Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Covid's Long-Term Trouble: Irreversible Brain Loss, Double-Lung Transplants
CNBC: New Covid Study Hints At Long-Term Loss Of Brain Tissue, Dr. Scott Gottlieb Warns
Dr. Scott Gottlieb warned Thursday about the potential for long-term brain loss associated with Covid, citing a new study from the United Kingdom. “In short, the study suggests that there could be some long-term loss of brain tissue from Covid, and that would have some long-term consequences,” the former FDA chief and CNBC contributor said. “You could compensate for that over time, so the symptoms of that may go away, but you’re never going to regain the tissue if, in fact, it’s being destroyed as a result of the virus,” said Gottlieb, who serves on the board of Covid vaccine-maker Pfizer. (DeCiccio, 6/17)
Bloomberg: Double-Lung Transplants Rise After Covid ‘Honeycombs’ Organs
John Micklus’s battle with Covid-19 began last Christmas and ended five weeks later with lungs so damaged that doctors said there was nothing they could do to save him. “The doctor’s recommendation was to get my affairs in order,” Micklus said. The 62-year-old called his wife from his hospital bed in southern Maryland. She, in turn, desperately called several physicians, and eventually learned of one last option: A double-lung transplant. (Gale, 6/17)
In other covid research —
Axios: Top Physician's Group Wants Long-COVID Research
The nation's top physician's group on Wednesday called for policies to better diagnose and treat long-haul COVID-19 and endorsed guidelines for guiding any future vaccine mandates and credentials. The American Medical Association's House of Delegates, which represent the nation's doctors, called for tools to improve the assessment, diagnosis, and awareness of post-viral syndromes. (Reed, 6/17)
KHN: More Than 100 Missouri Schools Have Bought ‘Often Unproven’ Air-Cleaning Technology
When the coronavirus pandemic hit, Scott Dulle scoured the internet for ways to safely get kids back into St. Thomas More School, a private pre-K-8 school in Kansas City, Missouri, where he works as the director of building and grounds. When Dulle found air-purifying ionization technology that marketing materials said would inactivate over 99% of the virus that causes covid-19 in minutes, he had to have it. Parishioners who support the parochial school, some of whom were out of work, raised roughly $22,000 to buy the devices. (Weber and Fentem, 6/18)
Crain's New York Business: Mount Sinai Unveils Inequity Index That Links Socioeconomic Needs To Covid Mortality
Mount Sinai researchers have created a neighborhood-level Covid-19 equity index to explore the relationship between socioeconomic disadvantages and infection and mortality rates during the pandemic, the health system announced Thursday. The index was part of a study published this month in Nature Communications. It measured factors including employment, commuting patterns, population density, food access, socioeconomic status and access to health care. Mount Sinai used census data, subway ridership information and health data from the city and state between March and May to build the index. (Sim, 6/17)
