It’s unclear if House Republicans like their options because it will be a secret ballot election, NPR’s Deirdre Walsh says on Up First. She adds there’s “concern about avoiding another messy fight,” like in January when it took four days and 15 votes to elect McCarthy.

 Meanwhile, North Carolina GOP Rep. Patrick McHenry is serving as speaker pro tempore, making him interim House Speaker. The 10-term congressman gained prominence during this year’s debt ceiling and government shutdown negotiations. Read about the man handpicked by McCarthy to lead if the speaker seat is vacant.

More than 2,500 migrants have died or gone missing while trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe this year, according to the U.N. Many boats sink without a trace, which means the actual death toll is likely even higher.

 NPR’s Ruth Sherlock is on a search and rescue boat with Doctors Without Borders, or MSF. They’re watching for migrants in distress off the Tunisian coast. She says staff there have rescued hundreds of people. They tell her the ship acts as “an ambulance for people in need,” but their efforts are “politically difficult.”

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, doctors noticed a connection between COVID-19 infections and cardiovascular issues — especially among those with preexisting conditions. Now, researchers have found that the virus that causes COVID-19 can infect plaque cells in the arteries and cause inflammation, increasing the risk of heart attack and stroke. The good news? Vaccination can cut the risk.

More than 75,000 workers at Kaiser Permanente hospitals walked off the job yesterday in what unions are calling the biggest health care strike in U.S. history. They aim to pressure their employer to address a staffing shortage. Kaiser, which serves nearly 13 million patients, warned that non-emergency and elective services may be rescheduled.