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COVID-19 cases are increasing in the United States — and could get even worse over the coming months, federal health officials warned Wednesday in urging areas hardest hit to consider reissuing calls for indoor masking. Increasing numbers of COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations are putting more of the country under guidelines issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that call for masking and other infection precautions. Right now, about a third of the U.S. population lives in areas that are considered at higher risk — mostly in the Northeast and Midwest. Those are areas where people should already be considering wearing masks indoors — but Americans elsewhere should also take notice, officials said. (Miller and Stobbe, 5/18)

Top Biden administration officials warned Wednesday that one-third of Americans live in communities experiencing rising levels of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations and urged them to resume taking personal protection measures, including wearing masks. The increase in new infections — nearing 100,000 a day — comes as the nation heads into Memorial Day weekend with its large gatherings and travel. That case count is almost certainly an undercount, officials said, given the widespread use of at-home tests for which results are often not reported to health officials. (Abutaleb, 5/18)

In his first briefing since taking on the role of White House COVID-19 response coordinator, Ashish Jha, MD, said the nation has a high degree of immunity but is experiencing brisk COVID-19 activity driven by "incredibly contagious" subvariants, with the nation's homegrown BA.2.12.1 variant posing a huge challenge. ... One piece of good news is that two developments are poised to make useful impacts, Jha said, which include a new round of free home tests that federal officials launched on Mar 16. So far, 8.5 million households have ordered tests. (Schnirring, 5/18)

President Joe Biden’s top health official tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, the latest member of his Cabinet to be infected with the virus. U.S. Health Secretary Xavier Becerra tested positive while visiting Berlin, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services said. Becerra, who is fully vaccinated and boosted, was experiencing mild symptoms. ... Becerra was last at the White House last Thursday. He is not considered a close contact of Biden. (Jordans and Murphy, 5/18)

First daughter Ashley Biden has tested positive for Covid-19 and is no longer joining first lady Jill Biden on a trip to South and Central America, according to the first lady's press secretary, Michael LaRosa. Ashley Biden had been scheduled to depart with the first lady Wednesday afternoon for Ecuador. Jill Biden is scheduled to also travel to Panama and Costa Rica on the trip, before returning to Washington on Monday. "Ashley Biden is not considered a close contact to the President and first lady," LaRosa said. (Bennett, 5/18)

More than 70 New York City judges descended on a Long Island resort last week to enjoy an annual three-night retreat. In the days after, 20 tested positive for the coronavirus. Lucian Chalfen, a spokesman for New York’s courts, confirmed Wednesday that the judges had tested positive. He said that, to his knowledge, none of the judges were seriously ill, and that those who were symptomatic had not reported to work. (Bromwich, 5/18)

COVID-19 has continued to plague the late-night TV circuit, this time hitting Jimmy Kimmel — again. “I’m such a positive person, I tested positive AGAIN,” the host of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” tweeted Tuesday. “I am feeling fine.” While Kimmel recovers, fellow comedy stars John Mulaney and Andy Samberg “have graciously agreed” to guest host his show on Wednesday night. Kimmel has previously disclosed that he is vaccinated and boosted. (Carras, 5/18)

In the first days of the Covid-19 pandemic, then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced New York would use prison labor to address a hand sanitizer shortage and make bottles that were superior to “products now on the market.” New York made so much of the “NYS Clean” hand sanitizer — a whopping 11 million bottles, to be exact — that it still doesn’t know how to get rid of it. (Spector, 5/18)

Congenital and acquired heart conditions such as biventricular defects, cardiac arrest, and heart failure are associated with increased COVID-19 severity in US children, suggests a multicenter study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open. (5/18)