thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-26--GOP Policies Are Shortening American Lives

For decades , the United States tracked the progress of other developed countries , as advances in nutrition , medicine and health care added years to the average life expectancy .
But starting about 10 years ago , that progress stalled in the U.S. People in other wealthy countries kept living longer and longer , but Americans plateaued .
In 2014 , American life expectancy fell backward for the first time in 21 years .
U.S. lifespans slid lower for another three years straight before barely ticking upward in 2018 .
“ Across a huge range of issues , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ longer life expectancy and the conservative version predicts shorter life expectancy , ” said Jennifer Karas Montez , a sociologist at Syracuse University and the study ’ s lead author .
Passing tougher regulations on tobacco and guns while enhancing labor rights and pay could extend U.S. life expectancy by as much as 2.8 years for women and 2.1 years for men .
“ Our findings are very powerful and very consistent , ” Montez said .
The study illuminates the choice before Americans in the 2020 election .
While the Republican Party @ @ @ @ @ @ @ platform for the next four years , the GOP currently holds 29 state legislatures and 26 governorships and has spent decades enacting its preferred policies in conservative states .
Over the last decade , a growing body of research has found that these policies are negatively affecting the health of constituents .
In a 2017 study , researchers discovered that U.S. states with less income inequality , larger tax credits for poor workers and higher cigarette taxes had lower disability rates .
According to a 2006 report , countries that spend more on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a wide range of health measures , from smoking rates to cognitive development to crime rates .
Five years ago , Indiana had an unprecedented outbreak of 215 HIV infections , mostly among drug users .
The vast majority of these cases , epidemiologists concluded in a 2018 study , could have been prevented if then-Gov .
Mike Pence had allowed needle exchange programs .
The outbreak eventually subsided when Pence reversed his conservative policy and allowed exchanges to open .
The starting point for Montez ’ s study was the striking health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ life expectancy of nearly 82 years , roughly on par with Finland and New Zealand .
West Virginia has a lifespan of just under 75 years , more comparable to Honduras and Belarus .
While states have always differed on health measures , the gap has grown since the 1980s .
This widening disparity presents a puzzle .
The most obvious explanation for the United States ’ lagging mortality rates is its fragmented , profit-driven health care system .
Millions of Americans either don ’ t have health insurance or have such low-quality @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But if medical care were the sole reason for low life expectancy , states wouldn ’ t show such alarming mortality differences .
People in Hawaii , after all , are just as vulnerable to the vicissitudes of emergency room bills and extortionate copays as those in West Virginia .
Plus , numerous studies have found health disparities persist even between Americans who have high-quality medical coverage and people in other wealthy countries .
“ The medical system explains some of the disparity , but it leaves a lot out , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deficit , you have to explain why some states are doing really well while others are flatlining.
” And they have , to say the least , used these powers for different purposes .
Blue states have established steep tobacco taxes , strict automobile emissions standards and ( relatively ) generous unemployment benefits .
Red states have restricted welfare , lifted regulations on businesses and preempted cities from raising wages or requiring sick leave for workers .
Over time , these policy changes have produced strikingly different outcomes .
Every year , Massachusetts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ per low-income resident .
Florida spends a paltry $ 3,904 .
Seattle has a minimum wage of $ 15.75 per hour , whereas Atlanta is prohibited by state law from exceeding $ 7.25 per hour .
A pack of cigarettes costs $ 5.25 in Missouri and $ 12.85 in New York .
“ Every policy is a public health policy , ” said Steven Woolf , a physician and epidemiologist at Virginia Commonwealth University .
“ It ’ s easier to notice that when the policies are more directly related to public health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helmet laws and all of a sudden they have more deaths from motorcycle accidents .
But what we ’ re finding out is that a huge range of other social and economic policies have similar effects.
” The only area where liberal policies were linked to shorter lifespans was marijuana : Residents of states that restrict cannabis tend to live longer than those where it ’ s legal .
And policies related to campaign finance , immigration , taxes , education , housing and transportation didn ’ t appear to affect lifespans significantly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this troubling trend by lifestyle choices , that doesn ’ t explain why Americans smoke more , take more drugs and don ’ t move as much , ” Montez said .
“ We need to look at issues like corporate behavior and environmental policies and how we ’ re spread out geographically.
” Policy choices profoundly affect American eating and exercise habits , after all , especially crop subsidies , housing policy and infrastructure management .
Individual preference alone can not explain large-scale societal trends , such as the percentage of children @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from 48 % in 1969 to 13 % in 2009 .
Furthermore , differences in life expectancy between states are greatest among the poor and less-educated ― the populations most vulnerable to hazardous environments and cuts to welfare .

Illustration: HuffPost; Photo: Getty Images
In one of the most alarming trends in recent history, the American lifespan is getting shorter.
For decades, the United States tracked the progress of other developed countries, as advances in nutrition, medicine and health care added years to the average life expectancy. But starting about 10 years ago, that progress stalled in the U.S. People in other wealthy countries kept living longer and longer, but Americans plateaued. In 2014, American life expectancy fell backward for the first time in 21 years. U.S. lifespans slid lower for another three years straight before barely ticking upward in 2018.
This backward slide has set off one of the most important debates in epidemiology: What’s happening? Explanations range from America’s semi-privatized medical system to its higher rates of sedentary lifestyles to “deaths of despair” among poor rural whites.
Advertisement
This month, a team of epidemiologists, physicians and political scientists published a study that found an even simpler explanation: Republicans.
Conservative policies, the researchers found, are the driving force behind America’s declining lifespans.
“Across a huge range of issues, the more liberal version of state policies predicts longer life expectancy and the conservative version predicts shorter life expectancy,” said Jennifer Karas Montez, a sociologist at Syracuse University and the study’s lead author. Passing tougher regulations on tobacco and guns while enhancing labor rights and pay could extend U.S. life expectancy by as much as 2.8 years for women and 2.1 years for men. “Our findings are very powerful and very consistent,” Montez said.
The study illuminates the choice before Americans in the 2020 election. While the Republican Party has declined to release a national policy platform for the next four years, the GOP currently holds 29 state legislatures and 26 governorships and has spent decades enacting its preferred policies in conservative states.
Advertisement
Over the last decade, a growing body of research has found that these policies are negatively affecting the health of constituents. In a 2017 study, researchers discovered that U.S. states with less income inequality, larger tax credits for poor workers and higher cigarette taxes had lower disability rates. According to a 2006 report, countries that spend more on early childhood education have better outcomes on a wide range of health measures, from smoking rates to cognitive development to crime rates.
Five years ago, Indiana had an unprecedented outbreak of 215 HIV infections, mostly among drug users. The vast majority of these cases, epidemiologists concluded in a 2018 study, could have been prevented if then-Gov. Mike Pence had allowed needle exchange programs. The outbreak eventually subsided when Pence reversed his conservative policy and allowed exchanges to open.
The same effect appears with a wide range of diseases and an even wider range of policies.
“What liberal policies have in common is that they’re ways of investing in people,” Montez said. “They make sure working adults have a decent income, they have labor rights and they can breathe cleaner air. Conservative policies tend to do the opposite.”
West Virginia has America's shortest life expectancy at 74.6 years. Hawaii has the longest at 81.6 years. Ann Hermes/Getty Images
The Diverging States of America
The starting point for Montez’s study was the striking health disparities between states. Hawaii has a life expectancy of nearly 82 years, roughly on par with Finland and New Zealand. West Virginia has a lifespan of just under 75 years, more comparable to Honduras and Belarus.
Advertisement
While states have always differed on health measures, the gap has grown since the 1980s. This widening disparity presents a puzzle. The most obvious explanation for the United States’ lagging mortality rates is its fragmented, profit-driven health care system. Millions of Americans either don’t have health insurance or have such low-quality coverage that illness can bring ruinous costs.
But if medical care were the sole reason for low life expectancy, states wouldn’t show such alarming mortality differences. People in Hawaii, after all, are just as vulnerable to the vicissitudes of emergency room bills and extortionate copays as those in West Virginia. Plus, numerous studies have found health disparities persist even between Americans who have high-quality medical coverage and people in other wealthy countries.
“The medical system explains some of the disparity, but it leaves a lot out,” Montez said. “To explain the deficit, you have to explain why some states are doing really well while others are flatlining.”
So what does explain the rest of the disparity? The widening divide between liberal and conservative policies.
“Every policy is a public health policy.” - Steven Woolf, physician and Virginia Commonwealth University epidemiologist
Advertisement
Over the last 30 years, federal authorities have handed a huge range of powers down to the states. From welfare payments to environmental protection to gun control, state legislatures have taken on an increasingly influential role in setting public policy.
And they have, to say the least, used these powers for different purposes. Blue states have established steep tobacco taxes, strict automobile emissions standards and (relatively) generous unemployment benefits. Red states have restricted welfare, lifted regulations on businesses and preempted cities from raising wages or requiring sick leave for workers.
Over time, these policy changes have produced strikingly different outcomes. Every year, Massachusetts spends more than $14,000 on welfare per low-income resident. Florida spends a paltry $3,904. Seattle has a minimum wage of $15.75 per hour, whereas Atlanta is prohibited by state law from exceeding $7.25 per hour. A pack of cigarettes costs $5.25 in Missouri and $12.85 in New York.
“Every policy is a public health policy,” said Steven Woolf, a physician and epidemiologist at Virginia Commonwealth University. “It’s easier to notice that when the policies are more directly related to public health, like when states repeal their motorcycle helmet laws and all of a sudden they have more deaths from motorcycle accidents. But what we’re finding out is that a huge range of other social and economic policies have similar effects.”
Montez’s study examined 121 laws that differed between states. Tobacco regulations, civil rights legislation, environmental safeguards and labor protections were all significantly correlated with higher life expectancy. Protections for LGBTQ rights and liberal access to abortion also predicted longer lifespans, but with smaller effects.
Advertisement
In nearly every category, the liberal version of the policy was associated with a longer lifespan.
The only area where liberal policies were linked to shorter lifespans was marijuana: Residents of states that restrict cannabis tend to live longer than those where it’s legal. And policies related to campaign finance, immigration, taxes, education, housing and transportation didn’t appear to affect lifespans significantly.
Others, like voting rights, affected women’s longevity but not men’s.
A 2015 HIV outbreak in Indiana has been traced back to the then-Governor Mike Pence's conservative policies on needle exchanges. Michael Conroy/AP Photo
Why Health Disparities Remain
The findings from Montez and her colleagues represent a paradigm shift from previous explanations for America’s languishing lifespans.
“Epidemiologists have traditionally focused on individual explanations — what are Americans doing wrong?” Montez said. Life expectancy was shrinking, went the theory, because we refuse to eat better, stop smoking and start exercising.
“Even if you could explain this troubling trend by lifestyle choices, that doesn’t explain why Americans smoke more, take more drugs and don’t move as much,” Montez said. “We need to look at issues like corporate behavior and environmental policies and how we’re spread out geographically.”
Advertisement
Policy choices profoundly affect American eating and exercise habits, after all, especially crop subsidies, housing policy and infrastructure management. Individual preference alone cannot explain large-scale societal trends, such as the percentage of children who walk or bike to school falling from 48% in 1969 to 13% in 2009. Furthermore, differences in life expectancy between states are greatest among the poor and less-educated ― the populations most vulnerable to hazardous environments and cuts to welfare.
“A lot of the behaviors that affect lifespan, like drugs and bad diets, are compensating behaviors,” said Mark Hayward, a sociologist at the University of Texas at Austin who studies population health. “They’re a response to the stresses of day-to-day existence. If you’re well-educated, it matters less where you live, but life can be a slippery slope for people at the bottom of the ladder.”
Numerous health conditions and measures, from diabetes to HIV to high infant mortality, play out along the same political and economic disparities ― but they don’t have to.
“It’s important when we debate policies that affect people’s pocketbooks,” said Montez, “to acknowledge that they also have implications for how long people will live.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-25--Republicans Spin Trump's Awful Record On Tribal Issues To Make It Sound Amazing

“ Our people have never been invited into the American Dream .
For years , we ’ ve fought congressional battles with past congressmen and senators that were part of a broken system that ignored us , ” said Lizer .
“ That is , until President Trump took office.
” He praised Trump for delivering “ the largest financial funding package ever ” to the nation ’ s tribes .
“ The $ 8 billion in CARES Act funding to Indian County was a great start in alleviating the devastating effects that the COVID-19 pandemic has inflicted on our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Lizer was referring to the $ 2 trillion COVID-19 bill passed into law in March .
It ’ s true that it included a historic $ 8 billion for tribes .
But that ’ s only because Senate Democrats fought to include it .
The White House wanted to give tribes $ 0 .
And once the bill became law , the Trump administration failed to distribute that money for weeks ― leaving tribes with no federal help as Native American communities were ravaged by the coronavirus .
It took a federal judge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ administration to give tribes hundreds of millions of dollars in COVID relief they were still due .
In a particularly shameful display , in 2017 , he repeated his Pocahontas slur at a White House event honoring Native American war heroes , where he stood in front of a portrait of Andrew Jackson , the former U.S. president and slave owner who signed the Indian Removal Act that led to the Trail of Tears .
This month , the Trump administration unexpectedly announced it would end the 2020 census count early , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ historically undercounted .
The effect will be less federal money for tribal communities and weakened representation in Congress ― for the next decade .
As one Native American rights advocate put it , “ Think of being powerless and poor .
That ’ s what this does.
” None of this came up in Lizer ’ s remarks .
He praised Trump for signing a proclamation recognizing Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives , for providing $ 273 million to improve public safety in Native communities , and for having “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Neil Gorsuch .
It ’ s true that Gorsuch has been a strong ally to tribes .
But that ’ s not why Trump nominated him to the Supreme Court .
He was chosen for the president by the Federalist Society , a conservative legal group that has served as a pipeline for Trump ’ s lifetime nominees to the Supreme Court and appeals courts .
Lizer ’ s plug for Trump will certainly upset some Navajo Nation members .
The tribe ’ s president , Jonathan Nez , is a Democrat who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ during the coronavirus pandemic .
Nez spoke at the Democratic National Convention last week and endorsed Joe Biden .
It ’ s particularly surprising that Lizer praised Trump ’ s handling of the pandemic given how hard Navajo Nation was hit ― and how the Trump administration ’ s delays in getting federal aid to the tribe contributed to its devastation .
Navajo Nation had more confirmed COVID-19 cases per capita than any state , and its tax base was wiped out as casinos remained closed .
The situation became so dire that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deployed to disaster zones in developing countries , sent in a team .
“ I ’ m excited to endorse President Trump ’ s reelection , ” he said .
“ And Mr. President , we look forward to hosting you very soon to come visit our land we call Dine ’ tah.
” If Trump does visit the Navajo Nation , he may want to make sure he gets Lizer ’ s name right .
His campaign misspelled it in Tuesday night ’ s press materials .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
The GOP kicked off day two of the Republican National Convention with Navajo Nation Vice President Myron Lizer, who raved about President Donald Trump’s record on tribal issues.
But Trump has been terrible for Native American people and tribes for years ― a fact you’d never know based on Tuesday night’s spin.
Advertisement
“Our people have never been invited into the American Dream. For years, we’ve fought congressional battles with past congressmen and senators that were part of a broken system that ignored us,” said Lizer. “That is, until President Trump took office.”
He praised Trump for delivering “the largest financial funding package ever” to the nation’s tribes. “The $8 billion in CARES Act funding to Indian County was a great start in alleviating the devastating effects that the COVID-19 pandemic has inflicted on our Indian tribes,” he said.
Navajo Nation Vice President Myron Lizer addresses the virtual Republican National Convention on Aug. 25, 2020. Handout via Getty Images
Lizer was referring to the $2 trillion COVID-19 bill passed into law in March. It’s true that it included a historic $8 billion for tribes. But that’s only because Senate Democrats fought to include it. The White House wanted to give tribes $0. And once the bill became law, the Trump administration failed to distribute that money for weeks ― leaving tribes with no federal help as Native American communities were ravaged by the coronavirus.
Advertisement
It took a federal judge intervening in June to force the Trump administration to give tribes hundreds of millions of dollars in COVID relief they were still due.
And that’s just Trump’s record on COVID and tribes.
In a particularly shameful display, in 2017, he repeated his Pocahontas slur at a White House event honoring Native American war heroes, where he stood in front of a portrait of Andrew Jackson, the former U.S. president and slave owner who signed the Indian Removal Act that led to the Trail of Tears.
This month, the Trump administration unexpectedly announced it would end the 2020 census count early, which will disproportionately hurt tribes that are already historically undercounted. The effect will be less federal money for tribal communities and weakened representation in Congress ― for the next decade. As one Native American rights advocate put it, “Think of being powerless and poor. That’s what this does.”
None of this came up in Lizer’s remarks. He praised Trump for signing a proclamation recognizing Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives, for providing $273 million to improve public safety in Native communities, and for having “strengthened the Supreme Court” by nominating Neil Gorsuch.
Advertisement
It’s true that Gorsuch has been a strong ally to tribes. But that’s not why Trump nominated him to the Supreme Court. He was chosen for the president by the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group that has served as a pipeline for Trump’s lifetime nominees to the Supreme Court and appeals courts.
Lizer’s plug for Trump will certainly upset some Navajo Nation members. The tribe’s president, Jonathan Nez, is a Democrat who has accused Trump of ignoring Native Americans during the coronavirus pandemic. Nez spoke at the Democratic National Convention last week and endorsed Joe Biden.
It’s particularly surprising that Lizer praised Trump’s handling of the pandemic given how hard Navajo Nation was hit ― and how the Trump administration’s delays in getting federal aid to the tribe contributed to its devastation. Navajo Nation had more confirmed COVID-19 cases per capita than any state, and its tax base was wiped out as casinos remained closed. The situation became so dire that Doctors Without Borders, which is typically deployed to disaster zones in developing countries, sent in a team.
Lizer, however, remains committed to Trump.
“I’m excited to endorse President Trump’s reelection,” he said. “And Mr. President, we look forward to hosting you very soon to come visit our land we call Dine’tah.”
If Trump does visit the Navajo Nation, he may want to make sure he gets Lizer’s name right. His campaign misspelled it in Tuesday night’s press materials.
Advertisement
Here’s a screenshot:


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-25--Abby Johnson Spreads Falsehoods About Abortion At The RNC

Anti-abortion activist Abby Johnson used her five-minute speaking slot on the second night of the Republican National Convention to stigmatize abortion and smear her former employer , Planned Parenthood , the country ’ s largest provider of reproductive health care .
Johnson , who spent the day under fire for past statements on racial profiling and women ’ s right to vote , worked at Planned Parenthood for eight years before defecting to the anti-abortion movement .
“ Nothing prepared me for what I saw on the screen — an unborn baby fighting back , desperate to move away from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tuesday night .
“ And I ’ ll never forget what the doctor said next — ‘ Beam me up , Scotty.
’ ” Details of Johnson ’ s oft-repeated conversion story , which was expanded into a book and then made into a 2019 movie , “ Unplanned , ” have been contested .
Johnson maintains she is telling the truth .
Throughout her speech , she used graphic language to describe abortion , a safe and common procedure .
“ I know what abortion smells like , ” Johnson said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a smell ?
” Johnson also accused Planned Parenthood of racism , claiming that its founder , Margaret Sanger , wanted to eradicate minorities , and asserted erroneously that almost 80 % of abortion clinics are located in minority communities .
According to the Guttmacher Institute , about 6 in 10 abortion providers are located in neighborhoods where more than half of residents are white .
Since her conversion more than a decade ago , Johnson has become somewhat of a poster child for the anti-abortion movement , reminiscent of Norma McCorvey , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ v. Wade , who made headlines in 1995 when she announced she no longer supported abortion .
( Recent reporting on McCorvey ’ s conversion suggests she was motivated by finances , not her own personal beliefs ) .
Johnson opposes abortion in all cases , as well as hormonal birth control .
On her website , she espouses “ a new kind of feminism , ” arguing that abortion hurts women , and she advocates for women to dress modestly .
She also supports “ head-of-household voting , ” which would allow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cast a ballot .
“ In a Godly household , the husband would get the final say , ” she said on Twitter .
Minutes before her speech , she continued to tweet in defense of her head-of-household voting position .
Johnson , who has eight children , has also come under criticism for a viral video clip in which she defended racial profiling .
In the video , she says that her adopted brown son was “ statistically more likely to commit a violent offense ” than her white sons and that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be more careful around him .
In the past , she has also co-opted the language of the Black Lives Matter movement to advocate for the end of abortion .
“ I think maybe it ’ s time for me to lead a campaign to paint ‘ Unborn Lives Matter ’ outside of every abortion clinic in the country , ” she tweeted in July .
“ I ’ m not much for getting arrested , but I ’ m feeling like maybe this would show the blatant hypocrisy running rampant in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will continue to lie and stigmatize sexual and reproductive health care services , Planned Parenthood Votes will continue to shine a light on President Trump ’ s and Vice President Pence ’ s unconscionable health care record and fight to protect access to reproductive health and rights at the ballot box , ” she said .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Anti-abortion activist Abby Johnson used her five-minute speaking slot on the second night of the Republican National Convention to stigmatize abortion and smear her former employer, Planned Parenthood, the country’s largest provider of reproductive health care.
Johnson, who spent the day under fire for past statements on racial profiling and women’s right to vote, worked at Planned Parenthood for eight years before defecting to the anti-abortion movement.
Advertisement
On Tuesday, she described how she experienced a moral crisis while watching the ultrasound-guided abortion of a 13-week-old fetus.
“Nothing prepared me for what I saw on the screen — an unborn baby fighting back, desperate to move away from the suction,” she said on Tuesday night. “And I’ll never forget what the doctor said next — ‘Beam me up, Scotty.’”
Details of Johnson’s oft-repeated conversion story, which was expanded into a book and then made into a 2019 movie, “Unplanned,” have been contested. Johnson maintains she is telling the truth.
As HuffPost previously covered, Johnson’s description of the fetus’ movements do not align with medical science.
Advertisement
Throughout her speech, she used graphic language to describe abortion, a safe and common procedure. “I know what abortion smells like,” Johnson said. “Did you know abortion even has a smell?”
Johnson also accused Planned Parenthood of racism, claiming that its founder, Margaret Sanger, wanted to eradicate minorities, and asserted erroneously that almost 80% of abortion clinics are located in minority communities. According to the Guttmacher Institute, about 6 in 10 abortion providers are located in neighborhoods where more than half of residents are white.
Abby Johnson worked at Planned Parenthood for eight years before switching sides and becoming an anti-abortion activist. RNC
Since her conversion more than a decade ago, Johnson has become somewhat of a poster child for the anti-abortion movement, reminiscent of Norma McCorvey, the plaintiff in the landmark case Roe v. Wade, who made headlines in 1995 when she announced she no longer supported abortion. (Recent reporting on McCorvey’s conversion suggests she was motivated by finances, not her own personal beliefs).
Johnson opposes abortion in all cases, as well as hormonal birth control. On her website, she espouses “a new kind of feminism,” arguing that abortion hurts women, and she advocates for women to dress modestly.
Advertisement
She also supports “head-of-household voting,” which would allow only the head of a household to cast a ballot. “In a Godly household, the husband would get the final say,” she said on Twitter. Minutes before her speech, she continued to tweet in defense of her head-of-household voting position.
Johnson, who has eight children, has also come under criticism for a viral video clip in which she defended racial profiling. In the video, she says that her adopted brown son was “statistically more likely to commit a violent offense” than her white sons and that it was “smart” for police to be more careful around him.
In the past, she has also co-opted the language of the Black Lives Matter movement to advocate for the end of abortion.
“I think maybe it’s time for me to lead a campaign to paint ‘Unborn Lives Matter’ outside of every abortion clinic in the country,” she tweeted in July. “I’m not much for getting arrested, but I’m feeling like maybe this would show the blatant hypocrisy running rampant in our society today.”
In a statement, Jenny Lawson, executive director of Planned Parenthood Votes, said that Johnson cannot be trusted to tell the truth about safe, legal abortions.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-25--Warren And Markey Demand Transparency Over FDA Decision To Authorize Plasma Treatment

Sens .
Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey are demanding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration provide all communications between the agency and the White House to determine whether the recent emergency use authorization of convalescent plasma treatment for coronavirus patients was politically motivated .
In a letter to the agency obtained by HuffPost on Tuesday , the Massachusetts Democrats called the FDA ’ s authorization decision “ troubling , ” given limited evidence of the treatment ’ s effectiveness on COVID-19 patients .
The EUA allows for the distribution of convalescent plasma from people who have recovered from COVID-19 in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to administer it as appropriate to treat patients hospitalized who have or are suspected of having the disease .
“ It is essential for public health that COVID-19 patients have access to effective vaccines and treatments as quickly as possible , ” the senators wrote .
“ However , it is also critical that the FDA ’ s drug approval process ― which serves as the gold standard around the world ― is guided by science , not partisan or political whims .
“ Warren requested that FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn give @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and White House officials regarding convalescent plasma ; a description of any and all verbal communications between officials ; and a detailed timeline of the EUA approval process for convalescent plasma as a COVID-19 treatment .
President Donald Trump and the FDA announced on Sunday the emergency use authorization for convalescent plasma , the liquid component of blood from a recovered virus patient that ’ s rich in antibodies and can be used to treat the same virus in certain cases .
Scientists have been looking at whether convalescent plasma can be used @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been conducting clinical trials to determine its efficacy and safety .
But while blood plasma donated from recovered COVID-19 patients is considered safe , top health officials expressed concern that the data have not yet proved whether it ’ s effective enough to treat the virus .
The FDA largely based its decision on data the Mayo Clinic collected from hospitals using plasma on patients in differing ways ― people who received plasma with higher levels of antibodies fared better than patients given lower levels of antibodies .
But because there was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scientists can ’ t draw clear conclusions about its efficacy .
Hahn walked back his comments on Monday , apologizing for the overstatement and assuring that the EUA decision was based on science and not politically motivated .
He maintained that there is enough data to qualify convalescent plasma for an EUA , but that well-controlled randomized clinical trials “ remain necessary ” to properly determine if the treatment is effective .
“ I have been criticized for the remarks I made Sunday night about the benefits of convalescent plasma .
The criticism @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ What I should have said better is that the data show a relative risk reduction not an absolute risk reduction.
” The authorization raised questions about whether Hahn was pressured into the decision , given negative comments Trump has made about the agency ’ s response to the coronavirus pandemic and the fact that the announcement occurred on the eve of the Republican National Convention .
Some public health officials called the announcement “ political fanfare , ” and said that “ science lost today ” while “ politics won.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House official Peter Navarro accused the FDA , without evidence , of being part of the “ deep state ” and intentionally delaying approval of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics in order to harm Trump ’ s reelection chances .
The president has been pushing agencies to focus on the urgency of approving COVID-19 treatments rather than first making sure they ’ re safe to roll out .
“ Protecting the integrity of the FDA ’ s approval process is even more critical given that the agency will soon be asked to approve one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and because of its decision to issue and then revoke a rushed EUA for hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 treatment , ” Warren and Markey wrote .
“ Hydroxychloroquine was found to cause ‘ serious heart rhythm problems and other safety issues , including blood and lymph system disorders , kidney injuries , and liver problems and failure ’ ― forcing the FDA to revoke its EUA.
” Warren has made a point of scrutinizing whether the FDA is prioritizing science over politics in its decision-making process .
The senator urged the agency earlier @ @ @ @ @ @ @ products for their safety and effectiveness .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey are demanding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration provide all communications between the agency and the White House to determine whether the recent emergency use authorization of convalescent plasma treatment for coronavirus patients was politically motivated.
In a letter to the agency obtained by HuffPost on Tuesday, the Massachusetts Democrats called the FDA’s authorization decision “troubling,” given limited evidence of the treatment’s effectiveness on COVID-19 patients. The EUA allows for the distribution of convalescent plasma from people who have recovered from COVID-19 in the U.S. and for health care providers to administer it as appropriate to treat patients hospitalized who have or are suspected of having the disease.
Advertisement
“It is essential for public health that COVID-19 patients have access to effective vaccines and treatments as quickly as possible,” the senators wrote. “However, it is also critical that the FDA’s drug approval process ― which serves as the gold standard around the world ― is guided by science, not partisan or political whims. “
Warren requested that FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn give copies of all written communications between FDA and White House officials regarding convalescent plasma; a description of any and all verbal communications between officials; and a detailed timeline of the EUA approval process for convalescent plasma as a COVID-19 treatment.
Advertisement
President Donald Trump and the FDA announced on Sunday the emergency use authorization for convalescent plasma, the liquid component of blood from a recovered virus patient that’s rich in antibodies and can be used to treat the same virus in certain cases. Scientists have been looking at whether convalescent plasma can be used as a treatment for COVID-19, and have been conducting clinical trials to determine its efficacy and safety.
But while blood plasma donated from recovered COVID-19 patients is considered safe, top health officials expressed concern that the data have not yet proved whether it’s effective enough to treat the virus. The FDA largely based its decision on data the Mayo Clinic collected from hospitals using plasma on patients in differing ways ― people who received plasma with higher levels of antibodies fared better than patients given lower levels of antibodies. But because there was no control group of untreated patients, scientists can’t draw clear conclusions about its efficacy.
Scientists like Dr. Francis Collins and Dr. Anthony Fauci cautioned the FDA to wait on giving an EUA for convalescent plasma due to insufficient evidence, and medical experts decried Hahn’s comments on Sunday that overstated the treatment’s life-saving benefits.
Hahn walked back his comments on Monday, apologizing for the overstatement and assuring that the EUA decision was based on science and not politically motivated. He maintained that there is enough data to qualify convalescent plasma for an EUA, but that well-controlled randomized clinical trials “remain necessary” to properly determine if the treatment is effective.
“I have been criticized for the remarks I made Sunday night about the benefits of convalescent plasma. The criticism is entirely justified,” he tweeted. “What I should have said better is that the data show a relative risk reduction not an absolute risk reduction.”
Advertisement
I have been criticized for remarks I made Sunday night about the benefits of convalescent plasma. The criticism is entirely justified. What I should have said better is that the data show a relative risk reduction not an absolute risk reduction. — Dr. Stephen M. Hahn (@SteveFDA) August 25, 2020
The authorization raised questions about whether Hahn was pressured into the decision, given negative comments Trump has made about the agency’s response to the coronavirus pandemic and the fact that the announcement occurred on the eve of the Republican National Convention. Some public health officials called the announcement “political fanfare,” and said that “science lost today” while “politics won.”
Earlier this month, Trump and White House official Peter Navarro accused the FDA, without evidence, of being part of the “deep state” and intentionally delaying approval of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics in order to harm Trump’s reelection chances. The president has been pushing agencies to focus on the urgency of approving COVID-19 treatments rather than first making sure they’re safe to roll out.
“Protecting the integrity of the FDA’s approval process is even more critical given that the agency will soon be asked to approve one or more vaccines under intense political pressure, and because of its decision to issue and then revoke a rushed EUA for hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 treatment,” Warren and Markey wrote. “Hydroxychloroquine was found to cause ‘serious heart rhythm problems and other safety issues, including blood and lymph system disorders, kidney injuries, and liver problems and failure’ ― forcing the FDA to revoke its EUA.”
Warren has made a point of scrutinizing whether the FDA is prioritizing science over politics in its decision-making process. The senator urged the agency earlier this year to track potential COVID-19 medical products for their safety and effectiveness.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-25--Why Trump's Desperate Bid For A Win On COVID-19 Puts Lives At Risk

The Therapy Is Probably Fine , But Nobody Is Sure Of Its Value For the last few weeks , the FDA has been wrestling with whether to authorize plasma therapy on a nonexperimental basis , which would mean doctors could prescribe it on the spot .
Advocates , including Arturo Casadevall , who is the chairman of molecular microbiology and immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health , have said loosening the restrictions would enable wider use of the therapy , especially in smaller hospitals that might struggle with the administrative burdens of expanded use programs .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ use comes from a study , based on Mayo Clinic data , comparing two groups of people ― one that got plasma infusions with high numbers of antibodies , and one that got plasma infusions with low numbers of antibodies .
Mortality after one week among the patients who got the high-antibody plasma was 8.7 % , while mortality among the patients who got the low-antibody plasma was 11.9 % .
There was a similar differential after one month .
Trump Pestered The FDA , And Scientists Are Furious How much that counsel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But last week , as word circulated that the agency might be balking at wider approval , Trump accused “ the deep state , or whoever , over at the FDA ” of trying to sabotage his reelection chances .
Two days later , the FDA went ahead with the emergency authorization and Trump announced it at a White House press conference , hours after teasing it with a tweet saying “ very good news ” was on the way .
Damaging FDA Credibility Could Mean More Suffering These are precisely the sorts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over the past few months ― like in late winter , when he ignored warnings and downplayed the coronavirus threat until the pandemic was already overwhelming health care providers , or in the late spring and early summer , when he pushed to resume regular activity even when public health experts warned that doing so would cause cases to spike .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
President Donald Trump announcing a “historic breakthrough” against COVID-19 over the weekend sure looked like an attempt to grab some favorable headlines ahead of this week’s Republican National Convention.
It’s not hard to understand the desperation: Trump doesn’t have much good news to offer. The pandemic’s death toll in the U.S. is approaching 200,000. The death rate, measured relative to population, is already among the worst in the developed world. And while other countries are welcoming kids to school, resuming live sports and reopening restaurants, the U.S. remains stuck trying to combat a virus still ravaging parts of the country.
Advertisement
Not all of this is Trump’s fault, obviously. But plenty of it is.
He hasn’t paid attention to evidence. He has shown contempt for scientific advisers. He has grasped at quick fixes rather than patiently working with scientists and fellow elected leaders to craft effective, long-term policies.
All of these tendencies were on display Sunday, when Trump announced the Food and Drug Administration had authorized wider use of convalescent plasma therapy, in which COVID-19 patients get infusions of antibodies derived from the blood of people who have already recovered from the disease.
The president described it as “a truly historic announcement in our battle against the China virus that will save countless lives.”
Advertisement
Some of the nation’s best-known public health experts were aghast at the administration’s claims on the treatment’s potential ― and, more importantly, at Trump’s badgering of the FDA to get approval in the days leading up to the announcement.
He’s jeopardizing the agency’s independence, they warn, at precisely the moment when that independence is critical to success.
The Therapy Is Probably Fine, But Nobody Is Sure Of Its Value
Convalescent plasma therapy is not a new concept. Scientists first tried it successfully in the late 19th century, when they used animal blood serum to help treat cases of diphtheria. But it only works for some diseases.
As physicians were scrambling to treat the novel coronavirus outbreak exploding across the U.S. earlier this year, the FDA authorized “expanded use” of plasma therapy, which meant it was available through clinical studies or by special request from physicians. More than 70,000 patients have since gotten the treatment, and it appears to be safe.
Trump on Sunday called plasma therapy a "historic breakthrough." Even his own government's scientists don't think that. Pete Marovich via Getty Images
Advertisement
For the last few weeks, the FDA has been wrestling with whether to authorize plasma therapy on a nonexperimental basis, which would mean doctors could prescribe it on the spot. Advocates, including Arturo Casadevall, who is the chairman of molecular microbiology and immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, have said loosening the restrictions would enable wider use of the therapy, especially in smaller hospitals that might struggle with the administrative burdens of expanded use programs.
The main evidence in favor of wider use comes from a study, based on Mayo Clinic data, comparing two groups of people ― one that got plasma infusions with high numbers of antibodies, and one that got plasma infusions with low numbers of antibodies. Mortality after one week among the patients who got the high-antibody plasma was 8.7%, while mortality among the patients who got the low-antibody plasma was 11.9%. There was a similar differential after one month.
But that study had severe limitations. The researchers didn’t have a control sample that got a placebo, and the two groups may not have been totally random. Plenty of researchers think plasma therapy helps, at least marginally, but nobody is sure. And pretty much everybody with scientific credibility agrees there needs to be more study in order to get some more definitive findings.
Three of the nation’s most highly respected scientists have made this argument: Francis Collins, head of the National Institutes of Health; Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; and H. Clifford Lane, clinical director at the allergy and infectious disease institute. They had been urging the FDA to maintain plasma therapy’s experimental status, and last week took the extraordinary step of stating their concerns publicly.
“The three of us are pretty aligned on the importance of robust data through randomized control trials, and that a pandemic does not change that,” Lane told The New York Times.
Advertisement
Trump Pestered The FDA, And Scientists Are Furious
How much that counsel mattered to FDA decision-makers is unclear. But last week, as word circulated that the agency might be balking at wider approval, Trump accused “the deep state, or whoever, over at the FDA” of trying to sabotage his reelection chances. Two days later, the FDA went ahead with the emergency authorization and Trump announced it at a White House press conference, hours after teasing it with a tweet saying “very good news” was on the way.
“It has proven to reduce mortality by 35%,” Trump said. “It’s a tremendous number.”
“I’ve been optimistic about convalescent plasma as therapy. But optimism isn’t science.” - Ashish Jha, incoming dean of the Brown University School of Public Health
Two administration officials — Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn — appeared alongside Trump and made similar claims. The FDA followed up with an official announcement touting “Another Achievement in Administration’s Fight Against Pandemic,” a boosterish endorsement that longtime agency watchers said they had never seen before.
Scientists around the country recoiled at those statements, noting that the available research doesn’t “prove” anything ― including that plasma is beneficial, let alone that it reduces mortality by more than one-third.
“There is no breakthrough,” Eric Topol, founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, wrote in a tweet, adding that Hahn had “caved to Trump’s pressure” to say there was.
Advertisement
Even scientists who think convalescent plasma treatment has potential worry that the announcement will discourage participation in random trials, making it more difficult to conduct the research necessary to pinpoint how much the treatment can help and under what circumstances.
2/ All the emergency use authorization will achieve is to make it HARDER to enroll people in placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trials. So we may NEVER know if convalescent plasma works. — Céline Gounder, MD, ScM, FIDSA (@celinegounder) August 23, 2020
“I’ve been optimistic about convalescent plasma as therapy,” tweeted Ashish Jha, incoming dean of the Brown University School of Public Health. “But optimism isn’t science. We need results of adequately powered randomized trials. Issuing an [Emergency Use Authorization] without it would make such trials harder. And erode the credibility of the FDA. And ultimately, harm people with COVID.”
“Bottom line for EUA is this:nif you end up hospitalized, your doctor won’t know if plasma is helpful or not,” Jha wrote in a follow-up tweet.
Thomas File, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, also issued a statement opposing the FDA’s decision. “While the data to date show some positive signals that convalescent plasma can be helpful in treating individuals with COVID-19, especially if given early in the trajectory of disease, we lack the randomized controlled trial data we need to better understand its utility in COVID-19 treatment,” File said.
Advertisement
Not every expert was so critical of the decision itself. Scott Gottlieb, who was FDA commissioner earlier in the Trump administration and who has won acclaim for his sober, independent-minded writings during the pandemic, offered a careful endorsement of the decision.
“Plasma may provide a benefit, and it could be meaningful for certain patients, but we need more evidence to prove it,” Gottlieb said. “The data FDA had supports an authorization for emergency use, where the standard is ‘may be effective’ but we need better studies to confirm preliminary findings.”
Separately, however, Gottlieb has also been warning about political interference with the FDA.
This isn’t the first time Trump pressured the FDA, after all. And the last last time, when he clamored for approval of hydroxychloroquine, didn’t end well. Months after approving emergency use of the malaria drug as a treatment for COVID-19, the FDA revoked it in reaction to reports of dangerous cardiac side effects.
The limited potential benefits didn’t outweigh the documented risks of allowing wide use of the treatment, the FDA decided.
Trump has continued to tout the drug as a COVID-19 treatment anyway. He was tweeting about it on Sunday and made a joke about it during a convention session the following night.
Advertisement
Damaging FDA Credibility Could Mean More Suffering
Hahn apologized Monday for overstating the research findings. But neither Trump nor his top advisers seem to have misgivings about the statements on behalf of plasma — or the public attacks on the FDA.
On the contrary, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said during an appearance on ABC News’ “This Week” that Trump was merely looking out for Americans’ well-being. “He had to make sure that they felt the heat,” Meadows said. “If they don’t see the light, they need to feel the heat because the American people are suffering.”
But pressuring the FDA can lead to more suffering by damaging public trust in the agency — at a time when looming decisions over vaccines makes that trust more important than ever.
Trump is already agitating for fast-track approval, according to reports in the Financial Times and New York Times, despite widespread concerns that even the most promising vaccine candidates might need more time than Trump wants to give them.
“The more Trump is seen to be putting his finger on the scale, the less credible new treatments will likely be seen.” - David Shaywitz, biopharmaceutical entrepreneur and American Enterprise Institute scholar
Advertisement
Hahn has been assuring Americans that his agency will not approve a vaccine before it is safe to do so. But if it looks like the FDA rushed the process, people already suspicious of vaccines may doubt the agency’s word and refuse to get it.
This isn’t an especially partisan or ideological point of view ― or, at least, it doesn’t have to be. Among those warning Trump to back off are conservatives like David Shaywitz, a physician, biopharmaceutical entrepreneur and scholar at the conservative American Enterprise Institute.
“The more Trump is seen to be putting his finger on the scale, the less credible new treatments will likely be seen by doctors and patients alike—including those that might truly be effective,” Shaywitz wrote at The Bulwark on Sunday. “This means delayed adoption of potentially valuable therapeutics, and a longer time to capture both the medical and economic benefit at the population level.”
But recognizing the importance of FDA credibility would require thinking past this week’s headlines and recognizing that the pandemic won’t go away with wishful thinking.
These are precisely the sorts of things Trump has failed to do over the past few months ― like in late winter, when he ignored warnings and downplayed the coronavirus threat until the pandemic was already overwhelming health care providers, or in the late spring and early summer, when he pushed to resume regular activity even when public health experts warned that doing so would cause cases to spike.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-25--What Are COVID-19 Super-Spreader Events And How Can You Avoid Them?

A super-spreader event , then , is the circumstance in which this person spreads the virus around lots of people in one go .
While you might expect a person with COVID-19 to pass it on to one or two people , in a super-spreader event they might pass it around to 10 or more .
So far , super-spreader events have occurred in a range of places including meat packing plants , prisons , nightclubs and bars – basically any venue where people are in close proximity of one another , ventilation is poor and the virus gets the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ want there to be less focus on the people who act as the source of the infection ( the super-spreader , you might say ) and more on the circumstances the spread has happened – so as not to lay blame .
By shifting the focus , they say , this can help prevent situations from happening again .
Household transmission seems to be the most likely way to catch COVID-19 , but an analysis by London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine ( LSHTM ) found nursing homes , bars , religious @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clusters of cases .
There have also been some incidences at weddings , sporting events and conferences where large numbers of people became ill. Quentin Leclerc , a researcher in mathematical modeling of infectious disease , who was involved in the LSHTM analysis , says rather than focusing on the type of venue where the virus spreads ( for example , a nightclub or wedding venue ) , we should focus on the environmental conditions that appear to help fuel such events .
“ A lot of people ask : what are the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rank them ?
” Leclerc says , “ but it doesn ’ t make a lot of sense to talk about it this way .
“ What ’ s interesting is to say this is where we see super-spreading events , these are the characteristics of the settings , [ so ] these are the factors that facilitate super-spreading events , not the settings.
” Being indoors , having people in close proximity , poor ventilation and environments that are relatively cold ( such as food processing plants ) , seem to facilitate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ points out .
This is in comparison to , say , an outdoor venue that ’ s larger , where people can socially distance .
This explains why choirs – where the close proximity of singers , act of singing , and close contact activities like hugging and kissing – are thought to have fueled transmission , as well as factories and meat processing plants – where crowded and cold conditions are very common .
Between four food factories in England and Wales , more than 450 workers tested positive for COVID-19 back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for 200 cases alone .
Another factor to consider is if the people in close proximity of the infected person have weakened immune systems or underlying health issues .
If so , they may be more susceptible to the effects of the virus .
This might go some way in explaining why the virus has had such devastating effects in care homes .
Rowland Kao , an expert in veterinary epidemiology and data science at the University of Edinburgh in the UK , says many examples of COVID-19 spreading are due to a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on average .
This might occur , for example , if an infected person repeatedly visits indoor locations with close proximity to others .
“ This was the driver behind the notorious super-spreading situation in Seoul in May , which resulted in the contact tracing of thousands of individuals and over a hundred cases , ” he says .
The event in question took place when a 29-year-old man went to five clubs and bars in Seoul , South Korea .
The man later tested positive for COVID-19 and bars and clubs in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ least 101 cases were linked to the event and more than 7,000 people were tested to stop it spreading further .
Kao points out that 10 % of people were thought to be responsible for 80 % of new cases at the start of the pandemic .
When lockdown happened , this curbed such spread , but with restrictions easing and normality returning somewhat , there are concerns this could , again , drive super-spreading events .
So how can you avoid them ?
Leclerc says there ’ s a focus on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spaces with poor ventilation , crowded places with lots of people nearby , and close contact settings such as close-range conversations .
This is important to remember for anyone who wants to steer clear of a super-spreading event .
Experts are still learning about COVID-19 .
The information in this story is what was known or available as of publication , but guidance could change as scientists discover more about the virus .
Please check the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the most updated recommendations .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
“Super-spreader” is a non-scientific term, used to describe people who end up accidentally infecting significantly more people than would be expected – and in this case, we’re talking about people infecting others with COVID-19.
A super-spreader event, then, is the circumstance in which this person spreads the virus around lots of people in one go. While you might expect a person with COVID-19 to pass it on to one or two people, in a super-spreader event they might pass it around to 10 or more.
Advertisement
So far, super-spreader events have occurred in a range of places including meat packing plants, prisons, nightclubs and bars – basically any venue where people are in close proximity of one another, ventilation is poor and the virus gets the opportunity to spread like wildfire.
Scientists want there to be less focus on the people who act as the source of the infection (the super-spreader, you might say) and more on the circumstances the spread has happened – so as not to lay blame. By shifting the focus, they say, this can help prevent situations from happening again.
elenabs via Getty Images
Household transmission seems to be the most likely way to catch COVID-19, but an analysis by London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) found nursing homes, bars, religious settings and workplaces were associated with more clusters of cases. There have also been some incidences at weddings, sporting events and conferences where large numbers of people became ill.
Advertisement
Quentin Leclerc, a researcher in mathematical modeling of infectious disease, who was involved in the LSHTM analysis, says rather than focusing on the type of venue where the virus spreads (for example, a nightclub or wedding venue), we should focus on the environmental conditions that appear to help fuel such events.
“A lot of people ask: what are the most high-risk settings or how do we rank them?” Leclerc says, “but it doesn’t make a lot of sense to talk about it this way. “What’s interesting is to say this is where we see super-spreading events, these are the characteristics of the settings, [so] these are the factors that facilitate super-spreading events, not the settings.”
Being indoors, having people in close proximity, poor ventilation and environments that are relatively cold (such as food processing plants), seem to facilitate greater transmission of the virus, he points out. This is in comparison to, say, an outdoor venue that’s larger, where people can socially distance.
This explains why choirs – where the close proximity of singers, act of singing, and close contact activities like hugging and kissing – are thought to have fueled transmission, as well as factories and meat processing plants – where crowded and cold conditions are very common. Between four food factories in England and Wales, more than 450 workers tested positive for COVID-19 back in June. One plant was responsible for 200 cases alone.
Another factor to consider is if the people in close proximity of the infected person have weakened immune systems or underlying health issues. If so, they may be more susceptible to the effects of the virus. This might go some way in explaining why the virus has had such devastating effects in care homes.
Advertisement
Rowland Kao, an expert in veterinary epidemiology and data science at the University of Edinburgh in the UK, says many examples of COVID-19 spreading are due to a person having more contact with others than on average.
This might occur, for example, if an infected person repeatedly visits indoor locations with close proximity to others. “This was the driver behind the notorious super-spreading situation in Seoul in May, which resulted in the contact tracing of thousands of individuals and over a hundred cases,” he says.
The event in question took place when a 29-year-old man went to five clubs and bars in Seoul, South Korea. The man later tested positive for COVID-19 and bars and clubs in Seoul were forced to shut. At least 101 cases were linked to the event and more than 7,000 people were tested to stop it spreading further.
Kao points out that 10% of people were thought to be responsible for 80% of new cases at the start of the pandemic. When lockdown happened, this curbed such spread, but with restrictions easing and normality returning somewhat, there are concerns this could, again, drive super-spreading events.
So how can you avoid them? Leclerc says there’s a focus on the three Cs in Japan: avoiding closed spaces with poor ventilation, crowded places with lots of people nearby, and close contact settings such as close-range conversations. This is important to remember for anyone who wants to steer clear of a super-spreading event.
Advertisement
This story originally appeared in HuffPost UK.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-25--I’m A Fitness Instructor. Here’s How Food Delivery Helps Me Live A Balanced Life In Quarantine

Like many of us , I could never have imagined how my life would change in so many significant ways throughout the past five months .
I was the VP of talent development and innovation at a popular boutique fitness company , where I had been teaching classes , creating fitness content and leading expansion for nine years .
And , although I had been thinking about what was next for my career , the way my life was about to shake up and turn upside-down was well beyond my imagination .
In early-March , when COVID-19 started to become @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weekly fitness classes , riding the subway , seeing friends socially and enjoying eating out on the weekends .
I remember a distinct turning point here when , in a matter of days , I went from “ life as normal ” to second guessing my day-to-day activities and wondering what and how soon I should start eliminating items from my weekly routine .
With gyms being a controversial topic and extremely high on the list of places to avoid , my perspective quickly shifted , and by March 15 , it was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and I needed to temporarily stop teaching .
We obviously couldn ’ t see beyond that decision and could never have predicted the series of events that began to unfold in the coming weeks .
The very next day , our company decided to temporarily close for the foreseeable future , laying off the majority of employees .
With the future of fitness unknown , Kate and I knew we needed to move quickly to provide an alternative to in-studio classes for our clients .
Within a week , we launched our digital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our living room — and our lives are forever changed .
Teaching together for the first time ever , we dove in head-first , worked around the clock to figure out how to run classes on video conferencing , built a website in two days and shoved our furniture into corners of our apartment to allow for optimal filming space every day .
Without ever needing ( or wanting ) to leave our apartment , our schedules flipped entirely to programming virtual fitness classes and training private clients .
Each day was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to pivot and adapt quickly in order to manage the overwhelming positive response and demand for our new workouts .
Insert our quarantine mega time-saver : food delivery apps like Grubhub !
When we factored in meal prep , cooking and cleaning , it was simply not realistic to think that we could also devote multiple hours each day to prepping lunch and dinner in addition to running a home business .
We needed to optimize our time for the success of KKsweat and our mental health , as well .
If you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , stick to your regular meal schedule and order in advance .
Many apps include a pre-order function so that your food arrives when you ’ re hungry and not hangry ( when we ’ re hangry , we ’ re less likely to portion control ) .
Always ask for dressing or sauce on the side .
Ask for whole grain options or brown rice when applicable , and skip the side of fries .
Add an extra protein instead , and be sure to tell the restaurant to skip the plastic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ feel better about your food choices , open up time in your day and help reduce your use of plastic .
And , when apps like Grubhub offer deals or Perks , it ’ s less stressful on your mind and wallet .
I consider that a quadruple win !
I think that Kate and I have a long ( and exciting ) road of virtual classes and training sessions ahead of us , and relying upon the convenience of food delivery apps will remain a part of our new — always healthy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ app to discover Perks : always on deals , free food and rewards from local restaurants and national favorites .
With over 300,000 restaurants nationwide , you can discover something new wherever you are and see which of your favorite restaurants are offering Perks .
Click here to learn how to make every delivery more rewarding with Grubhub Perks .

RYOT Studio; Photos courtesy of Kara Liotta
Like many of us, I could never have imagined how my life would change in so many significant ways throughout the past five months.
I was the VP of talent development and innovation at a popular boutique fitness company, where I had been teaching classes, creating fitness content and leading expansion for nine years. And, although I had been thinking about what was next for my career, the way my life was about to shake up and turn upside-down was well beyond my imagination.
Advertisement
In early-March, when COVID-19 started to become more prevalent, I was still teaching weekly fitness classes, riding the subway, seeing friends socially and enjoying eating out on the weekends. I remember a distinct turning point here when, in a matter of days, I went from “life as normal” to second guessing my day-to-day activities and wondering what and how soon I should start eliminating items from my weekly routine.
With gyms being a controversial topic and extremely high on the list of places to avoid, my perspective quickly shifted, and by March 15, it was clear that my fiance, Kate, and I needed to temporarily stop teaching. We obviously couldn’t see beyond that decision and could never have predicted the series of events that began to unfold in the coming weeks.
The very next day, our company decided to temporarily close for the foreseeable future, laying off the majority of employees. With the future of fitness unknown, Kate and I knew we needed to move quickly to provide an alternative to in-studio classes for our clients. Within a week, we launched our digital fitness business, KKsweat, right from our living room — and our lives are forever changed.
Courtesy of Kara Liotta
Advertisement
Teaching together for the first time ever, we dove in head-first, worked around the clock to figure out how to run classes on video conferencing, built a website in two days and shoved our furniture into corners of our apartment to allow for optimal filming space every day.
Without ever needing (or wanting) to leave our apartment, our schedules flipped entirely to programming virtual fitness classes and training private clients. Each day was a new challenge and we found ourselves needing to pivot and adapt quickly in order to manage the overwhelming positive response and demand for our new workouts.
Insert our quarantine mega time-saver: food delivery apps like Grubhub! When we factored in meal prep, cooking and cleaning, it was simply not realistic to think that we could also devote multiple hours each day to prepping lunch and dinner in addition to running a home business. We needed to optimize our time for the success of KKsweat and our mental health, as well.
Courtesy of Kara Liotta
And for those who think eating from restaurants isn’t compatible with a healthy lifestyle, here are a few tips I offer my clients:
Advertisement
If you want to make meal delivery options healthier, stick to your regular meal schedule and order in advance. Many apps include a pre-order function so that your food arrives when you’re hungry and not hangry (when we’re hangry, we’re less likely to portion control). Always ask for dressing or sauce on the side. Ask for whole grain options or brown rice when applicable, and skip the side of fries. Add an extra protein instead, and be sure to tell the restaurant to skip the plastic utensils!
These tips will make you feel better about your food choices, open up time in your day and help reduce your use of plastic. And, when apps like Grubhub offer deals or Perks, it’s less stressful on your mind and wallet. I consider that a quadruple win!
I think that Kate and I have a long (and exciting) road of virtual classes and training sessions ahead of us, and relying upon the convenience of food delivery apps will remain a part of our new — always healthy — quarantine lifestyle.
Courtesy of Kara Liotta
From Grubhub:
Download the Grubhub app to discover Perks: always on deals, free food and rewards from local restaurants and national favorites. With over 300,000 restaurants nationwide, you can discover something new wherever you are and see which of your favorite restaurants are offering Perks. Click here to learn how to make every delivery more rewarding with Grubhub Perks.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-27--These Are The Victims Of The Kenosha Protest Shooting

Friends and family remembered two men shot dead while attending protests Tuesday night for Jacob Blake , a Black man shot in the back Sunday by a Kenosha , Wisconsin , police officer .
Police arrested and charged 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse with murder in the shooting of several people at the protest .
Two men were killed , and a third was seriously injured .
Huber , 26 , was from the Silver Lake community in Kenosha County , the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported .
An avid skateboarder , Huber was “ really sweet ” and “ really friendly , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He was one of the most amazing people , ” Huber ’ s girlfriend , Hannah Gittings , said at a gathering Wednesday night near the location where he was killed .
“ He took down an armed gunman with nothing but his fucking skateboard , and he took that fucking bullet.
” A GoFundMe page has gone up to support Gittings and her daughter .
Gittings posted on Facebook asking people to “ skate as hard as you can ” in Huber ’ s memory .
Mourners gathered at a local skatepark @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Rosenbaum , a 36-year-old father , lived in Kenosha , the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported .
Rosenbaum originally came from Texas and is survived by his fiancee and 2-year-old daughter .
Rosenbaum , known by friends and family as “ Jojo , ” was a jokester and “ loved his daughter very much , ” his sister told the Chicago Sun-Times .
Grosskreutz , 26 , was shot in the arm Tuesday and is recovering in the hospital , the Journal Sentinel reported .
A resident of West Allis , Wisconsin , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ social justice group the People ’ s Revolution Movement .
Friends told Milwaukee TV station WTMJ that Grosskreutz was a volunteer medic at Tuesday ’ s protest and had also been at other Black Lives Matter protests over the summer .
Other friends launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for his medical costs .
Rittenhouse had expressed his love of guns and police on his Facebook profile , which has been taken down .
It was full of “ Blue Lives Matter ” and other pro-police slogans .
He was also reportedly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ General Josh Kaul on Wednesday identified the police officer who shot Blake as Rusten Sheskey .
Sheskey shot Blake in the back while Blake was getting into his car .
Blake is still in the hospital and is paralyzed below the waist , his family said .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Friends and family remembered two men shot dead while attending protests Tuesday night for Jacob Blake, a Black man shot in the back Sunday by a Kenosha, Wisconsin, police officer.
Police arrested and charged 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse with murder in the shooting of several people at the protest. Two men were killed, and a third was seriously injured.
Advertisement
Here’s what we know about the victims.
Anthony Huber
Anthony Huber GoFundMe
Huber, 26, was from the Silver Lake community in Kenosha County, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. An avid skateboarder, Huber was “really sweet” and “really friendly,” friends told the newspaper.
“He was one of the most amazing people,” Huber’s girlfriend, Hannah Gittings, said at a gathering Wednesday night near the location where he was killed. “He took down an armed gunman with nothing but his fucking skateboard, and he took that fucking bullet.”
A GoFundMe page has gone up to support Gittings and her daughter.
Gittings posted on Facebook asking people to “skate as hard as you can” in Huber’s memory. Mourners gathered at a local skatepark Huber frequented, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
Advertisement
Joseph Rosenbaum
Joseph "Jojo" Rosenbaum Facebook
Rosenbaum, a 36-year-old father, lived in Kenosha, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. Rosenbaum originally came from Texas and is survived by his fiancee and 2-year-old daughter.
Rosenbaum, known by friends and family as “Jojo,” was a jokester and “loved his daughter very much,” his sister told the Chicago Sun-Times.
Gaige Grosskreutz
Grosskreutz, 26, was shot in the arm Tuesday and is recovering in the hospital, the Journal Sentinel reported. A resident of West Allis, Wisconsin, Grosskreutz was at the protest with the social justice group the People’s Revolution Movement.
Advertisement
Friends told Milwaukee TV station WTMJ that Grosskreutz was a volunteer medic at Tuesday’s protest and had also been at other Black Lives Matter protests over the summer. Other friends launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for his medical costs.
Rittenhouse had expressed his love of guns and police on his Facebook profile, which has been taken down. It was full of “Blue Lives Matter” and other pro-police slogans. He was also reportedly a onetime police cadet.
Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul on Wednesday identified the police officer who shot Blake as Rusten Sheskey. Sheskey shot Blake in the back while Blake was getting into his car.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-27--Trump Once Freaked Out After Missing A Call With Putin, Former U.K. Adviser Says

Donald Trump once erupted into a fury after an aide told him he had missed a phone call with Vladimir Putin , an ex-adviser to former British Prime Minister Theresa May said on a podcast released Tuesday .
Nick Timothy , who served as joint chief of staff to May from 2016 to 2017 , shared his anecdotes of the U.S. president on the “ What Were They Thinking ?
” podcast , which interviews former political figures in the United Kingdom .
“ Meeting Donald Trump was fairly extraordinary , ” Timothy said , when prompted to reflect on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that during a meeting with May in the Oval Office , Trump went on a tirade against Michael Flynn , who was serving as his national security adviser at the time .
“ Somebody just mentioned in passing that Vladimir Putin had asked for a call with him , and right in front us , he absolutely shouted down Mike Flynn .
Like , really shouted , ” Timothy said .
“ This was at a formal dinner , with butlers and fancy crockery .
... [ Trump ] was properly shouting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ‘ if Putin wants a call with me , you just put him through.
’ ” Trump ’ s fervor for the Russian president was further confirmed last week in old documents released by the Senate Intelligence Committee , showing the president fawning over the Russian leader and claiming he was a “ big fan.
” Timothy said the entire affair was “ not especially reassuring about the state of [ Trump ’ s ] mind , or the stability of decision-making in the White House.
” Bannon in particular sounded like someone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ books ” rather than a full-fledged expert , Timothy said , musing how the former Trump strategist had referred to Japanese people as “ warrior people ” when debating whether or not Japan should have its own military as a deterrent against China .
( Japan has not formally had an offensive military since World War II , and instead calls its peacekeeping unit a self-defense force . )
On August 20 , Bannon was arrested for allegedly embezzling funds from an online “ We Build The Wall ” fundraiser for personal expenses @

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Donald Trump once erupted into a fury after an aide told him he had missed a phone call with Vladimir Putin, an ex-adviser to former British Prime Minister Theresa May said on a podcast released Tuesday.
Nick Timothy, who served as joint chief of staff to May from 2016 to 2017, shared his anecdotes of the U.S. president on the “What Were They Thinking?” podcast, which interviews former political figures in the United Kingdom.
Advertisement
“Meeting Donald Trump was fairly extraordinary,” Timothy said, when prompted to reflect on unusual occurrences during his career. He said that during a meeting with May in the Oval Office, Trump went on a tirade against Michael Flynn, who was serving as his national security adviser at the time.
“Somebody just mentioned in passing that Vladimir Putin had asked for a call with him, and right in front us, he absolutely shouted down Mike Flynn. Like, really shouted,” Timothy said. “This was at a formal dinner, with butlers and fancy crockery. ... [Trump] was properly shouting at him down the table, because ‘if Putin wants a call with me, you just put him through.’”
Trump’s fervor for the Russian president was further confirmed last week in old documents released by the Senate Intelligence Committee, showing the president fawning over the Russian leader and claiming he was a “big fan.”
Timothy said the entire affair was “not especially reassuring about the state of [Trump’s] mind, or the stability of decision-making in the White House.”
Advertisement
In another story related to that same visit, Timothy said Trump and then-White House chief strategist Steve Bannon had pontificated on geopolitical issues in front of May in a “pretty strange” manner.
Bannon in particular sounded like someone who had “read a couple of books” rather than a full-fledged expert, Timothy said, musing how the former Trump strategist had referred to Japanese people as “warrior people” when debating whether or not Japan should have its own military as a deterrent against China. (Japan has not formally had an offensive military since World War II, and instead calls its peacekeeping unit a self-defense force.)


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-27--Nancy Pelosi Doesn't Think Joe Biden Should Debate Donald Trump

Donald Trump and Joe Biden are scheduled to have their first presidential debate on Sept. 29 , but Nancy Pelosi doesn ’ t seem that excited about it .
The House Speaker told reporters on Thursday that she doesn ’ t see the point in having any presidential debates this year .
“ I don ’ t think that there should be any debates , ” Pelosi said , adding that she doesn ’ t want them to be “ an exercise in skullduggery.
” “ I wouldn ’ t legitimize a conversation with him , nor a debate in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ States , ” she said .
Pelosi predicted that in the upcoming debate the president will “ probably act in a way that is beneath the dignity of the presidency ; he does that every day.
” “ But I think it will also belittle what the debates are supposed to be about , ” Pelosi added .
“ And they ’ re not to be about skullduggery on the part of somebody who has no respect for the office he holds , much less the democratic process.
” If Biden asked for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not to “ dignify that conversation with Donald Trump , ” she said .
Biden ’ s campaign has a different opinion on the matter and made that clear a short time later .
As long as the debate commission sticks to the rules it sets , the former veep told reporters that he plans not only to debate Trump but also to be “ fact-checker on the floor.
” '' No .
As long as the commission continues down the straight and narrow as they have , I 'm going to debate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ response to Pelosi 's comments .
Biden adds that he will be `` fact checker on the floor '' when he does debate Trump .
https : //t.co/sYKTSg70o0 — Molly Nagle ( @ MollyNagle3 ) August 27 , 2020 Trump was the subject of much Twitter mockery Wednesday after he suggested that he and the former vice president take drug tests before the event to prove they aren ’ t using anything to enhance their debate performances .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Donald Trump and Joe Biden are scheduled to have their first presidential debate on Sept. 29, but Nancy Pelosi doesn’t seem that excited about it.
The House Speaker told reporters on Thursday that she doesn’t see the point in having any presidential debates this year.
Advertisement
Her reasoning: “skullduggery.”
“I don’t think that there should be any debates,” Pelosi said, adding that she doesn’t want them to be “an exercise in skullduggery.”
“I wouldn’t legitimize a conversation with him, nor a debate in terms of the presidency of the United States,” she said.
Pelosi predicted that in the upcoming debate the president will “probably act in a way that is beneath the dignity of the presidency; he does that every day.”
“But I think it will also belittle what the debates are supposed to be about,” Pelosi added. “And they’re not to be about skullduggery on the part of somebody who has no respect for the office he holds, much less the democratic process.”
Advertisement
If Biden asked for her opinion, Pelosi would tell him not to “dignify that conversation with Donald Trump,” she said.
Biden’s campaign has a different opinion on the matter and made that clear a short time later.
As long as the debate commission sticks to the rules it sets, the former veep told reporters that he plans not only to debate Trump but also to be “fact-checker on the floor.”
"No. As long as the commission continues down the straight and narrow as they have, I'm going to debate him," @JoeBiden says in response to Pelosi's comments.
Biden adds that he will be "fact checker on the floor" when he does debate Trump. https://t.co/sYKTSg70o0 — Molly Nagle (@MollyNagle3) August 27, 2020
Trump has suggested changing the debate plans just slightly.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-27--Joe Biden Says Donald Trump Is 'Rooting For More Violence'

Ahead of Trump ’ s nomination acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention on Thursday , Biden addressed the violence in Wisconsin sparked by the police shooting of Jacob Blake , a Black man shot seven times in his back , leaving him paralyzed .
“ He views this as a political benefit .
He ’ s rooting for more violence , not less , ” Biden said during an interview with MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell , pointing to comments from White House adviser Kellyanne Conway calling the protests a political boost for Trump .
( Watch below . )
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ vandalism and violence reigns , the better it is for the very clear choice on who ’ s best on public safety and law and order , ” Conway , who is stepping down from her White House job next week , said earlier on Thursday .
Biden also responded to Vice President Mike Pence ’ s RNC speech in which he said people “ won ’ t be safe in Joe Biden ’ s America ” and depicted the election as a choice between “ law and order ” and lawlessness .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ is we ’ re in Donald Trump ’ s America , ” Biden said on MSNBC .
“ COVID is out of control.
” He added : “ What bothers me the most , is that he ’ s pouring gasoline on the racial flames that are burning now .
...
This is a real problem , and it keeps getting worse under this president.
” Hundreds of people have been demonstrating against police brutality in Kenosha since video of the shooting , which is under federal investigation , was posted online .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ damaged or destroyed .
A 17-year-old white youth who joined other heavily armed vigilantes at the protests was charged with shooting three people , killing two .
The suspect , Kyle Rittenhouse , attended a Trump rally in January .
“ I condemn violence in any form , whether it ’ s looting or whatever it is , ” Biden said in Thursday ’ s interview .
He questioned why the right hasn ’ t denounced “ some of the militia folks ” at the protests or the 17-year-old accused gunman .
Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pelosi ’ s advice that he refuse to debate Trump .
The House leader said any debate with the president would “ belittle ” the forum and “ legitimize ” conversation with him .
“ I ’ m going to debate him , ” Biden said .
“ I ’ m going to be a fact-checker on the floor , while I ’ m debating him .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden accused President Donald Trump of fanning the flames of racial unrest in order to bolster his reelection prospects.
Ahead of Trump’s nomination acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention on Thursday, Biden addressed the violence in Wisconsin sparked by the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man shot seven times in his back, leaving him paralyzed.
Advertisement
“He views this as a political benefit. He’s rooting for more violence, not less,” Biden said during an interview with MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell, pointing to comments from White House adviser Kellyanne Conway calling the protests a political boost for Trump. (Watch below.)
“The more chaos and anarchy and vandalism and violence reigns, the better it is for the very clear choice on who’s best on public safety and law and order,” Conway, who is stepping down from her White House job next week, said earlier on Thursday.
Biden also responded to Vice President Mike Pence’s RNC speech in which he said people “won’t be safe in Joe Biden’s America” and depicted the election as a choice between “law and order” and lawlessness.
“The problem we have right now is we’re in Donald Trump’s America,” Biden said on MSNBC. “COVID is out of control.”
Advertisement
He added: “What bothers me the most, is that he’s pouring gasoline on the racial flames that are burning now. ... This is a real problem, and it keeps getting worse under this president.”
Hundreds of people have been demonstrating against police brutality in Kenosha since video of the shooting, which is under federal investigation, was posted online. Fires set during protests left many buildings damaged or destroyed. A 17-year-old white youth who joined other heavily armed vigilantes at the protests was charged with shooting three people, killing two. The suspect, Kyle Rittenhouse, attended a Trump rally in January.
“I condemn violence in any form, whether it’s looting or whatever it is,” Biden said in Thursday’s interview. He questioned why the right hasn’t denounced “some of the militia folks” at the protests or the 17-year-old accused gunman.
Biden also declined to take House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s advice that he refuse to debate Trump. The House leader said any debate with the president would “belittle” the forum and “legitimize” conversation with him.
“I’m going to debate him,” Biden said. “I’m going to be a fact-checker on the floor, while I’m debating him.”
Advertisement
Watch Biden’s interview with Andrea Mitchell:


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-27--Michelle Obama Describes Being 'Invisible' To White People — Even As First Lady

The former first lady detailed some of those “ invisible ” incidents and the exhausting double standards that people of color face on the latest episode of her Spotify podcast .
“ When I ’ ve been completely incognito , during the eight years in the White House , walking the dogs on the canal , people will come up and pet my dogs , but will not look me in the eye , ” Obama said .
“ They don ’ t know it ’ s me .
“ White folks don ’ t understand it ’ s like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s “ so telling of how white America views people who are not like them .
You know , we don ’ t exist .
And when we do exist we exist as a threat .
And that ’ s exhausting.
” “ What the white community doesn ’ t understand about being a person of color in this nation is that there are daily slights , ” Obama said , “ in our workplaces where people talk over you , or people don ’ t even see you.
” The episode @ @ @ @ @ @ @ close friends , Denielle Pemberton-Heard , Kelly Dibble and Dr. Sharon Malone .
The former first lady told the story of a slight she faced alongside Pemberton-Heard , when she was still in the White House and they were coming back from a soccer game with Malia and Sasha Obama .
“ We were stopping to get ice cream and I had told the secret service to stand back , because we were trying to be normal , ” Obama said , before describing what happened as they stood in line .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ woman , I notice that white people don ’ t even see me .
...
I ’ m standing there with two little Black girls , another Black female adult , they ’ re in soccer uniforms .
And a white woman cuts right in front of us to order .
Like ― she didn ’ t even see us.
” “ The girl behind the counter almost took her order .
And I had to stand up because I know [ Pemberton-Heard ] was like , ‘ Well , I ’ m @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Michelle Obama , ’ ” she said .
“ So I stepped up and I said , ‘ Excuse me ?
You don ’ t see us four people standing right here , you just jumped in line ?
’ ” Obama said the woman “ didn ’ t apologize , she never looked me in my eye , she didn ’ t know it was me .
All she saw was a Black person , or a group of Black people , or maybe she didn ’ t even see that .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ former attorney has repeatedly spoken out about the racism she faced as the first Black first lady , including being called an ape and facing disparaging comments about her body .
“ The shards that cut me the deepest were the ones that intended to cut , ” Obama said in 2017 .
“ Knowing that after eight years of working really hard for this country , there are still people who won ’ t see me for what I am because of my skin color .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Michelle Obama knows what it’s like to experience “daily slights” as a Black woman.
The former first lady detailed some of those “invisible” incidents and the exhausting double standards that people of color face on the latest episode of her Spotify podcast.
“When I’ve been completely incognito, during the eight years in the White House, walking the dogs on the canal, people will come up and pet my dogs, but will not look me in the eye,” Obama said. “They don’t know it’s me.
Advertisement
“White folks don’t understand it’s like that,” she added. It’s “so telling of how white America views people who are not like them. You know, we don’t exist. And when we do exist we exist as a threat. And that’s exhausting.”
NBC via Getty Images
That sort of attitude and bias exists everywhere.
“What the white community doesn’t understand about being a person of color in this nation is that there are daily slights,” Obama said, “in our workplaces where people talk over you, or people don’t even see you.”
The episode also featured three of Obama’s close friends, Denielle Pemberton-Heard, Kelly Dibble and Dr. Sharon Malone. The former first lady told the story of a slight she faced alongside Pemberton-Heard, when she was still in the White House and they were coming back from a soccer game with Malia and Sasha Obama.
Advertisement
“We were stopping to get ice cream and I had told the secret service to stand back, because we were trying to be normal,” Obama said, before describing what happened as they stood in line. “When I’m just a Black woman, I notice that white people don’t even see me. ... I’m standing there with two little Black girls, another Black female adult, they’re in soccer uniforms. And a white woman cuts right in front of us to order. Like ― she didn’t even see us.”
Malia, Sasha and Michelle Obama listen as then-President Barack Obama speaks at the Democratic National Convention in 2012. Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images
“The girl behind the counter almost took her order. And I had to stand up because I know [Pemberton-Heard] was like, ‘Well, I’m not gonna cause a scene with Michelle Obama,’” she said. “So I stepped up and I said, ‘Excuse me? You don’t see us four people standing right here, you just jumped in line?’”
Obama said the woman “didn’t apologize, she never looked me in my eye, she didn’t know it was me. All she saw was a Black person, or a group of Black people, or maybe she didn’t even see that. Because we were that invisible.”
The former attorney has repeatedly spoken out about the racism she faced as the first Black first lady, including being called an ape and facing disparaging comments about her body.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-08-27--Jared Kushner On NBA Strike: They're 'Fortunate' They Can 'Take A Night Off'

Kushner went on to cite President Donald Trump ’ s “ record ” of “ historic criminal justice reform , ” “ fighting for school choice , ” and “ longterm funding ” for historically Black colleges as ways the White House is promoting social justice .
“ People don ’ t like seeing what ’ s happening in a lot of theses cities .
... We just have to take this conversation from an emotional one to a constructive one , ” said Kushner .
Kushner also told Politico that he ’ d be reaching out to Lakers player @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ I think that it ’ s nice that they ’ re standing up for the issue , but I ’ d like to see them start moving into concrete solutions that are productive .
And again , President Trump in this White House is willing to work with them , ” he said .
Kushner ’ s comment about NBA players having the “ luxury ” to not work for a night comes on the heels of an impassioned statement from Bucks guard Sterling Brown , who has himself been a victim @ @ @ @

Kushner went on to cite President Donald Trump’s “record” of “historic criminal justice reform,” “fighting for school choice,” and “longterm funding” for historically Black colleges as ways the White House is promoting social justice.
“People don’t like seeing what’s happening in a lot of theses cities. ... We just have to take this conversation from an emotional one to a constructive one,” said Kushner.
Kushner also told Politico that he’d be reaching out to Lakers player LeBron James to discuss the protests. “I think that it’s nice that they’re standing up for the issue, but I’d like to see them start moving into concrete solutions that are productive. And again, President Trump in this White House is willing to work with them,” he said.
Kushner’s comment about NBA players having the “luxury” to not work for a night comes on the heels of an impassioned statement from Bucks guard Sterling Brown, who has himself been a victim of police brutality.