Situation Report

White House to restart free Covid home test program The popular mail-order program for the home kits will start next week as part of a broader winter preparedness plan. POLITICO

The Biden administration plans to reopen a partnership with the U.S. Postal Service to mail free at-home Covid-19 tests to households that request them, four people familiar with the matter told POLITICO.

The revival of one of the government’s most popular and widely used pandemic programs comes as the administration prepares for another potential winter surge.

China's COVID spike not due to lifting of restrictions - WHO director GENEVA (Reuters) -COVID-19 infections were exploding in China well before the government's decision to abandon its strict "zero-COVID" policy, a World Health Organization director said on Wednesday, quashing suggestions that the sudden reversal caused a spike in cases. The comments by the WHO's emergencies director Mike Ryan came as he warned of the need to ramp up vaccinations in the world's No. 2 economy. Speaking at a briefing with media, he said the virus was spreading "intensively" in the nation long before the lifting of restrictions. YahooNews

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China reduces COVID-19 case number reporting as virus surges China's National Health Commission is scaling down its daily COVID-19 report starting Wednesday after a sharp decline in PCR testing even though daily cases are hitting record highs. NPR.org

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CDC says long Covid has contributed to thousands of U.S. deaths The agency’s report comes as Congress is considering whether to fund research and treatment. POLITICO

More than 3,500 Americans have died due, at least in part, to long Covid, according to new data from the CDC. The agency’s findings underscore the potential severity of a condition that continues to impact millions but is still poorly understood and — in some cases — dismissed entirely.