Weekend Reading: A Metaphor, Age Doesn’t Matter, Take a Trip and It’s Just Peanuts

In the past 24 hours, coronavirus cases have surged in many states across the US, increasing fears that the first wave has not ended. In the past day, the CDC issued new guidance on the risk factors for severe COVID-19 illness which eliminates the prior young age “exemption.”

And if that were not enough, late Thursday night the Trump administration filed a brief asking the Supreme Court to strike down the Affordable Care Act (ACA), arguing that the individual mandate is unconstitutional and therefore the rest of the law must be struck down with it. The impact?

Without the ACA:

• 11.4 million people currently covered through ACA exchange plans for this year would lose their health insurance
• 12 million people covered through Medicaid expansion would lose health insurance
• Insurers would again be able to deny people health coverage or charge higher premiums to consumers with pre-existing conditions

Is there a good metaphor or tag line to capture the Administration seeking to eliminate health insurance during a pandemic and economic recession? Nothing comes to mind, so suggestions welcome!

For this Weekend’s Reading, read about Trump’s effort to eliminate the ACA and the accomplishments of ObamaCare in The Latest Threat section. Check out The Threat Continues to read about the CDC’s new risk factor guidance and an alarming new study suggesting the COVID-19 can cause diabetes. Explore the Take A Trip section – safety tips for visiting older adults, or inside the coronavirus (animated) or to the stars. Last but not least, the articles in It’s Only Peanuts provides some fun sport themed articles (Tiz the Law is my favorite)!

I hope you enjoy the following:

1. The Latest Threat

• New York Times: Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to Strike Down Affordable Care Act

• Kaiser Family Foundation: Coronavirus Response and the Affordable Care Act

 2. The On-Going Threat

•  CDC: CDC updates, expands list of people at risk of severe COVID-19 illness

•  CDC: People of Any Age with Underlying Medical Conditions

•  Science Alert: Doctors Warn COVID-19 May Trigger Diabetes in Otherwise Healthy People

3. Take A Trip

• NPR: Taking A Trip To Visit Grandparents Or Older Relatives? Tips To Reduce The Risk

• Scientific American: Inside the Coronavirus

• New York Times: Stick a Starry Night Sky on Your Ceiling

4. Oh it’s Just Peanuts

•  New York Times: Ballpark Peanuts, a Classic Summer Pleasure, Have Been Benched