The Latest: Health experts brief Biden on slowing virus
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the 2020 presidential election (all times local):
12:40 p.m.
Joe Biden is receiving a virtual briefing from a former U.S. surgeon general and a collection of health experts on how best to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Biden’s campaign created a virtual studio that connected the former vice president via video with former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and six other experts at a theater in downtown Wilmington, Delaware on Wednesday. Biden will give a speech on the topic later in the day.
David Kessler, board chairman and director for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, stressed for Biden the important of requirements increasing “universal masking” but also increased testing and contact tracing. He suggested doing so could save thousands of lives and ultimately be more effective between now and early next year as vaccines are being developed.
Others on the briefing endorsed a national requirement to wear masks, given the country’s “porous borders” and rules that vary from state to state. They also said that when some areas have moved to reopen shuttered bars and restaurants, virus outbreaks have often followed — suggesting that officials should encourage people to remain outside during relatively mid-fall weather and allow for returns to such establishments later.
