PUBLIC HEALTH

President of the United Trace

On a normal day, the president can't sneeze without generating breaking news alerts. Now that he's hospitalized with Covid-19, Trump's every handshake and passing "hello" from the last two weeks is facing intense scrutiny in the most prominent case of contact tracing to date.

• How it works: Contact tracers make a list of everyone an infected person came in contact with. Then, they find those people and tell them to self-isolate before infecting others. 

A few gatherings stand out 

President Trump attended at least 10 events while he may have been infectious, including a nomination ceremony for his Supreme Court pick. As you can see above, there weren't a lot of masks or distancing, and at least seven attendees later tested positive, including the first lady and Utah Sen. Mike Lee. 

These events have also disrupted private sector operations working close to the administration. A trio of White House journalists recently tested positive, and ABC News is quarantining staff who came in contact with Christie during a post-debate broadcast. The president of the University of Notre Dame, one of 18 faculty who attended the nomination, tested positive Saturday. 

Is that what happens when we get sick? 

Don't expect the national news cycle treatment, but 21% of Americans now have access to contact tracing tools. Last week, New York and New Jersey became the ninth and tenth states to release tracing apps, and seven more plus D.C. have apps in testing or development. 

• States are using a protocol co-developed by Apple and Google that uses Bluetooth technology to sense close contact to other app users for an extended period of time. 

Unlike many foreign governments, the U.S. left contact tracing to individual states, igniting concerns about fragmented tracing that doesn't account for movement across state lines. New York and several surrounding states have become the first to make their apps talk to each other. 

Will it work? Researchers think an installation rate of just 15% of a population could help suppress the virus's spread. Virginia's app, which has been out the longest, has 11%. States are still fighting an uphill battle to convince the public these apps won't violate their privacy.

PHARMA

Inside Trump’s Medicine Cabinet

The president of the United States is in the hospital with the coronavirus. How is he being treated?  

Remdesivir: The president received his first dose of remdesivir on Friday as part of a five-day course. Remdesivir might be a familiar name—it's made by Gilead Sciences and was widely discussed back in the spring, during the first wave of this health crisis.

• It hasn't received full FDA approval (just emergency use authorization). However, it has been shown in clinical trials to help hospitalized Covid patients. 

Antibody cocktail: Last Friday, the president's doctor Sean Conley said Trump received an experimental antibody cocktail from drugmaker Regeneron (whose stock rose after hours following the disclosure). 

Dexamethasone: Yesterday, Conley said that the president was given a dose of the steroid dexamethasone, which has been shown to help Covid-19 patients with more severe cases. Trump also received supplemental oxygen Friday, the medical team disclosed.

Looking ahead...Trump’s doctors said the president, who made a surprise motorcade appearance last night, could be discharged from the hospital as early as Monday. However, their credibility has been diminished following a series of misleading statements made to the public this weekend around the president's health.

QUOTES

Weekend Soundbites

"Act fearlessly but with common sense."—British PM Boris Johnson told the people of the UK things will likely be "bumpy" through Christmas and beyond. 

"GET IT DONE."—President Trump, tweeting from Walter Reed, said the U.S. "WANTS & NEEDS" stimulus measures to keep the recovery going. Both parties have signaled progress, but there's no concrete deal on the table yet.

"The fragility of world systems in the face of the pandemic has demonstrated that not everything can be resolved by market freedom."—Pope Francis called for economic reforms post-Covid in a new encyclical. 

"A 'breakup' of Facebook is thus a complete nonstarter."—Facebook's lawyers penned a 14-page document that gives a window into its defense against antitrust inquiries. The company is completely against sawing off WhatsApp and Instagram from FB.

"I need a new quarterback."—a guy sitting next to us on the subway had to tweak his fantasy team's roster after learning Patriots QB Cam Newton tested positive for the coronavirus. The Patriots-Chiefs game was postponed to tonight.

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ENTERTAINMENT

Time to Buy a Home Projector

By tomorrow, major movie theater operator Cineworld could decide whether to indefinitely close its Regal Cinemas in the U.S., as well as its theaters in the UK and Ireland.

Why now? On Friday, MGM announced it's pushing the release of the newest James Bond flick, No Time to Die, to April 2021.

Studios have delayed most major releases because of the pandemic, and 2020 had just three blockbusters left: No Time to Die, Wonder Woman 1984, and Dune. With Bond taking an extra vacation (and theaters potentially closing), the last two could be delayed as well, leaving movie theaters with a slimmer menu than In-N-Out. 

• Christopher Nolan's Tenet, the first big test for theater attendance during the pandemic, has earned a lackluster $40+ million in the U.S. since its September release.

Big picture: Having lost $1.6 billion in the first half of 2020, Cineworld has been on rocky footing for a while. If it chooses to close theaters, thousands of jobs across 543 Regal Cinemas in the U.S. and 128 cinemas in the U.K. and Ireland will be put at risk. 

CALENDAR

The Week Ahead

Following President Trump's Covid-19 diagnosis, Kamala Harris and Mike Pence will reportedly be seated 12 feet apart at the VP debate this week (it was previously 7 feet). 

Monday: The U.S. Supreme Court begins a new term

Tuesday: Trade balance report; Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) 

Wednesday: VP debate

Thursday: Initial jobless claims; Domino's earnings

Friday: FIFA 21 release; Nobel Peace Prize winner announced

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• New York City is implementing new shutdowns of schools and businesses in nine neighborhoods with Covid-19 outbreaks.
• Airbnb will block one-night rentals during Halloween weekend to prevent unauthorized parties.
• California is set to reach a record 4 million acres burned by wildfires this year. 
• Anthem and UnitedHealthcare are no longer waiving copays and deductibles for virtual visits not related to the coronavirus.
• Fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces continued on Sunday. The conflict has killed dozens since it broke out Sept. 27.

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FROM THE CREW

Start Talking

Every Monday, we curate a handful of balanced resources about a hot-button business issue and encourage you to discuss with friends, family, or coworkers. 

This week's topic: Your colleague catches Covid-19—do you have a right to know? Should you have a right to know? Few workplaces will remain untouched by Covid-19, but disclosing that an employee tested positive can run afoul of privacy rules or norms.

• Four approaches to telling employees someone got Covid-19. (DealBook)
• How do workers feel about the safety vs. privacy tradeoff? (HR Dive)
• What employers are actually allowed (and not allowed) to do. (National Law Review)
• Workplace privacy can feel like it's at odds with public health. (Politico)
• At colleges and universities, Covid-19 reporting is largely done on a case-by-case basis, leaving a patchwork of approaches. (WSJ)

CROSSWORD

Like finance? You'll love the theme to this week's Brew Crossword, brought to you by reader Glen Anderson. Play the crossword here. 

Think you have what it takes to make a puzzle? Check out our crossword guidelines then submit your own.