Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Pence To Travel To Utah Today; Many Ask Why He's Not Isolating
Politico: President Pelosi? Pence Prepares To Risk It All For Trump
He’s the GOP’s one line of defense between a hospitalized commander-in-chief and a President Nancy Pelosi, and he’s about to depart Washington on a four-day campaign swing in the middle of his boss’s health crisis. Vice President Mike Pence will travel to Utah on Monday as he plays the Trump campaign’s lead act for the foreseeable future — the highest-profile surrogate for the president’s reelection at a time when both men can least afford another setback following Donald Trump’s Covid-19 diagnosis. (Orr and Kumar, 10/4)
Stat: For Many Of D.C.'s Most Powerful, Covid-19 Guidance Still Does Not Apply
If President Trump’s Covid-19 infection was a wake-up call in Washington, not everyone appears to have heard it. Vice President Mike Pence is continuing public activities, even though he was at the Sept. 26 White House ceremony where Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court was announced and where multiple members of the president’s inner circle — and perhaps even the president himself — appear to have been infected. Pence sat directly in front of Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and within a few feet of Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), both of whom announced on Friday that they had tested positive for the virus. (Branswell, 10/5)
Indianapolis Star: Mike Pence And Trump's COVID: Why Isn't Vice President In Quarantine?
Vice President Mike Pence was among dozens of politicians and high-profile dignitaries at a White House Rose Garden event when President Donald Trump announced Amy Coney Barrett as his pick to succeed the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the nation's high court. ... Experts wonder why someone in Pence's situation is not under isolation to reduce both his risk of exposure and the vulnerability of the Trump White House. “We have the president and first lady ill and the country is in a vulnerable situation,” former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told USA TODAY on Friday. “We have to be very prepared to deal with the possibility that an adversary will seek to take advantage.” (Rough, 10/4)
NPR: Pence Working At Home Now, Plans To Travel Monday, Source Says
Vice President Pence — who has tested negative for the coronavirus — has been working from home rather than going into the White House complex since President Trump was diagnosed with the virus late on Thursday, a senior administration official told NPR. "Out of an abundance of caution, he worked at the vice president's residence at the Naval Observatory to avoid any potential exposure to the virus," the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told NPR's Franco Ordoñez. Pence led a conference call of the White House coronavirus task force on Saturday from his residence. (Silva and Ordonez, 10/3)
In other news about the Trump campaign —
ABC News: Nearly 3 In 4 Think Trump Did Not Take Appropriate Virus Precautions: POLL
As President Donald Trump remains hospitalized at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after contracting COVID-19 this week, nearly 3 out of every 4 Americans doubt that he took seriously the threat posed to his well-being nor the steps necessary to avoid contracting the virus, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll released Sunday. In two separate questions, an identical 72% said that Trump did not take the "risk of contracting the virus seriously enough," nor "the appropriate precautions when it came to his personal health." (Kelsey, 10/4)
CNN: Trump Campaign Adviser Says Rally Protocols Won't Change After President's Coronavirus Diagnosis
A senior adviser to President Donald Trump's reelection campaign said Sunday there won't be any additional safety protocols for upcoming rallies following the President's hospitalization after contracting Covid-19. Senior campaign adviser Jason Miller, when pressed by CNN's Ana Cabrera on the safety of the Trump's campaign rallies which have largely flaunted best public health practices, said the campaign would take the temperature of attendees while providing face masks and hand sanitizer -- the same steps that were in place before Trump's diagnosis. (LeBlanc, 10/4)
USA Today: Now That Trump Tested Positive For COVID-19, Will Shoppers Be More Compliant With Mask Mandates At Stores?
Mask compliance has sparked debates throughout the pandemic as Americans received mixed messages from authorities over whether they should wear face coverings in public places. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said for months that wearing masks slows the spread of COVID-19, but meanwhile, politicians have been called out not doing so. As the nation edged further into the stay-at-home era, viral videos of conflicts over mask requirements at businesses have become common to see. (Tyko, 10/2)
Also —
The New York Times: Getting The Virus Can Change A Politician’s Mind, Say Some Who Had It
Three American governors. Four United States senators. At least a dozen members of the House of Representatives. The mayor of Miami. The mayor of Atlanta. A judge in Luzerne County, Pa., population 300,000. The mayor of Oliver Springs, Tenn., population 3,000.And now, the president of the United States. Across the country, scores of elected officials at all levels of government have experienced the alarming moment of finding out that they have tested positive for the coronavirus. (Mervosh, Healy and Mazzei, 10/2)
