The Washington Post: Vaccines Offer Hope For End To Pandemic, But Brutal Months Lie Ahead
Coronavirus vaccines are poised to be approved and distributed in the coming weeks in the United States, but that promising news comes amid record levels of infections and hospitalizations, with experts warning that the most brutal period of the pandemic lies ahead. This is a split-screen moment: Progress on vaccines means people can now plausibly talk about what they will do when the pandemic is over. But with new infections topping 212,000 Thursday — another daily record, topping one set Wednesday — it won’t be over in a snap. This remains a dismal slog. (Achenbach and Del Real, 12/4)

The Atlantic: COVID-19 Hospitalizations Have Doubled In One Month
As expected, our picture of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States in the past week is muddied by incomplete and delayed data, the result of the Thanksgiving holiday and long weekend. Although cases, tests, and deaths appear to have declined, we believe this is largely an artifact of data reporting and not reflective of the true toll the coronavirus is taking on the nation right now. The one metric not substantially affected by holiday reporting makes clear exactly how severe the pandemic is: More than 100,000 people in the United States—that’s one in 3,300 people—are now hospitalized with COVID-19. (12/3)

Reuters: Coronavirus Claims 1.5 Million Lives Globally With 10,000 Dying Each Day 
Over 1.5 million people have lost their lives due to COVID-19 with one death reported every nine seconds on a weekly average, as vaccinations are set to begin in December in a handful of developed nations. Half a million deaths occurred in just the last two months, indicating that the severity of the pandemic is far from over. Nearly 65 million people globally have been infected by the disease and the worst affected country, United States, is currently battling a third wave of coronavirus infections. (Ahluwalia and Sangameswaran S, 12/3)

The Hill: US Records Over 14 Million Coronavirus Cases 
The United States has officially recorded more than 14 million coronavirus cases as of Thursday, less than a week after the country topped the 13 million-infection threshold, a sign that the virus is spreading at an alarming rate. According to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. has had a total of 14,102,562 coronavirus infections, with at least 275,729 deaths as a result of the virus. (Castronuovo, 12/3)

Also —

AP: Data Shows Americans Couldn't Resist Thanksgiving Travel
Americans couldn’t resist the urge to gather for Thanksgiving, driving only slightly less than a year ago and largely ignoring the pleas of public health experts, who begged them to forgo holiday travel to help contain the coronavirus pandemic, data from roadways and airports shows. The nation’s unwillingness to tamp down on travel offered a warning in advance of Christmas and New Year’s as virus deaths and hospitalizations hit new highs a week after Thanksgiving. U.S. deaths from the outbreak eclipsed 3,100 on Thursday, obliterating the single-day record set last spring. (Groves, 12/4)

AP: Birx Says Americans Must Be Strict For Pandemic
The White House coronavirus response coordinator says Americans must not gather indoors with outsiders or take off their masks at any time when they are outdoors -- even when they are eating and drinking. Dr. Deborah Birx says people also have to observe social distancing and wash their hands to contain the coronavirus pandemic. She says some states are taking these measures, but in others it’s “not happening at the level that they need to happen.” (12/4)

CNN: There's A Light At The End Of The Tunnel, But Coming Months Will Be Covid-19 'Worst-Case Scenario,' Expert Says 
Across the US, preparations are well underway to quickly distribute Covid-19 vaccines once authorized, but experts say before that promise of relief, the coming months will likely be difficult. What will come next is likely the country's "worst-case scenario in terms of overwhelmed hospitals, in terms of the death count," according to emergency medicine physician Dr. Leana Wen. (Maxouris, 12/4)

San Francisco Chronicle: Newsom To Impose New Stay-At-Home Orders In California’s Hardest-Hit Areas 
Vast swaths of California will fall under new shutdown orders in the coming weeks after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced additional restrictions Thursday to try to slow the coronavirus surge in areas where intensive care unit capacity is dwindling. Newsom said he was “pulling the emergency brake” to help California through a third surge of the pandemic, one he hoped would be a final ordeal before a coronavirus vaccine becomes widely available after the winter months. (Koseff and Fimrite, 12/3)

San Jose Mercury News: Gavin Newsom Announces New California Stay-At-Home Order, Determined By Regional ICU Capacity
Schools that are already open will be allowed to remain open, and retail will be allowed to remain open at 20% capacity. Sports and other entertainment will be allowed to continue, though without any live audiences. Restaurants will be restricted to takeout only, and places of worship will be forced outdoors. Hotels and offices can remain open only for “critical infrastructure” employees. Forced to close entirely: all personal care services, including barbershops and nail salons; playgrounds inside and outside; bars, breweries and wineries; and all entertainment centers, including amusement parks, movie theaters, card rooms and casinos. (Webeck, 12/4)

In related news from California —

Los Angeles Times: Supreme Court Gives Win To California Churches Fighting Ban
The Supreme Court told California judges on Thursday to take another hard look at state rules that ban most indoor worship services. A week ago, the justices in a 5-4 decision lifted tight limits on churches and synagogues in neighborhoods of New York City where the virus was spreading. The court said those restrictions violated the 1st Amendment’s protection for the free exercise of religion. (Savage, 12/3)

Los Angeles Times: Megachurch Pastor Dies Of COVID-19 After Church Reopens 
An associate pastor for a megachurch in San Bernardino County died of COVID-19 about a month after the facility reopened indoor services. Bob Bryant of the Water of Life Community Church in Fontana tested positive for the coronavirus in November and soon developed an aggressive pneumonia in his lungs, according to a post on the church’s Facebook site. He then suffered a heart attack. He ultimately was placed on a ventilator and died Monday. He was 58. (Lin II, 12/3)

San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Supes Again Condemn Zuckerberg’s Name On City General Hospital 
A committee of San Francisco supervisors on Thursday condemned the naming of San Francisco General Hospital for Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, citing a long list of grievances against the social media giant and claiming its practices endanger public health. The three-member Government Audit and Oversight Committee voted to condemn the hospital’s name and to develop a better policy for future naming of public facilities. The resolution, which carries no legal mandates, was mostly a statement of opinion by the board — and a chance to bash Facebook. The board is constrained in its contract with Zuckerberg in removing his name from the hospital. (Cabanatuan, 12/3)

Politico: California Politicians Skewered For Social Crimes In The Age Of Coronavirus 
California politicians are drawing scorn for the unthinkable: dining out, spending Thanksgiving with relatives and traveling out of state. Such malfeasance is considered the height of hypocrisy during a pandemic in which leaders have discouraged a long list of social activities. Few places have as many errant officials as California, a deep blue state with some of the strictest rules in the nation — and where politicians have wagged their fingers this fall in an effort to control surging infections. (Marinucci, 12/3)

South Florida Sun Sentinel: Secrecy And Spin: How Florida’s Governor Misled The Public On The COVID-19 Pandemic
Throughout the COVID-19 crisis in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration engaged in a pattern of spin and concealment that misled the public on the gravest health threat the state has ever faced, a South Florida Sun Sentinel investigation has found. DeSantis, who owes his job to early support from President Donald Trump, imposed an approach in line with the views of the president and his powerful base of supporters. The administration suppressed unfavorable facts, dispensed dangerous misinformation, dismissed public health professionals, and promoted the views of scientific dissenters who supported the governor’s approach to the disease. (Ariza, Fleshler and Krischer Goodman, 12/3)

The Hill: Florida Officials Were Asked To Avoid Public Statements On Coronavirus Before Election: Report 
Florida state officials were asked to avoid public statements regarding the coronavirus in the lead up to the 2020 election, according to an investigative report by the Sun Sentinel. Three Florida health officials, who told the Sentinel they wished to remain unidentified, said they were told not to speak about COVID-19 until after the Nov. 3 election. Instead, they were instructed to talk about other health issues like the flu and hearing loss. (Choi, 12/3)

The Washington Post: Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt’s Day Of Prayer For Coronavirus Victims Draws Backlash 
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt's announcement has drawn a scathing backlash from critics seeking more stringent measures to slow the spread of the virus, rallying support for the mask mandates that have gained increasingly bipartisan traction across the country. Many ridiculed the [Republican] governor’s announcement online. Some of the most pointed critiques came from the faith communities Stitt appealed to with his proclamation. The Rev. Shannon Fleck, the executive director of the Oklahoma Conference of Churches, put out a statement saying that “prayer should be accompanied by a willingness to act.” (Knowles, 12/3)

And states cope with post-Thanksgiving surges —

AP: Whitmer May Extend Partial Shutdown Of Schools, Businesses
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Thursday that her administration may extend portions of a three-week partial shutdown of schools and businesses next week because of the “sheer volume” of coronavirus cases in Michigan. The Democratic governor said no decision had been made, but that hospitals can’t be overrun with COVID-19 patients. Although the infection curve has leveled off, it is a “dangerous moment,” she said. The state reported 175 additional deaths, including 63 in the most recent 24-hour period and 112 from a records review. That total was the fifth-most during the pandemic, Whitmer said. (Eggert, 12/3)

Indianapolis Star: Indiana Sets New Record For Highest Number Of New Coronavirus Cases
On the heels of the Thanksgiving weekend, Indiana once more broke a record for new coronavirus cases. Thursday the state reported 8,527 new cases of COVID-19 and 60 additional deaths. All but 13 of the cases reported were confirmed Wednesday, breaking the state's previous record of 8,283 cases for Nov. 13. After seeing the number of new cases dip in the aftermath of the four-day holiday, health officials have said there could be an upswing in cases due to earlier delays in reporting test results. (Rudavsky, 12/3)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Pa. Reports 11,000 New Cases Of COVID-19 In One Day, And Asks Public To Help Protect Hospitals From Filling
Pennsylvania shattered its record for coronavirus cases logged in a single day by a staggering amount Thursday, reporting more than 11,000 new infections — just one week after Thanksgiving, which experts had predicted could fuel a significant surge. The day’s increase continued the exponential trajectory of the virus’ spread since the start of November, when days with a few thousand newly reported cases broke records and caused alarm. And it means 50,000 Pennsylvanians have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in the last seven days. (McDaniel and McCarthy, 12/3)

Boston Globe: Baker Says Record-Setting Number Of COVID-19 Cases In State Shows Widespread Community Transmission
The pandemic reached alarming new levels Thursday as confirmed coronavirus cases in Massachusetts surged by nearly 6,500, shattering a record set just a day earlier, and the nation recorded 3,100 deaths from COVID-19, the highest single-day toll to date. State public health officials reported 49 more deaths, bringing the total during the pandemic to 10,637. Cases rose to 232,264, and new data showed that nearly 100 of the state’s 351 cities and towns are considered high-risk. (Fox and Andersen, 12/3)

KHN: Last Call For COVID: To Avoid Bar Shutdowns, States Serve Up Curfews 
As states and cities around the country enact curfews on bars and restaurants to limit the spread of COVID-19, many different calls are being made on “last call.” In Massachusetts, eateries must stop serving at 9:30 p.m. New York, Ohio and an increasing number of states are setting 10 p.m. closing times for indoor dining, while in Oklahoma, bars and restaurants can keep the rounds going until the wee hour of 11 p.m. In Virginia, alcohol has to be off the tables at 10 p.m., but restaurants can stay open until midnight. (Rau, 12/4)

Also —

Bangor Daily News: 8 Places Have Seen Repeat Virus Outbreaks As COVID-19 Surges To Record Levels In Maine
The coronavirus has been circulating in Maine for so long now, and is spreading so intensely this fall, that some nursing homes and other places that saw infectious outbreaks earlier in the pandemic are now facing them again. In some cases, their repeat bouts with the virus have been more dire. Five elder care centers have now had repeat outbreaks, which state public health officials define as three or more related cases. Two of them — Durgin Pines in Kittery and Clover Health Care in Auburn — have had particularly severe outbreaks this fall compared to the ones they surmounted last spring. (Eichacker, 12/3)

North Carolina Health News: Some Of The Worst NC COVID Outbreaks Are In Rural Areas 
Avery County was North Carolina’s last coronavirus holdout. In early May, as cases mounted elsewhere, the mountainous county had not seen a single case. By mid-May, however, the tiny border county had lost that distinction, as county officials reported a case. (Engel-Smith, 12/3)

KHN: After A Deadly COVID Outbreak, Maryland County Takes Steps To Protect Health Workers 
A Maryland health department is taking new steps to protect its workers six months after a COVID-19 outbreak killed a veteran employee who was twice denied permission to work from home. Chantee Mack, 44, died in May. More than 20 colleagues also caught the coronavirus, and some are suffering lasting problems. (Ungar, 12/4)

AP: Facebook To Remove COVID-19 Vaccine-Related Misinformation
Facebook said Thursday it will start removing false claims about COVID-19 vaccines, in its latest move to counter a tide of coronavirus-related online misinformation. In the coming weeks, the social network will begin taking down any Facebook or Instagram posts with false information about the vaccines that have been debunked by public health experts. (12/3)

NPR: Facebook Bans Debunked Claims About COVID-19 Vaccines
That includes posts that make false claims about how safe and effective the vaccines are, and about their ingredients and side effects. "For example, we will remove false claims that COVID-19 vaccines contain microchips, or anything else that isn't on the official vaccine ingredient list," Facebook's head of health, Kang-Xing Jin, said in a blog post. "We will also remove conspiracy theories about COVID-19 vaccines that we know today are false: like specific populations are being used without their consent to test the vaccine's safety." (Bond, 12/3)

CNBC: Facebook To Remove Misinformation About Covid Vaccines
Facebook’s policy has been to remove false claims about Covid-19 that it says could lead to “imminent physical harm,” such as posts promoting false cures or bogus conspiracy theories linking the virus to 5G. The company removed 12 million posts as a result of this policy between March and October. But it hadn’t yet taken a firm stance on vaccines, other than to ban ads that promote anti-vaccination conspiracy theories. (Brown, 12/3)

In other news about Facebook —

Brookings Institution: How Should Facebook And Twitter Handle Trump After He Leaves Office?
[President] Trump receives preferential treatment on social media due to his status as president. According to the Washington Post, Donald Trump has made over 22,000 false or misleading statements since he became president, almost 4,000 of which came from Twitter. Some of these inaccurate claims have been repeated hundreds of times both on and offline. Though a number of his falsehoods violate the community standard guidelines of Facebook and Twitter, they have not censored his posts nor removed his posting privileges. Instead, they flag particular statements as “disputed” and guide readers to alternative sources of information. (Robison and West, 12/2)

USA Today: Facebook Ranks Anti-Black Hate Speech Over Comments About White People
Facebook puts a higher priority on detecting and deleting racist slurs and hate speech against Black people, Muslims, Jews, the LGBTQ community and people of more than one race than on statements such as “White people are stupid” and “Men are pigs.” The company said Thursday its automated moderation systems are being retrained to focus on hate speech targeting historically marginalized and oppressed groups, which “can be the most harmful.”  (Guynn, 12/3)

AP: Fauci Apologizes For Suggesting UK Rushed Vaccine Decision
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, had sparked controversy with an earlier interview in which he said U.K. regulators hadn’t acted “as carefully” as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Fauci said late Thursday that he meant to say U.S. authorities do things differently than their British counterparts, not better, but his comments weren’t phrased properly. “I do have great faith in both the scientific community and the regulatory community at the U.K., and anyone who knows me and my relationship with that over literally decades, you know that’s the case,” Fauci told the BBC. (Kirka, 12/4)

The New York Times: After A Skirmish Over U.K. Vaccine Approval, Fauci Offers An Olive Branch
British and American officials sparred Thursday over how Britain had beaten the United States to authorizing a coronavirus vaccine, a debate touching upon both regulatory standards and politics that has heated up as wealthy countries vie to receive the first shipments of vaccines. Gavin Williamson, Britain’s education secretary, appeared to be crowing when he said that Britain had won the race to authorize the first fully tested coronavirus vaccine because its regulators were superior. (12/4)

In related news about the United Kingdom's COVID vaccine —

The Hill: Britain Will Compensate Citizens For Any COVID-19 Vaccine Side Effects 
Britain is set to provide payments to any citizen who experiences adverse side effects as a result of taking a coronavirus vaccine, the country announced Thursday. Pfizer and BioNTech will begin distributing their vaccines in the country soon, prompting the British government to line up precautionary measures. (Jenkins, 12/3)

The Hill: UK Nursing Home Residents May Have To Travel For Vaccine, Official Says 
A British official on Thursday said that some nursing home residents may have to travel to receive the coronavirus vaccine. “The NHS [National Health Service], the MHRA [Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency] are working really hard right now to try and find a solution, so that we can get this into care homes if we possibly can. ... At this point, there is no absolute assurance of that,” Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jonathan Van-Tam told ITV’s “This Morning,” according to Reuters. (Budryk, 12/3)

NPR: UK's Approval Of Pfizer Vaccine Should 'Give People Hope', Vaccine Expert Says
The United Kingdom gave emergency approval this week to a COVID-19 vaccine, and plans to begin rolling it out next week. Though Russia had previously approved a vaccine, the U.K. is the first country where regulators approved a vaccine that is backed by transparent science. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will consider granting its regulatory approval next week. Pfizer and BioNTech, a German firm, which developed the vaccine, say it is 95% effective based on the latest clinical trial involving 43,000 subjects. (Langfitt, 12/3)

AP: States Plan For Vaccines As Daily US Virus Deaths Top 3,100
States drafted plans Thursday for who will go to the front of the line when the first doses of COVID-19 vaccine become available later this month, as U.S. deaths from the outbreak eclipsed 3,100 in a single day, obliterating the record set last spring. With initial supplies of the vaccine certain to be limited, governors and other state officials are weighing both health and economic concerns in deciding the order in which the shots will be dispensed. (Metz and Foley, 12/4)

The Washington Post: Coronavirus Vaccine: VA Will Distribute Inoculations Within Weeks
The Department of Veterans Affairs expects to distribute coronavirus vaccines within a week or two, with a focus on inoculating high-risk veterans and staff members, VA officials told veteran group leaders on a call Thursday. Physicians and doctors treating veterans in covid-19 wards will be a priority for the vaccine, VA Secretary Robert Wilkie, who oversees the nation’s largest integrated health network, said on the call. (Horton, 12/3)

In other vaccine news —

Stat: CDC Advisory Panel Member Explains Vote Against Vaccine Priority Plan
When a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory committee voted Tuesday to recommend residents of long-term care facilities should be at the front of the line — with health care providers — for Covid-19 vaccines, the lone dissenting voice came from a researcher who studies vaccines in older adults. Helen Keipp Talbot — who is known by her middle name — raised serious concerns during the meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices about using the vaccines in the frail elderly, noting there are no data yet to suggest the vaccines work in this population. (Branswell, 12/3)

The Wall Street Journal: Pfizer Slashed Its Original Covid-19 Vaccine Rollout Target After Supply-Chain Obstacles 
Pfizer and Germany-based partner BioNTech SE had hoped to roll out 100 million vaccines world-wide by the end of this year, a plan that has now been reduced to 50 million. The U.K. on Wednesday granted emergency-use authorization for the vaccine, becoming the first Western country to start administering doses. (Paris, 12/3)

Bloomberg: Covid Vaccine Side-Effects Could Sideline Health-Care Workers During Case Surge
Covid-19 vaccine side-effects that range from fevers and chills to headaches and joint pain could keep some doctors and nurses from working amid a nationwide surge in hospitalizations. Health systems are gearing up to vaccinate key hospital staff with the Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. coronavirus shots, which could start shipping in the U.S. in a matter of weeks, pending emergency-use authorizations. (LaVito and Griffin, 12/3)

NPR: 'There's No Quick Fix For COVID-19,' Cautions Pennsylvania Secretary Of Health
For all the hope being placed in a coronavirus vaccine, Pennsylvania's secretary of health delivered a sobering note of caution Thursday on how long it will take to bring the pandemic under control. A vaccine is "the light at the end of the tunnel," she said, "but there's no quick fix to COVID-19. "In an interview with All Things Considered, Dr. Rachel Levine outlined a laundry list of issues that state health officials nationwide are racing to resolve now that two separate vaccines appear on the cusp of approval by the Food and Drug Administration. They cover everything from funding for distribution and how to safely store the vaccine at subzero temperatures, to more basic questions like how many doses will be available and when. (Breslow, 12/3)

Also —

CIDRAP: WHO Trial Finds No Benefit Of 4 Drugs For Hospital COVID Patients 
None of the four once-promising drugs evaluated for the treatment of COVID-19 in the ongoing World Health Organization (WHO) Solidarity Trial—remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir, or interferon-beta-1a—prevented in-hospital death, reduced the need for ventilation, or shortened the duration of hospitalization. The interim results of the open-label study, published yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine, involved randomly assigning hospitalized COVID-19 patients equally to whichever trial drugs were available locally or to a control group from Mar 22 to Oct 4. (Van Beusekom, 12/3)

AP: Among First Acts, Biden To Call For 100 Days Of Mask-Wearing
Joe Biden said Thursday that he will ask Americans to commit to 100 days of wearing masks as one of his first acts as president, stopping just short of the nationwide mandate he’s pushed before to stop the spread of the coronavirus. The move marks a notable shift from President Donald Trump, whose own skepticism of mask-wearing has contributed to a politicization of the issue. That’s made many people reticent to embrace a practice that public health experts say is one of the easiest ways to manage the pandemic, which has killed more than 275,000 Americans. The president-elect has frequently emphasized mask-wearing as a “patriotic duty” and during the campaign floated the idea of instituting a nationwide mask mandate, which he later acknowledged would be beyond the ability of the president to enforce. (Jaffe, 12/4)

CNN: President-Elect Says He Will Ask Americans To Wear Masks For The First 100 Days After He Takes Office 
Biden said that where he has authority, like in federal buildings or in interstate transportation on airplanes and buses, he will issue a standing order that masks must be worn. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says masks can help protect both the people wearing them and those around them from transmitting the virus. (Merica, 12/3)

The Hill: Biden To Urge Wearing Masks For First 100 Days In Office 
While Biden wants everyone to wear masks, he will not have the constitutional authority to directly order a nationwide mask mandate. Some experts have suggested he could tie federal funding to state mask laws and have said he could pressure local mayors to enact mandates on their own if governors are uncooperative. (Weixel, 12/3)

Newsweek: Biden's Mask Plea Stirs Outrage Among Trump Supporters As COVID Cases Top 14 Million
President-elect Joe Biden's plea for Americans to wear masks for 100 days was met with anger and defiance from supporters of President Donald Trump, underscoring the challenge of fighting a politicized pandemic in a deeply divided nation. As cases of COVID-19 surged past 14 million, Biden's opponents flooded social media with posts that questioned the science behind the mask appeal and other government responses that have wrecked the economy and constrained civil liberties. (Martin, 12/3)

The Hill: Biden Asked Fauci To Serve As Chief Medical Adviser 
President-elect Joe Biden on Thursday asked Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious diseases expert, to serve as his chief medical adviser. Biden told CNN's Jake Tapper in an interview that he asked Fauci to serve in the position in addition to staying on in his longtime role as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. (Manchester, 12/3)

The Washington Post: Biden Taps Murthy As Nation’s Top Doctor, Offers Fauci Key Role As Covid Team Takes Shape
President-elect Joe Biden has selected a close adviser to help lead the nation's response to the coronavirus crisis, tapping a veteran of the Obama administration to serve as America's top doctor as the country suffers from a surging pandemic. Vivek H. Murthy, a former U.S. surgeon general, has been asked to reprise the role in an expanded version in the new administration, according to an individual familiar with the decision. (Olorunnipa and Goldstein, 12/3)

Politico: Zients, Murthy Tapped To Head Up Biden’s Covid-19 Response 
President-elect Joe Biden has tapped two close allies to oversee his administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, according to two people familiar with the decision. Transition co-chair and former Obama administration official Jeff Zients is set to serve as the White House’s Covid-19 coordinator and Vivek Murthy, the former U.S. surgeon general under Obama, will return to that role, but with a broader portfolio that will include acting as the top medical expert and public face of the effort. (Ollstein and Pager, 12/3)

Politico: Raimondo Says She Won't Be Biden's Health Secretary 
Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo announced Thursday that she has taken herself out of contention to be President-elect Joe Biden’s health secretary. “I am not going to be President-elect Biden’s nominee for HHS secretary,” she said during a press conference on Thursday, declining to elaborate further. “My focus is right here in Rhode Island, as I have said.” (Cancryn and Ollstein, 12/3)

In related news —

AP: Next For Biden: Getting The Right Health Team As Virus Rages
Up soon for President-elect Joe Biden: naming his top health care officials as the coronavirus pandemic rages. It’s hard to imagine more consequential picks. Already two Democratic governors seen as candidates for health and human services secretary have faded from the frame. Rhode Island’s Gina Raimondo told reporters Thursday that she would not be the nominee and is staying to help her state confront a dangerous surge of COVID-19 cases. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 12/4)

Stat: Health Groups Voice Concern Biden Won’t Pick Health Experts For Cabinet
Prominent public health experts are pressuring President-elect Biden and his team to include a doctor or experienced health professional in the Cabinet — and growing increasingly alarmed this week that their warnings will go unheeded. (Facher, 12/3)

Fox News: Biden's HHS Frontrunners Say Gun Control Is A Health Issue
President-elect Joe Biden's top picks for the Department of Health & Human Services have both declared gun violence a public health issue in the past, much to the ire of gun rights activists and the National Rifle Association. Vivek Murthy, a former appointee to HHS under the Obama administration, has long accused politicians of being afraid of the NRA and playing politics with gun control efforts, particularly after the deadly shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School where 26 people, including 20 children-- were killed by a gunman. "Guns are a health care issue," Murthy said, in a resurfaced tweet, which put him at odds with Republicans and NRA officials when he was tapped for the post of U.S. Surgeon General under former President Barack Obama in 2014. (Rambaran, 12/3)

Politico: Wikipedia Page For Biden’s New Covid Czar Scrubbed Of Politically Damaging Material 
Jeff Zients, the man President-elect Joe Biden has put in charge of his administration’s response to Covid-19, "fell in love with" the culture at Bain & Co. He later founded his own private equity firm, Portfolio Logic. He joined the board of Facebook after the Cambridge Analytica scandal. One chief executive on Obama’s Jobs Council remarked that he thought Zients, then a top Obama aide, was a Republican. That was the Jeff Zients people read about on Wikipedia. At least, until a few months ago. (Thompson and Meyer, 12/3)

KHN: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Who Will Run The Biden Health Effort? 
The quadrennial guessing game about who will get what health job in a new presidential administration has taken on a new urgency in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage. Meanwhile, as two promising vaccine candidates inch closer to approval, the federal government is gearing up for the immense effort of delivering two shots to as many Americans as they can. (12/3)

KHN: KHN On The Air This Week
KHN correspondent Aneri Pattani discussed how Black faith communities provide support in the face of racial unrest and COVID-19 with Newsy on Thursday. And KHN chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner discussed President-elect Joe Biden’s plans for health policy and pandemic response with WBUR’s “Here & Now” on Monday. She also discussed the rollout of COVID vaccines with WDET’s “Detroit Today” on Tuesday. (12/4)

USA Today: Biden Says He'd Join Ex-Presidents In Taking COVID Vaccine Publicly
President-elect Joe Biden said he would publicly take a vaccine when it's available to encourage the public to get vaccinated, joining three former presidents who recently pledged to do the same. Biden said he'd "be happy" to join former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton in getting the vaccine in public to prove it is safe. (Behrmann, 12/3)

The Hill: Harris: 'Of Course I Will' Take COVID-19 Vaccine
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris confirmed Thursday that she would take the COVID-19 vaccine once it is approved by the Food and Drug Administration and made available to the public. During a joint interview with President-elect Joe Biden and Harris — their first since winning the election — CNN host Jake Tapper asked the vice president-elect if she would take the vaccine, to which she responded, "Of course I would." (Choi, 12/03)

The Hill: Jimmy And Rosalynn Carter Encourage People To Take COVID-19 Vaccine 
The Carter Center issued a statement Thursday saying former President Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter are encouraging Americans to take the COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available. “Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, said today that they are in full support of COVID-19 vaccine efforts and encourage everyone who is eligible to get immunized as soon as it becomes available in their communities,” the statement reads. (Coleman, 12/3)

The Hill: Fauci Says He'll Get COVID-19 Vaccination On Camera 
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci confirmed Thursday that he will take his eventual coronavirus vaccine on camera to build trust in the science behind it. During an episode of CBS News correspondent Major Garrett’s podcast “The Takeout,” the journalist told Fauci that former Presidents Bush, Clinton and Obama have all vowed to get their inoculations on camera in order to encourage others to do so. “Indeed, and as will I,” Fauci responded, adding that he would have the inoculation filmed “as soon as my turn comes up.” (Pitofsky, 12/3)

The Hill: COVID-19 Relief Picks Up Steam As McConnell, Pelosi Hold Talks 
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) held talks on Thursday about reaching a COVID-19 relief deal before Christmas, with both expressing a desire to quickly pass legislation, according to a senior aide to Pelosi. “The Speaker and Leader McConnell spoke at 12:45 p.m. today by phone about their shared commitment to completing an omnibus and COVID relief as soon as possible,” Drew Hammill, a spokesman for Pelosi, said Thursday afternoon. (Bolton, 12/3)

NPR: Momentum For Coronavirus Relief Bill Builds, But Time Short As Parties Work On Deal
While the two sides are getting closer in terms of the possible size of a package, key policy differences over liability protections and whether to help state and local governments continue to be the chief hang ups. The time pressure is also working against members, as pulling together a measure costing hundreds of billions of dollars in a matter of days is colliding with efforts to finalize a massive government funding bill. (Walsh and Grisales, 12/4)

The Washington Post: What’s In The $908 Billion Bailout: Stimulus Checks Are Out, Jobless Aid Is In 
Lawmakers have not yet released legislative text behind the plan, but a one-page summary provided by the group — titled the “COVID Emergency Relief Framework” — combines many of the central priorities of congressional leaders of each party, as well as those of President-elect Joe Biden. The framework would meet congressional Democrats’ top demands to provide hundreds of billions in aid to jobless Americans and hundreds of billions of dollars to hard-hit states and cities. (Stein, 12/3)

CNBC: The Next Covid Bill May Forgo $1,200 Checks. What Else Is On The Table
As the debate over the next round of coronavirus relief from Congress continues, additional $1,200 stimulus checks are on the chopping block. Still, there are other proposals on the table that could provide some financial assistance to Americans struggling amid the pandemic. (Reinicke, 12/3)

The Hill: Biden Backs $900B Compromise Coronavirus Stimulus Bill 
President-elect Joe Biden on Thursday described the $900 billion congressional stimulus proposal as a “good start” and said he believed Congress should pass it. “That would be a good start. It’s not enough,” Biden said during a Thursday interview with CNN host Jake Tapper. “I think it should be passed,” Biden continued. “I’m going to ask for more … when we get there to get things done.” (Chalfant, 12/03)

Meanwhile, economic hardship deepens for Americans —

AP: US Hiring Slows Sharply To 245,000 Jobs As Virus Intensifies
America’s employers sharply scaled back their hiring last month as the viral pandemic accelerated across the country, adding 245,000 jobs, the fewest since April and the fifth straight monthly slowdown. At the same time, the unemployment rate fell to a still-high 6.7%, from 6.9% in October, the Labor Department said. November’s job gain was down from 610,000 in October. (Rugaber, 12/4)

Reuters: U.S. Job Gains Miss Expectations In November; Unemployment Rate Falls To 6.7%
The closely watched employment report only covered the first two weeks of November, when the current wave of coronavirus infections started. Infections, hospitalizations and death rates have sky-rocketed, leading some economists to anticipate a drop in employment in December or January as more jurisdictions impose restrictions on businesses and consumers shun crowded places like restaurants. (Mutikani, 12/4)

USA Today: As COVID-19 Persists, More Americans Are Unemployed More Than Six Months. Is That A Stigma Even In A Pandemic?
As the health crisis drags on, a growing share of the workers it has idled have been jobless six months or longer, placing them among the ranks of the long-term unemployed. In October, 3.6 million Americans were unemployed for at least 27 weeks, up from 2.4 million in September and the most since March 2014. People in that category comprised one-third of the nation’s unemployed, and the November employment report, out Friday, is expected to show another surge in chronic joblessness.

AP: Hardships Mount In Kentucky As COVID-19 Relief Talks Drag On
Paula and Anthony Hunter spun off their catering service into a restaurant serving Italian food with a “touch of soul” right before the coronavirus hit. Soon, both Louisville businesses slammed to a halt, and the couple relied on federal relief to help stay afloat. They improvised to keep income flowing in, navigating a maze of food delivery mobile apps and prepping boxed lunches for health care workers toiling long hours at local hospitals. Now, hit with a recent statewide order closing restaurants to indoor dining until mid-December, the couple is hoping for another round of federal aid to hang on until a vaccine arrives. (Schreiner and Hudspeth Blackburn, 12/4)

Politico: Trump Extends National Guard’s Covid Funding Through March 
President Donald Trump on Thursday approved requests from nearly every state to extend federal funding for the National Guard’s Covid-19 relief work until the end of March. The authorization had been set to expire at the end of the year. The White House, however, denied requests for full federal funding and will instead require most states to continue picking up 25 percent of the tab. Florida and Texas, which had received a special carveout from the cost-sharing earlier this year — prompting accusations of political favoritism — will be cut back to 75 percent federal funding after Dec. 31. (Ollstein, 12/3)

The Washington Post: Mask-Free President Trump Confers Medal To Mask-Free Lou Holtz, Who’s Recovering From Covid-19 
Recognizing a man he described as “one of the greatest coaches in American history,” President Trump bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom upon former college football coach Lou Holtz during a ceremony Thursday at the Oval Office. ... Both Trump and Holtz have dealt with cases of covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Holtz, who is 83, revealed that he tested positive for coronavirus exactly two weeks before Thursday’s ceremony, telling a South Carolina television station that he didn’t “have a lot of energy right now.” Even so, and even though dozens of White House aides — including the chief of staff, the national security adviser and the press secretary — have contracted the virus, few were wearing masks during Thursday’s ceremony. (Bonesteel, 12/3)

CNN: Romney Calls Trump's Leadership On Covid-19 'A Great Human Tragedy' 
Republican Sen. Mitt Romney on Thursday blasted President Donald Trump's leadership -- or lack thereof -- during the deadly coronavirus pandemic as "a great human tragedy." "Well, this hasn't been the focus of his rhetoric, apparently, and I think it's a great human tragedy, without question," Romney told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on "The Situation Room" when asked where Trump's leadership is as the President focuses on other issues amid the worsening pandemic. (Mallonee and Cole, 12/3)

In news from the Department of Health and Human Services —

Modern Healthcare: HHS Calls For 'Holistic' Care Approach To Maternal Health
HHS unveiled a new action plan Thursday that outlined strategies for addressing maternal risk factors with an aim of reducing the country's maternal mortality rate by 50% by 2025. The action plan also eyes lowering the number of low-risk, cesarean deliveries by 25% over the next five years. Low-risk cesarean deliveries are first-time mothers delivering a single child headfirst at full term. Experts say these C-sections are mostly unnecessary and have been linked with longer hospital stays and higher risks of infection and bleeding. (Ross Johnson, 12/3)

Modern Healthcare: HHS: Hospice Providers May Use Grants To Offset Fundraising Losses
HHS appears poised to let hospice providers use federal relief grants to offset fundraising and thrift store revenue they lost due to COVID-19, although the agency's communication leaves room for interpretation. HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration chief wrote in a Dec. 2 letter to a hospice trade group that lost fundraising and thrift store revenue "may qualify as reimbursable lost revenue" under the Provider Relief Fund grant program. (Bannow, 12/3)

Becker's Hospital Review: HHS, Google Pilot Tool To Help Patients Plan Medical Visits  
Google began piloting a new tool Dec. 2 developed with HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality that aims to help people remember important questions they want to ask their physician during their healthcare visits. The tool assists users with creating a visit plan by selecting from evidence-based questions such as, "What is this test for?" as well as adding their own questions. Once the user is finished creating their question list, they can print or email it to bring to the physician's office to have during their appointment. (Drees, 12/2)

Roll Call: States Grapple With Plans For End To Coronavirus Public Health Emergency 
An end to the COVID-19 public health emergency would seem like good news for states. But state officials are dreading the end of that official designation because it will mean more work and less money for their Medicaid health coverage programs. (Raman, 12/3)

In news about Medicare —

CNBC: Medicare Beneficiaries Worry About Cost Of Treating Covid
The coronavirus pandemic may be an extra stressful time for Medicare beneficiaries. Not only are they generally in a high-risk group for Covid, most of them — about 83% — are worried about the cost of treating the virus if they contract it, according to a survey from MedicarePlans.com. Whether they need to be concerned is a separate consideration. (O'Brien, 12/3)

Stat: With Few Generics, Medicare Spending On Inhalers Is Climbing
Over a recent seven-year period, Medicare Part D spending on inhalers used to control respiratory problems increased $2 billion, or a whopping 44%, as more people used the devices, according to a new study. However, a lack of lower-cost generic options has also allowed prices to remain high. (Silverman, 12/3)

Modern Healthcare: Medicare Unveils Geographic Direct-Contracting Model
CMS' Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation on Thursday unveiled its highly anticipated Geographic Direct Contracting Model. The model—dubbed "Geo"—aims to improve health outcomes and lower healthcare costs for Medicare's fee-for-service beneficiaries across entire geographic regions by encouraging participants to work together to improve care coordination and care management. So-called direct-contracting entities, the Innovation Center's new name for accountable care organizations, "will implement regionwide care delivery and value-based payment," CMS said in a fact sheet. (Brady, 12/3)

Anchorage Daily News: State Puts Out A Hiring Call For Nurses, Contact Tracers, Data Analysts To Help With Alaska’s COVID-19 Response 
As the pandemic continues to grow, the state of Alaska is currently seeking to fill dozens of positions related to its COVID-19 response, including public health nurses, data analysts, administrators and contact tracers. That’s according to a social media post shared by the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services on Thursday announcing the positions, with a link to the state’s website. “We need smart, committed people who want to help solve a pandemic with us,” said Dr. Anne Zink, the state’s chief medical officer, during a media briefing on Thursday. (Berman, 12/3)

The Oklahoman: Oklahoma Nurses Ask Stitt Administration For Recruiting Help Amid Shortage
Facing a nursing shortage even before the pandemic, nurses and educators said Thursday they met with Stitt administration officials this week about recruiting more nurses and imposing a mask mandate.State officials were receptive to the idea of a state-sponsored marketing campaign to recruit former nurses back into the workforce, according to Cathy Pierce, chief nurse executive for OU Medicine. The nurses have also proposed using federal coronavirus relief money to fund refresher courses and educate more nursing students. Pierce said they also proposed the state contract with a staffing agency with experience recruiting healthcare professionals. (Casteel, 12/4)

Houston Chronicle: Healthcare Professionals Campus Aims To Fill Houston’s Pandemic Demands
As the coronavirus pandemic continues, the demand for more people certified to provide medical technical and therapeutic support is growing in the Texas Medical Center. Allied health care professionals, which include medical assistants, anesthesiologists, clinical laboratory technicians, radiologists and paramedics, among other roles, are in high demand to alleviate some of the burden on doctors and nurses, said Dr. Himesh Lakhlani, president of The College of Health Care Professions’ new Med Center Campus at 2616 South Loop W. (Dellinger, 12/3)

Modern Healthcare: Many Healthcare Organizations Are Reusing PPE
Many infection preventionists working at hospitals and other healthcare organizations claim frontline workers are reusing personal protective equipment as surges of COVID-19 occur across the U.S. A survey released Thursday by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology found of the 1,083 infection preventionists who responded, 68.7% reported extended use or reuse was being applied to surgical masks while 73% said the policy was used for respirators. Additionally, 43.8% said isolation gowns and 10% said gloves were being worn more than once or for an extended time period. (Castellucci, 12/3)

Boston Globe: Hospitals Work To Reduce Risk Of COVID Spread Among Employees
At Massachusetts General Hospital, the lobbies and atriums are dotted with small tables, about the size of school desks, where employees can eat lunch by themselves. The break rooms at Tufts Medical Center have stickers marking distances of 6 feet, so workers don’t have to guess how far apart they are when they remove their masks to eat a sandwich. And at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, plexiglass has taken over the cafeterias. (Dayal McCluskey, 12/3)

The Washington Post: Besieged By Covid, Health-Care Workers Ask Governors To Impose Restrictions 
With few options left, overwhelmed doctors and other caregivers are appealing directly to governors for relief from the staggering increases in hospitalized covid-19 patients as the virus surges across the country. In Connecticut, Tennessee, Missouri and Mississippi, physicians have issued unusually public pleas for stronger responses to the pandemic as hospitals and their staffs near a breaking point. The number of hospitalized covid-19 patients surpassed 100,000 on Wednesday, placing enormous strain on the nation’s acute care hospitals, where there are roughly 730,000 beds. (Bernstein, 12/3)

The Baltimore Sun: As Maryland Hospitals Again Fill With Coronavirus Patients, Weary Front-Line Workers Push Through To Care For Them 
Shannon Queen spends much of her 12-hour shifts at Baltimore’s Good Samaritan Hospital carefully putting on and removing gowns, masks and gloves so she can tend to COVID-19 patients that have pushed her unit to capacity in the past couple of weeks. There is a balance, the veteran nurse says, in protecting herself and providing care and support for patients. (Cohn and Miller, 12/3)

Also —

The Baltimore Sun: Dr. Lionel Desbordes, Obstetrician Who Delivered Thousands Of Babies, Dies 
Dr. Lionel A. Desbordes, an obstetrician and gynecologist who delivered thousands of babies during a lengthy career, and who was among the founders of the Garwyn Medical Center, died of heart failure Nov. 27 at Brighton Gardens of Columbia. The longtime Forest Park resident was 97. (Kelly, 12/3)

KHN: What Happened When The Only ER Doctor In A Rural Town Got COVID
Kurt Papenfus, a doctor in Cheyenne Wells, Colorado, started to feel sick around Halloween. He developed a scary cough, intestinal symptoms and a headache. In the midst of a pandemic, the news that he had COVID-19 wasn’t surprising, but Papenfus’ illness would have repercussions far beyond his own health. Papenfus is the lone full-time emergency room doctor in the town of 900, not far from the Kansas line. (Daley, 12/4)

Modern Healthcare: HHS Boosts Telehealth Across State Lines, COVID-19 Liability Protection
The Trump administration on Thursday increased access to COVID-19 telehealth services and made it easier for providers to get liability protection for coronavirus-related medical countermeasures. HHS allowed healthcare professionals using telehealth to order COVID-19 diagnostic testing and other countermeasures for patients outside the state where they're already allowed to practice. According to the department, HHS' new policy overrides any state law that bans, or effectively bans, out-of-state healthcare professionals from delivering coronavirus-related medical countermeasures. (Brady, 12/3)

Modern Healthcare: Next Steps For Telehealth Require Congressional Action, Experts Say
Telehealth advocates are homing in on the next big challenge to solidify virtual care's gains during the COVID-19 pandemic: urging congressional action. "That's really our No. 1 federal priority," said Kyle Zebley, director of public policy at the American Telemedicine Association. The latest Medicare physician fee schedule, released earlier this week, offers a powerful step forward for telehealth by adding more than 60 services to the list of telehealth services that Medicare will pay for in 2021. But experts noted that without new legislation, CMS' efforts to expand video-based telehealth will continue to be stifled by restrictions outside the agency's control. (Kim Cohen, 12/3)

Stat: Ex-Uber Health Exec Launches Startup To Bridge Telehealth And Home Care
Telemedicine has become a lifeline during the Covid-19 pandemic, but it is not enough help for many patients whose medical needs demand in-person care. It is that yawning gap in service that ex-Uber Health leader Dan Trigub and partner Inna Plumb are targeting with a new company called MedArrive, which was launched out of stealth mode Thursday. (Ross, 12/3)

In other health care industry news —

The Wall Street Journal: Capital One CFO To Leave For Health-Insurance Startup 
Capital One Financial Corp.’s finance chief is leaving the bank to take over the finance department at Oscar Health Insurance Corp., an insurance startup. McLean, Va.-based Capital One, which also offers credit cards, auto loans and savings accounts, on Thursday said Chief Financial Officer R. Scott Blackley resigned, effective March 1. He will take up his new post as the CFO of Oscar on March 16, the insurance provider said. (Maurer, 12/3)

KHN: Think Your Health Care Is Covered? Beware Of The ‘Junk’ Insurance Plan 
Looking back, Sam Bloechl knows that when the health insurance broker who was helping him find a plan asked whether he’d ever been diagnosed with a major illness, that should have been a red flag. Preexisting medical conditions don’t matter when you buy a comprehensive individual plan that complies with the Affordable Care Act. Insurers can’t turn people down or charge them more based on their medical history. But Bloechl, now 31, didn’t know much about health insurance. So when the broker told him a UnitedHealthcare Golden Rule plan would cover him for a year for less than his marketplace plan — “Unless you like throwing money away, this is the plan you should buy,” he recalls the agent saying — he signed up. (Andres, 12/4)

Politico: Teachers Should Be A Priority For Covid Vaccines, Unions And Others Say 
Teachers should be near the front of the line for access to a coronavirus vaccine, according to unions, school officials and state lawmakers who say educators’ immunity is key to safely reopening schools for in-person classes. Giving educators their turn, just after the first wave of vaccines goes to health care workers and nursing home residents, would help schools get more students back in physical classrooms, said Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, which also represents health care workers. (Gaudiano, 12/3)

Philadelphia Inquirer: School Nurses Have New Roles On The Frontline During The Pandemic
School nurses have been on the frontline since the pandemic closed schools last spring. Many have helped prepare reopening plans, taken temperatures, enforced social distancing and sanitation rules, ensured mask wearing, distributed lunches, monitored outbreaks, conducted contact tracings, and consulted with local health departments. (Burney and Graham, 12/3)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: Thousands Of Students, Staff Quarantined As Coronavirus Rises In New Orleans Area Schools
Statewide, Louisiana’s coronavirus cases continue to surge. On Wednesday, Jefferson public schools reported 147 positive cases, an increase of 52 cases, or 56%, over the numbers reported on Nov. 18. The 1,638 quarantining students and staff was almost 400 more than were quarantined on Nov. 18. Public schools in New Orleans saw a similar bump, where data showed nearly half of all schools had at least one active case on Thursday. NOLA Public Schools officials reported 82 new cases this week, and 839 students and staff in quarantine, a 51% increase from the last time the school system shared its data Nov. 19. (Hasselle and Roberts, 12/3)

AP: School Closings Threaten Gains Of Students With Disabilities
Without any in-school special education services for months, 14-year-old Joshua Nazzaro’s normally sweet demeanor has sometimes given way to aggressive meltdowns that had been under control before the pandemic. The teenager, who has autism and is nonverbal, often wanted no part of his online group speech therapy sessions, and when he did participate, he needed constant hands-on guidance from aides hired by his family. He briefly returned to his private Denville, New Jersey, school for two days a week, but surging coronavirus infections quickly pushed learning back online through at least Dec. 10. (Thompson, 12/3)

The Washington Post: University Of Maryland Student Government Offers $400,000 To Support Students During Coronavirus Pandemic 
When the University of Maryland’s Student Government Association decided to redistribute more than $400,000 to support classmates during the pandemic, there were no excuses, no delays, no political arguments. Students are struggling, said Dan Alpert, the student body president, and the choice to disburse thousands in unused dollars was a no-brainer. (Lumpkin, 12/3)

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: Walmart Sites Offer Virus-Test Packages
Walmart Inc. said Thursday that access to covid-19 home-test collection kits is now available through its e-commerce sites Walmart.com and SamsClub.com. The kits, supplied by myLAB Box, range in price from $99 to $135. It is unclear whether the tests are covered by health insurers. Lori Flees, senior vice president and chief operating officer of health and wellness for Walmart U.S., said in a release that the company has made several test-kit options available. (McKay, 12/4)

The Washington Post: Airbnb Announces Covid-19 Rules For New Year’s Eve
With the coronavirus pandemic breaking grim records in the United States, Airbnb has announced stringent restrictions for New Year’s Eve bookings to discourage unauthorized house parties and large gatherings in the interest of public health. “We have carefully developed this New Year’s Eve initiative informed by [host] feedback along with a review of our data, systems and tools,” Airbnb said in a statement. “We believe this plan will help prevent large gatherings while supporting the type of safe, responsible travel that benefits guests, hosts and the neighborhoods they call home.” (Compton, 12/3)

Las Vegas Review Journal: New Year’s Eve Party Plans For Downtown Las Vegas Blocked
America’s Party appears to be canceled for now. The Fremont Street Experience does not have permission to host its annual New Year’s Eve celebration in downtown Las Vegas unless COVID-19 cases drop dramatically, according to documents obtained by the Review-Journal. It’s the second major Las Vegas Valley event designed to ring in the new year that will not happen in 2020. The Strip’s world-famous fireworks show was canceled by local government officials in October, also over public health concerns. (Scott Davidson, 12/3)

AP: No Fans To Be Allowed At Rose Bowl For CFP Semifinal Game
No spectators will be allowed at the Rose Bowl for the College Football Playoff semifinal on Jan. 1 because of COVID-19 restrictions imposed by the state, county and city of Pasadena. The Tournament of Roses said Thursday that it requested special permission to allow for a limited number of spectators or a select number of guests of players and coaches at the 90,888-seat stadium but was denied. (Harris, 12/3)

The New York Times: Warner Bros. Says All 2021 Films Will Stream On HBO Max Right Away
In a startling move that marked the biggest challenge yet to Hollywood’s traditional way of doing business, Warner Bros. announced on Thursday that 17 movies — its entire 2021 slate — would each arrive simultaneously in theaters and on its sibling streaming service, the underperforming HBO Max. ... Even with a widely deployed vaccine, which is expected in the coming months, WarnerMedia does not believe that moviegoing in the United States will recover until at least next fall, an assessment that stands in sharp contrast with what other major movie studios and multiplex chains have signaled. (Barnes and Sperling, 12/3)

Also —

CIDRAP: Study: Kids, Adults Equally Susceptible To In-Home COVID-19 Spread
A study published today in Pediatrics found that children in two states were just as likely as adults to become infected with COVID-19 within their households, and while kids spread the virus in one fifth of homes, their lack of severe symptoms may have allowed their infections to otherwise escape detection. Led by researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the study enrolled 58 households with 120 adult and 68 pediatric contacts from March to May in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Salt Lake City, Utah. The study involved administering questionnaires and collecting blood and respiratory samples. (Van Beusekom, 12/3)

The Hill: 102-Year-Old Woman Beats COVID-19 Twice
A 102-year-old woman living in New York has contracted the coronavirus — and beaten it — twice. Angelina Friedman, who survived the 1918 Spanish Flu and cancer, first tested positive for COVID-19 in March. During her first bout with the disease she had a relatively mild experience... Upon contracting the virus a second time in October, shortly before her birthday, she got seriously ill. (Polus, 12/3)

The Hill: Fox News Co-Host Juan Williams Tests Positive For COVID-19 
Juan Williams, co-host of the Fox News afternoon talk show “The Five,” has tested positive for COVID-19, the television personality confirmed with The Hill. Williams, who is also a columnist at The Hill, said he was informed that he had tested positive Thursday after a routine Monday weekly test at Fox News’s New York headquarters. Upon receiving the news, he took another test, which confirmed he was carrying the virus. (Castronuovo, 12/3)

AP: Overdose Deaths Increase 31% In First Half Of 2020
Drug overdose deaths in Minnesota increased 31% in the first half of 2020, compared to the same time in 2019, state health officials said Thursday. The Minnesota Department of Health said there were 490 overdose deaths from January to June 2020 and 373 deaths during the same time last year. (12/3)

Boston Globe: Lawmakers Reach $46 Billion Budget Deal That Would Expand Abortion Access In Mass.
Massachusetts legislative leaders late Thursday filed a $46.2 billion budget accord they said would drain the state’s emergency savings beyond what lawmakers had initially approved and expand abortion access, including allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to get an abortion without a parent’s consent. The spending agreement hatched between a six-member committee is expected to surface Friday in the House and Senate, leaving lawmakers less than a day to digest the sprawling document. (Stout, 12/3)

Tampa Bay Times: Death Certificates Of Hillsborough Lynching Victims Omit Crime. Time For Change?
Robert Johnson’s death certificate says that he was murdered on Jan. 30, 1934. That’s true, but it doesn’t reveal that he was lynched. “He wasn’t just murdered,” Tampa City Councilman Luis Viera said. “He was lynched because he was Black. That should not be ignored.” News archives say Johnson was kidnapped and taken to a wooded area in Tampa where he was shot in front of a mob of nearly 30 people. Viera is now among those advocating for Johnson’s death certificate to be amended to include that he was lynched. ... Florida’s Bureau of Vital Statistics website says that changing the cause of death requires documentation. That exists for Johnson. On Jan. 30, 1934, the Tampa Daily Times headline reads, “Negro slain by lynchers in Tampa.” (Guzzo, 12/4)

In news from Maryland —

The Baltimore Sun: The Baltimore City Health Department Is Texting You To Get A Flu Shot. Here’s Why. 
Received a text from the Baltimore City Health Department within the past few days? It’s not a scam. The health department started texting residents Wednesday to remind them to get a flu shot. (Oxenden, 12/4)

The Baltimore Sun: Baltimore Mayor-Elect Brandon Scott Tests Negative And Is Quarantining After Being Exposed To Coronavirus 
Baltimore City Council President and Mayor-elect Brandon Scott was exposed to the coronavirus last weekend, according to a news release issued early Thursday night. Scott, 36, has tested negative for the virus twice since being notified about the exposure Saturday and three times prior. He said in the release he has been quarantining and following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations. (Oxenden, 12/4)

The Baltimore Sun: 45-Year Baltimore City Department Of Public Works Employee Dies After Contracting Coronavirus 
A 45-year Baltimore City Department of Public Works employee died after contracting the coronavirus, the agency said Thursday. Charles Johnson, a plant operations supervisor at the Patapsco Wastewater Treatment Plant, tested positive for COVID-19 at the beginning of November, the agency said in a news release. He spent the past two weeks in an intensive care unit before dying. (Oxenden, 12/3)

CNN: Maryland Authorities Raced To Find And Stop A Child Positive For Covid-19 From Boarding A Flight 
Maryland State Police were informed by a local health officer at 3 p.m. on November 24 that a young boy who was about to board a plane with his family had tested positive for Covid-19, State Police Sgt. Travis Nelson told CNN. The health officer told police they had been unable to reach the 9-year-old child's mother. The family was scheduled to depart from Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) in less than two hours. (Riess and Maxouris, 12/4)

Reuters: China's Clover Says Its COVID-19 Vaccines Trigger 'Strong Immune Responses' In Early Trial 
Two coronavirus vaccine candidates developed by China’s Clover Biopharmaceuticals triggered strong immune responses in an early-stage human trial and appeared to be safe, the company said on Friday. The vaccine candidates, one containing an adjuvant from GlaxoSmithKline and the other from Dynavax, induced strong immune responses including neutralizing antibodies and cell-mediated immunity in a Phase 1 clinical trial, Clover said. Adjuvants are ingredients that can boost immune responses. (12/4)

In other global developments —

Politico: U.N. Hosts The World’s Weirdest Summit On Covid-19
It took the United Nations General Assembly nine months to arrange a special session dedicated to discussing the Covid-19 pandemic. No one, not even the organizers, knew what to expect from the two-day virtual summit that kicked off Thursday. The prevailing mood so far has been one of head-scratching: about why the event took so long to organize, and what point there was in holding it now. (Heath and Paun, 12/3)

AP: UN Chief: Vaccine Can't Undo Damage From Global Pandemic
The U.N. chief warned Thursday that the social and economic impact of COVID-19 “is enormous and growing” and said it’s foolish to believe a vaccine can undo damage from the global pandemic that will last for years or even decades. Speaking to world leaders at the General Assembly’s first and mainly virtual special session on COVID-19, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres accused some countries he didn’t name of ignoring or rejecting the World Health Organization’s recommendations at the start of the crisis early this year, resulting in nations going in their own directions and the virus spreading “in every direction.” (Lederer, 12/4)

AP: Turkey Announces Vaccination Plan For Chinese CoronaVac
Turkey’s health minister has announced a plan to start using an experimental Chinese COVID-19 vaccine later this month amid a surge in infections and deaths. Fahrettin Koca had previously announced an agreement with China’s Sinovac Biotech for 50 million doses of CoronaVac, which is currently in late stage trials. Koca said in a statement late Wednesday that the first shipment of the vaccine will arrive in Turkey after Dec. 11. (Bilginsoy, 12/3)

The New York Times: E.U. Privacy Rule Would Rein In The Hunt For Online Child Sexual Abuse 
A rule scheduled to take effect on Dec. 20 would inhibit the monitoring of email, messaging apps and other digital services in the European Union. It would also restrict the use of software that scans for child sexual abuse imagery and so-called grooming by online predators. The practice would be banned without a court order. European officials have spent the past several weeks trying to negotiate a deal allowing the detection to continue. But some privacy groups and lawmakers argue that while the criminal activity is abhorrent, scanning for it in personal communications risks violating the privacy rights of Europeans. (Dance and Satariano, 12/4)

Bloomberg: Money Could Motivate Some People To Get A Covid-19 Vaccine, Survey Shows
Economists have suggested paying people to get a Covid-19 vaccine, but there’s never been a survey to find out whether payments would work. Now there is, and the results are … murky. A Harris Poll conducted Nov. 19-21 asked about 2,000 Americans how much the government should pay if it were to pay people to get a vaccine against the novel coronavirus. Of those, 24% mentioned sums of $100 or less, 16% mentioned higher amounts. (Coy, 11/24)

Los Angeles Times: The Real Reasons Black People Won't Trust COVID-19 Vaccines
As a Black man and a nurse practitioner working at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs hospital in Long Beach, Walter Perez hears a lot of cringeworthy stuff from his Black patients. Like how the forthcoming COVID-19 vaccines won’t be safe because Big Pharma is cutting corners to make more money. Or how the medical establishment wants to use Black people as guinea pigs to test those vaccines. Or how the vaccines could actually prove more harmful than getting COVID-19. The list goes on. “The only way I can describe it is there’s a paranoia,” Perez said. “A lot of people are just really paranoid about it.” (Smith, 11/29)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Underreporting Has Plagued FDA Side Effects Tracking System
For decades, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's adverse events system has been the primary surveillance tool for monitoring potential side effects caused by drugs after they get on the market. However, the largely voluntary system has been plagued by underreporting of adverse events since its inception. (Fauber, 11/30)

Southern California News Group: Here's How California Plans To Vaccinate 40 Million People
It’s an audacious, unprecedented task straight out of “Mission Impossible”: Inoculate some 40 million people in a matter of months with a coronavirus vaccine. California is on the cusp of a mass campaign that faces colossal complexities, and it only starts with the now-well-publicized challenge of having enough cold storage for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines once they finally arrive. (Sforza, 11/29)

Bloomberg: How France Could Vaccinate A Nation Of Skeptics Against Covid
A Covid-19 vaccine is getting closer, and governments are scrambling to meet the financial and logistical challenge of immunizing their populations in a short space of time. Hopes for a pickup in global economic growth next year depend on it. But the bigger challenge may end up being psychological: How to convince people to actually take the shot. Achieving herd immunity may mean at least 80% of people will need the vaccine, leaving little room for error. (Laurent, 11/30)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Coronavirus Pandemic Pushes Health Care Industry To Go More Virtual
When 2020 began, many segments of the health care industry were making a steady march toward using telemedicine more to treat patients. Then the pandemic happened. That steady march became an insistent sprint, as the industry scrambled to provide care for patients who were unable to see a physician in person because of lockdowns, quarantines or other restrictions necessitated by COVID-19. (Dohr, 11/24)

Indianapolis Star: New Organ Donation Rules Open Door To Living Liver Transplants
For years IU Health had little trouble finding sufficient livers for patients who required a transplant, said Dr. Shekhar Kubal, surgical director of the liver transplant program. Last winter, the United Network for Organ Sharing changed its rules for how livers are allocated to allow greater geographic equity. Now about 70% of livers donated in Indiana head outside the state, meaning patients here must be sicker and wait longer before becoming candidates for a deceased liver. (Rudavsky, 11/30)

Also —

The Atlantic: Galaxy Brain Is Real
“Some people do have the sense when they’re looking across millions of light-years, that our ups and downs are ultimately meaningless on that scale,” says David Yaden, a research scientist in psychopharmacology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and who has studied self-transcendent experiences, including in astronauts. “But I think [space images] can also draw our attention to the preciousness of local meaning—our loved ones, people close to us, this Earth. It’s not a leap that I think always occurs, but I think the benefits flow to people who do make that leap." (Koren, 12/1)

Los Angeles Times: An Infant Dies, A Millionaire Doctor Calls 911, And A Tale Emerges Of Drugs, Love And Suspected Crime
The death of a newborn named Boaz Yoder in an Altadena apartment seemed at first glance like a case of sudden infant death syndrome. His mother told investigators she had put the baby boy to sleep under blankets on a chilly autumn night in 2017 and found him the next morning lifeless in his crib. The closer investigators from the sheriff’s Homicide Bureau looked, however, the more doubts they had. The search for the truth plunged Dets. Mike Davis and Gene Morse into a murky world of desperate young addicts and small-time drug dealers with a disgraced multimillionaire at the center: Dr. Carmen Puliafito, the former dean of USC’s Keck School of Medicine. (Hamilton and Rayan, 12/2)

The New York Times: Can These Period Underwear Crusaders Convert You?
The concept of “blood” and “bleeding” is generally avoided in mass marketing for period products. It was only recently, and with some fanfare, that commercials showed red liquid being absorbed, instead of blue. But when it comes to period underwear — an increasingly popular type of underwear made with extra-absorbent fabric — it’s difficult to avoid. At least when talking to the founders of the Period Company, a brand that was introduced in October, touting period underwear that was more affordable and sustainable than other menstrual products. For them, bleeding is a kind of profound act. (Testa, 12/2)

USA Today: COVID-19 Vaccine Injects Urgency For The Right Vaccination Distribution
Operation Warp Speed helped drive rapid creation of new vaccines and has been a spectacular success for the Trump administration, which has otherwise monumentally mishandled the coronavirus crisis. Two vaccines developed in record time are on the cusp of emergency approval by the Food and Drug Administration. But Operation Warp Speed is only partially completed. As public health officials say, a vaccine is one thing and a vaccination program is another. The virus cannot be quelled — and, in fact, it is raging across America — until hundreds of millions of doses are manufactured and distributed and most people agree to take them. That's months away. In the meantime, much can still go awry, particularly in this delicate transition period from the Trump to Biden administrations. (12/3)

The Wall Street Journal: The FDA’s Political Inoculation 
The FDA has long been cautious when approving new medicines, which has resulted in delayed treatments for life-threatening diseases like cancer. But its self-protective instinct and desire to compensate for reckless politicians endanger public health. (12/3)

The Washington Post: The Pandemic’s Lessons Are Clear And Simple. We Must Act Now.
The United States is approaching a grim milestone, recording nearly as many deaths in a single day from the coronavirus pandemic as the 2,977 people who died in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Both the victims of terrorism and the virus were cut down, their lives ended prematurely and beyond their control. But the current threat is not beyond our control. The wave of infections now swamping the country will seed even more sickness and death unless we — the survivors — stand up and stop it. (12/3)

CNN: How Elvis Presley Can Help Us With A Covid Vaccine 
On October 28, 1956, a young Elvis Presley went on "The Ed Sullivan Show." A phenom who had burst onto the national music scene earlier that year with his first album, he played "Hound Dog" and did some slick dance moves... But what really makes that night so memorable is that before his performance, viewers watched Presley get his polio vaccine on television. It made headlines and, critically, also helped convince teens and young adults -- people who thought they weren't at risk -- that they needed a vaccine too in order to help defeat the deadly disease. (David M. Perry, 12/3)

Boston Globe: Testing Key To Reopening Public Schools
In the blunt words of the nation’s chief infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, “Close the bars and keep the schools open.” Well, the bars in Massachusetts are still closed, a sensible measure to limit transmission of the coronavirus (even though casino gambling and indoor dining persist). But hundreds of schools also remain closed, which means hundreds of thousands of youngsters are learning remotely. That in turn impacts the work lives of their parents. Fauci’s point, of course, was that indefinite remote learning isn’t healthy, especially for young children, for children with special needs, and for their pandemic-exhausted parents. (12/4)

Los Angeles Times: Learning From The Pandemic About What Works On Homelessness
Sometimes the answer to a complex problem lies right in front of our eyes. Faced with the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring, California was forced to find a way to get people living on the street into shelter as quickly as possible. The successful strategy it employed shows how we can combine urgency with greater resources to deal with our growing homelessness crisis in a post-pandemic world. Back in April, Gov. Gavin Newsom launched Project Roomkey with $100 million in state funding to move people indoors and prevent what public health experts feared would be the rapid spread of COVID-19 through homeless camps. State and county negotiators teamed up to lease thousands of hotel rooms and turn them into temporary shelter. (Darrell Steinberg, 12/4)

Stat: How To Ethically And Practically Extend Health Care To All 
The long-standing debate over whether health care is a right or a privilege seems particularly heartless during a global pandemic. Guided in part by aftereffects of the pandemic, we believe there is a straightforward way to equitably resolve this contentious issue. (Charles E. Binkley and Richard Levy, 12/3)

Stat: Misguided Federal Regulations Are Likely To Cause More Pain In People Already Living With It
Hidden in the shadows of the Covid-19 pandemic is the U.S.’s drug epidemic, which is getting worse. One group that is paying the price for it, but shouldn’t be, are people who live with chronic pain conditions. (Vanila Singh, 12/2)

Boston Globe: 2020′S Other Epidemic: Violence Against The Trans Community
It took an Academy Award-nominated actor coming out as transgender to garner national attention for the epidemic of violence against the trans community. During its story about Elliot Page, acclaimed for his performance in the film “Juno” and currently starring in “The Umbrella Academy” on Netflix, “NBC Nightly News With Lester Holt“ reported that at least 40 trans and gender nonconforming people, most of them Black and Latinx women, have been murdered in the United States and Puerto Rico this year. That breaks 2017′s record of 31. “The discrimination toward trans people is rife, insidious, and cruel, resulting in horrific consequences,” Page said in a tweet. “To the political leaders who work to criminalize trans health care and deny our right to exist and to all of those with a massive platform who continue to spew hostility toward the trans community: you have blood on your hands.” (Renee Graham, 12/4)

The New York Times: Will We Get The Coronavirus Relief We Need From Congress? 
If we can’t get a Covid-19 relief package through Congress in the next week or two, we’re sunk. It means we have a legislative branch so ideologically divided it can’t address even our most glaring problems. It means we have representatives so lacking in the willingness and ability to compromise that minimally competent government will be impossible, even under a President Joe Biden.The problems a basic relief measure would address couldn’t be more obvious. Under current law, up to 12 million Americans could lose their jobless benefits by year’s end — a wretched Christmastime for millions of families, which could spawn a wave of depression, morbidity, family breakdown and suicide. (David Brooks, 12/3)

Los Angeles Times: With COVID-19 Rules, Some California Democrats Are Hypocrites
On Tuesday, three more high-ranking California elected officials joined Gov. Gavin Newsom in the What Were They Thinking? club. Newsom, you may recall, attended a dinner at the ritzy French Laundry in Napa Valley in early November to celebrate the birthday of a lobbyist friend in a group larger than the state recommends is safe. Was it technically allowable? Perhaps, but it was still incredibly bad optics for the person leading the state’s COVID-19 pandemic response to be spotted partying at one of the most exclusive and expensive restaurants in the country just as new cases were surging in his home state and new restrictions were looming. (Mariel Garza, 12/2)

New York Post: Democrats Undermining COVID With 'Do As I Say, Not As I Do'
As the nation tires of quarantines, boredom and loneliness, the same politicians who find glee in slapping wrists and dooming small businesses regularly break the rules, in letter and in spirit, when they want to. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, dining maskless and indoors with lobbyists at the tony French Laundry restaurant the same week he warned against Thanksgiving gatherings. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, having her hair done and joining in a riotous Joe Biden victory celebration in violation of her own restrictions — then having the gall to call her actions “essential ­activities.” (12/3)

New York Post: Cuomo's Political Vaccine Games Now Endangering Lives
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s politicization of the coronavirus vaccines is clearly endangering New Yorkers’ health. It was already old; now he must quit it. Wednesday, after announcing that New York will get 170,000 vaccine doses to distribute by mid-December, the gov, without skipping a beat, slammed the feds for failing to provide the state with “any funding to speak of” to distribute the vaccine. Untrue: Federal sources told The Post that the state has more than $7.5 million available for just that, thanks to the CARES Act — but Cuomo hasn’t spent a dime. The city has a separate $6.6 million in untapped federal funds for vaccine distribution. (12/3)

Fox News: The Christmas Lockdowns Are Here -- But Not For Those Who Ordered Them
Christmas is almost here. Usually, it's the happiest time that we have. This year of all years, Christmas has a deeper resonance, something closer to its original meaning. In a time of crisis, you inevitably start thinking about the things you might ignore if you were busier and more content. In general, people tend to become more spiritual, more openly religious when they're suffering. It's not an accident, in fact, it may be the upside of suffering. You get to think beyond the next Amazon delivery for a minute. (Tucker Carlson, 12/4)

The New York Times: People Will Travel For The Holidays Despite Covid-19. Stop Judging Them.
Last month, a war erupted in America over whether to celebrate Thanksgiving if it involved visiting family and friends. My Twitter feed was filled with people railing against scenes of crowded airports, as if those traveling to see loved ones were attacking them personally. These angry judgments put people on the defensive. They fear they will be reproached for their choices. They’re not wrong. When we see people gathering in groups or going about without a mask or engaging in other activities we deem unsafe, we condemn them. Too often, we do so publicly. (Aaron E. Carroll, 12/4)

The Oklahoman: 54 Deaths Should Be Virus Wake-Up Call For Oklahomans
Medical officials across the country fear last week’s Thanksgiving gatherings will produce a spike in positive cases in the weeks ahead. Going forward, meanwhile, Oklahomans must embrace practices shown to help curb the spread of the virus — washing hands frequently, keeping distance from others, and wearing a mask in public. Fifty-four COVID-related deaths in one daily update cannot be repeated. (12/4)

The Oklahoman: A Day Of Prayer And The Common Good
I am grateful to Gov. Kevin Stitt for calling Oklahomans to unite Dec. 3 on a day of prayer and fasting. This is a wise call to action.In prayer, we recognize our common bond of need as we prioritize divine guidance and help in the face of unprecedented challenge. This day of prayer invites all faith communities to remember our pressing concerns, to ask God to heal those affected by COVID-19, to strengthen those who care for the sick, and to comfort all who suffer from this terrible pandemic in so many ways — physically, emotionally, financially, spiritually. With our eyes focused upon the needs of our state, prayer draws our gaze upward to the One who can meet our needs. (Health A. Thomas, 12/3)

Los Angeles Times: Shutdown Confusion In California And Los Angeles. Again
Here we go again. The tightened pandemic restrictions that we knew were coming hit this week — the third lockdown this year and, if we are lucky to have widespread vaccine availability, distribution and acceptance next year, the final one of this pandemic — as state and local officials introduced new strategies to curb an unprecedented surge of coronavirus cases before hospitals are overwhelmed. (12/3)

The Hill: Facts — Not Fear — Will Stop The Pandemic 
The media relish negative news. “If it bleeds it leads” still holds, and perhaps it’s never been truer than in the COVID-19 era. Every day the news highlights the spread of the virus and tells the sad stories of some of its victims. And yet, much of the media does not pay sufficient attention to the good news regarding improved treatments and survival of patients with the coronavirus. (Jay Bhattacharya and Christos A. Makridis, 12/3)