Latest KFF Health News Stories
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Perspectives: Nurse Licensing Laws Need Updating; AAPI Medical Students Discuss Racism In Healthcare
Editorial pages weigh in on these public health issues.
White House Seeks To Expand Medicaid Coverage For Home Health Services
An additional $400 billion is included in a massive jobs and infrastructure package that President Joe Biden unveiled Wednesday. And Wyoming again fails to advance Medicaid expansion.
Biden Administration: Hope Or More Mobilization On Covid?
A surge in covid cases presents the Biden Administration with a policy dilemma: Emphasize how close nation is to ending the epidemic or stress the immediate dangers of the coronavirus and its variants.
Viewpoints: Will Fourth Wave of Covid Be The Worst Yet?; Pandemic Fight Has Been Too Cautious
Opinion writers tackle these Covid and vaccine issues.
Trump’s Weak Initial Covid Response Prompted No-Bid Contracts
A congressional inquiry reveals Peter Navarro, a top aide to then-President Donald Trump, steered a $765 million loan to Eastman Kodak to produce ingredients for generic drugs, a $354 million sole-source contract for pharmaceutical ingredients to a start-up called Phlow, and a $96 million sole-source contract for powered respirators and filters from AirBoss Defense Group.
Vaccine Hesitancy–And Barriers–Persist
People are being turned away because vaccine providers request Social Security numbers or insurance cards, neither of which are required for the free covid shots. Also, no centralized collection of vaccine data remains a problem.
Federal Covid Program Vaccinated 50% Of Nursing Home Staff, Many Refused
As reports say only around half of nursing home staffers received shots from a federal covid vaccine program, the Tampa Bay Times reported that the majority of Florida’s long-term care staff refused the vaccines
FDA Approves Two New Over-The-Counter Covid Tests
Abbott’s BinaxNOW and Quidel Quickvue tests will soon be available at drug stores in two-packs for between $15 and $20.
More Evidence Of Health Care Cost Barriers
Delayed care and lack of regulation of urgent-care clinics are examined. In other health industry news, billions of dollars in investment continue to flow into health care startups.
States Stumble Over Vaccine Rollouts As Wisconsin Drops Mask Mandate
Wisconsin’s high court has stuck down the governor’s statewide mask mandate, and Georgia is poised to lower its remaining covid restrictions. Meanwhile, reports explain why vaccine rollouts in D.C., Maryland and elsewhere are bollixed.
Maternal Health Suffered In Pandemic, But US Deaths Were Rising Before
A study covering 17 countries shows that maternal health complications, deaths and stillbirths rose during the pandemic. A separate CDC report shows that maternal mortality was up 15% in the U.S. in 2019 before the coronavirus had a major impact.
Vaccines Vs. Variants: New Studies Show How The Shots Fare
News outlets cover the latest research on how effective the Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines are in protecting against the variants first identified in the United Kingdom and South Africa.
Relief For Long-Haul Covid Patients May Come From Vaccines
In other covid research news, separate studies show covid variants can also infect mice, and that breathing activities like shouting do produce more aerosols, potentially spreading illnesses like covid.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
France Locks Down, Hit By Covid Surge; Few Infected Britons Took Covid Tests
In covid news from around the world, only 20% of covid sufferers with symptoms took tests in the U.K.; Poland unexpectedly rolls out widespread covid vaccines for the over 40s; and India opens vaccine eligibility to over 45s, which will impact global vaccine exports.
Probe Of The Origins Of Covid Roils Nations
Bat or pangolin? Yunnan or somewhere in Southeast Asia? The initial source of the coronavirus remains a mystery as China tries to deflect the focus to other places.
Contagious Covid Variant Spreading As Cases Rise Across U.S.
Worries rise that the more contagious B.1.1.7 coronavirus variant first identified in the U.K. will cause another surge, as the CDC notes it’s the most prevalent strain found in five states. Meanwhile an uptick in infection numbers is reported.
CDC: Covid Officially The Third Biggest Cause of Death in 2020
U.S. Deaths in 2020: 3.3 million. Covid was the third leading cause of death after heart disease and cancer. “Continued messaging and training for professionals who complete death certificates remains important as the pandemic progresses,” researchers said.
Different Takes: Endometriosis Must Be Diagnosed Earlier; Health Fallout Of Microaggressions
Editorial pages tackle these public health issues.
