Nebraska Governor Overruled Public Health Officials’ Warning To Close ‘Hot Spot’ Meatpacking Plant
May 8, 2020
Morning Briefing
Documents obtained by ProPublica show that in March public health officials in Grand Island, Nebraska, wanted a JBS meatpacking plant closed after several workers tested positive for the novel coronavirus. But Gov. Pete Ricketts (R) said no. Since then, cases have skyrocketed and Nebraska has become one of the fastest-growing hot spots for COVID-19 in the nation. News from other meatpacking facilities is reported, as well.
Coronavirus In U.S.: Cases Climb But All Still Linked To Travel Abroad; White House Seeks Emergency Funding; Cities Balk At Hosting Patients
February 24, 2020
Morning Briefing
So far there has been no community spread of the disease in the United States, which means no cases in which the source of the infection is not known. But looking ahead, community spread within the country is very possible and maybe even likely, said Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. Other stories on the outbreak and the United States focus on self-quarantines, scientists’ work understanding the virus, drug shortages, the politics of an epidemic, and more.
Connecticut’s Test To Relocate Sick Nursing Home Patients Puts Rural Town, Health Care Workers On Edge
April 27, 2020
Morning Briefing
More than 50 older patients recovering from the coronavirus are being moved out of hospitals located near New York City into Sharon Health Care Center, which is located in a rural area and has a low number of cases compared to other areas in the state. Other nursing home news is from Rhode Island, New York, Utah, Washington, Massachusetts, California and Michigan, as well.
Testing In U.S. Still Scattershot Even As Study Of Germany’s Cases Finds Early Detection Can Sharply Cuts Death Rates
March 10, 2020
Morning Briefing
Confusion persists over which patients can get tested for coronavirus as U.S. struggles to keep up with the demand. Meanwhile, Germany has only had two deaths despite confirming more than 1,000 cases. Rapid testing at the onset of the outbreak might be the reason behind that success.
For President Whose Re-Election Chances Are Tied To Economy, Outbreak Presents Trump Existential Political Threat
February 25, 2020
Morning Briefing
Global stocks plunged on Monday as investors finally began to adopt a more pessimistic view of the coronavirus outbreak’s impact on the world’s economy. For President Donald Trump, who has banked on strong growth to propel him into another four years in office, that could spell trouble ahead.
Chicago Hospital Built After 9/11 To Handle Mass Casualties Faces First Big Test
April 10, 2020
Morning Briefing
The Washington Post takes a look inside Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, which was designed to handle just such an event as the coronavirus outbreak. For example, instead of patients being held in a crowded waiting room, the ambulance bay has been transformed into a triage area that keeps potential patients separated. Other hospitals news focuses on the financial burden as well as the preparedness of the facilities.
China Extends ‘Wartime’ Campaign To Round Up Infected People Beyond Epicenter As COVID-19 Death Toll Rises
February 14, 2020
Morning Briefing
Meanwhile, Chinese officials report that at least 1,716 health care workers tested positive for the coronavirus so far, and that six of them have died. Political unrest continues to ripple through the top echelons of the Communist Party as frustration mounts against the government.
FDA Grants Emergency Clearance To Quick Virus Test, But Health Experts And Lawmakers Still Lament Government’s Testing Fumbles
March 12, 2020
Morning Briefing
Scientists across the country are working around the clock to develop quicker tests for the coronavirus. But many worry that the lack of testing in the early days of the outbreak will come back to haunt the country. Meanwhile, travelers returning from international hot spots say they’re still not getting screened when they re-enter the country.
How A Crisis Simulation Run Before Trump’s Inauguration By Obama’s Team Eerily Mirrors Current Outbreak
March 17, 2020
Morning Briefing
As part of the transition of power, aides from the Obama administration prepped President Donald Trump’s advisers on different crises they could face in the upcoming years. One of those was a flu pandemic. Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s current response to the coronavirus outbreak shows all the cracks that have been glimpsed over the past few years.
New Region-Specific Guidelines To Ease Social Distancing Expected From Trump Today
April 16, 2020
Morning Briefing
President Donald Trump plans on Thursday to announce new guidelines that would allow regions that haven’t been hit as hard to relax some social distancing policies. Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus task force coordinator, said that while data across the country shows the nation “improving,” Americans must recommit to social distancing to keep up the positive momentum.
Immigration Rights Groups Call On ICE To Release Detainees At High-Risk Of Infection
March 11, 2020
Morning Briefing
The groups are focusing on high-risk detainees at a facility in Tacoma, Washington which is close to epicenter of the U.S. outbreak. ICE says it has not had any confirmed cases of COVID-19 at the jail. Meanwhile, immigration courts have been ordered to take down coronavirus information from courtrooms and waiting areas.
There’s A Stockpile Of Nearly 1.5M Masks In A Government Warehouse, But They’re Expired
March 27, 2020
Morning Briefing
Government officials decided to offer the respirators to TSA, an agency whose workers have been hit hard by the outbreak. There are no plans to send them to hospitals who have been desperately asking for protective gear for their health care providers. Meanwhile, health care workers are resorting to making hand-sewn masks that do little to protect them from the coronavirus.
Surveillance Tools Have Untold Potential To Help Locate Infectious Vectors, But They Could Erode Privacy Protections
March 18, 2020
Morning Briefing
In the midst of a crisis, when tensions are running high, tech and government officials are struggling to find a balance between deploying technology and keeping patients’ data safe. Meanwhile, will the internet be able to bear the extra strain of so many people working from home? And Facebook’s algorithm is flagging coronavirus posts even when they’re not spam.
Series Of Glitches And Missed Opportunities Led To Disastrous Test Kit Shortage, Experts Say
March 9, 2020
Morning Briefing
The problems started in early February, at a CDC laboratory in Atlanta, and didn’t improve from there. The Trump administration is fielding increasingly strident criticism about the missteps that experts say exacerbated the outbreak in the U.S. Meanwhile, Stanford University creates a coronavirus test in which results only take 24 hours to process.
Insurers Turn To Congress With Hands Out Even As They Reassure Investors Outbreak Might Be A Boon
April 29, 2020
Morning Briefing
The extra costs of covering coronavirus care is being offset by missed elective procedures, insurers are reporting. But America’s Health Insurance Plans, the powerful health insurance lobby, is telling a different story in Washington. Meanwhile, worried that the surge in unemployment will bolster support for “Medicare for All” plans, big businesses get behind a bailout for employer-sponsored coverage. And aggressive debt collection continues during the crisis, ProPublica reports.
‘Wrong, Inappropriate’: Experts Warn That Politicians Using Wuhan Virus As Label For Illness Is Dangerously Irresponsible
March 13, 2020
Morning Briefing
“Ultimately, diseases are about biology, not geography,” said Jeremy Konyndyk, who help lead the U.S. response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Africa. Descriptions of coronavirus that are winning praise in some GOP circles are racist, potentially undermine efforts to prevent spread of the disease and and threaten to harm relationships with China, health advocates say.
Everyone’s Clamoring For Rapid Tests, But Indian Health Service, Rural Communities Get Bumped To Front Of Line
April 3, 2020
Morning Briefing
Right now, places that are served by IHS and other rural communities don’t have the labs set up to test with the traditional, slower nasal swabs. So they are the priority for access to the quick coronavirus tests. Meanwhile, mandates for states to report data doesn’t paint the full picture of the virus outbreak yet, rather it just reveals the holes where no data is available.
The Questions Without Answers: How Long Will This Last?; What’s The Actual Death Rate?; Will Summer Weather Help Curb Spread?
March 16, 2020
Morning Briefing
Because we’ve never dealt with this particular coronavirus before, even public health experts are stumped on some of the big questions that the world is asking. In other news: the death rate may be lower than previously estimated; a generational divide is splintering the response to the virus; and a look at past pandemics may offer ideas on how to fight this one.
Health Officials Try To Tamp Down Excitement Over Potential Treatments As Both Doctors And Public Hoard Malaria Drugs
March 25, 2020
Morning Briefing
President Donald Trump sparked a surge of interest in an old malaria treatment that might be showing promising results in treating COVID-19, causing a rush on the drug. But scientists and experts warn that any drug needs to be tested to prove its safety, and that process could take months. Meanwhile, Roche hopes its arthritis medication will show results in patients with coronavirus.
