The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Deaths From Coronavirus Top 63,000 As Crisis Slams Economies
In the U.S., deaths attributed to Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the virus, have soared from about 4,000 at the start of April to more than 63,000 late Thursday, according to the Johns Hopkins data. The total exceeded some previous projections, a sign of the difficulty governments face in calculating the severity of the outbreak. Between 8 p.m. Wednesday and the same time Thursday, 1,984 people in the U.S. died from Covid-19, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of Johns Hopkins data, a fairly typical tally in recent weeks. (Calfas, Ballhaus and Jamerson, 5/1)

Stat: How High Will It Go? No Easy Answers As U.S. Covid-19 Death Toll Tops 60,000
When STAT first compared projected U.S. deaths from Covid-19, in early April, there seemed to be a glimmer of good news: A prominent model had just lowered its estimate for total deaths through Aug. 4 from about 100,000 to 60,000, reflecting the apparent success of three weeks of social distancing across much of the country. On Wednesday, April 29, the country blew past 60,000, more than three months before the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation projected. (Begley and Empinado, 4/30)

CNN: Coronavirus Pandemic Misery Expected To Last Two More Years, Says Expert Report 
The new coronavirus is likely to keep spreading for at least another 18 months to two years—until 60% to 70% of the population has been infected, a team of longstanding pandemic experts predicted in a report released Thursday. They recommended that the US prepare for a worst-case scenario that includes a second big wave of coronavirus infections in the fall and winter. Even in a best-case scenario, people will continue to die from the virus, they predicted. (Fox, 5/1)

The Hill: Federal Government Ordered 100,000 New Body Bags For COVID-19 Victims In April: Report 
The Trump administration placed orders for more than 100,000 new body bags for coronavirus victims in April, according to documents and public records obtained by NBC News. The largest order of body bags was placed via purchase order the day after Trump said that the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus might not exceed 50,000 or 60,000 people. (Moreno, 4/30)

NBC News: While Trump Minimizes The Toll, Government Orders 100,000 New Body Bags
That batch is a pending $5.1 million purchase order placed by the Department of Homeland Security on April 21 with E.M. Oil Transport Inc. of Montebello, California, which advertises construction vehicles, building materials and electronics on its website. The "human remains pouches" have not been paid for or shipped to the Federal Emergency Management Agency yet, according to the company's marketing manager, Mike Pryor. "I hope to God that they don't need my order and that they cancel it," Pryor said in a text message exchange with NBC News. (Allen, McCausland and Farivar, 4/30)

Politico: VA Orders $300,000 Worth Of Body Bags
The Department of Veterans Affairs ordered nearly $300,000 worth of body bags this month, according to a contracting document reviewed by POLITICO. The department ordered the body bags from a major contractor called ISO Group because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the site. The contract was reached on April 15. The order came as the VA has seen a growing number of deaths due to the pandemic. More than 8,500 patients of the VA have been diagnosed with Covid-19 and nearly 500 have died, according to data on the department’s website Thursday morning. (Woodruff Swan, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: New York Seeks Solutions For Coronavirus Dead After Bodies Found By Brooklyn Funeral Home
New York politicians are seeking answers on how to handle the growing number of corpses left by the coronavirus pandemic, after dozens of bodies were discovered decomposing in rental trucks outside a Brooklyn funeral home. New York Police Department officers, responding to a 911 caller, discovered dozens of corpses in body bags piled inside two vehicles outside Andrew T. Cleckley Funeral Services in the Flatlands neighborhood Wednesday morning, police officials said. (Chapman, 4/30)

The New York Times: ‘We Ran Out Of Space’: Bodies Pile Up As N.Y. Struggles To Bury Its Dead
The 40-foot trailer has been there for weeks, parked outside the Leo F. Kearns Funeral Home in Queens. Its refrigerator hums in an alley next to a check-cashing establishment. Thirty-six bodies, one atop the other, are stacked on shelves inside. The funeral director, Patrick Kearns, has barely slept since the day he took charge of them. As he lies awake in the middle of the night, he knows there will be more. “It weighs on you, having so many cases in your care,” he said. “The death rate is just so high, there’s no way we can bury or cremate them fast enough.” (Feuer and Rashbaum, 4/30)

ABC News: 'Unprecedented': As The Dead Pile Up, Funeral Homes Feel The Crush Of Coronavirus Pandemic 
At Towers Funeral Home in Long Island, New York, grim signs of the coronavirus pandemic are all around. In a room previously used as one of the chapels, empty coffins are stacked -- tragic reminders of the toll the virus has taken on Nassau County, where the funeral home is located and where more than 2,000 people have died. In another chapel, stored under intense air conditioning, are the bodies of those lost, mostly to the virus. (Torres, 5/1)

The New York Times: Find A Vaccine. Next: Produce 300 Million Vials Of It.
In the midst of national shortages of testing swabs and protective gear, some medical suppliers and health policy experts are looking ahead to another extraordinary demand on manufacturing: Delivering a vaccine that could potentially end the pandemic. Making a vaccine is not easy. More than two dozen companies have announced programs to develop a vaccine against the coronavirus, but it may still take a year or more before one passes federal safety and efficacy tests in humans and becomes available to the public. (Sheikh, 5/1)

Stat: Infect Volunteers With Covid-19? A Proposal Lays Bare A Minefield Of Issues
In 2016, a team of scientists asked the National Institutes of Health for permission to develop a “human challenge model” for Zika virus infections — a sometimes controversial tool to fast-track research on vaccines and drugs. Under the model, healthy volunteers would be infected in a highly controlled setting. An ethics panel denied the application in January 2017, saying that deliberately infecting volunteers with Zika — which is innocuous to most people but can profoundly damage the brains of fetuses infected in the womb — would pose too much risk to the participants and their sexual partners. More than three years later, other scientists are advocating for human challenge trials to test vaccines against the coronavirus that causes Covid-19 — an infection that is far more dangerous than the one caused by the Zika virus. (Branswell, 5/1)

And the administration sets an ambitious goal for a vaccine —

The Washington Post: Administration Describes A Dash For A Coronavirus Vaccine That Would Be Available In January 
The Trump administration is racing to develop a coronavirus vaccine that could be fielded nationwide by January, U.S. officials said Thursday, as national stay-at-home guidance expired. The January timeline represents a fast pace for vaccine development but still means there would be no fail-safe protection from the novel coronavirus until long after most Americans are likely to have returned to work or school and until after the November presidential election. (Gearan, Sonmez and Werner, 4/30)

NPR: Millions Of Coronavirus Vaccine Doses Could Be Available By January, Fauci Says
Fauci, who heads the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, noted that the ideal plan for a potential vaccine is to ensure it is safe and effective — and can be rapidly scaled up for distribution. Of course, the Food and Drug Administration has not approved a vaccine for the coronavirus. Noting that vaccine trials are still in the early phase, Fauci added that to accelerate production, the companies making the medicine would need to do so "at risk." (Booker, 4/30)

Politico: Why One Breakthrough Drug Won't End The Pandemic
The nation’s top health officials say they’re rushing to make sure Americans can get widespread access to the experimental drug remdesivir after a study showed that it shortens the recovery time for some coronavirus patients. The push to give the drug the regulatory approval it needs for broader distribution comes a day after the government’s top infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci, called the drug “an important proof of concept” and compared it to the discovery of the earliest HIV treatments in the 1980s. Investors sent U.S. stocks surging after the news was announced. (Brennan and Owermohle, 4/30)

Reuters: Gilead To Work With Partners To Ramp Up Production Of Potential Coronavirus Treatment
Gilead Sciences Inc maker of the closely-watched experimental coronavirus drug remdesivir, on Thursday said it will work with international partners to expand production of the potential COVID-19 treatment. The company said it still expects to have more than one million remdesivir treatment courses manufactured by December, “with plans to be able to produce several million treatment courses in 2021.” By the end of next month, Gilead said it expects to have manufactured enough of the drug to treat more than 140,000 patients, and it plans to donate that supply to hospitals. (Beasley, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: Gilead To Expand Manufacturing Of Covid-19 Drug Remdesivir
Gilead is talking with other drug-makers to help organize supply chains that can help get remdesivir to patients globally, Chief Financial Officer Andrew Dickinson said on a conference call with analysts to discuss first-quarter earnings. He cautioned, though, that some of the substances used to make remdesivir are scarce, and the company wants to be careful not to disrupt its own supply chain, which is the quickest route to get the drug to patients. “Our primary focus is on providing access to patients around the world,” said Mr. Dickinson. (Walker and Maidenberg, 4/30)

CNBC: Remdesivir Coronavirus Treatment: Gilead Says It Can Produce 'Several Million' Rounds Of Drug Next Year
Gilead Sciences said Thursday that it can produce “several million” rounds of its antiviral drug remdesivir next year to help patients fight the coronavirus. The company expects to produce more than 140,000 rounds of its 10-day treatment regimen by the end of May and anticipates it can make 1 million rounds by the end of this year. (Lovelace, 4/30)

ABC News: Doctor Calls Promising New Drug Remdesivir 'Ray Of Hope' For COVID-19 Workers On Front-Lines 
Infectious disease specialist Dr. Simone Wildes shared her excitement on "The View" Thursday after a recent clinical trial showed promising early results for using the drug remdesivir against the coronavirus, calling it a "step in the right direction." Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country's top infectious disease expert and a member of the White House's coronavirus task force, announced the results of the experimental antiviral drug trial on Wednesday. Preliminary results from the randomized, placebo-controlled trial on 1,063 hospitalized patients showed that 31% of the patients who received remdesivir had a faster recovery time than those who received a placebo. The remdesivir group also saw an 8% mortality rate compared to an 11.6% mortality rate among the group on placebo. (Rosa, 4/30)

The New York Times: Old Drugs May Find A New Purpose: Fighting The Coronavirus
In the early 1950s, psychiatrists began treating schizophrenia with a new drug called chlorpromazine. Seven decades later, the drug is still used as an anti-psychotic. But now scientists have discovered that the drug, also known as Thorazine, can do something entirely different. It can stop the new coronavirus that causes Covid-19 from invading cells. Driven by the pandemic’s spread, research teams have been screening thousands of drugs to see if they have this unexpected potential to fight the coronavirus. (Zimmer, 4/30)

Politico: The Latest Obstacle In The Search For A Coronavirus Treatment: Too Many Drug Trials
Scientists and drug companies searching for a coronavirus treatment have launched so many clinical trials that some now fear they will run out of patients to enroll, trial sites or personnel to carry out the tests. There are more than 70 coronavirus drug and vaccine trials now registered with the Food and Drug Administration. Many, but not all, are taking place in the U.S. Although the number of new coronavirus infections nationwide is still climbing, the frenetic pace at which trials are launching — and the number that are potentially redundant or don’t involve enough patients to reach accurate conclusions — could prevent some of these studies from producing useful results. (Brennan, 4/30)

The New York Times: Amid A Rising Coronavirus Death Toll, Trump Leaves The Grieving To Others
One morning this week, President Trump called food sector executives. That afternoon, he met with corporate leaders at the White House. The day before, he paraded small-business owners in the East Room, and the day before that, he showcased executives from retail giants like Walgreens and Walmart in the Rose Garden. As he presides over the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic collapse, Mr. Trump has hosted or called many people affected by the devastation, including health company executives, sports commissioners, governors, cruise boat company heads, religious leaders, telecommunications executives and foreign heads of state. (Baker, 4/30)

CIDRAP: Federal COVID-19 Physical Distancing Measures Expire, More States Reopen
The White House's national physical (social) distancing guidelines—"15 days and 30 days to slow the spread"—expired, leaving the opening of states now in the hands of governors who are attempting to balance public health guidelines, the realities of testing, and mounting economic pressure to reopen communities. The guidelines, which were not enforced by law, recommended against non-essential travel, shopping trips, and social visits. All social gatherings of more than 10 people were also discouraged. (Soucheray, 4/30)

The Washington Post: As White House’s Social Distancing Guidelines Expire, Health Experts Worry Mixed Messages Will Spur Public Complacency
Administration officials say the distancing measures have been replaced by White House guidance on how states should reopen — which include less stringent social distancing recommendations. But health experts say that does not offer individuals clear recommendations about how to navigate their daily lives and could unleash new outbreaks in states that push to reopen too early and too fast. (Abutaleb and Weiner, 4/30)

NBC News: Fact Check: Trump Says The U.S. Ready To Contain COVID-19 With Contact Tracing. Experts Disagree.
President Donald Trump and members of his administration, who are eager to have parts of the economy restarted, have insisted that a robust contact tracing program to contain future outbreaks of the coronavirus is in place — even as public health experts warn the system is flawed and states are still largely unprepared. "Our blueprint describes how states should unlock their full capacity, expand the number of testing platforms, establish monitoring systems to detect local outbreaks, and conduct contact tracing. We have it all," Trump said on April 27. (Timm, 4/30)

NPR: West Point Cadets To Gather 50 Miles From Coronavirus Epicenter For Trump Speech
Top U.S. Army leaders insisted Thursday that the June 13 graduation ceremony they have announced for West Point cadets — after President Trump declared on April 17 he would be the commencement speaker — will take place in a "safety bubble" of measures aimed at preventing a further spread of the coronavirus. "We will conduct the ceremony much like the Air Force Academy did on April 18 in honoring completion of their 47-month journey to enter the Army ranks," Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy told reporters at the Pentagon, "including at this unprecedented time for our country." (Welna, 4/30)

The Washington Post: Chinese Lab Conducted Extensive Research On Deadly Bat Viruses, But There Is No Evidence Of Accidental Release
For nearly a decade, a team of scientists from Wuhan, China, crisscrossed southern Asia in a high-stakes search for bats and the strange diseases they harbor. They crawled through caves, catching the razor-toothed mammals with nets and scooping up liters of their excrement. They trapped insects and mice living near bat roosts and collected blood from villagers who hunt bats for food or folk medicine. They returned to their state-of-the-art laboratory in central China with tubes and vials containing known killers — pathogens associated with diseases that are deadly in humans — and also a few surprises. On multiple occasions, their takings included exotic coronaviruses previously unknown to science. (Warrick, Nakashima, Harris and Fifield, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: In Rare Move, U.S. Intelligence Agencies Confirm Investigating If Coronavirus Emerged From Lab Accident
The U.S. intelligence community publicly confirmed it is trying to determine whether the coronavirus may have escaped from a laboratory in Wuhan, the city where the pandemic began. In an unusual public statement, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, or ODNI, also said that U.S. intelligence agencies concur with the broad scientific consensus that “the Covid-19 virus was not manmade or genetically modified.” (Strobel and Volz, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Probes University Of Texas Links To Chinese Lab Scrutinized Over Coronavirus
The Education Department has asked the University of Texas System to provide documentation of its dealings with the Chinese laboratory U.S. officials are investigating as a potential source of the coronavirus pandemic. The request for records of gifts or contracts from the Wuhan Institute of Virology and its researcher Shi Zhengli, known for her work on bats, is part of a broader department investigation into possible faulty financial disclosures of foreign money by the Texas group of universities. (O'Keeffe, 5/1)

The Washington Post: Trump Administration Launches Major Effort To Force China To Pay Over Coronavirus
Senior U.S. officials are beginning to explore proposals for punishing or demanding financial compensation from China for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, according to four senior administration officials with knowledge of internal planning. The move could splinter already strained relations between the two superpowers at a perilous moment for the global economy. (Stein, Leonnig, Dawsey and Shih, 4/30)

NPR: Trump Announces Panel To Look At Nursing Home Responses To Coronavirus Outbreak
President Trump Thursday announced the formation of an independent commission to look at the response of nursing homes to the coronavirus. The move comes after nursing home operators have been clamoring for more equipment and testing. In comments at a White House event, Trump acknowledged that nursing homes were "a spot that we have to take care of. I guess you could call it a little bit of a weak spot, because things are happening at the nursing homes that we're not happy about." (Jaffe, 4/30)

NBC News: Industry Executive: White House Plan To Send A Week's Worth Of Masks, Gloves To Nursing Homes Is Not Enough
President Donald Trump said Thursday that nursing homes, which have been ravaged by the coronavirus, had been "a little bit of a weak spot" in the U.S. response to the disease it causes and announced that the government would ship a seven-day supply of gowns and masks to the nation's 15,000 long-term care facilities. But nursing home residents have accounted for a quarter of the nation's 60,000 reported COVID-19 deaths, and for some industry leaders and advocates for residents, a week's supply of personal protective equipment, or PPE, is not an answer. (Strickler, 4/30)

NPR: There Are More Than 4,000 Coronavirus Cases In Maryland's Nursing Homes
Long-term care facilities in Maryland are the sites of thousands of confirmed cases of coronavirus, according to data published Tuesday evening by the state's health department. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan also signed an Executive Order Wednesday, requiring universal testing of all nursing home residents and staff in the state. As of Wednesday afternoon, there are 4,822 cases of COVID-19 in such facilities and group homes of more than 10 people in Maryland. (Barthel, 4/30)

ProPublica/The Texas Tribune: Texas Still Won’t Say Which Nursing Homes Have COVID-19 Cases. Families Are Demanding Answers.
As elderly and vulnerable citizens continue to die from COVID-19 in closed-off long-term care centers around the country, many of their relatives have begged elected leaders to release the locations of these outbreaks. Their pleas have carried weight with governors in Georgia, New York, Oklahoma and Florida, among others, who mandated an accounting of where the virus had spread. Not in Texas. (Kriel, Davila and Walters, 4/30)

Boston Globe: Warren, Markey Demand Data From Assisted-Living Operators On Coronavirus Impact 
Amid growing alarm over the spread of COVID-19 at senior care sites, US Senators Elizabeth Warren and Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts are demanding information from assisted-living operators about coronavirus infections and deaths at their facilities and the steps they are taking to fight the pandemic. The push for scrutiny of a sector not currently regulated by the federal government is also coming from a key House Democrat, Carolyn Maloney of New York, who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, as reports surface of virus outbreaks at assisted-living sites in Massachusetts, New York, and other states. (Weisman and Krantz, 4/30)

KQED: Amid Hundreds Of Coronavirus Deaths In California Nursing Homes, It's Still Not Clear How State Is Monitoring 
California is now monitoring nearly 200 nursing homes where coronavirus has spread among thousands of care workers and patients, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday. It’s still not clear what monitoring means or how exactly it’s helping slow the spread in long-term care facilities. Where assisted living and nursing homes report problems, like with shortages of protective gear or staff, county public health departments have varied responses and levels of resources to fill the gaps. The governor says testing is a priority, but it’s not required where outbreaks are reported, either by state or local order. (Peterson, 4/30)

Houston Chronicle: 63 Texas Lawmakers Urge Gov. Abbott To Do More To Protect Elderly Care Home Residents
A bipartisan group of 63 state representatives in a letter Wednesday made several requests of Gov. Greg Abbott that they say would help protect elderly Texans living in long-term care facilities. “Our state government can and must do more to protect our most vulnerable Texans,” they wrote. “That is why we respectfully request the following critical measures to defend our elderly Texans, Texans with disabilities and the Texans on the frontline serving these communities.” (Goldenstein, 4/30)

Indianapolis Star: Coronavirus Reporting For Indiana Nursing Homes Lags Many Other States
Indiana official announced earlier this week that they would continue to withhold COVID-19 nursing home data from the public, instead relying on the more than 530 facilities to report information directly to residents' families. Many other states, including all four of Indiana's neighbors, have opted to publish facility-level data on nursing home cases and deaths attributed to to COVID-19. But for Hoosiers, including those who may be looking at nursing homes for themselves or a family member after the pandemic, information about individual facilities remains basically hidden by state officials even though they now account for nearly one-third of all of Indiana's COVID-19 deaths. (Evans, 5/1)

Politico: CDC Eyes Tracking Coronavirus Through Human Waste
The federal government is eyeing a new strategy for monitoring the spread of the deadly coronavirus. It involves poop. The U.S. has struggled to keep pace with other advanced countries on coronavirus testing, and now is considering tracking the spread of the virus through sewage systems as a way to predict where the next hotspot may be. (Woodruff Swan, Lippman and Snider, 5/1)

In other news from the CDC —

The New York Times: Labs Across U.S. Join Federal Initiative To Study Coronavirus Genome
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday announced a national initiative to speed research into how the coronavirus was spreading around the country, bringing together at least 75 public health, academic and commercial institutions studying its genome. As the virus replicates, tiny mutations accumulate in its genetic code. Those differences help scientists trace patterns of transmission and investigate outbreaks. They also provide an understanding of how the virus is evolving, which can affect the accuracy of diagnostic tests and the effectiveness of treatments and vaccines. (Fink, 4/30)

Politico: Wearing A Mask Is For Smug Liberals. Refusing To Is For Reckless Republicans. 
In the ‘60s, protesters burned bras. In 2020 they might soon be burning masks. Views on how to respond to the coronavirus pandemic have become increasingly polarized, yet another political issue that for many culture war combatants is filtered through an ideological lens. The left has been almost uniformly — and loudly — in favor of sacrificing many personal liberties in exchange for containing the virus’s spread. (Lizza and Lippman, 5/1)

The New York Times: Mike Pence Wears Face Mask On Visit To Indiana Ventilator Plant
Vice President Mike Pence was photographed on Thursday wearing a mask while visiting a General Motors plant in Indiana in what appeared to be a tacit acknowledgment of the criticism he has received for traveling the country without one. Mr. Pence drew intense criticism for flouting the guidelines of the Mayo Clinic, which asks all visitors to its campus in Minnesota to wear masks, during a stop there this week. It was not the first time he has refused to don a mask since resuming a heavy travel schedule representing the administration at graduations, hospitals and factories across the country. (Karni, 4/30)

The Washington Post: Pence Staff Threatens Action Against Reporter Who Tweeted About Visit To Clinic Without Surgical Mask
Vice President Pence’s office has threatened to retaliate against a reporter who revealed that Pence’s office had told journalists they would need masks for Pence’s visit to the Mayo Clinic — a requirement Pence himself did not follow. Pence’s trip to the clinic Tuesday generated criticism after he was photographed without a surgical mask — the only person in the room not wearing one. The Minnesota clinic requires visitors to wear masks as a precaution against spreading the coronavirus. (Farhi, 4/30)

Politico: Trump’s Field General Road-Tests The President’s Upcoming Travels
Before the coronavirus outbreak disrupted the 2020 presidential campaign, Vice President Mike Pence was a one-man roadshow passing through pivotal swing counties to do the pedestrian politicking his boss has long detested. A lot has changed since then. (Orr, 4/30)

Boston Globe: Making Your Own Mask? Researchers Say Some Fabrics Can Filter Nearly As Well As An N95
Fabric from a cotton sheet combined with material from a prom dress, an old tie, or a pair of pajamas could be used to make a mask with a filter that’s nearly as good as the N95 mask, according to new research. A new study from researchers at the University of Chicago says that a combination of cotton with silk, chiffon, or flannel can create a well-functioning filter. (Berg, 4/30)

Atlanta Journal Constitution: Gwinnett Medical Company Hires 50 After Switching To Mask Production
A Lawrenceville medical supply company has switched to making masks due to the coronavirus pandemic, and has been able to add 50 new workers to its staff.U.S. Rep. Doug Collins, R-Gainesville, visited the Marena Group’s Lawrenceville facility on Wednesday, the day after its switch to maskmaking was announced. After the pandemic first caused a slowdown at the company, a switch to mask production allowed the company to add to its staff, Collins said. (Coyne, 4/30)

Los Angeles Times: Trump Administration Skimps On Coronavirus Aid For Medicaid Providers
The Trump administration’s program to aid hospitals and doctors on the front lines of the coronavirus crisis is leaving behind the nation’s Medicaid safety net — the pediatricians, mental health providers and hospitals that serve the poorest patients. That result is likely to deepen inequalities in America’s healthcare system as tens of billions of dollars of federal assistance go primarily to large medical systems that serve higher-income patients with Medicare or private health insurance. (Levey, 4/30)

CNN: Same Coronavirus Treatments. Very Different Price Tag. 
Leah Blomberg and Marco Paolone both called an ambulance when their coronavirus symptoms worsened. Both spent time in intensive care, both were unconscious for days, and both were on a ventilator. They were lucky -- they survived a disease which has so far killed more than 230,000 people around the world. But while Blomberg, an American, walked away with medical bills totaling several thousands of dollars, Paolone's treatment was free. In his home country of Italy, cost isn't something coronavirus patients need to worry about. (Kottasova, Luhby and Di Donato, 5/1)

The Washington Post: Reopening Of America: More Than Half Of States Will Lift Coronavirus Restrictions By The End Of This Week
Many U.S. states are relaxing their restrictions, with more than half set to be partially reopened by the end of this week. But governors have taken different approaches to loosen restrictions amid the pandemic. Some states have formed regional pacts, working together to decide how to safely lift restrictions. Others have faced criticism for allowing nonessential businesses and recreational activities to start up again, despite cases continuing to increase. (Armus, Farzan, Berger and Brice-Saddler, 4/30)

Reuters: Half Of U.S. States Easing Coronavirus Restrictions As Jobless Numbers Grow
The enormous pressure on states to reopen, despite a lack of wide-scale virus testing and other safeguards urged by health experts, was highlighted in new Labor Department data showing some 30 million Americans have sought unemployment benefits since March 21. The jobless toll amounts to more than 18.4% of the U.S. working-age population, a level not seen since the Great Depression of the 1930s. (Chiacu and Caspani, 4/30)

The Washington Post: Fauci Warns States Rushing To Reopen Amid Coronavirus Pandemic: ‘You’re Making A Really Significant Risk’
With the White House’s social distancing guidelines expiring Thursday, leaving states largely in charge of deciding how to move forward, Anthony S. Fauci warned local leaders to avoid “leapfrogging” critical milestones in an effort to reopen their economies amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. “Obviously you could get away with that, but you’re making a really significant risk,” Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Thursday evening on CNN. (Chiu, 5/1)

CNN: State Openings Bring Risks, Huge Stakes For America And Its President 
America is stirring, but it's every state for itself. May 1 brings an easing of stay-at-home orders as around half the states in the union move toward a resumption of everyday life, or what will pass for it in the immediate future, in the next few days. A bewildering patchwork of openings and new distancing rules for restaurants, business offices, churches, dental practices and even gyms in some places will allow daily commerce to resume -- whether workers and customers are ready or not. (Collinson, 5/1)

The Hill: The Surprising Popularity Of The Great Lockdown
There is at least one political surprise amid the coronavirus crisis — the Great Lockdown is popular among Americans. People are, of course, hardly thrilled by stay-at-home orders, closed schools and the myriad other uncertainties of the current situation. But there is a resilient consensus around the need for such measures — even as President Trump promises a swift return to normal, many states ease restrictions, and the economic effects of the battle against COVID-19 bite deeper and deeper. (Stanage, 4/30)

ABC News: Americans Uneasy About Returning To Normal As Restrictions Loosen: POLL 
Despite the damaging economic toll of the coronavirus, the country remains apprehensive about a return to normal, with Republicans far more likely to be willing than Democrats to restart day-to-day activities immediately, as states begin to loosen restrictions, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll released Friday. A minority of Americans said that if the emergency orders put in place to curb the spread of the coronavirus were lifted the next day, they would be likely to go out in public to eat at a restaurant (44%), go to a bar (21%), attend a sporting event in a large stadium (20%), go to a gym or health club (29%), stay in a hotel (30%), go to a movie theatre (24%), attend church (46%), go bowling (22%), fly on an airplane (29%), or send their child to school (45%). (Karson, 5/1)

The New York Times: Gavin Newsom Orders Orange County Beaches Closed Due To Coronavirus
The salty breeze and ocean waves have beckoned stir-crazy residents of the coast back to their beloved beaches, social distancing norms be damned. But how to prevent beach blankets and lawn chairs from becoming new founts of coronavirus infection has become a flash point for governors in Florida, California and other coastal states, who must balance demands from constituents for relief from the escalating spring heat against the horrified reaction of the general public to photos of sweaty, swimsuit-clad bodies packed towel to towel. Gov. Gavin Newsom of California stepped in on Thursday to shut down the beaches in Orange County, rolling back earlier attempts at giving people there a chance to stroll along the shore while staying a safe distance away from one another. (Mazzei, Hubler and Fuller, 4/30)

NPR: Governor Temporarily Closes All Beaches And State Parks In Orange County, Calif.
"After the well-publicized media coverage of overcrowded beaches this past weekend, in violation of Governor Newsom's Shelter in Place Order, the Governor will be announcing [Thursday] that ALL beaches and all state parks in California will be closed, effective Friday, May 1st," the memo read. (Hagemann, 4/30)

Politico: Small California County Prepares To Defy Newsom By Opening Bars, Churches
Modoc County — one of California's most desolate jurisdictions with no known coronavirus cases — says it will allow bars, restaurants and churches to reopen Friday despite Gov. Gavin Newsom's statewide lockdown. “We’re not in this at all to defy anything. We align with the plans. We’re just at a different phase in this because of where we are and how we live,” Heather Hadwick, deputy director of the county's Office of Emergency Services, told POLITICO on Thursday. (Colliver, 4/30)

KQED: How The Lockdown Is Shaping California's First Coronavirus-Era Election 
The first California election of the coronavirus era is set to take place in the valleys north of Los Angeles, where Republicans are looking to reverse their recent string of electoral misfortunes. Up for grabs in the May 12 special election is a highly coveted vacant House seat in the 25th Congressional District, one that Democrats recently flipped. The unique timing and circumstances of the race, brought on by the high-profile resignation of former Rep. Katie Hill, a Santa Clarita Democrat, who defeated Republican incumbent Steve Knight in 2018, has drawn national interest and big-name endorsements. (Marzorati, 5/1)

San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area’s New Shelter-In-Place Order: What’s Reopening And Which Activities Are OK To Resume? 
In late April, six Bay Area counties and the city of Berkeley announced that residents would be required to shelter in place through at least May 31 to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. New public health orders — impacting Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, Santa Clara, San Francisco and Marin counties and Berkeley — largely resemble earlier mandates, requiring some 7 million residents to leave their homes only for the most essential errands and to keep at least 6 feet away from anyone they don’t live with. (Fracassa, 4/30)

The New York Times: An Upstate N.Y. Backlash Over Virus Shutdown: ‘It’s Not Up Here’
Scott Tranter knows how deeply the coronavirus has affected New York, with 300,000 people testing positive in the state, 18,000 dead and the economy shut down. But as he surveyed his empty diner last week, it made little sense to him why businesses like his could not reopen, since the virus has barely touched his part of the state. “Enough is enough,” said Mr. Tranter, the owner of Crazy Otto’s Empire Diner, a popular vintage diner that, like all restaurants, can only offer takeout. (McKinley and Gottlieb, 5/1)

NBC News: Counterprotesters Try To Mute Message Of Stay-At-Home Opponents
As demonstrators who want to get back to work planned a show of force in multiple U.S. cities Friday for International Workers Day, counterprotesters said they would hold their own rallies in support of keeping non-essential businesses closed to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The lunchtime counterprotests are being organized by the organization Refuse Fascism. (Romero, 5/1)

The Washington Post: Deadliest Coronavirus Day In D.C., As Pressure Mounts On Hogan To Open Maryland
The greater Washington region reported nearly 2,000 new coronavirus cases Thursday, with the District recording its worst day for fatalities, as Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) came under increasing pressure from fellow Republicans to reopen his state’s economy. With the virus having killed 1,929 residents of the District, Maryland and Virginia, area leaders said it’s unlikely they would soon lift shutdown orders that have stunted the local economy — even as nearly 119,000 more local residents lost their jobs last week. (Olivo, Wiggins and Nirappil, 4/30)

The Washington Post: Why People Are Still Getting Coronavirus After D.C., Maryland, Virginia Shutdowns
The District, Maryland and Virginia have been shut down for weeks, their economies in tatters. Large swaths of the population venture out only rarely, wrapped in masks and gloves. But hundreds of new coronavirus cases are still reported each day as the virus continues its devastating march through nursing homes, jails and other institutional settings. Doctors and public health officials said it increasingly is infecting people who cannot afford to miss work or telecommute — grocery store employees, delivery drivers and construction workers. Sometimes they, in turn, infect their families. (Swenson and Portnoy, 4/30)

Indianapolis Star: Coronavirus In Indiana: Where We Stand With Reopening Guidelines
For weeks, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb has said he will lean on health officials and state-specific data to decide when and how to begin reopening the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic. Holcomb is expected to unveil some of those plans Friday when the state's stay-at-home order is set to expire. He's been tight-lipped on specifics until then, saying that a reopening will depend on a number of factors. (DePompei, 5/1)

The New York Times: Michigan Governor Reinstates State Of Emergency As Protests Ramp Up
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, a prime political target in partisan clashes over stay-at-home orders during the coronavirus outbreak, signed three executive orders on Thursday to reinstate a state of emergency during the coronavirus pandemic. Her order came on a day when protesters, some of them armed, gathered at the State Capitol in Lansing to oppose stay-at-home orders. State Senator Dayna Polehanki, a Democrat, shared a photograph of protesters with rifles inside the building, as well as a video of hundreds of people outside. (Fortin, 5/1)

The Associated Press: GOP Lawmakers Reject Michigan's Virus Order; Whitmer Unfazed
The governor, unfazed, responded with orders stating under one law that an emergency still exists, while declaring a new 28-day state of emergency under another law. The declarations are important because they are the foundation for Whitmer’s stay-at-home measure, which will remain in effect through May 15, and other directives aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus. The virus that causes COVID-19 has infected more than 41,000 Michigan residents and contributed to the deaths of 3,789, many in the Detroit area. (Eggert and Householder, 5/1)

Detroit Free Press: GOP Lawmakers Want To Take Gov. Whitmer To Court In Power Fight
The Republican-controlled Legislature is planning to take Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to court over her exercise of state emergency powers during the coronavirus pandemic. As expected, GOP lawmakers in the House and Senate made no move to extend legislative approval of Michigan's state of emergency, which was set to expire at the end of the day Thursday. (Egan, 4/30)

Reuters: Hundreds Protest In Michigan Seeking End To Governor's Emergency Powers
Many people at Thursday’s “American Patriot Rally”, including militia group members carrying firearms and people with pro-Trump signs, appeared to be ignoring state social-distancing guidelines as they clustered together within 6 feet of each other. “Governor Whitmer, and our state legislature, it’s over with. Open this state,” Mike Detmer, a Republican U.S. congressional candidate running for the state’s 8th District spot held by Democrat Elissa Slotkin, told the crowd. “Let’s get businesses back open again. Let’s make sure there are jobs to go back to.” (Martina and Herald, 4/30)

The Hill: Armed Protesters Demonstrate Inside Michigan State Capitol 
Hundreds were seen protesting at the Michigan state capitol in Lansing, with some armed demonstrators pushing inside as the legislature discussed Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s (D) state of emergency over the coronavirus pandemic. Protesters brandished firearms, signs and American flags inside the statehouse, chanting “Let us in!” The protest marked just the latest action against Whitmer’s policies intended to blunt the coronavirus’s spread. (Axelrod, 4/30)

ABC News: Michigan Judge Sides With Governor In Lawsuit Over Coronavirus Shelter-In-Place Order 
A Michigan judge sided with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Wednesday in a lawsuit filed against her shelter-in-place order and denied the plaintiffs an injunction. Court of Claims Judge Christopher M. Murray ruled Steve Martinko and other plaintiffs' claims that the order infringed on their constitutional rights were not strong due to the severity of the pandemic. A preliminary injunction of the governor's order, which has been in effect since March 24, "would not serve the public interest, despite the temporary harm to plaintiffs’ constitutional rights." (Pereira, 4/30)

Detroit Free Press: Detroit Mayor Calls On Gov. Whitmer To Allow Other Medical Procedures
Mayor Mike Duggan gratefully accepted nearly a half million masks and goggles Thursday, then urged the governor to allow hospitals to resume routine medical procedures. The 350,000 N-95 masks and 100,000 goggles are a gift from The Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation. Joe Tsai is co-founder of Chinese online marketplace Alibaba and owner of the NBA's Brooklyn Nets. Tsai held a small business forum in Detroit in 2017 and said he and his wife's fond memories of the city include dinner at Selden Standard and a trip to Avalon Bakery.  (Elrick and Egan, 4/30)

Detroit Free Press: Coronavirus Death Toll Prompts Michigan To Activate Response Team
The state of Michigan is activating a team of mortuary and medical professionals, volunteers and others to respond to the number of deaths from coronavirus as they stretch the resources of hospitals and funeral homes. The state's Department of Health and Human Services is activating for the first time ever its Michigan Mortuary Response Team, which the the agency said will provide "safe and secure transfer, identification and storage of human remains until funeral homes can help families make plans." (Spangler, 4/30)

Los Angeles Times: Amid Coronavirus, Reopening States Look To Contact Tracers
With governors around the nation lifting stay-at-home orders implemented to slow the spread of coronavirus, many are now seeking new combatants: contact tracers. These hired public health officials work with patients to help them recall everyone they had close contact with during the time when they were most infectious. It’s no easy task. (Lee, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: New York To Hire ‘Army Of Tracers’ To Combat Coronavirus
New York will hire up to 17,000 contact tracers as part of a statewide effort to combat the novel coronavirus pandemic by tracking down people who have gone near those infected by Covid-19. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a Thursday press conference that the state needs at least 30 tracers for every 100,000 people to follow the path of those infected and determine whether their contacts should be isolated. (Li, 4/30)

Boston Globe: Baker Urges Residents To Cooperate With Contact Tracing Program 
Governor Charlie Baker implored residents Thursday to cooperate if they’re reached by a state team that is tracking down people infected with the coronavirus and those who have been in contact with them. Speaking during his daily briefing, Baker said the team of roughly 1,000 callers has made contact with some 5,000 residents over the past month, adding that “now, obviously the really tough stuff begins” as the tracers work to reach more people by phone. (Andersen, Reiss and Finucane, 4/30)

Los Angeles Times: Thousands Flock To L.A. City Coronavirus Testing Sites
California public health officials are urging all counties to expand testing to any residents with symptoms of COVID-19, a sign of their growing confidence that testing capacity has increased enough to handle a significant portion of the state’s population. According to the new guidelines, symptomatic low-risk people — including young adults without underlying health conditions — are now among the state’s top priorities for testing, along with six other specified groups. (Baumgaertner, Mason and Cosgrove, 4/30)

Las Vegas Review-Journal: COVID-19 Testing Get Big Boost From Guard, Strike Teams, New Sites 
Plans are still being finalized to begin widespread coronavirus testing in Southern Nevada, including the use of “strike teams” to target susceptible communities as well as the creation of new testing sites. But an announcement on new sites could come as soon as Friday, Clark County spokesman Erik Pappa said Wednesday. (Hynes and Erickson, 4/29)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Test Sites Surge In Georgia, But Will Enough People Show Up?
On Monday, Georgia Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey privately told local department leaders about an ambitious statewide goal of conducting 100,000 tests in 10 days. On Tuesday, a public announcement by Gov. Brian Kemp’s office made that goal seem within reach. Nearly 13,000 tests were conducted that day alone, and DPH will continue to work to push these numbers upwards, Toomey said. (Mariano, 4/30)

Kaiser Health News: Do-It-Yourself Cheek Swab Tested As Next Best Thing To Detect Coronavirus
Coronavirus testing is commonly an unpleasant, even painful experience in which a health care provider pushes a torturously long swab up your nostril. President Donald Trump declared that submitting to the process was “a little bit difficult.” Since late March, three Southern California jurisdictions ― Los Angeles County, and the cities of L.A. and Long Beach ― have offered a more palatable alternative to this nasopharyngeal sampling, whose very name poses a challenge. (Tuller, 5/1)

Kaiser Health News and Politifact HealthCheck: Trump’s Claim That U.S. Tested More Than All Countries Combined Is ‘Pants On Fire’ Wrong
Responding to weeks of criticism over his administration’s COVID-19 response, President Donald Trump claimed at a White House briefing that the United States has well surpassed other countries in testing people for the virus. “We’ve tested more than every country combined,” Trump said April 27. It was a variation on claims he had made April 24, as well as on Twitter the day after — when he said the United States had tested “more than any other country in the World, and even more than all major countries combined.” (Luthra, 5/1)

Reuters: Special Report: FDA's Lax Rules On Coronavirus Blood Tests Open U.S. Market To Dubious Vendors
As the coronavirus pandemic engulfed the United States, Joe Shia, a consultant to Chinese medical companies, said he was bombarded with inquiries from American firms who saw a golden opportunity in selling tests to determine coronavirus immunity. Unlike his typical clients, some firms seeking his help had never before sold medical equipment. Others wanted to register test kits with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration without approval from the manufacturer, or to offer home-based tests, which are not allowed by the FDA. One was in the window business, he said. (Humer, Tanfani and Liu, 4/30)

Reuters: Confirmed Coronavirus Cases Surge In Reopened JBS Colorado Beef Plant; Worker Dies: Union
COVID-19 cases at a JBS meatpacking plant in Colorado have more than doubled “in a number of days” and a sixth employee died of the virus, a union official said on Thursday, underscoring the risks of U.S. meat plants reopening. The beef plant in Greeley, Colorado, started operating last Friday after it was closed for about two weeks following an outbreak among workers. (4/30)

CBS News: U.S. Meat Industry Seen As Source Of Most New COVID-19 Hotspots 
Outbreaks of the coronavirus in meat processing plants appear to play an outsized role in a handful of states with new infection rates far higher than the rest of the country. Or, as economist Ian Shepherdson put it Thursday: "The U.S. meat industry is the source of most new COVID hotspots." (Gibson, 4/30)

Des Moines Register: Coronavirus In Iowa: State Clarifies Who Can Refuse Work, Keep Unemployment Benefits
Iowa's top employment official on Thursday clarified the reasons a worker may refuse to return to a job because of the coronavirus pandemic yet maintain unemployment benefits. The reasons remain narrow, such as those who have been infected by COVID-19 or who have household members who have been. (Akin, 4/30)

Reuters: Amazon Extends Work From Home Regime Till October 2
Amazon.com Inc has told staff whose job can be done from home that they can do so until at least Oct. 2, pushing out the timeline on a return to work for many employees as it faces scrutiny over conditions in its warehouses. “Employees who work in a role that can effectively be done from home are welcome to do so until at least October 2,” an Amazon spokesman said in an emailed statement on Friday, adding it was applicable to such roles globally. (5/1)

The Washington Post: Amazon Sales Soar As Coronavirus-Worried Consumers Shop From Home, But Costs Rise 
The massive shopping surge fueled by the coronavirus pandemic caught Amazon unprepared, even as it drove a 26 percent jump in first-quarter revenue, the company said Thursday. Now, Amazon plans to spend at least $4 billion in the current quarter to add warehouse and delivery workers, test its staff and provide them with personal protective gear so it can unclog its network that still struggles to meet customer demand for household staples such as toilet paper and bleach. (Greene, 4/30)

Politico: How The Virus Could Boomerang On Facebook, Google And Amazon
The coronavirus’s economic wreckage is poised to boost the dominance of tech giants like Facebook, Google and Amazon — and their risks of an antitrust collision with Washington. The pandemic has hit the biggest tech companies too, of course, with both Google and Facebook reporting this week that their digital ad revenue plunged as the economy began shutting down in March. (Overly and Nylen, 5/1)

The New York Times: After Decades Of Service, Five Nuns Die As Virus Sweeps Through Convent
Our Lady of the Angels Convent was designed as a haven of peace and prayer in a suburb of Milwaukee, a place where aging, frail nuns could rest after spending their lives taking care of others. Songbirds chirped in the sitting area. A courtyard invited morning prayers and strolls for the several dozen nuns who lived in the facility, a low-slung cream-colored building with a turret. The quiet convent has become the site of a deadly cluster of the coronavirus. Four staff members have tested positive, a health official said. Since April 6, five nuns have died from the virus. (Bosman, 4/30)

ProPublica: In Chicago, Urban Density May Not Be To Blame For The Spread Of The Coronavirus
Asiaha Butler was disturbed when coronavirus cases started to climb in her neighborhood, but she wasn’t surprised. A longtime housing advocate in Englewood, she knew the area was at high risk, even though it’s sparsely populated. Vacant lots and empty houses dot the neighborhood, leaving homes spaced farther from one another than in other parts of the city. “People I talk to say, ‘Well, Englewood looks no different after the shelter-in-place order,’” said Butler, executive director of the Resident Association of Greater Englewood, or RAGE. (Coryne, 4/30)

The Washington Post: With Limited Coronavirus Testing, A Rural Louisiana Parish Is Trying To End The Pandemic's Deadly Assault On Its Residents
River Road hugs the curves of the Mississippi River, past sugar-cane fields and chemical plants, on the way to this semirural community 50 miles upstream from New Orleans. Epidemiologists believe the coronavirus quietly made this journey after taking root in the city during Mardi Gras in late February. St. John Parish confirmed its first case of covid-19 — the disease caused by the novel coronavirus — on March 13, four days after a New Orleans hospital reported Louisiana’s initial patient. Officials tried to act quickly. (Montgomery, 4/30)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: Drug Trials, Fewer Ventilators: Here's How Louisiana’s Coronavirus Treatments Have Evolved 
Louisiana physicians faced a troubling scenario in early March when coronavirus patients started appearing in the state’s intensive care units: no one could say for sure how best to treat them. Now, nearly two months after the state confirmed its first positive case, they’ve re-examined drugs and protocols once considered the best bets for saving the lives of seriously ill patients. (Gallo and Woodruff, 4/30)

The Hill: Coronavirus Outbreak Spreading Farther Into Rural America
The coronavirus that has infected more than a million Americans is increasingly moving into rural areas in search of new victims, as nearly one-third of the nation’s counties experienced widespread transmission over the last week. A new analysis by the Brookings Institute demographer William Frey shows the virus spreading to new areas in almost every state in the country. But its spread is now more concentrated in smaller towns, rural areas and exurban areas that had previously been untouched. (Wilson, 4/30)

The Washington Post: How Mark Levine Came To Be Hyped As ‘The Anthony Fauci Of The New York City Council’
Mark Levine, a member of the New York City Council and chairman of its health committee, dismissed early anxieties as "fear mongering." Then he and his wife fell ill. In the weeks since their recovery from covid-19, Levine (D) has become one of the city’s most outspoken and occasionally polarizing figures, seizing on his newfound spotlight to make one of the most ambitious proposals in New York’s recent history: creation of a $1 billion Public Works Administration — but for public health. (Morgan, 4/29)

State House News Service: Baker Signs Public Health Standards Bill Into Law
Gov. Charlie Baker signed a bill into law Wednesday afternoon directing the Department of Public Health to "develop a set of minimum standards for foundational public health services for the commonwealth," and to establish a "state action for public health excellence program" that is intended to encourage local boards of health to adopt certain practices. The state is expected provide funding to local boards through a competitive grant program. (Young, 4/30)

Boston Globe: The State Has Changed How It Classifies Coronavirus Cases. It Could Lead To A Spike In Numbers
As the coronavirus pandemic stretches into a third month, state health leaders are reclassifying the way they count COVID-19 cases, a change that’s sure to lead to an increase in the number of reported victims and have a profound effect on our understanding of the devastating impact of the disease in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts state health department last week issued new directives on what counts as COVID-19 to hundreds of local health boards based on guidance from a low-profile, but influential national group of disease trackers. (Lazar and Ryan, 4/30)

Boston Globe: Boston’s New Fire Commissioner: ‘We’re Doing Everything That We Normally Do’ 
It’s been quite the baptism for John “Jack” Dempsey as head of the city’s fire department. He assumed the mantle of Boston fire commissioner on an interim basis on the same day the president declared a national emergency, the Boston Marathon was postponed for the first time in its storied history, and the city’s school district, the largest in the state, was closed. All because of the COVID-19 pandemic. .By the time his interim title was removed last Friday, life in the city remained significantly altered by the coronavirus outbreak. (McDonald, 4/30)

Boston Globe: Thousands Of Constituents Urge Governors To ‘Deprioritize’ Marijuana Enforcement Amid Coronavirus 
The marijuana reform group NORML is leading an effort to encourage states to “deprioritize” the enforcement of marijuana prohibition amid the coronavirus pandemic. So far, more than 4,000 constituents across the country have participated in the organization’s action campaign launched Wednesday by sending messages to their governors, urging them to take steps to minimize the spread of the virus by avoiding unnecessary marijuana arrests. (Jaeger, 4/30)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Georgia Hospitals Ease Back Into Surgeries
The coronavirus pandemic in Georgia is far from over: Infected patients are still flowing into hospitals, and health workers are still reusing masks to conserve supplies. But slowly, hospitals in the state are trying to focus beyond COVID-19 and to open their doors, once again, to non-emergency patients. (Hart, 4/30)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Patient At State Hospital For Mental Health Care Dies From COVID-19
A patient at a state hospital in DeKalb County that provides mental health care has died from the disease caused by the coronavirus, according to new data released Thursday by the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. The agency did not identify the Georgia Regional Hospital-Atlanta patient or say when and where that person died, citing privacy laws. (Redmon, 4/30)

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Coronavirus Death Toll Tops 200 In Southern Nevada  
Another 88 cases of COVID-19 and six new fatalities were reported in Clark County over the past 24 hours, pushing the county death toll from the disease to 202, data published Thursday indicated. The new cases reported by the Southern Nevada Health District on its coronavirus webpage — which brought the total cases reported in the county to 3,979 — was slightly below the average of 91 cases reported over the past seven days. (Brunker, 4/30)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Coronavirus In Ohio: DeWine To Provide Update On COVID-19 In Prisons At 2 P.M.
Gov. Mike DeWine said Thursday that he would extend Ohio’s stay-at-home order, which is set to expire at 11:59 p.m. Friday.But the governor’s office declined to say when the new order would end. The extension would include exceptions for businesses reopening, such as office work restarting Monday and retail reopening on May 12. (Borchardt, 4/30)

Detroit Free Press: Oakland County To Conduct COVID-19 Testing At Independent Senior Living Facilities
Oakland County has announced an effort to conduct widespread COVID-19 testing at independent senior living facilities. County Executive David Coulter said at a news conference Thursday that the county is partnering with local EMS to address the need and that testing had already begun in some locations. (Kaufman, 4/30)

Politico: Democrats Push For Federal Control During Medical Supply Shortage
A pair of Democrats are mounting an aggressive push for the federal government to take over buying and distributing much-needed medical supplies, as states continue to battle one another for precious equipment to fight the coronavirus. Rep. Anthony Brown (D-Md.) is leading the effort with a bill that would give the Federal Emergency Management Agency control over supplying medical equipment to states — from ventilators and X-ray machines to masks and gloves — during this and future pandemics. (Caygle, 5/1)

Politico: Murphy, After Meeting With Trump, Says New Jersey Will Get PPE, Test Kits From Feds
Hours after meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House, Gov. Phil Murphy said Thursday that New Jersey will receive hundreds of thousands of pieces of personal protective equipment and coronavirus test kits from the federal government. The Trump administration will ship PPE — which New Jersey has struggled to procure — to 358 nursing homes in the state, Murphy said, including 220,000 masks, 19,000 goggles, 200,000 gowns and 1 million pairs of gloves. The virus has struck particularly hard in the state’s nursing homes. (Maldonado, 4/30)

San Francisco Chronicle: Coronavirus: UCSF Students Set Up Protective Equipment Donation Sites At Bay Area Pharmacies
Students at the UCSF School of Pharmacy collected hundreds of donated personal protective equipment in recent weeks for hospitals in need of supplies amid the coronavirus pandemic, but organizers later realized the effort took unnecessary risks. The good deed required students to stand in public places for several hours collecting items, which put them and others at risk of contracting the virus. It also limited the hours in which people could drop off the personal protective equipment, or PPE. (Sanchez, 4/30)

The Oklahoman: Coronavirus In Oklahoma: PPE Middleman Didn't Deliver, Still Got "Finder's Fee"
The state Health Department paid a $56,000 "finder's fee" last week to a middleman for 2.8 million gloves even though he was unable to secure delivery himself as promised, according to information obtained by The Oklahoman. The governor's PPE "czar," Gino DeMarco, ordered the payment — 2 cents a glove — to Torque Capital LLC, an Oklahoma City-based company that has been in existence less than a year. (Clay, 5/1)

San Francisco Chronicle: California To Rework Coronavirus Ethics Guidelines Deemed ‘Terrifying’ 
California’s public health officials will rework ethical guidelines for hospitals issued in April after groups representing thousands of seniors and people with disabilities across the country protested that younger, healthier people would get preferential access to lifesaving care in a worst-case coronavirus surge. More than 60 senior and disability rights organizations sent two letters last week to Gov. Gavin Newsom and Dr. Mark Ghaly, secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency, arguing that the April 19 guidelines would discriminate against the elderly and disabled if resources ran low. (Moench, 4/30)

The Washington Post: As Produce Rots In The Field, One Florida Farmer And An Army Of Volunteers Combat ‘A Feeling Of Helplessness’ — One Cucumber At A Time
Hank Scott believes the bright green rows of ripening cucumbers are the best yield on his land since his father started the farm in 1963. During any other spring, he'd oversee an army of workers harvesting cucumbers and shipping truckloads to pickling companies along the East Coast. But the coronavirus pandemic has closed or crippled the businesses where his produce would end up. So instead, Scott, 64, invited volunteer pickers with the Society of St. Andrew, a Christian hunger relief organization, to glean as much produce as they could and donate it to nearby food banks. (Wootson, 4/30)

The New York Times: For Most Food Stamp Users, Online Shopping Isn’t An Option
Whether they need more yeast for stress baking or the comfort of Kraft macaroni and cheese, Americans sequestered by social distancing are shopping for groceries online. But for many low-income households using food stamps, that can happen only in person. About 38 million people receive benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, but how they can use them is often limited by technology or government policy. That means they must walk the aisles, increasing the possibility of coronavirus exposure for a group of Americans that includes the poor, older people and those with disabilities. (Bernard, 5/1)

The New York Times: How A Food Bank Manager Spends His Sundays
As a food programs manager at New York Common Pantry, a poverty reduction nonprofit, Jorge Negron works the Sunday shift in East Harlem, making sure that hungry New Yorkers can pick up a brown bag meal on a day when most pantries and soup kitchens are closed. Until the coronavirus outbreak pushed millions of people into unemployment, Mr. Negron said that food insecurity seemed largely under the radar for most New Yorkers. But that’s not the case anymore. (Laterman, 5/1)

The Associated Press: Pelosi: States, Cities Seek $1T To Avoid Layoffs From Virus
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that state and local governments are seeking up to $1 trillion for coronavirus costs, a stunning benchmark for the next aid package that’s certain to run into opposition from Senate Republicans. Pelosi acknowledged the federal government may not be able to provide that much. But she said money for “heroes” is needed to prevent layoffs as governors and mayors stare down red ink in their budgets. (Mascaro and Schreiner, 5/1)

The New York Times: Democrats Assail Mitch McConnell For Bringing Senate Back Amid Pandemic
Senate Democrats assailed Senator Mitch McConnell on Thursday for insisting on bringing the Senate back to Washington in the thick of the coronavirus pandemic, saying it could imperil not only senators and their aides, but also large numbers of low-level employees, including racial minorities at higher risk of infection and death from Covid-19. With coronavirus cases in the District of Columbia and neighboring Maryland and Virginia continuing to rise, and the region still on lockdown, senators in both parties are grappling with how to respond to the decision by Mr. McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the majority leader, to put them back to work on Monday. (Stolberg, 4/30)

The Washington Post: Democrats Question McConnell’s Decision To Return Senate To Business
A prominent Democrat suggested Thursday that the Senate’s return to work next week would put support workers on Capitol Hill — many of them racial minorities — at undue risk of contracting covid-19. The comment from Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), a former presidential candidate, was an implicit criticism of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s decision to convene the chamber after a month-long hiatus prompted by the coronavirus pandemic, and it highlighted significant discomfort on Capitol Hill over a return to legislative business — even with social distancing precautions in place. (DeBonis and Kane, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: McConnell Defends Decision For Senate To Convene Amid Coronavirus
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stood by his decision to convene the Senate next week, saying it was elected officials’ duty to return to work amid the coronavirus outbreak, despite criticism from Democrats that it will put lawmakers and staff at risk. Mr. McConnell said Thursday the Senate needs to return to confirm judges and other nominations. (Andrews, 4/30)

The Hill: Capitol Physician Doesn't Have Enough Coronavirus Tests For All Lawmakers As Senate Plans Return
The capitol physician told Republican aides Thursday he does not have enough coronavirus tests for all lawmakers as senators are scheduled to return to Washington, D.C., on Monday, according to multiple media reports. The news comes after Senate aides brought up the issue of COVID-19 testing to Capitol physician Brian Monahan this week, noting that most senators are considered at-risk for contracting the coronavirus. (Moreno, 4/30)

In other news from Congress —

The Hill: McCarthy Doubtful Republicans Will Participate In Coronavirus Select Committee 
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said he hasn’t determined whether he will appoint any GOP lawmakers to the newly formed special committee overseeing coronavirus stimulus spending, telling reporters he will likely announce his decision next week. Republicans have been highly critical of the panel — which was recently approved along party lines — arguing it's politically motivated and unnecessary due to the other watchdog entities in place tasked with overseeing relief spending. (Brufke, 4/30)

The Hill: House Democrats Push To Include Primary Care Workers In Coronavirus Relief Package 
Democratic Reps. Joaquin Castro (Texas) and Deb Haaland (N.M.) led more than 30 of their colleagues in asking House leadership to broaden the definition of essential workers in the next relief package and guarantee them paid sick leave and affordable child care, among other benefits. The proposal would include family care and child care providers, who often lack traditional employment status. (Moreno, 4/30)

Politico: Justice Department Launches Probe Of Small Business Loans
The Justice Department has launched a review of the $670 billion emergency loan program that Congress created to avert layoffs at small businesses, as the Trump administration ratchets up scrutiny of whether certain borrowers should have received funding. The department's inquiry has already turned up potential fraudulent activity by businesses that sought the so-called Paycheck Protection Program loans, a spokesperson confirmed. (Warmbrodt, 4/30)

The New York Times: Stymied In Seeking Benefits, Millions Of Unemployed Go Uncounted
With a flood of unemployment claims continuing to overwhelm many state agencies, economists say the job losses may be far worse than government tallies indicate. The Labor Department said Thursday that 3.8 million workers filed for unemployment benefits last week, bringing the six-week total to 30 million. But researchers say that as the economy staggers under the weight of the coronavirus pandemic, millions of others have lost jobs but have yet to see benefits. (Schwartz, Hsu and Cohen, 4/30)

The Washington Post: Iowa, Oklahoma And Other States Signal They Could Strip Unemployment Benefits From People Who Don’t Return To Work
Iowa, Oklahoma and other states reopening soon amid the coronavirus outbreak are issuing early warnings to their worried workers: Return to your jobs or risk losing unemployment benefits. The threats have been loudest among Republican leaders in recent days, reflecting their anxious attempts to jump-start local economic recovery roughly two months after most businesses shut their doors. In Iowa, for example, state officials even have posted a public call for companies to get in touch if an “employee refuses to return to work.” (Romm, 4/30)

The Hill: Obama Encourages Americans To Prepare For A Year Of 'Ripple' Effects From Coronavirus 
Former President Obama is urging Americans to prepare for an extended period of economic turmoil and other lingering effects of the coronavirus pandemic. In a recent virtual town hall hosted by My Brother's Keeper, a national initiative for young men of color launched by Obama while he was in the White House, the former president said that he didn't want people to view the current pandemic as a "short-term thing." (Wise, 4/30)

The New York Times: #CancelRent Is New Rallying Cry For Tenants. Landlords Are Alarmed.
As unemployment soars across the country, tenants rights groups and community nonprofits have rallied around an audacious goal: to persuade the government to halt rent and mortgage payments — without back payments accruing — for as long as the economy is battered by the coronavirus. The effort has been brewing on social media, with the hashtag #CancelRent and online video rallies, as well as a smattering of in-person protests, frequently held in cars to maintain social distancing. (Haag and Dougherty, 5/1)

NPR: Rent Is Due Today, But Millions Of Americans Won't Be Paying
More than 30 million people have applied for unemployment as of April 30, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Many are falling behind on their rent and are being evicted, despite new rules designed to stop evictions. Experts say the moratoriums by state and local officials don't go far enough and are leaving tenants vulnerable. "My main concern is that I'll be evicted," says David Perez. The self-employed father of one sells artisanal wares, like wallets and sandals, at a flea market in Elkridge, Md. "What's going to happen to my family?" (Penaloza, 5/1)

The Washington Post: D.C. Tenants Plan Rent Strikes, Hoping For City’s Help As Coronavirus Shutdown Continues
With evictions banned during the coronavirus pandemic in the nation’s capital, D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) advised tenants this week to “stay current” on rental payments “to the best of your ability.” But the D.C. Tenants Union is offering renters different advice: to strike. (Lang, 4/30)

WBUR: Americans Continue To Face Housing Insecurity During Coronavirus Crisis Despite Some States Offering Protections 
To ease some of the economic burdens during the COVID-19 crisis, some states have placed moratoriums on evictions and foreclosures. And under the CARES Act, the federal government has placed a temporary delay on federally insured single-family properties. But Columbia Law School's Emily Benfer, who helped create the COVID-19 Housing Policy Scorecard with Princeton University's Eviction Lab to track each states’ housing plans during the pandemic, says many states are still offering little to no protection. (Mosley and McMahon, 4/30)

Boston Globe: More Rhode Islanders Are Out Of Work As The Coronavirus Continues To Spread 
There was grim news on Thursday for Rhode Island’s efforts to stop the coronavirus. Unemployment topped 197,000. Fifteen more people died, bringing the death toll to 266. Another 374 Rhode Islanders tested positive for the disease, raising the total cases to 8,621, according to the state Department of Health. There are 339 people in the hospital with complications associated with COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the virus, with 85 in intensive care and 54 on ventilators. (Milkovits, 4/30)

Sacramento Bee: Mass Layoffs In CA Continue After COVID-19 Shutters Economy
The COVID-19 layoffs keep coming, weeks after Gov. Gavin Newsom’s stay-at-home order effectively closed most of California’s economy. Hundreds of Sacramento-area workers were part of mass layoffs at their jobs in recent weeks, according to a review of the WARN Act notices filed with the state in April. The public mass-layoff notices, required by law, provide yet another glimpse of how much the area’s economy has suffered since the coronavirus pandemic struck. (Kasler and Finch II, 4/30)

Modern Healthcare: COVID-19 Pandemic Likely Put Some Bankruptcies On Hold
COVID-19 will trigger a wave of healthcare bankruptcies in 2020, but the pandemic had the opposite effect in the first quarter. That's because the economic turmoil in March likely threw a wrench in the exit strategies of companies that had previously planned to file last month. And since most of the damage hit in mid-March when many stay-at-home orders took effect, March 31 was too soon for most other filings. (Bannow, 4/30)

The Associated Press: Front-Line Work During Pandemic Falls On Women, Minorities
As America tentatively emerges from weeks of lockdowns, the pandemic has taken its toll on workers who have been on the front lines all along. They have been packing and delivering supplies, caring for the sick and elderly, and keeping streets and buildings clean. They have also watched their co-workers fall ill. Thousands have gotten sick themselves. Many have died. (Anderson, Olson and Kastanis, 5/1)

Kaiser Health News: Lost On The Frontline
Two members of a close-knit team of EMTs. A firefighter and paramedic who loved helping people. A Boston woman who earned her nursing degree while working in public transit for 23 years. These are some of the people just added to “Lost on the Frontline,” a special series from The Guardian and KHN that profiles health care workers who die of COVID-19. (5/1)

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Home Health Aides Balance Personal Safety With Sense Of Duty 
It’s a dilemma faced by many of the roughly 11,550 home health and personal care aides in the Las Vegas area, a figure that does not include some nurses who work in hospice care or perform other medical tasks for housebound patients. Many so-called PCAs earn just a few dollars over minimum wage and are expected to supply their own protective gear and cleaning supplies so they can safely visit their clients in their homes. (Chhith, 4/30)

Modern Healthcare: Nurses At Tenet Health Hospital Claim Staff Cuts Leading To Unsafe Care
Nurses at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester, Mass., claim the decision by parent company Tenet Healthcare Corp. to reduce staff amid the coronavirus pandemic is leading to subpar care. Tenet announced in early April that it would furlough staff due to lower patient volumes as a result of the cancellation of elective procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic. The furloughs wouldn't have an "impact on COVID-care or care provided to patients with other urgent medical needs," a St. Vincent spokesperson said, but the Massachusetts Nurses Association, which represents the hospital's 840 nurses, claims that hasn't been the case. (Castellucci, 4/30)

Boston Globe: Mass. Nurses Union Balks At Reused Face Masks
The state’s largest nurses union is protesting the reuse of respirator masks that protect against coronavirus — even when they’ve been cleaned in an elaborate decontamination process — and is arguing that nurses should be able to refuse the masks and request new ones for each shift.,Hospitals and state and federal officials have said it’s safe to reuse masks when they’ve been properly sanitized. But officials at the Massachusetts Nurses Association, which has 23,000 members, say there isn’t enough evidence to support decontamination methods. (Dayal McCluskey, 4/30)

Houston Chronicle: UTHealth Closes Child Care Center Serving Health Care Workers’ Families 
The University of Texas Health Child Development Center, which provides child care for health care workers in the Texas Medical Center, is closing permanently after temporarily shutting down during the coronavirus outbreak. In mid-March, as businesses across Texas shut down amid the public health crisis, the center told parents they were closing as a precautionary measure. But on Wednesday, center staff told families in emails and phone calls that the center was shutting for good. (Wu, 4/30)

Kaiser Health News: California To Widen Pipeline Of Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners
Jane Gunter, a nurse practitioner in Tuolumne County, California, has long wanted to specialize in mental health so she can treat patients who have anxiety, depression and more complicated mental illnesses. Her county, a rural outpost in the Sierra Nevada foothills with a population of about 54,000, has only five psychiatrists — “a huge shortage,” she said. But Gunter, 56, wasn’t about to quit her job at the Me-Wuk Indian Health Center in Tuolumne and relocate to some distant campus for two years to get certified as a psychiatric nurse practitioner. (Basheda, 5/1)

The New York Times: Who Should Wear Masks On Planes? More Airlines Say Everyone
After flight attendants and pilots criticized them for not doing more to protect employees, large airlines in the United States and around the world announced this week that they would require their crews and passengers to wear masks. American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines all said on Thursday that they would start requiring all passengers to wear a face covering in the coming weeks, a policy that will apply to their flight attendants and some other workers, too. (Chokshi, 4/30)

The Washington Post: More Airlines Move To Make Masks Mandatory For Travelers To Combat Covid-19
On Thursday, American, Delta, Frontier and United announced that starting this month, passengers would be required to wear masks or facial coverings when they fly. The shift comes after JetBlue announced a similar policy Monday. Crew members also will be required to wear masks, the airlines said. Amid reports that more than 500 employees, including screeners at the Transportation Security Administration, have been diagnosed with covid-19, union leaders said travelers should be required to wear masks when passing through security checkpoints as well. (Aratani, 4/30)

NPR: Passengers Must Wear Masks On Major Airlines To Cut Spread Of Coronavirus
The Federal Aviation Administration has said it expects airlines to follow CDC recommendations that everyone wear face coverings when in public, but the regulatory agency has stopped short of requiring them. Some airlines already require crew members to wear masks, and in addition to now requiring passengers to do the same, some airlines are blocking out middle seats, spacing out passengers during boarding and taking other steps to ensure social distancing on flights. They've stepped up their cleaning and disinfecting of airplane cabins, as well. (Schaper, 4/30)

The Hill: Delta, American Airlines To Mandate Face Coverings During US Flights 
On Thursday Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) led a group of over 80 members of Congress in calling for the DOT and DHS to provide protective gear to all transportation employees. “If we are going to weather the COVID-19 storm, we must ensure that no employee is penalized or endangered while continuing to perform their essential job duties during this global pandemic,” Rush said in a statement. (Moreno, 4/30)

ABC News: To Study Coronavirus In The Air, All Eyes On A Chinese Restaurant 
A new study of a COVID-19 outbreak tied to a restaurant in China is re-igniting questions about how far the novel coronavirus could spread in the air and how airflow through ventilators or air conditioners, and the air quality itself, could play a role. The World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have long maintained that the virus is spread primarily through droplets on surfaces and rarely travels more than six feet in the air, but the recent study, conducted by the Guangzhou Center for Disease Control, suggests that the virus not only passes through person-to-person spread at close range, but can travel farther with help from air currents blowing from ventilation systems. (Folmer, Dastmalchi and Bhatt, 5/1)

Los Angeles Times: Why Some Patients Keep Testing Positive For The Coronavirus
By his second day in the hospital with COVID-19, Charles Pignal’s mild cough and 102-degree fever had disappeared. Bored and “bouncing off the walls” of his room in the isolation ward at Singapore’s National Center for Infectious Diseases, he felt like he could go out and play a set of tennis. The 42-year-old footwear executive told his mother on the phone, “I’ll be out of here in a couple of days.” (Bengali, 4/30)

NBC News: 'What Is It About Their Immune System?' Rare Complication Seen In Some Kids With COVID-19
Last Friday, high school junior Jameela Barber called her teacher in Dallas County, Texas, to apologize for neglecting to turn in her school work. Her school's principal, Eleanor Webb, said Barber told her teacher she hadn't been feeling well. The next day, Webb said, Barber died of complications from COVID-19. She was 17. Barber's case is rare; only a handful of pediatric deaths related to the coronavirus have been reported in the United States. (Edwards, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus Mutations Map The Global Outbreak
For the first time during a global outbreak, scientists have been able to use genomic data in real time to track how a virus is traveling around the world, revealing sources of outbreaks and shedding light on cases with unknown origins. By identifying mutations in the genetic sequence of samples of the coronavirus, which are markers for various strains, researchers have offered clues to whether some cases came from a local source or elsewhere in the world. (Wang and Umlauf, 4/30)

NBC News: WHO 'Urgently' Investigating Link Between Coronavirus And Syndrome That Affects Young Kids
The World Health Organization is “urgently” investigating a potential link between the coronavirus and Kawasaki syndrome, an illness of unknown cause that primarily affects children under 5. “We are aware of this newly described syndrome from a number of countries in Europe and potentially a small number of cases in North America,” Dr. Adam Finn, chair of the WHO's European Technical Advisory Group, told a news briefing Thursday. (Austin, 4/30)

CNN: Read This Before You Go Out In Public Amid The Coronavirus Pandemic 
The best way to curb the spread of Covid-19 is to stay home if you can. That's true even now that more than half of US states will start reopening nonessential businesses like salons, restaurants and gyms. This isn't an immediate return to normalcy -- health officials have warned that reopening now could mean a resurgence of the virus. So if you're reentering public spaces, it's imperative to do it safely. (Andrew, 5/1)

GMA: My Entire Family Survived COVID-19. Here's What I Wish I Knew Earlier 
Like many Americans, Hilary Sledge-Sarnor, 38, didn’t know much about the coronavirus in early March. The Los Angeles resident carried on with her busy schedule as a lawyer, going into the office and meeting up with friends. But when her family began getting ill, she quickly saw the toll the disease can take. (Abdul-Hakim, 5/1)

CBS News: "COVID Toes" And Other Skin Symptoms May Be A Sign Of Coronavirus 
There is still much to learn about the novel coronavirus, including a wide range of symptoms that appears to be expanding. Common symptoms of the respiratory illness include fever, cough, shortness of breath and chills, but some doctors have reported less obvious symptoms in some patients — including what some are calling "COVID toes" and other skin ailments. (O'Kane, 4/30)

The New York Times: With Kidney Treatment In High Demand, A Patient’s Health Quickly Declines
Orphaned as a youth in Bangladesh, Jamal Uddin worked in a ribbon factory in Lower Manhattan while attending high school, before graduating from college and ultimately finding a career helping people with H.I.V./AIDS. Over his 68 years he had proved that he was a survivor, but the battle of his life would take shape in a Brooklyn intensive care unit as the new coronavirus swept the city. He had a ventilator to help him breathe, the one piece of equipment everyone feared would be unavailable if the hospitals were overwhelmed. (Kulish, 5/1)

Stat: Experts Question Facebook's Approach To Combat Covid-19 Misinformation
In an attempt to corral false coronavirus claims, Facebook launched a new strategy last month that the social media giant says pulls from a string of psychology studies on combating inaccurate posts. The problem: The researchers behind some of those papers and outside experts say Facebook appears to be interpreting the findings incorrectly — and their approach could be running counter to the goal of tamping down on runaway misinformation. (Brodwin, 5/1)

CIDRAP: New York City Data Show Pandemic Hits Poor Harder
COVID-19 infected and killed more people in poor, ethnically diverse New York City boroughs than in affluent, predominantly white ones, according to a research letter published yesterday in JAMA. Also, a prospective case series in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) of 86 COVID-19 patients with immune-mediated inflammatory disease such as rheumatoid arthritis found that those taking anticytokine biologics or immunomodulatory therapies did not have worse outcomes than their peers. (Van Beusekom, 4/30)

Stateline: Youth, Disconnected: Coronavirus Leaves Some Behind 
After two weeks of “mental toughness” training, 20 teenagers and young adults in a YouthBuild daily program in Enid, Oklahoma, were on the cusp of turning their lives around. Out of school and out of work, they proved to organizers that they could be punctual, follow instructions and work hard. As a result, the youths were invited to the next phase of the program: working toward earning their high school diplomas and helping with local construction projects. (Simpson, 5/1)

Crain's Cleveland Business: Cleveland Clinic, Epic Develop Home Monitoring Tool For COVID-19 Patients
Cleveland Clinic worked with Epic, its electronic health record vendor, to develop and implement a COVID-19 home monitoring program that is now available for other healthcare organizations across the country to use. Collaboration among clinicians and analysts helped the Clinic to rapidly design, build and launch the technology in just 10 days. Typically, it would have taken three months to do so, said Dr. Eric Boose, associate chief medical information officer at the Clinic. (Coutre, 4/30)

Modern Healthcare: Rucker: Interoperability Would Improve COVID-19 Response
The Trump administration's top health IT official on Thursday said the healthcare industry would be better poised to address the coronavirus pandemic had HHS' recently released interoperability regulations been around earlier, even as the agency delays enforcement. "If we'd had this rule several years ago, we'd be in a far, far better spot for … knowing what's going on with this pandemic," Dr. Donald Rucker, chief of HHS' Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, said during a webinar hosted by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society. (Cohen, 4/30)

WBUR: Blue Cross Sees Hundredfold Increase In Telehealth Visits During Pandemic 
In the past six weeks, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts recorded more than half a million telehealth visits with patients. Before COVID-19, the average number of telehealth visits over a six-week period was 5,000. That shift to virtual medical treatment during the coronavirus pandemic will likely create permanent changes to health care delivery, according to the insurer. (Becker, 4/30)

The New York Times: Millions Had Risen Out Of Poverty. Coronavirus Is Pulling Them Back.
She was just 12 when she dropped out of school and began clocking in for endless shifts at one of the garment factories springing up in Bangladesh, hoping to pull her family out of poverty. Her fingers ached from stitching pants and shirts destined for sale in the United States and Europe, but the $30 the young woman made each month meant that for the first time, her family had regular meals, even luxuries like chicken and milk. A decade later, she was providing a better life for her own child than she had ever imagined. (Abi-Habib, 4/30)

Reuters: As Sweden Goes It Alone, A COVID-19 Survivor And Trucking Boss Balances Risk
Per Arne Fredin has been at the sharp end of Sweden’s policy to buck the norm and avoid a COVID-19 lockdown - a decision that has been hailed as both visionary and irresponsible by public figures around the world. As a 70-year-old with a heart condition, he was in a danger group for the novel coronavirus. He feared the worst when he was diagnosed with COVID-19 in February, but pulled through after 12 agonising days in bed at home to the west of Stockholm. (Ahlander, 5/1)

The Associated Press: Easing Of Lockdown Begs The Question: Who's Family In Italy?
When Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte said the government would relax some parts of a nationwide lockdown, residents entering an eighth week of home confinement to inhibit the coronavirus dove for their dictionaries. Conte announced that starting May 4, people in Italy will be permitted to travel within their home regions for visits with “congiunti,” a formal Italian word that can mean either relatives, relations or kinsmen. Under the lockdown, Italians only have been able to leave home for essential jobs or vital tasks such as grocery shopping. (D'Emilio, 5/1)

The Associated Press: Forbidden City, Parks In Chinese Capital Reopen To Public
Beijing’s parks and museums including the ancient Forbidden City reopened to the public Friday after being closed for months by the coronavirus pandemic. The Forbidden City, past home to China’s emperors, is allowing just 5,000 visitors daily, down from 80,000. And parks are allowing people to visit at 30% of the usual capacity. One Beijing resident said this visit felt different than others, when the Forbidden City was more crowded. “When walking in some areas without others around I felt like getting back to the history,” Bian Jiang said. (5/1)

The New York Times: Rome Has Been Sacked, Conquered And Abandoned. Now It’s The Coronavirus’s Turn.
Rome turned 2,773 last week. To mark the legendary founding of the city and its past glory, there is usually a crowded birthday parade of re-enactors dressed up as gladiators and vestal virgins. The coronavirus took care of that, leaving eerily abandoned streets that evoked something closer to a disastrous sacking in the 6th century, when the population of Rome plunged to zero. The coronavirus has no marauding army breaching the walls, dumping bodies in the Tiber or burning down buildings. In some ways, the city has bloomed under the epidemic. (Horowitz, 5/1)

NPR: Police In India Test Huge Tongs To Nab Suspects From A Distance Amid Coronavirus Outbreak
For police, the new coronavirus poses a dilemma: How do you apprehend a suspect in the era of social distancing? In India, they've come up with a way to lengthen the long arms of the law: giant tongs. In what looks more like a scene from a cops-and-robbers cartoon, this week police in the northern city of Chandigarh tweeted a video of an officer demonstrating how to use a 6-foot pole with a two-pronged claw at the end to detain a suspect. (Frayer and Pathak, 4/30)

The New York Times: How Covid-19 Has Forced Us To Look At The Unthinkable
A few weeks ago, videos surfaced on the internet showing what appeared to be mass burials in New York City. In aerial footage, captured by an Associated Press drone camera on April 9, workers wearing protective gear are seen arranging coffins in a wide, muddy trench. The process appears orderly, efficient and unsentimental. Laborers unload the coffins from forklifts and stack them in neat rows. They place plywood sheets on top of the piles; occasionally, they can be seen treading on the coffins. The bird’s-eye vantage point lends the scene a chilling impersonality. It is, simply, a worksite: When the burial crew shovels dark dirt over the plain wooden boxes, they do so with the unceremonious diligence of a street repair team scooping asphalt into a pothole. (Rosen, 4/29)

Politico: Florida’s No-Rules Vibe Gets A Coronavirus Reality Check 
At the farthest northwest corner of Florida, straddling the border with Alabama, sits a sprawling, ramshackle beach bar called the Flora-Bama Lounge. First opened as a roadhouse in 1964, it’s celebrated in song by Jimmy Buffett, and known as much for its bushwackers (a cocktail like a chocolate piña colada that’s made with five different liquors) as for its beer pennants strung with hundreds of bras. Poet Beth Ann Fennelly once called it the one and only “five-star honky-tonk of the Redneck Riviera.” Nothing captures the slightly trashy, sweetly laid back, anything can happen here vibe of Florida beach culture quite as neatly as the Flora-Bama’s annual Interstate Mullet Toss. Every April, some 30,000 people gather on the beach in front of the Flora-Bama to see who can toss a dead fish the farthest across the state line. They go through about 1,000 pounds of mullet and raise thousands of dollars for charities like the Boys & Girls Clubs. (Pittman, 4/25)

Wired: Inside The Early Days Of China’s Coronavirus Coverup
Late on the night of February 2, as her insomnia kicked in, a Beijing woman whom I’ll call Yue took out her phone and religiously clicked open WeChat and Weibo. Over the past two fitful weeks, the two Chinese social media platforms had offered practically her only windows into the “purgatory,” as she called it, of Wuhan. At this point, according to official estimates, the novel coronavirus had infected just over 14,000 people in the world—and nearly all of them were in the central Chinese city where Yue had attended university and lived for four years. A number of her friends there had already caught the mysterious virus. (Yuan, 5/1)

FiveThirtyEight: Switching To A Vote-By-Mail Election Is Tougher Than It Seems
With the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, many people seem eager to switch to a vote-by-mail system for the general election in November. Elections analyst Nathaniel Rakich looks into why such a switch is more difficult than it seems here in the United States. (Rakich and Chow, 4/30)

The New York Times: 178 Hours In Milan During The Lockdown
A visual diary by the artist Olimpia Zagnoli. (4/30)

Los Angeles Times: 'Every Country For Itself' Won't Stop Global Coronavirus Crisis 
Has there ever been a crisis as truly global as this one? If I email with my cousin Susanne outside Vienna, she’s locked in her house, avoiding the virus. So is my old colleague, Said, who is at home in his apartment in East Jerusalem. So was Luly in Beijing, until a few weeks ago when restrictions there were eased. This microscopic virus knows no national borders. And it kills indiscriminately — Italians as well as Iranians, Americans as well as Russians. There are a couple of ways to respond to this if you’re Donald Trump or Xi Jinping or Angela Merkel. You can conclude, quite rationally, that we’re all in this together and that we need to reach out across borders and oceans to encourage cooperation to understand and beat back the pandemic that threatens us all. Or, you can hunker down inside your own country, bar outsiders from entering, wrestle other nations for scarce resources, seek your own cures and hurl blame at each other to divert attention from your own mistakes. (Nicholas Goldberg, 5/1)

The Washington Post: China Has Turned To Bullying To Avoid Accountability. It May Be Working On Europe. 
China's effort to avoid accountability for the novel coronavirus pandemic through a global propaganda campaign seems to be doing as much harm as good for Beijing. Attempts by government officials and state media to cast blame on the United States or other Western countries for the origin and spread of the virus have triggered a backlash; deliveries of humanitarian supplies have led to reports about their poor quality. Rather than retreat, President Xi Jinping’s regime has turned to a familiar tactic: bullying. Its diplomats are demanding that governments offer praise for China’s handling of the epidemic or censor reports on its failings, and they are threatening consequences if their requirements are not met. Disturbingly, this tactic appears to be working with the European Union. (4/30)

The New York Times: What If We Already Have A Coronavirus Vaccine?
As the world waits for a coronavirus vaccine, tens of thousands of people could die. But some scientists believe a vaccine might already exist. Surprising new research in a niche area of immunology suggests that certain live vaccines that have been around for decades could, possibly, protect against the coronavirus. The theory is that these vaccines could make people less likely experience serious symptoms — or even any symptoms — if they catch it. (Melinda Wenner Moyer, 5/1)

CNN: This Is What Happens When Coronavirus Research Funding Gets Political 
The public health threat of the Covid-19 pandemic has made the American public acutely aware of the impactful work done by researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health. Federally funded researchers from coast to coast and beyond are working feverishly to understand SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease. These scientists are racing to understand its makeup, its mechanism of entry into the human body, its characteristics outside the body and what existing therapies may help patients while a vaccine is being developed. Why, then, did the NIH last week, as first reported by Politico, terminate a grant that supports leading research into how coronaviruses can be transferred from their natural host of bats to humans? (Benjamin Corb, 4/30)

Stat: Cancer Research Offers Faster Ways To ID New Covid-19 Treatments 
In the cancer research and treatment community, the treatment of one patient can inform the treatment of others. Real-world data are routinely collected from tens of thousands of cancer patients through services like CancerLinQ and Flatiron, as well as data deposited in publicly maintained databases, including one run by the nonprofit organization I founded, Cancer Commons. Doctors can mine these AI-driven databases to advance cancer research and learn how treatments — some of which are already approved by the Food and Drug Administration for other uses and can be used off label — have worked for similar patients in the past. (Marty Tenenbaum, 4/30)

Stat: The U.S. Needs To Manufacture More CPAP Machines 
I don’t want to be intubated. That was my main thought a few weeks ago as I lay in bed at home, having trouble breathing and watching my pulse oximeter show that my blood oxygen was under 93% when it should have been over 95%... Because I had been short of breath, exhausted, and feeling a tightness in my chest before testing positive for Covid-19, my father sent me a continuous positive airway pressure machine, also known as a CPAP, to help me breathe. This device is commonly used to treat obstructive sleep apnea. (Matthew Putman, 5/1)

Boston Globe: As Coronavirus Infections Peak, Profit-Driven Hospital Systems Must Be Held Accountable
If you are Black or brown in this country, you are more likely to contract and die from COVID-19. According to a recent Washington Post analysis, counties that are majority-Black have three times the rate of infections and almost six times the rate of deaths as their white-majority counterparts. As alarming as those statistics are, they are, sadly, not surprising. Even in a crisis, the same profit-driven decision-making and disregard of vulnerable populations responsible for the inequities and injustices that plague American health care in normal times are at work. That means that people of color and other vulnerable populations are at a disadvantage that can be fatal. (Alecia McGregor, Shalanda Baker, Camara Jones and Michelle Morse, 4/30)

Cincinnati Enquirer: More Minority Physicians Are Key To Eliminating Health Disparities
The Cincinnati Medical Association believes that increasing the number of underrepresented minority (URM) physicians is fundamental to eliminating the health disparity. For the URM population, access to physicians who look like them is important.  The URM physician is someone who is culturally connected to them and who understands their lives and challenges as much as their clinical needs. The African American patient is much more likely to discuss the impact of racism on his/her life with an African American provider who faces those same challenges. (Roosevelt Walker III, 4/30)

ABC News: Spanish Translations, Outreach Lacking Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
"Why aren't we hearing from the Spanish-speaking commissioners at news conferences?" The questions began as "chisme" -- chatter among friends. Friends fueled by the same life story of immigrant parents who sacrificed for us... As COVID-19 began its wrath on central Florida, the questions continued. (Alvarez, 4/30)

The Hill: An Urgent Need To Reopen Medical Care For All 
Each day a new story of crowded hospital corridors and exhausted health care workers appears in our newspapers. But another story, equally tragic, is unfolding in the privacy of our homes. Countless Americans with chronic conditions and other serious illnesses languish in isolation without access to care. While hospitals have of course remained open for urgent care, patients with less critical needs have been relegated almost entirely to virtual visits. (Dr. William Haseltine, 4/30)

Stat: The Covid-19 Pandemic Will Make Medical Students Better Doctors 
When I graduated from medical school more years ago than I care to remember, my training as an intern and a resident followed an unrushed, traditional path. Medical students at the time were introduced to patients gradually, and we took our time engaging with the trying challenges that make up the bulk of a physician’s career. This year, students graduating from the medical school where I am dean and other school are facing a very different time line: Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many of them have been called upon to volunteer or work in hospitals before their time in medical school was over. (Lawrence G. Smith, 5/1)

 Houston Chronicle: COVID-19 Taking An Economic Toll On Texas Doctor’s Practices 
Oil has grabbed most of the headlines since COVID-19 shut down the Texas economy, but perhaps the most critical sector, health care, stands to take an even bigger bite out of the state’s prosperity. Gov. Greg Abbott’s order suspending non-essential health services, and new guidelines for social distancing, are slashing revenues at private practices. Primary care doctors and specialists have seen revenues drop by up to 90 percent, according to a recent survey by trade publication MDLinx. (Chris Tomlinson, 4/1)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Supporting Those On Pandemic’s Frontlines
Are we just vital statistics, waiting to be calculated? COVID-19 has infected and killed more than 50,000 Americans. We must remember that every single one of these deaths is a loved one — a son or daughter, a father or mother, a husband or wife, a friend, a colleague. And in the background of each one of those deaths is a healthcare worker. A doctor holding the phone allowing loved ones to say goodbye, a caring nurse holding the hand as the family cannot, a respiratory therapist ensuring they are breathing comfortably. (Jesse O'Shea, 4/30)

The New York Times: What Are Civil Liberties In A Time Of Coronavirus? 
The tension between private liberty and public health in the United States is hardly new. Americans have demanded the latter in times of plague and prioritized the former in times of well-being since at least the colonial era. Politicians and business leaders have alternately manipulated and deferred to that tension for about as long.In 1701, members of the Massachusetts Bay Colony fought a yearlong political battle to enact the nation’s first quarantine laws, against opponents who claimed the measure would unduly harm businesses that relied on the ports. In 1918, during the flu pandemic, the mayor of Pittsburgh brought a ban on public gatherings to a swift — and premature — conclusion over concerns about a coming election. In 2020, the same tension is back with a vengeance. (5/1)

Los Angeles Times: Amid Coronavirus, How Does A Social Distance Summer Work? 
Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House’s coronavirus response coordinator, said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that social distancing would probably continue through the summer. I know what you’re thinking, because I had the same initial thought: There’s no way I can stand four more months of this lockdown. But that’s not what Birx meant, at least I think and hope not. A socially distanced summer doesn’t mean we continue to remain hunkered down in our homes until September, except for the occasional run to the grocery store. If we did, there wouldn’t be much of a society or economy to rejoin when we emerged in the fall. (Mariel Garza, 4/28)

The Wall Street Journal: Limit Governors’ Emergency Powers
As governors across the country destroy their states’ economies in the name of public health, there is shockingly little oversight of their actions.In my state of Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker has locked down the state, closing swaths of commerce and limiting the movement of citizens in response to Covid-19. These actions have been challenged in court by my colleague, state Rep. Darren Bailey, and a judge initially agreed to a temporary restraining order on the governor’s emergency measure, but only as they apply to Mr. Bailey. The rest of the state remains under lockdown by the governor’s orders, which continue without oversight. (Dan McConchie, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: Democratic Governors Reopen
Liberals and their media friends assert that GOP governors will have blood on their hands if they ease their coronavirus economic shutdowns. Don’t look now, but even a couple of Democratic governors are making plans to reopen.Colorado Gov. Jared Polis quietly let his state’s stay-at-home order expire last weekend. Retail curb-side deliveries are now allowed, and personal services like hair salons will be given an all-clear on Friday. Mr. Polis says he hopes to let bars, restaurants and clubs open by mid-May if the health-care system isn’t stressed. (4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: Unmasking The Vice President 
Vice President Mike Pence invited a wave of media indignation this week when photos circulated of him touring the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., sans face mask. How could the guy in charge of the White House coronavirus task force be so cavalier? Doesn’t he understand the message it sends?I confess that was my first reaction, too. Fear of getting sick coupled with frustration at being cooped up for weeks has aggravated my proclivity toward self-righteousness. I’ll ride my high horse. (Matthew Hennessey, 4/30)

The New York Times: How New Mexico Flattened The Coronavirus Curve 
On March 13, the same day that a reluctant President Trump admitted that the coronavirus pandemic was a national emergency, a storied New Mexico hospital established the nation’s first drive-through testing for the virus.The next day, hundreds of cars lined the streets of Albuquerque, the state’s largest city. A second hospital jumped in with more testing. Within days, drive-through testing — still not widely available in much of the nation, even today — expanded here to Las Cruces, to the southern edge of the state.One of the nation’s poorest states, with a small population flung across 122,000 square miles, New Mexico quickly accomplished what for the United States as a whole seems elusive: widespread testing for the deadliest pandemic in a century. (Richard Parker, 5/1)

Dallas Morning News: It’s Time For Texas To Begin To Reopen, But Caution Must Come Before Hope
This morning dawned with a sense of both hope and concern as our state begins to re-open certain segments of the economy. Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to take this step has stirred fear in many of us who worry that we haven’t waited long enough under stay-at-home orders or spent enough time becoming prepared for the possible resurgence of the disease. We understand those fears and acknowledge they come from people who are rightly worried about themselves and others. (5/1)

Cleveland Plain Dealer: In Reopening Ohio, What About Those At Highest Risk Of Dying From The Coronavirus? 
On Monday, Gov. Mike DeWine revealed the state’s “layered” economic reopening plan, starting this week with hospitals and dental offices, continuing Monday with factories and offices, and moving on May 12 to many of the retail and service firms currently deemed “nonessential.” But some business categories will remain closed for now, including salons and barber shops, restaurants and bars. Many are small businesses at risk of never reopening but that may have the most trouble maintaining social distance. (5/1)

Des Moines Register: Iowa Economy Should Be Reopened Immediately. We Achieved Our Goals.
The evidence simply no longer warrants a widespread shutdown of our state’s economy, and we should urge Gov. Kim Reynolds to act in a manner consistent with the original purpose of the shutdown and take steps to immediately reopen business in all of Iowa’s 99 counties. This is not to say that testing or mitigation practices should be abandoned or that seniors and others in skilled and long-term care facilities — Iowans clearly at increased risk of death from the virus — should not be vigilantly protected. Yet, this can be accomplished without unduly inhibiting a resumption of business, industry and commerce in our state. (Tom Slater, 4/30)

Des Moines Register: Coronavirus In Iowa: Opening A Business Or Place Of Worship Is A Choice
Gov. Kim Reynolds deserves credit for how she’s led Iowa during the COVID-19 pandemic. In her daily news conferences, she is thoughtful, compassionate and measured, particularly compared to some other Republican governors. She moved swiftly in March to protect state employees, close numerous businesses, limit gatherings and halt elective medical procedures. After a stunning absence of federal leadership, Reynolds launched a program to increase testing for the virus. While we want to see more transparency from her administration and comprehensive answers to reporters' questions, Reynolds has consistently conveyed that the health and safety of Iowans is her top priority. (4/30)

Detroit Free Press: Rushing To Reopen In Coronavirus Crisis Would Create Real Death Panels
Today, we have a real threat to our oldest and our most marginalized. Coronavirus is not just disproportionately affecting the old, it is also hitting communities of color, the disabled and those of limited means the hardest. And they are dying in vast numbers. We have a path forward that emphasizes testing, tracing and isolation: It minimizes harm, restarts our economy and puts people ahead of politics. Why would we want to pivot to death panels? (Howard P. Forman, 5/1)

The Oklahoman: Good News And Bad In Oklahoma's Pandemic Response
The COVID-19 pandemic has left states scrambling to obtain facemasks and other items needed to protect health care workers. In Oklahoma, these efforts have at times been disconcerting enough that now an investigation is pending. Efforts on the testing front, meantime, are more assuring. (5/1)

Boston Globe: Six Weeks After Social Distancing Began, Mass. Coronavirus Hospitalizations And Cases Remain High. Why So Little Improvement? 
Rewind the clock a month, to late March, as nonessential businesses were closing and Governor Charlie Baker asked us to stay home to reduce the spread of coronavirus. Where did we imagine we would be as a state by the start of May? A lot further along than we are now. It’s maddening: More than six weeks after statewide social distancing measures began to take effect, the number of hospitalizations for COVID-19 infections is stuck in a stubbornly high place — about 3,800 — a figure that has barely budged in two weeks, dropping 1 percent on Thursday. (Mark Arsenault, 4/30)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Trauma Related To COVID-19 Hits Kids The Hardest
There are a lot of tough questions right now. And every answer seems to bring new questions. At ProKids, our passionate staff and dedicated volunteers – backed by a committed community – navigate in a world where helping abused and neglected children thrive depends on being adaptable because it’s always been complicated and unpredictable. That work, of advocating directly for these children who are often in foster care, has never been more important. (Cook, 4/30)

Detroit Free Press: When It Comes To Emergency Food, Many People Can't Afford To 'Stay Home, Stay Safe'
The governor has urged Michiganders to “stay home, stay safe,” yet in this age of extreme social distancing, acquiring adequate food and supplies for vulnerable households becomes a challenge. For low-income individuals, the public health recommendations to stay home, limit food trips, and buy in bulk are nearly impossible. The current emergency food system is fragmented by rules, eligibility and limits on the quantity of food given, requiring families to navigate a complex system with varying days, times, and locations, often changing schedules from day to day. (Jennifer F. Lucarelli, 4/28)

The Oklahoman: Pandemic Helping Push Telemedicine To The Fore
In one of his recent columns for The Oklahoman, Scott Meacham, CEO and president of Oklahoma City-based i2E Inc., touched on one of the results from the COVID-19 pandemic. “Whole industries are changing before our eyes,” Meacham wrote. “Physicians and insurers who may have been reluctant before are embracing the touch and efficiency of telemedicine.” (5/1)