Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
More Poll Workers Test Positive For COVID Following Elections
AP: 28 Election Employees In 1 Missouri County Have Coronavirus
Twenty-eight employees of the election board in one of Missouri’s largest counties have tested positive for the coronavirus in recent weeks, and a director believes they most likely got infected from voters, though local health officials aren’t convinced. The Jackson County Election Board’s Republican director, Tammy Brown, said Tuesday that eight full-time and 20 part-time employees tested positive for the COVID-19 virus in the past 2 1/2 weeks. Most are doing well and recovering at home, but two part-time workers are hospitalized, including one in intensive care, Brown said. (Salter, 11/10)
Newsweek: 28 Election Workers In Missouri's Second-Largest County Test Positive For COVID As State Reports Over 4,200 Cases
[Many people] would've passed through the board's main office or the absentee voting office in the days leading up to the November 3 election to pick up or drop off their ballot. "We had thousands and thousands of voters through there every day," Brown said. "People who requested mail-in and absentee ballots were walking in their applications and then walking in their ballots also." (Grzeszczak, 11/10)
CBS Sacramento: Yolo County CA Election Worker Tests Positive For COVID-19
A Yolo County election worker tested positive for COVID-19 Monday, county officials confirmed. The staff member worked with elections staff and some election observers but had minimal exposure to poll workers, according to a release from the county. Officials said the staff member had limited exposure to voter centers or Yolo County voters. (Smith, 11/10)
Observer-Reporter: Poll Workers At Franklin West Precinct Infected With COVID-19
Four out of five poll workers at the Franklin West precinct have tested positive for COVID-19, but the Greene County Elections Office is declining to release information to voters, citing medical privacy laws. (Jones, 11/11)
CBS Minnesota: Election Judge In Cloquet Tests Positive For COVID
An election judge in Minnesota has tested positive for COVID-19. Officials in Cloquet say that the judge was working at Ward 1’s polling location on Election Day, which is at Journey Church. (11/10)
In other news about mail-in voting and voter safety —
Politico: Postal Service Continues To Receive Thousands Of Ballots
Thousands of ballots continued to stream into U.S. Postal Service facilities Monday, according to newly filed court documents, too late in many states to be counted, even if postmarked by Election Day. According to the new data, compiled as part of a lawsuit to monitor mail voting, ballots arriving Monday included hundreds meant for closely fought contests in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Arizona, where President-elect Joe Biden has held small but significant leads. Those ballots include: 121 in Atlanta, 293 in Philadelphia, 109 in Central Pennsylvania, 171 in Central Arizona and 83 in Detroit. (Cheney, 11/10)
The Washington Post: Postal Worker Admits Fabricating Pennsylvania Ballot Tampering Claims, Officials Say
A Pennsylvania postal worker whose claims have been cited by top Republicans as potential evidence of widespread voting irregularities admitted to U.S. Postal Service investigators that he fabricated the allegations, according to three officials briefed on the investigation and a statement from a House congressional committee. (Boburg and Bogage, 11/10)
