Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
If You Test For Covid At Home, Let Us Know Results, FDA Says
San Francisco Chronicle: FDA Asks People To Report Home Test Results
With a majority of people now using over-the-counter coronavirus tests at home, public health officials are having a hard time tracking COVID-19 case trends. To that end, the Food and Drug Administration on Monday encouraged people to start submitting their test results on the website MakeMyTestCount.org. (Beamish and Vaziri, 2/6)
The Hill: ‘Tripledemic’ Infected Nearly 40 Percent Of Households, Survey Finds
The winter’s “tripledemic” of respiratory viruses impacted nearly 40 percent of U.S. households, with someone there getting sick with the flu, COVID-19 or respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), according to a new survey from KFF released Tuesday. The flu and RSV hit much harder and earlier this year than in years past, as viruses kept at bay during the height of the pandemic began infecting people again following the resumption of every-day activities. (Weixel, 2/7)
CIDRAP: Healthy Pre-Infection Lifestyle Linked To Lower Risk Of Long COVID In Women
Women who maintained a healthy weight, didn't smoke, exercised regularly, got adequate sleep, ate high-quality food, and consumed alcohol in moderate amounts were at roughly half the risk of long COVID as those who followed none of these recommended practices, concludes a prospective study today in JAMA Internal Medicine. (Van Beusekom, 2/6)
Axios: Immunocompromised Worry They're Getting Left Behind Again
The end of the COVID public health emergency is near, but that's small consolation to the estimated 7 million to 10 million immunocompromised Americans who are soldiering on with a dwindling number of tools to protect them. (Reed and Moreno, 2/7)
KHN: A Secret Weapon In Preventing The Next Pandemic: Fruit Bats
More than four dozen Jamaican fruit bats destined for a lab in Bozeman, Montana, are set to become part of an experiment with an ambitious goal: predicting the next global pandemic. Bats worldwide are primary vectors for virus transmission from animals to humans. Those viruses often are harmless to bats but can be deadly to humans. Horseshoe bats in China, for example, are cited as a likely cause of the covid-19 outbreak. And researchers believe pressure put on bats by climate change and encroachment from human development have increased the frequency of viruses jumping from bats to people, causing what are known as zoonotic diseases. (Robbins, 2/7)
