This piece was originally published in the July 16, 2020 edition of CAP Action’s daily newsletter, the Progress Report. Subscribe to the Progress Report here.
Photo by Hush Naidoo on Unsplash
— Justice Sonia Sotomayor, dissenting from a Supreme Court decision today which upheld Florida’s policy of preventing formerly incarcerated people from voting until they pay outstanding fees.
5.4 million Americans have already lost their health coverage during the pandemic.
And if the White House-backed lawsuit to repeal the Affordable Care Act is successful, an estimated 23 million people will lose their health coverage.
We can’t afford for this crisis to get worse.
Share this graphic on Facebook to get the word out:
IN THE NEWS
- The White House told hospitals yesterday to start sending their coronavirus data to a separate database in Washington rather than to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This comes just days after the CDC raised flags about schools reopening safely. The new database, which will be housed at the Department of Health and Human Services, will not be readily accessible to the public. Experts have voiced concerns that the vital data will be politicized or potentially withheld from the public — concerns which were partially realized today when parts of the CDC’s database, including hospitalization data, were removed from their website.
- The CDC has a message for Americans: Wear a mask. In an interview with the American Medical Association, CDC Director Robert Redfield said that he thinks that “if we could get everybody to wear a mask right now I think in four, six, eight weeks we could bring this epidemic under control.”
- Meanwhile, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp is refusing to let local governments implement mask requirements. As a reminder, Georgia is currently the 12th worst coronavirus epicenter in the world.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
- A new report from Media Matters found that Fox News pushed coronavirus misinformation 253 times in just five days. Shows branded by Fox as “straight news” were responsible for more than a third of the total, while Laura Ingraham’s show accounted for a quarter of the network’s coronavirus misinformation. The majority of the misinformation was related to undermining science, with politicization of the coronavirus coming in second.
- Abigail Disney (yes, that Disney) thinks America should tax the rich — including her. In an interview with Yahoo Finance this week, the Disney heir said she believes wealthy people like herself “have not paid our fair share” and have “benefited disproportionately” from government services that work in their interests. “We need to cough up a little bit more.”
WHAT WE’RE READING (AND LISTENING TO)
- 3 Principles for Reopening Schools Safely During the COVID-19 Pandemic by Scott Sargrad and Maura Calsyn (CAP)
- Assessing the State of Police Reform by Kenny Lo (CAP)
- 2 Stylists Had Coronavirus, but Wore Masks. 139 Clients Didn’t Fall Sick. by Katherine J. Wu (New York Times)
- Michelle Obama is launching a podcast! Listen in on July 29 on Spotify.
- On the latest episode of The Tent, CAP’s Ed Chung and Jesse Lee discuss the White House’s efforts to undermine public health officials as coronavirus cases rise across the country. Then they’re joined by New School professor Maya Wiley to talk about the declining state of justice in America and the influence of Black Lives Matter.
Formerly incarcerated Floridians face an average of $500 in fines and fees after being released — and the Supreme Court just ruled that they can’t vote until they pay it all off. Help them pay it off so they can participate in our democracy by donating here.
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