NEW DOCUMENTS: We obtained records from King County, Washington, an early U.S. hot spot of Covid-19. The records include early CDC talking points and emails among public health officials that show early misconceptions about coronavirus.
americanoversight.org/in-the-documen…
americanoversight.org/in-the-documen…
The documents contain early February guidance from the Washington Department of Health, which lists CDC risk categories that appear to greatly underestimate the risk of virus transmission from people who are asymptomatic.
Another set of documents are March 1 “weekly key messages” from the CDC that are, predictably, at odds with President Donald Trump’s public statements at that time, as he downplayed and made numerous false statements about the risk.
documentcloud.org/documents/6840…
documentcloud.org/documents/6840…
One message advises, “If facemasks are not available sick healthcare personnel should cover their noses and mouths with a tissue when coughing and sneezing (or an elbow or shoulder if no tissue is available)” — an obviously dangerous compromise. 
Also on March 1, a King County official emailed a CDC official to ask if asymptomatic staff who had been in close contact with cases should self-monitor or quarantine. The CDC official said the CDC recommended quarantine...
“However, if the county wants to loosen that policy given the shortage of [health-care personnel], perhaps having these asymptomatic contacts wear masks is acceptable. That would be your call.”
documentcloud.org/documents/6840…
documentcloud.org/documents/6840…
