The New York Times: Biden Administration Prompts Largest Permanent Increase In Food Stamps
The Biden administration has revised the nutrition standards of the food stamp program and prompted the largest permanent increase to benefits in the program’s history, a move that will give poor people more power to fill their grocery carts but add billions of dollars to the cost of a program that feeds one in eight Americans. Under rules to be announced on Monday and put in place in October, average benefits will rise more than 25 percent from prepandemic levels. All 42 million people in the program will receive additional aid. The move does not require congressional approval, and unlike the large pandemic-era expansions, which are starting to expire, the changes are intended to last. (DeParle, 8/15)

AP: USDA To Permanently Boost Food Stamp Benefits By 25 Percent
The Biden administration has approved a significant and permanent increase in the levels of food stamp assistance available to needy families — the largest single increase in the program’s history. Starting in October, average benefits for food stamps — officially known as the SNAP program — will rise more than 25 percent above pre-pandemic levels. The increased assistance will be available indefinitely to all 42 million SNAP beneficiaries. (Khalil and Boak, 8/16)

Politico: Biden Administration Makes Record Increase To Food Stamp Benefits
On Monday, USDA will outline exactly how it concluded that benefits should increase. One important change: The formula will take into account convenience foods like chopped frozen vegetables, bagged salads and canned beans, which are much more common now than when the plan was last updated in 2006. (Evich, 8/15)

Reuters: Biden Administration Confirms It Will Boost Food Stamps By Record Amount
Under the new rules, average monthly benefits, $121 per person before the pandemic, will rise by $36 starting in October, the newspaper reported, adding that all 42 million people in the program would receive additional aid. At the same time, a temporary 15% increase in benefits as part of pandemic relief is set to expire Sept. 30. The $3.5 billion boost approved earlier this year provides about $27 more per person, per month, or over $100 more a month for a household of four, in additional food stamp benefits. (Shepardson, 8/15)

The Washington Post: Biden Administration Approves Largest Increase To SNAP Food Assistance Benefits In Program’s History
“Plain and simple, this is totally a game-changing moment,” said Jamie Bussel a senior program officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, a philanthropy focused on health. “The changes have enormous potential to reduce, and potentially eliminate, child hunger and poverty in this country. This will reflect much more accurately what food actually costs in communities.” ... Anti-hunger experts have long argued the Thrifty Food Plan’s metrics are out of date with the economic realities most struggling households face. They say the plan, formulated in the 1960s, was designed when many American families still had only one working parent, allowing the other parent more time for labor-intensive, but cheap, cooking from scratch. (Reiley, 8/15)

NPR: CDC Recommends 3rd Vaccine Dose For Immunocompromised People
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is officially recommending that people with weakened immune systems get a third shot of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine. It comes hours after a unanimous vote by a panel of advisers Friday to recommend the guidance and less than 24 hours after the Food and Drug Administration authorized such use. Providers generally wait for a CDC recommendation on vaccine use, even if the FDA has approved or authorized a vaccine. (Neel, 8/13)

AP: US Mulls COVID Vaccine Boosters For Elderly As Early As Fall
Warning of tough days ahead with surging COVID-19 infections, the director of the National Institutes of Health said Sunday the U.S. could decide in the next couple weeks whether to offer coronavirus booster shots to Americans this fall. Among the first to receive them could be health care workers, nursing home residents and other older Americans. Dr. Francis Collins also pleaded anew for unvaccinated people to get their shots, calling them “sitting ducks” for a delta variant that is ravaging the country and showing little sign of letting up. “This is going very steeply upward with no signs of having peaked out,” he said. (Yen, 8/15)

Bloomberg: Fauci Says U.S. Can Move Quickly To Offer Third Vaccine Shots
Anthony Fauci, President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser, said the U.S. will be “absolutely prepared” to distribute a third shot of the coronavirus vaccine quickly to a wider population if needed. He gave no timeline but said health officials are evaluating various groups “on a daily and weekly basis.” “So if it turns out, as the data come in, we see we do need to give an additional dose to people in nursing homes, actually, or people who are elderly we will be absolutely prepared to do that very quickly,” he said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” (Fisher, 8/15)

Some regions are already offering a third dose —

AP: Louisiana Providing 3rd Pfizer, Moderna Vaccine For Some
The Louisiana Department of Health is making COVID-19 vaccine booster shots available for some people with weak immune systems that put them at high risk for COVID-19.The department said in a news release Friday that it’s following guidelines released late Thursday by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC endorsed a third dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine for people whose immune systems have been weakened by cancer treatment, organ transplants or other conditions. (8/15)

Bay Area News Group: Santa Clara County Offers Third Vaccine Dose To Immunocompromised People
Santa Clara County is now offering a third dose of coronavirus vaccines to people who are immunocompromised following approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, officials said Saturday. Eligible people — a tailored list including transplant recipients, cancer patients and select other conditions — may schedule third-dose appointments through the county’s COVID-19 vaccination website or contact their health care provider. (Kelliher, 8/14)

Also —

Fox News: Fauci Dismisses Study On Delta Efficacy Between Moderna, Pfizer As Guide For Booster Shots
Dr. Anthony Fauci has dismissed a study that deemed the Moderna vaccine as more effective than the Pfizer one against the COVID-19 delta variant. The Mayo Clinic and Cambridge-based biotech company nfrence conducted the study, posted in medrvix last week, by analyzing samples of delta variant prevalence in Minnesota from January to July. When asked if this indicated that individuals should seek a Moderna dose for the booster shot, Fauci disagreed. (Aitken, 8/15)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. City Council President Decries Violence That Erupted At Anti-Vax Rally Over The Weekend
Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez denounced the violence that erupted at an anti-vaccination rally in front of City Hall over the weekend resulting in one man being stabbed and a journalist being attacked. “Not wearing a mask and being anti-vax isn’t patriotism — it’s stupidity,” Martinez tweeted late Saturday night. “We have to be able to have differences of opinions without resorting to violence. Attacking counter-protesters and journalists has no place in a democracy and certainly no place in Los Angeles.” The man who was stabbed at the rally was released from the hospital, police said Sunday. (Wigglesworth and Queally, 8/15)

Oklahoman: At Rally, Oklahomans Protest Vaccine Mandates, Urge Action From Stitt
More than 1,000 Oklahomans rallied at the state Capitol on Saturday to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Rallygoers called on Gov. Kevin Stitt or the Oklahoma Legislature to take action to prevent local businesses from requiring their employees to get vaccinated. The opposition to vaccine mandates comes as several local health systems are requiring their employees to get vaccinated for COVID-19. "When I heard it was either get jabbed or get out, I was offended," Sen. Jake Merrick, R-Yukon told the maskless crowd inside the Capitol. (Forman, 8/14)

The Washington Post: Vaccine Mandates Gain Steam Even As Opponents Mount Protests 
The number of cities, states and private employers turning to coronavirus vaccination mandates continues to grow – even as opponents mount legal fights and protests that in some cases have turned violent. New York on Monday became the first big U.S. city to put into effect a vaccine mandate for indoor activities, requiring people to show proof of vaccination on a new app or their paper vaccination card. Incoming governor Kathy Hochul (D) is reportedly considering a statewide mandate, saying Sunday that she is “open to all options.” Meanwhile, a protest against mandates in Los Angeles turned violent over the weekend after the city council voted to require proof of vaccination for anyone entering an indoor public space. (Nichols, 8/16)

AP: Misinformation At Public Forums Vexes Local Boards, Big Tech
There are plenty of places to turn for accurate information about COVID-19. Your physician. Local health departments. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control.But not, perhaps, your local government’s public comment session. During a meeting of the St. Louis County Council earlier this month, opponents of a possible mask mandate made so many misleading comments about masks, vaccines and COVID-19 that YouTube removed the video for violating its policies against false claims about the virus. “I hope no one is making any medical decisions based on what they hear at our public forums,” said County Councilwoman Lisa Clancy, who supports mask wearing and said she believes most of her constituents do too. The video was restored, but Clancy’s worries about the impact of that misinformation remain. (Klepper and Hollingsworth, 8/16)

In other updates on vaccine and mask mandates —

The Washington Post: Get The Vaccine Or Get Fired? In Shenandoah Valley, Some Nurses Choose Termination. 
They were hard to miss on the corner of a busy four-way intersection at the entrance to Winchester Medical Center: a group of about 20 people — many of them nurses, some in scrubs — protesting the hospital's recent coronavirus vaccination mandate. Some were on a quasi-strike, skipping a day of work to stand on the side of the road in scorching heat, holding signs that demanded, “NO FORCED VACCINATION.” (Flynn, 8/14)

San Francisco Chronicle: COVID Surges In Hospitals, Jails Spur New Health Order In Contra Costa County
Contra Costa County will begin requiring first responders to prove they’re fully vaccinated or submit to weekly coronavirus tests as infections send hospitalizations surging and cause new outbreaks in local jails and residential facilities, the county announced Friday. County data shows 189 people were hospitalized as of Friday, a 400% increase from the previous month and a 26.1% increase compared with a week ago. More than 80% of the admitted patients hadn’t been vaccinated, the county said. (Hosseini, 8/14)

The Washington Examiner: Philadelphia To Require All City Employees To Be Vaccinated Or Wear Two Masks 
Unvaccinated city employees in Philadelphia will have to wear two masks, a cloth mask over a surgical mask, starting Sept. 1. “We are committed to keeping our employees safe from severe COVID infection and death,” Mayor Jim Kenney tweeted this week, announcing the new city ordinance. (Richard, 8/14)

Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves Suggests Vaccines, No To Mask Mandate
Amid Mississippi's largest surge in COVID-19 cases and with the state's hospitals stretched beyond capacity, Governor Tate Reeves on Friday encouraged Mississippians to get vaccinated. Reeves, speaking at a press conference at the Walter Sillers State Office Building on High Street, never directly told Mississippians to get the vaccine, but that people should speak with their doctors about them. His comments were some of his strongest, pro-vaccine comments in weeks. "I believe the vaccines are safe," Reeves said. "I believe they are effective. And I believe that they are the best tool we have moving forward to beat the virus." (Sanderlin, 8/13)

Bloomberg: Incoming N.Y. Governor ‘Open To All Options’ On Vaccine Mandates
Incoming New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she will be looking at the possibility of a statewide vaccine mandate for indoor activities, as she formulates her pandemic policy after taking over from Governor Andrew Cuomo at the end of the month. “I’m open to all options,” she said on Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “I will be looking at possibility of mandates, but not saying they’re in or out until I know all the facts.” (Yang and Querolo, 8/15)

Oklahoman: Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt Silent On Next Steps To Stem COVID Surge
As COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations surge again in Oklahoma, Gov. Kevin Stitt has been silent about his next steps to manage the pandemic. Stitt brushed off requests that he declare a state of emergency, shunned state-run vaccine incentives and shied away from directly recommending Oklahomans get vaccinated for COVID-19 since he got his single-dose Johnson & Johnson shot at a news conference in March. Stitt has largely taken a hands-off approach to the latest wave of the pandemic, despite Oklahomans on both sides of the aisle demanding he do more. (Forman, 8/15)

In other news about the vaccine rollout —

Politico: Scalise Warns Shaming Won't Help Boost Vaccinations  
House Minority Whip Steve Scalise on Sunday urged encouragement — not shame — in urging people to get vaccinated against the coronavirus. “What we need to be doing is encouraging people to get vaccinated, not trying to shame people who are unvaccinated or people that got vaccinated,” the Louisiana Republican said on CBS’ “Face the Nation. “I had antibodies, so I ultimately made the decision once I saw the Delta variant picking up, I thought it was important to get vaccinated.” (Kim, 8/15)

KHN: In Rural America, Twisting Arms To Take A Covid Vaccine First Takes Trust 
Lee Wright was hard at work, constructing a nail salon near the city’s abandoned hospital, when Jody Johnson stopped by to introduce himself on a recent afternoon. Johnson, who works for the University of Illinois Extension program, chatted with Wright casually in the summertime heat. For Johnson, it was the first step to building trust in this city of fewer than 2,200 people as extension programs across the U.S — long valued in many rural communities for helping farmers and supporting 4-H clubs — expand their service to include educating the public about covid-19 vaccines. (Anthony, 8/16)

Politico: NIH Director Sees 'No Signs' Of A Delta Peak 
National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins warned on Sunday the continuing rise of Covid-19 cases propelled by the Delta variant could return the nation to the worst days of the pandemic. “This is going very steeply upward with no signs of having peaked out,” Collins said on “Fox News Sunday.” (Kim, 8/15)

USA Today: US Has One-Fifth Of World COVID Cases
The United States accounts for more than one-fifth of the world's total COVID-19 cases for the first time since mid-February, before vaccines were widely available, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. The country reported more than 900,000 cases in a week for the first time since the week ending Feb. 4, while deaths surpassed 4,500 a week, nearly triple the count during the last lull. Cases were rising in 46 states. Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana and Mississippi broke all-time case count highs last week, based on data reported Friday. Friday's tallies broke community-level records, too, including those of 32 Florida counties, 32 Mississippi counties, 12 Louisiana parishes and 10 Oregon counties. They also broke records in four of five Hawaii counties. Hawaii's other county is secluded and has about 100 residents. (Santucci and Bacon, 8/15)

In other news about the spread of the coronavirus —

Houston Chronicle: Medical-Student Orientation Turns Into COVID Cluster
Baylor College of Medicine didn’t intend for its new-student orientation to become a case study in breakthrough infections. In retrospect, the photographed smiles and cheery video on Baylor’s Facebook page, look ominous. On Monday, July 26, around 200 people — mainly first-year medical students wearing hot-pink theme-weekend T-shirts — gathered inside a Baylor building and loaded plates from a breakfast buffet. They weren’t socially distanced, and in the photos, the only masks visible are in people’s hands or dangle from their wrists. (Gray, 8/14)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. County Coronavirus Surge Continues As Schools Prepare To Reopen
Los Angeles County officials on Sunday continued to report a surge in coronavirus cases as schools prepared to open. The Department of Public Health on Sunday recorded 3,356 new cases of the virus and eight related deaths but said the real number is likely higher due to weekend reporting delays. There were 1,653 COVID-19 patients in county hospitals as of Saturday, an increase of nearly 51% from two weeks before, when there were 1,096 patients. (Wigglesworth, 8/15)

Politico: NIH Director Plays Down Undocumented Immigrants Spreading Covid
National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins on Sunday played down undocumented immigrants as a major factor in the U.S. coronavirus pandemic, calling such suggestions a “distraction.” “It's an issue, but it is certainly not the cause of our current dilemma,” Collins said on “Fox News Sunday.” (Kim, 8/15)

San Francisco Chronicle: Scientists Say A 'Doomsday' Variant After Delta Isn't Likely. But Here's What's Possible
At the very end of a Stanford panel about coronavirus variants last week, someone finally posed the question that seems to haunt everyone now: Just how much worse than the highly infectious delta variant can this virus get? The answers were both cautiously reassuring and disconcertingly unsatisfying. The “doomsday scenario,” in which a variant is completely resistant to antibodies and remains highly transmissible, is unlikely, said Arjun Rustagi, an infectious disease fellow at Stanford. But beyond that, many experts were wary about guessing.“ This virus has a massive genome. There’s still room for it to play, and it’s really hard to make predictions on where it’s going to go,” Dr. Catherine Blish, an infectious disease expert and Rustagi’s mentor, said Wednesday during Stanford grand rounds, an educational panel for medical students and physicians. (Allday, 8/13)

KHN: ‘I Don’t Want To Risk My Life For A Paycheck’: Immunosuppressed People Grapple With Returning To Work
Elizabeth Groenweghe got a kidney transplant 14 years ago. She now takes several medications to prevent her body from rejecting her transplant organ. But these medications also weaken her immune system, putting her at higher risk of becoming seriously ill if she catches covid-19. When the pandemic began last year, Groenweghe, 29, worked from home for the first month and a half. But then in May 2020, as the chief epidemiologist for the public health department in Wyandotte County, Kansas, she returned to the office. “Obviously, I was nervous about it because I’m so immunosuppressed,” said Groenweghe. (Knight, 8/13)

Also —

CIDRAP: 11% Of Early COVID-19 Was Acquired In-Hospital, Study Says 
More than 1 in 10 COVID-19 patients from 314 UK hospitals acquired their infection from the hospital early in the pandemic, according to a research letter in The Lancet yesterday. "There are likely to be a number of reasons why many patients were infected in these care settings," said study author Chris A. Green, MBBS, DPhil, in a Lancaster University press release. (McLernon, 8/13)

CIDRAP: Higher COVID-19 Transmission Tied To Crowded Households
COVID-19 transmission among households was three times more likely if the household had a high living density, according to a study yesterday in Clinical Infectious Diseases. Higher living density is defined as having more than three household members but fewer than six rooms. (8/13)

Reuters: Children Hospitalized With COVID-19 In U.S. Hits Record Number
The number of children hospitalized with COVID-19 in the United States hit a record high of just over 1,900 on Saturday, as hospitals across the South were stretched to capacity fighting outbreaks caused by the highly transmissible Delta variant. The Delta variant, which is rapidly spreading among mostly the unvaccinated portion of the U.S. population, has caused hospitalizations to spike in recent weeks, driving up the number of pediatric hospitalizations to 1,902 on Saturday, according to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (Borter, 8/15)

The Washington Post: Child Hospitalizations For Covid-19 Skyrocket Amid Delta Surge
It had started on July 1 when she could no longer smell her uncle’s cologne. Caia Alexx Morris, 13, had been sitting on the couch texting friends, and as other family members joked about the overpowering scent, it hit her that she had no idea what they were talking about. She had no other symptoms at the time. But two days later, she was diagnosed with covid-19 and on a ventilator, and has been in intensive care ever since. “Thirty-four days,” her mother Angela Morris reflected last week while at Caia’s bedside at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. 816 hours. 48,960 minutes. And counting. “This is a nightmare.” (Cha, 8/13)

The Hill: NIH Director: COVID-19 Infections Among Children 'Very Worrisome' 
The director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on Sunday that he is worried about the number of pediatric COVID-19 cases, noting at least 400 children have died from the virus. “We are also seeing a sharp rise in the number of pediatric cases, both unvaccinated kids and vaccinated kids who are getting COVID from this new delta variant. How bad could that spike in pediatric cases get?” Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace asked NIH Director Francis Collins. “That's very worrisome. I think traditionally people kind of considered, ‘Well, you know, kids aren't going to get that sick with this.’ More than 400 children have died of COVID-19. And right now we have almost 2,000 kids in the hospital, many of them in ICU, some of them under the age of four,” Collins said. (Vakil, 8/14)

Bloomberg: Covid News: Deadly Condition In Kids Is Poised To Return
Pediatricians in U.S. Covid-19 hotspots are anticipating a delta-fueled swell of children with a rare, serious and sometimes deadly virus-linked condition as the fall resumption of school looms. The condition, called multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, occurs in a small number of kids who’ve been exposed to the coronavirus. Children can develop the illness even if they haven’t had Covid symptoms, and week-long intensive care unit stays are not uncommon. (Edney, 8/14)

In other pediatric news —

Fox News: Babies Born During COVID-19 Pandemic Tied With Lower IQ, Study Suggests
Preliminary findings by U.S. researchers suggest children born during the COVID-19 pandemic show lower IQ scores than those who were born before January 2020, but the underlying causes are still unknown. It may be due to the first 1,000 days of a child’s life being the most crucial to development. The findings were posted in medRxiv ahead of peer review on Aug. 11, stemming from a survey among roughly 605 children in Rhode Island, most of them White, including 39 born in 2018 and 2019. (Holt, 8/14)

USA Today: Florida COVID Surge Getting Worse
The skyrocketing COVID-19 surge in Florida is shattering records and ravaging the state’s younger population. Florida has seen a surge in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks because of the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus, which has led to a major increase in state hospitalizations. By next week, 68% of hospitals are expected to reach a critical staffing shortage, according to an Aug. 9 survey by the Florida Hospital Association. The majority of Florida's new cases are among individuals between the ages of 20 and 39, who remain among the least vaccinated age groups in the state. (Santucci and Segarra, 8/14)

NPR: 3 Florida Educators Die Of COVID-19 Within 24 Hours As Schools Prepare To Reopen
Less than a week before schools are set to reopen in Florida's Broward County, local union officials say three educators have died of complications from the coronavirus. The deaths were all recorded within a 24-hour span, according to union officials representing employees of the local school district. Broward Teachers Union President Anna Fusco said the start of the new school year has been a mix of emotions as the first day approaches. (Mistich, 8/14)

The New York Times: Florida School Board Defies Gov. DeSantis's Masking Ban 
The chairwoman of the Broward County School Board in Florida said on Sunday that the district had no choice but to defy Gov. Ron DeSantis’s ban on mask mandates. “We’re living out the nightmare of the Covid pandemic, where so many people in our county, including members of our staff and others, are being impacted,” said Rosalind Osgood, who heads the school board, on the CBS program “Face the Nation.” (Delkic, 8/15)

AP: University Of Florida Reverses, To Have In-Person Classes
The University of Florida will open its upcoming semester with in-person classes, reversing itself within hours of telling students the term might begin online because of the state’s renewed COVID-19 outbreak. The Gainesville Sun reports UF administrators sent an email to students Friday afternoon telling them that after consulting with university epidemiologists, plans were being made to put the first three weeks of school online. (8/15)

Politico: Texas Supreme Court Backs Governor On Mask Mandates 
The Texas Supreme Court on Sunday sided with Gov. Greg Abbott by issuing temporary stay orders on the subject of mask mandates in public schools. The orders were in cases from Dallas County and Bexar County, where San Antonio is located. Both counties had tried to defy an executive order from Abbott by mandating masks for children in their schools. Other counties in Texas have also attempted to implement mandates in defiance of Abbott. (Cohen, 8/15)

Dallas Morning News: Dallas ISD Will Continue Enforcing Mask Mandate Despite Supreme Court’s Move Against Jenkins’ Order
Dallas ISD will continue to require masks for all students and staff members, despite a decision Sunday by the Texas Supreme Court that temporarily halted Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins’ public health order requiring masks in public schools and businesses. “Until there’s an official order of the court that applies to the Dallas Independent School District, we will continue to have the mask mandate,” Superintendent Michael Hinojosa said late Sunday. But he said he knows the fight isn’t over: “After a court rules, then I will comply, if it’s not in my favor.” Meanwhile, thousands of other Dallas-area students will return to school this week as confusion runs rampant over whether masks can be required on campus. (Smith, Donaldson and Richman, 8/15)

In other K-12 updates —

AP: S. Carolina School District Back To Virtual Classes
COVID-19 cases have prompted the largest South Carolina school district already back open to return to virtual lessons as students in more than 60 other districts prepared to return to class. Pickens County school officials made the decision at an emergency meeting Friday, after nine days of in-class learning for the system’s15,000-plus students, the Greenville News reported. (8/15)

Fox News: Colorado Deputies Will Be At Schools Due To 'Tensions' Over Mask Mandate
Colorado deputies will be at Eagle County schools Monday in response to growing "tensions in the community" over the school district’s newly-announced coronavirus mask mandate. Local law enforcement will be working closely with Eagle County Schools and community members "to ensure the safety of our children," as students return to class Monday, Amber Barrett, a spokesperson for the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office, wrote in a news release. "Our goal is the same as yours, getting our children back to school safely," Barrett said. "Law Enforcement is requesting that persons who are wishing to express their opinions not interfere or interrupt the freedom of movement and the functions of schools." (Aaro, 8/16)

The New York Times: Doubts, Anger And Anxiety: What It’s Like To Go To School Amid Covid-19 
It was supposed to be a new school year, a fresh start with relative normalcy. Instead, it has turned into a politicized, anxiety-provoking experience for many parents, students and educators. This is the third academic year disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. And while there is now broad, bipartisan support for classrooms to be open five days a week, that was based on reassuring evidence from last year that the coronavirus did not spread widely inside schools. The surge in the Delta variant has introduced new uncertainty. (Goldstein and Mzezewa, 8/15)

In updates on mandates and testing at colleges and universities —

Anchorage Daily News: University Of Alaska And Alaska Pacific University Campuses Are Requiring Masks Indoors
Alaska Pacific University and all University of Alaska campuses — including the University of Alaska Anchorage, University of Alaska Fairbanks and University of Alaska Southeast — are requiring face masks indoors. “Because the delta variant spreads easily, it has become clear that we need to return to universal face masking in order to minimize the potential for the spread of COVID-19 on our campuses,” interim UA president Pat Pitney wrote in a July 30 message. Masks will be required at all UAA facilities, including classrooms, enclosed rooms and university vehicles, the university’s mask policy says. (Davenport, 8/15)

KHN: The Newest Disease Detection Tool For Covid And Beyond: Poop 
Since reopening campus at the University of California-San Diego last summer, university officials have relied on the tried-and-true public health strategies of testing and contact tracing. But they have also added a new tool to their arsenal: excrement. That tool alerted researchers to about 85% of cases in dorms before they were diagnosed, according to a soon-to-be published study, said Rob Knight, a professor of pediatrics and computer science and engineering who helped create the campus’s wastewater testing program. (Barry-Jester, 8/16)

Modern Healthcare: States Get Deadline Extension To Confirm Medicaid Enrollee Eligibility
CMS is now giving states a full year after the COVID-19 public health emergency ends to finish redetermining eligibility for Medicaid beneficiaries. The agency announced the new guidance in a letter sent to state health officials Friday. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act prohibited Medicaid programs from kicking beneficiaries off the program regardless of changes in eligibility. That's caused Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program enrollment to swell to a record high of more than 81 million people this year. (Bannow, 8/13)

Bloomberg Law: Medicare Holds Off On Hospital Price Disclosure Fines For Now
The Medicare agency is giving hospitals time to adjust to its price transparency rule, so far refraining from penalizing providers despite recently proposing to increase sanctions for those that don’t comply. Hospitals have been apprehensive since the Trump administration announced they would be required to disclose standard charges for items and services in a final rule (RIN 0938–AU22) published in November 2019. The vast majority of hospitals—94.4%—haven’t met one or more of the requirements since the rule took effect Jan. 1, 2021, according to a recent sample of 500 hospital websites conducted by Patient Rights Advocate. Right now many hospitals are getting warning letters if they don’t comply. (8/16)

In updates on Medicaid expansion in Missouri —

Missouri Independent: Missouri To Begin Accepting Medicaid Expansion Applications
Missourians who qualify for benefits under Medicaid expansion can begin enrolling, but it may take up to two months until they will find out if their eligibility has been verified and their application has been approved. In a news release last week, Gov. Mike Parson announced that in response to a Cole County judge’s ruling, the Department of Social Services will begin accepting applications from the approximately 275,000 residents who qualify under voter-approved Medicaid expansion. That includes 19- to 64-year-old adults whose household incomes are 138% of the federal poverty guideline or less, which ends up being $17,774 a year for a single person, or $36,570 for a family of four. (Weinberg, 8/14)

The Washington Examiner: No Need For Special Session To Fund Missouri Medicaid Expansion: Lawmakers
Missouri is complying with a court order to enroll an anticipated 275,000 low-income residents into its Medicaid program under last August’s voter-approved Amendment 2. State attorneys sought to delay enrollment until September because, among other reasons, Missouri lawmakers had not allocated the $130 million in state money to garner the $1.65 billion federal match to pay for it. (Haughey, 8/15)

In other Medicare news —

Modern Healthcare: UnitedHealth Loses Appeal Over Medicare Advantage Overpayment Ruling 
An appellate court Friday ruled against UnitedHealthcare insurers, overturning a lower court decision they claimed resulted in underpayment of Medicare Advantage insurers. A federal judge concluded in 2018 that the overpayment rule violated a federal law that required payments to be actuarially equivalent to traditional fee-for-service providers. But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit threw out the decision after it found that actuarial equivalence did not apply to the overpayment rule. (Brady, 8/13)

Reuters: Private Medicare Plans Must Return Overpayments, Appeals Court Rules
A U.S. appeals court on Friday revived a rule requiring private insurers that administer federally funded Medicare plans to return potentially billions of dollars in overpayments they receive based on incorrect diagnoses. The unanimous ruling by a panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington was a setback for UnitedHealth Group Inc , which had successfully challenged the rule in a lower court. UnitedHealth did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Nor did the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees Medicare, the federal health insurance program for seniors and certain people with disabilities. (Pierson, 8/13)

CNBC: Democrats Want To Expand Medicare. Here Are The Coverage Gaps To Know
You may know that once you reach age 65, you’re eligible for Medicare. What surprises many people, say experts, is the cost. Even as Democratic lawmakers in Congress want to expand the health insurance program to cover dental, vision and hearing as part of their $3.5 trillion budget plan, those are not the only things excluded by Medicare. And, there are costs built in even when you have coverage for a service, procedure or other medical need. (O'Brien, 8/15)

AP: Western States Face First Federal Water Cuts
U.S. officials on Monday are expected to declare the first-ever water shortage from a river that serves 40 million people in the West, triggering cuts to some Arizona farmers next year amid a gripping drought. Water levels at the largest reservoir on the Colorado River — Lake Mead — have fallen to record lows. Along its perimeter, a white “bathtub ring” of minerals outlines where the high water line once stood, underscoring the acute water challenges for a region facing a growing population and a drought that is being worsened by hotter, drier weather brought on by climate change. (Naishadham, 8/16)

News3LV.com: Water Shortage Announcement Expected Monday For Lake Mead
Federal authorities are expected to declare a water shortage for Lake Mead Monday, which would trim Nevada’s allocation of water in 2022. A shortage gets triggered if the lake is expected to sit below 1,075 feet on January 1, 2022. As of Wednesday morning, the lake sits at 1,067.93 feet. The shortage has been anticipated as Lake Mead’s water level continues to drop. (Gillan, 8/12)

In related news about the drought —

Las Vegas Review-Journal: New Plan Slows Lake Mead Decline By Paying Farms Not To Plant Crops
Officials in Lower Colorado River Basin states want to slow the decline of Lake Mead’s water levels over the next few years by paying Southern California farmers not to plant crops. It’s not a plan that Bill Hasencamp, manager of Colorado River resources for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, considers a “drought buster,” but it will reduce lake level decline by up to 3 feet over the next three years, he said. (Apgar, 8/11)

The New York Times: Small Towns Grow Desperate For Water In California 
Mendocino’s water shortage is an extreme example of what some far-flung towns in California are experiencing as the state slips deeper into its second year of drought. Scores of century-old, hand-dug wells in the town have run dry, forcing residents, inns and restaurants to fill storage tanks with water trucked from faraway towns at the cost of anywhere from 20 to 45 cents a gallon. Utilities in California, by contrast, typically charge their customers less than a penny per gallon of tap water. This past week, residents of Mendocino watched as the Senate passed its $1 trillion infrastructure package, wondering whether some of those funds might reach them. Dianne Feinstein, the senior senator from California, has pointed out that the package specifically targets drought mitigation projects such as water storage, water recycling and desalination. (Fuller, 8/14)

The Wall Street Journal: Severe Drought Could Threaten Power Supply In West For Years To Come
As drought persists across more than 95% of the American West, water elevation at the Hoover Dam has sunk to record-low levels, endangering a source of hydroelectric power for an estimated 1.3 million people across California, Nevada and Arizona. The water level at Lake Mead, the Colorado River reservoir serving the Hoover Dam, fell to 1,068 ft. in July, the lowest level since the lake was first filled following the dam’s construction in the 1930s. This month, the federal government is expected to declare a water shortage on the Colorado River for the first time, triggering cutbacks in water allocations to surrounding states from the river. Widespread drought conditions throughout the Southwest over the past 20 years have led to a more than 130-foot drop in the water level at Lake Mead since 2000. (Huth and Umlauf, 8/14)

The Wall Street Journal: Sleep Apnea Sufferers Scramble After Philips Recall Of Critical Machine 
Aaron Horton, a sleep apnea sufferer, stops breathing for brief periods hundreds of times every night. To keep his oxygen levels up, he uses a device made by Royal Philips NV that is now subject to a huge recall by the Dutch healthcare conglomerate. It warned in June that the machines could be sending potentially cancer-causing particles into users’ airways. When Mr. Horton, a 30-year-old paramedic from Glen Allen, Va., called his medical-device supplier for an alternative, he was told none was available. For now, he is continuing to use the Philips machine. (Roland, 8/15)

In other pharmaceutical and manufacturing news —

CIDRAP: Study Shows Zanamivir Might Be Most Effective Antiviral For Influenza
For healthy adults and children, zanamivir [commonly known by the brand name Relenza] may be the most effective antiviral used to shorten the duration of influenza symptoms, according to a new study in JAMA Network Open. (8/13)

FiercePharma: Pfizer Halted Chantix Distribution Then Recalled A Dozen Batches. Now, A Generic's Here To Help Fill The Shortage 
Pfizer’s reign over the smoking treatment space with its cessation med Chantix is coming to a close. Trying to fill a recent shortage for Pfizer’s smoking med caused by safety concerns, the FDA has approved Par Pharmaceuticals’ copycat version, also known as varenicline, “well ahead” of its expected review date, the agency said a statement on Wednesday. Though Pfizer’s generic rival Par Pharmaceuticals received the FDA’s special expedited treatment, impending copycat competition wasn’t unexpected given Chantix lost its main patent in November last year. (Higgins-Dunn, 8/12)

FiercePharma: Viatris In Talks With West Virginia University On Plan That Could Keep Idled Morgantown Factory Afloat 
While Viatris didn't find a buyer in time to save the former Mylan plant it shuttered last month, the company says it's looking to secure "the next best possible future" for the West Virginia facility. To see that mission through, Viatris is in talks with West Virginia University (WVU) on a memorandum of understanding that could see the school take charge of the Morgantown plant, which employed more than 1,400 people and operated for decades until its closure July 31. (Kansteiner, 8/12)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Philly-Area Hospitals Are Paying Nurses Big Bonuses To Stave Off Shortage
Times are good for nurses willing to jump to a different hospital. Because of a tight labor market, hospitals are offering big signing bonuses for experienced nurses — as high as $20,000. “Nursing recruitment and retention has come up as a major, major pain point in the last few months,” said Lauren Rewers, a researcher at the health-care research firm Advisory Board who said that bonuses have reached unusually high levels. Beyond signing bonuses, Philadelphia-area hospitals are paying bonuses on top of overtime for nurses who pick up extra shifts, raising hourly wages for junior nurses seen as more easily enticed by a signing bonus at another hospital, and even paying retention bonuses to nurses in key positions. (Brubaker, 8/15)

Modern Healthcare: NewYork-Presbyterian Wrongfully Fired Nurse Over Union Activity, NLRB Finds
A NewYork-Presbyterian hospital wrongfully fired an operating room nurse over her involvement in union activity, the New York branch office of the National Labor Relations Board ruled Wednesday. The NLRB found that NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital unlawfully discharged Rosamaria Tyo, a longtime registered nurse and member of the New York State Nurses Association, for "patient abandonment" because she participated in union activities. (Christ, 8/13)

In other health care industry news —

Modern Healthcare: CareMax, Anthem To Open 50 Value-Based Care Medical Centers 
CareMax is joining forces with Anthem to build dozens of medical facilities in a bid to boost value-based care, the company announced Friday. CareMax, a Miami-based technology-enabled care platform providing value-based care and chronic disease management to seniors, plans to open about 50 medical centers in Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin and elsewhere, the company said. Indianapolis-based Anthem will incorporate value-based care into its benefit packages for policyholders treated at the new CareMax locations. (Christ, 8/13)

Becker's Hospital Review: Healthcare's Richest Self-Made Women, Per Forbes
Forbes ranked the 100 richest self-made women in a report released Aug. 5. Here are the top seven in healthcare. Forbes valued individual assets, such as stakes in public companies, using stock prices from July 2. Forbes consulted with external experts to value private companies. Some women overcame more than others to make their fortune. Forbes measured how far they have come and gave them a self-made score of 6 (hired hand) to 10 (rags to riches). (Mitchell, 8/13)

AP: Boy Dies From Brain-Eating Amoeba In California
A child infected with an extremely rare brain-eating amoeba while swimming in a Northern California lake died in a hospital, his family confirmed Friday. David Pruitt, 7, of Tehama County, died from primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, or PAM, on Aug. 7, said his aunt, Crystal Hayley. The boy was rushed to the emergency room on July 30 and then flown to UC Davis Medical Center where he was on life support with severe brain swelling, Hayley said in a fundraising site she created for the family to raise funds for his care and funeral. (8/13)

In other news from Georgia, Indiana and Mississippi —

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: No Health Insurance Increase Next Year For 650K Georgia Teachers, State Workers, Retirees
For the third time in four years, hundreds of thousands of Georgia teachers and state workers won’t see their health insurance premiums increase. The Department of Community Health board approved rates for 2022 on Thursday for the more 650,000 Georgians covered by the State Health Benefit Plan. The vote came a year after the board raised premiums an average of 5% for teachers and state employees. (Salzer, 8/12)

AP: Man Raffling Rare Bourbon For Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
An Indiana man with a collection of rare bourbon is teaming up with the Kentucky Derby Museum to raffle it off in an effort to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The collection consist of five limited-edition bottles of Pappy Van Winkle bourbon, which are valued at $18,250, the Kentucky Derby Museum said in a statement. The winner of the raffle will also receive a VIP Kentucky Derby Museum experience and a one-night stay at Hotel Distil. (8/16)

AP: Vicksburg Hires Collection Firm: $1.8M In Ambulance Bills
A city in Mississippi has hired a firm to collect more than $1.8 million in ambulance bills unpaid since as early as 2013. The Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted Tuesday to retain Franklin Collection Services Inc. of Tupelo to reduce or eliminate the backlog, The Vicksburg Post reported. The city’s fire department has run emergency medical service in Vicksburg since 1969, because the local ambulance company went out of business. It also sends ambulances to Warren County residents under an agreement with the county’s board of supervisors. (8/15)

NPR: Canada Will Require All Air Travelers To Be Vaccinated In A Broad New Policy
All passengers and workers on commercial air flights in Canada will soon have to prove they've been vaccinated against the coronavirus. Canada's government will also require all federal workers to be vaccinated, citing a "dynamic public health situation" due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The new travel vaccination policy will apply to passengers and workers in the federally regulated air, rail and cruise ship sectors. It will be enacted "as soon as possible in the fall and no later than the end of October," the Canadian Treasury Board said on Friday. (Chappell, 8/13)

AP: Rich Nations Dip Into COVAX Supply While Poor Wait For Shots
An international system to share coronavirus vaccines was supposed to guarantee that low and middle-income countries could get doses without being last in line and at the mercy of unreliable donations. It hasn’t worked out that way. In late June alone, the initiative known as COVAX sent some 530,000 doses to Britain – more than double the amount sent that month to the entire continent of Africa. (Cheng and Hinnant, 8/14)

Bloomberg: U.K.’s Vaccinated Youth Are Offered Clothes, Holiday Vouchers
The U.K. is stepping up its efforts to encourage young people to come forward to take Covid vaccines, with a host of companies offering rewards for those who get a jab. The offers were announced the day after the government said all 16- and 17-year-olds in the U.K. would be offered the jab by next week. The nation is hoping to increase vaccination rates among younger Britons to significantly reduce transmission and protect the population from potential “long-Covid” symptoms. (Goodman, 8/16)

In other global updates about ebola —

Bloomberg: Ivory Coast Confirms First Ebola Outbreak In More Than 25 Years
Ivory Coast health authorities have confirmed the country’s first Ebola outbreak in 25 years, according to an emailed statement from the World Health Organization late Saturday. The patient who had arrived from Guinea by road on August 12 was admitted to hospital after experiencing a fever and is currently receiving treatment, the statement said. (de Bassompierre and Mieu, 8/14)

Houston Chronicle: Our Next Goal In COVID Vaccination? Reaching The Reachable. Yes, They're Out There
The way out of this pandemic was never through the path of greatest resistance. Sure, the loudest voices of vaccine conspiracy theorists take up all the oxygen. Their false bravado exhausts and exasperates — and also makes for great headlines and cable TV. If we’re honest though, the only folks who have a chance of changing the minds of the most obstinate are their loved ones, and God bless those still willing to try. (8/16)

Dallas Morning News: America’s Long History Of Anti-Science Has Dangerously Undermined The COVID Vaccine
The initial United States government response to the COVID-19 pandemic was marked by a frequent disconnect between government policies and the recommendations of scientific experts. A disinformation campaign from the Trump White House convinced many Americans that COVID-19 injuries and its death toll were exaggerated, leading many to ignore public health recommendations. Those who dismissed the severity of COVID-19 were more likely to shun face masks and ignore recommendations to socially distance from non–household members. Such individuals were more likely Republicans than Democrats by a wide margin, according to the Brookings Institution, and under a flag of health or medical freedom, an outright defiance of masks and social distancing came to symbolize allegiance to President Donald Trump. (Peter Hotez, 8/15)

Bloomberg: Vaccines And Breakthrough Covid Cases In The U.S. 
Do you know someone who is fully vaccinated but caught Covid-19 anyway? You’re not alone. Breakthrough cases are causing anxiety for many as Covid transmission is on the rise again in the U.S. But the fact that some fully vaccinated people are contracting Covid-19 doesn’t mean vaccines aren’t working. No vaccine is 100% effective, and health authorities around the world have been expecting breakthrough cases. In fact, the data show us that the vaccines are doing their job quite effectively. (Lara Williams, 8/15)

CNN: On Covid, People Are Making The Last Mistake 
With the US in the midst of a Covid spike caused by the Delta variant, the "last mistake" for many could be a failure to get one of the highly effective vaccines -- and to mask up. Those two simple precautions are especially vital as the school year begins. "The best way to stop the spread of Covid-19 is for everyone 12 and above to get the vaccine," wrote Dr. Lee Savio Beers, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics. But vaccines for younger students aren't approved yet. "To help prevent the spread of Covid-19, which could send everyone home to quarantine for weeks at a time," Beers argued, "schools should also require everyone to wear a face mask, regardless of vaccination status." (Richard Galant, 8/15)

NBC News: Covid Mask Mandates For Schools Are Essential. Without Them, Instruction Must Be Virtual
Many of my worst pandemic fears about the fate of my cancer patients and adult family members abated once they became fully vaccinated. But with the hyper-transmissible delta variant circulating unchecked in many parts of our still half-vaccinated country, my unvaccinated 3-year-old son’s safety has never been so uncertain. (Dr. Jalal Baig, 8/14)

Dallas Morning News: Doctors Must Report Signs Of Child Abuse, But Often They End Up Reporting Signs Of Poverty
Over the past decade, reports of child abuse and neglect to authorities across the United States have increased. While that sounds like good news, more reporting of allegations doesn’t necessarily make children safer. When an increase in reports doesn’t target real risk, it perpetuates the shortcomings of a child welfare system in need of reform. Here’s why the problem exists: It’s a straightforward process for mandated reporters such as doctors and teachers to call child protective services when they suspect abuse or neglect. But it’s too hard to get struggling families the help they need before a crisis happens. Mandated reporters often feel compelled to report because there aren’t other options to help a family. (Dr. Valerie Borum Smith, 8.15)

Stat: A Country-Wide Collaboration To Address The Maternal Health Crisis 
After languishing in the background for far too long, the shockingly high rate of complications and deaths related to pregnancy and childbirth in the U.S. is beginning to get serious attention. What’s needed to give new proposals and programs on maternal health the traction they need is data. (Kimberlee McKay and Peter Shamamian, 8/16)

Chicago Tribune: Hospitals Need To Comply With Price Transparency
Imagine you’re in the market for a new car. You go to the dealership, take a few models out for a test drive, and ultimately choose the one that has the features and driving experience you’re looking for.But now imagine that there’s no sticker price. You just tell the salesperson you’ll take it — and silently pray that it’s not too expensive. You’ll find out how much you owe in a few weeks, when the bill comes in the mail. (Sally Pipes, 8/16)

Los Angeles Times: How Misinformation About Fentanyl Can Be Deadly 
Touch fentanyl, and you’ll die. That’s what law enforcement officials want you to believe. Recently, a dramatic, but inaccurate “public safety” video was released by the San Diego County’s Sheriff Department. And it went viral. The video purported to show a deputy overdosing on fentanyl from brief contact with a white powder at the scene of an arrest. The reality is you can’t overdose from fentanyl in this way. After criticism of the video, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore admitted he, not a doctor, diagnosed the incident as an overdose; and no toxicology reports were performed. (Sheila Vakharia and Jeannette Zanipatin, 8/15)