 deaths and 322 confirmed cases of the virus, 100 more than a day earlier. While the majority were concentrated in northern Italy, some of the new cases registered outside the country's two hard-hit regions, including three in Sicily, two in Tuscany and one in Liguria. (Winfield, Giles and Zampano, 2/25)
CNN: Italy Scrambles To Contain Coronavirus After Admitting Hospital Mess-Up
Italian authorities were on the defensive Tuesday as they faced tough questions over the country's handling of the novel coronavirus, which is rapidly spreading across the country's northern regions. Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has tried to allay fears that the central government is unable to contain the virus, after he was forced to admit that a hospital in the northern town of Codogno had mishandled the region's first coronavirus case and had contributed to the deadly virus' spread. (Dewan, Braithwaite and Ruotolo, 2/26)
The Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus Infections Increase In Italy
Other EU countries have so far imposed few if any restrictions on people arriving from the affected regions of northern Italy. But France has advised its citizens to avoid traveling to Lombardy and Veneto, the two Italian regions at the center of the outbreak. Bulgaria’s flagship carrier, Bulgaria Air, canceled all flights to Milan until March 27. In a sign of the knock-on effects, Paramount Pictures said it had halted production of “Mission: Impossible VII.” The studio had been slated to soon begin a three-week shoot in Venice with a crew of more than 500, according to a spokesman for the city’s mayor. (Sylvers and Rocca, 2/25)
The Washington Post: Italy's Elderly At Front Line Of Coronavirus Battle
As the coronavirus death toll ticks up day by day in Italy, a picture has emerged of the people most at risk: a 77-year-old found dead in her home, an 84-year-old man who lost his battle with the virus, and another who was 88. The virus can be carried by anybody. But as it spreads through China and accelerates in other parts of the world, it is delivering an unequal demographic blow to the elderly and those already sick. That has set off a race in countries with significant older populations — like Italy — to figure out whether there are ways to protect their most vulnerable: those in hospitals, in nursing homes, and seniors in sealed-off hot-spot towns who are watching television and fearing the worst. (Harlan and Pitrelli, 2/25)
Roll Call: Coronavirus Threatens U.S. Military Base Operations In Europe, General Says
Air Force Gen. Tod D. Wolters, who leads U.S. European Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that a “fair amount” of the military’s 35,000 soldiers in Italy are staying home to avoid the virus. The disease was first detected in China, and the World Health Organization in January said the outbreak is a “public health emergency of international concern.” (Kelley, 2/25)
ABC News: 4 Universities Cancel Study Abroad Programs In Italy Because Of Coronavirus
At least four U.S. universities have canceled study abroad programs in Florence and urged students to leave Italy amid fears of the coronavirus spreading further in Europe. Syracuse University, New York University, Fairfield University and Elon University all confirmed in statements their programs have been canceled. NYU is suspending its program until "at least March 29," while the others have done so indefinitely. (Schnell, 2/26)
Bloomberg: Virus Piles Woes On Businesses In Italy’s Economic Heartland
As the number of people infected by the virus in Italy rises above 300 -- mostly in the rich, industrial north -- restrictions imposed to stem its spread are threatening deeper economic woes. About a third of Italy’s output comes from Lombardy and Veneto, the two most-hit regions that are home to 1.1 million very small businesses with fewer than nine employees. (Speciale, Sirletti and Rotondi, 2/26)
The New York Times: Spanish Hotel Is Locked Down After Guests Test Positive For Coronavirus
The Spanish authorities scrambled on Tuesday to trace everyone who had contact with an Italian doctor and his partner who tested positive for the coronavirus while on vacation in the Canary Islands, locking down a major resort with hundreds of guests in the hopes of limiting any possible outbreak. While officials said they were acting out of an abundance of caution, the response underscored how quickly the spread of the virus in one European Union nation could become a problem for others in the bloc, which prides itself on frictionless travel across borders. (Peltier and Minder, 2/25)
NBC News: Coronavirus: Canary Islands Hotel Locked Down After Italian Tests Positive
Ángel Víctor Torres tweeted late Monday that an Italian citizen had tested positive for the coronavirus that has killed more than 2,600 people in China and spread to dozens of countries. "The result of the first tests carried out in the Canary Islands is positive, and tomorrow they will be done again in Madrid," Torres said, adding that the patient had been placed in isolation. Later Tuesday, Torres said the wife of the guest who initially tested positive had also been infected. (Mulligan, Talmazan and Radnofsky, 2/25)
