Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Psychologists Seeing Mental Health, Behavioral Issues Caused By Pandemic
NBC News: Back To Not-So-Normal: Psychologists Eye Pandemic Stress As U.S. Reopens
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a major impact on Americans' mental health since the first cases were recorded at the beginning of last year. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey from December found 42 percent of Americans reported experiencing symptoms of anxiety or depression, a major increase from the 11 percent who reported experiencing those symptoms prior to the pandemic. Psychologists are worried about the ramifications, and some say there could be a connection between these mental health issues and behavioral changes that are starting to manifest across the country. (Benson, 6/22)
USA Today: Despite Decreasing COVID-19 Anxiety, 4 In 10 Americans Are Still Wearing Masks, Poll Shows
As cases continue to drop in the United States, Americans are less anxious about COVID-19 affecting their family members, according to a new Monmouth University poll. Only 23% of Americans said they were “very concerned” about a family member experiencing severe illness due to COVID-19, compared to 60% in January, according to the poll published Monday. Another finding: Four in 10 Americans haven’t changed their mask-wearing habits since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention dropped mask requirements for vaccinated people in mid-May. (Avery, 6/23)
In travel news —
The Wall Street Journal: As U.S. Cruises Resume, Operators Outfit Ships With Contact-Tracing Tech
Cruise operators, whose U.S. operations have been suspended for more than a year amid the Covid-19 pandemic, are betting on technology to help keep passengers safe when they finally start leaving U.S. ports this summer. Royal Caribbean Group, MSC Cruises and Virgin Voyages are among the cruise companies looking to smartphone apps, wearable devices, artificial intelligence and other technologies to keep passengers distanced, which lessens the chance of airborne transmission of the virus, and to provide contact-tracing if anyone does get sick. (McCormick, 6/21)
Health News Florida: Royal Caribbean CEO: 'All Is Good,' Awaiting CDC Feedback After Test Cruise
Royal Caribbean is waiting for feedback from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention after a simulated voyage of its Freedom of the Seas cruise ship, the company said. CEO Michael Bayley wrote on social media that the ship returned Tuesday morning to PortMiami after three days and two nights at sea testing CDC safety and health protocols put in place due to the COVID pandemic. (6/23)
CNBC: 'It's Out Of Control.' Airlines, Flight Attendants Want Stiffer Penalties For Unruly Passengers
A JetBlue Airways flight bound for New York returned to the Dominican Republic in early February after a passenger allegedly refused to wear a facemask, threw an empty alcohol bottle and food, struck the arm of one flight attendant, and grabbed the arm of another. The Federal Aviation Administration, which detailed the incident in a report, slapped the passenger with a $32,750 fine. (Josephs, 6/22)
Also —
The New York Times: Britney Spears Told Court She Wanted Her IUD Removed
One of the most explosive details in Britney Spears’s testimony on Wednesday came when she said that the people who control her affairs had refused to allow her to get her IUD removed so that she could try to have a third child. ... She told the court that she wanted to remove the birth control device “so I could start trying to have another baby, but this so-called team won’t let me go to the doctor to take it out because they don’t want me to have children, any more children.” ... Alexis McGill Johnson, president and chief executive of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, weighed in on Twitter, calling Ms. Spears’s account “reproductive coercion.” (Jacobs, 6/23)
KHN: Calming Computer Jitters: Help For Seniors Who Aren’t Tech-Savvy
Six months ago, Cindy Sanders, 68, bought a computer so she could learn how to email and have Zoom chats with her great-grandchildren. It’s still sitting in a box, unopened. “I didn’t know how to set it up or how to get help,” said Sanders, who lives in Philadelphia and has been extremely careful during the coronavirus pandemic. (Graham, 6/24)
