Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Another Deadly Pandemic Within 10 Years? Chances Are 28%, Analytics Firm Predicts
Bloomberg: World Has 28% Risk Of New Covid-Like Pandemic Within 10 Years
There’s a 27.5% chance a pandemic as deadly as Covid-19 could take place in the next decade as viruses emerge more frequently, with rapid vaccine rollout the key to reducing fatalities, according to a predictive health analytics firm. Climate change, growth in international travel, increasing populations and the threat posed by zoonotic diseases contribute to the risk, according to London-based Airfinity Ltd. But if effective vaccines are rolled out 100 days after the discovery of a new pathogen, the likelihood of a deadly pandemic drops to 8.1%, according to the firm’s modeling. (4/13)
More on long covid and the virus spread —
NPR: You're Less Likely To Get Long COVID After A Second Infection Than A First
If you've gotten COVID more than once, as many people have, you may be wondering if your risk for suffering the lingering symptoms of long COVID is the same with every new infection. The answer appears to be no. The chances of long COVID — a suite of symptoms including exhaustion and shortness of breath — falls sharply between the first and second infections, according to recent research. (Stein, 4/14)
U.S. News & World Report: Long COVID-19 Is Sticking Around. What’s Causing It?
At least 65 million people across the world are suffering from long COVID. At this stage in the pandemic, health officials have mostly shifted their attention away from preventing coronavirus infections, instead focusing on stopping hospitalizations and deaths. The strategy means that people will continue to get infected and reinfected with the coronavirus as long as it is circulating. It also means that long COVID isn’t going away anytime soon. (Smith-Schoenwalde, 4/14)
San Francisco Chronicle: Rogue COVID Testing Sites Have Returned To San Francisco Sidewalks
For many pedestrians strolling by, it was an easy way to make $5 cash. All they had to do was swab themselves for COVID and show their photo ID. But several testing sites that popped up on San Francisco sidewalks this week appear to be unscrupulous operations that are not properly licensed through a laboratory and whose workers do not follow basic public-health rules. (Gardiner, 4/13)
CIDRAP: Higher-Dose Corticosteroids Tied To 60% More Deaths In Low-Oxygen COVID Patients
Higher-dose corticosteroids are linked to a 60% increased risk of death in hospitalized COVID-19 patients with low oxygen levels, finds a randomized, controlled trial published yesterday in The Lancet. ... The authors had already shown that low-dose corticosteroids reduce deaths among COVID-19 patients needing supplemental oxygen. (Van Beusekom, 4/13)
Scientific American: How Often Should People Get COVID Boosters?
The CDC and FDA have decided that one updated COVID booster is enough for now, in contrast to recommendations from other countries and global health organizations. (Young, 4/13)
