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Prisons are prime incubators for the disease, as social distancing and basic contagion protections are largely impossible behind bars.

In Texas prisons, more than 26,000 prisoners have caught COVID-19 since the first confirmed case in March.

And at least 168 prisoners have died after catching the virus.

There have also been 7,340 coronavirus cases among prison staff and at least 26 employee deaths. The surviving relatives of those prison employees say they have been unable to get first-responder benefits.

By the fall, the Texas prison system led the nation in COVID-19 prisoner deaths, according to a study from the University of Texas at Austin.

Prisons are prime incubators for the disease, as social distancing and basic contagion protections are largely impossible behind bars.

An investigation by WFAA and The Marshall Project showed that the spread of COVID-19 behind bars was also due to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice's lackluster response, potentially exacerbating outbreaks and putting surrounding communities at risk.

Here's how the novel coronavirus has spread in Texas prisons:

Jan. 21 - The first case of COVID-19 is confirmedin the U.S.

Jan. 30 - The World Health Organization declares a public health emergency. The first person-to-person transmission of the virus is confirmed in the U.S.

Feb. 26 - The Correctional Managed Health Care Committee, which oversees healthcare in Texas prisons, has its first meeting to discuss planning and response to COVID-19.

March 11 - The Texas Department of Criminal Justices chief health services provider calls a meeting to discuss revamping the agencys pandemic flu plan to address COVID-19. It's the same day the WHO declares the coronavirus a pandemic.

March 12 - TDCJ makes a video showing staff how to wear PPE. The agency has since fought reporters requests to release that video or see what instructions it provides.

March 13 - Gov. Greg Abbott declares a state of disaster, and Texas prisons end all visitation.

March 16 - TDCJ activates its incident command center at headquarters in Huntsville and begins holding daily conference calls to discuss the situation. And, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stops the execution of John Hummel due to the pandemic. It is the first of several executions called off due to COVID-19.

March 20 - The Correctional Managed Health Care Committee issues its first COVID-19 policy, greenlit by three joint medical directors but without input from the agencys security staff. The same day, the governor approves TDCJs requestto temporarily suspend the fees prisoners are usually charged for medical treatment, allowing better access to medical care during the pandemic.

March 23 - A contract prison employee working at the Jester 1 Unit in Richmond becomes the first staff member to test positive for COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention releases interim guidance on managing COVID-19 in jails and detention centers, outlining when facilities need soap, sanitizer, PPE, and social distancing.

March 24 - Prison factoriesbegin making masks for staff and inmates, distributing them to elderly inmates to start. The agency also begins minimizing prisoner transfers between units. The same day, TDCJ announces thefirst prisoner- a 37-year-old at Lychner State Jail - has tested positive for the virus.

March 30 - Medically vulnerable inmates at the Pack Unit, a geriatric prison in East Texas, sue TDCJ to demand betteraccess to soap, hand sanitizer and social distancing.

April 6 - Kevin Wilcher, a 49-year-old officer at the Estelle Unit in Huntsville, becomes the first staff member to die from the virus.

April 7 - Bartolo Infante, a 72-year-old at the Telford Unit, becomes the first prisoner to die of COVID-19after spending four days in an outside hospital battling viral pneumonia. The same day, four prisons Murray, Jordan, Beto and Telford go on lockdown due to viral outbreaks at the units.

April 10 - The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases among prisoners crosses into triple-digits with 132 inmates testingpositive. Eighteen prisons are on lockdown. During lockdowns, the agency says only staff assigned to each unit will work at those units.

April 11 - The geriatric Pack Unit in Navasota sees its first COVID-19-related fatality when Leonard Clerkly dies. His cause of death is not confirmed for two more days. Two days later, the prison system suspends intakes from county jails.

Coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, criminal justice and immigration. Since March, The Marshall Project has been tracking how many people are being sickened and killed by COVID-19 in prisons and how widely it has spread across the country and within each state.

April 16 - Federal District Judge Keith Ellison issues a preliminary injunction in the Pack prisoners lawsuit, ordering the prison system to provide hand sanitizer and face masks for inmates. TDCJ appeals the order the next day.

April 18 - The prison system changes how it tracks positive cases, now noting only where the prisoners are currently located and making it more difficult to track outbreaks. So far, 18 have recovered and 376 have tested positive as well as 183 staff.

April 19 - Prisoner Russell Hill dies of COVID-19, though the prison system does not publicly acknowledge his death for five more months.

April 22- TheFifth Circuit stays Judge Ellisons order, saying that TDCJ does not have to comply with it while the court considers the agencys appeal.

April 29 - The number of infected prisoners crosses the 1,000 mark, with 1,050 positives among the inmate population and 381 among the staff. TDCJ notes 12 prisoner and 5 staff deaths in connection with the virus. Thirty-seven units are on lockdown, sparking complaintsfrom prisoners who cannot call their families and are subsisting on shoddy bagged meals.

May 12 - The prison system deploys strike teams and beginsmass testing the inmate population, including prisoners who are asymptomatic.

May 15 - Prison officials promise to improve the food served during lock-term lockdowns, ordering fresh vegetables and tray lids to deliver hot meals.

May 17 - Prisoners and staff continue reporting deteriorating conditions at several units, including the Smith Unit in Lamesa where staff say a sewer line problem causes toilets to overflow with feces after a water outage.

Coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, criminal justice and immigration. The toilets are overflowing-again. As if crowded conditions inside prisons were not enough of a challenge during a pandemic, some Texas prisoners are also facing a familiar foe: the system's historically-bad plumbing.

May 29 - Strike teams have tested more than 51,000 prisonersand nearly 14,000 staff members using Curative oral swabs. So far, 5,469 prisoners and 879 staff have tested positive, and 36 prisoners and seven employees have died from the virus.

June 5-The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacates the courts preliminary injunction because TDCJ substantially complied with the measures ordered by the district court and they remanded the case to the district court.

June 10 - By now, more than 1,000 prison staff and 7,200 inmates have confirmed positives, and 59% of the state's 106 units are on lockdown. Staff report they are routinely being forced to work at other units, even during lockdowns. Some say they have been written up for refusing.

June 15 - In an effort to stop delaying releases, officials announced that they will resume the transferof prisoners who need to be moved to other units to complete programs needed to make parole.

June 30 - After a monthslong pause on intakes, the prison population drops under 130,000 for the first time in decades, closing out the month with 126,590 behind bars. But the agency resumes picking up new prisoners from county jails in July, starting with just 250 per week.

July 2 - Abbott issues a statewide executive order requiring facemasks in counties with 20 or more positive cases.

July 8 - Texas carries out the first execution since the startof the pandemic, putting to death 45-year-old Billy Wardlow.

July 13 - By this point, the agency has reported12,007 cases and 94 deaths among the prisoner population, and 2,160 cases including nine deaths among the prison systems employees. The trial begins in the case of the Pack Unit prisoners who sued TDCJ to demand social distancing, hand sanitizer, soap and other protections.

July 18 - Prisoners at the understaffed Briscoe Unit riot and take a corrections officer hostagefor several hours after breaking out of their cells amid a lengthy lockdown.

Aug. 24 - Despite the attempts at decreased transfers due to the pandemic, TDCJ is forced to evacuate three units in southeast Texas in preparation for incoming Hurricane Laura.

Sept. 29 - ThePack Unit prisoners win their lawsuit, as Judge Keith Ellison issues an expansive ruling in their favor, laying out a long list of requirements TDCJ must comply with to better protect inmates.

Sept. 30 - The prison population dipsto barely 120,000 for the first time in at least two decades, and TDCJ closes three units - Garza East, Jester 1, and Bradshaw. Another 3,379 beds in wings at other units across the state are temporarily shut down due to a lack of staff.

Oct. 13 - The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals overturns Judge Ellisons order, saying that the number of positive cases decreased without a court order. The Pack Unit prisoners later appeal the decision.

Oct. 29 - The number of active prisoner cases dips down to 251, and agency data lists 22,141 inmates as recovered. More than 218,000 incarcerated people have been tested and 166 are believed to have died in connection with the virus. There are 648 active staff cases, in addition to 21 deaths and 4,786 recoveries.

Oct. 30 - At a Texas Board of Criminal Justice meeting, Executive Director Bryan Collier announces that wardens will oversee surveillance testing at each unit every three weeks beginning Nov. 8.

Nov. 16 - The Supreme Court declines to intervene and enforce the district court's injunction in the Pack Unit lawsuit, which would have required certain basic safety procedures.

Dec. 1 - Texas prison officials confirmed plans to shut down two more prisons following a massive population decrease during the pandemic. The goal is to have the prisons closed by the end of the year.

Dec. 2 - Kenneth Russell died of COVID-19 two weeks after he was hospitalized, prison officials said. He is one of 25 TDCJ employees who have died from coronavirus complications.

More from our investigation:

WFAA has partnered withThe Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization that covers the U.S. criminal justice system, to produce No Way Out: COVID Behind Bars.Keri Blakingeris a staff writer with The Marshall Project based in Houston. Her work has focused on prisons and prosecutors.

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TIMELINE: The spread of COVID-19 in Texas prisons - WFAA.com

MEXICO CITY Mexicos medical safety commission has approved the emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for the coronavirus.

Assistant Health Secretary Hugo Lpez-Gatell said Friday that Mexico is the fourth country to do so, behind Britain, Canada and Bahrain.

Mexico is set to receive 250,000 doses of the vaccine, enough for 125,000 people.

Lpez-Gatel has said that front-line health workers will get the shots first. Vaccinations are expected to begin as soon as next week.

Lpez-Gatel says the approval is of course a reason for hope, though the initial rounds of shots are not nearly enough for Mexicos health-care workforce.

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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

The White House is pressuring the FDA chief Stephen Hahn to grant an emergency use authorization for Pfizers coronavirus vaccine by the end of the day. The vaccine won approval Thursday from an FDA panel of outside advisers, and FDA signoff is the next step to get the shots to the public.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo has reinstated indoor dining restrictions indefinitely in New York City in an effort to limit the increase in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations. Starting Monday, only takeout orders and outdoor dining will be allowed in the city.

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Follow APs coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak

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HERES WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

KALAMAZOO, Mich. The U.S. Justice Department is supporting Michigan faith-based schools in their court challenge to Gov. Gretchen Whitmers ban on in-person classes in high schools.

The departments Civil Rights Division filed an argument in favor of three Roman Catholic high schools and the Michigan Association of Non-Public Schools. A federal judge in Kalamazoo will hear arguments Monday.

The filing says schools and families have a constitutional right to practice their religion through in-person instruction. It cites a recent U.S. Supreme Court order that barred New York from enforcing certain restrictions on religious services in areas hit hard by the coronavirus.

Michigans health department argues the teaching restriction is necessary to control the spread of the coronavirus, especially after Thanksgiving gatherings.

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FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. The U.S. federal agency that provides health care to Native Americans says its expecting more than enough coronavirus vaccines to protect all the people working in the hospitals and clinics that it funds.

The Indian Health Service was treated much like a state for distribution purposes. It submitted a plan to vaccinate more than 2 million Native Americans and Alaska Natives.

The agency expects to receive 22,425 doses of the Pfizer vaccine next week and 46,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine by the end of the year. Those doses will cover the more than 44,000 people who work at hundreds of facilities that are receiving vaccine allocations through the Indian Health Service.

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UNITED NATIONS -- Eight mainly Western nations are accusing North Korea of using the pandemic to crack down further on the human rights of its own people, pointing to reports of an uptick in executions related to the coronavirus and strict controls on movements around its capital.

The statement was issued Friday after the U.N. Security Council privately discussed North Koreas human rights situation. Germany and others had sought an open session but Russia, China and other council members objected.

Seven council members -- Germany, Belgium, Dominican Republic, Estonia, France, Britain and the United States -- joined by Japan criticized North Korea for rights abuses. They also said the North Korean governments decision to prioritize its weapons programs is inevitably worsening the impacts of the pandemic on the North Korean population.

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LITTLE ROCK, Ark. Arkansas health officials on Friday reported a one-day record of 55 deaths due to COVID-19 and 2,770 new confirmed or probable cases.

We have once again reached a grave milestone in this pandemic, Gov. Asa Hutchinson said in a statement.

While we may have hope ahead from promising vaccine news, we cannot grow weary over the next few weeks, he said.

In a statewide address Thursday night, Hutchinson said the state is seeing a surge in cases after Thanksgiving and suggested Arkansans travel less for the coming Christmas holiday and take rapid tests both before and after travel.

The state Department of Health reported a total of 2,875 deaths due to the illness caused by the virus and 181,624 total cases since the pandemic began.

The health department reported 1,059 people hospitalized with the virus.

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WICHITA, Kan. A Wichita fitness studios owner and his business are suing Kansas for compensation for being forced to shut down and reopen with restrictions this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The lawsuit filed this week in Sedgwick County District Court by Ryan Floyd and Omega Bootcamps Inc. argues that the state used his and the business private property for the benefit of the general public when it and local officials imposed their restrictions. The lawsuit cites part of the states emergency management law that says people can pursue claims for compensation in court if their property is commandeered or otherwise used by state or local officials.

The Kansas attorney generals office declined comment, saying it was reviewing the lawsuit. Gov. Laura Kellys office did not immediately respond Friday to a request for comment.

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RALEIGH, N.C. The chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court says non-essential, in-person court proceedings will be halted starting Monday for 30 days due to a surge in COVID-19 cases. Chief Justice Cheri Beasley said Friday the pause is necessary to protect the health and safety of court personnel and the public. Since the start of the pandemic, judicial branch officials and employees have reported 291 confirmed positive cases. In addition, more than half of North Carolinas county courthouses have been partially or completely closed due to COVID-19, and 11 of those closures occurred this week.

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DENVER -- The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment on Friday released the locations of health facilities in urban and rural Colorado to receive the first shipment of 46,800 doses of the Pfizer vaccine.

Facilities in Denver, Aspen, Colorado Springs and Fort Collins were some of the chosen locations for the first Pfizer vaccines. Initially, 46 health care facilities will receive Pfizer vaccine doses; 151 facilities will get subsequent Moderna vaccine doses; and 40 of them will get both.

The locations were selected for their abilities to store Pfizer vaccines in -60C to -80C temperatures and a willingness to redistribute vaccines to other providers.

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BISMARCK, N.D. North Dakotas death count per capita from the coronavirus has risen from 12th-highest in the country to fifth in just six weeks, according to Johns Hopkins University researchers.

The states death count has gone from 75 deaths per 100,000 people to 146 deaths during that time, according to The COVID Tracking Project.

The state Department of Health on Friday reported 27 new deaths, 12 of which were from November due to a reporting lag. The statewide death toll since the pandemic began now stands at 1,130.

State Health Department officials on Friday confirmed 513 new cases of the coronavirus.

North Dakota had for many weeks led the country in the number of virus outbreaks compared to population.

The state now ranks fourth, with 1,350 new cases per 100,000 people in North Dakota over the past two weeks. One in every 136 people in North Dakota tested positive in the past week., according to Johns Hopkins University researchers.

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NEW YORK Indoor dining restrictions will be reinstated in New York City on Monday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced. Only takeout orders and outdoor dining will be allowed.

Nearly 1,700 patients are hospitalized in the city with the coronavirus, triple the number a month ago.

The governments top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, spoke with Cuomo by livestream this week, noting he expects hospitalizations to keep increasing until mid-January.

Cuomos order came despite opposition from the restaurant industry, which warned of holiday season layoffs as the federal government hasnt passed additional COVID-19 relief.

Public health experts have repeatedly warned that indoor dining -- particularly in small, crowded restaurants where individuals are drinking and can take off masks when not eating -- poses a risk for airborne transmission. The CDC recently described such indoor dining as high risk.

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PHOENIX Arizona has reported nearly 7,000 coronavirus cases, the third-highest number since the start of the pandemic.

The state reported 6,983 confirmed cases and 91 deaths on Friday.

Virus-related hospitalizations stood at 3,492. Thats just short of the hospitalization peak during the states COVID-19 surge last summer. Hospital officials and public health experts have warned that hospital capacity could be reached this month.

Arizona has reported 394,512 total cases and 7,245 confirmed deaths.

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RALEIGH, N.C. North Carolina reported more than 7,500 coronavirus cases, a single-day record.

More than 2,500 people are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, which represents a two-fold increase in the last 30 days.

The positivity rate has eclipsed 10% for nearly two weeks, reaching double digits for the first time since April.

Mandy Cohen, secretary of the states Department of Health and Human Services, attributed much of the uptick to people gathering over Thanksgiving.

Having more than 7,500 cases is staggering and alarming, Cohen says.

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MILAN Italy registered 761 deaths on Friday, according to the Health Ministry.

Another 18,727 people tested positive, slightly more than a day earlier when fewer tests were carried out.

While the death toll remains high, restrictions have helped ease the level of contagion and the pressure on hospitals. About 1,500 fewer people were hospitalized with the virus and 26 fewer patients were in intensive care. There were 208 new arrivals in ICU.

Two key regions, epicenter Lombardy and neighboring Piedmont, will have restrictions eased this weekend. Theyll be allowed to dine indoors until 6 p.m. for the first time in weeks.

Italy has more than 63,000 confirmed deaths, fifth highest in the world, and 1.8 million confirmed cases.

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BOSTON Doctors are reporting that a two-drug treatment is especially helpful for COVID-19 patients who need extra oxygen.

Adding the anti-inflammatory drug baricitinib to the antiviral medicine remdesivir helped these patients recover eight days sooner, in 10 days on average versus 18 for those given remdesivir alone, according to a study.

The medicines have been recommended since September, when early results from this U.S. government-sponsored study suggested the combination shortened recovery time for hospitalized patients by one day.

Full results published Friday by the New England Journal of Medicine show the benefit was even greater for those needing oxygen or other respiratory support short of a breathing machine. Serious side effects and new infections also were fewer in the combo treatment group.

The study involved more than 1,000 COVID-19 patients. All were given Gilead Sciences remdesivir, sold as Veklury, and half also received baricitinib, a drug Eli Lilly sells as Olumiant to treat rheumatoid arthritis, the less common form of arthritis that occurs when a mistaken or overreacting immune system attacks joints, causing inflammation. An overactive immune system also can lead to serious problems in some coronavirus patients.

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OKLAHOMA CITY The Oklahoma health department has added paramedics, emergency medical technicians and CVS and Walgreen staff who will administer the COVID-19 vaccine to those who will receive the vaccine first.

The state Department of Health announced the revised plan in a news release and said health commissioner Dr. Lance Frye would discuss it on Friday.

Others to receive the vaccine first are health care workers and long-term care providers and residents. Frye says the state expects 166,000 initial doses of the Pfizer vaccine by the end of December.

A U.S. government advisory panel on Thursday endorsed widespread use of Pfizers vaccine, putting the country just one step away from launching a massive vaccination campaign against the outbreak that has killed more than 292,000 Americans.

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HONOLULU A county on a Hawaii island believed to be the last one in the U.S. without any coronavirus cases has reported its first resident testing positive.

The Hawaii Department of Health on Thursday reported the case in Kalawao County on the island of Molokai. The health department says an adult resident tested positive after returning to the island on a local flight.

The person is in self-isolation and currently doesnt have virus symptoms. The health department says contact tracing was conducted and all other passengers on the flight are in self-quarantine.

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MOSCOW Authorities in Moscow are expanding the COVID-19 vaccination program to include those in the retail and service sector.

Last weekend, Moscow opened 70 vaccination facilities to start delivering Russian-designed Sputnik V vaccines to thousands of doctors, teachers, and municipal workers.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin says a new shipment of the vaccine is due to arrive shortly, allowing the city officials to expand the immunization effort to those working in the retail and services sector starting next week.

Russias nearly 2.6 million confirmed cases is the fourth-largest caseload in the world behind the United States, India and Brazil. The government task force has recorded 45,893 virus-related deaths since the start of the outbreak.

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The Latest: Mexico is 4th nation to OK the Pfizer vaccine - The Associated Press

NEW YORK The viral pandemic is accelerating a transformation of Americas holiday shopping season.

Few people showed up at the mall this weekend, with millions of pandemic-wary shoppers staying home to shop online.

The result? Overall holiday sales are projected to rise a slight 0.9% in November and December and even that modest gain will be due to an explosion in online shopping, according to the research firm eMarketer. It expects online sales to jump nearly 36%, while sales at physical stores fall 4.7%.

The online rush was on fully display Monday, known as Cyber Monday, a day of sales promoted by retailers back in 2005. Once the final numbers are tallied up, this years Cyber Monday is projected to become the biggest online shopping day in American history.

Read the full story here.

U.S. concerned about adequate supplies for vaccine

WASHINGTON A government watchdog agency says most states are concerned they wont have adequate supplies to administer COVID-19 vaccines, which are expected to start becoming available for high-priority groups in the next few weeks.

The congressional Government Accountability Office said in a report Monday that 17 states are greatly or completely concerned about having adequate supplies to administer vaccines, while another 21 states said in an agency survey they were moderately concerned.

The federal governments Operation Warp Speed campaign aims to start shipping vaccines within 24 hours of an emergency use approval from the Food and Drug Administration. But theres concern about the final, local delivery links in getting vaccines finally into peoples arms, sometimes referred to as the last mile in the chain.

Initially vaccines are expected to go to health care workers, with nursing home staff and residents, and essential workers getting the next highest priority.

GAO said senior officials from six states stated they were specifically concerned about the federal governments ability to supply needles given reports of shortages. Three of those states also said they were scrambling to maintain supplies of needles for flu vaccination.

The GAO report did not identify the states.

Yes, you can get COVID twice. Dont be alarmed, scientists say

SAN DIEGO Data from San Diego County suggest that few residents have gotten COVID-19 twice so far, echoing findings from researchers across the globe.

The Union-Tribune asked the County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency for the number of people whove tested positive for the coronavirus twice, with their second test at least three months after their first. That cutoff is based on a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that an infected person can shed virus for up to three months after they first show symptoms

Fewer than 10 San Diegans met those criteria, according to communications officer Sarah Sweeney.

Thats a tiny fraction of the more than 70,000 people whove tested positive for COVID-19 in the region. And Sweeney cautions that the county isnt certain these are genuine cases of reinfection and not tests picking up remnants of a persons first infection.

To figure that out, researchers would have to sequence viral samples from both tests and compare them. Clear genetic differences between the samples would be a strong sign that someone was infected twice.

Thats what scientists did to identify the first confirmed case of COVID-19 reinfection a man living in Hong Kong who tested positive for the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in late March and again in mid-August.

UC San Diego infectious disease expert Chip Schooley is the editor of the journal of Clinical Infectious Diseases, where the study published. He says its no surprise that researchers are finding instances of COVID-19 reinfection.

We knew this would be the case, Schooley said. Other coronaviruses had the same experience: You develop immunity during a bout of infection, the immunity wanes and then the virus comes back around again and you get infected. And thats whats happening with this coronavirus as well.

Local researchers say thats not necessarily cause for concern.

Notably, the first person with a confirmed COVID-19 reinfection had mild symptoms during his first bout of disease and no symptoms the second time.

Thats reminiscent of a 1990 United Kingdom study in which volunteers were deliberately exposed to a coronavirus that causes the common cold. Most of the participants who were exposed twice still got infected again, but they didnt develop symptoms or shed virus for as long as they did the first time which presumably means they were less infectious.

We dont know whether that can be extrapolated to SARS-CoV-2, but that would be a good scenario, said Alessandro Sette, a researcher at La Jolla Immunology.

Sette and colleagues recently looked at the immune responses of 185 people who recovered from COVID-19. Their study, which has not yet gone through scientific peer review, showed that most of these peoples immune responses were still detectable six to eight months after they got sick.

We dont see any red flags,' Sette said. From what were seeing, its not hard to imagine that the response could last years.

Air travel rises to post-pandemic high despite U.S. warning

U.S. air travelers rose to the most in more than eight months as fliers brushed aside the advice of public health officials to avoid trips around the Thanksgiving holiday.

Passengers at domestic airport checkpoints totaled 1,176,091 on Sunday, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration said Monday. Thats the most since March, when the coronavirus pandemic gutted travel demand.

The uptick in airline travel came even as public health officials and state leaders urged people to stay home and limit holiday gatherings to prevent a further surge in covid-19 cases. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, before the holiday said that people should think twice about traveling.

Despite the increase, Sundays passenger total was only 41% of last years level. Before the holiday week, travelers in November had been at about 35% of 2019 levels.

American Airlines Group Inc., United Airlines Holdings Inc. and Southwest Airlines Co. had warned before Thanksgiving that bookings were softening with news of growing infections, hospitalizations and deaths due to covid-19.

A Standard & Poors index of major U.S. airlines fell 1.8% at 11:21 a.m., paced by Americans 4.3% drop to $14.33.

Driving was also off last week, with U.S. gasoline demand falling more than 25% compared with year-earlier levels, according to GasBuddy.

Rhode Island hospitals reach COVID-19 capacity

PROVIDENCE, R.I. Rhode Islands hospitals reached their COVID-19 capacity on Monday, the same day the states two-week pause meant to control the rise in new coronavirus cases took effect.

The state pushed an emergency alert to residents cell phones that read: Hospitals at capacity due to COVID. Help the frontline by staying home as much as possible for the next two weeks.

Under the restrictions announced earlier in November by Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo, some businesses will be required to shut down for two weeks, while others are restricted.

Recreational businesses including bowling alleys, theaters, and casinos, as well as indoor sporting facilities and gyms must close. Bars and bar areas in restaurants are also required to close, while restaurants are limited to 33% of indoor capacity. Residents are also asked to close their social circles to only people in their own household.

This will not be easy, but I am pleading with you to take it seriously. Choosing to gather with those outside your household will have ripple effects that will increase the strain on our hospitals and put lives at risk, Raimondo said in a statement.

Raimondo did not rule out another economic shutdown if the pandemic get worse.

Beware of COVID-19 scams as vaccine approaches FDA approval

WASHINGTON The coronavirus vaccine inching toward approval in the U.S. is desperately anticipated by weary Americans longing for a path back to normal life. But criminals are waiting, too, ready to use that desperation to their advantage, federal investigators say.

Homeland Security investigators are working with Pfizer, Moderna and dozens of other drug companies racing to complete and distribute the vaccine and treatments for the virus. The goal: to prepare for the scams that are coming, especially after the mess of criminal activity this year with phony personal protective equipment, false cures and extortion schemes.

Were all very excited about the potential vaccine and treatments, said Steve Francis, assistant director for global trade investigations with Homeland Security Investigations. But I also caution against these criminal organizations and individuals that will try to exploit the American public.

No vaccine has yet been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The FDA has approved the first treatment for COVID-19, the antiviral drug remdesivir. With vaccines and treatments both, it has warned about the potential for fraud.

The FDA is particularly concerned that these deceptive and misleading products might cause Americans to delay or stop appropriate medical treatment, leading to serious and life-threatening harm, the agency said in a recent statement.

The drug companies are to have safeguards and brand-protection features in place to help avoid fraud, but that may not be available until the second generation of vaccine because everything is operated on such an emergency basis, said Karen Gardner, chief marketing officer at SIPCA North America, a company that works as a bridge between the government, businesses and consumers. She said that makes it more important to educate health care providers on what the real thing looks like.

When you have anything in high demand and limited supply, there is going to be fraud, she said. Desperation will drive people around normal channels.

Meanwhile, investigators are learning about how the vaccine will be packaged and getting the message out to field agents, creating a mass database of information from more than 200 companies, so they can be prepared to spot fakes and crack down on dangerous fraud. They are monitoring tens of thousands of false websites and looking for evidence of fake cures sold online.

Earlier this year as cases exploded, hospitals and governments grew short on masks, gloves and other protective gear. Scams grew, too. Tricksters preyed on unwitting citizens to hand over money for goods theyd never receive.

Read the full story here.

Lawmaker learns of positive test while meeting with Trump

HARRISBURG, Pa. A Pennsylvania state senator abruptly left a West Wing meeting with President Trump after being informed he had tested positive for the coronavirus, a person with direct knowledge of the meeting told The Associated Press on Sunday.

Republican state Sen. Doug Mastriano had gone to the White House last Wednesday with like-minded Republican state lawmakers shortly after a four-hour-plus public meeting that Mastriano helped host in Gettysburg maskless to discuss efforts to overturn President-elect Joe Bidens victory in the state.

Trump told Mastriano that White House medical personnel would take care of him, his son and his sons friend, who were also there for the Oval Office meeting and tested positive. The meeting continued after Mastriano and the others left, the person said.

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private session because the matter is politically sensitive.

Positive coronavirus cases are surging across the United States and the nations top infectious disease expert said Sunday that the U.S. may see surge upon surge in the coming weeks. The number of new COVID-19 cases reported in the United States topped 200,000 for the first time Friday.

Everyone who will be in close proximity to the president must take a rapid test. Trump was himself hospitalized in October after he contracted the virus. Dozens of White House staffers and others close to the president have also tested positive, including the first lady and two of the presidents sons.

All participants in Wednesdays meeting took COVID-19 tests, but the positive results were not announced until they were in the West Wing of the White House, the person said.

The president instantly called the White House doctor in and he took them back to, I guess, the medical place, the person said. The meeting with Trump was to strategize about efforts regarding the election, the person said.

After Mastriano and the others left, the discussion with Trump continued for about a half-hour. Mastriano did not return to the meeting.

Mastriano sought the meeting of the Pennsylvania Senate Republican Policy Committee earlier Wednesday that drew Trump personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, a second Trump lawyer, several witnesses and a crowd of onlookers. Only a few of them were masked.

The committee let Giuliani and others, for several hours, air their beliefs that there had been problems with how the Pennsylvania vote was conducted and counted. All claims were baseless; no evidence was presented to support any of the allegations they made.

Trump even participated, calling from the White House while one of his lawyers held a phone up to a microphone. He reiterated the same unfounded claims of fraud hes been tweeting about for weeks.

Those beliefs have persisted despite Trump losing repeatedly in state and federal courts, including a Philadelphia-based federal appeals courts decision Friday that said the Trump campaigns claims have no merit, and a state Supreme Court decision Saturday that threw out a legal challenge to the election and effort to stop certification of its results.

Mastriano, a conservative from a rural district in central Pennsylvania and outspoken Trump supporter, did not return several messages left Sunday seeking comment.

Republican state Sen. Dave Argall, who chairs the policy committee, declined Sunday in a text message to discuss Mastrianos medical condition and the White House visit.

Ive received some conflicting information that Im trying to resolve, Argall said in the text. Its my understanding a Senate statement later today will help us all to understand this better.

Argall said he would not talk publicly about the matter until I know more.

Senate Republican spokeswoman Kate Flessner declined comment, describing it as a personnel matter.

The person with knowledge of the White House visit said several people rode in a large van from Gettysburg, where the policy committee met in a hotel, to the White House. Mastriano, his son and his sons friend drove in another vehicle.

Its not clear why Mastrianos son and his friend accompanied the state senator to the meeting, which the person said was also attended by Trump and the presidents chief of staff, Mark Meadows, who tested positive in early November.

Mastriano has aggressively opposed policies under the administration of Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus and keep people safe.

He has led rallies where he advocated to reopen businesses despite the risk of infection and he has repeatedly and sharply denounced Wolfs orders. Mastriano also spoke to a few thousand Trump supporters who gathered outside the Capitol on Nov. 7, hours after Democrat Joe Bidens national win became evident.

New York City to reopen school system

NEW YORK New York City will reopen its school system to in-person learning and increase the number of days a week many children attend class even as the coronavirus pandemic intensifies in the city.

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Sunday that some elementary schools and pre-kindergarten programs will resume classes Dec. 7. Others will take longer to reopen their doors. The announcement marks a major policy reversal for the nations largest school system.

It comes just 11 days after de Blasio announced that schools were shutting down because of a rising number of cases. The plan for reopening middle and high schools is still being developed.

Some elementary schools and pre-kindergarten programs will resume classes Dec. 7, a week from Monday, the mayor said. Others will take longer to reopen their doors.

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The Latest: The pandemic is driving everyone to shop from home - The Bethel Citizen

For the first time, Wisconsin reported more than 100 deaths from COVID-19 in one day.

The grim news comes ahead of Thanksgiving, when health experts expect asymptomatic carriers to gather indoorsandspread the coronavirus even further in a state already struggling with strained hospitals and a critically high level of infection.

"If you're planning to spend Thanksgiving with people outside of your household, we urge you to seriously reconsider," Gov. Tony Evers said Tuesday in a news conference. "None of us wants to be the ones who unwittingly spread this virus to somebody we love, or host the next superspreader event we hear about in the news."

The state Department of Health Services on Tuesdayreported 6,202 new cases and 104 deaths, bringing the death toll to 3,115.

The average number of new daily cases over the last seven days was 5,732. It is down from 6,500 last Wednesday, an early indicator to health experts cases might be plateauing at a high level.

"The data from the past week are encouraging that its plateauing. Its much better that we observe that than continuing to go straight uphill," said Ryan Westergaard, DHS chief medical officer. "That being said, the level of transmission and the number of cases is critically high."

At the current level, hospitals are struggling to find enough staff and beds for the influx of patients, and contact tracing efforts have been overwhelmed.

The average daily death toll over the last seven days was 53; two months ago, just as the surge in deaths was beginning in Wisconsin, it was five.

The seven-day averages helpsmooth out anomalies in the data and area better indicator of trends, as reporting of cases and deaths varies by day.

The 104 deaths reported Tuesday follow Sunday, with zero reported deaths, and Monday, with six. The daily reported death toll doesnot represent the number of deaths that occurred on a day, but instead all deaths not previously reported.

Track COVID-19 in Wisconsin: See the latest numbers and trends

How to interpret COVID-19 data:What experts say about positive cases, deaths and hospitalizations

We are far from out of the woods. People need to double down, said DHS Secretary-designee Andrea Palm.

More than 75,000 people who've tested positive for COVID-19 were actively infected with the virus Tuesday, according to state data, meaning they haven't yet recovered or died.

Many more asymptomatic people are spreading the virus unknowingly, Westergaard said.

Most of the transmission of the virus in Wisconsin is from people who do not know they're infected, he said. To flatten the curve, everyone must stay home, he said.

"It's really only going to happen when we really considerably decrease how frequently were interacting," Westergaard said.

Health experts have reminded residents that a negative test a few days before Thanksgiving is not a free pass to interact with vulnerable family members.

The virus can incubate for days before symptoms appear, and transmission is so widespread that residents could beinfected anytime between the negative test and Thanksgiving.

Small, indoor gatherings easily spread the virus and are currently one of the main drivers of transmission in Wisconsin, experts say.

"We enter Thanksgiving very aware of the catastrophic effects that gatherings could have in increased transmission of this disease," saidBen Weston, director of medical services for the Milwaukee County Office of Emergency management.

He cautioned againstputting trust in the phraseI feel fine.

I feel fine means very little in regards to COVID infection, Weston said. Everyone feels fine before they dont.

"And everyone feels fine when theyre at their very most contagious," he added. "Thats a huge part of the reasons why COVID is so dangerous, why the disease has been so hard to control.

More: Nearly 300 Wisconsin nursing home residents died from COVID-19 in four weeks

More: Doctors and scientists beg Wisconsinites to stay home for Thanksgiving

The Wisconsin Supreme Court signaled Tuesday it would not block Dane Countys order limiting gatherings ahead of Thanksgiving.

A conservative legal firm, on behalf of Dane County residents, filed a lawsuit Monday asking the states highest court to block a county order banning indoor gatherings of any size other than those with household members. Under that policy, extended family and loved ones arent able to gather inside for Thanksgiving.

The restrictions also apply to sporting events, group exercises, meetings, trainings, conferences and movies.

The Supreme Court asked the county to respond to the motion for an emergency temporary injunction by Friday, suggesting the court would not block the order before Thanksgiving.

As of Tuesday, there were 1,989 people hospitalized with the virus, including 436 patients in intensive care units, both slight declines from the day prior.

Hospitalizations have dipped from from an all-time high last Tuesday of 2,277.

Still, hospitals remain at ornear capacity, and they continue to facesevere staffing shortages as hundreds of health care workers must quarantine at home after being infected or exposed to the virus in the community.

Hospitals statewide have been about 90-92%full for the last several weeks, John Raymond, president of the Medical College of Wisconsin, said Tuesday in a Milwaukee Press Club event. They run best at 75-85% capacity, he said.

Especially concerning are the near-capacity ICUs across the state.

"Things start to break down when you get up over 85 or 90%" in intensive care units, Raymond said.

It's hard to staff packed ICUs, and very sick patients are difficult to transfer betweenhospitals, Raymond said.

Only a handful of intensive care beds remain availablein some regions of the state.

In northwest Wisconsin a region of 15 counties as defined by the Healthcare Emergency Readiness Coalition just four ICU beds and three intermediate care beds were available Tuesday, according to Wisconsin Hospital Association data.

"As we enter the holiday season, if people ignore the recommendations of our public health officials, it's very likely that we will overwhelm the capacity of our health systems to take care of everybody, whether they have COVID-19 or not," Raymond said.

About 31% of hospital beds in the state are being used by COVID-19 patients, Raymond said.

The average positivity rate was 28.7% Tuesday. The measure looks at first-time positive tests over the last seven days and has been declining for the last two weeks.

Daily case totals reported by the statedo not include rapid antigen tests, which are more prevalent since the University of Wisconsin System opened community rapid testing sites at several campuses in the last three weeks.

Molly Beck and Ricardo Torres contributed to this report.

We want to remember the lives of those who died from COVID-19. Email us at jsmetro@jrn.com with the subject line "COVID-19 remembrance"or fill out this form if youd like to share a loved one's story with the Journal Sentinel.

Read or Share this story: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2020/11/24/wisconsin-coronavirus-6-202-new-cases-104-deaths-reported-covid-19/6411906002/

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Wisconsin reports more than 100 deaths from COVID-19 in one day for first time as health experts plead for residents to stay home - Milwaukee Journal...

In this Nov. 5 photo, Donald Trump Jr. gestures during a news conference at Georgia Republican Party headquarters in Atlanta. Trump Jr. has been infected with the coronavirus but says he is currently asymptomatic. John Bazemore/AP hide caption

In this Nov. 5 photo, Donald Trump Jr. gestures during a news conference at Georgia Republican Party headquarters in Atlanta. Trump Jr. has been infected with the coronavirus but says he is currently asymptomatic.

Donald Trump Jr. has become the latest member of the president's orbit to test positive for the coronavirus.

"Apparently I got the 'rona," the president's son told his Instagram followers late Friday.

"You wouldn't know it based on anything that I felt or have seen," he said. "I've been totally asymptomatic."

Trump Jr. suggested that because of his lack of symptoms, his test result might have been a false-positive. "But out of an abundance of precaution, I'll quarantine, I'll follow the regular protocols," the 42-year-old said. "You know, take it seriously. No reason to do anything otherwise."

The president commented on the diagnosis Saturday. "My son Donald is doing very well," Trump tweeted.

The emerging research around the coronavirus suggests that about 1 in 5 people infected with COVID-19 won't develop symptoms a change in scientists' understanding of the virus and its toll. Early in the pandemic, some researchers thought that as many as four out of five people were asymptomatic. It can take anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks for symptoms to develop.

Trump Jr. said he got tested because he was supposed to go on a father-son trip with his son. "Gotta cancel that trip," he said, adding that he hopes to test negative a couple of times in a row before resuming holiday activities. "Hopefully I can make it up with him a little bit later."

It's unclear how Trump Jr. contracted the virus, but he is just one of many members of the president's circle to have come down with COVID-19 in recent weeks. Trump himself was hospitalized with COVID-19 in October. First lady Melania Trump and the president's youngest son, Barron, also had the virus. Trump Jr.'s girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle, contracted the virus this summer.

Trump's chief of staff, Mark Meadows, tested positive earlier this month, as did several others who attended an election night party held inside the White House. Trump and his supporters have been resistant to social distancing or wearing masks at public events.

A September gathering at the White House to celebrate the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett is thought to have led to several cases. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, called that gathering a "superspreader event."

Trump Jr. was in good spirits Friday. He asked his Instagram followers for "any good Netflix recommendations" because "I may have a couple days of solo time and there's only so many guns I can clean."

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Donald Trump Jr. 'Got The Rona,' Says He Feels Fine - NPR

ByStephanie Desmon

The legal precedent for mandatory vaccinations dates back to a 1905 Supreme Court case after a smallpox outbreak in Massachusetts. But as the U.S. reaches important clinical milestones in its vaccine development efforts, questions arise relating to distribution, and who becomes vaccinated and when.

Legal and public health expert Joanne Rosen, a senior lecturer in Health Policy and Management and the Center for Law and the Public's Health, spoke with Public Health On Call podcast host Stephanie Desmon for a recent episode about the precedent of vaccine mandates. She also discusses the history of vaccine exemptions and strategies states could consider to achieve widespread vaccination for COVID-19.

The short answer is yes. States have the legal and constitutional authority to require that the people who live in that state be vaccinated, or to introduce a vaccine mandate.

The authority for the state being able to compel vaccinationthe affirmation of that authoritygoes all the way back to a U.S. Supreme Court case in 1905 called Jacobson v. Massachusetts. That case arose in the midst of an outbreak of smallpox in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1902. Cambridge introduced an ordinance requiring all adults be vaccinated or revaccinated against smallpox. If they didn't [get vaccinated], they would have to pay a fine of $5.

Jacobson was a resident of Cambridge who, for a number of reasons, objected to the vaccination mandate and brought a lawsuit against Massachusetts for the mandate. He raised a number of arguments, including one that his constitutionally protected liberty interests were being infringed by this mandate.

In that case, the Supreme Court said that states have under their police powers, which is under the Constitution, the authority to enact reasonable regulations as necessary to protect public health, public safety, and the common good. Vaccination mandates constitute exactly that kind of permissible state action to protect the public's health. Even though it's 115 years old, this continues to be the benchmark case on the state's power to mandate vaccination.

Coverage of how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting operations at JHU and how Hopkins experts and scientists are responding to the outbreak

In response to the argument about this individual liberty interest, the court said that sometimes individual interests might have to yield to state laws that endeavor to protect the health of everybodythe "common good." The court said: "The rights of the individual may at times, under the pressure of great dangers, be subjected to such restraint to be enforced by reasonable regulations as the safety of the general public may demand."

So, yes: Once COVID vaccines are available, states could elect to require that people who live within that state be vaccinated.

By and large, our immunization schedule begins as children, and we have to show proof of vaccination to go to school. It is a more complicated administrative manner to have a vaccine mandate that applies to adults because there isn't a point of common intersection with the state or with some agency of the state the way we have with children. I don't have a clear idea of this, but that would be something that states would have to work into a mandate. A requirement that people be vaccinated is only as effective as the way of ensuring that they are.

That also raises issues that the vaccine has to be made available without charge or in a way that allows people to get coverage for it if it's not covered by their insurance. Againhow are we able to keep track?

The other advantage that school-based proof of vaccination offers is for people who have some medical reason to not be vaccinated. All vaccine mandates include a medical exemption for people whose health would be imperiled because of an allergy to something in the vaccine or because they are immunocompromised or any other reason. When you go to school and show your proof-of-vaccination certificate or show that you've been exempted and you're not vaccinated, it means that public health offices have a record of who is and who isn't vaccinated. In the event of an outbreak of one of these vaccine-preventable diseases, we can identify and isolate the people who haven't been vaccinated and who are obviously at higher risk for being infected.

Yes, absolutely. The measles outbreak in New York was about a year or two ago and, in California, it was traced to Disney World in 2014 or 2015.

The reasons for these outbreaks were religious exemptions in New York and personal belief exemptions in California. The legislators of California and New York revoked nonmedical exemptions as a result so that they could ensure higher rates of people immunized against measles. And, guess what? The rate of measles immunizations did go up when those exemptions were removed.

One of the reasons that nonmedical exemptions were introduced in the first place was to try to respond to and prevent vaccine-related backlash. There's a very strong culture in this country and others of personal autonomy and not wanting the government to force you to do something or tell you what to do. People wanted to be able to make their own decisions about the risks they're willing to take. The introduction of these exemptions, in part, was kind of like a safety valve to let some of the pressure out of the system so that people could feel that they had some choice.

Although it seems counterintuitive, providing some opt-out mechanism in fact can protect the overall integrity and legitimacy of the vaccine regime and public health. Yes, the goal of public health is to ensure that as many people as possible are vaccinated to prevent further transmission of disease. This leaves the question of "How best do we achieve that goal?" A vaccine mandate looks like it's the most straightforward way to do it. But, if we have a lot of backlash and resistance to it, how do we then bring those folks onside?

One approach might be to start with a strong recommendation and education campaign. Physicians and health care providers can be part of this effort to educate people about the safety of vaccines. A particular issue that we may face with a COVID-19 vaccine that does arise with other vaccines, but not to the same degree, are questions about [safety] because it's brand new. Measles, mumps, rubella, polio, and smallpox vaccines have been around for decades, if not even longer. They are regarded as safe and we have decades of data. But COVID-19 vaccines are brand new, so there will probably be more concernseven among people who are fully vaccinated against other diseases and who have vaccinated their children.

One approach, perhaps, to start is strong recommendation, and being transparentas drug companies are doing their best to doabout what they know about safety. Then, once the vaccines are available, states can make it as easy as possible to get vaccinated. Even in the absence of a mandate, when you are vaccinated, there are public records kept and they can see what percentage of residents have voluntarily been vaccinated. If the percentage is high enough to ensure that the whole community is protected, there wouldn't be a need for a mandate.

They can and they have. It's very common in particular sectors. An employer has to have a "reasonable basis." If you worked in retail, I'm not sure a corporate entity could require that. They may want you to and recommend it, but it wouldn't be reasonably related to the requirements of their job.

But in sectors in which the employees are themselves at greater risk of contracting vaccine-preventable illnesses or who work with populations that are especially vulnerable if they do get sick, like hospital workers, health care workers, and people who work in [long-term care] facilities, employers have required that their staff be vaccinated against the flu each year.

Another thing that states could do, short of a requirement across the board that everybody be vaccinated, is they could begin with a mandate that focuses on those sectorspeople who are themselves at greater risk or who work in proximity with vulnerable populations. We don't want the employees themselves getting sick and being a bridge, or "vector," to infecting others who are vulnerable. People may object, but some more targeted form of vaccine mandate may make sense and also be possible.

This article originally appeared online as part of the Bloomberg School of Public Health's COVID-19 Expert Insights webpage.

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Could COVID-19 vaccines become mandatory in the U.S.? - The Hub at Johns Hopkins

WASHINGTON In recent months, churches in California and Nevada asked the Supreme Court to lift government restrictions on attendance at religious services meant to address the coronavirus pandemic. The churches lost.

The vote in both cases was 5 to 4, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. joining what was then the courts four-member liberal wing. One of those liberals, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, died in September. Her successor, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, joined the court last month.

It will not take long to assess the significance of that switch.

On Thursday, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn filed an emergency application asking the Supreme Court to lift restrictions imposed by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York. The case is broadly similar to the earlier ones. The outcome, even as the pandemic is worsening, may be quite different.

The general question in all of the cases is whether government officials or judges should calibrate responses to the public health crisis.

One view, expressed by Chief Justice Roberts in a concurring opinion in the California case, is that officials charged with protecting the public should not be subject to second-guessing by an unelected federal judiciary, which lacks the background, competence and expertise to assess public health and is not accountable to the people.

A few hours after the diocese filed its application, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. delivered a slashing speech to a conservative legal group that expressed the opposite view. He had dissented in both of the earlier cases, and his speech echoed points he had made in the one from Nevada.

Whenever fundamental rights are restricted, the Supreme Court and other courts cannot close their eyes, Justice Alito said on Thursday, rejecting the view that whenever there is an emergency, executive officials have unlimited, unreviewable discretion.

The court is likely to rule on the dispute from Brooklyn in the next week or so. The case may be the first in which Justice Barretts vote changes the courts direction.

The restrictions in Brooklyn are severe. In shifting red zones, where the coronavirus risk is highest, no more than 10 people may attend church services. In slightly less dangerous orange zones, attendance is capped at 25. This applies even in churches that can seat more than 1,000 people.

The measures were prompted in large part by rising cases in Orthodox Jewish areas. But the restrictions applied to all houses of worship.

Even as he ruled against the diocese, Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis of the Federal District Court in Brooklyn praised it as an exemplar of community leadership that had been enforcing stricter safety protocols than the state required.

Lawyers for Mr. Cuomo agreed, telling an appeals court that the diocese has introduced laudable social-distancing and hygiene measures.

The diocese has said it intends to continue to limit attendance to 25 percent of its churches capacities and would accept other limitations, such as doing away with singing by congregants and choirs.

Judge Garaufis, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton, said the case was a difficult one. But he concluded that he would defer to the governor. If the court issues an injunction and the state is correct about the acuteness of the threat currently posed by hot spot neighborhoods, the judge wrote, the result could be avoidable death on a massive scale like New Yorkers experienced in the spring.

In refusing to block the governors order while the dioceses appeal went forward, a divided three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit drew on Chief Justice Robertss concurring opinion in the California case. Since the restrictions on churches were less severe than those on comparable secular gatherings like theaters, casinos and gyms, the majority wrote in an unsigned opinion, they did not run afoul of constitutional protections for religious freedom.

The members of the majority were Judge Raymond J. Lohier Jr., who was appointed by President Barack Obama, and Judge Jed S. Rakoff, who ordinarily sits on Federal District Court in Manhattan and who was appointed by Mr. Clinton.

Judge Michael H. Park, who was appointed by President Trump, dissented. He said Governor Cuomos order discriminated against houses of worship because it allowed businesses like liquor stores and pet shops to remain open without capacity restrictions.

In asking the Supreme Court to step in, lawyers for the diocese argued that its spacious churches were safer than many secular businesses that can open without restrictions, such as pet stores and brokers offices and banks and bodegas. An hourlong Mass, the dioceses brief said, is shorter than many trips to a supermarket or big-box store, not to mention a 9-to-5 job.

Lawyers for Mr. Cuomo said gatherings like those at churches and theaters were different from shopping trips. The states limits on mass gatherings have consistently recognized that the risk of transmitting Covid-19 is much greater at gatherings where people arrive and depart at the same time and congregate and mingle for a communal activity over an extended period of time, the governors appeals court brief said.

Judge Park, the dissenting appeals court judge, twice served as a law clerk to Justice Alito, once on the federal appeals court in Philadelphia and once on the Supreme Court. His dissent anticipated the remarks his former boss delivered on Thursday.

The pandemic, Justice Alito said, has resulted in previously unimaginable restrictions on individual liberty.

This is especially evident with respect to religious liberty, he added. It pains me to say this, but in certain quarters religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored right.

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Case on Churches, Cuomo and Coronavirus Arrives at Supreme Court - The New York Times

[Heres what you need to know about Pfizers Covid-19 Vaccine.]

On Nov. 17-18, DealBook is holding our first Online Summit. Join us as we welcome the most consequential newsmakers in business, policy and culture to explore the pivotal questions of the moment and the future. Watch for free from anywhere in the world. Register now.

The pandemic is still raging, but it would be hard to tell from the ecstatic stock market, which flirted with record highs thanks to promising clinical trial data on a coronavirus vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech. Futures today suggest that yesterdays rally could be extended.

Hopes that the pandemic will come under control scrambled the usual pattern, with shares soaring for the sectors most linked to growth in the broad economy, like energy and banks, and the companies most affected by lockdowns, like AMC (up 51 percent), United Airlines (up 19 percent) and Macys (up 17 percent). Tech-heavy stars of the pandemic were the days biggest losers, like Peloton (down 20 percent), Zoom (down 17 percent) and Netflix (down 9 percent).

The probability of an L-shaped recovery has been significantly reduced, said Johanna Kyrklund, Schroders chief investment officer. We may finally have found the catalyst to spark a move away from the stay-at-home stocks that have benefited from lockdown, towards recovery stocks.

There are reasons to be wary. Experts cautioned that even if Pfizer wins approval for its vaccine and itll need much more data doses will be initially available to only a small sliver of the population. As our colleagues at The Morning newsletter note, there are two very different coronavirus stories happening now: While the markets are rejoicing, records for coronavirus infections are being set daily.

The key question: Are investors getting ahead of themselves? These are the types of moves that tend to run out of gas if the underlying data doesnt quickly confirm the enthusiasm, Lisa Shalett, chief investment officer at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, told The Times. The sharp turns call into question the efficiency of supposedly all-knowing markets, as the Deal Professor notes below.

Europe charges Amazon with antitrust violations. The E.U.s competition chief, Margrethe Vestager, accused the e-commerce giant of exploiting data it collects from third-party merchants to boost its own sales. We must ensure that dual-role platforms with market power, such as Amazon, do not distort competition, she said.

Most Republicans back President Trumps refusal to concede. Officials like Senator Mitch McConnell, the majority leader, declined to rebut Mr. Trumps false claims of illegal votes and a stolen election. Separately, lawyers at Jones Day and Porter Wright, two big law firms working on Mr. Trumps legal challenges, have voiced concerns about their work.

Top SoftBank executives resign as directors. Three senior managers including Rajeev Misra, the head of the Vision Fund, and Marcelo Claure, the companys C.O.O. are stepping down from the board, amid pressure to improve SoftBanks corporate governance. (Theyll stay as executives.)

The E.U. imposes new tariffs on American goods. The $4 billion in levies, on products like aircraft and chocolate, follow a W.T.O. ruling allowing the bloc to retaliate against the U.S. over illegal subsidies to Boeing. The U.S. imposed tariffs on European goods last year after a similar ruling about Airbus.

Bill Grosss property fight with his neighbor heads to court. A trial over competing harassment claims by the famed bond investor and the entrepreneur Mark Towfiq began yesterday. Mr. Gross reportedly said he would stop blaring the Gilligans Island theme song if the neighbor dropped his complaint; a lawyer for Mr. Gross accused Mr. Towfiq of being a peeping Tom.

Steven Davidoff Solomon, a.k.a. the Deal Professor, is a professor at the U.C. Berkeley School of Law and the faculty co-director at the Berkeley Center for Law, Business and the Economy.

Recent weeks havent been good for the efficient markets hypothesis. First, the pollsters got the election wrong, failing to forecast the results for many of last weeks contests. Then, yesterday, investors got the markets wrong.

The burst upward in stocks was aided by the thesis that the calmness of a post-Trump era and divided government would be a boon to business. But make no mistake: Most of the rise was related to Pfizers vaccine news.

Whats so surprising about the rise is that it shouldnt have happened. This vaccine announcement was completely expected. Pfizer and other companies developing vaccines have been signaling a November announcement for weeks. And, in fact, some market observers have been factoring this into their advice on positioning.

Marko Kolanovic, the head of macro quantitative and derivatives strategy at JPMorgan Chase, has been right all year. He called the market bottom, then called the Nasdaq high as well as the turn to consumer cyclicals. He also put out a series of reports leading up to the election noting that evidence beyond the polls suggested President Trump would do better than expected.

Mr. Kolanovics forecasts show what were missing, despite being able to access more information than ever. People are driven by fear, live in the moment and get distracted by a deluge of extreme views on social media. This has been compounded by political bias which infects everything, including assessments of the markets. Trading is consumed by momentum plays and the Robinhood crowd. People have too much information and take longer to process meaningful signals.

All of this is to say that markets may still be efficient in the long term, but these days it takes even longer for this to become clear.

Rich Handler, the C.E.O. of Jefferies, in 20 Things I Wish Someone Told Me The Day I Started My Career As An Analyst On Wall Street

The Affordable Care Act is up for debate at the Supreme Court today. If the law is invalidated, some investors have prepared for refunds on past investment income. Indeed, the litigation has generated a flurry of queries and I.R.S. protective refund claims, tax experts say.

Todays arguments are about Obamacares individual mandate, a penalty for not taking out health insurance. Challengers say that when Congress set the penalty at zero in 2017, they broke the justification given for the entire law in a previous Supreme Court ruling, which depended on treating the mandate as a tax. Theoretically, if Texas and other Republican-leaning states backed by the federal government succeed in striking down the law, refunds could be available on other taxes associated with the A.C.A.

The I.R.S. cited the case in guidance on protective refund claims earlier this year. These claims are placeholders, reserving the right to file after deadline, depending on a future event like litigation. Some filers hope that other taxes will be invalidated if the A.C.A. is struck down, including a 3.8 percent hike on net income investment passed in a 2010 companion law.

Its a long shot. Even if the individual mandate falls, the court may preserve the health care law, and even the whole law falling wouldnt guarantee some of these refunds. Because arguments for unconstitutionality of the mandate depend on a change in law that was enacted in 2017 and did not take effect until 2019, it seems very unlikely that the court will hold that the A.C.A. was invalid as far back as 2016, Jonathan Gifford, a tax attorney at Cleary Gottlieb, told DealBook. But people filing protective refund claims presumably are thinking that anything can happen, and in 2020 that certainly seems truer than ever.

The Timess Brooks Barnes writes from Los Angeles: Months after his blink-and-you-missed it tenure as TikToks C.E.O., Kevin Mayer has taken on a new role: senior adviser to Len Blavatniks Access Industries.

He will bring invaluable knowledge and insight to Access, which owns media businesses like Warner Music and the sports streaming service DAZN, Mr. Blavatnik said. Before joining TikTok, Mr. Mayer led Disney+ and had been a contender to succeed Bob Iger as Disneys C.E.O. President Trumps pressure on TikToks Chinese owners curtailed the networks global ambitions, prompting Mr. Mayer to leave after just three months.

Mr. Mayer called the Access role a key component of my future endeavors. He has also held talks to join Redbird Capital, the sports and entertainment investment firm that recently launched a SPAC.

Travel is down, but when it returns it will be a little easier to get to the airport, a meeting or anywhere else at a set time. Later today, Uber will announce a feature that the business community has long wanted: reservations.

How it works. Through Uber Reserve, riders can schedule trips up to 30 days in advance in more than 20 U.S. cities. The program, which launches next week, will present its fare upfront, as usual. If a pickup doesnt arrive on time, riders get a $50 credit.

Its a swipe at legacy car services. The new program challenges the biggest advantage that car and limo services had over on-demand ride-hailing. But it may take some time to see any impact, given how little people are moving around these days.

Deals

NextEra Energy reportedly offered to buy a rival power utility, Evergy, for $15 billion in stock, months after being rebuffed by Duke Energy. (Reuters)

VF Corporation, which owns Vans and Timberland, will buy the buzzy streetwear brand Supreme for $2.1 billion. (NYT)

Politics and policy

Renewing the Feds emergency loan programs, which are set to expire at the end of the year, has become a bitter political fight. (NYT)

Britain will require big companies to report on climate risks. (Guardian)

Tech

President-elect Joe Biden is expected to continue the Justice Departments antitrust lawsuit against Google and may file competition cases against Facebook, Amazon and Apple. (NYT)

Zoom agreed to third-party audits of its security protocols as part of a proposed settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. (Protocol)

Best of the rest

Since President Trump took office, corporate America has been thrust into the culture wars like never before. (NYT)

Four Seasons the landscaping company, not the hotel is capitalizing on its unexpected role in the Trump campaigns legal challenges, selling shirts with slogans like Lawn and Order! (NYT)

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Are Markets Overexcited About Pfizer's Covid-19 Vaccine News? - The New York Times

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Good morning.

Were covering new lockdown measures for Italy, what President Trumps defeat means for populism, and Denmarks mink cull.

As a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic strains the Italian health care system, the government will seal off and lock down hard-hit portions of the country today, limiting movement to and between areas in at least five regions.

As of Monday, the average number of daily new cases over seven days was 32,684, according to a New York Times database, a 92 percent increase from 14 days prior. Hospitals have had to make room for beds in chapels and conference rooms as coronavirus patients overwhelm wards.

Nearly all the Italian regions are highly affected, said Giovanni Rezza, the director of the prevention department at the Health Ministry, adding that new restrictions were necessary in a situation that keeps worsening.

Unrest: Protests by regional presidents in the locked-down areas have unnerved the government. Do we get it or not that we are at war? said Pierpaolo Sileri, Italys deputy health minister. We are fighting to save Italy.

Here are the latest updates and maps of the pandemic.

In other developments:

Saeb Erekat, a senior Palestinian negotiator who passionately advocated the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, has died after contracting Covid-19. He was 65.

U.S. federal health officials provided projections for when and how Americans might be able to begin to receive a Covid-19 vaccine, once one has been authorized.

Lockdown something experienced, dreaded and needed by much of the world for at least some of 2020 is the Collins English Dictionarys word of the year.

A husband-and-wife team helms the European biotech start-up working with Pfizer on its leading vaccine. (On their wedding day, they returned to the lab after the ceremony.)

President-elect Joe Bidens victory in the U.S. presidential election last week is a stinging blow to right-wing populists, from Britain and Brazil to Poland and Hungary. But its consequences for populism as a global political movement are more ambiguous.

Whether the fortunes of comparable politicians in Europe will be tied to President Trumps remains to be seen, analysts say. The economic, social and political grievances behind such movements are still alive and indeed may be reinforced by the ravages of the coronavirus pandemic, while social media continues to spread populist ideas, often cloaked in conspiracy theories.

In a signal of a broader return to normal in international relations, Mr. Biden fielded congratulatory calls from European leaders such as President Emmanuel Macron of France and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany on Tuesday. President Vladimir Putin of Russia is among the few authoritarian allies of Mr. Trump to maintain silence about the election, along with President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil and President Xi Jinping of China.

Across the border: After four years of surprise tariffs, stinging insults and threats from Mr. Trump, many Canadians have expressed giddy jubilation and sense of deep relief over Mr. Bidens victory.

The transfer of power: Asked about Mr. Trumps continuing refusal to concede the election, Mr. Biden said: How can I say this tactfully? It will not help the presidents legacy. A Trump appointee must formally recognize Mr. Biden as the president-elect for the transfer to begin. The Times has found no evidence of voter fraud.

The Upshot: How did pollsters get it so wrong again? For now, there is no easy excuse.

The Netflix hit The Queens Gambit has inspired a new debate about inequality and sexism in chess and what, if anything, can be done about it. Among the more than 1,700 grandmasters worldwide, only 37 are women. Currently, only one woman, Hou Yifan of China, ranks in the Top 100.

The reality, top players and teachers say, is even worse. There were opponents who refused to shake hands, said Judit Polgar, the only woman to ever be ranked in the Top 10 of the game.

Nagorno-Karabakh: Russian peacekeeping forces were deployed to the ethnic Armenian enclave on Tuesday after Armenia and Azerbaijan signed a Russian-brokered deal to end a six-week war that had already killed thousands.

Amazon: European Union regulators charged the tech giant with antitrust violations, saying it was unfairly using data to box out smaller competitors.

Soccer: Greg Clarke, the chairman of Englands soccer association, has resigned from his position after a disastrous testimony to a parliamentary committee in which he spoke in offensive stereotypes about Black and Asian people, girls and others.

Affordable Care Act: At a Supreme Court hearing, at least five justices signaled support for the health care law and suggested that striking down the so-called individual mandate, the requirement to obtain insurance, would not doom the balance of the law.

Snapshot: Emily Harrington, above, is the first woman to free-climb the Golden Gate route up El Capitan, a 3,000-foot-high monolith in Yosemite National Park, in under 24 hours. Her mantra: Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.

Fowl play: A hacker slipped more than 1,500 fake votes into New Zealands Bird of the Year 2020 contest, in favor of the kiwi pukupuku, ruffling the feathers of the countrys online community.

Lives Lived: Marty, the highest cat in New England, was the green-eyed, feather-tailed, much-loved mascot of Mount Washington Observatory, some 6,288 feet above sea level in North Conway, N.H. He died at 14, or possibly 15, last week.

What were reading: This Caity Weaver homage to her home state. Our colleague Daniel Victor, a reporter in London, calls it the Pennsylvania tribute that Pennsylvania deserves.

Now, a break from the news

Cook: These brussels sprouts with pickled shallots and labneh call for date syrup, available at Middle Eastern grocery stores or online, or pekmez, a type of fruit molasses used in Turkish cooking.

Read: These four story collections reconsider history and upend tradition, including Where the Wild Ladies Are by Aoko Matsuda, which updates a traditional Japanese folk tale for our contemporary world.

Do: Decades-old movies, songs and video games are surging in popularity, along with old favorites like Spice Girls and Fleetwood Mac. Nostalgia can be a healthy coping mechanism during the pandemic.

Made plans for tonight? Check out our At Home collection of ideas to help you decide what to read, cook, watch, and do while staying safe at home.

Denmarks mink cull is on hold because of a question about the governments legal authority to order it. But why did it seek to do so in the first place? James Gorman, a science writer at large for The Times, explains what you need to know, excerpted here.

Can mink infect people with the coronavirus?

Yes. In Denmark, mink have contracted the virus and spread it to people. The same happened in the Netherlands this year. They are the only animal known to do so.

Does the virus mutate in mink?

Yes. In more than 200 people, Danish authorities have documented several variants of the virus that contain mutations originating in mink. The virus also mutates in people. But there is no evidence that any of the mutations that originated in mink make the coronavirus more transmissible in humans or make humans sicker.

Why did Denmark decide to kill all of its farmed mink?

Danish health authorities were concerned that one set of mutations could make a potential coronavirus vaccine less effective, after the possibility was raised in preliminary tests. The World Health Organization and independent experts said there was no evidence so far that it would diminish the value of vaccines currently in development.

Did Denmark overreact?

Scientists say that there are reasons beyond this particular mutated virus for Denmark to act.

The crowded conditions of mink farms could put evolutionary pressures on the virus different from those in the human population. The virus could also jump to other animals from mink. These are all worrisome possibilities, particularly in the midst of a resurgence of the virus in the human population.

Thanks for joining me. See you next time.

Natasha

Thank youTo Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh for the break from the news. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S. Were listening to The Daily. Our latest episode is about what went wrong with presidential polling. Heres our Mini Crossword, and a clue: Sound from a baby bird (five letters). You can find all our puzzles here. The word hyperpoop first appeared in The Times on Tuesday, according to the Twitter account @NYT_first_said. Andrew Higgins, our Moscow bureau chief, will be moving to Warsaw to head up our Eastern Europe bureau. Anton Troianovski will be our next Moscow bureau chief.

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Italy, Covid-19, Trump: Your Wednesday Briefing - The New York Times

A nurse checks vitals for a Navajo woman, who came to a coronavirus testing center in Arizona, complaining of virus symptoms. Mark Ralston/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

A nurse checks vitals for a Navajo woman, who came to a coronavirus testing center in Arizona, complaining of virus symptoms.

Health insurers used to be able to deny coverage or charge more for an applicant who had a preexisting medical condition. That's the industry term for a condition that could range from allergies to cancer.

The Affordable Care Act changed all that as of 2014, guaranteeing coverage for those with preexisting conditions. But now the Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments, starting Tuesday, on a case filed to overturn the Affordable Care Act.

And people are wondering: If preexisting conditions were again to become a cause to deny coverage, would a COVID-19 survivor be in jeopardy?

Before we discuss this question, it's important to note that you shouldn't worry ... yet. It's unlikely the court will rule on the case before next spring.

And even if the Supreme Court were to overturn the law, existing coverage contracts would likely stay in place for at least a couple of months, said Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, in a briefing Monday with reporters.

Now on to the FAQ about COVID-19.

In pre-ACA days, a bout with a virus might not have been considered a preexisting condition. That's because many people tend to recover quickly from viruses.

But in a blog post last week, researchers at the Rand Corp. suggested that COVID-19 could be seen differently by insurers. "Given the chronic problems [which can include organ damage, fatigue and confusion] associated with some COVID-19 cases, it is possible that some insurers would place restrictions on anyone who had a confirmed case of COVID-19," wrote Carter C. Price, Rand's senior mathematician, and Raffaele Vardavas, a mathematician at Rand who specializes in infectious disease models.

The researchers said that exclusion might also extend to people who didn't have a positive coronavirus test but did test positive for antibodies to the virus, which indicates they had it or were previously exposed.

"While a mild case of COVID-19 might not be subject to a preexisting clause, that would be up to insurers to determine," said Karen Pollitz, senior fellow, health reform and private insurance at the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Pollitz added that insurers could also impose a preexisting exclusion for COVID-19 for anyone at higher risk of getting the virus such as grocery store clerks or ride-share drivers who are exposed to the public and who test frequently to determine if they have COVID-19.

"Just a history of frequent testing could be something insurers could act on," Pollitz said.

And that's not all. Someone who developed anxiety and/or depression since the start of the pandemic might also be considered to have a preexisting condition. Twenty years ago, Kaiser surveyed health insurance underwriters and asked about a similar situation: a hypothetical applicant in perfect health except for "situational depression" following the death of a spouse. According to the survey, "in 60 applications for coverage, this applicant was denied a quarter of the time, and offered coverage with a surcharged premium and/or benefit exclusions 60% of the time."

So both experts and consumers are concerned that invalidating the Affordable Care Act could mean that once again, individuals with preexisting conditions might not be covered and such conditions could include COVID-19.

Then again, protection for those with preexisting conditions is a popular feature for consumers and, by extension, their elected officials. If the ACA is overturned, it's expected that President-elect Joe Biden would work on new ways to offer coverage for people with preexisting conditions.

Fran Kritz is a health policy reporter based in Washington, D.C., who has contributed to The Washington Post and Kaiser Health News. Find her on Twitter: @fkritz

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Coronavirus FAQ: Could COVID-19 Ever Be Considered A Preexisting Condition? - NPR