Axios

The FDA announced Sunday it will grant an emergency use authorization (EUA) of convalescent plasma as a treatment for the coronavirus, one day after President Trump accused the agency of slow-walking the development of vaccines and therapeutics to hurt him politically.

The state of play: The authorization for plasma, which is safe but not yet proven to work on COVID-19, had been on hold after federal health officials intervened with the FDA last week and argued that the current data on the effectiveness of the treatment was too weak, the New York Times reported.

Senior health officials in the Trump administration were taken aback last Monday when the president's trade adviser, Peter Navarro, accused them of being part of the "Deep State" during a meeting that was supposed to be about COVID-19 and the Strategic National Stockpile.

Why it matters: Five days after Navarro's private comments toward the FDA, the president echoed Navarro's sentiments with a pair of Saturday morning tweets and tagged Stephen Hahn, the head of the Food and Drug Administration.

Former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb said Sunday that he rejects President Trump's claim that the "deep state" at the FDA is delaying coronavirus treatments and vaccines for political reasons, telling CBS News' "Face the Nation" on Sunday: "It is a foundational truth that what guides that agency is science."

Why it matters: Gottlieb served as FDA commissioner for two years under the Trump administration. He pushed back on claims from Trump and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows that the agency's bureaucrats don't understand the "urgency" of the moment, saying, "To say these products aren't moving at a historic pace I think is wrong."

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said he applauds President Trump's accusation that the "deep state, or whoever" at the FDA is making it harder for drug companies to develop coronavirus treatments and vaccines in order to hurt him politically.

Why it matters: There is no evidence that the agency is purposely working to undermine Trump ahead of the election by slowing progress on life-saving virus treatments.

Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa.) announced Saturday he is quarantining after testing positive for the coronavirus.

The big picture: Meuser is among at least a dozen members of the House to test positive for the virus, according to NPR. At least two members of the Senate — Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) — have also been infected. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said last month that she would require face coverings on the floor of the House after Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) tested positive.

The three biggest computer companies in the world — Lenovo, HP and Dell — have told U.S. school districts they have a shortage of nearly 5 million laptops due to supply chain disruptions and sanctions on China, according to an AP investigation.

Why it matters: With many districts choosing fully remote or hybrid learning models, many fear the shortfall and delays of up to several months in receiving orders of the computers could exacerbate inequities in the classroom.

South Korea is shuttering nightclubs and churches and cancelling professional sports and large social gatherings after an uptick in COVID-19 infections, AP reports.

The state of play: Health Minister Park Neung-hoo enacted the new rules on Saturday after 332 new cases were confirmed. To date, South Korea has seen 17,002 confirmed coronavirus cases, per Johns Hopkins University. Most of the outbreak is centralized in Seoul, but it is spreading to major cities throughout the country. South Korea has consistently been one of the strictest countries on COVID-19 precautions.

• Seoul was placed under stricter lockdown rules earlier this week.

President Trump on Saturday baselessly accused the Food and Drug Administration — which he likened to the "deep state, or whoever" — of making it harder for drug companies to distribute coronavirus treatments and vaccines.

Why it matters: Trump's tweet comes on the heels of a policy change by the Department of Health and Human Services to block the FDA's ability to regulate lab-developed tests, including for the coronavirus — which has public health experts worried that unreliable COVID-19 tests could go to market.

Executives from the biggest movie chains in the America came together on Friday to unveil a joint safety plan for people looking to visit movie theaters as they begin to reopen this week.

Why it matters: Theaters are desperate to bring consumers back after spending the past five months stuck mostly closed or at limited capacity.

New coronavirus diagnostics could eventually enable near-constant testing — and herald a future where even common infections no longer go undiagnosed.

Why it matters: Rapid testing could be especially important during the winter, when it will become vital to quickly distinguish between an ordinary cold or flu and a new disease like COVID-19.

Former Vice President Joe Biden told ABC News on Friday that, if elected, he would issue a nationwide stay-at-home order at the recommendation of scientists if coronavirus infections surged in January alongside the flu season.

Why it matters: The country's coronavirus crisis could worsen this winter if hospitals are overwhelmed with patients requiring care from COVID-19 at the same time as the flu. The severity of the influenza season also depends on how many Americans get flu shots.