Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
NYC Organ Transplant Programs Suffer At COVID-Overwhelmed Hospitals
Crain's New York Business: COVID Decimates NYC Organ Donation After Record Year
LiveOnNY, the nonprofit organ-procurement organization that oversees donation and transplantation in the greater New York area, was coming off a record year before Covid-19 struck the region. In January the organization reported that nearly 1,000 lives were saved in 2019. Now it's hoping to rebound after a devastating March and April, and adapt to new challenges for once-routine procedures. It's also trying to contend with a new reality brought on by the pandemic: less organ supply and greater demand. (Hendersen, 7/14)
NPR: Loneliness Hasn't Increased Despite Pandemic, Research Finds. What Helped?
When COVID-19 barreled into the U.S. this year the predominant public health advice for avoiding infection focused on physical isolation: No parties, concerts, or sports events. No congregating inside in bars or restaurants. No on-site family reunions. No play dates for kids. Just keep away from other people. Meanwhile, although social scientists supported that medical advice, they feared the required physical distancing would spark another epidemic — one of loneliness, which was already at a high level in the U.S. (Silberner, 7/15)
AP: Profile Of A Killer: Unraveling The Deadly New Coronavirus
What is this enemy? Seven months after the first patients were hospitalized in China battling an infection doctors had never seen before, the world’s scientists and citizens have reached an unsettling crossroads. Countless hours of treatment and research, trial and error now make it possible to take much closer measure of the new coronavirus and the lethal disease it has unleashed. But to take advantage of that intelligence, we must confront our persistent vulnerability: The virus leaves no choice. (Geller and Ritter, 7/15)
ABC News/GMA: Gyms Stay Open As COVID-19 Cases Rise: What To Know About Safety
Whether or not it is safe to return to the gym has become a puzzling question for people as the number of COVID-19 cases continue to rise in many states. In Florida, one of the epicenters of the pandemic, where the positivity rate now stands at 18.3%, the state's phase 2 reopening order that went into effect in June allows gyms to operate at full capacity. (Kindelan, 7/14)
WBUR: Mass. Food Banks Brace For Surge Of Need As $600 Unemployment Benefit Expires Soon
Since the pandemic, the Greater Boston Food Bank has distributed more food each month than any other in its 40-year history. And now, officials at the state's food banks say they're expecting yet another surge in demand. That's because the $600-a-week emergency unemployment benefits will expire at the end of July, possibly affecting thousands of Massachusetts families. (Rios, 7/15)
Dallas Morning News: As Coronavirus Spreads Through Seagoville Prison, Inmates And Family Fear ‘A Waiting Game’ To Get Sick
After Michael Mouton tested positive for COVID-19, he said his symptoms escalated from fatigue to fever, coughing, vomiting, aches and chills. But unlike most Americans with the coronavirus who can isolate at home, social distancing is a challenge in prisons, like the Federal Correctional Institution in Seagoville, where Mouton is serving a sentence on a federal drug charge. (Smith, 7/14)
In other public health news --
The New York Times: What’s Missing In The Effort To Stop Maternal Deaths
According to the best data available, as summarized in a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States could prevent two-thirds of maternal deaths during or within a year of pregnancy. Policies and practices to do so are well understood; we just haven’t employed them. (Frakt, 7/13 )
In sports news —
AP: AP Sources: About 10 MLB Umpires Opt Out Over Virus Concerns
About 10 Major League Baseball umpires have opted out this season, choosing not to work games in the shortened schedule because of concerns over the coronavirus. Two people familiar with the situation told The Associated Press about the decisions on Tuesday. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because there was no official announcement. (Walker, 7/14)
Los Angeles Times: L.A. County COVID-19 Rule Could Put Dodgers At A Disadvantage
Los Angeles County law stipulates that people who come into close contact with someone with COVID-19 must quarantine for 14 days even if they don’t test positive or exhibit symptoms. MLB and the Dodgers have engaged in discussions with the L.A. County Department of Public Health about the team receiving an exemption, but the team hasn’t received one, according to people with knowledge of the situation. The Washington Nationals, who are holding training camp at Nationals Park in the District of Columbia, are the only one of the other 29 clubs dealing with a similar rule enforced by a local government entity. (Castillo, 7/14)
Also —
Los Angeles Times: Naya Rivera Death Was An Accidental Drowning, Medical Examiner Rules
The Ventura County medical examiner on Tuesday determined the cause of death of “Glee” star Naya Rivera, whose body was found Monday in Lake Piru, was an accidental drowning. Rivera disappeared Wednesday during a boat outing with her young son. Authorities have long believed her death was an accident. (Wigglesworth and Fry, 7/14)
AP: 'Mythbusters' Star Grant Imahara Dies From Brain Aneurysm
Grant Imahara, the longtime host of Discovery Channel’s “Mythbusters,” died from a brain aneurysm, the network said Tuesday. Imahara died Monday at the age of 49.“ We are heartbroken to hear this sad news about Grant,” the network said in a statement. “He was an important part of our Discovery family and a really wonderful man. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family.” (7/14)
