Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Treat Yourself To Halloween, Fauci Says. But Beware Of Covid Tricks Ahead
USA Today: Fauci Says Trick-Or-Treating Is Safe This Halloween
Parents can safely allow their children to trick-or-treat outdoors this Halloween, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Sunday. "You can get out there," the nation's premier infectious diseases expert said on CNN’s “State of the Union." "You're outdoors for the most part ... (so) enjoy it." Kids who can get vaccinated for the coronavirus should do so for an “extra degree of protection," he added. The vaccines have been authorized for children 12 and up by the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA could provide similar emergency authorization for children ages 5 through 11 in the days before Halloween. "It's a good time to reflect on why it's important to get vaccinated," Fauci said. "Go out there and enjoy Halloween as well as the other holidays that will be coming up." (Bacon, Santucci and Ortiz, 10/10)
The Washington Post: Fauci Says ‘Enjoy Halloween’ Before Expected Vaccine Campaign For School-Age Children
Children can partake in trick-or-treating and other traditional Halloween activities, the country’s top infectious-disease expert Anthony S. Fauci said — a recommendation that could reassure parents as the United States gears up to distribute millions of doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech pediatric vaccine to school-age kids as soon as early November, pending regulatory approval. The White House’s chief medical adviser said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that trick-or-treating is safe, “particularly” for children who are already vaccinated, because it mostly takes place outdoors, where the airborne coronavirus does not spread as easily. It’s a sign of how health recommendations for Americans are evolving with the uptake of vaccines, as traditional Halloween celebrations last year were discouraged by federal health agencies. (Pannett and Timsit, 10/11)
Politico: As Covid Trends Down, Fauci Warns Not To 'Declare Victory'
Covid-19 cases are trending in the “right direction,” but people should be careful to not “declare victory,” the president’s top medical adviser, Anthony Fauci, said Sunday. The seven-day average shows cases below 100,000, hospitalizations below 10,000 and deaths below 2,000, he noted. “If you look at the history of the surges and the diminutions in cases over a period of time, they can bounce back,” the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” Plus, he mentioned there are roughly 68 million people eligible for vaccination who have not gotten it. (Farrow, 10/10)
In related news —
USA Today: Will The US Face Another Bad COVID-19 Winter? Cases Are Falling, But The Virus Isn't Done With Us, Experts Say
COVID-19 rates are finally falling again after a wave nearly as bad as the one last winter. Hopefully, we are through the worst of the pandemic. But experts warn that if we start acting as if COVID-19 is over, we definitely won't be. Behavior has a major impact on what happens with the virus, and if people stop taking precautions, start gathering in large numbers and not getting vaccines or boosters, another wave could strike this winter. (Weintraub, 10/10)
