The New York Times: Grim Day In U.S. As Covid-19 Deaths And Hospitalizations Set Records 
The United States on Wednesday recorded its single-worst daily death toll since the pandemic began, and on a day when Covid-19 hospitalizations also hit an all-time high, the pace of loss showed no signs of slowing any time soon. Not since spring, during the pandemic’s first peak, were so many deaths reported. The high point then was 2,752 deaths on April 15. On Wednesday it was at least 2,760. (12/3)

NPR: U.S. Surpasses 100,000 Coronavirus Hospitalizations
More than 100,000 Americans are in the hospital with COVID-19, at the same time the nation recorded its single-worst daily death toll since the start of the pandemic. Data from the COVID Tracking Project show 100,226 people were hospitalized on Wednesday with the disease caused by the coronavirus — a figure that has been steadily rising for weeks. Meanwhile, 2,760 new deaths were reported, surpassing the previous record from April 15 when 2,752 people died, according to The New York Times. (Diaz, 12/2)

CNN: The US Reports 3,100 Coronavirus Deaths In One Day -- 20% More Than Previous Record
There were 3,157 Covid-19 deaths reported Wednesday -- an all-time high for the pandemic -- and health care systems are struggling to support the weight of worsening impacts. The more recent death toll is an increase of about 20% from the previous record of 2,603 set on April 15. (Holcombe, 12/3)

The Atlantic: America Hits A Record 100,000 Hospitalizations In One Day
Today the United States blew by two grim pandemic milestones. The country recorded a record 195,695 coronavirus cases and reported 100,226 hospitalizations, passing the 100,000 mark for the first time, according to the COVID Tracking Project at The Atlantic. While the 2,733 deaths today did not break the all-time record, this was the first day since May with more than 2,500 deaths, as well as the day with the second-most deaths so far. (By The New York Times’ methodology, today’s was the highest daily coronavirus death toll on record.) (Moser, 12/2)

USA Today: How A Third Wave Of COVID-19 Engulfed The US
The spring surge was centered on New Orleans and urban areas in the Northeast. The summer surge primarily rocked Sun Belt states such as Texas, Arizona and Florida. Now, nearly every corner of America is getting hit with extraordinary case counts. Forty-five states reported more cases during one week in November than in any other week since the start of the pandemic, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University coronavirus data shows. Only Florida, Hawaii, Mississippi, New York and South Carolina had worse peaks in prior months. (Haseman and Stucka, 12/2)

Boston Globe: Winter Could Be ‘Most Difficult Time In The Public Health History’ Of The US, CDC Director Says
The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday the upcoming months could be “the most difficult in the public health history of this nation” because of the stress on the country’s health care system from the coronavirus. “The reality is, December and January and February are going to be tough times,” said Dr. Robert Redfield, speaking at an event with the US Chamber of Commerce. “I actually believe they’re going to be the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation.” (Kaufman, 12/2)

CNN: White House Coronavirus Task Force Warns States: 'We Are In A Very Dangerous Place' 
The White House coronavirus task force issued extremely dire warnings to states in weekly reports this week, urging public health officials to circumvent state and local policies amid record high cases, hospitalizations and deaths, as well as fears of a surge upon a surge following Thanksgiving. "The COVID risk to all Americans is at a historic high," say the reports dated November 29, which were shared with states and obtained by CNN. They provide figures from previous moments in the pandemic for comparison. (Klein, 12/2)

Reuters: CDC Chief Warns Americans Face 'Rough' Winter From COVID-19 Surge
The head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned on Wednesday the COVID-19 pandemic, still raging with unprecedented fury nationwide, will pose the country’s grimmest health crisis yet over the next few months, before vaccines become widely available. CDC Director Dr Robert Redfield urged stricter adherence to safety precautions such as wearing face coverings, social distancing and good hand hygiene to slow the spread of a highly contagious respiratory virus now claiming well over 2,000 U.S. lives a day. (Gorman and Trotta, 12/2)

Philadelphia Inquirer: With A Vaccine Around The Corner, Officials Ask Weary Public To ‘Stay In The Fight’ To Stave Off A Worst-Case Winter
With the first doses of a vaccine expected to arrive in the region later this month, Pennsylvania and Philadelphia on Wednesday reported new highs in coronavirus cases — a regular occurrence in recent weeks thanks to the fall surge — on a day when the United States reported its highest one-day loss of life yet. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy warned he might tighten the state’s current restrictions if cases there spike in the coming days. Echoing leaders at all levels of government, he warned things could get worse before they get better this winter and urged people in his state to bear down on the public health basics: face masks, social distancing, and handwashing. (McDaniel, Steele and Tornoe, 12/2)

AP: Stay Home For The Holidays Or Get Tested Twice, CDC Urges
Don’t travel over the upcoming holidays. But if you must, consider getting coronavirus tests before and after, U.S. health officials urged Wednesday. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the best way to stay safe and protect others is to stay home. (Tanner, 12/2)

The Hill: CDC Urges Americans Not To Travel For Christmas 
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday pressed Americans to not travel for Christmas amid fears that gatherings during the holiday season could ultimately spread more COVID-19 cases. “The best thing for Americans to do in the upcoming holiday season is to stay at home and not travel,” Henry Walke, the CDC's COVID-19 incident manager, told reporters Wednesday. “Cases are rising. Hospitalizations are increasing, deaths are increasing. We need to try to bend the curve, stop this exponential increase.” (Axelrod, 12/2)

The Hill: Biden Warns Americans Against Traveling For Christmas 
President-elect Joe Biden on Wednesday implored Americans not to travel and gather with family during the holiday season as coronavirus cases surge across the country. “You cannot be traveling during these holidays, as much as you want to,” Biden, speaking from Wilmington, Del., told a group of workers and small business owners during a virtual briefing. (Chalfant, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Why Health Officials Are Terrified Of A Pandemic Christmas 
Americans heard the pleas to stay home. They were told what would happen if they didn’t. Still, millions traveled and gathered during last week’s Thanksgiving holiday, either doubting the warnings or deciding they would take their chances. Now, like any partygoer waking from a raucous weekend — feeling a bit hung over and perhaps a tinge of regret — the nation is about to face the consequences of its behavior and will need to quickly apply the lessons before heading into the doubleheader of Christmas and New Year’s. (Wan and Shammas, 12/1)

But the White House continues to plan holiday parties —

CNN: Pompeo Is Hosting Holiday Parties At The State Department Amid Coronavirus Spikes 
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has invited hundreds of guests to the State Department for holiday receptions in the coming weeks despite warnings from health experts that Americans should avoid large gatherings amid the worsening coronavirus pandemic, according to two State Department officials familiar with the planning. (Atwood, 12/2)

The Hill: White House Brushes Off COVID-19 Concerns Surrounding Holiday Parties 
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Wednesday shrugged off concerns about holding in-person holiday parties as the nation is riven by a surge in coronavirus cases and public health agencies urge Americans to forgo such gatherings. "If you can loot businesses, burn down buildings, engage in protest, you can also go to a Christmas party," McEnany said at a White House briefing. (Samuels, 12/2)

And the fallout continues from Thanksgiving —

Des Moines Register: White House: People Under 40 Who Gathered For Thanksgiving Should Assume They Have Coronavirus
Coronavirus infections in Iowa may be reaching a plateau after a dramatic spike in late October and early November, but there are signs of ongoing broad spread of the virus, according to the latest White House coronavirus task force report. The report warns that trends in testing and infections should be "cautiously interpreted", especially the week immediately following Thanksgiving. People under 40 who gathered for the holiday with those outside their immediate households should assume they became infected during the holiday period, the task force said. The White House group recommended that people older than 65 not enter indoor public spaces where others are unmasked.

AP: Attendees Of Thanksgiving Gatherings Urged To Get Tested
Vermonters who attended multi-household Thanksgiving gatherings against the governor’s order are urged to quarantine and get tested for the coronavirus. “It’s best to get tested right away and again on Day Seven or later,” Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine said Tuesday during the governor’s virus briefing. (12/2)

Clarion-Ledger: Mississippians Told To Avoid All Contact With Others To Stop COVID-19
Wearing a mask in public isn't enough to protect a person from contact with the coronavirus, State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs said Wednesday at a Zoom conference with members of the media. He is recommending everyone avoid any and all contact with other people outside their immediate family unless they are going to work or school or buying food for their families. (Beveridge, 12/2)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. Issues Stay-At-Home Rules Amid COVID-19 Spike
The city of Los Angeles issued a modified stay-at-home order Wednesday night that mirrors L.A. County rules that went into effect Monday. The city order prohibits gatherings of people outside immediate households, with some exceptions such as religious services and protests. (Smith, 12/2)

KHN: As LA County Sets New Infection Record, State Leaders’ Behavior Sends Mixed Messages
California, like the rest of the nation, is seeing a dramatic rise in COVID infections and deaths — and Los Angeles County has some of the most dire statistics. Health officials reported more than 7,500 new cases in the county on Tuesday, shattering the old record, set last week. Hospitalizations tripled in the past month, and on average 30 people are dying of COVID-19 in the county every day. (Fortier, 12/3)

The Hill: Arizona Chief Medical Officers Call For Curfew, Ban On Indoor Dining 
Arizona chief medical officers called on Tuesday for a statewide curfew and a ban on indoor dining in a letter to the state’s head health official, warning the state is approaching a “life-threatening COVID-19 surge.” Eight medical officers addressed the letter obtained by The Arizona Republic to Arizona Department of Health Services Director Cara Christ, requesting Arizona officials take action within the next 72 hours. (Coleman, 12/2)

Courier-Journal: Kentucky Reports Most COVID-19 Deaths Ever For Second Day In A Row
Kentucky had its worst day for COVID-19 deaths for the second consecutive day, with Gov. Andy Beshear announcing 37 more deaths Wednesday. The previous record for coronavirus-related deaths reported in a single day had been set Tuesday, with 35 additional deaths. Wednesday's total included six people under age 60, Beshear said. (Austin and Yetter, 12/2)

The Hill: New Jersey COVID-19 Hospitalizations Surge 34 Percent In The Past 2 Weeks 
New Jersey coronavirus hospitalizations climbed 34 percent over a two-week period, reaching a six-month high, according to the latest data from the Garden State. Hospitalizations reached 3,287 over the last two weeks, according to Bloomberg, including a 6 percent rise in the last 24 hours alone. (Budryk, 12/2)

Also —

AP: Judge Refuses To Block Ban On Michigan Indoor Dining
Bars and restaurants lost a challenge Wednesday to Michigan’s ban on indoor dining and immediately warned about business failures and deep job losses if the restriction linked to the coronavirus is extended past next week. U.S. District Judge Paul Maloney turned down a request for an injunction with seven days left in the three-week ban. It was ordered in mid-November by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration in response to a distressing rise in virus cases. (White, 12/2)

NPR: Virginia County Votes To Reject Gov. Northam's Coronavirus Restrictions
Campbell County, Va., is taking a stand against Gov. Ralph Northam's COVID-19 restrictions as its Board of Supervisors endorsed a measure Tuesday night that calls on county agencies not to enforce Northam's crowd-size limits and other orders. The board declared Campbell County to be a "First Amendment Sanctuary" and deemed Northam's orders to violate people's constitutional rights. The move echoes the county's declaration of itself as a "Second Amendment Sanctuary" one year ago in support of gun owners' rights. (Chappell, 12/2)

USA Today: These Four States Have Been Hit Hard By COVID-19 Yet Balked At Strict Mask Mandates. What Is It Like To Live There?
If anything is consistent about the coronavirus pandemic, it's a lack of consistency. While states and cities receive attention when they impose restrictions, other locales feel confident that their citizens are no worse off with a hands-off approach. To get a sense of how states without strict rules concerning the virus are coping, we looked at four of them –  Texas, Wyoming, South Dakota and Florida – and talked to  officials and residents. Here are some snapshots. (Woodyard, 12/1)

The Washington Post: Staten Island Bar Mac's Public House Shuttered Over Covid Violations, Owner Arrested
Hundreds of mostly maskless protesters stood shoulder to shoulder outside a Staten Island bar on Wednesday night to demonstrate against the state’s coronavirus restrictions and support a tavern that was forced to shut down for flouting those guidelines. The raucous scene of about 400 demonstrators in front of Mac’s Public House came a day after plainclothes city sheriff’s deputies busted the bar, which had been operating without a liquor license, for serving food and alcohol to patrons indoors past the 10 p.m. citywide curfew in exchange for a mandatory $40 “donation,” authorities said. The bar’s owners previously declared the establishment an “autonomous zone,” and had publicly taunted New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo (D) and Mayor Bill de Blasio (D). (Bella, 12/3)

The Wall Street Journal: FDA Head Defends Covid-19 Vaccine-Approval Process 
Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn defended his agency’s vetting process for Pfizer Inc.’s Covid-19 vaccine, saying a thorough and meticulous review is needed to assure a skeptical public of the vaccine’s safety and effectiveness. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Dr. Hahn said his agency has had 150 people working days, nights and weekends in parallel teams to review the test data submitted by Pfizer and German partner BioNTech SE. (Burton, 12/2)

The Hill: CDC Panel Chair: US Will Learn About Pfizer Vaccine's Dry Ice Transport System From UK 
The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) panel on immunizations said the U.S. will take note of how the United Kingdom distributes a coronavirus vaccine after the country cleared Pfizer's candidate for emergency use. Jose Romero, chair of the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, said on CNN Wednesday morning that he’d be looking at Britain’s delivery method, particularly its use of dry ice to keep the vaccine cold as it travels across the country. (Axelrod, 12/2)

Reuters: EU Criticises 'Hasty' UK Approval Of COVID-19 Vaccine
The European Union criticised Britain’s rapid approval of Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, saying its own procedure was more thorough, after Britain became the first western country to endorse a COVID-19 shot. ... In an unusually blunt statement, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which is in charge of approving COVID-19 vaccines for the EU, said its longer approval procedure was more appropriate as it was based on more evidence and required more checks than the emergency procedure chosen by Britain. (Guarascio, 12/2)

Politico: UK’s Speedy Coronavirus Vaccine Approval Sparks Hope (And Questions) 
The message from the U.K.’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) Wednesday was definitive. “No corners have been cut,” said Chief Executive June Raine during a televised briefing. Expert scientists and clinicians have been “working around the clock, carefully and methodically, pouring over tables and analyses and graphs for every single piece of data,” she said. That includes over a thousand pages of data. The work involved “critically analyzing pre-clinical evidence, clinical trials, manufacturing and quality controls and down to the final sampling,” Raine added. Asked how the process differed from the European Medicines Agency and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s own approval regime, Raine said the MHRA process was “equivalent to all international standards.” There will, she added, be longer term follow up on the vaccine.  (Collis and Furlong, 12/2)

Also —

The Wall Street Journal: How The U.K. Beat The U.S. And Europe To A Covid-19 Vaccine 
Britain’s first-in-the-West authorization of a Covid-19 vaccine thrusts its little-known medicines watchdog into the global spotlight—weeks before the U.K.’s split from the European Union adds to the regulator’s responsibilities. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency signed off Wednesday on a vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc. and Germany’s BioNTech SE, setting in motion its rollout in the U.K. It reached a decision ahead of higher-profile watchdogs, such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency. (Strasburg, Hinshaw and Pancevski, 12/2)

AP: Who, When And How? A Look At The UK's Vaccination Rollout
How much of the vaccine does the U.K. have? Not enough. The U.K. has put in orders for 40 million doses, which can inoculate 20 million people, since each person gets two doses 21 days apart. Other vaccines will be needed for all the 53 million or so people eligible for shots; the U.K. only plans to immunize the population over age 16. (Pylas, 12/2)

Los Angeles Times: Is COVID-19 'Vaccine Nationalism' Real? UK May Tell
For months now, public health experts have fretted about the phenomenon of “vaccine nationalism” — countries loudly touting their own efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes at the expense of worldwide cooperation and coordination. How does Britain’s first-in-the-world approval Wednesday of a stringently tested vaccine, with large-scale inoculations set to start next week, fit into that debate? (King, 12/2)

The New York Times: Cyberattacks Discovered On Vaccine Distribution Operations 
A series of cyberattacks is underway aimed at the companies and government organizations that will be distributing coronavirus vaccines around the world, IBM’s cybersecurity division has found, though it is unclear whether the goal is to steal the technology for keeping the vaccines refrigerated in transit or to sabotage the movements. The findings are alarming enough that the Department of Homeland Security plans to issue its own warning on Thursday to Operation Warp Speed, the Trump administration’s effort to develop and distribute coronavirus vaccines, federal officials said. (Sanger and LaFraniere, 12/3)

USA Today: IBM Analysts Warn Of Phishing Attack On Overseas COVID-19 Vaccine Supply Chain
IBM researchers have detected a global phishing campaign targeting organizations associated with an overseas supply chain used for vaccine distribution. The company said spoofed emails impersonating a Chinese biomedical executive targeted organizations in six countries, including Germany, Italy, South Korea, the Czech Republic and Taiwan. The organizations, which included a European Commission office, are believed to be “providers of material support to meet transportation needs within the COVID-19 cold chain,” the analysts wrote in a post to be published Thursday. (Slack, 12/3)

In other news about distributing the vaccine —

The Hill: Transportation Dept: Preparations In Place For 'Immediate Mass Shipment' Of COVID-19 Vaccines 
The Department of Transportation is prepared for “immediate mass shipment" of coronavirus vaccines within the U.S., department officials said Tuesday. The department said in a news release that it has developed “appropriate safety requirements for all potential hazards involved in shipping the vaccine, including standards for dry ice and lithium batteries used in cooling.” Private sector firms will collaborate with government agencies to move the drugs from the manufacturers to distribution hubs. (Budryk, 12/2)

Modern Healthcare: HHS Estimates 100 Million Will Get COVID-19 Vaccine By March
Federal officials on Wednesday said they anticipate vaccinating as many as 100 million people by March once a coronavirus vaccine is approved and ready to be distributed. In a call with reporters, HHS Secretary Alex Azar said federal agencies have made preparations to begin allocating a vaccine, or vaccines, immediately after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration grants emergency use authorization for use. Among the most likely candidates to gain FDA approval first include vaccines developed by makers Pfizer and BioNTech, which won approval for use in Britain on Wednesday, as well as one developed by Moderna. (Ross Johnson, 12/2)

AP: Pence To Visit Tennessee, Talk Virus Vaccines
Vice President Mike Pence is scheduled to visit Memphis on Thursday to discuss the development and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines, according to his office. Memphis is home to shipping giant FedEx, which is helping in the national vaccine distribution. Pence will participate in an afternoon roundtable discussion, which will include Republican Gov. Bill Lee. (12/3)

Business Insider: How United Airlines Overcame A Major Limitation To Fly Pfizer Vaccine 
Pfizer has tasked United Airlines with transporting the first doses of its vaccine to the US, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, in preparation for an expected emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration scheduled to come in the upcoming weeks. A chartered Boeing 777-200 aircraft filled with the pandemic-ending drugs first flew on Friday, the Journal reported, traveling from Brussels, Belgium to Chicago, a United hub. Unlike the daily United passenger flight between the two cities, Pfizer would have likely had the entire plane to itself as a dedicated charter. (Pallini, 12/1)

The New York Times: Moderna To Begin Testing Its Coronavirus Vaccine In Children 
The drugmaker Moderna said on Wednesday that it would soon begin testing its coronavirus vaccine in children ages 12 through 17. The study, listed Wednesday on the website clinicaltrials.gov, is to include 3,000 children, with half receiving two shots of vaccine four weeks apart, and half getting placebo shots of salt water. But the posting says the study is “not yet recruiting,” and Colleen Hussey, a spokeswoman for Moderna, said it was not certain when the testing sites would be listed or start accepting volunteers. A link on the website to test centers is not yet working, and Ms. Hussey said she was not sure when it would become active. (Grady, 12/2)

The Hill: Moderna To Begin Testing COVID-19 Vaccine In Children 
Moderna said Wednesday it will begin testing its COVID-19 vaccine on children, starting with kids aged 12 through 17. The study aims to "evaluate the safety" of a single dose level of the vaccine administered "to an adolescent population," according to the study notes, posted on ClinicalTrials.gov. The study will include 3,000 participants, with half receiving the vaccine and half being injected with a saline placebo. Both will be administered in two doses, scheduled 28 days apart. (Polus, 12/2)

In related news about children and COVID —

The Washington Post: When Will Children Get A Coronavirus Vaccine, And How Will It Affect School? 
As the United States eagerly awaits the availability of a safe, effective vaccine for the coronavirus that has plagued the nation for months, a significant group, making up more than one-fifth of the population, will need to wait longer than many others for immunization: children. On Sunday, Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, acknowledged it is going to take time, perhaps even months, before those younger than 18 can get a coronavirus vaccine, as trials to test the vaccine candidates’ immunogenicity are either underway or have yet to begin. (Kornfield, 12/2)

The New York Times: Rapid Testing For Children Barrels Ahead, Despite A Lack Of Data 
A small but growing body of evidence, some of which has not yet been published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, suggests that some rapid tests for the coronavirus may falter in very young people, letting low-level infections slip by unnoticed. In a recent study of more than 1,600 people in Massachusetts, Binax NOW, a rapid test manufactured by Abbott Laboratories, caught 96.5 percent of the coronavirus infections found by a more accurate laboratory test in adults with symptoms. But the rapid test detected just 77.8 percent of the symptomatic cases in people 18 or under. Among people without symptoms, the test faltered further, identifying 70.2 percent of adults and 63.6 percent of children. (Wu, 12/1)

CNN: What Matters: Now We Have Proof That Kids Are Paying The Price Of Covid 
Nine months into the pandemic, the US still has not figured out how to get all of its kids safely back into classrooms, and now we are starting to see the cost of the cumulative individual and policy decisions that have made opening schools so hard. It is exactly what was feared. The pandemic is affecting children of color more than White kids and test scores are down disproportionately in schools with high rates of poverty, according to a new report from the nonprofit NWEA. (Wolf, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Remote-Learning Strategies For Parents During Covid School Closures 
When virtual school began in August, Brandi McPherson initially followed the remote-learning guidelines from her 13-year-old daughter’s school. “They told the kids to sit at a desk or table and leave the cameras on all day,” she said. “Classes are taught from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in 45-minute blocks with five-minute breaks.” It was too much for Tanner, a seventh-grader in the Northridge area of Los Angeles, who is twice exceptional — she is gifted and struggles with ADHD and generalized anxiety disorder. (Goldman, 12/1)

In other pediatric news —

KHN: Feds Look To Pharmacists To Boost Childhood Immunization Rates 
Torey Watson is trained as a pharmacist but aims to do more than simply fill prescriptions. Pharmax Pharmacy — a small drugstore chain where Watson works as a clinical services coordinator, about an hour and 30 minutes southwest of St. Louis — will soon allow him to offer childhood vaccines to patients without a doctor’s prescription. This change came after the federal government expanded pharmacists’ ability to administer routine immunizations to children as young as 3. (Heredia Rodriguez, 12/3)

CNN: Vaccination Cards Will Be Issued To Everyone Getting Covid-19 Vaccine, Health Officials Say
The Department of Defense released the first images of a Covid-19 vaccination record card and vaccination kits Wednesday. Vaccination cards will be used as the "simplest" way to keep track of Covid-19 shots, said Dr. Kelly Moore, associate director of the Immunization Action Coalition, which is supporting frontline workers who will administer Covid-19 vaccinations. (Bonifield and Vera, 12/2)

Bloomberg: CVS, Walgreens Bracing To Give Covid-19 Shots At Nursing Homes
CVS Health Corp. and Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. are preparing to administer Covid-19 vaccines in tens of thousands of nursing homes and assisted-living facilities across the country, with shots possibly rolling out in just weeks. Federal advisers on Tuesday urged that residents at long-term care centers be first in line for the Covid shots, along with at-risk health-care workers. In making the recommendation, the advisers said the move would be well-supported by a new partnership formed between the Department of Health and Human Services and pharmacy companies to vaccinate at the centers. (LaVito, 12/2)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: Local Pharmacies To Play A Big Role In The Coronavirus Vaccine Deployment In Louisiana
Before Admiral Brett Giroir spoke at a press conference in Baton Rouge on Wednesday, he had an important stop to make: the local, independently owned pharmacy in his hometown, just over the bridge from where he grew up in Marrero. “This is the front door to medicine in the country, the local pharmacy,” said Giroir, a critical care pediatrician who now serves as Assistant Secretary for Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Ninety-five percent of the American population lives within five miles of a pharmacy.” (Woodruff, 12/2)

KHN: Come For Your Eye Exam, Leave With A Band-Aid On Your Arm
With multiple COVID-19 vaccines rapidly heading toward approval, optometrists and dentists are pushing for the authority to immunize patients during routine eye exams and dental cleanings. Across the country, these medical professionals say their help will be needed to distribute the vaccines to millions of Americans — and they already have the know-how. (Bluth, 12/3)

And former presidents will demonstrate their confidence in vaccine safety —

CNN: Former Presidents Obama, Bush And Clinton Volunteer To Get Coronavirus Vaccine Publicly To Prove It's Safe 
Former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton are volunteering to get their Covid-19 vaccines on camera to promote public confidence in the vaccine's safety once the US Food and Drug Administration authorizes one. The three most recent former presidents hope an awareness campaign to promote confidence in its safety and effectiveness would be a powerful message as American public health officials try to convince the public to take the vaccine. (Gangel and Erdman, 12/2)

Stat: Covid-19 Vaccines Will Arrive Before Health Data Interoperability
Scientists have produced Covid-19 vaccines in record time. But the digital connectivity needed to closely track doses, side effects, and continuing infections is still lagging behind — even though the technology is now widely available. This paradox of the pandemic was on display Tuesday during a meeting hosted by the Department of Health and Human Services. An official with the U.S. Digital Service said site visits to public health agencies around the country in recent months revealed a heavy reliance on paper documents and fax machines to collect and share data on Covid-19 tests. (Ross, 12/2)

The Washington Post: What We Know About Pregnancy And Coronavirus Vaccines 
None of the three companies that say they’ve developed effective coronavirus vaccines enrolled pregnant or breastfeeding people in their clinical trials. And that means initial guidance on who should get vaccinated likely won’t include pregnant people, public health experts say. Pregnant people have long been typically left out of major vaccine trials because of concerns that the women and their fetuses might face increased risk. That protocol has come into question in recent years as experts increasingly make the argument that leaving them out of trials puts them at greater risk. (Cirruzzo, 12/1)

The New York Times: Many Trial Volunteers Got Placebo Vaccines. Do They Now Deserve The Real Ones? 
In October, Judith Munz and her husband, Scott Petersen, volunteered for a coronavirus vaccine trial. At a clinic near their home in Phoenix, each got a jab in the arm. Dr. Petersen, a retired physician, became a little fatigued after his shot, and developed redness and swelling on his arm. But Ms. Munz, a social worker, didn’t notice any change. “As much as I wanted it, I couldn’t find a darned thing,” she said. “It was a nothing burger.” (Zimmer and Weiland, 12/2)

Also —

CNN: What It Feels Like To Get An MRNA Coronavirus Vaccine 
As the United States inches closer to authorizing a Covid-19 vaccine many people may now let themselves start wondering what it will feel like to get it. Is it going to be like the flu vaccine? Will it be more painful? And what about side-effects? (Kane, 12/2)

Stat: How To Get The Most Of Covid-19 Vaccines — And Not Squander Our Chance
It appears science may have found the Covid-19 pandemic’s off-ramp. Two vaccines developed with stunning speed — and showing remarkable initial efficacy — are poised to be approved for emergency use in the United States in December. A number of other vaccines are expected to follow. Vaccines that prevent symptomatic Covid infection in roughly 95% of people vaccinated — as the data from clinical trials of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines suggest — should, over time, help the country and the world return to a life where we can travel without quarantining; where sporting events can be played before live audiences, not cardboard cutouts; and where snowstorms are the only reasons school gets canceled. (Branswell, 12/2)

Stat: How The Rich And Privileged Can Skip The Line For Covid-19 Vaccines 
Athletes, politicians, and other wealthy or well-connected people have managed to get special treatment throughout the pandemic, including preferential access to testing and unapproved therapies. Early access to coronavirus vaccines is likely to be no different, medical experts and ethicists told STAT. (Goldhill and St. Fleur, 12/3)

AP: Vaccine 1st Puts Spotlight On German Pharma Company BioNTech
The email that arrived in the ancient German city of Mainz shortly before 1 a.m. in the morning marked a turning point in the global effort to deliver a reliable vaccine against the coronavirus pandemic - and for the little-known biotechnology company that helped develop it. BioNTech has at times been portrayed as the junior partner in U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer’s race to get approval for the COVID-19 vaccine a pandemic-weary world is desperately waiting for. In fact, the company’s use of gene technology to beat the virus was key to the rapid development of the vaccine that British regulators OK’d for emergency use early Wednesday. (McHugh and Jordans, 12/2)

AP: Next For Biden: Naming A Health Care Team As Pandemic Rages
Up soon for President-elect Joe Biden: naming his top health care officials as the coronavirus pandemic rages. It’s hard to imagine more consequential picks. Already one prominent candidate to lead the Department of Health and Human Services has faded from the scene. New Mexico Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was offered another Cabinet post — interior secretary — and turned it down, a person close to the Biden transition said Wednesday. That person spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. Lujan Grisham’s office had no comment. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 12/3)

Politico: Raimondo Emerges As Frontrunner For HHS Secretary 
Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo is now a top contender to be President-elect Joe Biden’s pick to run the Department of Health and Human Services, according to two people close to the transition. Raimondo’s rise comes as New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is no longer favored for the role, according to one of those sources and another familiar with the discussions. (Ollstein, Cancryn and Pager, 12/2)

Boston Globe: Will She Stay Or Will She Go? R.I. Awaits Word On Raimondo’s Future 
The Rhode Island political world is holding its collective breath, waiting to see if its leader, Governor Gina M. Raimondo, will join President-elect Joe Biden’s administration as the head of the Department for Health and Human Services. Politico and NBC News described Raimondo as a top contender for the Cabinet post on Wednesday, setting off a swirl of speculation about whether the term-limited Democrat will be offered the job and, if so, whether she will take it. (Fitzpatrick, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Leading Candidates To Preside Over Biden's Covid Response Are Central Players In Transition 
As President-elect Joe Biden makes fighting the raging coronavirus his most-urgent mission when he takes office next month, two figures already playing central roles in his transition are emerging as the most likely possibilities to preside over the new White House’s pandemic response. One contender for Biden’s coronavirus coordinator, envisioned as a powerful role in setting the agenda and orchestrating the work of federal agencies, is Jeff Zients, a co-chairman of the Biden transition team who led the Obama administration’s National Economic Council. Another is Vivek H. Murthy, a co-chair of the transition’s covid-19 advisory board and a former U.S. Surgeon General. (Goldstein and Olorunnipa, 12/2)

And in news from the Trump administration —

AP: Trump's Grievances Feed Menacing Undertow After The Election
The last throes of Donald Trump’s presidency have turned ugly — even dangerous. Death threats are on the rise. Local and state election officials are being hounded into hiding. A Trump campaign lawyer is declaring publicly that a federal official who defended the integrity of the election should be “drawn and quartered” or simply shot. Neutral public servants, Democrats and a growing number of Republicans who won’t do what Trump wants are being caught in a menacing postelection undertow stirred by Trump’s grievances about the election he lost. (Long and Woodward, 12/3)

The Hill: McEnany Hits Democratic Leaders For Not Following Their Own COVID-19 Restrictions 
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Wednesday admonished Democratic leaders who have sparked controversy after being seen in public despite health restrictions several of them implemented or supported in response to the coronavirus pandemic. "Behind me you will see images of Democrat hypocrisy playing on loop," McEnany told reporters during a press briefing. (Mastrangelo, 12/2)

Politico: McEnany Incorrectly Credits Trump With White House AIDS Ribbon 
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Wednesday falsely attributed the genesis of the towering red ribbon displayed in front of the White House in honor of World AIDS Day to the Trump administration. ... “The president honored World AIDS Day yesterday in a way that no president has before, with the red ribbon there, and I think he commemorated the day as he should have,” McEnany told reporters during a press briefing. The ribbon was first hung in 2007 under former President George W. Bush and has become an annual feature in the years since, including under both Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump. The idea was the brainchild of Steven Levine, a member of the Bush communications shop, who is gay. (Niedzwiadek, 12/2)

Politico: McEnany’s Husband Attends White House Press Briefing Without Mask 
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany’s husband, Sean Gilmartin, appeared without a mask in the White House briefing room on Wednesday and declined to cover his face after being asked to do so by a journalist. The interaction between Gilmartin and the White House press corps came after McEnany, who generally does not wear a mask at the briefing room podium, conducted a 24-minute news conference. (Forgey, 12/2)

The Hill: Pelosi, Schumer Endorse $908 Billion Plan As Basis For Stimulus Talks 
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday threw their support behind using a bipartisan, compromise plan as the basis for COVID-19 relief talks. “While we made a new offer to Leader McConnell and Leader McCarthy on Monday, in the spirit of compromise we believe the bipartisan framework introduced by Senators yesterday should be used as the basis for immediate bipartisan, bicameral negotiations,” the Democratic leaders said in a joint statement, referring to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-K.y) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). (Elis, 12/2)

The Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus-Stimulus Efforts Pick Up Speed 
Democratic leaders signaled Wednesday they were prepared to reduce their demands for the next round of coronavirus relief, fueling hopes that an agreement could be reached with Republicans by year’s end to boost struggling businesses and households. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) and Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the chamber’s Democratic leader, said that a new, bipartisan $908 billion coronavirus relief proposal released Tuesday should serve as the starting point for talks to try to resolve months of disagreement with GOP leaders and the White House. (Peterson, 12/2)

CNN: Stimulus Negotiations: 3 Routes To Covid Relief All Face Fierce Headwinds 
It's almost like everyone woke up Tuesday and realized that there was a massive cliff coming at the end of December if lawmakers couldn't find agreement on a stimulus bill. The flurry of activity from the unveiling of a bipartisan framework to an announcement from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that he was going to present another targeted relief bill to his members might have left folks who aren't at the US Capitol every day with the impression that something was going to come together soon. Reality check: it's not. (Fox, 12/2)

The Washington Post: States Race To Craft Their Own Economic Relief Plans, Frustrated With Federal Inaction 
Governors and state lawmakers across the country are racing to authorize millions of dollars in new coronavirus stimulus aid, aiming to plug gaping holes in their local economies before the end of the year. The burst of activity has intensified in recent weeks after months of false starts in Washington, where congressional lawmakers repeatedly have failed to deliver additional support for a growing number of Americans who are still out of work, struggling to pay their bills or facing severe financial straits. (Romm, 12/2)

In related news on COVID's economic toll —

Los Angeles Times: L.A. Mayor Announces $800 Stipends For Food Service Workers 
Los Angeles will offer a one-time $800 stipend to employees who work in food service industries, including restaurants, breweries and food stands, Mayor Eric Garcetti said Wednesday. The Secure Emergency Relief for Vulnerable Employees, or SERVE, initiative will give 4,000 workers the cash using money from the nonprofit Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles, Garcetti said in an evening briefing. The news comes as the number of Californians hospitalized with the coronavirus reached more than 8,000 and 40 more deaths were reported in L.A. County on Wednesday, leading to restrictions on outdoor dining. (Reyes-Velarde, 12/2)

NPR: Study: Lifting Of Eviction Moratoriums Linked To Thousands Of Excess Deaths
Like much of the response to the coronavirus across the United States, the approach to housing during the pandemic has been an uneven patchwork. Forty-three states and Washington, D.C., put in eviction moratoriums starting in March and April, but 27 of them ended in the spring and summer. Then in September, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ordered a national stop to evictions. The CDC eviction ban isn't automatic and doesn't cover everyone. Thousands of people are still being kicked out of their homes. (Kelly and Pao, 12/2)

AP: Nurses Wanted: Swamped Hospitals Scramble For Pandemic Help
U.S. hospitals slammed with COVID-19 patients are trying to lure nurses and doctors out of retirement, recruiting students and new graduates who have yet to earn their licenses and offering eye-popping salaries in a desperate bid to ease staffing shortages. With the virus surging from coast to coast, the number of patients in the hospital with the virus has more than doubled over the past month to a record high of nearly 100,000, pushing medical centers and health care workers to the breaking point. Nurses are increasingly burned out and getting sick on the job, and the stress on the nation’s medical system prompted a dire warning from the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Schulte and Forliti, 12/3)

The New York Times: As Hospitals Fill, Travel Nurses Race To Virus Hot Spots
As the coronavirus cut a devastating path around the country, Laura Liffiton, 32, found herself racing along behind. She arrived in New York City in April, on one of the worst days of the pandemic, for a stint as a nurse in the overrun intensive-care unit of a crowded hospital. After her contract there ended, she flew in July to another hot spot with an urgent need for nurses: a hospital in Arizona where four of her patients died of the coronavirus on her first day. In October, Ms. Liffiton traveled on, to Green Bay, Wis., just as the virus was surging uncontrollably throughout the Midwest. (Bosman, 12/2)

Houston Chronicle: Harris County To Launch National Search For Public Health Director To Replace Shah
Harris County Commissioners Court this week launched an “expedited” national search for a new public health director, a week after Dr. Umair Shah announced he had accepted a job in Washington state. Commissioners Court on Tuesday unanimously appointed Harris County Public Health Deputy Director Gwen Sims as interim director at a prorated annual salary of $260,000. Since she is not a physician, Sims will need to appoint a doctor as the county’s health authority. (Despart, 12/2)

Cincinnati Enquirer: COVID-19: Rising Resident, Worker Cases Put Strain On Nursing Homes
Nursing home patients and their caregivers are caught in spiraling COVID-19 infections and deaths as the novel coronavirus pandemic rages across America. In Ohio, it's no different, with vulnerable patients and their nurses and nurse aides facing a pandemic of historic proportions. The plight of nursing homes was highlighted Tuesday, when a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel group recommended that some of the first vaccines for COVID-19 go to nursing home residents as well as front-line health care workers. (Demio and Behrens, 12/2)

KHN: NYC Hospital Workers, Knowing How Bad It Can Get, Brace For COVID 2nd Wave 
No single municipality in the country suffered more in the first wave of the pandemic than New York City, which saw more than 24,000 deaths, mainly in the spring. Medical staff in New York know precisely how difficult and dangerous overwhelmed hospitals can be and are braced warily as infections begin to rise again. Around the New York metropolitan area, public health leaders and health care workers say they’re watching the trend lines, as intensive care units fill up in other parts of the United States and around the world. They say it gives them flashbacks to last spring, when ambulance sirens were omnipresent and the region was the country’s coronavirus epicenter. (Mogul, 12/3)

CNN: 911 Emergency Medical System In US 'At A Breaking Point,' Ambulance Group Says 
With the Covid-19 surge straining America's health care system, the 911 emergency call system has been stretched to "the breaking point," the American Ambulance Association says. Ambulance services are critical in getting sick patients to hospitals for care, and the American Ambulance Association, which represents all of the nation's ambulance services, said they are struggling to stay together. (Erdman, 12/3)

Detroit Free Press: It's Taking Labs About 3 Days To Process COVID-19 Tests In Michigan
Labs took an average of just under three days to process the nearly 900,000 COVID-19 tests performed in Michigan over the last two weeks, according to data the state began posting publicly last week. It’s the clearest look so far at how long it’s taking each provider, from massive commercial labs in California to small strip mall urgent cares, to go from collecting a sample to the results being logged by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. (Wells, 12/2)

In other COVID developments —

The Hill: CVS Health Partnering With Government To Administer Coronavirus Antibody Therapy 
CVS Health will work with the Trump administration to administer a limited supply of a COVID-19 therapy to patients at risk for serious illness or complications from infection. The agreement is part of a pilot program that allows CVS Health to administer bamlanivimab, a monoclonal antibody therapy given through an IV, to patients in their homes or at long-term care facilities. (Hellmann, 12/2)

Reuters: The U.S. Has Spent Billions Stockpiling Ventilators, But Many Won’t Save Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients
With the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping across its shores earlier this year, the U.S. government in April announced orders for almost $3 billion of ventilators for a national stockpile, meant to save Americans suffering from severe respiratory problems brought on by the disease. But of the 140,000 machines added since then by the government to the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile, almost half were basic breathing devices that don’t meet what medical specialists say are the minimum requirements for ventilators needed to treat Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, the main cause of death among COVID-19 patients, according to a Reuters review of publicly-available device specifications and interviews with doctors and industry executives. (Bergin, 12/2)

In other health industry news —

Modern Healthcare: CMS Finalizes Physician-Owned Hospital Boost, End Of Inpatient-Only List
CMS on Wednesday moved forward with changes that could increase provider competition, including allowing physician-owned hospitals to expand if they treat large numbers of Medicaid patients, phasing out its inpatient-only procedures list and continuing cuts for 340B-acquired drugs. As part of the final outpatient prospective payment system rule, CMS will phase out its policy of paying for some procedures only if they're done in inpatient settings. Approximately 300 mostly musculoskeletal-related services will be cut first, followed by the rest of the inpatient-list by 2024. CMS will continue to pay for those treatments in either inpatient or outpatient settings and encouraged providers to use their judgment on the most appropriate venue of care. (Brady, 12/2)

Modern Healthcare: Primary-Care Spending Among Private Payers Declined In 2019
The report, released Wednesday from the not-for-profit coalition Primary Care Collaborative, defines primary care services in two ways and found a decline over the three-year period using both definitions. When only considering services rendered by physicians, primary care spending accounted for 4.67% of overall commercial insurance spending in 2019, a decline from 2017 when it accounted for 4.88% of spending. Similarly, when accounting for primary care services rendered by physician assistants and nurse practitioners in addition to physicians, overall spending in the specialty still dropped from 7.8% to 7.69% over the time period. The findings from the report are in line with other recent literature showing primary care spending in the U.S. has declined. (Castellucci, 12/2)

Modern Healthcare: Sutter, Aetna Select New CEO For Joint Venture
Sutter Health and Aetna selected Jeb Dunkelberger to lead their health plan joint venture, the organizations announced Wednesday. Dunkelberger, who led national sales and strategy for healthcare automation company Notable Health and has experience in the insurance industry, is tasked with coordinating the joint venture's expansion with employers across 16 Northern California counties. He replaced Steve Wigginton, who led the company through its first two-plus years. (Kacik, 12/2)

CIDRAP: Cancer Patients May Shed Viable COVID-19 Virus For 2 Months
A New England Journal of Medicine study yesterday of cancer patients with COVID-19 demonstrated viral RNA shedding for up to 78 days and live virus for up to 61 days, suggesting extended infectiousness in patients whose immune system is suppressed. Live-virus shedding in patients who are not immunocompromised is well-documented, but little is known about how long immunocompromised patients—including those receiving cancer treatments—are contagious. The presence of viral RNA does not always correlate with transmissibility, and previous studies have demonstrated lengthy periods of viral RNA shedding after patients are no longer infectious. (12/2)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Coronavirus Is Revealing Exactly What Obesity Does To The Human Body
The COVID-19 pandemic has thrust the obesity epidemic once again into the spotlight, revealing that obesity is no longer a disease that harms just in the long run but one that can have acutely devastating effects. New studies and information confirm doctors’ suspicion that this virus takes advantage of a disease that our current U.S. health care system is unable to get under control. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 73% of nurses who have been hospitalized from COVID-19 had obesity. In addition, a recent study found that obesity could interfere with the effectiveness of a COVID-19 vaccine. (Varney, 12/3)

CIDRAP: COVID-19 Disruptions May Have Fueled Hospital Superbug Outbreak 
A case report from a New Jersey hospital highlights how drug-resistant pathogens can take advantage of COVID-related disruptions to standard infection and prevention control (IPC) practices. In a paper published yesterday in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH), and Rutgers University report on an outbreak of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) at an unnamed 500-bed hospital that occurred during the spring surge of coronavirus infections in the state. (Dall, 12/2)

The Washington Post: The Covid-19 Symptoms To Watch Out For
Symptoms of covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, can range from mild to severe. The most common include fever, a dry cough or shortness of breath, but there are other indications you could need to be tested or have a conversation with your doctor. Not everyone experiences the same symptoms, and the order in which they appear can vary. Some people don’t show any symptoms — what health experts call “asymptomatic” cases — but still could spread the virus to others. (Fritz, 12/2)

In other science and research news —

Stat: Study: Elevated Stress Hormones Could Reawaken Dormant Cancer Cells
The recurrence of cancer months or even years after successful treatment is an all too common phenomenon, and scientists have been chipping away at understanding how undetectable cells can once again unleash disease on the body — often more aggressively than the first time around. In a new study published Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine, one group of researchers describes how a cascade of events set off by high levels of a stress hormone could cause dormant tumor cells to reawaken to once again cause cancer. (Chakradhar, 12/2)

Stat: Reprogramming Rejuvenates Nerve Cells And Restores Vision In Mice 
For years now, biologists have been practicing a kind of time travel. You can take a speck of human skin, and with the right genetic tweaking, turn back its inner clock until it becomes its embryonic self, stripped of its identity and ready to become just about any human body part at all. Since the method was published in 2006, transforming adult cells into stem cells has allowed all sorts of advances. (Boodman, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Austin Mayor Told People To Stay Home As He Vacationed In Cabo And Attended His Daughter’s Wedding 
When the number of new coronavirus cases in Texas began to rise in early November, the mayor of Austin urged residents to avoid socializing and traveling, especially as the holiday season approached. “We need to stay home if you can,” Mayor Steve Adler (D) said in a Nov. 9 video. “We need to try to keep those numbers down. This is not the time to relax.” Days before he offered that warning, Adler had hosted at a downtown hotel for his daughter and about 20 guests. Then, he and eight wedding guests took a private jet to Cabo San Lucas, where they stayed together in a timeshare. (Shepherd, 12/3)

The Hill: California Sheriff Tests Positive For COVID-19 After Refusing To Enforce State Restrictions
A California sheriff tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday after previously refusing to enforce state restrictions aimed at mitigating spread of the infectious disease. The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office announced on Wednesday that Sheriff Scott Jones received a positive coronavirus test the day prior after developing symptoms late last week. (Coleman, 12/2)

CNN: Couple Arrested After Allegedly Traveling To Hawaii Knowing They Tested Positive For Covid-19 
A couple from Hawaii was arrested over the weekend after allegedly flying home knowing that they both had tested positive for Covid-19. Wesley Moribe and Courtney Peterson of Wailua traveled with a child on a United Airlines flight out of San Francisco to Lihue, Hawaii, on November 29. (Rose, 12/3)

The Washington Post: Aide To Maryland Governor Larry Hogan: Korean Virus Tests Not Used 
A Maryland official acknowledged publicly Wednesday, for the first time, that none of the 500,000 coronavirus tests the state purchased from South Korea in April were used to diagnose whether people had the virus. More than 496,000 of the tests were handed back to the manufacturer as part of a deal for replacement tests, acting health secretary Dennis Schrader told the Board of Public Works. About 3,500 were used as lab workers tried to validate them. (Thompson, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Emotional Support Animals Not Required To Be Transported On Flights 
Airlines no longer will be required to accommodate travelers who want to fly with emotional support animals such as pigs, rabbits and turkeys under a final rule announced Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The new rule now defines a service animal to be a dog that is “individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability” and limits the number of service animals a person can travel with to two. It also requires airlines to treat psychiatric service animals as they would other service animals. (Aratani, 12/2)

AP: US Tightens Definition Of Service Animals Allowed On Planes
The days of pets flying with their owners in airplane cabins for free are coming to an end. The Transportation Department issued a final rule Wednesday covering animals on airlines. It decided that only dogs can fly as service animals, and companions that passengers use for emotional support don’t count. The rule aims to settle years of tension between airlines and passengers who bring their pets on board for free by saying they need them for emotional help. Under a longstanding department policy, all the passengers needed was a note from a health professional. (Koenig, 12/2)

In other airline industry and travel news —

CNBC: American, United Pause Nonstop Flights To Shanghai Amid Concerns Over Restrictions Facing Overseas Crews
American Airlines and United Airlines are pausing plans to operate nonstop flights to Shanghai from the U.S. following reports of lengthy waits facing airline crews upon arrival, limited local accommodations and restrictions on their movement in the country, according to people familiar with the matter. They will instead route the flights with a stop in South Korea, the people said, asking not to be named because they aren’t authorized to talk about it. (Josephs, 12/1)

The Hill: CDC Sets Risk Of COVID-19 In Mexico At Highest Level 
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has set the risk of COVID-19 in Mexico to its highest level and is urging travelers to avoid going to the country. The CDC set its risk level to level four, which is “very high,” warning that going to the country “may increase your chance of getting and spreading COVID-19." (Williams, 12/2)

Fox Business: Amazon Workers Protest Outside Jeff Bezos' NYC Home For Better COVID-19 Protections
Amazon workers vying for stricter safety standards during the COVID-19 pandemic took their fight to Jeff Bezos' Manhattan home Wednesday. Protesters gathered outside the Amazon chief executive's multimillion-dollar Fifth Avenue residence to call attention to Bezos and other CEOs who they claim have made billions during the global health crisis while putting workers' lives at risk. (Genovese, 12/2)

AP: NBA: 48 Players Positive For Coronavirus As Testing Resumes
The NBA said Wednesday that 48 players have tested positive for the coronavirus since testing resumed last week. The league and National Basketball Players Association said 546 players were tested between Nov. 24-30 in the initial phase of testing after returning to team markets. That means about 9% of the tests were positive. (12/2)

In other public health news —

CNN: She's 102. She Lived Through The 1918 Flu And Now She's Beat Coronavirus — Twice 
Angelina Friedman is a survivor, in every sense of the word. When she was a baby, she lived through 1918 flu. Throughout her life she survived cancer, internal bleeding and sepsis. In April, she survived coronavirus -- a virus that has taken nearly 1.5 million lives worldwide. And now, the 102-year-old New York resident just did it again. (Hughes, 12/2)

CNN: Churches And Covid-19: A Deadly Lesson From The 1918 Pandemic
To gather or not to gather has been the question at the forefront of the minds of today's religious leaders and their church members. During the 1918 influenza pandemic that ultimately killed 50 million to 100 million people, different answers to that same question resulted in either collective well-being or widespread, devastating loss. (Rogers, 12/3)

CNN: An Alabama Woman Is Raising 12 Kids After Her Sister Died From Covid
Francesca McCall and her younger sister Chantale had always promised to take care of each other's kids if anything ever happened to either. When Chantale died in September from Covid-19, her sister, who was already raising seven kids of her own, didn't hesitate to welcome Chantale's five children into her Birmingham, Alabama, home. (Williams, 12/2)

Also —

The Washington Post: A Third-Grade Teacher In Minnesota Donated A Kidney To Her School’s Custodian
Patrick Mertens needed a kidney, and, feeling desperate, his daughter, Kayla, posted a request on Facebook in January. Mertens, 64, a school custodian, hadn’t bothered asking his co-workers at Kimball Elementary School in Kimball, Minn., as he searched for a donor. He didn’t want to inconvenience any of the teachers at the school, and he thought they had already done enough for him by setting up a fundraiser to support his dialysis. (Melnick, 12/2)

The New York Times: Exercise 11 Minutes A Day For A Longer Life 
Walking for at least 11 minutes a day could lessen the undesirable health consequences of sitting for hours and hours, according to a helpful new study of the ways in which both inactivity and exercise influence how long we live. The study, which relied on objective data from tens of thousands of people about how they spent their days, found that those who were the most sedentary faced a high risk of dying young, but if people got up and moved, they slashed that threat substantially, even if they did not move much. (Reynolds, 12/2)

KHN: During ACA Open Enrollment, Picking A Plan Invites New COVID Complications 
People buying their own health insurance have even more to think about this year, particularly those post-COVID-19 patients with lingering health concerns, the “long haulers,” who join the club of Americans with preexisting conditions. What type of plan is best for someone with an unpredictable, ongoing medical concern? That question is popping up on online chat sites dedicated to long haulers and among people reaching out for assistance in selecting insurance coverage. (Appleby, 12/3)

AP: San Francisco Bans Smoking Inside Apartments; Pot Smoking OK
City officials in San Francisco have banned all tobacco smoking inside apartments, citing concerns about secondhand smoke. But lighting up a joint inside? That’s still allowed. The Board of Supervisors voted 10-1 Tuesday to approve the ordinance making San Francisco the largest city in the country to ban tobacco smoking inside apartments, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. (12/2)

In other news —

The Oklahoman: Mustang High School To Pilot In-School Quarantine
Oklahoma’s first students to attempt in-school quarantine could start this month at Mustang High School. Mustang Public Schools will become the first school district in the state to implement in-school quarantine by piloting the program at its high school. Other districts in Oklahoma are permitted to try similar programs until Dec. 23, as long as they meet specified criteria. Any district that approves in-school quarantine must have a designated room large enough to fit all participating students and staff spaced at least 6 feet apart. They must wear masks at all times while doing online classwork. (Martinez-Keel, 12/3)

Burlington Free Press: Vermont Officials Urge Retesting For People Whose COVID-19 Tests In Barre Were Spoiled
Vermont health officials are urging people who were tested for COVID-19 at the Barre Auditorium on Nov. 27 to get retested. Almost 250 tests taken that day were spoiled and could not be analyzed because of an error by the shipping company that was transporting the tests to a lab in Massachusetts. Analysis of the tests was delayed and thus could not be properly processed, the Vermont Health Department said. The Health Department said the test samples of people being retested because of this error will be expedited for processing and results. (Murray, 12/2)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Pa. Auditor General Confirms Botched Coronavirus Efforts At Veterans’ Nursing Home, Calls On Gov. Wolf To Finish Investigation
Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale on Wednesday released a new report on deficiencies at the Southeastern Veterans’ Center — where at least 42 people died of COVID-19 — and called on Gov. Tom Wolf to release the results of an investigation into how the state-run nursing home handled the coronavirus. The report confirms the key findings of Inquirer investigations in April and May, which reported the 238-bed home in Chester County had taken a lax approach to the pandemic, with supervisors discouraging nurses and aides from wearing masks to avoid frightening the service veterans. (Bender, 12/2)

Also —

The New York Times: Women In ‘Birth Tourism’ Ring Had 119 Babies On Long Island, Officials Say
The Facebook post advertised a tantalizing offer for pregnant women in Turkey. “If you believe your baby should be born in the USA and become an American citizen,” the ad said in Turkish, “then you are at the right place.” In exchange for payments between $7,500 and $10,000 each, the women received transportation, medical care and lodging at a so-called birth house on Long Island, federal prosecutors said — allowing them to travel to New York on tourist visas and return to Turkey with babies who were American citizens. (Hong and Dollinger, 12/2)

NPR: Putin Tells Russia To Begin Large-Scale Vaccination For Coronavirus
Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered mass immunization against COVID-19 as Russia races to reverse a surge in coronavirus cases and be the first in the world to distribute its vaccine widely. Putin issued the order in a videoconference with officials, just hours after health authorities in Britain approved Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine. (Kim, 12/2)

AP: China Testing Blunders Stemmed From Secret Deals With Firms
In the early days in Wuhan, the first city first struck by the virus, getting a COVID test was so difficult that residents compared it to winning the lottery. Throughout the Chinese city in January, thousands of people waited in hours-long lines for hospitals, sometimes next to corpses lying in hallways. But most couldn’t get the test they needed to be admitted as patients. And for the few who did, the tests were often faulty, resulting in false negatives. The widespread test shortages and problems at a time when the virus could have been slowed were caused largely by secrecy and cronyism at China’s top disease control agency, an Associated Press investigation has found. (Kang, 12/3)

Bloomberg: After Pfizer’s U.K. Vaccine Nod, Here’s Where It Stands In Asia
The quick approval of Pfizer Inc.’s coronavirus vaccine in the U.K. isn’t likely to accelerate the availability of the shot in Asia, as countries work to complete local safety tests and negotiate deals. Asia’s biggest economies including China and Japan still need to finish domestic clinical trials to demonstrate the Pfizer shot is safe, and even then, most countries have set deliveries for next year. In addition, some developing nations in Asia with the biggest outbreaks don’t have deals with Pfizer, and lack the means to distribute and store the vaccine, which needs to be kept at a deep freeze. (Du, 12/3)

AP: Nearly 100 World Leaders To Speak At UN Session On COVID-19
Nearly 100 world leaders and several dozen ministers are slated to speak at the U.N. General Assembly’s special session starting Thursday on the response to COVID-19 and the best path to recovery from the pandemic which has claimed 1.5 million lives, shattered economies, and left tens of millions of people unemployed in countries rich and poor. (Lederer, 12/3)

Also —

NPR: Win For Cannabis Backers: U.N. Commission Removes Drug From Strict Control List
The U.N. Commission on Narcotic Drugs voted to reclassify cannabis Wednesday, taking it off the strict Schedule IV list that includes dangerous and highly addictive drugs such as heroin. The U.N. still deems cannabis a controlled substance. But the move, which the U.S. supported, could ease restrictions on research into marijuana's therapeutic use. The 53-member commission approved the change in a close vote, by 27-25, with 1 abstention. Russia was a vocal opponent of the move, calling cannabis "the most abused drug globally." (Chappell, 12/2)

AP: Olympic Fans From Abroad May Have Health Tracked By App
A mobile app could be among the measures used to track the health of fans from abroad if they are permitted to attend next year’s Tokyo Olympics. An interim report on contingencies for holding the Tokyo Games was released on Wednesday. It was compiled by the Japanese government, the Tokyo city government and local organizers. (Wade, 12/2)

NPR: Climate Change Threatens Health, Doctors Warn
Scientists from the World Meteorological Organization released a preliminary report on the global climate which shows that the last decade was the warmest on record and that millions of people were affected by wildfires, floods and extreme heat this year on top of the global pandemic. Separately, a sprawling analysis published Wednesday by the medical research journal The Lancet focuses on public health data from 2019, and finds that heat waves, air pollution and extreme weather increasingly damage human health. It is the most comprehensive annual report yet on the nexus of climate and health, and is routinely cited by climate policymakers. The authors include dozens of physicians and public health experts from around the world. (Hersher, 12/2)

Bloomberg: Climate Change And Health: Lancet Says Eating Less Beef Can Save Lives, Cut Heat
Getting more people around to world to cut down on eating beef could save lives by reducing heart attacks and curbing global temperature rises, according to The Lancet medical journal. Just as they were caught off guard by the Covid-19 pandemic, healthcare systems around the world are ill prepared to cope with the worst impacts of climate change, including heat-related illnesses, the journal’s annual Countdown on Health and Climate Change report concluded. (Shankleman, 12/2)

CIDRAP: Two Korean Studies Suggest That Children Are Unlikely To Spread COVID-19
Two South Korean studies in Emerging Infectious Diseases yesterday add to growing evidence that children are less likely than adults to spread COVID-19.The first study examined SARS-CoV-2 transmission from Feb 18 to Jun 7 among 12 children (younger than 19 years) and their uninfected guardians isolated together in seven Korean hospitals. (12/1)

American Academy Of Pediatrics: COVID-19 And Parent Intention To Vaccinate Their Children Against Influenza 
Changes in vaccination intentions significantly differed between parents whose children received the 2019–2020 influenza vaccine compared with those whose children did not (P < .001). Specifically, among parents whose children did not receive the 2019–2020 vaccine, 34% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 30%–37%) reported that the COVID-19 pandemic made them less likely to have their child receive the 2020–2021 vaccine. (Sokol and Grummon, 12/1)

CIDRAP: Study Finds Irreversible Damage In COVID-19 Lung Transplant Patients
A report in Science Translational Medicine yesterday detailed irreversible lung damage in three patients with severe COVID-19 infection who received lung transplants, with lung injury similar to that of end-stage pulmonary fibrosis. The study suggests that some COVID-19 patients develop fibrotic lung disease and that lung transplants may be a viable option for survival. Researchers examined the lungs removed from three bilateral lung transplant patients with non-resolving COVID-19–associated respiratory failure and two patients who had died from COVID-19–associated pneumonia. (12/1)

Nature Medicine: Effective Control Of SARS-CoV-2 Transmission In Wanzhou, China 
The effectiveness of control measures to contain coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Wanzhou, China was assessed. Epidemiological data were analyzed for 183 confirmed COVID-19 cases and their close contacts from five generations of transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 throughout the entire COVID-19 outbreak in Wanzhou. (Shi et al, 11/30)

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CIDRAP: Vaccine Protects Monkeys From Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever
A DNA-based vaccine for the tickborne Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) given to cynomolgus macaques was shown to provide protection from the disease, according to a study published yesterday in Nature Microbiology. The vaccine candidate uses two plasmids encoding the glycoprotein precursor (GP) and the nucleoprotein (NP) of CCHFV, and it was given to six female macaques at 3-week intervals in three dosages containing 1 milligram of each plasmid and followed by electroporation. Six female macaques were in the placebo group. After the vaccination period, all were infected with CCHFV; tested for symptoms and viral shedding at days 0, 3, 5, and 6 post-infection; and examined after euthanasia on day 6. (12/1)

CIDRAP: CARB-X To Fund Treatments For S Aureus Pneumonia, Pseudomonas
CARB-X today announced two new funding awards for German scientists working on therapies for difficult-to-treat bacterial infections. The first award, worth up to $1.33 million, will go to researchers from the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) and the Lead Discovery Center GmbH for development of a small molecule that inhibits the Staphylococcus aureus toxin a-hemolysin, which damages lung tissue and immune cells. The drug would be used in combination with antibiotics to treat pneumonia caused by S aureus. (12/1)

Stat: To Roll Out Covid-19 Vaccines, Vaccinate Everyone In Several Hot Zones
Dear CEOs of Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca, Thank you for rapidly mobilizing your scientific resources and your vaccine clinical trial networks. (We also thank Operation Warp Speed and others for organizing and underwriting your efforts to tame Covid-19.) Your vaccines are on the brink of crossing the finish line of approval, but the confusion surrounding the presidential transition has brought great uncertainty to the distribution plan. (Daniel Teres and Martin Strosberg, 12/3)

Bloomberg: How Safe Are Covid-19 Vaccines From Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna And AstraZeneca?
SF: The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines may seem brand new, but they are the culmination of more than a decade of work that started during the SARS and MERS outbreaks. Vaccines were even developed against MERS but were never needed. Nevertheless, scientists learned a huge amount from working with that virus, which is from the same family as the one that causes Covid-19. Remember also that technology has evolved rapidly — for example, we’re now about able to sequence the genomes of every mutant version of the virus in less than a day. That helps in speeding up vaccine development. (12/2)

Stat: Make Science Bipartisan Again 
The Biden-Harris administration faces daunting challenges. Chief among them is tackling the Covid-19 pandemic and bending the case curve. This challenge cannot be met, let alone overcome, without a national plan plus substantial new investment in public health, science, and technology. And it will require prioritizing science over politics. (Tom Daschle, Bill Frist and Max G. Bronstein, 12/3)

The Wall Street Journal: Pharma Deserves The Nobel Peace Prize For The Covid Vaccines
This is the moment to put into nomination the obvious recipient for 2021’s Nobel Peace Prize: the scientists at the pharmaceutical companies whose vaccines are about to rescue the world from the catastrophe of SARS-CoV-2. Who else was going to save us from Covid-19? The answer, we’ve learned across nine long months, is no one. (Daniel Henninger, 12/2)

The Washington Post: Lies About The Coronavirus Vaccines Are Already Spreading. How Can They Be Stopped?
The coronavirus vaccines are coming, which means the coronavirus vaccine disinformation is coming, too. In fact, it is already here. “Will New COVID Vaccine Make You Transhuman?” asks one conspiratorial article about the upcoming inoculations, feeding into a wackadoodle charge about the “reprogramming” of DNA. “This vaccine will not only ‘mark’ you like a cattle,” reads another website, “you will be injected with nano particules that will make you a Perfect antenna for the 5g frequencies.” And one similarly baseless narrative dates to the early days of the pandemic: that Bill Gates created the coronavirus itself in an effort to create mandatory vaccines. (12/3)

The Wall Street Journal: A Christmas Compromise On Covid Relief?
As the 116th Congress enters its final weeks, I have a suggestion for House and Senate leaders: Take a break from nonstop politics and focus on the needs of the country. On Tuesday a bipartisan and bicameral group of legislators proposed a $908 billion emergency Covid relief package to get the American people through a difficult winter. Leadership should take up this bill immediately. (William A. Galston,12/1)

The New York Post: Heavy-Handed COVID-19 Lockdown Rules Are An All-Around Disaster
Across the nation, businesses are defying governors, such as California’s Gavin Newsom and New York’s Andrew Cuomo, and refusing to shut down. The owners of Mac’s Public House on Staten Island, for example, declared the place an “autonomous zone.” When sheriffs arrested them Tuesday night, crowds cheered the owners. This pandemic isn’t the time to glorify civil disobedience. People need to wear masks and follow safety rules, and the sheriffs were doing their job. Even so, owners resisting lockdowns are giving voice to a powerful message that shouldn’t be lost. If government and public-health officials want to maintain public trust, they need to enforce rational rules consistently and obey the rules themselves. (Betsy McCaughey, 12/2)

Fox News: The Coronavirus Pandemic Is A Global Fraud Perpetrated By China, Abetted By The Powerful
You've heard a lot recently about "voter fraud" and "election fraud." But now comes more profound news, of a global fraud that began long before Election Day and has ruined millions of lives, killed hundreds of thousands, and deeply affected the outcome of our presidential election.We speak, of course, of the coronavirus pandemic. Simply put, we've been lied to.The latest evidence comes from samples collected during Red Cross blood drives last year and analyzed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in a study published on Monday. (Tucker Carlson, 12/3)

The Washington Post: Who Knew A Pandemic Could Reduce Health-Care Spending?
I used to say that the only proven way to actually reduce health-care expenditures was to have a major financial meltdown. Now, 2020 has unexpectedly shown us another way to do it: have a pandemic. Let me expand on that a little. During the Great Health Care Wars of the early 21st century, I developed a certain personal specialty in explaining that no matter how wonderful single-payer health care might be in other respects, it wouldn’t reduce U.S. health-care spending to European levels (which can be half or less what the United States spends). (Megan McArdle, 12/3)

The Wall Street Journal: What Are The GOP’s Views On Health Care?
Republicans and Democrats in Washington are stalemated on health care. Republicans long campaigned on repealing the Affordable Care Act and won House and Senate seats on the issue in 2010 and later. Democrats flipped the script in 2018 and attacked Republicans for trying to undermine the law’s protections for pre-existing conditions. But for now at least, a President Biden will be unable to pass a “public option,” and Republicans will be unable to repeal the Affordable Care Act. The question the GOP ought to ponder is: What does it want to accomplish on health care? (Bobby Jindal, 12/2)

The Washington Post: This Pandemic Has Exposed Our Nation’s Broken Caregiving System 
Now, as President-elect Joe Biden prepares to take office under the shadow of interlocking public health and economic crises, I am one of many advocates hoping that he will elevate a new issue as a presidential priority by appointing a czar for caregiving. The coronavirus has laid bare what was painfully clear to many families already: The caregiving system in the United States is broken, and it is women who are paying the price. (Melinda Gaters, 12/3)

Los Angeles Times: As COVID Job Losses Deeply Affect Women, Men Must Help
Men who thought the COVID-19 “she-cession” was misnamed should take a look at the recent figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. After disproportionately losing jobs during the early shutdown, women are now leaving the workforce at nearly four times the rate of men. With so many women laid off, sidelined or stepping away to manage remote schooling or care for their families, men have to stand up as allies to ensure that gender equality in the workplace isn’t set back a generation. (W. Brad Johnson and David G. Smith, 12/3)

Reno Gazette Journal: Reno Doctor: Mr. President, Come See The Death And Despair Yourself
Dear President Trump, In response to your retweet about the “fake” hospital in Nevada, let me assure you, there is nothing fabricated about it. Here in Northern Nevada — just like much of the nation — we are suffering from an alarming spike in COVID-19. Fortunately, many people who get the disease are minimally ill or even asymptomatic. However, some are quite sick and require the hospital. Some of these will require the ICU. And as we are seeing, many are dying every day. In November alone, Washoe County lost 80 people to the virus. After you have finished hitting golf balls, playing on your phone and watching TV, perhaps you and the others in the rear echelon will visit. Come see for yourself the despair and death. (Gregory A. Juhl, 12/2)

The Hill: Caring For Our Seniors During And After Coronavirus 
The ability to maximize living out one’s golden years is a principal promise of the American Dream. Before the outbreak of coronavirus, there were many challenges facing our seniors’ ability to do so — the high cost of prescription drugs, the need to preserve and protect Social Security and Medicare and more, but, unfortunately, the outbreak of coronavirus has only created more challenges for our nation’s older Americans. (Rep. Zeldin, 12/2)

Boston Globe: Caring For The Caregivers Who Feel The Weight Of The Pandemic War
“I swear by Apollo Physician and Asclepius and Hygieia and Panaceia and all the gods and goddesses,” the Hippocratic Oath begins in unpronounceable syllables, “that I will fulfill … this oath and this covenant.”The oath is brief (doctors don’t have a lot of spare time), and full of honorable trumpets in the background. It is also full of higher purpose. In only a few sentences, the needs of humanity are crystalized. Attention is sworn to their care. Reciting it is thrilling.“For the benefit of the sick according to my ability and judgment, I will keep them from harm and injustice,” one translation of the oath says. Another puts it a little differently: “Whatever house I may visit, I will come for the benefit of the sick, remaining free of all intentional injustice.” Caregivers are owed a covenant, too; someone needs to care for them in a time when they have become (sometimes to their own surprise) exhausted, demoralized, petrified for their families, and fatigued by death due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Elissa Ely, 12/3)

San Francisco Chronicle: Health Care Workers’ Plea: You Can Save More Lives Than We Can
COVID-19 cases and deaths are breaking records around the country, and already traumatized health care workers are bracing for this onslaught with dread. A nurse who worked in New York during the first surge told us, “Nobody lived, that I know of. I don’t feel like I actually helped anybody.” Another clinician said that, in just one night, there could be a “code blue” called every 15 minutes, signifying a patient with cardiac arrest: “Every time there was code, it was basically a patient dying.” (Lingsheng Li and Elizabeth Dzeng, 12/2)