COVID-19 Compilation – March 27, 2020 Courtesy of Cornerstone Government Affairs

Common Acronyms Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Defense (DOD), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Central Command (CENTCOM), Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA)

Washington, D.C. • Earlier today, the House passed and the President signed the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The bill text is available here, and a section-by-section is here. For further details on the COVID-19 legislative landscape, please refer to the COVID-19 Legislative Update email. If you do not already receive the update, please email Sierra Fuller ([email protected]). We are now looking ahead to COVID-IV! • President Trump today invoked the Defense Production Act to require General Motors to produce more ventilators. Hospitals across the country have expressed an acute need for materials to help manage the increased number of hospitalizations, and the ventilators are crucial for treating the respiratory issues associated with COVID-19. o The President also named Peter Navarro as the national Defense Production Act policy coordinator for the federal government. He said Navarro has been doing that job over the past few weeks but announced him as the coordinator for the first time this afternoon. • The CDC published an article in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) that examines pre- and asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 in the nursing home residents in King County, Washington. The findings highlight the difficulty of identifying the virus and mitigating the spread based on symptom diagnosis alone. • The FDA issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to allow for the emergency use of certain ventilators, anesthesia gas machines modified as ventilators, and positive pressure breathing devices modified as ventilators (collectively referred to as “ventilators”), ventilator tubing connectors, and ventilator accessories that the FDA determines meet specified criteria for safety, performance, and labeling in health care settings. • The CDC was expected to release new guidance on Thursday for the National Park Service, but those guidelines have still not been published as of Friday afternoon. • Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) and Ben McAdams (D-UT) are still the only members of Congress who have tested positive for COVID-19. Twenty-eight other members are in self-quarantine. Six members have completed a self-quarantine.

Updates from the States • Out of the cases under investigation detected by U.S. surveillance, there are total cases: 85,356 travel-related: 712 “close contact”: 1,326 The CDC now updates data Monday through Friday and data closes out the day before reporting. o The CDC is reporting 1,246 deaths in the U.S. related to COVID-19. o Although it has not been verified by the CDC, it is being widely reported that the U.S. has topped 100,000 cases. • The United States Conference of Mayors surveyed officials in 213 municipalities and found serious shortages that underscored the “scope and severity” of the COVID-19 crisis. More than 90 percent — or 192 cities — said they did not have an adequate supply of face masks for police officers, firefighters, and emergency workers. In addition, 92 percent of cities reported a shortage of test kits and 85 percent did not have a sufficient supply of ventilators available to local health facilities. • Eight states are currently closed for the remainder of the school year, with multiple others being closed into May or until further notice. This resource continues to track school closures. Particularly in places like New York City, where around 114,000 children live in shelters or unstable housing, school closures remain a health and safety concern. • CMS approved its 34th state Section 1135 Medicaid waiver request. The waivers offer states flexibilities to focus their resources on combatting the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, Connecticut, Delaware, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming received waivers. • Louisiana officials are fast-tracking licenses for new doctors and nurses, and in one case moving up the date a medical school's students will receive their diplomas, to increase the number of health care providers in the fight against the coronavirus. • Utah Gov. Gary Herbert is the most recent to have issued a statewide “stay safe, stay home” (not quite to the level of shelter-in-place) order. The order will remain in effect until April 13th. o This resource from Bloomberg Law is a database of State Quarantine and Public Health Laws related to the COVID-19 response. o This series of maps shows how states are responding to COVID-19, and this tracker, created and maintained by MultiState Associates, has an up-to-date list of executive orders and various travel restrictions.

Military/Defense • The USNS Mercy arrived in Los Angeles today to support the city’s COVID-19 response. The vessel, which has 1,000 hospital beds and more than 800 Navy medical personnel and support staff, will be treating non-COVID-19 patients to allow local health professionals to treat those suffering from the virus. • The Army received 9,000 responses after sending more than 800,000 former soldiers with medical training an email to gauge their interest in assisting with the coronavirus pandemic response. The Army Medical Command plans to use the volunteers to fill in for current Army personnel who might be sent to help civilian leaders domestically. • VA leaders warned that the outbreak “could last 18 months or longer” and that nearly one-third of its workforce may be sidelined by the illness. There have been 571 confirmed cases of coronavirus among patients at VA medical centers across the country. The VA’s emergency response plan can be found here. • The Navy is allowing current sailors to extend enlistments and veterans to return to the fleet after the Pentagon suspended travel, deployments, and exercises across all branches.

International Affairs • British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tested positive for COVID-19. • South Africa implemented a stay at home order for the next three weeks starting today. The lockdown of 59 million people is the biggest action taken on the continent thus far to combat COVID-19. South Africa confirmed its first case only three weeks ago, but already has over 1,000 now. • France announced that its lockdown would be extended until at least April 15th, and prime minister Edouard Philippe said it could be extended again if necessary. • Italy’s daily death toll continues to rise, reaching 950 between Thursday and Friday alone. The national death toll is now over 9,000, far higher than in any other country. • Four people have died aboard Holland America cruise ship the Zaandam off the coast of Panama. The cruise liner is currently waiting to cross the Panama Canal after it was not allowed to dock in South America. It has also not been given permission to cross the canal to dock in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. The ship departed from Argentina on March 7th and was originally scheduled to reach Chile on March 21st, but was forced to reroute as more nations close their ports to ships with outbreaks on board. • A few days after authorities relaxed lockdowns in Hubei province, China, violence erupted on a bridge between the Hubei and Jiangxi provinces. The confrontation came after authorities in Jiangxi blocked entry to people from Hubei. • Global Cases: 509,164 Total Deaths: 23,335

Lifestyle and Economy • Well, it was a nice run. The S&P 500’s three-day rise came to an end, dropping more than 3 percent today. o Stocks in Europe also dropped today. • The Trump administration is preparing to suspend collection of import tariffs for three months to give U.S. companies financial relief from COVID-19 effects. Companies would still be liable for the tariffs at a later date (not yet determined). Officials said there would be no formal changes to tariff policy. • There were 3.3 million unemployment insurance claims filed last week, the highest since 1982 at which point there were 695,000 in a week. The 3.3 million figure is around five times more than during the peak of the Great Recession. • Apple released a COVID-19 app and website to provide the latest information and guidance from the CDC for users across the U.S. The app and website, developed in partnership with the CDC, contain a new screening tool and set of resources to help people stay informed. • The New York Times has started its own tracker of cases in the U.S. to fill in the gaps left by agency data. • Forbes is keeping a running list of all major international airline COVID-19-related change and cancellation policies. • Following the multiple cruise ship infections over the last couple of months, Nature published an article examining what the cruise ship outbreaks taught us about COVID-19. • Tech companies are crucial players in the coronavirus response. Are they contributing what’s most needed? • The latest major event cancellation from COVID-19 is Queen Elizabeth II’s annual birthday parade, which was supposed to take place on June 13th in London. o Lists of canceled conferences and events can be found here (music), here (tech), here (general), and here (sports/entertainment).

Helpful Articles/Media • Daily WHO Situation Report (3/27) • Principal deputy director of the CDC Dr. Anne Schuchat gives an interview warning that New York’s COVID-19 outbreak is only a preview of the bigger picture. • Treating COVID-19—Off-Label Drug Use, Compassionate Use, and Randomized Clinical Trials During Pandemics (JAMA) • Fair Allocation of Scarce Medical Resources in the Time of Covid-19 (New England Journal of Medicine) • Why the Coronavirus Has Been So Successful (The Atlantic) • Coronavirus Drugs, Vaccine Are Many Months Away, Health Experts Say • In this article by Dr. Tom Frieden, he explains how we must continue to adapt our strategy to combat COVID-19 as we learn more about it. • Still not sure what social distancing is? Watch this video. • A figure in Prevent Epidemics highlights the association between age and severity of COVID-19 illness. • If it wasn’t already hard enough to get tested, hospitals are running low on the swabs needed to perform COVID-19 tests. • Prevent Epidemics has a fantastic annotated bibliography of COVID-19 publications that includes links to the original articles. View its resources here. • Why outbreaks like coronavirus spread exponentially, and how to “flatten the curve” • Johns Hopkins data capture (and, while you’re admiring that Hopkins resource, Coronavirus plea from Johns Hopkins: please take social distancing seriously to save lives) • U.S. Hospitals Face Major Challenges as Coronavirus Spreads • This document contains useful information from the White House Coronavirus Task Force on measures to keep workplaces, schools, homes, and commercial establishments safe. • Shortage of personal protective equipment endangering health workers worldwide • Check the CDC’s page on information for travel for further insight into restrictions for individuals leaving and returning to the U.S., and take a look at their guidance for businesses and employers. • COVID-19 – Navigating the Uncharted (co-authored by Drs. Tony Fauci, Clifford Lane, and Robert Redfield) • If any businesses are interested in offering assistance to CDC during the response, contact the CDC Foundation here. • Businesses, hospitals, universities, and anyone else looking for a direct line to the CDC, you can contact the 24/7 hotline at 770-488-7100.

Common Acronyms Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Defense (DoD), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Central Command (CENTCOM), Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), United States Trade Representative (USTR)

Statistics

Map last updated 3/27. Note there is still no 1-5 category.

Unemployment insurance claims, U.S. Department of Labor

(data from WHO daily situation reports)

For more information, visit CDC’s Novel Coronavirus 2019 website