Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Vaccine Hesitancy Is Fading In US, Elsewhere — According To Facebook
Axios: Facebook Says It Sees Signs That COVID Vaccine Hesitancy Is Declining
Facebook said Wednesday it's seeing signs that resistance to the COVID-19 vaccine is weakening both in the United States and abroad, though it acknowledged it still doesn't have hard numbers on how frequently misinformation is being shared on its platforms. Facebook touts a survey showing improved attitudes toward the vaccines, but that survey finding raises questions, as other polling has shown significant and entrenched hesitancy, especially in the U.S. It also doesn't show that Facebook or other social media can be credited for any shift. (Fried, 8/18)
NBC News: Proof Of Vaccination In A Tap? Smartphone Developers Want To Make It That Easy
Smartphone developers are gearing up for a world where users can store their Covid vaccination proof in their phones’ digital wallets, making it easy to simply tap their phones when they enter new buildings. ... Google, Apple and Samsung have all recently announced plans to offer a feature that readily calls up a QR code that can be scanned to quickly verify a user’s vaccination status. (Collier, 8/18)
KHN: To Stoke Rural Vaccination Rates, Trusted Farmers Are Asked To Spread Word
When he became eligible for the coronavirus vaccine in Illinois, Tom Arnold, 68, said he didn’t need any convincing. He raises cattle, hogs and chickens in Elizabeth, a small town in the state’s northwestern corner. After all, who better to understand why herd immunity matters than a herdsman? “Being a livestock producer, I’m well aware of vaccinations and vaccines,” he said. “That’s how we develop immunity in our animals. We’re always vaccinating the breeding stock to pass on immunity to the little ones.” (Herman, 8/19)
And in other news about stopping the spread of the coronavirus —
Bloomberg: NYC Was Unprepared For Pandemic, Lacked Plans, Equipment: Comptroller Stringer
New York City was unprepared to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic and was hampered by a lack of planning and coordination, according to a report issued Wednesday by the city Comptroller. “The failure of the city to better prepare and plan for a pandemic inevitably impacted its ability to respond to Covid-19,” said Comptroller Scott Stringer in the report. Stringer, the city’s chief financial officer, ran unsuccessfully in the June Democratic primary for mayor to replace Bill de Blasio, who is term limited and will leave office at the end of the year. (Wahid, 8/18)
KHN: Covid Politics And Fatigue Work Against Contact-Tracing Foot Soldiers
Health departments nationwide scaled back their contact tracing in late spring or early summer when covid-19 cases started to decrease as vaccination efforts took center stage. Then delta hit. Now state and local health departments are trying to build back operations with depleted resources, as covid fatigue among their workers and the public alike complicate those efforts. (Gomez, 8/19)
The Washington Post: Airbnb Will Block Some Halloween Reservations To Stave Off Parties
Airbnb will block some people from making one and two-night reservations for Halloween weekend in the United States and Canada for the second year in a row, after it introduced stricter anti-party policies as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Users who don’t have “a history of positive reviews” will be prohibited from booking one-night reservations for entire properties during Halloween weekend, meaning that one-night stays at “shared” accommodations won’t be impacted. (Pietsch, 8/18)
CNN: Garth Brooks Cancels Tour Dates Due To Delta Variant
Garth Brooks is putting his live music party on hold. The country superstar on Wednesday said he's canceling the next five stops on his tour, the last of which was supposed to take place on October 9. "In July, I sincerely thought the pandemic was falling behind us. Now, watching this new wave, I realize we are still in the fight and I must do my part," Brooks said in a statement. (Gonzalez, 8/18)
The Washington Post: It's Not Hard To Imagine A Worse Pandemic, Tom Frieden Says
We might have gotten lucky with the coronavirus pandemic. So says Tom Frieden, the former director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Frieden now serves as chief executive of Resolve to Save Lives, a global health initiative that recently released a report on some of the world’s near misses with potentially devastating epidemics. He told The Health 202 that the world needs to be on its guard for the next pandemic, which could be even worse than the one caused by SARS-CoV-2.Pandemics can be prevented, Frieden argues, but it’s going to take serious investment. (Ellerbeck and Cunningham, 8/18)
