Latest KFF Health News Stories
Sweden, which has avoided the extreme shut-down measures of most other nations, has become a fascination for many conservatives who see it as proving their arguments correct that U.S. lockdowns are not needed. But there are factors in play that allowed Sweden to try this approach, where it would be unlikely to have similar results in the U.S.
Legal ‘Minefield’ Awaits Employers As States Push Businesses To Reopen
The next big political fight is over protections for employers who, if they reopen during the pandemic, could face lawsuits from employees who get sick.
Neighbors Of States Lifting Restrictions Worry That They’ll Have To Deal With The Consequences
“That’s like having a peeing section in the swimming pool,” Jeffrey Duchin, a public health official in Seattle and King County of a state-by-state approach to lifting shutdown orders.
Trump’s Order To Keep Meat Plants Open Gives Powerful Industry A Win, But Workers Cry Foul
The order gives meat plants liability cover if their workers get sick in the plants during the pandemic. But essential employees in the food industry are pushing back. “‘It’s almost like [the plant’s owners] don’t care about us,” said one worker. “Just keep production going, keep the money coming in, whatever they can do to just keep going, that’s how I feel.
Saliva Tests Offer Safer Experience For Workers, Less Painful One For Patients
Experts are excited for the roll out of saliva tests for COVID-19 that are quicker, less painful and safer. Studies also show that the saliva test often yielded a stronger signal than the swab, suggesting that it is more sensitive and could yield fewer false-negative results. Other testing news comes out of the states as well.
Azar Has Been Embroiled In Controversy Over Personal Feuds. Now The Spotlight Is Even Harsher.
HHS Secretary Alex Azar was already on thin ice before the pandemic started because of the messy and public feud between him and CMS administrator Seema Verma. Now he’s under intense scrutiny, and despite the fact that President Donald Trump vouched for the quality of his work, many believe he could have a target on his back.
Though Trump Has Pivoted His Messaging To Rebuilding Economy There’s Still No Clear Path Forward
President Donald Trump wants the economy up and booming by the third quarter, but public health experts say that the war against the invisible enemy is going to be filled with set-backs that will undermine Trump’s goals. In other news on the administration’s response: some warn that Trump could face backlash for his optimistic tone, Jared Kushner calls Trump’s efforts a “success story,” Trump’s disinfectant comments throw a wrench in Facebook’s pledge to curb misinformation and the White House pushes U.S. intelligence agencies to look for links between the virus and Chinese labs.
Trump’s Stay-At-Home Guidelines Will Quietly Expire Today, And He Doesn’t Plan To Extend Them
President Donald Trump is letting states take the reins on determining stay-at-home orders instead of extending federal guidance, a move that worries some public health officials. Meanwhile, Trump underscored his messaging that the country should reopen by announcing that he intends to travel to Arizona after weeks of staying put in the White House.
Gilead Drug Study Offers Promising Results Though Fauci Acknowledges It’s Not A ‘Knockout’ Punch
Dr. Anthony Fauci struck an optimistic tone about the results of the NIH study of Gilead’s remdesivir, touting the findings that it cut down hospitalization times for coronavirus patients. But the effect on mortality rates wasn’t statistically significant. Still, hopes rose on the news that there might be some treatment to help fight the virus.
U.S. Death Total Climbs Past 60,000 With An Average Increase Of 2,000 A Day
Most experts believe that due to undercounting the real death toll is higher than the 60,000 deaths officially reported.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Viewpoints: Big Pharma Needs To Hit Its Stride On A Vaccine, Treatments; Lessons On The Lysol Moment
Opinion writers weigh in on these pandemic topics and others.
Research Roundup: Upward Mobility And Mental Health; Aspirin And Cancer; And More
Each week, KHN compiles a selection of recently released health policy studies and briefs.
Gilead Reports ‘Positive Data’ From Drug Trial Of Experimental Coronavirus Treatment
Gilead announced Wednesday that its closely watched drug trial of remdesivir, conducted by NIH, shows that at least 50% of patients treated with a 5-day dosage improved, and more than half were discharged from the hospital within two weeks.
Media outlets report on outbreak news from New York, Massachusetts, Georgia, Ohio, Nevada, Texas, and Tennessee.
A medical director says one of the nation’s largest outbreaks in a Tennessee prison where 583 inmates have been sickened might have come from the staff. While some states have responsibly updated websites daily about outbreaks in prisons, others provide very little information, according to a WBUR story putting the national infection tally at 15,000 inmates and jail staff with 130 deaths.
Editorial pages focus on these pandemic issues and others.
Global outbreak news is reported from Sweden, Greece, South Korea, the Netherlands, China, Niger, Japan and South Africa.
Social distancing is saving lives, doctors say, but a Modern Healthcare report finds that many patients are waiting to deal with acute conditions, elective procedures and vaccinations. Meanwhile, a report from the John A. Hartford Foundation looks at how seniors are coping with stay-at-home orders. Other public health news reports on experimental plasma treatments, fewer drivers but more fatal crashes, heat-wave worries, challenges for clinical trials, supplying mental health needs, sanitizer poisonings in children, library efforts to serve most vulnerable, canine positive, increased child sexual abuse and more.
Pandemic Strips Bare The Racial Disparities Deeply Baked Into America’s Health System
Black Americans have been hit disproportionately hard by the pandemic. “While Covid-19 has not created the circumstances that have brought about health inequities, it has and will continue to severely exacerbate existing and alarming social inequities along racial and ethnic lines,” the American Medical Association wrote.
