The CDC is projecting an increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations for the first time since July, national disease modeling shows.
Category: Public Health
Patient Mistrust and Poor Access Hamper Federal Efforts to Overhaul Family Planning
For decades, many women of color, particularly those with low incomes, had little control over their family planning care. Now, a White House effort aims to give patients more choices as abortion care evaporates, but patients remain wary of providers.
After Election Win, California’s AG Turns to Investigating Hospital Algorithms for Racial Bias
Attorney General Rob Bonta handily won election on a progressive, social justice platform. He’s already begun with an inquiry into hospital software programs that might bake in racial discrimination.
Half of COVID-19 cases are now BQ.1 + BQ.1.1 infections: 10 CDC findings
Omicron subvariants BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 — dubbed “escape variants” for their immune evasiveness — now account for 49.7 percent of U.S. COVID-19 cases, according to the CDC’s COVID-19 data tracker weekly review published Nov. 18.
Nearly 9,000 flu patients hospitalized last week: 8 FluView notes
Flu activity metrics are quickly ramping up in the US, with 8,707 lab-confirmed flu patients admitted to hospitals for the week ending Nov. 12, according to the CDC’s latest FluView report.
CDC to assist with Ohio measles outbreak as cases rise
The CDC is sending a “small team” to Columbus, Ohio, to assist the region with investigating a measles outbreak that has now infected at least 24 children and hospitalized nine, according to CNN.
Biden administration ambiguous in response to pediatric groups’ call for emergency over RSV
After pediatric groups urged federal officials to issue a public health emergency over the nation’s surge in respiratory viruses, the Biden administration said it is “ready to provide assistance” to communities in need of help, though did not specify w…
Mistrust and Polarization Steer Rural Governments to Reject Federal Public Health Funding
As the covid-19 pandemic grinds on, Elko County, Nevada, still lacks a public health department. Yet its elected leaders rejected federal funds that could have helped it create one. Decisions like the one in Elko, and ones made by officials with other state and local governments, leave health experts concerned about whether the country’s public health infrastructure will be prepared to handle future health challenges.
As STDs Proliferate, Companies Rush to Market At-Home Test Kits. But Are They Reliable?
The popularity of at-home covid tests has amplified calls from public health researchers and diagnostic companies to make home testing similarly routine for sexually transmitted diseases. But FDA guidelines are lagging.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The Changing of the Guard
Democrats retained control of the U.S. Senate in the midterm elections, while Republicans won a majority in the House, giving them the ability to block items on President Joe Biden’s agenda. Meanwhile, the lame-duck, Democratic-led Congress won’t have the votes to pass abortion rights legislation, although they may try to undo some long-standing anti-abortion policies in federal spending bills. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Victoria Knight of Axios, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these topics and more.
