Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Trump Has No Role In Vaccine Rollout
Bloomberg: Trump Sits Out Debut Of Covid-19 Vaccine That He Long Championed
The first shipments of a coronavirus vaccine created by Pfizer Inc. and German company BioNTech SE arrived on Monday, with front-line health-care workers receiving injections on live television to mark the occasion. The rollout coincides with the U.S. setting records for daily cases, daily deaths and hospitalizations. The president has had little to say about any of it, beyond a single congratulatory tweet buried among a stream of false assertions and conspiracy theories about the election he lost. He has not made a public appearance since Saturday, when he attended the Army-Navy football game at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. (Wingrove, 12/16)
Politico: Trump-Biden Divide Hampers Covid Vaccine Trust-Building Effort
Donald Trump wants credit for a pandemic-defeating vaccine, but is aggrieved Joe Biden won’t give it to him. Biden wants help promoting the vaccine to wary Americans, but isn’t expected to ask Trump to assist. The result is that even though the country’s two most high-profile leaders both claim to want the same thing — enough vaccinations to eradicate the pandemic — hyperpartisan divisions are preventing them from helping each other achieve that goal. (Kumar, Ollstein and McGraw, 12/15)
The Washington Post: How The ‘Deep State’ Scientists Vilified By Trump Helped Him Deliver An Unprecedented Achievement
In fact, the lightning-fast development of two leading coronavirus vaccines happened both because of and despite Trump — perhaps the most anti-science president in modern history, who has previously flirted with anti-vaccine views and savaged those who cited scientific evidence to press for basic public health measures in response to the pandemic. (Abutaleb, McGinley and Johnson, 12/14)
In other news from the Trump administration —
CNN: Melania Trump Breaks Children's Hospital Rules By Taking Her Mask Off To Read To Patients
First lady Melania Trump broke stated mask policy at Children's National Hospital Tuesday when she removed her mask to read a holiday book to children. Trump, who has visited children at the hospital each year during her time as first lady, continued the tradition despite the coronavirus pandemic and record cases in Washington, DC. (Klein, 12/15)
The Washington Post: Hundreds Of Invitees Skip Mike Pompeo’s Indoor Holiday Party At State Department
Only a tiny fraction of the more than 900 guests invited to an indoor holiday party hosted by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife Susan showed up on Tuesday following an outcry from public health officials and U.S. lawmakers warning that the reception bore all the hallmarks of a superspreader event, said two U.S. officials familiar with the event. Pompeo, whose name was on the invitation and who was scheduled to speak at the event, canceled his speech and tapped a substitute speaker, said the two officials. The event was dedicated to the family members of diplomats serving overseas in dangerous postings that require them to leave their spouses and children behind, such as in Iraq or Afghanistan. (Hudson, 12/15)
