buzzfeed--2020-04-21--When Will Your State Reopen? Here’s The Data Being Used To Decide.

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The easiest of the White House criteria to assess is the two-week decline in the number of new reported cases of COVID-19 per day .
To help you judge how close your state is to meeting that goal , BuzzFeed News has plotted the trajectory of new cases for each US state and territory .
“ You need an infrastructure of an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contact tracing , ” Ezekiel Emanuel , vice provost of global initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania and a former health policy adviser to the Obama administration , told BuzzFeed News .
“ Those are absolutely essential for going forward.
” But the criteria don ’ t explicitly include a provision for widespread population testing and tracing of the contacts of people who test positive — which many experts say is crucial .
The White House ’ s criteria for states to start reopening their economies have three components : They should have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 14 days ; reports of symptoms that might represent undiagnosed COVID-19 should have been in decline for the same period ; and hospitals should have enough capacity to handle cases without operating in crisis mode and have a “ robust testing program ” for health care workers .
But in a departure from his administration ’ s own reopening plan , the next day Trump tweeted “ LIBERATE MINNESOTA !
” followed by similar tweets about Michigan and Virginia — calling out states with Democratic governors under lockdowns and apparently giving his approval @ @ @ @ @ @ @ streets to protest stay-at-home orders .
“ We must have a working economy , and we want to get it back very , very quickly , and that ’ s what ’ s going to happen , ” Trump said on April 16 .
That day , the White House released guidelines for “ Opening Up America Again , ” intended to help state and local officials judge when it ’ s safe to start relaxing social distancing rules .
Measures taken by many states including stay-at-home orders and business closures are credited @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and saving lives , but that has come with a high economic cost .
With the US economy taking a battering from COVID-19 lockdowns , President Donald Trump wants states to get back to business as soon as possible .
While some states may decide on relaxing their COVID-19 restrictions individually , others — including Michigan and Minnesota — have joined regional alliances to coordinate their plans .
Few states currently have a clearly declining trajectory of new cases .
Of those targeted by Trump ’ s “ liberate ” tweets , only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seeing a peak in the number of new cases around April 7 .
New cases in Minnesota and Virginia still seem to be on the rise .
We have highlighted the worst-affected state , New York , the most populous , California , and the three states targeted in Trump ’ s tweets , plus two states that were badly affected but are now on a declining trajectory of new cases : Washington and Louisiana .
Other states and territories are shown in gray .
You can search for any of the grayed-out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ top of the chart — start typing its name or use the dropdown menu , and the state ’ s trajectory of new cases will appear in black .
Because delays in reporting cases can cause spikes and dips in the data , this chart plots the daily average number of new cases recorded over the preceding seven days to show a smoother trajectory .
The vertical axis has a logarithmic scale , which makes the difference between 10 and 100 take up the same height on the chart as the difference between @ @ @ @ @ @ @ easier to see the trajectories for the states with fewer cases , which would otherwise be clustered together at the bottom of the chart .
This chart shows the trajectory of new cases for these regional groupings .
The Western group comprises California , Oregon , and Washington ; the Midwest group includes Illinois , Indiana , Kentucky , Michigan , Minnesota , Ohio , and Wisconsin ; and the Northeast group is Connecticut , Delaware , Massachusetts , New Jersey , New York , Pennsylvania , and Rhode Island .
So far @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decline in new cases is the Western grouping .
On April 14 , California Gov .
Gavin Newsom warned state residents against expecting a rapid return to normal , even after restrictions start to be lifted .
“ You may be having dinner with a waiter wearing gloves , maybe a face mask , dinner where the menu is disposable , where ... half the tables in that restaurant no longer appear , where your temperature is checked before you walk into the establishment , ” he said .
Some experts question whether @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases is the best measure for deciding whether to reopen , however .
Emanuel said that a declining trajectory of new cases may not be enough to safely relax restrictions , if the number of cases is still high .
Computational epidemiologist Maia Majumder of Harvard University warned that daily counts of new cases may be an unreliable indicator of whether the epidemic is subsiding , given differences in the extent of testing from state-to-state and over time .
Across the nation , the number of tests being conducted each day seems to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to data collected by the COVID Tracking Project .
This means that a decline in the number of new cases in some states could reflect a falloff in testing , rather than a real decline in transmission of the coronavirus .
“ New deaths per day might be the better metric to watch , given that deaths from COVID-19 are less likely to be misclassified , ” Majumder told BuzzFeed News by email .
( There are also concerns that deaths may have been undercounted , and states are taking different positions on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ died as a result of COVID-19 without a positive diagnosis . )
In addition to a decline in new cases , a second White House criterion suggests that states should wait for a 14-day decline in reports of symptoms that might represent undiagnosed COVID-19 cases .
But those numbers may also be difficult to reliably assess .
The CDC ’ s FluView surveillance program each week calculates the percentage of outpatient consultations for a sample of health care providers in each state that involve patients reporting a fever and a cough or a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than influenza .
Those numbers likely include some people who actually have COVID-19 .
But the pandemic may have changed the way in which people seek medical help , potentially biasing the numbers .
The CDC has warned that its surveillance systems “ are currently being affected by recent changes in health care seeking behavior , including increasing use of telemedicine.
” The White House ’ s third criterion addresses the need for hospitals to be able to cope with treating COVID-19 patients , including robust testing of health care workers .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who has been infected and beaten off the virus , which could help identify workers who may have some immunity .
But meeting this goal will also be difficult : Few of the available tests have been approved for use by the FDA and their accuracy is far from guaranteed .
It ’ s also unclear whether having antibodies against the coronavirus will give people complete immunity .
The White House criteria are broadly similar to other recommendations made to state governors by public health experts .
On April 17 , the Center @ @ @ @ @ @ @ released a report co-authored by former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb that also suggested states should consider starting to reopen their economies after the number of new cases has declined for at least 14 days .
In addition , it suggested states must have the ability to test , at minimum , all people with COVID-19 symptoms , be able to safely care for all patients and provide personal protective equipment for health care workers .
Finally , the report said that states must be able to trace contacts of all new cases — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ workers to conduct this laborious work across the country .
The White House guidelines don ’ t include a provision for widespread testing and contact tracing as an explicit criterion for starting to reopen a state ’ s economy .
Instead , this is included under a separate heading of “ Core State Preparedness Responsibilities.
” Although the guidelines put responsibility for testing and contact tracing onto the states , the slow rollout of testing across the nation has widely been blamed on bureaucratic obstacles imposed by the federal government and the distribution @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CDC .
Experts consulted by BuzzFeed News urged states to concentrate on improving their capacity for testing before relaxing their COVID-19 restrictions .
“ I don ’ t think there ’ s a responsible expert out there that thinks we ’ ve done enough testing , ” Emanuel said .
Emanuel wants to see testing expanded to people without symptoms who may be spreading COVID-19 , including essential workers like grocery clerks and bus drivers who could infect many people .
Exact estimates differ , but asymptomatic cases may make up as much @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to CDC director Robert Redfield .
Both the White House and Center for Health Security guidelines call for a phased reopening of facilities including schools , restaurants , and other businesses .
But it ’ s still unclear which aspects of the current restrictions are doing the most to limit transmission of COVID-19 .
That means states should carefully monitor the effects of reopening to see which moves cause transmission to ramp up again and which have relatively small effects , according to Jessica Metcalf , a demographer at Princeton University who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ One of the big questions is which pieces of social distancing policies are having the largest effects , ” Metcalf told BuzzFeed News .
“ Amazingly , we do n't really know.
” Learning which policies have the biggest effect in limiting viral spread is important because most experts predict that we may need several cycles of social distancing and relaxation of these controls before an effective vaccine is developed and it becomes safe to go back to something resembling normality .
“ We just can ’ t squander any opportunity to @ @ @ @ @ @

This chart shows the trajectory of new cases for these regional groupings. The Western group comprises California, Oregon, and Washington; the Midwest group includes Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin; and the Northeast group is Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island.
The Western grouping has seen a slight decline in new cases. On April 14, California Gov. Gavin Newsom warned state residents against expecting a rapid return to normal, even after restrictions start to be lifted. “You may be having dinner with a waiter wearing gloves, maybe a face mask, dinner where the menu is disposable, where ... half the tables in that restaurant no longer appear, where your temperature is checked before you walk into the establishment,” he said.
Some experts question whether a decline in the number of new cases is the best measure for deciding whether to reopen, however. Emanuel said that a declining trajectory of new cases may not be enough to safely relax restrictions, if the number of cases is still high.
Computational epidemiologist Maia Majumder of Harvard University warned that daily counts of new cases may be an unreliable indicator of whether the epidemic is subsiding, given differences in the extent of testing from state-to-state and over time.
Across the nation, the number of tests being conducted each day seems to be plateauing or even declining, according to data collected by the COVID Tracking Project. This means that a decline in the number of new cases in some states could reflect a falloff in testing, rather than a real decline in transmission of the coronavirus.
“New deaths per day might be the better metric to watch, given that deaths from COVID-19 are less likely to be misclassified,” Majumder told BuzzFeed News by email. (There are also concerns that deaths may have been undercounted, and states are taking different positions on whether to count people presumed to have died as a result of COVID-19 without a positive diagnosis.)
In addition to a decline in new cases, a second White House criterion suggests that states should wait for a 14-day decline in reports of symptoms that might represent undiagnosed COVID-19 cases. But those numbers may also be difficult to reliably assess.
The CDC’s FluView surveillance program each week calculates the percentage of outpatient consultations for a sample of health care providers in each state that involve patients reporting a fever and a cough or a sore throat without a known cause other than influenza. Those numbers likely include some people who actually have COVID-19. But the pandemic may have changed the way in which people seek medical help, potentially biasing the numbers. The CDC has warned that its surveillance systems “are currently being affected by recent changes in health care seeking behavior, including increasing use of telemedicine.”
The White House’s third criterion addresses the need for hospitals to be able to cope with treating COVID-19 patients, including robust testing of health care workers. This criterion suggests using antibody tests to reveal who has been infected and beaten off the virus, which could help identify workers who may have some immunity.
But meeting this goal will also be difficult: Few of the available tests have been approved for use by the FDA and their accuracy is far from guaranteed. It’s also unclear whether having antibodies against the coronavirus will give people complete immunity.
The White House criteria are broadly similar to other recommendations made to state governors by public health experts. On April 17, the Center for Health Security at Johns Hopkins University released a report co-authored by former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb that also suggested states should consider starting to reopen their economies after the number of new cases has declined for at least 14 days.
In addition, it suggested states must have the ability to test, at minimum, all people with COVID-19 symptoms, be able to safely care for all patients and provide personal protective equipment for health care workers. Finally, the report said that states must be able to trace contacts of all new cases — which may require tens of thousands of workers to conduct this laborious work across the country.
The White House guidelines don’t include a provision for widespread testing and contact tracing as an explicit criterion for starting to reopen a state’s economy. Instead, this is included under a separate heading of “Core State Preparedness Responsibilities.”
Although the guidelines put responsibility for testing and contact tracing onto the states, the slow rollout of testing across the nation has widely been blamed on bureaucratic obstacles imposed by the federal government and the distribution of faulty test kits manufactured by the CDC.
Experts consulted by BuzzFeed News urged states to concentrate on improving their capacity for testing before relaxing their COVID-19 restrictions. “I don’t think there’s a responsible expert out there that thinks we’ve done enough testing,” Emanuel said.
Emanuel wants to see testing expanded to people without symptoms who may be spreading COVID-19, including essential workers like grocery clerks and bus drivers who could infect many people. Exact estimates differ, but asymptomatic cases may make up as much as 25% of total cases, according to CDC director Robert Redfield.
Both the White House and Center for Health Security guidelines call for a phased reopening of facilities including schools, restaurants, and other businesses. But it’s still unclear which aspects of the current restrictions are doing the most to limit transmission of COVID-19.
That means states should carefully monitor the effects of reopening to see which moves cause transmission to ramp up again and which have relatively small effects, according to Jessica Metcalf, a demographer at Princeton University who studies the dynamics of infectious disease.
“One of the big questions is which pieces of social distancing policies are having the largest effects,” Metcalf told BuzzFeed News. “Amazingly, we don't really know.”
Learning which policies have the biggest effect in limiting viral spread is important because most experts predict that we may need several cycles of social distancing and relaxation of these controls before an effective vaccine is developed and it becomes safe to go back to something resembling normality.
“We just can’t squander any opportunity to learn,” Metcalf said.


buzzfeed--2020-04-22--The Tool Was Supposed To Predict Crime. Now LAPD Says It Is Dumping It.

The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and relevant reporting about the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
The Los Angeles Police Department announced today it would be ending its use of PredPol ’ s predictive policing tool — which the company claims uses artificial intelligence to predict crime , but which critics have called `` fundamentally flawed . ''
An LAPD memo dated April 15 quoted Police Chief Michel R. Moore saying that the police department would stop using @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because of concerns that activists have raised but because of financial constraints due to COVID-19 , the disease caused by the novel coronavirus .
`` The city 's financial crisis , coupled with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic , has resulted in the immediate freeze of new contractual agreements and 'belt-tightening ' instructions by the Mayor to all city departments for all further expenditures , '' the memo said .
`` Therefore , the Department will immediately discontinue the use of PredPol and its associated reports . ''
Hamid Khan , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Coalition , an activist group , said he believes the group ’ s organizing prompted the LAPD to stop using PredPol , not the COVID-19 outbreak .
`` Predictive policing has roundly been discredited , ” Khan told BuzzFeed News .
“ This [ decision ] was clearly [ the result of ] the organizing that was done .
This was clearly the community rising up.
” Activist groups like Stop LAPD Spying have petitioned for the de-escalation of policing in the city , including the discontinuation of PredPol .
The LAPD ended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Strategic Extraction and Restoration ” zones last April , which mapped crime hot spots and sent police to those locations , even if a crime had n't happened there .
In October , Stop LAPD Spying organized a group of 450 academics to sign a letter that rejected the thinking behind PredPol ’ s algorithm .
The LAPD ’ s decision to discontinue the use of PredPol is a turnabout for the agency , which was one of its early adopters and signed a contract with the company in 2011 .
The LAPD @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but internal audits obtained by news outlet MuckRock last year suggested the agency has struggled to measure PredPol ’ s effect on crime — or prove that it works .
PredPol has claimed its algorithms could predict crime in 500-by-500-foot city plots — and that by sending police to these areas , it could help prevent crimes before they happen .
Police departments around the country have found that a compelling proposition , and agencies from California , Washington , Utah , and Georgia have signed up to test it .

The Los Angeles Police Department announced today it would be ending its use of PredPol’s predictive policing tool — which the company claims uses artificial intelligence to predict crime, but which critics have called "fundamentally flawed."
An LAPD memo dated April 15 quoted Police Chief Michel R. Moore saying that the police department would stop using the software, effective immediately, not because of concerns that activists have raised but because of financial constraints due to COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
"The city's financial crisis, coupled with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, has resulted in the immediate freeze of new contractual agreements and 'belt-tightening' instructions by the Mayor to all city departments for all further expenditures," the memo said. "Therefore, the Department will immediately discontinue the use of PredPol and its associated reports."
Hamid Khan, a campaign coordinator with the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition, an activist group, said he believes the group’s organizing prompted the LAPD to stop using PredPol, not the COVID-19 outbreak.
"Predictive policing has roundly been discredited,” Khan told BuzzFeed News. “This [decision] was clearly [the result of] the organizing that was done. This was clearly the community rising up.”
Activist groups like Stop LAPD Spying have petitioned for the de-escalation of policing in the city, including the discontinuation of PredPol. The LAPD ended its use of “Los Angeles’ Strategic Extraction and Restoration” zones last April, which mapped crime hot spots and sent police to those locations, even if a crime hadn't happened there. In October, Stop LAPD Spying organized a group of 450 academics to sign a letter that rejected the thinking behind PredPol’s algorithm.
The LAPD’s decision to discontinue the use of PredPol is a turnabout for the agency, which was one of its early adopters and signed a contract with the company in 2011. The LAPD hasn’t yet explained the move, but internal audits obtained by news outlet MuckRock last year suggested the agency has struggled to measure PredPol’s effect on crime — or prove that it works.
PredPol has claimed its algorithms could predict crime in 500-by-500-foot city plots — and that by sending police to these areas, it could help prevent crimes before they happen. Police departments around the country have found that a compelling proposition, and agencies from California, Washington, Utah, and Georgia have signed up to test it.


buzzfeed--2020-04-21--A Detroit Nurse Was Fired After Speaking Out About Her Hospital’s Handling Of The Coronavirus Outbre

A Detroit Nurse Was Fired After Speaking Out About Her Hospital’s Handling Of The Coronavirus Outbreak. Now She’s Fighting Back.

Kenisa Barkai , who filed a whistleblower lawsuit against her former employer , says she threatened to alert state authorities to the problems in the long-beleaguered hospital .
WASHINGTON — Two weeks ago , Kenisa Barkai got an unexpected call , she said .
It was her former employer , the Detroit Medical Center , asking her to come work for them as a nurse and wanting to discuss pay .
The health system , hit hard by the surging coronavirus outbreak in Detroit , was desperate for more staff .
They were contacting former nurses to see if they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ call .
But it seemed the woman who left a voicemail had no idea that Barkai had been fired from her nursing job at the DMC ’ s Sinai-Grace Hospital just a week prior after repeatedly speaking out about equipment shortages and staffing problems .
“ Honestly , I couldn ’ t believe it , ” Barkai told BuzzFeed News .
She said the DMC ended up calling her a second time to see if she could work — a clear example of dysfunction at the health system .
Barkai said she was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ DMC ’ s social media policy .
A week before , she had posted a short video showing the gear she was wearing to treat a patient with COVID-19 , the disease caused by the novel coronavirus .
In the video , Barkai points to her mask and gown and says , “ I ’ m ready to rock and roll .
I ’ m going in.
” Barkai said she didn ’ t break any rules — no confidential patient information was exposed .
The social media policy , reviewed by BuzzFeed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work or “ create potential harm to others , ” including patients and staff , in addition to confidential information .
The real reason she was fired , Barkai said , was for repeatedly sounding the alarm about the hospital ’ s problems before and during the outbreak , threatening to alert state authorities to the issues , and trying to unionize the nurses .
Though they ’ ve said the hospital has long had issues , medical personnel at Sinai-Grace have recently described horrifying conditions inside as it struggles to handle the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dying in emergency room hallways before overburdened nurses have time to check on them , CNN reported last week — one patient had rigor mortis by the time staff found them .
The emergency department is also running out of stretchers and body bags , one nurse told MLive .
And the morgue is so full that corpses have been stored in a spare room and piled in refrigerated storage units , photos show .
Barkai filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the DMC , which is owned by Dallas-based Tenet Health , on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her .
“ You ’ re dealing with a systemic problem from a Texas health care , for-profit corporation that is literally killing Michigan residents and putting nurses like Kenisa at huge risk , ” said her lawyer , Jim Rasor , “ as well as making preposterous , egregious decisions to get rid of nurses like Kenisa during a pandemic just because they ’ re more concerned about their reputation than they are about patient care.
” The DMC did not respond to questions about how , specifically , Barkai violated the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ system contacted her about working for them after her firing .
“ [ W ] e don ’ t discuss matters related to personnel , ” DMC spokesperson Brian Taylor said in an email .
“ As for staffing at the DMC , we continue to bring in additional nursing resources to help us care for patients as volumes have increased as a result of COVID-19.
” Since Barkai was fired , other nurses at Sinai-Grace have joined her in publicly pleading with management for more resources .
Earlier this month , emergency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a sit-in to call attention to a severe staff shortage .
Employees at hospitals across the country have also spoken out about their working conditions .
A group of nurses at a hospital in Santa Monica , California , recently refused to treat COVID-19 patients unless they received N95 face masks to protect themselves ; they were suspended .
Detroit is one of the US cities hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis .
As of Monday , the city had 7,736 confirmed cases and 641 deaths ; more than 2,000 people have died @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people in Michigan have borne the brunt of the outbreak , dying from COVID-19 at higher rates than the rest of the population , which Gov .
Gretchen Whitmer said is due in part to longtime social inequities .
The disparity is echoed in major cities all across the country , where black communities are being hit especially hard by the coronavirus .
But getting a sense of exactly how much the pandemic has overwhelmed Sinai-Grace has been difficult .
Unlike other major health systems in the Detroit area , the DMC has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ patients it ’ s treating or how many employees have gotten sick .
“ The COVID-19 virus has caused significantly greater than normal mortality rates in the Detroit community , ” Taylor said .
“ This has resulted in capacity issues at funeral homes and morgues outside of Sinai Grace Hospital .
Patients who pass away at our hospital are treated with respect and dignity , remaining on-site until they can be appropriately released .
Like hospitals in New York and elsewhere , we have secured additional resources such as mobile refrigeration units @ @ @ @ @ @ @ caused by COVID-19.
” Located in a poorer area on Detroit ’ s west side , Sinai-Grace has a reputation within the city ’ s nursing community as the hardest place to work .
Even before the pandemic , staffing shortages were common at the hospital , nurses have said .
“ We have always said that if you can handle it at Sinai-Grace , you can go anywhere , you can handle anything , ” said Barkai , who has worked for the DMC since 2011 .
“ We definitely have seen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the “ stepchild ” of the DMC health system .
“ There ’ s always been equipment that ’ s been outdated or old , or just not working , that you kind of just have to rig per se to try to get it to work , ” she said .
“ The environment itself has always been paint chipping , or dirty rooms , old bathrooms , no hot running water.
” The patient population also tends to have more underlying conditions and limited resources to pay for their treatment , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hell of a nurse to be able to manage the population and also with what you ’ re given as a nurse.
” Taylor , the DMC spokesperson , acknowledged that Sinai-Grace has always been in a challenging position .
“ Sinai-Grace sees more EMS traffic than any other hospital in metro Detroit and is the only hospital in Northwest Detroit , ” Taylor wrote .
“ In addition , there are a large number of nursing homes in the area surrounding the hospital .
Among the patient population served by Sinai-Grace , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ medical conditions such hypertension and diabetes , which puts people at higher risk for COVID-19 .
Sinai-Grace Hospital remains dedicated to its mission of providing quality compassionate care to the Detroit community.
” Once the coronavirus made its way to Detroit in March , the problems at Sinai-Grace only got worse , Barkai said .
She said she was tasked to care for patients who did and did not have COVID-19 , and was worried about infecting the patients who didn ’ t have it .
Personal protective equipment was also running low @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Barkai said she and other nurses at Sinai-Grace had contacted the Michigan Nurses Association about joining the union before the outbreak , which the union confirmed to BuzzFeed News .
“ But there has been a growing interest and sense of urgency since [ the pandemic began ] , ” union president Jamie Brown said .
She didn ’ t know it then , but March 17 would be Barkai ’ s last day of work .
That day , she was spread thin as she tried to care for six patients @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she said , and garbage was piling up because housekeeping couldn ’ t clean her floor .
Then , a senior nurse asked her to take on a seventh patient as more came up from the emergency room .
“ I said , ‘ Why would you expect me to do this ?
’ ” The union has been urging Michigan lawmakers to pass a law to establish safe nurse-to-patient ratios .
In California , which mandates the maximum number of patients a nurse can have under their care , nurses should never @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the ratios are lower for nurses working with patients like Barkai ’ s .
The emergency room nurses who performed the sit-in said they were caring for more than 20 patients each .
“ The reports that we have been hearing from nurses at Sinai Grace Hospital are horrific , ” Brown said .
“ Nurses are being put in impossible situations .
This should never have been allowed to have happened in the first place and can not be allowed to happen in the future.
” “ Sinai Grace nurses have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s staffing levels for years .
While many union nurses have been able to win safe staffing language through their contracts , not-yet-union nurses are left without protection.
” Barkai said having too many patients raises both legal and ethical concerns for her .
“ If you have a patient in your care , you ’ re responsible for that patient , ” she said .
“ You sign your name on these charts ... and when push comes to shove , that 's your patient .
You 've got to care for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or go to court , that ’ s your name , that ’ s your license.
” Barkai took on the seventh patient , but said she told the senior nurse that the state — which can investigate hospitals for health code violations — needed to look into the staffing issues at Sinai-Grace .
“ The patients are the ones suffering here , ” Barkai said .
The next day , Barkai appeared in a local news report saying the hospital was in dire need of additional resources and that she was worried @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have the virus .
After that , she never got any more shifts , she said , and began to suspect something was wrong .
Nine days later , the local news station reported again on Sinai-Grace — this time , there was video of trash and dirty floors inside the hospital , and an interview with a different nurse .
The next day , March 27 , Barkai was called into her manager ’ s office .
She said that even though she denied providing the footage to the local news station @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ make an example out ” of her .
She reiterated that the hospital ’ s problems deserved the state ’ s attention , she said .
Eventually , she was handed a paper saying she was being fired for violating the DMC ’ s social media policy .
But Barkai said the hospital knew by then that she was trying to unionize the nurses and that that — along with her repeated calls for more resources and state scrutiny — was why she was fired .
“ It really broke my heart @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ I have like a nurse ’ s guilt basically for being off the front lines.
” In a city known for its resiliency , the nurses at Sinai-Grace have expressed their commitment to taking care of the community , despite the challenges .
“ We can go anywhere , but we nurse right here in the city of Detroit , because there ’ s where we ’ re from , that ’ s where I live , ” one of the nurses who participated in the sit-in said during a Facebook @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ridiculous that Sinai-Grace don ’ t care about the patients and the community like we do.
” Barkai said it ’ s unfortunate that she was unable to give everyone the care they deserved when the hospital was short-staffed , and that there have been cutbacks to numerous teams .
Patients have died due to cost-cutting and poor medical care at the DMC , two cardiologists alleged in a lawsuit naming Sinai-Grace and two other DMC hospitals last year .
The doctors said that they too had been retaliated against by the health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ safety .
( The DMC has denied this , saying the doctors were removed from their administrative roles for violating the health system ’ s standard of conduct . )
The cardiologists cited several disturbing alleged incidents in their lawsuit , including physicians receiving dirty surgical equipment — “ some with visible tissue and blood ” — and patients dying after experimental or unnecessary procedures .
In their lawsuit , the cardiologists also alleged the FBI was investigating a physician who performed a procedure without consent on a patient who died .
Eight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ public in 2018 , a federal health agency began investigating the other two DMC hospitals , but Sinai-Grace has also been investigated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services since then .
The agency did not respond to questions about whether it has received any complaints about Sinai-Grace ’ s handling of the coronavirus outbreak or launched an investigation .
Michigan ’ s state licensing authority , which also oversees the hospitals , declined to say whether it was examining any of the recent claims about conditions inside Sinai-Grace .
“ I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the allegations , however , we can not comment on any current or future investigation , ” wrote David Harns , a spokesperson for the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs .
Barkai said she and other nurses at Sinai-Grace would often voice their concerns before the coronavirus outbreak to their direct managers , who were sympathetic but unable to fix the problems .
“ Their hands have been tied too , ” Barkai said , adding that several managers have recently left the hospital .
Barkai had already hit a breaking point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ saw its first COVID-19 patient , she said .
“ I started bawling my eyes out and crying , and just had enough.
” She spoke to her manager , who then brought her to speak with the hospital ’ s chief nursing officer .
The CNO listened and listed steps the hospital was taking to try to increase the number of nurses , but Barkai said she was unsatisfied — those were long-term solutions and she needed help right away .
“ I am a strong nurse , I can handle a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ If I have issues , I always say to myself , then there ’ s something really wrong.
” The goal of Barkai ’ s lawsuit is to get her job back , said Rasor , her attorney .
The suit , filed in the Wayne County Circuit Court on Monday , asks for at least $ 25,000 and payment to cover lawyers ’ fees .
Rasor said they will also be filing an unfair labor practices complaint with the National Labor Relations Board .
In the meantime , Barkai , who has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with a GoFundMe campaign she recently launched called “ Feed the Frontline.
” She uses donations to provide meals and snacks for medical staff who are working with COVID-19 patients .
“ [ It ’ s ] just to keep the morale up , basically , and to just let them know that even though everything ’ s been going on , I ’ m still out here with them trying to do the best that I can to help out , and that I ’ m not going anywhere , ” she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to stop speaking up for them .
”

The DMC did not respond to questions about how, specifically, Barkai violated the social media policy or why the health system contacted her about working for them after her firing. “[W]e don’t discuss matters related to personnel,” DMC spokesperson Brian Taylor said in an email. “As for staffing at the DMC, we continue to bring in additional nursing resources to help us care for patients as volumes have increased as a result of COVID-19.”
Since Barkai was fired, other nurses at Sinai-Grace have joined her in publicly pleading with management for more resources. Earlier this month, emergency room nurses working the night shift held a sit-in to call attention to a severe staff shortage.
Employees at hospitals across the country have also spoken out about their working conditions. A group of nurses at a hospital in Santa Monica, California, recently refused to treat COVID-19 patients unless they received N95 face masks to protect themselves; they were suspended.
Detroit is one of the US cities hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis. As of Monday, the city had 7,736 confirmed cases and 641 deaths; more than 2,000 people have died in the greater Detroit area. Black people in Michigan have borne the brunt of the outbreak, dying from COVID-19 at higher rates than the rest of the population, which Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said is due in part to longtime social inequities. The disparity is echoed in major cities all across the country, where black communities are being hit especially hard by the coronavirus.
But getting a sense of exactly how much the pandemic has overwhelmed Sinai-Grace has been difficult. Unlike other major health systems in the Detroit area, the DMC has repeatedly refused to reveal how many COVID-19 patients it’s treating or how many employees have gotten sick.
“The COVID-19 virus has caused significantly greater than normal mortality rates in the Detroit community,” Taylor said. “This has resulted in capacity issues at funeral homes and morgues outside of Sinai Grace Hospital. Patients who pass away at our hospital are treated with respect and dignity, remaining on-site until they can be appropriately released. Like hospitals in New York and elsewhere, we have secured additional resources such as mobile refrigeration units to help temporarily manage the capacity issue caused by COVID-19.”
Located in a poorer area on Detroit’s west side, Sinai-Grace has a reputation within the city’s nursing community as the hardest place to work. Even before the pandemic, staffing shortages were common at the hospital, nurses have said.
“We have always said that if you can handle it at Sinai-Grace, you can go anywhere, you can handle anything,” said Barkai, who has worked for the DMC since 2011. “We definitely have seen it all.”
Barkai described Sinai-Grace as the “stepchild” of the DMC health system. “There’s always been equipment that’s been outdated or old, or just not working, that you kind of just have to rig per se to try to get it to work,” she said. “The environment itself has always been paint chipping, or dirty rooms, old bathrooms, no hot running water.”
The patient population also tends to have more underlying conditions and limited resources to pay for their treatment, Barkai said. “It takes one hell of a nurse to be able to manage the population and also with what you’re given as a nurse.”
Taylor, the DMC spokesperson, acknowledged that Sinai-Grace has always been in a challenging position. “Sinai-Grace sees more EMS traffic than any other hospital in metro Detroit and is the only hospital in Northwest Detroit,” Taylor wrote. “In addition, there are a large number of nursing homes in the area surrounding the hospital. Among the patient population served by Sinai-Grace, there are extremely high rates of underlying medical conditions such hypertension and diabetes, which puts people at higher risk for COVID-19. Sinai-Grace Hospital remains dedicated to its mission of providing quality compassionate care to the Detroit community.”
Once the coronavirus made its way to Detroit in March, the problems at Sinai-Grace only got worse, Barkai said. She said she was tasked to care for patients who did and did not have COVID-19, and was worried about infecting the patients who didn’t have it. Personal protective equipment was also running low, like at hospitals across the country.
Barkai said she and other nurses at Sinai-Grace had contacted the Michigan Nurses Association about joining the union before the outbreak, which the union confirmed to BuzzFeed News. “But there has been a growing interest and sense of urgency since [the pandemic began],” union president Jamie Brown said.
She didn’t know it then, but March 17 would be Barkai’s last day of work. That day, she was spread thin as she tried to care for six patients, two of whom had COVID-19, she said, and garbage was piling up because housekeeping couldn’t clean her floor. Then, a senior nurse asked her to take on a seventh patient as more came up from the emergency room.
“I said, ‘Why would you expect me to do this?’”


buzzfeed--2020-04-21--New York City's Coronavirus Essential Workers Are Overwhelmingly People Of Color

“ We ’ re telling you that no one should be out here because it ’ s dangerous , but we ’ re sending you out there and we ’ re not giving out any masks.
” For one essential worker , there ’ s a specific time when coronavirus-related anxiety is at its highest : the moment she pulls into a crowded bus stop .
Forcing people to enter the rear doors helps a little to ease the tension for the Brooklyn bus operator who is still working during the pandemic .
But now that the Metropolitan Transit Authority @ @ @ @ @ @ @ closest to the driver , the bus seems even more packed .
“ I ’ m more concerned about my son than myself , of course , because he has an underlying health issue as well , ” she told BuzzFeed News to explain why they decided to buy their own masks and cleaning products a month before the MTA began distributing them to workers .
The New York Times reported some MTA employees were reprimanded for using precautionary measures themselves .
“ It was every man for himself , ” she said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to distribute masks , it only provided one per employee .
“ I ’ m very nervous .
I think I got more serious about the situation with the passing of coworkers.
” As of Monday , 71 MTA employees have died of COVID-19 , the disease caused by the novel coronavirus .
The first MTA death occurred on March 26 , a day before transit union officials negotiated a deal with the MTA to provide masks to workers , according to Jim Gannon , a spokesperson for transit union workers .
Bus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ workers — account for at least 20 of those deaths .
The bus driver , who declined to be named for fear of losing her job , is one of hundreds of thousands of Brooklynites still working essential jobs , even as the borough is hit hard by the coronavirus .
Twenty-eight percent of New York City ’ s essential workers live in Brooklyn — the most in any borough — and the vast majority of them are people of color .
In Brooklyn , the number of deaths outpaced those in Queens @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2,606 confirmed COVID-19 deaths and 865 “ probable ” COVID-19 deaths , according to NYC data released April 19 .
“ It ’ s not a secret and it ’ s very clear .
… We divided the city at the beginning of the coronavirus into essential employees and nonessential employees and that term was used all over the city , ” Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams told BuzzFeed News during a phone interview last week .
“ I heard it .
I said , ‘ This is coded language.
’ ” Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up more than 70 % of the city ’ s essential workers , including transit , childcare , health care , cleaning service , and postal employees .
More than 40 % of transit workers are black and 60 % of frontline cleaning workers are Hispanic , according to a report released in March by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer ’ s office .
In addition to racial data on frontline workers , Stringer , who is running for New York City mayor , offered solutions to protect those people , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and guaranteed health care .
“ Black and brown people went to service this city and then went home and spread the virus among their citizens , ” Adams told BuzzFeed News .
“ Just look at the numbers.
” Adams said he personally has lost five close friends in the span of a week .
“ The impact is very real , and you become almost even afraid to pick up your phone , ” Adams told BuzzFeed News , saying he was haunted by the words “ Did you hear… ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Milwaukee , Chicago , New Orleans , and other major cities and experts say the disparity adds to the outsize number of COVID-19 cases throughout black and Latino communities .
“ Essential workers are absolutely more vulnerable , ” Mary Osirim , provost and professor of sociology at Bryn Mawr College , told BuzzFeed News .
“ While there are certain professionals that are of every ethnicity and race in the country , it is also the case that many on the front lines are low-wage … low-status workers and they ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” And many lack access to basic protective gear as they continue to go to work .
Adams , who is also running for New York City mayor , began addressing that problem on March 25 , when he held a press conference in front of a Brooklyn MTA bus depot and demanded , “ Give us the goddamn masks.
” “ Yes , we ’ re telling you that people should be 6 feet apart from each other .
Yes , we ’ re telling you that everyone should shelter in place @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a phone interview .
“ Yes , we ’ re telling you that no one should be out here because it ’ s dangerous , but we ’ re sending you out there and we ’ re not giving out any masks , coverings , gloves , or anything else while you service the city and service the country.
” Employees at the US Postal Service have similar concerns , especially mail carriers who interact with close to 1,000 New Yorkers every day at work .
African Americans make up 21 % of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ US population .
One USPS worker in Brooklyn told BuzzFeed News they now have a ritual when they get home from work : “ I immediately remove my shoes , my postal pants…I take off my jacket , my sweater and coat and I leave everything in my room in a corner .
When I had Lysol I would spray everything down.
” The USPS worker is practicing social distancing inside their home as well , so as not to infect vulnerable loved ones — hugs and kisses are replaced with a distant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told BuzzFeed News that protective supplies , including gloves , began to dwindle as early as March 1 .
More pressing is the lack of communication from management amid a public health crisis , they said .
“ We started hearing [ from coworkers ] ‘ at this particular post office , this person is infected , ’ but [ management ] wasn ’ t saying anything .
I noticed a clerk went out sick , ” they said , adding that two more followed within the same week .
There ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no one from management had personally spoken to staff at this particular Brooklyn branch as of late March .
“ We ’ re finding out things on our own , like ‘ Why is this person not here ?
Why do we have this skeleton crew ?
’ ” At a separate Brooklyn USPS location , employees said management gathers employees for updates on COVID-19 but not on a daily basis .
“ They ’ ll call everyone around the desk and basically read off what they have.
” Approximately 1,000 of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ with some deaths , ” USPS spokesperson David Partenheimer told BuzzFeed News in a statement .
One USPS employee contrasted the coronavirus response with the 2001 anthrax scare , when letters carrying spores that caused the infectious disease were mailed to news outlets and elected officials , resulting in five deaths and 17 injuries .
“ [ In 2001 ] , they were on top of it .
We got all of this information .
We got flu shots , ” one employee said .
“ But this time , no one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also pointed out that while the CDC specified susceptible communities , there is no government plan to protect the most vulnerable .
Black people are at greater risk of illnesses that can lead to more severe cases of COVID-19 , including diabetes and heart disease .
Adams himself reversed his diabetes diagnosis by exercising and changing his eating habits in 2018 .
“ There was not one plan that was rolled out that said ‘ let ’ s go after the people who we know if they get it , they may die @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Our plan was an intervention , not prevention .
If you look at over 60 , preexisting conditions , diabetes , respiratory issues , that ’ s [ the New York City Housing Authority ] .
That ’ s why I was at NYCHA handing out masks and information to NYCHA residents.
” Experts have said there ’ s an information gap for some black and non-English-speaking New Yorkers on the front lines because of inconsistent work hours and differences in the way people consume news .
Mayor Bill de Blasio @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to inform communities hardest hit by the disease that will include robocalls and flyers directly to homes .
The campaign will run in 15 languages and follows an $ 8 million effort launched early March which ran ads in English , Spanish , Mandarin , and Cantonese .
Experts also suggested targeting social media as a part of city-sponsored ad campaigns to counter the misinformation circulating among younger audiences and New Yorkers who speak languages other than English .
“ Everybody don ’ t wake up in the morning and run and get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump , Cuomo , and the mayor ’ s briefings , ” Adams told BuzzFeed News .
“ We ’ re talking in echo chambers .
You know who we ’ re talking to ?
We ’ re talking to the 30 % who can telecommute .
”

For one essential worker, there’s a specific time when coronavirus-related anxiety is at its highest: the moment she pulls into a crowded bus stop.
Forcing people to enter the rear doors helps a little to ease the tension for the Brooklyn bus operator who is still working during the pandemic. But now that the Metropolitan Transit Authority has restricted passengers from sitting in seats closest to the driver, the bus seems even more packed.
“I’m more concerned about my son than myself, of course, because he has an underlying health issue as well,” she told BuzzFeed News to explain why they decided to buy their own masks and cleaning products a month before the MTA began distributing them to workers. The New York Times reported some MTA employees were reprimanded for using precautionary measures themselves.
“It was every man for himself,” she said and added that once the MTA began to distribute masks, it only provided one per employee. “I’m very nervous. I think I got more serious about the situation with the passing of coworkers.”
As of Monday, 71 MTA employees have died of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The first MTA death occurred on March 26, a day before transit union officials negotiated a deal with the MTA to provide masks to workers, according to Jim Gannon, a spokesperson for transit union workers. Bus operators — whom the city considers essential workers — account for at least 20 of those deaths.
An MTA spokesperson said the agency had given out 1 million masks and 3 million pairs of gloves, “including masks to all employees days before the CDC changed course and recommended it. We are doing everything possible to protect our customers and employees, frontline heroes moving the doctors, nurses, first responders, pharmacy and grocery workers, transit colleagues and other essential workers who are saving lives every day."
The bus driver, who declined to be named for fear of losing her job, is one of hundreds of thousands of Brooklynites still working essential jobs, even as the borough is hit hard by the coronavirus. Twenty-eight percent of New York City’s essential workers live in Brooklyn — the most in any borough — and the vast majority of them are people of color. In Brooklyn, the number of deaths outpaced those in Queens on Sunday. Brooklyn has more than 2,606 confirmed COVID-19 deaths and 865 “probable” COVID-19 deaths, according to NYC data released April 19.
“It’s not a secret and it’s very clear. … We divided the city at the beginning of the coronavirus into essential employees and nonessential employees and that term was used all over the city,” Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams told BuzzFeed News during a phone interview last week. “I heard it. I said, ‘This is coded language.’”
Black, Hispanic, and Asian people make up more than 70% of the city’s essential workers, including transit, childcare, health care, cleaning service, and postal employees. More than 40% of transit workers are black and 60% of frontline cleaning workers are Hispanic, according to a report released in March by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer’s office. In addition to racial data on frontline workers, Stringer, who is running for New York City mayor, offered solutions to protect those people, including free protective gear, hazard pay, and guaranteed health care.


buzzfeed--2020-04-21--Some Republicans Oppose Letting Congress Vote Remotely During The Coronavirus Pandemic

The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and relevant reporting about the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
WASHINGTON — The House is working to change the way it has voted for the past 200 years to ensure members ’ safety amid the coronavirus pandemic , allowing some members to cast votes without having to travel to Washington .
But some Republicans oppose the idea , saying it would break with tradition .
The House could vote to enact proxy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a process in which an absent member can give a colleague who is able to travel to the Capitol their vote to cast on their behalf .
“ A Member casting a vote on behalf of another Member would be required to have exact direction from that Member on how to vote and would have to follow that direction , ” Rep. Jim McGovern , chair of the House Rules Committee , which is drafting the new rules for proxy voting , wrote in a statement last week .
“ There would be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Members would have to direct each and every vote.
” Although House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was initially reluctant to support a remote voting policy , House leadership now supports the proxy voting idea , given the continued spread of the coronavirus .
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer went further than Pelosi , suggesting that congressional committees could work virtually as well , including working on legislation and holding hearings by videoconference .
But some House Republicans are objecting to any remote voting plans , arguing that the founders intended for members to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it 's a terrible idea , ” Rep. Jim Jordan told reporters , adding that he came back to Washington , DC , specifically to speak against proxy voting during the upcoming House Rules Committee hearing .
“ What is it , 200-plus years we 've been— Congress has been meeting ?
And you meet in person , you debate , and you vote in person .
So I think it ’ s that fundamental .
`` And the idea that we 're going to now let someone else vote for us because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what happens when there 's a procedure motion that comes up ?
How do you handle that ?
” Jordan continued .
“ It 's supposed to be in person in a debate .
Because , I mean , we 're [ a ] representative democracy , and you need someone there representing the constituents back home and fighting for the positions and issues that you told them you 're going to fight for.
” Republicans acknowledge that the House ’ s Democratic majority gives them virtually no power to stop the measure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ objecting .
`` The Democrats got the majority if they want to do it .
They can do it , '' Jordan said .
`` We [ 've ] just got to make the argument , do the best we can — but if they 're determined to do it , and they have the votes , obviously they can .
They can get it done .
I think it 's just wrong , just flat out wrong . ''
During the 1918 flu pandemic , when an estimated 675,000 Americans died , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — just a few members were present to vote .
That ’ s what the House and Senate have been doing since the coronavirus pandemic forced Congress to stop full sessions in person , but those votes can be stopped by any member who shows up to oppose them .
With more coronavirus recovery legislation on the way , getting every member of Congress to agree will only get more difficult .
Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana told reporters that Congress should be in session to debate “ significant measures ” that impact @ @ @ @ @ @ @ n't support it at all , ” Higgins said of proxy voting .
“ It is completely outside of what the founders intended .
The technology at the time was voting by proxy or by courier , and they clearly did not support that .
We 're to assemble and thus be held accountable .
Changes in technologies come and go , but accountability ... was what the founders sought .
So I have zero support .
I will vehemently fight against remote voting or proxy voting.
” “ Oh , I do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told reporters when asked if the House should move forward with remote voting .
“ We should be here in person to vote .
That 's the way it ’ s been done for 200 years ; that 's the way we should do it now.
” The House Rules Committee will likely meet to consider the changes .
The House is expected to then quickly vote on the new rules .
McGovern recommended proxy voting as a possibility in mid-March after his committee conducted a monthlong study on voting options amid the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a final presentation on its recommendation during a Democratic caucus meeting last week .
As early as mid-March , House members from both parties signed on to a letter urging Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to allow remote voting , not long after President Donald Trump announced guidelines restricting gatherings of 10 people or fewer .

WASHINGTON — The House is working to change the way it has voted for the past 200 years to ensure members’ safety amid the coronavirus pandemic, allowing some members to cast votes without having to travel to Washington. But some Republicans oppose the idea, saying it would break with tradition.
The House is considering enacting voting by proxy — a process in which an absent member can give a colleague who is able to travel to the Capitol their vote to cast on their behalf.
“A Member casting a vote on behalf of another Member would be required to have exact direction from that Member on how to vote and would have to follow that direction,” Rep. Jim McGovern, chair of the House Rules Committee, which is drafting the new rules for proxy voting, wrote in a statement last week. “There would be no ability to give a general proxy. Members would have to direct each and every vote.”
Although House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was initially reluctant to support a remote voting policy, House leadership now supports the proxy voting idea, given the continued spread of the coronavirus. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer went further than Pelosi, suggesting that congressional committees could work virtually as well, including working on legislation and holding hearings by videoconference.
The House had initially planned to vote on the proposal this week, but on Wednesday Pelosi cancelled those plans, instead saying during a leadership call that the House will move forward with a bipartisan committee to review the policy. The bipartisan group of lawmakers will include McGovern, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and the House Administration Committee's chair, Zoe Lofgren, and ranking member, Rodney Davis.
Some House Republicans are objecting to any remote voting plans, arguing that the founders intended for members to vote in person.
“I think it's a terrible idea,” Rep. Jim Jordan told reporters, adding that he came back to Washington, DC, specifically to speak against proxy voting during the upcoming House Rules Committee hearing. “What is it, 200-plus years we've been— Congress has been meeting? And you meet in person, you debate, and you vote in person. So I think it’s that fundamental.
"And the idea that we're going to now let someone else vote for us because we tell him how to vote — what happens when there's a procedure motion that comes up? How do you handle that?” Jordan continued. “It's supposed to be in person in a debate. Because, I mean, we're [a] representative democracy, and you need someone there representing the constituents back home and fighting for the positions and issues that you told them you're going to fight for.”
Republicans acknowledge that the House’s Democratic majority gives them virtually no power to stop the measure, and they have resigned to ceremoniously objecting.
"The Democrats got the majority if they want to do it. They can do it," Jordan said. "We['ve] just got to make the argument, do the best we can — but if they're determined to do it, and they have the votes, obviously they can. They can get it done. I think it's just wrong, just flat out wrong."
During the 1918 flu pandemic, when an estimated 675,000 Americans died, Congress passed critical legislation with unanimous consent — just a few members were present to vote. That’s what the House and Senate have been doing since the coronavirus pandemic forced Congress to stop full sessions in person, but those votes can be stopped by any member who shows up to oppose them. With more coronavirus recovery legislation on the way, getting every member of Congress to agree will only get more difficult.
Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana told reporters that Congress should be in session to debate “significant measures” that impact the entire country.
"I don't support it at all,” Higgins said of proxy voting. “It is completely outside of what the founders intended. The technology at the time was voting by proxy or by courier, and they clearly did not support that. We're to assemble and thus be held accountable. Changes in technologies come and go, but accountability ... was what the founders sought. So I have zero support. I will vehemently fight against remote voting or proxy voting.”
Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland echoed Higgins’ sentiment.
“Oh, I don't think we should,” Harris told reporters when asked if the House should move forward with remote voting. “We should be here in person to vote. That's the way it’s been done for 200 years; that's the way we should do it now.”
The House Rules Committee will likely meet to consider the changes. The House is expected to then quickly vote on the new rules.
McGovern recommended proxy voting as a possibility in mid-March after his committee conducted a monthlong study on voting options amid the global health pandemic. The committee released a final presentation on its recommendation during a Democratic caucus meeting last week.
As early as mid-March, House members from both parties signed on to a letter urging Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to allow remote voting, not long after President Donald Trump announced guidelines restricting gatherings of 10 people or fewer.


buzzfeed--2020-04-21--Everyone Wants To Know If They Already Had The Coronavirus. Some People May Be Preying On That.

“ I think we should expect to see companies continue to pop up selling unproven , and in some cases probably just bad , testing , ” a former FDA lawyer said .
As coronavirus antibody tests flood the market , regulators are accusing some sellers of taking advantage of people ’ s desperation to learn if they ’ ve already been infected .
In the last two weeks , state and local regulators have issued cease-and-desist orders to people and businesses selling COVID-19 antibody tests in Southern California , Las Vegas , and New Mexico , on the grounds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these tests .
Health officials in Kansas have also intervened to block a hospital from falsely claiming the tests could diagnose the disease .
The tests , which reveal the presence of antibodies that presumably protect you against reinfection , are being touted as a key tool for reopening the US economy and for identifying just how many people have actually been infected .
Almost none of the antibody tests currently available in the US have been verified by the FDA , and health care providers across the country are being forced to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ little information about their accuracy .
Many providers are selling manufacturers ’ tests with the proper caveats , making it clear to customers that they aren ’ t FDA-approved and they may not be accurate .
But as demand for the tests skyrockets , other sellers are making false claims , leading state and local regulators to play whack-a-mole .
Following a growing number of local reports about misleading claims , the FDA on Tuesday warned health care providers that antibody tests should not be used to diagnose whether someone currently has the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expect to see companies continue to pop up selling unproven , and in some cases probably just bad , testing , ” Patti Zettler , an assistant law professor at Ohio State University and a former attorney at the FDA , told BuzzFeed News by email .
“ There ’ s a market to take advantage of because we all , of course , want testing.
” In Dickinson County , Kansas , an hour west of Topeka , Herington Municipal Hospital has gotten into trouble with health officials for the way it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
These tests “ will not only tell you if you have the active virus but will also tell you if you have immunity , ” the hospital posted on its website and Facebook page last week .
In fact , according to the FDA , no blood antibody tests have been proven capable of telling if a person currently has the virus , unlike nasal- and throat-swab diagnostic tests .
Scientists also do not know definitively whether , or for how long , antibodies protect a person from getting reinfected .
County @ @ @ @ @ @ @ asked Herington to stop selling the tests , saying that its claims were causing confusion and leading people to mistakenly believe they were infectious , the Abilene-Reflector Chronicle , a local newspaper , reported Monday .
“ They are creating a lot of misinformation in the county and it is having repercussions outside our county , ” Brian Holmes , Dickinson County ’ s health officer , told the paper .
The county and the hospital did not return BuzzFeed News ’ requests for comment .
Last week on a college campus in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ called the COVID Clinic was ordered to stop operating by San Diego County .
The county health agency said it failed to provide “ necessary credentials and certifications required by State law in order to conduct the tests ” and therefore “ may not be producing reliable and verifiable results.
” The COVID Clinic has updated its website to say it was offering tests in Orange County .
Matthew Abinante , a physician behind the clinic , did not return a request for comment .
The California Department of Public Health did not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whether they could operate elsewhere in the state .
Also last week , the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services issued a cease-and-desist order to Sahara West Urgent Care & Wellness in Las Vegas for allegedly operating an “ unlicensed laboratory.
” It was also reportedly selling antibody tests with the false claim that they could test for a current infection .
The state agency noted in a press release that such “ tests are not to be used for diagnostic purposes ” and that any antibody test sold by the clinic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the purposes of diagnosing COVID-19.
” A Sahara West representative expressed frustration to the Las Vegas Review-Journal , claiming that it had sought the state ’ s guidance early on .
“ We haven ’ t got much help or clarity from anyone , ” spokesperson Andrew Mann said .
“ And now they ’ re telling us to stop.
” The clinic did not return a request for comment .
And earlier this month , the New Mexico Attorney General issued a cease-and-desist to a woman , Chelsie McGuire , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tests that she allegedly claimed could produce results in 10 minutes .
McGuire was ordered to stop advertisements that make “ scientifically unfounded claims ” about coronavirus testing , the attorney general said in its notice to her , which also noted that she was not on the state ’ s list of testing sites .
McGuire declined to comment to BuzzFeed News .
At the same time , it ’ s not always clear , for sellers or consumers , which of these tests can be relied on .
There are now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has allowed to go to market without having their accuracy claims verified by the agency , part of an effort to quickly increase the number of tests available during the crisis .
Only four companies ’ tests have received official “ emergency use authorization ” from the FDA , indicating that their accuracy claims have been independently checked by the agency .
While the FDA is currently choosing to allow most antibody tests to go to market without any federal verification , states might have their own certification requirements or take action under @ @ @ @ @ @ @ practices .
“ This means requirements may differ from state to state — and we might for that reason expect to see some variation , ” Zettler said .
All those factors make it easier for companies with dishonest claims or credentials to try to capitalize on the moment .
As the virus continues to spread , more bad actors will likely emerge and hamper badly needed attempts to bring the pandemic under control , said Steven Joffe , a bioethicist at the University of Pennsylvania .
“ To get past this crisis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccine or highly effective treatments , we are going to need widespread testing , ” Joffe said by email .
“ But for widespread testing to work , the public is going to have to trust in that testing .
Particularly at this moment of threat and division , public trust is a fragile thing .
Scammers are going to make it impossible to achieve .
”

As coronavirus antibody tests flood the market, regulators are accusing some sellers of taking advantage of people’s desperation to learn if they’ve already been infected.
In the last two weeks, state and local regulators have issued cease-and-desist orders to people and businesses selling COVID-19 antibody tests in Southern California, Las Vegas, and New Mexico, on the grounds that they were illegally advertising or processing these tests. Health officials in Kansas have also intervened to block a hospital from falsely claiming the tests could diagnose the disease.
The tests, which reveal the presence of antibodies that presumably protect you against reinfection, are being touted as a key tool for reopening the US economy and for identifying just how many people have actually been infected. Almost none of the antibody tests currently available in the US have been verified by the FDA, and health care providers across the country are being forced to choose which tests to offer with very little information about their accuracy.
Many providers are selling manufacturers’ tests with the proper caveats, making it clear to customers that they aren’t FDA-approved and they may not be accurate. But as demand for the tests skyrockets, other sellers are making false claims, leading state and local regulators to play whack-a-mole.
Following a growing number of local reports about misleading claims, the FDA on Tuesday warned health care providers that antibody tests should not be used to diagnose whether someone currently has the virus.
“I think we should expect to see companies continue to pop up selling unproven, and in some cases probably just bad, testing,” Patti Zettler, an assistant law professor at Ohio State University and a former attorney at the FDA, told BuzzFeed News by email. “There’s a market to take advantage of because we all, of course, want testing.”
In Dickinson County, Kansas, an hour west of Topeka, Herington Municipal Hospital has gotten into trouble with health officials for the way it’s been advertising its antibody tests. These tests “will not only tell you if you have the active virus but will also tell you if you have immunity,” the hospital posted on its website and Facebook page last week.


buzzfeed--2020-04-21--Here’s A Breakdown Of What's Being Reported About Kim Jong Un’s Health

Basically : There 's very little reliable information out there right now .
The health of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is once again under international scrutiny after a report he may be in a poor condition following surgery .
Let ’ s try to break down what ’ s going on .
What has North Korea said ?
On April 12 , North Korean state media reported that Kim had visited an air base and observed drills by fighter planes .
That 's normal .
But on Tuesday , April 14 , state media did not mention him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weapons test , which he normally supervises .
Most significantly , on April 15 , North Korea ’ s most important public holiday took place without any mention of Kim ’ s involvement .
The Day of the Sun commemorates the birthday of the founder of North Korea , Kim Il Sung — Kim Jong Un ’ s grandfather .
It is very unusual for Kim to have missed the celebrations — he never has before .
What has been reported about Kim 's health ?
On Monday , a Seoul-based news website @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kim had undergone a “ cardiovascular surgical procedure ” and had largely recovered .
Kim , Daily NK said , had been struggling with cardiovascular problems since late August due to `` excessive smoking , obesity , and overwork.
” The story was widely covered by international media , although the Daily NK later added a correction to say that the article was based on a single source in North Korea , not multiple sources as it had originally reported .
CNN also reported Monday that the US was monitoring intelligence suggesting Kim @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s source was described as a US official with “ direct knowledge ” of the situation .
After CNN 's story broke late Monday ET , a number of fake accounts — including one emulating the CNN Breaking News account , and another parodying US Attorney General Bill Barr — posted tweets claiming Kim was dead .
MSNBC anchor Katy Tur wrote on Twitter that Kim was brain-dead , according to two US officials , but quickly deleted the tweet .
What has the response been ?
South Korean news agency Yonhap @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had seen nothing to suggest that Kim was unwell .
`` No unusual signs have been identified inside North Korea , '' presidential spokesperson Kang Min-seok said .
`` There is nothing we can confirm with regard to Chairman Kim 's alleged health problem . ''
`` There is nothing unusual going on in North Korea .
It 's not true , '' another government official told Yonhap on the condition of anonymity .
The Reuters news agency also cited two South Korean government sources as saying the reports about Kim ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the US State Department said it is aware of the reports and is continuing to monitor the situation .
BuzzFeed News reached out to the South Korean government but did not hear back .
Andray Abrahamian , an expert on North Korea from George Mason University Korea , explained how the story about Kim 's health developed .
“ The Daily NK report that started this is underground single-source reporting from within the most opaque country in the world , '' he told BuzzFeed News .
`` That isn ’ t useless @ @ @ @ @ @ @ report that picked up what Daily NK had said perhaps didn ’ t sufficiently caveat that .
Then CNN went with a dramatic headline and anonymous sourcing from the United States that was also very vague but made it seem as if there was more credible information than there probably is .
“ Then the world ’ s media is compelled to write something lest they be missing out on a major story.
” So what is going on ?
It is next to impossible to independently confirm information from within North Korea @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all , and international intelligence agencies have a track record of being wrong .
South Korea and the US famously learned of the death of Kim Jong Il — Kim Jong Un ’ s father — at the same time as the rest of the world .
Things inside North Korea are even more secretive than ever at the moment due to the coronavirus outbreak , which has basically halted internal travel within North Korea — to the extent that it previously existed — as well as at least some border traffic .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ sourcing even more challenging for both the intelligence community and media organizations .
Even specialist sites like the Daily NK get things wrong — they are , after all , covering the most secretive state in the world .

The health of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is once again under international scrutiny after a report he may be in a poor condition following surgery. Let’s try to break down what’s going on.
What has North Korea said?
On April 12, North Korean state media reported that Kim had visited an air base and observed drills by fighter planes. That's normal. But on Tuesday, April 14, state media did not mention him as attending North Korea’s latest weapons test, which he normally supervises.
Most significantly, on April 15, North Korea’s most important public holiday took place without any mention of Kim’s involvement. The Day of the Sun commemorates the birthday of the founder of North Korea, Kim Il Sung — Kim Jong Un’s grandfather. It is very unusual for Kim to have missed the celebrations — he never has before.
What has been reported about Kim's health?
On Monday, a Seoul-based news website, the Daily NK, reported that Kim had undergone a “cardiovascular surgical procedure” and had largely recovered. Kim, Daily NK said, had been struggling with cardiovascular problems since late August due to "excessive smoking, obesity, and overwork.” The story was widely covered by international media, although the Daily NK later added a correction to say that the article was based on a single source in North Korea, not multiple sources as it had originally reported.
CNN also reported Monday that the US was monitoring intelligence suggesting Kim was in “grave danger.” CNN’s source was described as a US official with “direct knowledge” of the situation.