Pharma & Tech 072220
Scientists Want to Know More About Using UV Light to Fight COVID-19 Spread
Will Stone
'Germicidal' ultraviolet light technology has a proven track record against indoor transmission of tuberculosis and other airborne microbes. It's now being used in some restaurants and on subways.
2021 Health Plans Granted Leeway To Limit Consumers’ Benefit From Drug Coupons
Michelle Andrews
A rule finalized this spring by the Trump administration permits employers and insurers not to apply drug company copayment assistance toward enrollees’ deductibles and out-of-pocket maximums for any drug.
A Coronavirus Vaccine: Where Does It Stand?
Louis Jacobson, PolitiFact
Under ordinary circumstances, these phases of vaccine development can take years to complete. But now, during the age of coronavirus, the timeline is being shortened. Here's an inventory of where things stand.
As Cases Spike, California Pauses Multimillion-Dollar Testing Expansion
Angela Hart and Rachel Bluth
California is cutting off funding for COVID-19 testing just when counties say they need more resources in rural and disadvantaged areas.
Coronavirus Crisis Disrupts Treatment For Another Epidemic: Addiction
Giles Bruce
The coronavirus has forced drug rehabilitation centers to scale back operations or temporarily close, leaving people who have another potentially deadly disease — addiction — with fewer opportunities for help.
Social Media Image About Mask Efficacy Right In Sentiment, But Percentages Are ‘Bonkers’
Victoria Knight
Skip the numbers. Focus on the mask.
Vacuna contra el coronavirus: ¿en qué punto está la investigación?
Louis Jacobson, PolitiFact
A principios de julio, había cerca de 160 ensayos de vacunas en todo el mundo, según la Organización Mundial de la Salud. Las tres vacunas más avanzadas se encuentran en la fase 3.
COVID-Tracking Apps Proliferate, But Will They Really Help?
Bernard J. Wolfson
Public health authorities had hoped digital technology would supplement the work of contact tracers seeking to control the spread of COVID-19. But technical uncertainties and public health failures have dimmed the apps’ potential.
Analysis: How A COVID-19 Vaccine Could Cost Americans Dearly
Elisabeth Rosenthal
The United States is the only developed nation unable to balance cost, efficacy and social good in setting prices.
Shingles Vaccination Rate Soars But Leaves Many Behind
Phil Galewitz
A federal study finds 35% of people 60 and older were vaccinated for shingles by 2018, up from 7% in 2008, but low-income people and those who are Black or Hispanic are far less likely to get vaccinated.
Conspiracy Theories Aside, Here’s What Contact Tracers Really Do
Julie Appleby
Recently, the idea has triggered a lot of conspiracy-theory talk. But it’s actually a tried-and-true public health tool being applied to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
As COVID Testing Soars, Wait Times For Results Jump To A Week — Or More
Phil Galewitz
The delays can be excruciating, with some extreme cases running more than 20 days. People getting tested at urgent care centers, community health centers, pharmacies and state-run drive-thru or walk-up sites are often waiting a week or more to find out if they tested positive for the coronavirus.
Why Doctors Keep Monitoring Kids Who Recover From Mysterious COVID-Linked Illness
Fred Mogul, WNYC and Maria Godoy, NPR News
About 1,000 children worldwide have had the condition known as MIS-C — Multisymptom Inflammatory Syndrome in Children. Children's hospitals around the U.S. are trying to keep tabs on young people after they recover from the ailment, to gauge any long-term effects.
As Coronavirus Patients Skew Younger, Tracing Task Seems All But Impossible
Anna Almendrala
Although younger people are hospitalized and die less frequently than their elders when infected with COVID-19, their cases are harder to trace. As a result, the virus is spreading uncontrollably throughout much of Southern California. Even hospital staffs are affected by community spread.
Listen: A Bureaucratic Shuffle for Hospital COVID Data
KHN’s Julie Rovner discusses the Trump administration plans to change how hospitals report their data on coronavirus cases and concerns among critics that may allow officials to use the material to make political points.
Trump Administration’s Sudden Shift on COVID Data Leaves States in the Lurch
Alex Smith, KCUR
Missouri Hospital Association says the switch of data collection from the CDC to a new HHS contractor is "a major disruption." In Kansas, the move likely will delay hospitalization data.