First Edition: Aug. 31, 2020
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Kaiser Health News:
For Kids With Special Needs, Online Schooling Divides Haves And Have-Nots
It’s Tuesday morning, and teacher Tamya Daly has her online class playing an alphabet game. The students are writing quickly and intently, with occasional whoops of excitement, on the little whiteboards she dropped off at their homes the day before along with coloring books, markers, Silly Putty and other learning props — all of which she created or paid for with her own money. Two of the seven children in her combined third and fifth grade class weren’t home when Daly came by with the gift bags. One of the two managed to find her own writing tablet, thanks to an older brother, but the other can’t find a piece of paper in her dad’s house. She sits quietly watching her classmates on Zoom for half an hour while Daly tries futilely to get the father’s attention. Maybe the student is wearing earphones; maybe the father is out of the room. (Almendrala, 8/31)
Kaiser Health News:
Med Students ‘Feel Very Behind’ Because Of COVID-Induced Disruptions In Training
COVID-19 is disrupting just about every student’s 2020 education, but medical students have it particularly hard right now. “It’s a nightmare scenario for the class of 2021,” said Jake Berg, a fourth-year student at the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine in Pikeville. In March, students were abruptly pulled out of hospitals and medical offices, where they normally work with professionals to learn about treating patients. Over the space of less than two weeks, he said, medical students in “pretty much the entire country” transitioned from seeing patients in person to learning online. (Rovner, 8/31)
Reuters:
U.S. Coronavirus Cases Top Six Million As Midwest, Schools Face Outbreaks
U.S. cases of the novel coronavirus surpassed six million on Sunday as many states in the Midwest reported increasing infections, according to a Reuters tally. Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota have recently reported record one-day increases in new cases while Montana and Idaho are seeing record numbers of currently hospitalized COVID-19 patients. (Shumaker, 8/30)
The New York Times:
U.S. Cases Pass 6 Million
Twenty-two days. It took more than three months for the United States to reach one million coronavirus cases after reporting its first confirmed infection, but less than a third of that time to notch the latest million-case leap. On Sunday, the United States hit yet another milestone, with six million reported cases, according to a New York Times database. (8/30)
The Wall Street Journal:
U.S. Records Smallest Daily Increase In Coronavirus Cases In A Week
New coronavirus cases in the U.S. fell to their lowest level in a week, while the nation’s total number of infections approached six million and the virus continued to spread rapidly in other countries, including India. The U.S. reported more than 35,000 new cases for Sunday, the smallest daily increase since Aug. 23, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. death toll topped 183,000. (Hall, 8/31)
NPR:
Coronavirus Cases Top 25 Million Globally As India Emerges As A New Epicenter
The number of cases of the coronavirus has now passed 25 million worldwide. The milestone happened Sunday, fueled by a surge of more than 78,000 cases in India on Saturday. The spread of the virus in India has grown in recent weeks, with daily cases there now outpacing both the United States and Brazil, according to tracking data from Johns Hopkins University. In all, India has now registered more than 3.5 million cases and more than 63,000 deaths. Global deaths now total more than 843,000. (Davis, 8/30)
AP:
India Records World's Biggest Single-Day Jump In Virus Cases
India registered 78,761 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, the biggest single-day spike in the world since the pandemic began, just as the government began easing restrictions to help the battered economy. The surge raised India’s tally to over 3.5 million, and came as the government announced the reopening of the subway in New Delhi, the capital. It also will move ahead with limited sports and religious events next month. (8/30)
The Washington Post:
FDA Chief Spokesperson Removed After Convalescent Plasma Controversy
The Food and Drug Administration’s chief spokeswoman, who has been in the job less than two weeks, was removed from her role as of noon Friday, part of continued fallout from a White House news conference featuring inaccurate claims that convalescent plasma dramatically reduced mortality for patients with covid-19. It remains unclear whether Emily Miller, who was assistant commissioner for media affairs, will remain at the agency in some capacity, said a senior administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly. Miller formerly worked for One America News, a conservative cable news network and for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.). She does not have a health or science background and has been a strong advocate for gun rights. (McGinley and Abutaleb, 8/28)
The New York Times:
Two P.R. Experts at F.D.A. Have Been Ousted After Blood Plasma Fiasco
The decision came just a day after the F.D.A.’s parent agency, the Department of Health and Human Services, terminated the contract of a public relations consultant who had advised the F.D.A. commissioner, Dr. Stephen M. Hahn, to correct his misleading claims that 35 out of 100 Covid-19 patients “would have been saved because of the administration of plasma.” The removals come at a moment when the agency, which will be making critical decisions about whether to approve coronavirus vaccines and treatments, is struggling to salvage its reputation as a neutral scientific arbiter. (Kaplan and Thomas, 8/28)
CNN:
FDA Spokeswoman Emily Miller Fired, Sources Say
US Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn has fired the agency's spokesperson Emily Miller one week after he announced her arrival at FDA, two sources confirmed to CNN, but she will remain at the agency as an "appointee." Miller had only been on the job for a matter of days, but had already created problems among career officials within the agency. She was involved in prepping the commissioner and the press materials for the announcement on the emergency use authorization on convalescent plasma, though it's unclear if that is what ultimately led to her removal. (Collins and Acosta, 8/28)
Politico:
'She Couldn't Even Pronounce Convalescent Plasma': FDA Ousts Spokesperson After 2 Weeks
Hahn officially removed Miller, a fellow Trump appointee, from her post on Friday morning, ending a tenure that was marked by infighting and a damaging controversy this week over the FDA's emergency authorization of convalescent plasma as a Covid-19 treatment. Colleagues said that Miller, with no prior medical or science experience, was a bad fit inside an agency rushing to fight a pandemic. "There was an inability to do anything inside the agency," said one health official. "She couldn't even pronounce convalescent plasma." (Cancryn and Diamond, 8/28)
The Washington Post:
FDA Convalescent Plasma Authorization: How Trump Politicized Another Federal Agency's Response To The Pandemic
President Trump’s accusatory tweet barreled in at 7:49 a.m. a week ago Saturday: The “deep state” at the Food and Drug Administration was trying to sandbag his election prospects by slowing progress on coronavirus treatments and vaccines until after Nov. 3. Shocked and upset, FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn, who was tagged in the tweet, immediately began calling his contacts at the White House to find out why the president was angry. During his conversations, he mentioned the FDA was on the verge of granting emergency authorization to convalescent plasma as a treatment for covid-19. The agency planned to issue a news release. (McGinley, Abutaleb, Dawsey and Johnson, 8/30)
CNBC:
FDA Willing To Fast Track Coronavirus Vaccine Before Phase Three Trials End
The chief of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is prepared to bypass the full federal approval process in order to make a Covid-19 vaccine available as soon as possible, according to an interview in The Financial Times. Insisting that the move would not be due to pressure from the Trump administration to fast track a vaccine, FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn told the publication that an emergency authorization could be appropriate before phase three clinical trials are completed if the benefits outweigh the risks. (O'Brien, 8/30)
The Hill:
Gottlieb Questions FDA Chief's Coronavirus Vaccine Fast-Track Comments: Full Approval A '2021 Event'
Former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb is questioning FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn’s comments about fast-tracking a coronavirus vaccine, stating that a full approval of a vaccine for the general population likely won’t happen until 2021. Hahn said in an interview published by The Financial Times on Sunday that he is willing to fast-track a coronavirus vaccine before clinical trials are complete if it is determined to be “appropriate.” (Klar, 8/30)
The New York Times:
U.S. Will Revive Global Virus-Hunting Effort Ended Last Year
Joseph R. Biden Jr. has promised that, if elected, he will restore a worldwide virus-hunting program that was allowed to expire last year by the Trump administration. The program, called Predict, searched for dangerous new animal viruses in bat caves, camel pens, wet markets and wildlife-smuggling routes around the globe. The expiration of Predict just weeks before the advent of the pandemic prompted wide criticism among scientists, who noted that the coronavirus is exactly the sort of catastrophic animal virus the program was designed to head off. (McNeil Jr. and Kaplan, 8/30)
The Washington Post:
Biden To Resume In-Person Campaigning As Race With Trump Kicks Into Gear
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden will resume in-person campaigning across the country in coming days amid the still-raging coronavirus pandemic, an answer to allies imploring him to meet voters where they are and a sign that his race with President Trump is tightening as the general election contest begins in earnest. (Rucker and Linskey, 8/29)
AP:
Coronavirus Worries Force Election Officials To Get Creative
The coronavirus has upended everyday life in ways big and small. What happens when those disruptions overlap with voting? Thousands of state and local election officials across the U.S are sharing ideas and making accommodations to try to ensure that voters and polling places are safe amid an unprecedented pandemic. Some are finding ways to expand access to voter registration and ballot request forms. Others are testing new products, installing special equipment or scouting outdoor voting locations. (Carr Smith, 8/30)
AP:
Health Experts Decry Trump's Shunning Of Virus Rules
Public health experts expressed concern Friday about President Donald Trump’s largely mask-free, socially un-distanced Republican convention event on the White House lawn, saying some of his 1,500 guests may have inadvertently brought and spread the coronavirus to others. “There almost certainly were individuals there who were infected with COVID-19 but don’t know it,” said Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and public health professor at George Washington University. (Superville and Riechmann, 8/30)
AP:
Health Agencies' Credibility At Risk After Week Of Blunders
The credibility of two of the nation’s leading public health agencies was under fire this week after controversial decisions that outside experts said smacked of political pressure from President Donald Trump as he attempts to move past the devastating toll of the coronavirus ahead of the November election. The head of the Food and Drug Administration grossly misstated, then corrected, claims about the lifesaving power of a plasma therapy for COVID-19 authorized by his agency. Then the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quietly updated its guidelines to suggest fewer Americans need to get tested for coronavirus, sparking outrage from scientists. (Perrone and Alonso-Zaldivar, 8/29)
The Hill:
Birx Says She's Hopeful About Coronavirus Vaccine But Urges People To 'Do The Right Thing Today'
White House coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx said Sunday that she is optimistic about the prospect of a vaccine for COVID-19 being developed by the end of 2020, but cautioned Americans should "do the right thing" until it was released. CNN reports that Birx made the remarks Sunday at an event in Minneapolis, where she explained that it was important for Americans to "do the right thing today, [so that] we go into the fall with much fewer cases.” (Bowden, 8/30)
The New York Times:
Trump Program To Cover Uninsured Covid-19 Patients Falls Short Of Promise
Marilyn Cortez, a retired cafeteria worker in Houston with no health insurance, spent much of July in the hospital with Covid-19. When she finally returned home, she received a $36,000 bill that compounded the stress of her illness. Then someone from the hospital, Houston Methodist, called and told her not to worry — President Trump had paid it.But then another bill arrived, for twice as much. (Goodnough, 8/29)
The Hill:
Meadows Blames Pelosi 'Fantasy Objection' For Impasse On Coronavirus Relief Talks
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows blamed stalled negotiations over the future of a second coronavirus relief package on a "fantasy objection" from Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who he said would not explain what her version of a stimulus package would fund. In an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, Meadows attacked the House leader over her unwillingness to come down from a demand that Republicans support a $2.2 trillion bill for the second round of economic stimulus in response to the coronavirus pandemic. (Bowden, 8/30)
Politico:
Meadows Blames Pelosi For Impasse On Coronavirus Relief
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on Sunday blamed the impasse on a new coronavirus relief bill on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, saying the Trump administration‘s offer of $1.3 trillion deserves the Democrats’ serious attention.“Listen, we’re not going to negotiate here because the speaker’s been very clear,” Meadows told Chuck Todd on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” characterizing Pelosi as inflexible. ‘When she said $2.2 trillion, she said, ‘Don't do anything at all.'" (Semones, 8/30)
AP:
Key Air Monitors Offline After Laura Hits Louisiana Gas Hub
Hazardous emissions from a chlorine plant fire, abruptly shuttered oil and gas refineries and still-to-be assessed plant damage are seeping into the air after Hurricane Laura, regulators say, but some key state and federal monitors to alert the public of air dangers remain offline in Louisiana. While the chlorine fire was being monitored as a potential health threat, Louisiana environmental spokesman Greg Langley says he knows of no other major industrial health risks from the storm in the state. He said restoring power and water was a bigger priority. (Knickmeyer, 8/30)
NPR:
Hurricane Laura Releases Toxic Air Pollution, Raising Health Concerns
Hurricane Laura tore through a region that is home to dozens of major oil refineries, petrochemical plants and plastics facilities. Now, residents could be breathing dangerously polluted air from those sites, public health experts and local advocates say. The pollution began before the storm even made landfall. In the two days before the storm arrived, facilities in Texas released more than 4 million pounds of extra air pollution, according to reports the companies made to state environmental regulators that were analyzed by the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund for NPR. (Hersher, 8/28)
AP:
‘Protect Our Babies:’ Hospital Cares For Babies In Hurricane
As the wind howled and the rain slammed down, a team of nurses, respiratory therapists and a doctor worked through the night to care for 19 tiny babies as Hurricane Laura slammed southwestern Louisiana. The babies, some on ventilators or eating through a feeding tube, seemed to weather the storm just fine, said Dr. Juan Bossano, the medical director of the neonatal intensive care unit at Lake Charles Memorial Hospital for Women. (Santana, 8/29)
AP:
Analysis: An Unwelcome Twist On An Unwanted Ritual
Some familiar rituals are not comforting. Tabulations of deaths. Searches for the missing. Picking up the pieces of homes, businesses and lives. Hurricane Laura arrived two days before Saturday’s 15th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. And it hit roughly a month short of the same anniversary of Hurricane Rita — kind of an unscheduled, unwanted re-enactment of a southwest Louisiana disaster with much of the original, not particularly enthusiastic, cast. (McGill, 8/30)
The Hill:
Researchers Find First US Case Of COVID-19 Reinfection
Researchers have documented what appears to be the first U.S. instance of someone getting reinfected with COVID-19. In a preprint of a paper submitted to the journal The Lancet, researchers said a 25-year-old man in Nevada was reinfected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus in late May, after recovering from a relatively mild case the month before. Infectious disease experts said reinfections are normal and should be expected, and caution against drawing broad conclusions. (Weixel, 8/28)
Barrons:
FDA Expands Emergency Use Of Gilead’s Remdesivir In All Covid-19 Hospitalizations
The Food and Drug Administration late Friday expanded its emergency use authorization for Gilead Sciences ’ Covid-19 therapeutic remdesivir, saying the drug can now be used in any patient hospitalized for Covid-19. The agency previously had authorized the unapproved treatment for only the sickest Covid-19 patients. The FDA said it now believes that the drug “may be effective” in all hospitalized Covid-19 patients, and that the potential benefits outweigh the known and potential risks. (Nathan-Kazis, 8/29)
The Hill:
FDA Expands Use Of Remdesivir As COVID-19 Treatment
The FDA said in a press release that it would expand the emergency use authorization of the drug to allow it to be used for “treatment of all hospitalized adult and pediatric patients with suspected or laboratory-confirmed COVID-19, irrespective of their severity of disease.” (Axelrod, 8/28)
Stat:
Plan To Expand Global Access To Covid-19 Vaccines Nears Critical Juncture
The coming few weeks represent a crucial moment for an ambitious plan to try to secure Covid-19 vaccines for roughly 170 countries around the world without the deep pockets to compete for what will be scarce initial supplies. Under the plan, countries that want to pool resources to buy vaccines must notify the World Health Organization and other organizers — Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, as well as the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations — of their intentions by Monday. That means it’s fish-or-cut-bait time for the so-called COVAX facility. (Branswell, 8/28)
NPR:
A Coronavirus Nasal Spray Vaccine Can Be Strong But Is Hard To Make
The primary goal of a COVID-19 vaccine is to keep people from getting very sick and dying. But there's another goal — to prevent the spread of the disease — and it's not clear most vaccine candidates currently under development can do that. Some scientists think they can solve that problem by delivering a vaccine as a nasal spray. (Palca, 8/28)
NPR:
Asymptomatic COVID-19 Infections And 'Disease Tolerance'
One of the reasons Covid-19 has spread so swiftly around the globe is that for the first days after infection, people feel healthy. Instead of staying home in bed, they may be out and about, unknowingly passing the virus along. But in addition to these pre-symptomatic patients, the relentless silent spread of this pandemic is also facilitated by a more mysterious group of people: the so-called asymptomatics. According to various estimates, between 20 and 45 percent of the people who get COVID-19 — and possibly more, according to a recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — sail through a coronavirus infection without realizing they ever had it. No fever or chills. No loss of smell or taste. No breathing difficulties. They don't feel a thing. (Laber-Warren, 8/29)
Politico:
Pandemic Creates Lifesaving Ripple Effects Amid Devastating Loss
It’s hard to find a silver lining amid a coronavirus pandemic that has brought unprecedented death and economic devastation across the globe. But some researchers say they are seeing one positive development come out of the health crisis, thanks to policy experiments that would have been impossible in normal times. New policies aimed at combating health threats ranging from excessive alcohol consumption to urban air pollution have potentially long-term implications, researchers say, long after the world has gotten the pandemic under control. (Paun, 8/28)
AP:
Fad Or Future? Telehealth Expansion Eyed Beyond Pandemic
Telehealth is a bit of American ingenuity that seems to have paid off in the coronavirus pandemic. Medicare temporarily waived restrictions predating the smartphone era and now there’s a push to make telemedicine widely available in the future. Consultations via tablets, laptops and phones linked patients and doctors when society shut down in early spring. Telehealth visits dropped with the reopening, but they’re still far more common than before. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 8/30)
NPR:
Is The Pandemic Fast-Tracking The Disappearance Of The Physical Exam?
Despite a foothold in medicine that predates Hippocrates himself, the traditional physical exam might be on the verge of extinction. The coronavirus crisis has driven more routine medical appointments online, accelerating a trend toward telemedicine that has already been underway. This worries Dr. Paul Hyman, author of a recently published essay in JAMA Internal Medicine, who reflects on what's lost when physicians see their patients almost exclusively through a screen. (Kendrick, 8/31)
The New York Times:
Dermatology Has A Problem With Skin Color
In the spring, teenagers started showing up at doctors’ offices in droves with angry red and purple blisters on their fingers and toes. The latest unexpected feature of the coronavirus infection fascinated the public, and suddenly photographs of so-called Covid toes were everywhere on social media. But almost all of the images depicted glossy pink lesions on white skin. Though people of color have been affected disproportionately by the pandemic, pictures of Covid toes on dark skin were curiously hard to find. (Caryn Rabin, 8/30)
Stat:
Moderna Failed To Disclose Federal Funding For Patent Applications, Advocates Say
An advocacy group has asked the Department of Defense to investigate what it called “an apparent failure” by Moderna (MRNA) to disclose millions of dollars in awards received from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in patent applications the company filed for vaccines. In a letter to the agency, Knowledge Ecology International explained that a review of dozens of patent applications found the company received approximately $20 million from the federal government in grants several years ago and the funds “likely” led to the creation of its vaccine technology. (Silverman, 8/28)
Stat:
Most Americans See Politics Driving Covid-19 Vaccine Approval Process
Seventy-eight percent of Americans worry the Covid-19 vaccine approval process is being driven more by politics than science, according to a new survey from STAT and the Harris Poll, a reflection of concern that the Trump administration may give the green light to a vaccine prematurely. The response was largely bipartisan, with 72% of Republicans and 82% of Democrats expressing such worries, according to the poll, which was conducted last week and surveyed 2,067 American adults. (Silverman, 8/31)
The Wall Street Journal:
Nestlé Moves Further Into Health, Buying Peanut-Allergy Treatment Maker
Nestlé SA said it agreed to buy Aimmune Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical company that earlier this year won approval for the first treatment for peanut allergies, in a deal valuing the company at $2.6 billion, including debt. Nestlé previously had a large stake in Brisbane, Calif.-based Aimmune. The agreement to buy the rest of the company bulks up the Switzerland-based packaged-food giant’s decades-old health-science unit. It also adds a potential blockbuster prescription medication to its portfolio, amid a three-year shake-up at the maker of Nespresso coffee and Purina pet food engineered by Chief Executive Mark Schneider, a former health-care executive. (Bugault, 8/31)
The Wall Street Journal:
From ‘Freezer Farms’ To Jets, Logistics Operators Prepare For A Covid-19 Vaccine
Logistics providers are building giant cold-storage facilities, or “freezer farms,” and lining up equipment and transportation capacity as they gear up for the rapid delivery of millions of doses of potential coronavirus vaccines around the world. “The challenge for us will be to be on our ready at any moment to ship from one place to another,” said Wes Wheeler, president of the health-care division at United Parcel Service Inc., which is setting up the freezer farms, each consisting of hundreds of portable freezer units. (Chen, 8/28)
Reuters:
New Zealand's Abano Healthcare Enters $80 Million Buyout Deal With Consortium
Abano Healthcare Group Ltd said on Monday it entered a revised buyout deal with a consortium, after the initial offer was dropped due to deterioration in the medical services provider’s business because of the coronavirus pandemic. (8/30)
AP:
No Action From Pritzker's COVID-19 Price-Gouging Pursuit
The coronavirus pandemic had steamrolled Illinois, and amid the helter-skelter of counting hospital beds, keeping pace with ever-changing federal health guidance and maneuvering a market-turned-minefield of protective-gear prices, Gov. J.B. Pritzker made a pledge.“Price-gouging will not be tolerated,” the Democrat declared in March, later promising that instances of unfair pricing would be brought to the attention of Attorney General Kwame Raoul. (O'Connor, 8/30)
Stat:
Elon Musk's Neuralink Unveils Prototype Of Brain Implants
Elon Musk on Friday unveiled a coin-sized prototype of a brain implant developed by his startup Neuralink to enable people who are paralyzed to operate smartphones and robotic limbs with their thoughts — and said the company had worked to “dramatically simplify” the device since presenting an earlier version last summer. In an event live-streamed on YouTube to more than 150,000 viewers at one point, the company staged a demonstration in which it trotted out a pig named Gertrude that was said to have had the company’s device implanted in its head two months ago; the live stream showed what Musk claimed to be Gertrude’s real-time brain activity as it sniffed around a pen. (Robbins and Brodwin, 8/28)
AP:
Elon Musk Wants YOU To Build A Brain-Computer Interface
In a video demonstration Friday explicitly aimed at recruiting new employees, Musk showed off a prototype of the device. About the size of a large coin, it’s designed to be implanted in a person’s skull. Ultra-thin wires hanging form the device would go directly into the brain. An earlier version of the device would have been placed behind an ear like a hearing aid. (Ortutay, 8/29)
NPR:
As Schools Reopen, A New Tool Tracks Coronavirus Cases As They Emerge
Looking for a snapshot of coronavirus outbreaks in U.S. schools? The National Education Association has just launched a tracker of cases in public K-12 schools. The tracker is broken down by state and shows schools and counties with known cases and suspected cases and deaths, as well as whether those infected were students or staff. It also includes links to the local news reports so users know where the virus data comes from. (Popperl, Hamby and Inskeep, 8/28)
AP:
Utah State University To Test 300 Students
Utah State University plans to test nearly 300 students for COVID-19 after wastewater samples from four dormitories showed elevated levels of the coronavirus, school officials said Sunday. The 287 students who will be tested Sunday and Monday live in the Rich, Jones, Morgan and Davis dorms on the campus in Logan. (8/30)
Politico:
Colleges Crack Down On Student Behavior As Virus Threatens More Closures
The biggest threat to universities' carefully drawn reopening plans? Their students. School leaders are dishing out suspensions, kicking students out of dorms and sanctioning Greek organizations over large gatherings during a budding semester that already has seen colleges close amid thousands of confirmed Covid-19 cases and dozens of deaths. In some cases students face the ultimate penalty of expulsion for disobeying mask rules while their schools set up tip lines and scour social media for any hint of parties or social distancing violations, both on and off campus. (Niedzwiadek and Atterbury, 8/30)
AP:
COVID-19 Hits Fraternities, Sororities Hard In Kansas
The coronavirus is hitting fraternities and sororities in Kansas particularly hard, with 10% testing positive at the University of Kansas and outbreaks linked to four sororities at Kansas State University. The University of Kansas said Friday in a news release that it has conducted 21,719 tests and 474 have been positive, for a positive rate of 2.18%. But among sororities and fraternities, there have been 270 positives among 2,698 members tested. (8/29)
The Hill:
Battle Over COVID-19 School Openings Goes To The Courts
Teachers unions are waging court fights across the country aimed at unwinding what they say are unsafe and politically motivated timetables for reopening schools that risk exposing personnel to the coronavirus pandemic. State officials eager to ramp up brick-and-mortar operations are facing lawsuits from Florida to Texas to Iowa over reopening plans as well as access to the COVID-19 infection data needed to monitor the rate of spread within school communities. (Kruzel, 8/30)
The New York Times:
What To Know About Colon Cancer
In the wake of Chadwick Boseman’s death from colon cancer at age 43, many people have questions about the disease, especially about the risk of colon cancer in younger people. Here’s what is known and what experts recommend. (Belluck, 8/29)
The New York Times:
How To Choose The Right Pediatrician
The final months of pregnancy are marked by a flurry of preparation: setting up a nursery, packing a hospital bag and deciding on baby names. It’s also the perfect time to choose your child’s pediatrician. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents take their baby in for at least seven well-child visits during their first year of life, but ear infections, fevers, rashes and other unexpected baby maladies could make visits to the doctor more frequent. After that first year, pediatricians guide parents on topics ranging from potty training to tantrums to school performance and more. All of this face-time makes choosing the right doctor among the most important decisions new parents make, especially during a global pandemic when parents often turn to primary care providers with their questions. But with almost 60,000 practicing general pediatricians in the United States alone, finding the best doctor for your family can be a stressful process. (Cheng and Wilkinson, 8/28)
Stat:
How OneFifteen, Verily's Addiction Medicine Campus, Is Taking Shape
Verily drew widespread praise last year when it announced an “ambitious endeavor” to combat the opioid epidemic: an addiction medicine campus in Ohio called OneFifteen, its name a nod to the 115 people who died each day in 2017 of opioid overdoses. But in the year and a half since OneFifteen’s high-profile launch, Verily has remained relatively quiet about its progress — and its role in the effort, which is a collaboration between the Alphabet life science spinout and two local health systems. (Brodwin, 8/31)
USA Today:
Conditions At Lapeer Nursing Home Led To COVID-19 Deaths, Illnesses
Dennis Williams is haunted by the memory of his mother, Wanda Parker, through the window at a Michigan nursing home. He said she was begging for help. It was the last time he saw his 68-year-old mother alive. She died of COVID-19 on April 7, two days after she was transported to a hospital from the Villages of Lapeer Nursing & Rehabilitation. Williams said he remembers seeing employees of the facility not wearing masks, gloves or other personal protective equipment (PPE) during his through-the-window visits with his mother before she died. And he's aware of the significantly lower COVID-19 statistics reported at the other nursing homes in the area. (Hall, 8/30)
USA Today:
'Small Events Add Up To A Lot': Limited Gatherings Quietly Emerge As Source Of Coronavirus Infections
Images of packed beaches, lakes and bars have made the rounds on traditional and social media for much of the summer, drawing scorn from those concerned about the coronavirus spreading among those crowds. Less prominent but also troubling are the growing instances of case clusters arising from smaller gatherings. (Ortiz, 8/30)
Stat:
With Science And Scripture, A Pastor Fights Covid-19 Vaccine Skepticism
Terris King is finally back at Liberty Grace Church of God, surrounded by its familiar wood-paneled walls and red pulpit. This time, he’s speaking straight into a camera, facing rows of empty pews. As a pastor in a church in the area of Baltimore hit hardest by Covid-19, King knows his decision to keep services remote is the right one, even if it’s unpopular. Since the beginning of the pandemic, King, 60, has been fighting an uphill battle, weaving together science and scripture in the hopes his approximately 300 congregants will adhere to public health guidelines: mask-wearing, hand-washing, and social distancing. (Sokolow, 8/31)
AP:
Texas Deaths From Illness Caused By Coronavirus Pass 12,500
Texas health officials on Saturday reported the number of deaths due to COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, has surpassed 12,500 and the number of reported cases increased is now above 610,000. There are 610,354 coronavirus cases and 12,510 deaths, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. The true number of cases in Texas is likely higher because many people haven’t been tested and studies suggest people can be infected and not feel sick. (8/30)
Politico:
Paradise Lost: How Hawaii Went From Covid-19 Star To Cautionary Tale
Hawaii’s control of the coronavirus has swiftly unraveled this summer, transforming what was the nation’s best-performing state into one of the worst. Just two months ago, the island state had the fewest cases per capita in the country at less than two dozen per day. Democratic Gov. David Ige was praised for acting early to close Hawaii’s borders and impose strict quarantines, a painful economic sacrifice for a state heavily dependent on tourism. (Miranda Ollstein and Goldberg, 8/30)
The Hill:
California Launches Plan To Reopen In Slower Phases After Surge In Coronavirus Cases
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) launched a new plan to more slowly reopen his state’s economy after an alarming spike in coronavirus cases across the Golden State over the summer. Under the new framework announced Friday, Newsom will allow each county to oversee their reopening based on a four-tier system based on the seriousness of the spread of COVID-19 in the areas. The tiers are based on the number of cases per 100,000 residents and percentage of coronavirus tests that come back positive. (Axelrod, 8/29)
Politico:
States Confront New Covid-19 Challenge: Getting Flu Shots To Apathetic Americans
State health officials are desperately ramping up flu vaccination efforts, hoping to prevent health care systems already taxed by Covid-19 from being overrun by the rapidly approaching influenza season. Massachusetts is requiring every kid to get a flu shot to attend school or childcare. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer got vaccinated on live television, stressing that immunization could help save precious hospital resources. Local and state health departments are buying record amounts of vaccine, hiring new staff to provide shots at senior residences and homeless shelters, and they are planning to offer immunizations at Covid-19 testing sites. (Ehley and Goldberg, 8/30)