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Arizona was a Covid-19 hot spot a month ago. Here's how it's turning things around

Dakin Andone

August 06, 2020 |

CNN |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Arizona

In May, Arizona began removing coronavirus restrictions after seemingly containing the spread of the virus, but by June, the state's caseload was in a drastic incline. Learning from the mistake of reopening too soon, officials paused the reopening and reimposed measures such as mask wearing and business closures. Since then, the caseload has decreased significantly and earned praise from White House officials.

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The world has shown it's possible to avert Covid-caused election meltdowns. But the U.S. is unique.

Ryan Heath

August 06, 2020 |

Politico |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

Several countries successfully held elections during the Covid-19 pandemic and can offer insights for how the U.S. can hold a safe presidential election. These include providing more funding for additional polling places and poll workers, expanding ways for people to vote so that it is easier, requiring protective equipment and social distancing at the polls, allowing officials to process mail-in ballots before election day, and informing the public about any changes to contradict misinformation campaigns. It could be harder in the U.S. due to its size and the complexity of electoral laws across the states.

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Welcome Back to Germany. Now Take Your Free Virus Test.

Melissa Eddy

August 05, 2020 |

The New York Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Germany

Since the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Germany emerged as "one of the highest testers per capita in the world," due to decentralizing the creation and distribution of testing kits, requiring that tests be fully covered by insurance, and prioritizing the processing of coronavirus tests above all other lab work. Combined with other efforts – such as mandatory quarantine protocols, contact tracing, and new testing stations for travelers – the country has been able to better prepare for a second wave of cases while also recording fewer deaths than other countries.

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How the Pandemic Defeated America

Ed Yong

August 04, 2020 |

The Atlantic |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States

The U.S. has recorded a worldwide record number of COVID-19 cases after missteps and overall lack of action from the federal government limited the nation's response, but in some areas of the country where local institutions and communities enacted their own safety measures, lessons have emerged despite the national failure. Additionally, early surveys have indicated that the majority of Americans are still practing social distancing and support mask-wearing, even without the federal guidance.

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Why the Botched N.Y.C. Primary Has Become the November Nightmare

Jesse McKinley

August 03, 2020 |

The New York Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

New York City received ten-times the average number of mail-in ballots in the June 2020 primary, which caused problems and highlighted changes needed in the general election. The postal service had to hand sort the pre-paid envelopes to postmark them because pre-paid postage doesn’t normally get post-marked. Some envelopes were missed and those ballots were rejected. There were also delays tallying the votes, with some contests remaining undecided for weeks after the election. Ballots were also rejected due to minor errors. Better voter education and increased city and postal service staff is needed.

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While President Trump and national GOP sound alarm on voting by mail, red Utah embraces it

Lee Davidson

August 01, 2020 |

The Salt Lake Tribune |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Utah

Voting by mail in Utah has led to high turnout, even for Republicans who party officials feared would not vote, because it removes obstacles such as missing work, bad weather, and long wait times. It is also safer for public health. Republican turnout nearly doubled, as did the overall turnout, since transitioning to the system. Some criticize the delayed results caused by accepting ballots postmarked the day before election day, and 18 counties don't pay return postage, which can disenfranchise voters. Native American tribal nations don't have formal street addresses, which can also disenfranchise voters.

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How Italy Turned Around Its Coronavirus Calamity

Jason Horowitz

July 31, 2020 |

The New York Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Italy, Rome

Italy, once a major hotspot for Covid-19 cases, has seen a significant decrease in the spread of the coronavirus after implementing strict government regulations including mandatory travel restrictions and isolation protocols. The success of the measures has been evident as the country begins to reopen – lifting restrictions in two-week increments to account for the "virus’s incubation period" – with no sign of the virus still spreading and hospitals remaining largely empty of critical cases.

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What Vermont and Its History Might Teach the Nation About Handling the Coronavirus

Bill McKibben

July 28, 2020 |

The New Yorker |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Vermont

Vermont has seen very few cases of COVID-19 compared to its neighboring states after implementing early preparedness protocols. While part of the success could be due to the small and homogeneous population of the state, the credit also goes to the governor ceding communications to health care officials and local media suspending comments on coronavirus-related pieces to mitigate the spread of misinformation.

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A national forewarning: Wisconsin's high absentee volume and ballot errors

Dee J. Hall Tom Scheck Geoff Hing

July 23, 2020 |

APM Reports |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Wisconsin

Wisconsin officials are using lessons from the failures of the April 2020 primary, where many mail-in ballots were rejected based on technicalities such as missing a witness signature or address, to make changes in the general election. Since the law doesn’t require officials to notify voters so they can fix the mistakes, they adapted a computer system to process absentee ballot applications so clerks have more time to focus on other voting related issues and they will use barcodes to track ballots. But issues such as missing signatures or addresses will still lead to rejected ballots without recourse.

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As Long Waits for Results Render COVID Tests ‘Useless,' States Seek Workarounds

Phil Galewitz Matt Volz

July 23, 2020 |

Kaiser Health News |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Helena, Montana

To better serve those who have been tested for coronavirus, but have experienced a significant delay in receiving their results, states across the nation are experimenting with distributing the load of tests to various lab companies, as opposed to relying on just one. While this isn't the only method in place to fix the testing backlog, states that have already implemented a decentralized model – such as Texas – are seeing results delivered at a much quicker pace, and now other states – such as Montana – are turning to similar systems.

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