Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Learning To Live With The Virus Doesn’t Have To Be Scary
Stat: Four Scenarios On How We Might Develop Immunity To Covid-19
As the world wearies of trying to suppress the SARS-CoV-2 virus, many of us are wondering what the future will look like as we try to learn to live with it. Will it always have the capacity to make us so sick? Will our immune systems learn — and remember — how to cope with the new threat? Will vaccines be protective and long-lasting? (Branswell, 8/25)
CIDRAP: Study Suggests Limited Diagnostic Value For Repeat COVID-19 Testing
Of 10,165 patients tested for COVID-19 at a large Los Angeles health system, 6.2% were positive, and only 1.9% tested positive after an initial negative result—calling into question the diagnostic value of repeat testing amid limited testing resources, according to a retrospective study published late last week in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases. Researchers analyzed all test results for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, at the UCLA Health System from Mar 9 to Apr 29 to understand the diagnostic yield of repeat testing in view of scarce test supplies and personal protective equipment. (8/24)
Kaiser Health News: Analysis: You’ve Checked For Fever. Now, What’s Your Risk Tolerance?
As some parts of America gingerly begin to open up after months of near-total lockdown, people have questions. Will it be safe to take a train? A plane? Visit the hair salon? An indoor restaurant? There are many knowable parameters in the equation: your health; the prevalence of cases where you live; the safety precautions being taken anyplace you want to visit. But the final answer may depend on your individual risk tolerance for exposure to infectious disease. (Rosenthal, 8/25)
