| The week began with upbeat news for a change: Moderna announced on Monday it has developed a highly effective vaccine against COVID-19. The breakthrough, similar to Pfizer’s vaccine headlines last week, was cheered by President Trump, President-elect Joe Biden, researchers and clinicians, and eager investors worldwide. The vaccines emerging from separate human clinical trials with astonishing speed suggest there will soon be more than one pharmaceutical weapon to prevent infection with COVID-19. Moderna said its vaccine, which does not require super-cold storage like Pfizer’s version, appears to be 94.5 percent effective during U.S. trials. Both companies are on track to seek permission within weeks for emergency use in the United States. “It won’t be Moderna alone that solves this problem. It’s going to require many vaccines” to meet the global demand, said Moderna President Stephen Hoge (The Associated Press). The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines both require two doses. Moderna expects it could meet calls for mass distribution by April or May. The focus is now shifting to vaccine supplies. There won't initially be enough doses for everyone who wants to be inoculated, reports The Hill’s Peter Sullivan. Starting in December, the U.S. government wants initial doses to benefit priority and high-risk groups, such as health care workers and the elderly. Administration officials and pharmaceutical companies believe the general public could start getting a vaccine around April. Officials said Monday they are searching for ways to speed up manufacturing of all available vaccines that prove to be effective. Distributing COVID-19 vaccines will be another challenge, in part because state health departments say they do not currently have the funding they need for the task. Trump, who has for months pledged that the U.S. military will help distribute any COVID-19 vaccine when it is mass produced, joined in the applause for Moderna’s announcement, seeking credit for achievements during his presidency. “For those great ‘historians,’ please remember that these great discoveries, which will end the China Plague, all took place on my watch!” he tweeted. Reuters: Pfizer plans a pilot vaccine delivery program in four states (Rhode Island, Texas, New Mexico, and Tennessee in consideration of state size, diversity of populations, immunization infrastructure, and need to reach individuals in varied urban and rural settings). Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who has been saying an effective vaccine was expected this year, applauded the 94.5 percent effectiveness emerging from research. “The results of this trial are truly striking,” he said (NBC News). Fauci said the promising early results are “as good as it gets.” Scott Gottlieb, former head of the Food and Drug Administration, enthused that the pandemic could effectively end next year with an arsenal of safe and effective vaccines against the virus. “If these full data sets hold, when the full data comes out, we may have two highly effective vaccines against COVID,” said Gottlieb, who is a Pfizer board member. “Once we get these vaccines in sufficient qualities heading in 2021, the combination of the fact that a lot of the population will have already had COVID, combined with the fact that we’ll be vaccinating the public with a highly effective vaccine, we could effectively end this pandemic in 2021 with our technology” (CNBC). The Associated Press: Biden’s scientific advisers plan to confer with pharmaceutical companies as the transition team seeks to make vaccine plans while Trump stalls a government handoff. Stocks soared on the Moderna news. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average notched record closing highs on Monday, even as spiking U.S. infections and new shutdowns threatened to hobble any recession recovery amid the pandemic (Reuters). The president on Twitter focused on the stock market but made no comment about the record-setting daily spread of the virus across the country: “GETTING VERY CLOSE TO 30,000 ON NEW VACCINE NEWS. 95% EFFECTIVE!” Economists have warned that the United States faces daunting obstacles to recovery, even with vaccines (The Hill). However, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Richard Clarida on Monday said a faster-than-expected U.S. rebound may be possible as a result of medical strides with vaccines (Reuters). > State Watch: Governors are increasing COVID-19 restrictions ahead of Thanksgiving (The Associated Press). Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) defended new COVID-19 restrictions that took effect on Monday. “We're not talking about shutting down, we're talking about slowing down. This is a very crucial time. We're asking people to reduce their social interactions for the next few weeks. We're seeing tremendous spread because people are letting their guard down around friends/family. … With this amount of community spread in Ohio, your odds of getting this virus are much higher now. This is a different ballgame. We must all wear masks, practice social distancing, and protect one another,” he tweeted. Trump on Monday took aim at DeWine, all but encouraging a political challenge from the right (The Hill). Virginia on Monday reported a record number of new coronavirus cases on the first day of the state’s retightened restrictions (WJLA). … Maryland reported more than 1,700 new cases, seven deaths and rising hospitalizations (The Baltimore Sun). … The most harrowing state as measured by the rise in COVID-19 infections is North Dakota, where Republican Gov. Doug Burgum relented after months of resistance to order the wearing of face masks and limits on the size of gatherings (The Associated Press). … In Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) said she has the authority to issue a second stay-at-home order to curb rising infections if necessary and assailed a comment by White House adviser Scott Atlas, a radiologist, who urged people to “rise up” against Michigan’s latest restrictions. She called his statement “incredibly reckless” (The Associated Press). … Philadelphia on Monday announced new pandemic restrictions that aim to combat a lack of mask-wearing and social distancing indoors at public spaces, restaurants, gyms and private homes. The orders roll the city back to prohibitions that were put in place during the spring COVID-19 surge. Under the restrictions beginning on Friday, indoor parties and dining will be nixed; fitness centers, museums and libraries will be closed; and eating and drinking will not be allowed at outdoor gatherings (NBC10 Philadelphia). … Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) on Monday ordered a mask mandate in public indoor spaces effective tonight. She also banned indoor gatherings of more than 15 people and outdoor gatherings of more than 30 people, including weddings and funerals (Des Moines Register). > Infections: The World Health Organization recorded 65 cases of the coronavirus among staff based at its Geneva headquarters, including five people who worked on the premises and were in contact with one another, reports The Associated Press. … Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.), chairwoman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said on Monday she tested positive for the coronavirus after experiencing mild symptoms and will self-isolate and work remotely (The Hill). Also, Michigan Republican Rep. Tim Walberg announced his tested positive for the virus (The Hill). > Sports: The NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Committee on Monday announced the relocation of 13 predetermined preliminary round sites for the 2021 Division I men’s basketball championship tied to the pandemic. The sites originally were planned around the country. 
© Getty Images BIDEN TRANSITION: Biden warned on Monday that without a smooth transition, lives will be lost from the coronavirus outbreak. “More people may die if we don’t coordinate,” Biden told reporters following a speech on his economic plan in Wilmington, Del., as he and his team push for access to the current administration’s vaccine distribution plan. “A vaccine is important. It’s of little use until you are vaccinated. So how do we get the vaccine? How do we get over 300 million Americans vaccinated? What is the game plan? It is a huge, huge, huge undertaking to get it done,” Biden said. “If we have to wait until Jan. 20 to start that planning, it puts us behind over a month, month and a half. And so it’s important that it be done, that there be coordination now, now or as rapidly as we can get that done” (The Hill). Biden’s remarks came shortly after the Moderna announcement. They also came as the former vice president is set to announce appointments of additional members of his pending administration, including Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.). Richmond, an early endorser of Biden’s campaign, will join the White House in a senior role akin to that of Valerie Jarrett during the Obama administration and will oversee public engagement, leaving the House after being elected to his sixth term, as The Hill’s Marty Johnson reports. Richmond, whose district includes New Orleans, has a news conference scheduled today. He’s expected to announce his departure from Congress (NOLA.com). The New York Times: Biden today will announce key members of his pending White House staff. According to Bloomberg News, the Biden team is expected to include his former campaign manager, Jen O’Malley Dillon (as deputy chief of staff, according to CNN), and Steve Ricchetti, a former Biden chief of staff and former Clinton administration senior adviser. Ricchetti has also spent time as a lobbyist, representing drug companies and hospitals (American Prospect and The New York Times). The Hill: Anticipating a Democrat in the White House in January, bickering Democrats returned to work in Washington this week with internal divisions on display. The Hill: Biden vents frustration with Trump on transition. CNBC: Biden met on Monday with union leaders and CEOs of major retail, auto and tech companies. New York Post: Biden ready to get a COVID-19 shot, trims family Thanksgiving invite list. The Hill: Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) says his comments about transition intel briefings for Biden were blown out of proportion. He now says he is in no “hurry” to see that the former vice president gets such briefings. 
© Getty Images The president-elect is expected to speak soon with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who referred to Biden as the “next president” despite his close ties to Trump. The longtime Israeli prime minister notably declined to wade into Trump’s election challenges and claims of voter fraud, saying, “We have enough politics over here” (The Times of Israel). | 
