Friday, November 27, 2020
Six days after President Donald Trump lost his bid for reelection, the U.S. Department of Agriculture notified food safety groups that it was proposing a regulatory change to speed up chicken factory processing lines, a change that would allow companies to sell more birds. An earlier USDA effort had broken down on concerns that it could lead to more worker injuries and make it harder to stop germs like salmonella.
Ordinarily, a change like this would take about two years to go through the cumbersome legal process of making new federal regulations. But the timing has alarmed food and worker safety advocates, who suspect the Trump administration wants to rush through this rule in its waning days.
Even as Trump and his allies officially refuse to concede the Nov. 3 election, the White House and federal agencies are hurrying to finish dozens of regulatory changes before Joe Biden is inaugurated on Jan. 20. The rules range from long-simmering administration priorities to last-minute scrambles and affect everything from creature comforts like showerheads and clothes washers to life-or-death issues like federal executions and international refugees. They impact everyone from the most powerful, such as oil drillers, drugmakers and tech startups, to the most vulnerable, such as families on food stamps, transgender people in homeless shelters, migrant workers and endangered species. ProPublica is tracking those regulations as they move through the rule-making process.
Every administration does some version of last-minute rule-making, known as midnight regulations, especially with a change in parties. It’s too soon to say how the Trump administration’s tally will stack up against predecessors. But these final weeks are solidifying conservative policy objectives that will make it harder for the Biden administration to advance its own agenda, according to people who track rules developed by federal agencies.
“The bottom line is the Trump administration is trying to get things published in the Federal Register, leaving the next administration to sort out the mess,” said Matthew Kent, who tracks regulatory policy for left-leaning advocacy group Public Citizen. “There are some real roadblocks to Biden being able to wave a magic wand on these.”
In some instances, the Trump administration is using shortcuts to get more rules across the finish line, such as taking less time to accept and review public feedback. It’s a risky move. On the one hand, officials want to finalize rules so that the next administration won’t be able to change them without going through the process all over again. On the other, slapdash rules may contain errors, making them more vulnerable to getting struck down in court.
The Trump administration is on pace to finalize 36 major rules in its final three months, similar to the 35 to 40 notched by the previous four presidents, according to Daniel Perez, a policy analyst at the George Washington University Regulatory Studies Center. In 2017, Republican lawmakers struck down more than a dozen Obama-era rules using a fast-track mechanism called the Congressional Review Act. That weapon may be less available for Democrats to overturn Trump’s midnight regulations if Republicans keep control of the Senate, which will be determined by two Georgia runoffs. Still, a few GOP defections could be enough to kill a rule with a simple majority.
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
With nearly 4,000 new cases reported today, the number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases closed in on 310,000 as of Wednesday, Nov. 25, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Pima County, which reported 532 new cases today, has seen 37,518 of the state’s 310,850 confirmed cases.
With nine new deaths reported yesterday, a total of 6,524 Arizonans had died after contracting COVID-19, including 679 deaths in Pima County, according to the Nov. 24 report.
The number of hospitalized COVID cases statewide continues to climb upward as the virus has begun to spread more rapidly, putting stress on Arizona’s hospitals. ADHS reported that as of Nov. 24, 2,217 COVID patients were hospitalized in the state, the highest that number has been since July 31. That number peaked with 3,517 hospitalized COVID patients on July 13; it hit a subsequent low of 468 on Sept. 27.
A total of 1,593 people visited emergency rooms on Nov. 24 with COVID symptoms, the highest that number has been since July 15. That number peaked at 2,008 on July 7; it hit a subsequent low of 653 on Sept. 28.
A total of 531 COVID-19 patients were in intensive care unit beds on Nov. 24, the highest that number has been since Aug. 7. The number of COVID patients in ICUs peaked at 970 on July 13 and hit a subsequent low of 114 on Sept. 22.
On a week-by-week basis in Pima County, the number of positive COVID tests peaked the week ending July 4 with 2,452 cases, according to an Nov. 23 report from the Pima County Health Department. (Numbers in this report are subject to revision.)
Pima County is seeing a dramatic rise in cases in recent weeks. For the week ending Oct. 31, 1,348 cases were reported; for the week ending Nov. 7, 2,122 cases were reported; and for the week ending Nov. 14, 2,561 cases were reported; and for the week ending Nov. 21, 2,575 cases were reported.
Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry noted last week that the county had seen 4,620 cases in the first 17 days in November.
“For the first 17 days in July, the worst month of COVID-19 case increases to date, there were 5,057 cases,” Huckleberry said in a Nov. 17 memo. “Therefore, we are on pace to exceed the total number of monthly COVID-19 infections in our previous worst month, July.”
WASHINGTON – The recent surge in COVID-19 cases could push hospital staff and hospital bed capacity to the limit in coming weeks, particularly if people are not careful over Thanksgiving, an Arizona hospital official said Tuesday.
Marjorie Bessel, chief clinical officer for Banner Health, said its projections show the system will be using 125% of its licensed hospital beds by Dec. 4 as it grapples with the usual winter rise in patients and the sudden spike in COVID-19 cases. She compared this holiday weekend to Memorial Day weekend, when unrestricted gatherings were followed by a sharp spike in coronavirus cases.
“If you reflect back in May, you know that Memorial Day weekend was a significant catalyst that caused continued exponential growth of our COVID pandemic here in the state of Arizona,” Bessel said in a press conference Tuesday.
Unlike May, however, when Arizona was one of the few states facing a COVID-19 surge, the current outbreak is widespread. That means hospitals in the state will be hard-pressed to find relief workers from other states, Bessel said, even if they can work around the shortage of beds.
“We have been accumulating pharmaceutical supplies, beds and ventilators since the surge in the summer and we believe that we are prepared,” she said. “What we will have a shortage of will be staff.”
A spokesperson for the Arizona Department of Health Services said the agency is not able to comment on projections from Banner or any other external organization. But Holly Poynter said that while “hospital ICU bed availability has decreased over the past few weeks, there is still adequate capacity in Arizona’s hospitals.”
Tuesday, November 24, 2020
The superintendent of Tucson Unified School District announced the remainder of the district’s football season has been suspended today after considering guidance from the Pima County Administrator’s Office and public health recommendations from the Pima County Health Department, according to an email announcement.
Superintendent Gabriel Trujillo announced all winter sports practices and after-school performing arts rehearsals “are temporarily suspended and will be revisited on December 7th,” according to the email.
“Please know that Tucson Unified is not the only district to take this action as all southern Arizona school districts have also canceled the remainder of their respective game schedules which leaves our schools without opponents to play,” Trujillo said in the email. “I want to thank all of the hard-working coaches, athletes, and supportive parents that worked so hard to make this shortened season possible.”
TUSD initially allowed full-contact football practice after parents signed a waiver of release of all future claims against the district for any COVID-19 related damages, Trujillo said in a press conference on Nov. 12.
At the press conference, the superintendent said the district’s football games wouldn’t have public attendance, transportation was to be provided by parents and communal areas such as locker rooms and showers were off-limits.
Now, winter contact sports like soccer and basketball will also be postponed until further notice.
The Pima County Health Department issued a voluntary curfew Monday as the county remains in a state of substantial spread of coronavirus, according to a media release from the department.
Individuals are asked to observe the curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. every day until Dec. 31 after Pima County reported its highest daily case count of 878 on Sunday.
The week of Nov. 16 saw the highest weekly case count of 2,575, and now the health department is asking all Pima County residents to stay indoors during the curfew, “except those individuals who have no fixed address,” according to the release.
The health department says residents are allowed to leave home for essential activities like attending work or obtaining food or medical care.
"It is necessary to take this additional step due to the accelerating nature of the pandemic in our community," Pima County Health Director Theresa Cullen said in the release. "While we appreciate the efforts of the majority of residents to slow the spread of the virus, a segment of the population continues to participate in social gatherings and resist the use of masks which exacerbates an already critical situation."
In addition to voluntarily adhering to the curfew, the health department is asking residents to continue wearing a mask, social distancing and frequently sanitizing.
With more than 4,500 new cases reported today, the number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases closed in on 307,000 as of Tuesday, Nov. 24, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Pima County, which r
eported 327 new cases today, has seen 36,986 of the state’s 306,868 confirmed cases.
With 51 new deaths reported yesterday, a total of 6,515 Arizonans had died after contracting COVID-19, including 679 deaths in Pima County, according to the Nov. 24 report.
The number of hospitalized COVID cases statewide continues to climb as the virus has begun to spread more rapidly, putting stress on Arizona’s hospitals. ADHS reported that as of Nov. 23, 2,084 COVID patients were hospitalized in the state, the highest that number has been since Aug. 1. That number peaked with 3,517 hospitalized COVID patients on July 13; it hit a subsequent low of 468 on Sept. 27.
A total of 1,372 people visited emergency rooms on Nov. 23 with COVID symptoms. That number peaked at 2,008 on July 7; it hit a subsequent low of 653 on Sept. 28.
A total of 474 COVID-19 patients were in intensive care unit beds on Nov. 23, the highest that number has been since Aug. 12. The number of COVID patients in ICUs peaked at 970 on July 13 and hit a subsequent low of 114 on Sept. 22.
On a week-by-week basis in Pima County, the number of positive COVID tests peaked the week ending July 4 with 2,452 cases, according to an Nov. 23 report from the Pima County Health Department. (Numbers in this report are subject to revision.)
Pima County is seeing a dramatic rise in cases in recent weeks. For the week ending Oct. 31, 1,348 cases were reported; for the week ending Nov. 7, 2,122 cases were reported; and for the week ending Nov. 14, 2,561 cases were reported; and for the week ending Nov. 21, 2,575 cases were reported.
Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry noted last week that the county had seen 4,620 cases in the first 17 days in November.
“For the first 17 days in July, the worst month of COVID-19 case increases to date, there were 5,057 cases,” Huckleberry said in a Nov. 17 memo. “Therefore, we are on pace to exceed the total number of monthly COVID-19 infections in our previous worst month, July.”
WASHINGTON – Thanksgiving travel is expected to be down sharply this year because of COVID-19, but as many as 50 million Americans are still expected to travel this week despite pleas from health experts to stay home.
And those people who do travel could run into a bewildering array of restrictions when they reach their destinations, experts say.
“It is important to know the risks involved and ways to keep yourself and others safe,” the AAA said in its annual Thanksgiving travel outlook. “In addition to CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidance, travelers should also be aware of local and state travel restrictions, including testing requirements and quarantine orders.”
The AAA forecast predicts an overall decline of at least 10% in holiday travelers, from 55 million last year to just over 50 million this year.
But that’s still a lot of people and officials are making changes to accommodate safe travel in a time of COVID-19.
“We have encouraged our business partners to establish touchless applications where possible and we encourage travelers to use mobile boarding passes wherever possible,” said Greg Roybal, a spokesman for Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
Sky Harbor announced a partnership Monday with XpresSpa Group Inc., a health and wellness company, that has set up a COVID-19 testing facility in a former urgent care clinic in Terminal 4. The six testing rooms should be able to handle more than 400 travelers per day.
Monday, November 23, 2020
Some districts have chosen to revert to remote online learning after Thanksgiving break, while others have closed down classrooms and school sites as outbreaks occur.
The Pima County Health Department guides districts in their reopening process, suggesting hybrid or remote-only learning based on three key metrics: two weeks with new case rates below 100 per 100,000, two weeks of percent positivity below 7 percent and hospital visits for COVID-19 illness below 10 percent.
At first, only one of these benchmarks had to move into the “substantial spread” category for the health department to recommend schools move to remote learning, but the Arizona Department of Health Services changed this guidance in late October to say all three had to be in the substantial category to recommend schools go remote.
On Nov. 19, Pima County’s COVID-19 metrics report, which has a 12-day lag time in reporting data, showed substantial spread for COVID-19 cases over two consecutive weeks.
“Right now, our current stance is still that hybrid can work. That's been our position for a while now and remains our position,” Health Department Communications Manager Aaron Pacheco said. “However, this is changing really quickly, and if for some reason we need to change that stance, we're willing to do whatever we need to do to stop the spread, and keep it from continuing to increase.”
In its final week of in-person instruction for the fall semester, the University of Arizona is reporting slightly elevated COVID-19 case numbers as it finishes its pre-fall break testing blitz this week, UA President Robert C. Robbins shared in a news conference Monday, Nov. 23.
From Nov. 12 through Nov. 21, UA found 126 positive coronavirus cases after administering 11,504 tests for a positivity rate of 1.1%, an increase from the 0.9% positivity rate the university reported the previous 10-day period.
On Nov. 9, the university began its "testing blitz" to reduce the spread of COVID-19 as travel is likely to increase over the holiday season. Testing will end on Nov. 25, and students have been asked to register for an appointment-only test after completing a survey with their traveling plans.
If students travel outside the Tucson area over fall break, the university is asking them to complete the semester outside the area or remotely online. Those who don't travel can complete the semester from their student residences.
“Case numbers are rising here in Arizona and nationwide. I strongly encourage everyone to exercise extreme caution over this break. This means don’t travel. If you don’t have to, don’t do it.” Robbins said. “If you do travel, including going home from your student residence, quarantine after arrival.”
All students will complete the semester remotely when classes resume Nov. 30. In January, the university plans to return to stage two of its reentry plan with up to 50 students attending classes in person.
However, Robbins said if the current surge in COVID-19 cases continues over winter break, “we’re gonna have to go back and start all over like we did with this term.”
Pima County Public Health Director Theresa Cullen lauded the university for its coronavirus mitigation efforts but says the county is seeing alarming levels of cases.
According to Cullen, the seven-day rolling average for COVID-19 cases per day is at 439 throughout Pima County. In mid-October, the county saw 59 cases a day.
On Nov. 22, the county reported 878 new coronavirus cases, which Cullen says is the highest daily case count ever reported in Pima County.
“We are in a post accelerated stage of the pandemic right now. So while the university continues to do incredibly well and is an exemplar for us of what we could be doing, we are not seeing that in the general community,” Cullen said.
SAN CLEMENTE, California – High school athletes can’t play competitively this fall semester due to California’s pandemic restrictions, so some elite players are traveling to Arizona and other states to maintain their skills and continue developing a scouting profile for colleges.
With some high school sports indefinitely on hold, California athletes on club or travel teams are willing to travel to states with fewer restrictions, just for the chance to compete. Although physically distanced conditioning has been allowed since the start of school, local California districts have set their own timetables.
On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a delay of the release of statewide guidance on the resumption of school sports, citing an alarming spike in COVID-19 cases, the Los Angeles Times reported. This makes it much tougher on sports families to keep their kids involved competitively, including the Luce family, with three boys all involved in sports.
“It’s definitely more coordinating and a lot more work,” said their mother, Julie Luce. “Getting out there is not easy.”
Although it has been difficult, she can’t deny her eldest son, Ryan, his aspirations of becoming a professional baseball player. In light of the high school sports postponement, Ryan’s family decided to hold the 14-year-old back from his freshman year to remain in eighth grade: he joined a sports academy middle school in San Clemente called the Togethership.
Luce and husband Anthony are providing Ryan the opportunity to play competitive baseball out-of-state. After resuming workouts in late July, Ryan and his family drove to Phoenix in September for his first interstate tournament with The Togethership.
