 Welcome to Thursday's Overnight Health Care. President Trump revealed his new guidelines for the country to "open up" parts of the economy. And he'll leave the final decisions to governors, which could be a politically smart move, but one that will invariably deepen the divide between red states and blue states. We'll start there... Trump guidelines on reopening economy to let governors make final decision President Trump on Thursday unveiled guidance for a phased reopening of parts of the U.S. economy that leaves the final decisions up to governors, according to a copy of the guidelines obtained by The Hill. The 18-page document, which was distributed to governors during a conference call Thursday afternoon, recommends that states see a downward trajectory in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases as well as flu-like symptoms before they move to lift stay-at-home orders and other restrictions meant to curb the spread of the virus. It also recommends that states and regions see a decline in documented cases over a period of 14 days, ensure that hospitals can treat all patients without crisis care, and have a robust testing program in place including antibody tests for at-risk health care workers before moving to the phased reopening. The goal of the guidelines, according to the White House documents, is to mitigate the risk of a resurgence in cases and protect vulnerable populations, including the elderly and those with underlying health conditions. It also explicitly states that the steps are implementable at the statewide or county-level at the "discretion" of individual governors. Read more here. Related: READ: Trump's guidelines for 'Opening Up America Again' White House guidelines for reopening garner mixed reviews Pelosi warns of deadly risks if country reopens too soon Two-thirds of Americans worry states will lift restrictions on public activity too quickly: poll Trump taps members of Congress to advise on reopening President Trump has asked a bipartisan group of lawmakers to join a panel tasked with determining how to reopen the U.S. economy, which has been hard hit by the rapid spread of the coronavirus. The administration's invitations went to Republicans and Democrats in both chambers, multiple sources confirmed to The Hill. The White House issued an announcement later Thursday afternoon naming 32 House members and 65 senators to the panel and calling it the “Opening Up America Again Congressional Group.” Read more here on who is on the panel. Related: Romney is only GOP senator not on new White House coronavirus task force Small business loan program out of money amid impasse over new funds It's a showdown in Congress. The initial $349 billion pool for emergency loans for small businesses derailed by the coronavirus pandemic has run dry as Republicans and Democrats squabble over how to replenish the relief program. The dispute: Senate Majority Leader McConnell (R-Ky.) tried to pass $250 billion in more funding last week, but he was blocked by Democrats who want to add an additional $100 billion for hospitals, $150 billion for state and local governments and a boost to food assistance. McConnell, in turn, blocked the larger Democratic package. "Republicans tried to pass more money for Americans' paychecks last week. Democrats blocked it. ... Democrats did nothing and now the program has shut down," McConnell tweeted on Thursday. Read more here. What's next? We'll have to wait another week. The Senate adjourned on Thursday but scheduled more pro forma sessions for next week. More on that here. Trump open to other items though? That was his tune on a phone call with senators on Thursday. Trump told senators that he's open to attaching money for hospitals and state and local governments to an additional $250 billion for a popular Small Business Administration lending program. Trump told Republican and Democratic senators Thursday that he would be open to attaching additional items requested by Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (N.Y.) and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to new money for the SBA's Paycheck Protection Program, according to Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), who participated in the call. Republican leaders have insisted until now the $250 billion for the small-business lending program be approved by itself. Read more here. More from Congress Graham: 'You really can't go back to work until we have more tests' Republicans go on attack as loans for small businesses start to run out Pelosi backs remote voting for House In the states... New York extends coronavirus shutdown to May 15 New York won't be opening back up anytime soon, as it remains the hardest-hit state. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced Thursday that he is extending the state's stay-at-home order for nonessential workers until May 15. The extension of "New York Pause" policies comes as Cuomo said those policies are working, helping to limit the spread of the virus, but that more time is needed to prevent a resurgence. "New York Pause has worked," Cuomo said at a news briefing. "We're not there yet." "We have to continue doing what we're doing," he said. Context: Cuomo's order illustrates that the final decision is really up to governors, and that the hardest-hit states still have a ways to go. Read more here. New Jersey to investigate nursing homes with high coronavirus deaths New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) has directed his attorney general to investigate nursing homes in the state that are experiencing high numbers of coronavirus deaths. Murphy's announcement on Thursday came after officials found 17 bodies in a nursing home morgue that was built for no more than four people. "I am outraged that the bodies of the dead were allowed to pile up in a makeshift morgue at the facility," Murphy tweeted. Police received an anonymous tip Monday about bodies being stored in a storage shed at Andover Subacute and Rehabilitation Center, the largest long-term care facility in the state. Judith Persichilli, the commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Health, provided more details about the incident on Tuesday. The department said it was notified on Saturday that the facility was in need of body bags for the deceased residents, and there were 28 bodies being stored. Read more here. More from cities and states Coronavirus watch: South Dakota sees daily surge in case numbers during April California to provide food industry employees with two weeks paid leave Ohio governor announces state economy to begin process of opening May 1 De Blasio to cut $2B in NYC municipal services due to economic fallout of pandemic Maryland governor says now is 'the worst possible time' to lift coronavirus restrictions Midwest governors announce partnership to coordinate reopening economies Wisconsin extends stay-at-home order through May 26, closes schools for rest of academic year Las Vegas mayor calls closure of nonessential businesses 'total insanity' California governor says ventilators promised by Elon Musk never made it to hospitals De Blasio says New York City's public pools will be closed all summer Scientists learning about coronavirus at unprecedented speed Just months after Chinese officials identified a small cluster of unexplained pneumonia cases in the city of Wuhan, scientists around the globe have broken down the coronavirus at unprecedented speed in an effort to save lives and stop its spread. The first global pandemic of the social media age and the first major outbreak of the internet era has created an explosion of learning. At the same time, studies published on a seemingly daily basis are raising just as many new questions as they're answering about the deadly virus. "This whole thing is happening fast. Back in HIV, it took a lot longer to get stuff in peer-reviewed literature," said David Bangsberg, founding dean of the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health in Portland, Ore. "With the growth of the internet and social media, journals have changed their processes. Information is flowing fast." Read more here. Antibiotic faces shortages after Trump promotes it as coronavirus treatment A commonly prescribed antibiotic used to treat sexually transmitted infections and other conditions is facing a shortage after President Trump promoted it as a potential coronavirus treatment. Demand for azithromycin tablets — better known by its brand name Z-Pack — is soaring as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise in the U.S. Nine drug manufacturers are reporting shortages of azithromycin to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), with several citing increased demand. Demand is highest in New York, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S., with more than 222,000 confirmed cases, said Paula Gurz, senior director of pharmacy for Premier, a health care services company. “This is likely a result of COVID-19, with this product being talked about in combination with Hydroxychloriquine as a treatment,” Gurz said. Read more here. What we're reading Early peek at data on Gilead coronavirus drug suggests patients are responding to treatment (Stat News) U.K. Paid $20 Million for New Coronavirus Tests. They Didn't Work. (New York Times) UnitedHealth Group Weighing Return To Obamacare Markets (Forbes) Did You Fall For A Coronavirus Hoax? Facebook Will Let You Know (NPR) State by state Coronavirus aid recognizes California's undocumented as essential workers, Latino advocates say (NBC News) Coronavirus Deaths Surpass 1,000 in Illinois as Statewide Cases Reach 25,733 (NBC Chicago) Coronavirus clobbers workers in 2020 swing states Michigan and Pennsylvania (CNBC) The Hill op-eds How Congress should help hospitals in the next COVID-19 relief bill Senior care facility workers are frontline heroes too What does delaying cancer surgery mean for patients? | 
No comments:
Post a Comment