Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
White House Finalizing Guidelines To Help States Reopen In Phases
The White House is finalizing expanded guidelines to allow the phased reopening of schools and camps, child-care programs, certain workplaces, houses of worship, restaurants and mass transit, according to documents under review by administration officials. Members of the White House coronavirus task force and other officials received the guidelines late last week, according to senior administration officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the guidelines have not been officially released. (Sun and Dawsey, 4/27)
On Monday, for instance, the president met with retail executives and spoke with governors about the coronavirus response and 鈥渆conomic revival,鈥 a subject that has cropped up on several of his daily schedules in the past few weeks, replacing 鈥渕itigation鈥 and 鈥渃ontainment鈥 of the new coronavirus. With a slimmed-down public schedule, Trump has spent much of April meeting 鈥 virtually or otherwise 鈥 with business groups, including his reopening council of more than 200 people. (Oprysko, 4/27)
Atty. Gen. William Barr on Monday ordered federal prosecutors across the U.S. to identify coronavirus-related restrictions from state and local governments 鈥渢hat could be violating the constitutional rights and civil liberties of individual citizens.鈥 The memo to U.S. attorneys directs the head of the Justice Department鈥檚 civil rights division and the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan to coordinate the department鈥檚 efforts to monitor state and local policies and take action if needed. (4/27)
President Donald Trump says states should 鈥渟eriously consider鈥 reopening their public schools before the end of the academic year, even though dozens already have said it would be unsafe for students to return until the summer or fall. Trump made the comments Monday in a call with governors discussing how to reopen their economies, among other topics. (Binkley, 4/28)
From the White House podium to harried homes, pressure is building to reopen the nation鈥檚 schools. But the next iteration of American education will look far different from the classrooms students and teachers abruptly departed last month. Many overwhelmed school systems remain focused on running remote education that was set up on the fly. Others, though, are deep into planning for what they see coming: an in-between scenario in which schools are open but children are spread out in places where they are normally packed together. (Meckler, Strauss and Balingit, 4/27)