A new study of more than 3,000 counties in the U.S. finds a correlation between higher levels of particulate air pollution and higher death rates from COVID-19.
Why it matters: COVID-19 may be caused by the novel coronavirus, but the outcome of an infection is influenced by everything from age to race to the environment. Understanding the connection between disease and pollution can help us address those risks going forward.
Much of Italy will be placed under a strict lockdown as of Friday in the most drastic steps the country has taken to fight the coronavirus since it led the world into lockdown nearly eight months ago.
The big picture: Italy managed to keep the spread of the virus largely under control for months after a brutal first wave. But like much of Europe, it's currently recording unprecedented daily case counts and scrambling to avoid a return to overcrowded hospitals and climbing death tolls in the coming weeks.
Four in 10 voters named the pandemic as their top issue in the presidential race, according to AP VoteCast. Another three in 10 said the economy and jobs were most important.
Why it matters: Voters were more likely to say that the government should focus on limiting the spread of the virus, even if it damages the economy, than to say the economy should be prioritized above all else.
If this is the end for the Trump administration, it will leave a legacy of failure on health care, and if he's re-elected, he'll have a lot of ground left to make up.
Why it matters: The administration failed to get almost anything it wanted — sometimes the setback was Congress, sometimes the courts, sometimes the administration itself.
Joe Biden has vowed to get the pandemic under control, but if he ultimately wins the White House — whenever we finally know a winner — he would take office facing the same partisan headwinds that have undermined America’s response all along.
Why it matters: Biden would likely take office at the height of an acute crisis, and calls for more mask wearing or tighter social distancing measures would face deeply entrenched partisan resistance in much of the country.
Minnesota, along with the swing states of Pennsylvania and Ohio set new single-day coronavirus case records on Election Day, per the COVID Tracking Project and state data.
The big picture: Polling booths put coronavirus protocols in place, as cases soar across the U.S. Pennsylvania health officials urged voters Tuesday to take precautions including mask-wearing as the state reported a new high of 2,875 infections in one day, PennLive notes.
The NFL sent a memo to teams on Tuesday alerting them to stepped-up precautions against COVID-19, including on face masks and social distancing, the NFL Network first reported.
The big picture: As coronavirus cases surge across the U.S., the Baltimore Ravens placed seven defensive players on the reserve/COVID-19 list Tuesday following cornerback Marlon Humphrey's positive test. Under the new protocols, the NFL will require masks be worn during physical interactions postgame and is advising teams to ask players to wear face coverings on the sidelines and in locker rooms.
As coronavirus cases continue to surge across the country, many of the hardest-hit states are declining to take meaningful action to slow the spread, the New York Times reports.
The big picture: Governors, particularly Republicans, are resisting the kinds of restrictions that experts say are necessary to mitigate the virus.
New data reveals pregnant women are at an increased risk for severe illness and death if they contract the coronavirus, the CDC said Monday in a shift from its health advisory from June.
Why it matters: Pregnant women with symptoms of COVID-19 were more likely to require ventilation, and had a 70% increased chance of death compared to non-pregnant women with symptoms.
Who Americans voted for in 2016 is a strong predictor of how they reacted to the deadliest pandemic in a century, according to a new study published in Nature.
Why it matters: The coronavirus doesn't care who someone voted for; it infects and kills whenever it is given the opportunity. By doing less social distancing, Republicans are giving it more opportunities, with predictable results.
White House coronavirus task force coordinator Deborah Birx said in a memo Monday first obtained by the Washington Post that the U.S. is "entering the most concerning and most deadly phase of this pandemic."
Why it matters: In the memo on the eve of the election, Birx contradicts President Trump's repeated claims that the U.S. is "rounding the corner" in the virus fight, as she calls for "much more aggressive action" on the COVID-19 response.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a post Monday that people with coronavirus "have the right to vote, regardless of whether they are sick or in quarantine."
The state of play: Voters who are sick should "take steps to protect poll workers and other voters," like washing their hands before and after voting, wearing a mask, and keeping at a distance from others, the CDC wrote.
