Researchers already knew that children under age 10 can catch and transmit the virus in school.
But now, more than 277,000 COVID-19 cases have been reported in children nationwide between March and Sept. 19, and almost twice as many cases occurred among adolescents (ages 12 through 17) than in younger kids.
Friday on Political Rewind: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been the gold standard of global public health organizations for many decades. But recent efforts to marginalize and undermine such trusted public health agencies — including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) — are complicating the COVID-19 response.
How does this affect Americans' perceptions and the country's ability to combat coronavirus, particularly when a vaccine does become available? We discuss the politicization of a pandemic.
Door-to-door trick-or-treating and crowded costume parties are out, and haunted forests and outdoor movie nights are in. "If screaming will likely occur, greater distancing is advised," the CDC says.
The CDC says the guidelines were posted to its website in error. The now-deleted updates were notable because so far the agency has stopped short of saying that the virus is airborne.
Monday on Political Rewind, Georgia’s voting precincts might be required to have paper copies of voter registration and other information on hand in the upcoming election, according to a federal judge.
"We've got to take a deep breath," says one health official about the rapid timeline pushed by the CDC. "It is very clear that we need to lean forward to prepare to deliver the vaccine."
Dr. Moncef Slaoui, chief adviser to the administration's effort to develop a COVID-19 vaccine, said having a vaccine by next month was "not impossible." But a longer timetable appears more likely.
The agency now says contacts of people with COVID-19 don't necessarily need to get tested. Public health experts say less testing of potential carriers could lead to more spread of the disease.
Dr. Deborah Birx says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is creating a new way to track COVID-19 hospitalizations a month after such data collection was moved outside the agency.
In an interview with WebMD, CDC Director Robert Redfield warns of the dual threat of the coronavirus and flu season. He urges Americans to follow COVID-19 health guidance and get the flu vaccine.
A top epidemiologist at Emory had this reaction after seeing viral photos of Georgia students: "When I see those pictures, I realize that we really have an uphill battle."
After the Trump administration moved hospital COVID-19 data reporting to HHS, bypassing the CDC, the new data system has been rife with erratic updates and anomalies.
Data from the CDC estimates that roughly 10 times the amount of people have the virus than have been documented. The number is still far below what experts say would be needed for widespread immunity.
Senators and House members have separately issued letters calling for the Trump administration to undo a controversial move redirecting hospitals' coronavirus information.
