COVID-19 Update: December 2, 2020: Time for Triage

"It's the beginning of the end," says a representative from Pfizer, as its vaccine gets approved in the UK, with other countries -- including the US -- certain to quickly follow. Now new questions are posed: Who will get the vaccine first and how will it be distributed? (Some answers can be found below.) While we wait, however, the pandemic rages, and stressed hospitals and healthcare professionals must make tough decisions, triaging patients and even possibly rationing care.

The latest:

The CDC says that frontline healthcare workers and nursing home residents will be first in line for the COVID-19 vaccine: tinyurl.com/y6zwsvjz. It also reaffirms the concept of a 14-day quarantine adding that ten days are acceptable if no symptoms develop and seven days are okay if an asymptomatic person tests negative: tinyurl.com/y6n5k62q.

The UK is the first nation to officially approve the Pfizer vaccine; 40 million doses are on order: tinyurl.com/y3t9arph. The race is on for super-cold freezers to hold the Pfizer vaccine: tinyurl.com/yy8dv78k. Strong disagreements are breaking out between the incoming and outgoing presidential administrations about vaccine delivery: tinyurl.com/y3kxu85m.

Without Congressional action, 12 million Americans stand to lose their benefits, devastating the economy. "That's the real war on Christmas," cracks one jaded observer: tinyurl.com/y3cqeqgn.

Convention centers continue to expand during the pandemic, in part because some future contracts hinge on making good on promises made: tinyurl.com/y4q9r7no.

Pantyhose and trash bags: How some school bands and music programs keep going in a pandemic: tinyurl.com/y4upuj2a.

Food for thought:

A guide to COVID-19 triage as practiced in hospitals in various localities: tinyurl.com/yyxkuo58.

Your questions about the vaccine answered: tinyurl.com/y49e4lzz.

Around the country:

In California:

The state hits a new daily record, with 21,848 new COVID-19 cases: tinyurl.com/y5sr74hw.

The pandemic lays bare the state's lack of hospital beds; its total number is fewer, per capita, than that of Poland: tinyurl.com/y53uoajt.

Ed Asner and nine others sue SAG/AFTRA over cuts and eligibility to the union's health plan, which has been stressed by the pandemic: tinyurl.com/y393zpzc.

The Motion Picture Academy insists that this year's Oscar ceremony, set for April 25, will be an in-person event: tinyurl.com/y3qwbwfy. National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences award show will stay virtual through 2021: tinyurl.com/yydp8aeh.

Do as I say: Some of the state's Democrats hypocritically fail to model to good social distancing behavior: tinyurl.com/y2kmeqem. Some of them can't resist the siren call of the ever-popular French Laundry: tinyurl.com/y3lpaplf.

In Connecticut:

The state distributes $9 million in relief funding to arts groups: tinyurl.com/yy2yuy6f.

In Florida:

As predicted, the state passes the one-million-case mark, with 8,847 new COVID-19 cases: tinyurl.com/y3njowb8.

Miami's South Beach Food Festival is postponed until Maty 20 - 23: tinyurl.com/y53rjrsb.

In Illinois:

The state logs 12,542 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, a high number that may be due in part to a lag in testing from the holiday weekend: tinyurl.com/yxcnb532.

Chicago plans to start rolling out vaccines to healthcare workers this month: tinyurl.com/yyn2x2hb.

In Indiana:

The number of COVID-19 deaths is double that of the October figure: tinyurl.com/yybjvpcl.

In Kentucky:

The state shatters its one-day record for new infections (4,151) and deaths (35): tinyurl.com/yxfsw6ta.

In Louisiana:

A swinger's convention in New Orleans becomes a super-spreader event, infection 41 out of 250: tinyurl.com/y682gcpj.

In Maryland:

The state reports the highest number of daily COVID-19 deaths since June: tinyurl.com/yymelh85.

The Baltimore Ravens are cleared for travel to Pittsburgh for their postponed game with the Steelers: tinyurl.com/yxf53d4g.

In Nevada:

A doctor in Reno, having lost five COVID-19 patients in 32 hours, tweets a message urging his colleagues to stay strong; President Trump retweets it, calling it a hoax: tinyurl.com/y52q3pah. The governor condemns the president's action: tinyurl.com/y4y5kqkc.

Healthcare workers protest "untenable conditions" related to the pandemic at Las Vegas' Sunrise Hospital: tinyurl.com/y28jxzho.

In New York:

The police raid an Airbnb rental in Brookhaven, Long Island, hosting a party for 400: tinyurl.com/yxgb3wvr.

The pandemic shuts down New York City's courts: tinyurl.com/y6ktaxqt.

Dr. Anthony Fauci says that, pending effective vaccine distribution, Broadway could be ready to reopen by late summer/early fall: tinyurl.com/y48acgpd.

American Ballet Theatre cancels its 2021 season at the Metropolitan Opera House: tinyurl.com/y5v79oko.

In Ohio:

Ohio State will play Michigan this weekend; last week's game, against Illinois, was canceled. Coach Ryan Day will be still in quarantine: tinyurl.com/y2kcked7.

The state records 9,030 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, well above the three-week average: tinyurl.com/y6hy38xl.

In Tennessee:

The number of available ICU beds hits a new low as the pandemic spreads: tinyurl.com/y4p6kwbm.

In Texas:

With new infections and hospitalizations surging, the White House coronavirus task force urges state leaders to take stronger action: tinyurl.com/y64gnp68.

Around the world:

In Germany:

A simple chart lays out the dire nature of the country's COVID-19 second wave: tinyurl.com/y5lbmqr8.

In Russia:

As the coronavirus surges, President Vladimir Putin orders the commencement of mass vaccinations: tinyurl.com/yy694mlp.

In Turkey:

With new COVID-19 cases hitting 30,000 per day, the government adds curfews on weeknights and total lockdowns on weekends: tinyurl.com/y4bzmj68.

In the UK:

The death toll for COVID-29 reaches 75,000: tinyurl.com/y3a4xn4c.

Entertainment:

The Doo Wop Project: Live in Your Home For The Holidays, a virtual live theatrical concert, will stream Saturday, December 12 at 8:00pm. The Doo Wop Project traces the evolution of Doo Wop from the classic sound of five guys singing tight harmonies on a street corner to songs of today. Audience members will hear old-school holiday classics like The Drifters' "White Christmas," The Temptations' "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer," Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons' version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," along with "Doowopified" contemporary hits like "This Christmas" and "Last Christmas."

Brave Hearts for Broadway teams up with The Actors Fund, to present Holidays from the Heart. Frontline and essential workers, along with their theatre friends, will sing and dance their way through notable tunes and a few surprises celebrating everything from Christmas to Kwanzaa. It will stream on Wednesday, December 16 at 7:00pm ET on www.playbill.com.

Red Bull Theater will offer a benefit reading of A King and No King by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher, directed by José Zayas and featuring Robert Cuccioli, Edmund Donovan, Chukwudi Iwuji, Teresa Avia Lim, Cara Ricketts, Socorro Santiago, and CJ Wilson, on Monday December 14 at 7:30pm EDT. Reserve at tinyurl.com/y5ohhajs.

London's National Theatre unveils a new subscription streaming service: tinyurl.com/y2kahbk8.

Broadway's James Monroe Inglehart, Chris Jackson, and Nik Walker will take part in 'Twas The Night, a present-day reimagining of the beloved poem, "A Visit from St. Nicholas" by Clement Clarke Moore. It's a benefit for the Actors' Fund but will be available on all podcast apps for free starting December 14: actorsfund.org/twasthenight.

For your pleasure:

Patti LuPone wakes us all up with "The Ladies Who Lunch," by Stephen Sondheim, from Company: tinyurl.com/rpasl96.

That's all for today. Stay safe. -- DB

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