So far, there have been at least 2 million estimated flu cases, 20,000 flu hospitalizations and 1,200 deaths this season, according to the CDC’s FluView report published Jan. 28.
Category: Public Health
Americans tired, frustrated near pandemic’s 2-year anniversary, KFF survey finds
About 75 percent of U.S. adults say they are tired and frustrated when asked about the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic, a Kaiser Family Foundation survey published Jan. 28 found.
What happened to contact tracing?
Once touted as a key strategy to prevent the coronavirus’s spread, contact tracing has since taken a backseat to vaccinations and mask-wearing amid the pandemic.
Medicare Patients Win the Right to Appeal Gap in Nursing Home Coverage
If federal officials accept a court’s decision, some patients will get a chance to seek refunds for their nursing home and other expenses.
In Super-Vaxxed Vermont, Covid Strikes — But Packs Far Less Punch
With its highest-in-the-nation vaccination rates, Vermont offers a glimpse of what’s possible as the U.S. learns to live with coronavirus.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Record ACA Enrollment Puts Pressure on Congress
Temporary subsidies helped boost enrollment under the Affordable Care Act to a record 14.5 million, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. But unless Democrats in Congress extend those subsidies, many of those new enrollees will be in for a rude surprise just ahead of midterm elections. Meanwhile, the need to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer further crowds an already tight legislative schedule. Joanne Kenen of Politico and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Diana Greene Foster, author of “The Turnaway Study: Ten Years, a Thousand Women, and the Consequences of Having — Or Being Denied — An Abortion.”
Los Angeles braces for Super Bowl amid omicron surge
Los Angeles health officials are taking several precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at this year’s Super Bowl, including offering free masks and testing for fans, according to CNN.
Readers and Tweeters: Give Nurse Practitioners Their Due
KHN gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Next variant could be more transmissible than omicron, WHO says
The World Health Organization’s COVID-19 technical lead dismissed theories that the next potential COVID-19 variant will be milder than earlier strains and explained why it will likely be more contagious than omicron.
Two-thirds of omicron cases are reinfections, UK study suggests
Among 3,582 people who tested positive for COVID-19 in England between Jan. 5 and Jan. 20, nearly 65 percent said they had a prior bout with the virus that was confirmed by a test, according to a preprint study released Jan. 26
