Study: Despite PPE, Health Care Workers 3 Times More Likely Than Public To Get COVID

CIDRAP: Health Workers, Especially Minorities, At High Risk For COVID, Even With PPE
At the peak of the pandemic in the United States and the United Kingdom, frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) who had adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) were still at more than three times the risk of COVID-19 infection than the general public—even after accounting for differences in testing frequency, according to a study published late last week in The Lancet Public Health. Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and King's College London used data entered into the COVID Symptom Study smartphone app by 99,795 frontline HCWs and 2,035,395 community members. From Mar 24 to Apr 23, positive coronavirus tests were identified in 5,545 app users. (Van Beusekom, 8/3)

Politico: New Rural Hot Spots Are ICU Bed Deserts, Study Finds 
More than half of all rural low-income communities in the U.S. have zero ICU beds, forcing local hospitals to rely on transfers to wealthier communities for their sickest coronavirus patients, according to a new study. The findings, published in Health Affairs, underscore the economic disparities shaping the nation’s coronavirus response, especially as the virus shifts from wealthier coastal metros to rural communities in the Southeast and West that have historically struggled with access to care. (Doherty, 8/3)

Dallas Morning News: Death Of Parkland Nurse’s Husband Underscores Private Battles Health Care Workers Face Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
Dolores’ loss after 12 years of marriage offers a reminder that the thousands of health care workers in North Texas and across the nation on the front lines of the global pandemic do their jobs as their own families navigate life — and death. “This whole time he was worried about me catching COVID — about me passing away,” Dolores said. “I had to convince him that I was safe, that this was my job. We got blindsided.”As a nurse, Dolores is trained to cope — if not detach — from the grief that accompanies death. (Garcia, 8/3)

The Oklahoman: Coronavirus In Oklahoma: State Health Department Names Epidemiology Consultant After Interim Epidemiologist Contract Ends
The Oklahoma State Department of Health named its third lead epidemiologist since the beginning of the global pandemic on Monday. The State Department of Health confirmed that Oklahoma State University faculty member Jared Taylor will serve as an epidemiology consultant for the department. Interim state epidemiologist Aaron Wendelboe's contract expired this past Friday. (Kemp, 8/3)

Modern Healthcare: Florida Doctor Charged In $681 Million Substance Abuse Treatment Scheme
A Florida doctor allegedly bilked Medicare and commercial insurers out of $121 million by billing $681 million of fraudulent tests and treatments for substance abuse patients. Dr. Michael Ligotti was arrested and charged last week with conspiring to commit healthcare fraud and wire fraud for his alleged participation in a massive years-long scheme across Palm Beach County, which reports estimate is home to a more than $1 billion substance abuse treatment industry. (Kacik, 8/3)

In other health industry news —

Modern Healthcare: Kindred, Dignity Partner On Phoenix-Area Inpatient Rehab Hospital
Kindred Healthcare and Dignity Health will build a second inpatient rehabilitation hospital in the Phoenix area to serve a growing need, according to a news release. Louisville, Kentucky-based Kindred and San Francisco-based Dignity, through Dignity Community Care, first opened the Dignity Health East Valley Rehabilitation Hospital in Chandler, Arizona, in 2016. (Christ, 8/3)

Dallas Morning News: Tenet Healthcare CEO: Government Stimulus ‘Not Complete Relief’ For Pandemic’s Disruption
Government cancellations of elective surgeries and shelter-at-home orders have vexed Tenet since mid-March, when COVID-19 reached pandemic levels in the U.S. At its hospitals, surgeries fell by 55% in April. By June, that percentage had recovered to 90% of pre-COVID-19 levels. (O'Donnell, 8/3)

Modern Healthcare: Tenet Reports Higher Second-Quarter Profit Like Many Of Its Peers
Like its peers, Tenet Healthcare Corp. managed to significantly cut expenses during the second quarter to counteract the most severe effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, ultimately driving up its profit more than 200%, the company announced Monday. Dallas-based Tenet's expenses fell in the second quarter of 2020 to $4.2 billion, down 11.4% year-over-year. Revenue dropped 20% year-over-year to $3.6 billion, below the $3.8 billion projected by Zacks Investment Research analysts. (Bannow, 8/3)