AP: U.K. says 4-week coronavirus lockdown may have to last longer
“A new national lockdown in England may have to last longer than the planned four weeks if coronavirus infection rates don’t fall quickly enough, a senior government minister said Sunday. The lockdown announced Saturday by Prime Minister Boris Johnson is to run from Thursday until Dec. 2. Johnson says it’s needed to stop hospitals from becoming overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients within weeks…” (Lawless, 11/1).

POLITICO: Europe is living a coronavirus flashback, plus a backlash
“…As countries across Europe adopt stricter measures to slow the pace of the second wave of the coronavirus epidemic, Europeans are experiencing a sense of flashback to the spring. But besides the change in season, there is something else: a growing backlash against the restrictions…” (Tamma, 11/1).

Washington Post: With coronavirus exploding in Europe, hospitals calculate how long until they hit capacity
“For Germany, the breaking point could come in December. France and Switzerland might crack by mid-November. Belgium could hit its limit by the end of the week. Europe, in the throes of a savage second wave of the pandemic, is on the verge of a medical crisis, with intensive care units quickly filling to the breaking point. Governments are finding that when confronted by the unforgiving reality of an exponentially spreading virus, even vast investments to expand hospital capacity can be washed away in days…” (Birbaum et al., 10/31).

Additional coverage of European nations’ new lockdowns amid rising COVID-19 cases is available from AP (2), BBC News, CNBC, Financial Times, The Guardian, Health Policy Watch, Washington Post, and Xinhua News.