Vaccine Equity Is ‘North Star,’ Feds Say, and Clinics Are Key to Fair Distribution
Community health clinics are key to getting more Black and Hispanic Americans vaccinated, federal officials say. In Nashville, a vaccination push at federally funded clinics is underway.
Are You Old Enough to Get Vaccinated? In Tennessee, They’re Using the Honor System
In most Tennessean counties, residents currently eligible to get the coronavirus vaccine are health care workers, long-term care residents and people 75 and older. But don’t expect strict enforcement.
Con récord de internaciones por COVID, la crisis ahora es la falta de personal médico
Los hospitales en gran parte del país están tratando de hacer frente a un número sin precedentes de pacientes con COVID-19 con una creciente escasez de personal médico.
As Hospitals Fill With COVID Patients, Medical Reinforcements Are Hard to Find
More than 93,000 COVID patients are hospitalized across the country. But beds and space aren’t the main concern for hospital administrators — It’s the health care workforce.
Hospital Bills for Uninsured COVID Patients Are Covered, but No One Tells Them
The CARES Act provides funding that pays the bills for uninsured COVID-19 patients. But the death of a young man in Nashville shows some patients don’t know about the program until it’s too late.
Usa una máscara. Como si fuera tan simple…
La forma más simple y fácil de combatir una nueva ola de infecciones es lograr que la mayoría de las personas usen máscaras la mayor parte del tiempo.
Wear a Mask. If Only It Were That Simple.
Health experts agree masks are the cheapest, best weapon against the coronavirus pandemic. But how should mask-wearing be enforced? Mandates? Fines? Polite requests? It’s hard to figure out what works as President Donald Trump’s behavior keeps the debate alive over whether they should be worn at all.
COVID Vaccine Trials Move at Warp Speed, But Recruiting Black Volunteers Takes Time
The National Institutes of Health has suggested minorities should be overrepresented in COVID-19 vaccine trials — perhaps at rates that are double their percentage of the U.S. population. But efforts to recruit patients from racial minority groups are just beginning, while some trials have already advanced to phase 3.
¿Puede este fin de semana de vacaciones disparar otra ola de casos de COVID?
El doctor Anthony Fauci advirtió el miércoles 2 de septiembre que los estadounidenses deben tener cuidado para evitar otro aumento en las tasas de infección.
Will Labor Day Weekend Bring Another Holiday COVID Surge?
Epidemiologists are having a hard time predicting whether Labor Day will be like the Fourth of July and Memorial Day, when celebrations fanned the flames in coronavirus hot spots around the South and West.
New Coronavirus Hot Spots Emerge Across South And In California, As Northeast Slows
Nationwide, coronavirus infection numbers are trending down, but several states are seeing upticks, with the heaviest impact falling on communities of color and nursing home residents.
El Congreso dijo que los tests de COVID-19 debían ser gratuitos, pero ¿quién paga?
A fines de marzo, el Congreso aprobó dos leyes, que esencialmente establecieron no solo que las pruebas para COVID tenían que estar cubiertas, sino que los pacientes no debían pagar un centavo.
Congress Said COVID-19 Tests Should Be Free — But Who’s Paying?
Some large employers interpreted themselves as exempt from new federal laws that say tests for the coronavirus should be free to patients. Large academic medical centers are holding back from sending bills to these patients to avoid a backlash over surprise billing.
Tennessee’s Secret To Plentiful Coronavirus Testing? Picking Up The Tab
Just about anyone who wants a coronavirus test in the state of Tennessee can get one. How? The state got buy-in and lots of participation from private labs by assuring them it will pay them.
Before ‘Tidal Wave’ Of Illness, Nursing Home Thought It Had COVID-19 Contained
Though it already had one staff member testing positive for the coronavirus, the Gallatin Center for Rehabilitation and Healing did not tell 911 operators this fact as it called ambulances to take residents in respiratory distress to the hospital, a WPLN investigation reveals.
Long-Standing Racial And Income Disparities Seen Creeping Into COVID-19 Care
Many health officials around the nation have not released data on the ethnic and racial demographics of people tested for the new coronavirus. But public health experts said the anecdotes are adding up, and they fear the response to the pandemic will result in predictable health care disparities.
Coronavirus Pushes Hospitals To Share Information About Stocks Of Protective Gear
There is currently no central coordination of the supply of protective garb and masks in U.S. hospital inventories. A CDC project wants hospitals to share that information for the good of all.
It’s Not Just Hospitals That Sue Patients Who Can’t Pay
Until very recently, the separate company that runs the emergency department at Nashville General Hospital in Tennessee was continuing to haul patients who couldn’t pay medical bills into court.
Patients Want A ‘Good Death’ At Home, But Hospice Care Can Badly Strain Families
Fewer Americans are dying in a hospital, under the close supervision of doctors and nurses. That trend has been boosted by an expanded Medicare benefit that helps people live out their final days at home in hospice care. But as home hospice grows, so has the burden on families left to provide much of the care.
Smokers Need Not Apply: Fairness Of No-Nicotine Hiring Policies Questioned
U-Haul will not hire nicotine users in 21 states where it is legal to do so. Ethicists say such policies disproportionately affect the poor and are a sign of employers becoming overly involved in workers’ lifestyle choices.
