POLITICO Massachusetts Playbook: Inside the ICU — ‘GOD and TRUMP’ — Virus squeezes municipal BUDGETS

By Stephanie Murray

GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. LIFE INSIDE THE ICU — Dr. Robbie Goldstein does the same thing seven days a week: He gets up, then goes to Massachusetts General Hospital. Goldstein is an infectious disease doctor who is overseeing two of the hospital's new intensive care units for coronavirus patients. He is also running to unseat Rep. Stephen Lynch in a Democratic primary. I spoke with Goldstein about being on the front line of the pandemic. Our conversation was edited for length and clarity. What do you do at the hospital every day? What I've been doing is rounding with the intensive care unit team of intensive care-trained physicians and anesthesiologists and resident doctors who are caring for a large number of people with Covid. I provide them guidance and input on how to manage people with Covid, what clinical trials are available, what other treatments might be possible, and then also manage other infectious complications that happen when you're in an ICU for a long period of time. What is it like in the ICU right now? Does it feel different? It feels like everything is different and also everything is exactly the same. The two ICUs that I'm working in are recovery rooms the hospital used previously for people coming out of the operating rooms. I've been in those spaces before but never in them as an intensive care unit. We're all working incredibly hard, we're all working more hours than we have worked in the past, but we're doing it because it's the right thing to do. Are you concerned the hospital could run out of ventilators or beds for patients? I don't think so. I think we did what we had to do to flatten the curve and we are seeing that we're sort of hitting the plateau right now. But I do think that we're going to see that the hospitals are going to remain very busy for many, many weeks. Is there anything about treating Covid-19 that has surprised you? This one doesn't act like so many of the other ones that we see. Oftentimes, we can predict how people are going to go, we have an understanding of what the next day may look like. Each day, I walk in and I have no blueprint to help figure out what's going to happen next. Some of that is that it's a new virus and we just don't know enough about it yet. Some of it is that we don't have a treatment, and so all we can provide is supportive care and do the best we can to keep people on the ventilators. More than 2,300 people have died from coronavirus in Massachusetts. How should we think about the number of people who are dying from the virus? It's tragic. I also think we have to be prepared to see numbers increase. From what we've seen, folks who get admitted to the hospital, it takes one, to two, sometimes three weeks before they may succumb to the virus. We're hitting the peak in admissions to the hospital and diagnoses of the virus right now. I think one, to two, to three weeks from now we're going to see the peak of deaths from the virus. And so the numbers we're seeing right now, I think, are just foreshadowing for us the tragedy that is to come. I hope I'm wrong on that. How do you balance campaigning as a doctor during a pandemic? There was no question when someone said to me, 'We need coverage in the ICU, can you do it?' I immediately said yes because it's the right thing to do for the patients in front of us. So the campaign had to go through some twists and turns and bends. It has given me a different perspective on why I'm running for office and what I think needs to be changed at the federal level. Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: smurray@politico.com. TODAY — Gov. Charlie Baker, Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh are guests on WGBH. Sen. Ed Markey and Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins host a livestream. Rep. Joe Kennedy III hosts a virtual town hall with the Metro South Chamber of Commerce.

THE CORONAVIRUS & THE UK: JOIN TODAY TO HEAR FROM THE BRITISH AMBASSADOR: The coronavirus hit Britain hard, with the fourth-highest death toll in Europe and a stay in the ICU for the country's prime minister. Join Global Translations author Ryan Heath today at 2:30 p.m. EDT for a virtual discussion with Dame Karen Pierce, who was named Britain's ambassador to the United States in February. Pierce will detail the government's handling of the pandemic, the status of the "special relationship" between the United Kingdom and the United States, and what it's like to be an ambassador in quarantine. Have questions? They'll answer as many as they can. REGISTER HERE TO PARTICIPATE.

THE LATEST NUMBERS

- "Mass. reports 3,079 new coronavirus cases, a new high amid thousands of additional tests, and 178 new deaths," by Martin Finucane, Travis Andersen and Dasia Moore, Boston Globe: "Even before the state announced the latest count of coronavirus cases and deaths, Governor Charlie Baker on Thursday called the cumulative toll 'staggering.' ... Baker's comments came as the total number of coronavirus fatalities reached 2,360, with 178 new deaths reported Thursday. The daily toll was lower than the 221 the day before, which was the state's highest number of fatalities since the virus began its deadly march."

DATELINE BEACON HILL

- "Self-employed workers file for unemployment benefits," by Christian M. Wade, Gloucester Daily Times: "Hundreds of thousands of self-employed people who've lost work amid the COVID-19 outbreak filed requests this week for new federally-backed unemployment benefits. The state began accepting applications on Monday for pandemic unemployment assistance intended to help those who aren't eligible for traditional benefits." - "Massachusetts House bill seeks to root out racial, geographic disparities from coronavirus pandemic," by Steph Solis, MassLive.com: "House lawmakers passed a bill that would enable lawmakers to collect more data and explore which parts of the state, if any in particular, have been shortchanged when it comes to coronavirus testing and treatment. The bill, H.4672, imposes daily data collection requirements from the state Department of Public Health and creates a diversity task force that would develop policy recommendations for the state's COVID-19 response." - "State Lawmakers Urge Governor To Reduce Prison Population Faster As COVID-19 Spreads," by Jenifer B. McKim, WGBH News: "A group of Massachusetts lawmakers on Thursday urged Gov. Charlie Baker to speed up efforts to reduce the population in the state's prisons and jails amidst a growing outbreak of COVID-19. The lawmakers, including 15 senators and 23 representatives, sent a letter to Baker asking him to push the state Parole Board to expedite hearings and reduce processing time to release prisoners." - "COVID-19 fear keeping ill people away from ERs," by Sarah Betancourt, CommonWealth Magazine: "A trio of hospital executives joined Gov. Charlie Baker on Thursday to warn against an alarming new trend - people with serious medical conditions staying away from hospitals out of fear of COVID-19 and facing dangerous repercussions later. 'One of my surgeons said to me last week that he has done more amputations in the last two weeks than he can ever remember,' said Dr. Gregg Meyer, the chief clinical officer of Partners Healthcare." - "Health commissioner describes 'frightening' COVID-19 battle," by Katie Lannan, State House News Service: "Dr. Monica Bharel first thought the aches and pains she started feeling in late March were due to a lack of sleep and the long hours she was putting in as Department of Public Health commissioner in the midst of a pandemic. When her husband told her their daughter had a fever, Bharel started thinking about her own symptoms and was tested for COVID-19 that night, March 26."

FROM THE HUB

- "Boston city councilors call for more equity in coronavirus relief funds," by Lisa Kashinsky, Boston Herald: "Boston city councilors and businesses are calling on Mayor Martin Walsh's administration to be more equitable in handing out coronavirus relief money to small businesses, saying City Hall isn't being transparent about the process. Councilors held a lengthy hearing Thursday afternoon with members of the city's business community to discuss issues with city relief funds that small businesses and businesses run by people of color say they are facing amid the pandemic." - "A scientific experiment in going back to work," by Rebecca Ostriker, Boston Globe: "What will it really take for people to go back to work safely again? A Kendall Square research institute plans to find out by conducting a scientific experiment — on itself. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard aims to test the hypothesis that it can return to full operation without endangering its employees by following a rigorous set of steps in a carefully controlled environment." - "Lack of sports doesn't stop DraftKings from going public," by Jimmy Golen, Associated Press: "Sports daily fantasy and betting website DraftKings will debut as a publicly traded company Friday against a backdrop of a near-complete shutdown of athletic competition across the globe due to the coronavirus pandemic. DraftKings' move to Wall Street was sealed Thursday after shareholders of a blank-check company, Diamond Eagle Acquisition Corp., approved a merger." - "Brigham and Women's nurse who survived coronavirus released from hospital; vows to return to job," by John R. Ellement, Craig F. Walker and Jessica Rinaldi, Boston Globe: "Debora A. Buonopane insisted Thursday that her place is still in the emergency room at Brigham and Women's Hospital where the registered nurse has helped critically ill patients for 31 years — especially now that she is a survivor of COVID-19 herself. 'I just really didn't think I would make it. I thought I was going to die,' Buonopane said in a telephone interview after being released from the Brigham." - "Mass. colleges face a big question: Will international students come back?" by Hilary Burns, Boston Business Journal: "One of Massachusetts' proudest features is its many colleges, which rely heavily on tens of thousands of international students each year. But now, local college campuses are facing a possible decline in those numbers due to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as access to visas and travel restrictions." - "Harvard poll finds that a staggeringly low number of young Americans think the government is working as it should," by Nik DeCosta-Klipa, Boston.com: "The federal government has rarely scored high in the realm of public opinion. But according to a new Harvard poll released Thursday, the youngest generation of voters has a particularly dismal view of the current political system." - "Extended Closures Could Mean Some Mass. Day Cares Never Reopen," Kathleen McNerney, WBUR: "Day care providers in Massachusetts, already ordered closed since March 23, could struggle to ever reopen unless they can get more aid, according to early childhood advocates. Gov. Charlie Baker announced that schools and non-emergency day care programs would remain closed through June 29. Even as it's the necessary decision for public health, advocates say lengthening the closure puts a strain on an already fragile system of care with thin operating margins." - "Coronavirus Diagnoses In Staff Drop By Half After Boston Hospital Requires Masks For All," by Carey Goldberg, WBUR: "After Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston began requiring that nearly everyone in the hospital wear masks, new coronavirus infections diagnosed in its staffers dropped by half — or more. Brigham and Women's epidemiologist Dr. Michael Klompas said the hospital mandated masks for all health care staffers on March 25, and extended the requirement to patients as well on April 6." PRIMARY SOURCES - "Holyoke City Councilor David Bartley joins state rep race," by Dennis Hohenberger, MassLive.com: "Ward 3 City Councilor David Bartley has joined two other candidates in the race for the 5th Hampden District House seat being vacated by state Rep. Aaron Vega. Bartley will be on the Sept. 1 primary ballot along with Patrick Beaudry and Patricia Duffy." - "In The COVID-19 Era, How Will Massachusetts Vote?" by Adam Reilly, WGBH News: "It was a defining moment of the COVID-19 epidemic: on April 7, Wisconsin residents went to the polls in face masks after their state Supreme Court refused to delay an election. One person carried a makeshift cardboard sign which read, simply, 'THIS IS RIDICULOUS.' Now, as Milwaukee's health commissioner says at least seven individuals may have been infected during that day's proceedings, there's growing push to prevent similar scenes in Massachusetts this fall." PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES - "When it comes to its COVID-19 response, the MBTA could do more, study says," by Arianna MacNeill, Boston.com: "When it comes to the MBTA's response to protecting workers and passengers during the COVID-19 pandemic, a study suggests there's more that could be done. The study, titled 'U.S. Transit Systems & COVID-19: How does the MBTA compare?,' published by the Pioneer Institute, notes t hat there are measures the MBTA has taken to help during the pandemic." DAY IN COURT - "Hampden Sheriff Nick Cocchi, DA Anthony Gulluni argue coronavirus not sufficient reason to release inmates early," by Patrick Johnson, Springfield Republican: "A Massachusetts prison-inmate advocacy group is petitioning the state Supreme Judicial Court for the release of inmate potentially at risk of exposure to COVID-19, and once again the Hampden County sheriff and district attorney are publicly voicing their opposition." WARREN REPORT - "Elizabeth Warren's brother dies from coronavirus," by Quint Forgey, POLITICO: "Sen. Elizabeth Warren's eldest brother died from the coronavirus earlier this week, the Massachusetts Democrat revealed Thursday, becoming one of the first known casualties of the global pandemic to directly touch the life of a high-ranking American political figure. Don Reed Herring died Tuesday evening, the senator announced on Twitter." TRUMPACHUSETTS - "'I have two leaders, God and Trump': Massachusetts gun shop vows to remain open despite cease-and-desist order amid coronavirus closures," by Michael Bonner, MassLive.com: "Claiming he only answers to God and President Donald Trump, a gun store owner in Middleborough is refusing to comply with Gov. Charlie Baker's order to close amid the coronavirus outbreak. John Costa, owner of The Gunrunner, said the store will remain open and that state will have to 'drag' him out of his location on Wareham Street if they want to close it." - "'Liberate Massachusetts' rally draws few liberators," by Ethan Forman, The Salem News: A 'Liberate Massachusetts' rally in front of Gov. Charlie Baker's house Thursday seemed to draw more reporters, law enforcement and supporters of the governor than protesters. The event, organized in part by self-described 'MAGA Activist' Dianna Ploss of Gloucester, was for those who are upset about Baker's closure of nonessential businesses to halt the spread of coronavirus." DATELINE D.C. - "Mass. Congressional Members Fear Denials Of Medical Deferral Of Deportations Amid Crisis," by Shannon Dooling, WBUR: "Massachusetts Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, along with Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, want more information from the Trump administration about its supposed reopening of a federal immigration process for seriously ill immigrants." ABOVE THE FOLD — Herald: "ARMED & NOT SO DANGEROUS," "FACE OFF," — Globe: "Testing out a way to go back to work," "Amid bleak data, Mass. urged to stay course." FROM THE 413 - "Springfield city councilors say Western Massachusetts shortchanged on coronavirus testing, materials from state," by Peter Goonan, Springfield Republican: "City councilors said Thursday they believe the city and Western Massachusetts are being shortchanged when it comes to coronavirus testing and materials from the state. The concerns were raised during a council meeting online with several city officials including Health and Human Services Commissioner Helen-R. Caulton Harris." THE LOCAL ANGLE - "City and town budgets hit hard," by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: "As Covid-19 ravages local economies, cities and towns are falling into a sea of red ink - and trying to figure out how to deal with it. While the public health impact of coronavirus is the primary focus of most local officials today, municipalities must also grapple with the economic fallout as they think about their budgets for the next fiscal year, which starts July 1." - "Worcester is at peak, head of UMass says," by Brad Petrishen, Telegram & Gazette: "While COVID-19 may have peaked in some other areas of the state, Central Massachusetts is still surging, the head of UMass Memorial Health Care said Thursday. 'We continue to be at our high water mark,' Dr. Eric Dickson said at the city's daily press briefing, though he added that the situation has not been as bad as he feared." - "For One Homelessness Nonprofit, It's Been A Coronavirus Tale Of Two Shelters," by Lynn Jolicoeur and Lisa Mullins, WBUR: "For people who live in emergency homeless shelters, keeping a distance from others is nearly impossible. In Massachusetts, shelters are typically at — or over — capacity. Those who run the shelters have been scrambling for ways to spread out their populations to prevent the coronavirus from running rampant." - "New York and Boston Pigeons Don't Mix," by Joshua Sokol, The New York Times: "Almost one in five Americans lives in the megacity that is the Northeast, a sprawling cluster of paved surfaces, bitter sports rivalries and clashing opinions about which city's drivers are rudest. Each city on the road up Interstate 95 from Washington, D.C., to Boston prides itself on its uniqueness. But it turns out parts of the animal world have their own senses of geography." MEDIA MATTERS - "State Sen. Eric Lesser's daughter steals show with nose boop during interview with WGBY," by Benjamin Kail, MassLive.com: "During the COVID-19 pandemic, we're all making adjustments. For state Sen. Eric Lesser of Longmeadow, that means an occasional TV interview or video conference from his living room, where his daughter Nora on Tuesday found a Skype conversation with WGBY's Carolee McGrath far more intriguing than her coloring book." HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to MassLive's Matt Vautour, Melrose Mayor Paul Brodeur, Larry Carpman, president of Carpman Communications; Romney alum Charlie Pearce, Chris Wayland, and Mass. Sierra Club Deputy Director Jacob Stern. HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND - to Saturday birthday-ers state Rep. Paul Frost, Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz, MassTech Collaborative's Garrett Quinn, Tom Springer, Mariah Philips and Dimara Coulouras. And to Sunday birthday-ers former Rep. Niki Tsongas, state Rep. Paul Mark, Ralf S. Rho, and Jesse Mermell's campaign manager Katie Prisco-Buxbaum. NEW EPISODE: THE HORSE RACE HAPPY HOUR - On this week's Horse Race podcast, hosts Steve Koczela, Jennifer Smith and Stephanie Murray speak with Katie Lannan of the State House News Service about legislating during a pandemic, and Dan Cence of Solomon McCown & Cence about communicating during a crisis. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and Sound Cloud. Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you're promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com.   BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE: A DIFFERENT KIND OF NEWSLETTER: "The Long Game" explores the convergence of private sector leaders, political actors, and NGO/Academic experts on the key sustainability issues of our time. Subscribe for a nuanced look at sustainability news, trends, solutions and the leaders focused on building a future for generations to come. Launching soon. Subscribe today.       Follow us on Twitter Stephanie Murray @StephMurr_Jour   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our politics and policy newsletters Follow us  POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA