Covid Can Leave People Vulnerable To New Health Problems 2 Years Later
A large study of Veterans Affairs health records finds that patients who were infected with covid are at a higher risk developing other diseases or disabilities. Mortality risks were also found to be greater for people who were hospitalized.
Science:
COVID-19 Boosts Risks Of Health Problems 2 Years Later, Giant Study Of Veterans Says
Three-and-a-half years since SARS-CoV-2 spread around the world, scientists are still documenting the virus’ myriad effects on human health. What’s clear already is that those effects can continue long beyond the original infection. Now, researchers have attempted to quantify this long-term harm using a massive database of U.S. veterans’ health records. They found a dramatically increased risk of dozens of conditions including heart failure and fatigue, sometimes years postinfection. Overall, the team estimates, COVID-19’s public health impact is more than 50% greater than that of cancer or heart disease. (Oxford, 8/21)
More on the spread of covid —
Politico:
CDC, Pharmacies Try To Speed Up Covid Vaccine Program For The Uninsured
Just days after warning that pharmacies would not provide free Covid vaccines to the uninsured until October, the Biden administration and retail pharmacies are trying to accelerate the timeline. Biden health officials are now attempting to finalize contracts that would allow pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens to offer the shot to uninsured Americans as early as mid-September, when the government plans to make an updated version of the vaccine available to the broader public. (Cancryn and Lim, 8/21)
Axios:
COVID Boosters Still Weeks Away As Cases Surge
As COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations creep up during a summer wave of heightened virus activity, updated vaccines are still likely weeks away. Americans have largely tuned out COVID, but the latest COVID uptick is a reminder that the virus continues to circulate and mutate — though the threat is far below pandemic-era levels. (Millman, 8/22)
Axios:
COVID-19 Hospitalization Rates On Rise In CA
COVID-19 hospitalization rates across California rose 8% between June and July amid signs of a late summer wave sweeping the country. With so little testing happening these days compared to the height of the pandemic, hospitalization rates are now one of the best proxies for estimating broader viral spread. (Dickey, Fitzpatrick and Beheraj, 8/21)
Health News Florida:
Florida Continues To Add COVID Cases In Latest Health Department Report
A new report from the Florida Department of Health showed an increase in reported COVID-19 cases in recent weeks. The state had 18,518 reported new cases during the week that started Aug. 11 and 18,556 new cases during the week that started Aug. 4 — the highest totals in at least 10 weeks. The increase is nowhere near the numbers of the past two years during the pandemic. Scientists say COVID is in an endemic phase, meaning it is always present in a population but remains fairly stable and predictable, with spikes. (8/21)
St. Louis Public Radio:
Coronavirus Spreading More In Missouri After Monthslong Lull
A growing number of people are testing positive for the coronavirus, but Missouri scientists say the virus still poses a smaller threat to residents than during the height of the pandemic. Coronavirus-related hospitalizations in Missouri — a key way to measure how the virus is spreading now that positive cases are not consistently reported — rose 6% in early August from the week before, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Illinois, the number of new hospitalizations rose more than 25% during that same period. (Fentem, 8/21)
The New York Times:
How Bad Is Getting Covid Multiple Times? What To Know About Reinfection
For many people who get Covid multiple times, subsequent infections will be as mild as or milder than their first, emerging data shows, likely because of partial immunity from previous infections, vaccination and the fact that the latest circulating variants generally cause less severe symptoms. There are a few exceptions — notably, among some people who are immunocompromised, older or had particularly severe previous infections. People who had a severe first infection are more likely to end up hospitalized or to require medical attention for a reinfection, said Emily Hadley, a research data scientist at RTI International who studies long Covid. (Blum, 8/17)
Also —
Stat:
Republicans Love RFK Jr. What's That Tell Us About Health In 2024?
Republican presidential candidates are polishing off their best barbs and attack lines for each other, President Biden and even elephant-in-the-room Donald Trump during their first debate this week. But one increasingly popular candidate isn’t likely to catch any flak. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime face of the anti-vaccine movement, has seen a swell of popularity among conservatives and particularly Covid-19 conspiracy theorists. (Owermohle, 8/22)
KFF Health News:
Few Firm Beliefs And Low Trust: Americans Not Sure What’s True In Age Of Health Misinformation
Around 3 in 10 Americans still believe ivermectin is an effective treatment for covid. What’s more, few place significant trust in any form of news media or official institution to accurately convey information about health topics, from covid treatments and vaccines to reproductive health issues, a new poll from KFF shows. The confusion about what’s true — and who’s telling the truth — is of critical importance to public health, experts in political science said. “Misinformation leads to lives being lost and health problems not being resolved,” Bob Blendon, a professor emeritus of public health at Harvard, said in an interview. Blendon was not associated with the survey. (Tahir, 8/22)
