#18 • A Healthy Dose of Healthcare News • February 12, 2021
Cybersecurity threats became a salient issue in the healthcare industry toward the end of 2020. I’m reading that in January alone, almost one million patient records were breached, and another report says that as many as 21 million medical health records were hacked in the second half of 2020. All these figures are found behind paywalls, so I didn’t include the story in this edition. I hope to find out more and will report back.
In this edition, you will read about #18.1. new data on nursing home deaths in New York, #18.2. the WHO’s investigation in Wuhan, #18.3. healthcare subsidies in the $1.9T House COVID relief bill, #18.4. a new antibody treatment to mitigate the risk of hospitalization and death from COVID, #18.5. widespread skepticism regarding the COVID vaccine, and #18.6. introduced legislation on maternal health.
#18.1. COVID DEATHS: Coverup claims engulf Cuomo as scandal over nursing home deaths grows (Politico)
After writing a book and winning an Emmy for his press conferences, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is now under fire for the very thing that he built his reputation on, namely his handling of the COVID pandemic. The Department of Justice is investigating the effects of the governor’s policy of sending elderly patients infected with COVID-19 into nursing homes, precipitating the spread of COVID to highly vulnerable individuals. The numbers released so far have seen New York’s long-term care resident death shoot up from 9,000 to 15,000.
An excerpt from the Politico article: “Senate Health Committee Chairman Gustavo Rivera, a Bronx Democrat who opposed giving Cuomo the emergency powers last winter, said he was not disappointed by the lack of transparency from the governor’s office, because he never expected it in the first place.
“Why would I be surprised?” he said.”
#18.2. WUHAN: WHO says Covid ‘most likely’ originated in animals and spread to humans, dismisses lab leak theory (CNBC)
The WHO team, made up of international investigators, visited several sites — the seafood market, laboratories, and hospitals — in the company of Chinese officials. They concluded that the virus had spread through animals, although they do not know yet through which animals. As for a lab leak, the team claimed that it was extremely unlikely “on the basis of a serious discussion and very diligent research,” according to Liang Wannian, head of the expert COVID-19 panel at China’s National Health Commission.
#18.3. HEALTHCARE SUBSIDIES: House stimulus bill would expand eligibility for Affordable Care Act subsidies (CNN)
The $1.9 trillion House COVID-19 relief bill is replete with healthcare measures, some of which have little to do with the pandemic. It includes increased federal assistance to purchase so-called marketplace subsidized plans, would make more individuals and households eligible for such plans, and subsidize COBRA, among other things. The bill would make these changes temporary, lasting till 2022. Christopher Holt at the American Action Forum has more.
#18.4. COVID TREATMENT: Eli Lilly’s antibody combination receives FDA emergency use authorization for COVID-19 (Reuters)
In many cases, people who test positive for COVID-19 are told to go home and hope for the best. Symptoms can be expected to get worse around day 5, so undertaking treatment early can mitigate the risk of hospitalization. Eli Lilly’s new antibody treatment aims to do just that: it can help mild and moderate cases avoid the hospital. Late-stage trials resulted in a 70% reduction in the risk of hospitalization and death. With its emergency use authorization in hand, the company says it will begin distributing the treatment immediately.
#18.5. AP-NORC poll: A third of US adults skeptical of COVID shots (ABC News)
And by skeptical, they mean that a third of Americans will either “definitely” (15%) or “probably” (17%) not get the COVID-19 vaccine. Among those who share this attitude are found young people, people without college degrees, Republicans, and Black Americans. As the vaccine rollout continues and as mandates are being considered by public services and corporations, the distrust of a large section of the public vis-a-vis governing bodies and the many reasons invoked against COVID vaccination will likely soon become a the topic of a major national conversation.
#18.6. CONGRESS: Black maternal health omnibus package introduced by Democratic lawmakers (The Hill)
“The package of bills would fund community organizations and state and local governments working to improve maternal health outcomes, training programs on bias, racism and discrimination in maternity care settings, and efforts to grow the perinatal workforce.” The package also seeks to address non-healthcare questions, such as access to housing, healthy food and water, and child care services. The package was unsuccessful in 2020, before the pandemic, but the sponsors believe that changes in the makeup of Congress and the White House will bring about a different result this time around.
Previous editions of A Healthy Dose of Healthcare News here.
