US On Track Toward Record Low For Lightning Fatalities In 2020
In other public health news: record increases in need at food banks; pandemic screen time and eye problems; work stress and short-term disability; and more.
The Washington Post:
U.S. May See Fewest Lightning Fatalities On Record In 2020
You know things are bad when you try to buck yourself up by thinking, “Well, at least few people have died by lightning this year.” But if trends continue, 2020 will go down as the year the United States had its lowest number of lightning fatalities in recorded history. By the end of September, the country typically sees 25 lightning-related deaths, based on 10-year average statistics. Right now we’re only at a dozen. That’s not to diminish these tragedies. Many of the people struck down were doing everyday things like walking or yard work, and two of the incidents involved groups of people (four men working on a deer blind this July in Pa., two of whom died, and two men killed while clearing tree debris in North Carolina in August after Hurricane Isaias). One man in South Carolina was killed in May after simply stepping out of his car. (Metcalfe, 10/3)
The Washington Post:
U.S. Faces Shortage Of Up To 8 Billion Meals In Next 12 Months, Leading Food Bank Says
Bill Blackmer lost his job in telecommunications on April 18. Blackmer lives with his wife, Mary, and two young daughters in Weymouth, Mass. “I waited until after dinner, once everything had settled down, to tell her,” he remembers. “Mary didn’t say anything, just grabbed her stomach and took three steps back and sat down.” He is among tens of millions of Americans who have turned to a local food bank for help after becoming newly food insecure because of the pandemic and its fallout. About 10 percent of American adults, 22.3 million, reported they sometimes or often didn’t have enough to eat within the past week, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s most recent Household Pulse Survey fielded between Aug. 19 and 31. That is up from 18 million before March 13. (Reiley, 10/2)
USA Today:
Increased Screen Time Amid Pandemic Is Causing More Eye Problems
Optometrists report a rising number of patients seeking help with eye problems during the pandemic. Many are tired of their glasses fogging up while wearing masks and wary of possibly spreading viruses while installing contact lenses. Meanwhile, others are grappling with the fallout of increased screen time, which can exacerbate a medical condition known as dry eye, doctors say. (Brown, 10/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
Stressed At Work? Here’s When To File For Disability Benefits
Employees may be able to file for short-term disability if a medical professional diagnoses them with an anxiety disorder, depression or other mental illness due to that stress. But there are other options to consider under the Americans With Disabilities Act, depending on the person’s condition and workplace environment. (Steele, 10/4)
Kaiser Health News:
‘An Arm And A Leg’: TikTok Mom Takes On Medical Bills
Shaunna Burns went viral on TikTok, partly because of a series of videos dishing out real-talk advice on fighting outrageous medical bills. She said the way to deal with medical debt is to be vigilant about what debt you incur in the first place. “What you can say is I don’t want you to run any tests or do any procedures or anything without running it by me,” she said. (Weissmann, 10/5)
Kaiser Health News:
Not Pandemic-Proof: Insulin Copay Caps Fall Short, Fueling Underground Exchanges
D.j. Mattern had her Type 1 diabetes under control until COVID’s economic upheaval cost her husband his hotel maintenance job and their health coverage. The 42-year-old Denver woman suddenly faced insulin’s exorbitant list price — anywhere from $125 to $450 per vial — just as their household income shrank. She scrounged extra insulin from friends, and her doctor gave her a couple of samples. But as she rationed her supplies, her blood sugar rose so high her glucose monitor couldn’t even register a number. In June, she was hospitalized. (Hawryluk, 10/5)
