A4 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2020
Tracking an Outbreak
NIn the race for a vaccine, an application was submitted in Europe
and answers were demanded at the White House.
The application, from the drugmaker Pfizer and its German
partner, BioNTech, sought approval of their Covid-19 vaccine. They
filed it with the European Medicines Agency, which called an ex-
traordinary session for Dec. 29. Initial approval could come then if
agency officials conclude that the data on the vaccine points to its
safety and efficacy. The agency also said it could decide as early as
Jan. 12 whether to approve a rival vaccine developed by Moderna,
which announced on Monday that it had applied for approval in the
European market. The agency said it was “assessing all the applica-
tions for Covid-19 medicines under the minimum time frame neces-
sary to allow for a thorough evaluation” of the benefits and risks of
each drug.
BioNTech officials said at a news conference that approval was
all they needed. “We have produced a stockpile,” said Sierk Poet-
ting, the company’s chief financial officer and chief operating officer.
“Everything that we have can really be distributed within a few
hours.”
The answers were demanded from Dr. Stephen M. Hahn, the
commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration. He was sum-
moned to the White House by Mark Meadows, the White House
chief of staff, to explain why the Pfizer vaccine has yet to receive
approval for distribution in the United States. Dr. Hahn prepared for
the meeting by pulling data from the past few weeks showing how
productive the F.D.A. has been, an administration official said.
One official said Mr. Meadows was concerned that Britain could
approve emergency use of a different coronavirus vaccine before
American regulators reach a decision, potentially embarrassing the
Trump administration. President Trump and Mr. Meadows have
pressured the F.D.A. for months to speed the process.
Distributing the vaccine will involve logistical challenges — the
Pfizer vaccine must be stored at ultracold temperatures — and
difficult decisions about who will get it first. A Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention advisory committee met on Tuesday to
decide on guidance. The ultimate decisions will fall to the states.
‘Well Prepared’ in New York City
But the numbers continued their disturbing climb, with more
than 167,700 cases reported in the United States on Monday. On
Tuesday, Delaware reported 689 cases, a record.
The caseload — and the sense that a post-Thanksgiving surge is
coming — has focused attention on hospitals that are already strain-
ing to handle coronavirus patients. In California, which has had the
most cases of any state in the last seven days despite some of the
nation’s tightest restrictions, Gov. Gavin Newsom warned that over-
burdened hospitals might be forced to turn away patients by Christ-
mas.
Though far below levels in the spring, positive test results and
hospitalizations in New York City have risen steadily in the last few
weeks. The city’s seven-day positivity average was 4.14 percent on
Tuesday, the highest since early June. Dr. Dave A. Chokshi, the
health commissioner, said that hospitals had more than 1,100 corona-
virus patients on Tuesday, more than double the number three
weeks ago.
Dr. Mitchell Katz, head of the city’s public hospital system, said
that intensive-care units in the 11 public hospitals were about two-
thirds full. But he also noted that the city had ventilators and per-
sonal protective equipment ready if cases continued to rise.
“We are well prepared,” he said.Early Signs of the Virus?
On Dec. 13, 2019 — not even a year ago — one of the top stories
was about a 14-hour debate in the House Judiciary Committee on
impeachment charges against President Trump. Another said that
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party had won a
majority in elections for Parliament, clearing the way for Britain’s
exit from the European Union.
There was not a word about the coronavirus. The term
“Covid-19,” an acronym that stands for coronavirus disease 2019,
was not coined until almost two months later.
But Dec. 13, 2019, may have been the day the coronavirus began
infecting people in the United States, according to a new study by
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The findings under-
scored the notion that the virus had arrived earlier than most public
health officials realized when the pandemic exploded in February.
The study, released online on Monday and accepted for publica-
tion in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, analyzed nearly 7,
samples of blood donated to the American Red Cross from that day
through Jan. 17 of this year. In 106 samples from nine states — in-
cluding California, Oregon and Washington — they found coronavi-
rus antibodies, protein markers of past exposure to the virus. The
earliest samples were drawn two weeks before China notified the
World Health Organization about a cluster of cases in Wuhan and a
month before the first symptoms were reported in the United States.
At least one prominent virus researcher questioned whether the
results meant the virus was spreading in December. Trevor Bedford,
an epidemiologist at the University of Washington who has been
involved in genetic studies of the virus, said in a series of tweets
that he did not think that the study “can be taken as evidence that
#Covid19 was circulating in the US in December 2019.” He added,
“We tested 3,600 samples collected in Jan 2020 for Covid-19 status
and found zero positives.”
By JAMES BARRONCoronavirus Update
Coronavirus Update wraps up the day’s developments with infor-
mation from across the virus report.Pfizer Seeks E.U. Approval for Vaccine
White House Urges Faster Drug Review
Officials Warn of Risks Facing Hospitals
New Coronavirus Cases Announced Daily in U.S.THE NEW YORK TIMESMarch 1 Dec. 1
As of Tuesday evening, more than 13,758,600 people across every
state, plus Washington, D.C., and four U.S. territories, have tested
positive for the virus, according to a New York Times database.
Note: Tuesday’s total is incomplete because some states report
cases after press time. Data is as of Dec. 1, 2020, at 5 p.m. Eastern.
Sources: State and local health agencies; hospitals; C.D.C.
New cases7-day average120,
60,
Days with a data
reporting anomalyAverage daily cases per 100,000 people
in the past week25 50 75 125Hot Spots in the United StatesTHE NEW YORK TIMESAs of Tuesday evening, more than 13 ,75 8 , 600 people across every state, plus Washington, D.C., and four U.S. territories, have tested positive for the
coronavirus, according to a New York Times database. More than 270 , 000 people with the virus have died in the United States. On Nov. 19, the map
scale was broadened from an upper limit of 48+ to 125+ per 100,000 in order to reflect the new record rates of infection. The map was also changed
so that areas with very low population density are now shaded.Nev.Ga.Miss.Conn.N.C.IowaN.D.Kan.Te x a sR.I.Mass.Ark.UtahMont.S.C.Mich.Calif.Wis.N.M.Fla.Wyo.N.Y.Ind.Minn.Ore.MaineAlaskaTenn.Pa.Md.Ariz.Wash.N.H.HawaiiMo.Del.W. Va.N.J.IdahoD.C.OhioKy.Okla.La.Ala.Vt.Neb.S.D.Colo.
Va.Puerto RicoSources: State and local health agencies. The map shows the share of population with a new reported case over the last week. Data for Rhode Island is shown at
the state level because county level data is infrequently reported. Data is as of Dec. 1, 2020, at 5 p.m. Eastern. Numbers in some states may be artificially low
because of testing and reporting irregularities around Thanksgiving.Ill.LONDON — Much of England
will swap lockdown for less strin-
gent coronavirus restrictions af-
ter Parliament approved new
rules on Tuesday despite a sub-
stantial revolt among lawmakers
in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s
Conservative Party.
The rebellion, by lawmakers
who want to go further in easing
the limits on public life, under-
scored the rising tide of discontent
among Mr. Johnson’s own mem-
bers of Parliament over his han-
dling of the pandemic, exacerbat-
ed by fears that the curbs could
lay waste to large parts of the hos-
pitality industry.
Caught between the competing
demands of this vocal faction of
his lawmakers, and those of his
more cautious scientific advisers,
Mr. Johnson opted to keep strin-
gent measures in place, including
restrictions on many pubs and
restaurants.
From Wednesday there will be
some relaxation from the lock-
down in all areas, as all stores,
gyms, and hairdressers will be al-
lowed to reopen. Religious serv-
ices and weddings can restart,
and limited numbers of spectators
will be allowed at some outdoor
sporting events.
But England will return to a
system under which coronavirus
restrictions differ from place to
place, with areas of the country di-
vided into three “tiers” based on
an assessment of the coronavirus
risks in each one. That is similar to
the framework in place earlier in
the year that failed to prevent a
second wave of the pandemic or
avert last month’s lockdown.
So this time — and to the anger
of many Conservative lawmakers
— almost all of England will be in
the top two tiers, placing signifi-
cant restrictions on the hospitality
trade in areas where around 55
million people live. The govern-
ments of Scotland, Wales and
Northern Ireland set their own co-
ronavirus rules.
A large part of England, home to
around 23 million people, will be in
the strictest tier, where pubs and
restaurants will be shut except for
takeout service.
In regions placed in the middle
tier, including London, pubs will
only be able to serve alcohol to
customers who order a “substan-
tial meal” — a condition that the
government has struggled to ex-
plain when asked which types of
food qualify.
As well as tripping up min-
isters, the debate over such loop-
holes has underscored the extent
to which the state is dictating the
minutiae of daily life, something
that makes libertarian Conserva-
tive lawmakers distinctly queasy.
On Tuesday, critics in Parlia-
ment included several mainstays
of the Conservative establishment
like Graham Brady, who chairs an
influential group of lawmakers.
“If government is to take away
fundamental liberties of the peo-
ple whom we represent they must
illustrate beyond question they
are acting in a way that is bothproportionate and absolutely nec-
essary,” said Mr. Brady, before
concluding that the government
had “failed to make that compel-
ling case.”
His comments came after Mr.
Johnson sought to placate critics,
arguing that with the arrival of the
vaccine on the horizon, “there is
an end in sight,” but adding “we
cannot afford to relax, especially
during the cold months of winter.”
The outcome of Tuesday’s vote
in Parliament, which Mr. Johnson
won by 291 to 78, was never in
doubt after a decision by the oppo-
sition Labour Party to abstain.
Presented with a take-it-or-
leave-it offer, Labour’s leader, Keir
Starmer, told his lawmakers not to
vote, saying that he did not want
to stop the only set of restrictions
available and therefore would not
vote against them. He also said he
did not want to endorse measures
he described as insufficient and
likely to fail. Mr. Starmer, who has
recently ramped up criticism of
the government’s handling on the
pandemic, also called for more fi-
nancial support for those strug-
gling from the economic fallout.Surveys generally show the
public supports tough measures
to control the spread of the virus
and prevent the health service be-
ing overwhelmed, and Mr. John-
son’s government is hardly
unique in the dilemmas it faces.
After a new rise of infections in
Wales, all pubs will be banned
from serving alcohol starting onFriday, with the hospitality sector
restricted by a 6 p.m. curfew.
Yet the scale of the Conserva-
tive revolt served a warning to Mr.
Johnson, denting the authority of
a government whose majority in
Parliament looks less than solid
only a year after he won a land-
slide election victory.
More than 50 of the 364 Conser-
vative members of Parliamentvoted against the new measures
on Tuesday — the biggest rebel-
lion against Mr. Johnson since the
election. Last month, 34 Conser-
vative lawmakers voted against
the lockdown measures.
Many Conservative lawmakers
had demanded an assessment of
the economic impact of the new
restrictions but were dissatisfied
with a subsequent government
document that they felt was large-
ly a rehash of material already
published.
Aside from those who object to
the new rules on libertarian
grounds, several Conservative
lawmakers disputed decisions to
place the areas they represent in
tier three of the restrictions, with
the most stringent curbs.
The next highest category, tier
two, where pubs can reopen but
can only serve alcohol alongside a
substantial meal, effectively
forces bars that do not offer food
to close.
But those rules have also
prompted a lively debate about
whether pubs can serve drinks
alongside some less sophisticated
British staples, including a Scotch
egg — a boiled egg wrapped in
sausage meat, coated in bread
crumbs and then deep-fried.
Questioned on this topic, one
minister, George Eustice, said on
Monday that the Scotch egg would
qualify as a substantial meal.
Then on Tuesday, his cabinet col-
league Michael Gove referred to it
as a starter — rather than a main
course — only to appear to contra-
dict himself in another interview
and suggest that it passed the pub
meal test.
The loophole for pub goers was
seized on by the Sun newspaper,
which predicted what many
drinkers would order when pubs
finally open in tier two areas on
Wednesday.
“Ten pints of lager... and a
Scotch egg please,” read its ban-
ner headline.ENGLANDGrumbles in Parliament as Lockdown Is Lifted
Shops, gyms and hairdressers will be allowed to reopen in all areas of England starting Wednesday.ANDREW TESTA FOR THE NEW YORK TIMESEngland’s tiered system of restrictions makes some areas, like
Birmingham, above, subject to more stringent curbs on activity.MARY TURNER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMESBy STEPHEN CASTLESome Tory lawmakers
want to go further in
easing restrictions.