The COVID-19 History Project

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This Day in COVID: August 20, 2020

Details

New Zealand PM Ardern defers lockdown decision but says good progress made

Reuters

As Covid-19 cases in prisons climb, data on race remain largely obscured

As Covid-19 cases among incarcerated people continue to climb, the racial makeup of those cases has remained obscured. Only a handful of states are proactively reporting demographic data in incarcerated populations.

Statnews

Progressive drop in COVID-19 cases in southern U.S. states, says CDC director

Reuters

New research finds association between COVID-19 hospital use and mortality

Researchers examined the number of hospital beds (ICU and non-ICU) occupied by COVID-19 patients and reported mortality.

University of Minnesota

Why Some People Get Terribly Sick from COVID-19

Scientific American

Histopathological findings and viral tropism in UK patients with severe fatal COVID-19: a post-mortem study

The Lancet

The Bubonic Plague Killed Feudalism. COVID-19 Will Entrench It.

Throughout history, pandemics have been a great equalizer. Here’s why this time is different.

Foreign Policy

‘Back to work in the flames’: The hospitality sector in a pandemic

This post pulls together Brookings content and other research that can inform efforts to counteract the disproportionate impacts of the pandemic on the leisure and hospitality sector, including its workers, business owners, and surrounding communities.

Brookings

Government shutdowns of “nonessential” retailers were a huge gift for Amazon, Walmart, and Target

Some feared the pandemic would widen the gap between the haves and have-nots of retail. That fear is now reality.

Vox

Protests across Latin America reflect a toxic cocktail of pandemic and recession

CNN

These variables affect whether you live, die or get help during the pandemic

CNN

White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci recovering from vocal-cord surgery

Fauci was home recovering after undergoing surgery to remove a polyp that can cause hoarseness, according to a person familiar with the matter.

CNBC

Russia announces expanded trials for coronavirus vaccine approved 10 days ago

Russia, which approved a COVID-19 vaccine earlier in August, now said it's expanding trails typically performed before a vaccine is approved.

ABC

The Navy SEAL who killed Osama bin Laden has just been banned from Delta for refusing to wear a mask

The airline made good on its promise to ban passengers who refuse to wear masks aboard its planes, giving Robert O'Neill the boot.

Business Insider

Our Mission

The COVID-19 History Project is a curated archive of the events and policy decisions surrounding the emergence of COVID-19.

The pandemic era of 2020-2022 saw massive increases in restrictions on daily life—enforced by the government and by social stigma—accompanied social protests that roiled cities worldwide

In the United States alone, trillions of dollars were spent by the federal government to offset the forced closure of businesses and the devastation of normal life.

The impacts of these policy decisions are still being felt today.

Some would like us to forget the actions and people that played a significant role during the pandemic.

But we of the COVID-19 History Project don't want to forget. Through our work, we hope there will always be an archive to learn from and interpret this fascinating, disturbing, time in world history.

The Timeline

In order to learn from the mistakes of the past, and give COVID-19 decision makers the credit—both good and bad—they deserve, we have compiled a media timeline from every day of the pandemic.

We have endeavored to make the timeline comprehensive without being duplicative, following the major trends as they unfolded.

We provided analyses for each month highlighting major events, but encourage readers to make their own conclusions about these events as well.

This Day in COVID: August 20, 2021

Details

The Topic Of Masks In Schools Is Polarizing Some Parents To The Point Of Violence

School districts around the country have seen incidents of anti-mask parents and protesters disrupting school board meetings and school events, and some are getting physically violent.

NPR

Study Shows Uptick in U.S. Alcohol Beverage Sales During COVID-19 Pandemic

Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on socio-economic, energy-environment and transport sector globally and sustainable development goal (SDG)

ScienceDirect.com

Three reasons why personal protective equipment (PPE) supply remains critical

Demand for gloves, masks, gowns and other personal protective equipment continues to grow in response to COVID-19.

Unicef

Sydney faces curfew and longer lockdown as Australia’s Delta outbreak grows

City’s western reaches, already in lockdown, will have a curfew imposed from Monday after huge rise in coronavirus cases

The Guardian

Fact check: Texas lieutenant governor falsely implies Black people to blame for Covid surge | CNN Politics

CNN

For some Black Americans, vaccine hesitancy is just one part of a legacy of mistrust

To get the shot, many must overcome their historical memory of unethical medical experiments

The Guardian

Pfizer and BioNTech apply for full U.S. approval for their Covid vaccine. (Published 2021)

The New York Times

Montana only state to ban vaccine requirements for employees

AP News

EXPLAINER: Texas mask battle looks to courts for resolution

AP News

Examining the politicization of school mask mandates in Florida's Broward County

Students returned to school in a number of states this week amid a new surge of COVID cases and a fierce battle over mask mandates. Republican governors in states like Arizona and Texas have tried to stop school districts from mandating face masks, drawing sharp criticism from some parents and educators, and action from the white house. John Yang reports from Florida, the epicenter of this debate.

PBS

US extends Canada, Mexico travel restrictions for COVID-19

The highly contagious Delta variant is spreading rapidly in the US, with deaths rising to more than 600 per day.

Al Jazeera

Newspapers Have Been Struggling And Then Came The Pandemic

The pandemic accelerated declines in newspaper revenue. As a result, many newspapers have cutback on journalists, and community news. Others have shut down entirely or have been acquired by hedge funds or private equity funds.

Forbes

Time for Pandemic Puppies to Learn How to Be Alone (Published 2021)

The New York Times

Nando’s chicken shortage: how the pandemic has made supply and demand tougher to predict

Shortages of chicken at Nando’s are due to disruptions in supply, rather than demand.

The Conversation

Covid cases: This summer compared with last

Case numbers are 30 times higher than at the same point last year - where might we be heading next?

BBC

Five troops, including first Marine, dead from COVID-19 during pandemic’s deadliest week

The COVID-19 mortality rate for troops has grown 25 times in the past few months.

Military Times

Survey: Tokyo Olympics did its best despite the Covid-19 pandemic

Our recent online poll gave us an insight into attitudes to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games around the world

Time Out

Highly Vaccinated Israel Is Seeing A Dramatic Surge In New COVID Cases. Here's Why

What happened? Here are six lessons learned from Israel's experience — and one looming question for the future of the pandemic.

NPR

Disparities in Excess Mortality Associated with COVID-19...

This report describes excess mortality rates associated with COVID-19 among older people and certain racial/ethnic minority groups.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (.gov)

A proposal for long-term COVID-19 control

William A. Haseltine proposes a multimodal strategy for long-term control of COVID-19.

Brookings

India gives emergency approval for world's first COVID-19 DNA vaccine

Reuters

Breastfeeding and COVID-19 Vaccines | Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

In this Q&A, Ruth Karron, MD, a pediatrician trained in infectious diseases, and Ruth Faden, PhD, MPH, an expert in biomedical ethics, answer some questions about the safety and concerns of getting vaccinated while breastfeeding and the benefits breast milk may provide to infants.

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

The CDC Only Tracks a Fraction of Breakthrough COVID-19 Infections, Even as Cases Surge

A May 1 decision by the CDC to only track breakthrough infections that lead to hospitalization or death has left the nation with a muddled understanding of COVID-19’s impact on the vaccinated.

ProPublica

Awake prone positioning in COVID-19: is tummy time ready for prime time?

The Lancet

A New Generation of Fast Coronavirus Tests Is Coming (Published 2020)

The New York Times

Viral evolution 101: Why the coronavirus has changed as it has, and what it means going forward

We can’t predict the next coronavirus variant. But there are some fundamental principles that explain why the virus has morphed as it has and where we could be headed next.

STAT

Oregon’s governor makes incremental changes to stem coronavirus surge. Is it enough?

The governor has yet to turn to some of the restrictions she adopted in previous, though smaller case and hospitalization surges

OregonLive.com

After India’s brutal coronavirus wave, two-thirds of population has been exposed to SARS-CoV2

A public health scholar based in New Delhi explains how India has emerged from the massive spike in COVID-19 cases, even as the country braces for a new wave.

The Conversation

Parents Report More Negative Pandemic Effects on Kids Who Attend School Virtually vs. In-Person | KFF

In his latest Axios column, Drew Altman shows that parents feel that children have fared better during COVID attending school in-person than virtually in terms of academic performance and their mental health and wellbeing.

KFF

Younger generations are more concerned with climate change than coronavirus | YouGov

In a YouGov poll of more than 12,000 US adults, 36% say they are more concerned about the impact that climate change will have on humanity, while 34% are more concerned about the impact of coronavirus.

YouGov Today

The week in charts: Afghanistan, Haiti, the coronavirus and more

In our visual roundup: The shambles in Afghanistan • Haiti’s quake and storm • Covid-19’s origins • Central bankers’ choices • America’s parched West

The Economist

Nicole Kidman Got An Exemption To Hong Kong's Quarantine

The government said it granted the exemption to the actress "for the purpose of performing designated professional work." Some Hong Kong lawmakers criticized the decision as unfair.

NPR

UK regulator approves ‘first of its kind’ Covid antibody treatment

Sajid Javid says green light for Ronapreve – which was used to treat Donald Trump – is ‘fantastic news’

The Guardian

‘It’s Kitchen Sink Time’: Fast, Less-Accurate Coronavirus Tests May Be Good Enough (Published 2020)

The New York Times

Coronavirus Briefing: What Happened Today (Published 2021)

The New York Times

The White House Bet on Abbott’s Rapid Tests. It Didn’t Work Out. (Published 2020)

The New York Times

BTS Cancels World Tour Due to Coronavirus Impact

Korean pop sensation BTS has officially canceled its 'Map of the Soul' world tour due to the impact of the continuing coronavirus pandemic.

Variety

Protecting wild nature can help prevent the next COVID-like pandemic

Infectious diseases like COVID-19 are aided by habitat destruction and creeping development, which bring more people in contact with disease-vector wildlife they might not have otherwise encountered. Protecting more wild nature in the U.S., along with measures like preserving biodiversity, can help forestall these deadly pandemics.

The Wilderness Society