Tag: Wednesday

  • Wednesday, January 11, 2023 | Kaiser Health News

    Wednesday, January 11, 2023 | Kaiser Health News

    Following Additional Infant Fatalities, Fisher-Price tag Recalls Rock ‘n Play Sleepers, Again

    Considering that the initial recall in April 2019, about 70 more fatalities have been described, bringing the complete to 100. According to the Customer Product Basic safety Fee, eight of people fatalities took place right after the 1st remember. Extra public well being news covers opioid overdoses, gasoline stoves, social media’s impact on teen mental overall health, and much more.


    TheStreet:
    Fisher-Selling price Recollects 4.7 Million Baby Products and solutions Right after A number of Deaths


    Fisher-Rate announces of the recall of virtually 5 million of its Rock ‘n Participate in Sleepers which have been linked to about 100 deaths. Fisher-Value introduced yet another recall of its Rock ‘n Engage in Sleeper that has linked a overall of 100 fatalities, federal safety officers stated. The sleeper was 1st recalled in April 2019, the U.S. Consumer Solution Safety Commission reported in a Jan. 9 filing. The remember handles about 4.7 million products. (Lenihan, 1/10)


    NPR:
    Fisher-Selling price Re-Announces Recall Of Rock ‘n Participate in Sleeper Linked To Child Deaths


    Fisher-Price tag is reminding buyers not to use the firm’s when-preferred Rock ‘n Engage in sleepers, which ended up recalled in 2019 but have continued to guide to toddler deaths. On Monday, in conjunction with the U.S. Client Item Safety Commission, the little one item large re-declared the remember of 4.7 million of its Rock ‘n Enjoy sleepers. The Atlanta-based business Young ones2 also re-declared the 2019 recall of 694,000 of its Rocking Sleepers. (Hernandez, 1/10)

    In information about drug use, overdoses —


    Reuters:
    U.S. Food and drug administration Panel To Evaluation Emergent’s OTC Opioid Overdose Drug


    The U.S. health regulator claimed on Tuesday its advisory panel will meet on Feb. 15 to critique Emergent Biosolutions Inc’s (EBS.N) over-the-counter (OTC) nasal spray to deal with suspected opioid overdoses. Emergent is looking for the Meals and Drug Administration’s (Fda)acceptance for the prescription-absolutely free sale of Narcan, its nasal spray type of the drug naloxone. Narcan is previously cleared for the remedy of opioid overdose in the state. (1/10)


    Axios:
    Surging Opioid Overdoses Prompt Much more Americans To Carry Narcan Spray


    The worsening opioid epidemic is prompting additional folks to carry a nasal spray that reverses overdoses and turn out to be de facto very first responders in existence-or-death circumstances. Naloxone functions 5 times faster than the somewhere around 10-moment typical arrival time for EMS technicians, in accordance to a federal overdose tracker released previous month. (Moreno, 1/11)

    In other community well being information —

    On mental wellbeing matters —


    Axios:
    Social Media’s Results On Teenager Psychological Health Arrives Into Target


    Specialists are more and more warning of a relationship concerning hefty social media use and psychological wellness troubles in youngsters — a incredibly hot matter now driving significant lawsuits in opposition to tech giants. Some experts who research technology’s outcomes on youngsters say the negatives considerably outweigh any positives. (Kingson, 1/11)


    The New York Occasions:
    Prince Harry Claimed Psychedelics Helped His Grief. Here’s What To Know


    Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been remarkably transparent about their psychological struggles. In a documentary about psychological wellbeing that he filmed with Oprah Winfrey in 2021, Harry integrated a online video of himself undergoing E.M.D.R., or eye movement desensitization and reprocessing treatment, which will help individuals with write-up-traumatic tension condition cope with triggering reminiscences. Ms. Markle has spoken candidly about dealing with depression and suicidal views. (Smith, 1/10)

  • Wednesday, January 11, 2023 | Kaiser Health News

    Wednesday, November 16, 2022 | Kaiser Health News

    Lung Hazards From Smoking Marijuana Might Be Even worse Than Cigarettes: Analyze

    Media stores report on a research that observed using tobacco pot to be linked with probably even worse lung problems than tobacco-only cigarettes. In the meantime, in Kentucky, the governor signed an government order to partly legalize medical cannabis.

    In other marijuana news —


    The Courier-Journal:
    Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear Signs Buy To Partly Legalize Medical Cannabis


    Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear signed an govt get Tuesday to legalize the possession and use of clinical marijuana by specified qualified individuals in the condition, so lengthy as it was procured lawfully exterior Kentucky and quantities to considerably less than 8 ounces. Kentucky is at this time 1 of just 12 states to nonetheless outlaw cannabis for both of those health care and recreational applications, despite general public polling demonstrating the legalization of clinical cannabis is fairly well known between its citizens. (Sonka, 11/15)

    In news about opioids and addiction —


    Reuters:
    Opioid Overdose Reversal Drug Most likely Secure For OTC Use, States Fda


    Opioid overdose reversal drug naloxone may be secure and successful for in excess of-the-counter use in some varieties, the U.S. Foodstuff and Drug Administration reported on Tuesday, likely paving the way for its use federally. The Fda would nevertheless involve facts on specific products and solutions from producers for them to be readily available around the counter at a federal level. (11/15)


    Stat:
    Fentanyl Is Building It More challenging To Begin Dependancy Treatment 


    Medical practitioners are reporting a troubling craze when it arrives to fentanyl. The strong drug, they say, isn’t just producing overdoses — it’s also producing it a lot more tough to commence dependancy cure. In individual, fentanyl appears a lot more probably to bring about critical withdrawal indications for sufferers set on buprenorphine, a critical medication used to take care of opioid use dysfunction. (Facher, 11/16)

    KHN:
    The Participant-Coaches Of Addiction Restoration Function Devoid of Boundaries

    Sarah Wright stops by her peer aid specialist’s resort place-turned-office in this Denver suburb quite a few situations a working day. But her check out on a Wednesday early morning in mid-October was just one of her initial with teeth. The specialist, Donna Norton, experienced pushed Wright to go to the dentist a long time soon after homelessness and addiction had taken a toll on her health, down to the jawbone. Wright was even now having made use of to her dentures. “I haven’t had teeth in 12½, 13 yrs,” she stated, incorporating that they made her feel like a horse. A new smile was Wright’s most current milestone as she will work to rebuild her daily life, and Norton has been there for just about every action: opening a bank account, finding a occupation, creating a perception of her own truly worth. (Bichell, 11/16)

  • Wednesday, January 11, 2023 | Kaiser Health News

    Wednesday, November 9, 2022 | Kaiser Health News

    Abortion Rights Supported By Midterm Voters In 5 States

    On Election Day, residents in California, Michigan, and Vermont approved ballot measures protecting abortion rights. And voters in Montana and Kentucky turned away initiatives that would have restricted access.


    The Hill:
    Voters Support Abortion Rights In All Five States With Ballot Measures


    Voters in California, Vermont and Michigan on Tuesday approved ballot measures enshrining abortion rights into their state constitutions, while those in traditional red states Montana and Kentucky rejected measures that would have restricted access to reproductive care. The votes signal strength to effort to support abortion rights after the Supreme Court in June ruled to overturn the landmark 1973 case Roe v. Wade and the constitutional right to the procedure. (Dress, 11/9)

    More on the results from Vermont, California, and Michigan —


    VTDigger:
    Vermont Becomes The 1st State To Enshrine Abortion Rights In Its Constitution


    Vermont’s founding document will now be appended with a 22nd article, which will read in full: “That an individual’s right to personal reproductive autonomy is central to the liberty and dignity to determine one’s own life course and shall not be denied or infringed unless justified by a compelling State interest achieved by the least restrictive means.” (Duffort, 11/8)


    Detroit Free Press:
    Proposal 3: Michigan Voters Approve Abortion Rights Measure


    “Today, the people of Michigan voted to restore the reproductive rights they’ve had for 50 years,” said Darci McConnell, communication director for Reproductive Freedom for All, the group behind Proposal 3. “Proposal 3’s passage marks an historic victory for abortion access in our state and in our country — and Michigan has paved the way for future efforts to restore the rights and protections of Roe v. Wade nationwide.” (Hendrickson, 11/9)

    Anti-abortion measures in Kentucky and Montana appear headed for a loss —


    The New York Times:
    Live Results: Montana Born-Alive Infants Regulation 


    The measure would enact a law making any infant “born alive” at any gestational age a legal person, a protection that already exists under a federal law passed 20 years ago. It would criminalize health care providers who do not make every effort to save the life of an infant “born during an attempted abortion” or after labor or C-section. Doctors say they are concerned that the law will limit palliative care for infants who are born but will not survive. (11/9)

    South Dakota Votes To Expand Medicaid Cover

    Forbes says a “wide margin” of South Dakotans voted to approve a ballot measure to extend Medicaid cover to over 40,000 low-income adults. Vox notes that this is now the seventh time in a row nationwide in which voters have approved such a measure.


    Forbes:
    Medicaid Expansion Wins In Red State South Dakota


    Voters in Republican-leaning South Dakota Tuesday approved a ballot measure to extend Medicaid benefits to more than 40,000 low-income adults. The vote by a wide margin of South Dakotans to expand Medicaid health insurance for low-income Americans under the Affordable Care Act is a political blow to Republican Gov. Kristi Noem, who opposed the ballot initiative. It’s also a setback for Republicans generally given their past unsuccessful efforts with Donald Trump to try to repeal the health law, also known as Obamacare. The Medicaid expansion measure known in South Dakota as “Constitutional Amendment D” had 56{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} support compared to 44{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} opposed with 90{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of precincts reporting by early Wednesday morning, state election data showed. (Japsen, 11/9)


    Vox:
    South Dakota Voters Decide To Extend Medicaid Coverage To 45,000 People


    Six times before this Election Day, voters in a state had weighed in directly on whether to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act and make more low-income adults eligible for free public health coverage. Six times, the ballot measure had passed. That undefeated streak has now reached seven wins with the passage of South Dakota Constitutional Amendment D on Tuesday, according to the election results from the South Dakota secretary of state’s office. (Scott, 11/9)


    Politico:
    South Dakota Votes To Expand Medicaid 


    “We are thrilled by this victory, which took years of work, coalition building, and organizing to achieve,” said Kelly Hall, executive director of the Fairness Project, which helped pass the ballot measure. “Citizens took matters into their own hands to pass Medicaid expansion via ballot measure — showing us once again that if politicians won’t do their job, their constituents will step up and do it for them.” (Messerly, 11/9)

    Californians Defeat Dialysis Clinic Proposition, Ban Flavored Tobacco

    California voted “no” on Proposition 29, which would have required more doctor staffing at dialysis clinics. Voters said “yes,” though, to Proposition 31, a measure that bans most flavored tobacco products in the most populous state.


    AP:
    Californians Reject Measure To Alter Dialysis Clinic Rules


    For the third time in three straight elections, California voters rejected a ballot measure that would have mandated major changes to the operations of dialysis clinics that provide life-saving care to 80,000 people with kidney failure. Proposition 29 failed after nearly 70{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of Californians voted “no” in returns late Tuesday. The measure would have required a doctor, nurse practitioner or physicians’ assistant to be present during treatment at the state’s 600 outpatient dialysis facilities. (Weber, 11/9)


    Los Angeles Times:
    California Votes No On Prop. 29 For Dialysis Clinics Changes


    Proposition 29 would have required dialysis clinics to have a doctor, nurse practitioner or physician assistant present while patients are receiving care at any of the state’s 600 dialysis centers. Clinics also would have been required to disclose if a physician had ownership interest in a facility and to report patient infection data. (Evans, 11/8)

    On flavored tobacco —


    Stat:
    California Bans Flavored Tobacco Products, Including Vapes


    On Tuesday, Californians overwhelmingly voted to ban all flavored tobacco products in the state. The move makes California by far the largest state to ban such products, which are already illegal in a smattering of smaller states, including Rhode Island, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. (Florko, 11/9)

    Gov. Gavin Newsom wins reelection —


    AP:
    California’s Newsom Wins 2nd Term, Is White House Run Next?


    Democrat Gavin Newsom easily won a second term as California’s governor on Tuesday, beating a little-known Republican state senator by mostly ignoring him while campaigning against the policies of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, two leading Republicans who also won reelection and like Newsom may run for president. … Speaking to supporters in Sacramento with his wife and four children by his side, Newsom again drew contrasts between himself and DeSantis and Abbot, saying he is “resolved to do more to advance that cause of freedom.” “We have governors that won their reelections tonight in other states that are banning books, that are banning speech, that are banning abortion, and here we are in California moving in a completely different direction,” Newsom said. “That’s a deep point of pride.” (Beam, 11/9)

    Voters Have Their Say On Medical Debt, Pot, Mushrooms, Human Rights, More

    In Arizona, voters overwhelmingly voted to decrease interest rates on medical debt. In Massachusetts, dental costs were front and center. In Pennsylvania, former heart surgeon and TV celebrity Dr. Mehmet Oz, a Republican, lost his bid for governor.


    Tucson.com:
    Arizona Prop 209 To Decrease Interest Rates On Medical Debt Likely To Pass


    The ballot proposition to decrease interest rates on medical debt is leading with 75{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} voter approval as of Tuesday night, according to unofficial election results from the Arizona Secretary of State’s office. If passed, Proposition 209 would reduce the maximum interest rates on medical debt from 10{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} to 3{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} annually. The measure would make certain assets exempt from debt collection, such as homes, household items, cars and bank accounts. (Ludden, 11/8)

    On dental insurance costs in Massachusetts —


    The Washington Examiner:
    Massachusetts Voters Approve Obamacare-Style Regulations Of Dental Insurance 


    Massachusetts will become the first state to impose Obamacare-style regulation on dental insurance, requiring insurers to put a certain percentage of the premiums they collect toward dental care after a ballot referendum received wide support. The Medical Loss Ratios for Dental Insurance Plans Initiative will soon force dental insurers to spend at least 83{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of premiums on dental services, versus administrative or other overhead costs, or refund the excess to beneficiaries. (Adcox, 11/9)

    On mushrooms and marijuana —


    AP:
    ‘Magic Mushrooms’ Vote Too Early To Call In Colorado 


    A vote to decide whether Colorado will become the second state, after Oregon, to create a legalized system for the use of psychedelic mushrooms was too early to call Tuesday. The ballot initiative would decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms for those 21 and older and create state-regulated “healing centers” where participants can experience the drug under the supervision of a licensed “facilitator.” The measure would establish a regulated system for using substances like psilocybin and psilocin, the hallucinogenic chemicals found in some mushrooms. It also would allow private personal use of the drugs. (Peipert, 11/9)


    AP:
    Voters Approve Recreational Marijuana In Maryland, Missouri


    Voters approved recreational marijuana in Maryland and Missouri but rejected it in two other states, signaling support gradually growing for legalization even in conservative parts of the country. The results mean that 21 states have now approved marijuana’s recreational use. Arkansas and North Dakota voters rejected legalization proposals in Tuesday’s elections. A similar initiative went before voters in South Dakota, but early Wednesday it was too early to call. (DeMillo, 11/9)

    On health care as a human right in Oregon —


    AP:
    Oregon Gun Control, Health Care Measures Too Early To Call 


    Oregon voters appeared closely divided late Tuesday on measures that would add permitting and training requirements for new gun buyers and amend the state’s constitution to explicitly declare affordable health care a human right. With roughly 40{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of the vote counted in the vote-by-mail state, the outcomes of both races were too early to call. (Flaccus, 11/9)

    Control of Congress is up in the air —


    The New York Times:
    Who Will Control The House And Senate? 


    For the second Election Day in a row, election night ends without a clear winner. It could be days until a party is projected to win the House of Representatives. It could be a month until we know the same for the Senate. Here’s the state of the race for both chambers and when — maybe, just maybe — we’ll know the outcome. (Cohn, 11/9)

  • Wednesday, October 26, 2022 | Kaiser Health News

    Wednesday, October 26, 2022 | Kaiser Health News

    Study Will Analyze If Psychedelic Can Aid In Quitting Cigarette smoking

    The Countrywide Institutes of Health grant to Johns Hopkins College marks the first time in 50 many years that a federal grant has absent to examine a psychedelic drug as a cure, NBC Information states. Meanwhile, the well being treatment impact of words and phrases and labels similar to habit is talked over, amid other information.


    NBC Information:
    NIH-Funded Psychedelic Trial Will Examine No matter whether Hallucinogen Can Assist People who smoke Give up


    The analyze, a randomized controlled trial predicted to start later on this calendar year, will look into no matter whether psilocybin, the psychedelic compound identified in “magic mushrooms,” can assistance men and women give up smoking tobacco. Hopkins researchers will guide the trial, which will be completed in collaboration with researchers at NYU Langone Wellbeing and the College of Alabama at Birmingham. (Syal, 10/26)

    More on drug use and addiction —

    In other health and fitness and wellness news —


    AP:
    Snooze Apnea Unit Recall Drags On, Stoking Stress


    A enormous remember of tens of millions of sleep apnea devices has stoked anger and disappointment between sufferers, and U.S. officials are weighing unparalleled legal action to velocity a alternative work that is established to drag into next year. … Philips to begin with estimated it could maintenance or change the models in a calendar year. But with the recall expanding to much more than 5 million equipment around the globe, the Dutch firm now states the exertion will stretch into 2023. That’s remaining many patients to choose involving employing a most likely dangerous device or making an attempt risky solutions. (Perrone, 10/25)


    United states of america Nowadays:
    Local weather Change Is Worsening Wellbeing And Disparities: What Can Be Carried out?


    Researchers throughout the world collaborate to research climate and wellness in an annual report, the Lancet professional medical journals’ “countdown” on wellbeing and weather transform. In this year’s U.S. part of the report, released Tuesday, experts break down investigate on the overall health impacts of a warming weather and define coverage suggestions, focusing on wellbeing fairness. (Hassanein, 10/25)

  • Wednesday, January 11, 2023 | Kaiser Health News

    Wednesday, January 26, 2022 | Kaiser Health News

    Texas Reduce Medicaid Staffing — Shortly This May perhaps Induce Problems For Signups

    According to a report, throughout the pandemic, Texas reduce the selection of people functioning in Medicaid expert services even as a million Texans acquired protection because of to crisis federal funding. Now, staffing issues may perhaps impact an anticipated flood of new and returning applicants.


    Houston Chronicle:
    Texas Slash Medicaid Staffing Throughout The Pandemic. Thousands and thousands Are Now At Possibility Of Becoming Dropped From The Software


    A lot more than 1 million Texans were being added to Medicaid protection through the pandemic, lots of of them little ones, thanks to unexpected emergency federal funding that deters states from dropping recipients throughout the well being disaster. But these gains could shortly be erased, according to individual advocates, who stress that state well being officers are not prepared for the inflow of new and returning Medicaid apps that could pour in as early as this spring, when the Biden administration is scheduled to elevate the emergency declaration. (Blackman, 1/25)

    In California information —


    Los Angeles Occasions:
    COVID-19 Unwell Spend In California Would Return Below New Deal


    Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers attained an agreement Tuesday to all over again require companies to offer personnel with up to two weeks of supplemental paid out unwell leave to recuperate from COVID-19 or treatment for a relatives member with the virus. The legislation, which lawmakers would most likely quick-track to the governor in the coming months, would apply to all enterprises with 26 or more employees. A identical legislation from 2021 that furnished 80 hours of supplemental paid out unwell leave expired Sept. 30. (Luna and Gutierrez, 1/25)


    Los Angeles Instances:
    No Ifs, Ands Or Butts: California Monthly bill Would Ban One-Use Using tobacco Merchandise Like Cigarette Filters


    California could see fewer cigarette butts and vape pods on the streets underneath a evaluate released Tuesday. Assembly Monthly bill 1690 would ban single-use cigarette filters, e-cigarettes and vape products and solutions in the state with the intention of benefiting the atmosphere and general public health. “For a lot more than 50 percent a century, tobacco filters have prompted a community and environmental well being crisis that identified renewed vigor in the latest several years as the tobacco marketplace began to provide electronic vape products,” Assemblymember Luz Rivas (D-North Hollywood), who released the monthly bill, reported in a news launch Tuesday. (Martinez, 1/25)

    KHN:
    What The Federal ‘No Surprises Act’ Signifies In California 

    Betty Chow, a Los Angeles resident, experienced a cervical disc replaced in August 2020 at a surgical procedure centre that was portion of her Anthem Blue Cross PPO network. 13 months later on, she was blindsided by a invoice for nearly $2,000 from the anesthesiologist who was on her surgical team but was not contracted with her PPO, or most well-liked service provider corporation. (Wolfson, 1/26)

    In abortion and being pregnant information —


    The Texas Tribune:
    Prepared Parenthood Drops Appeal In Lubbock Abortion Circumstance


    When the notion of banning abortion in Lubbock initial came up, the city council declined to acquire it up, arguing the proposal conflicted with point out legislation and federal courtroom precedent. Citizens passed the ordinance via a ballot initiative anyway in May well 2021, empowering non-public citizens, relatively than community officers, to carry lawsuits against any person who assists an individual getting an abortion, like by driving them to a clinic — which the ordinance refers to as “aiding or abetting. ”The ordinance was quickly challenged in court. But now, 8 months later on, Prepared Parenthood has dropped that legal problem, saying “it is crystal clear we simply cannot rely on the courts to secure our constitutional legal rights.” (Klibanoff, 1/25)


    Bloomberg:
    Boycott Pepsi Phone calls Develop Above Donation To Texas Republicans, Abortion Monthly bill


    PepsiCo Inc. is facing a further potential boycott above politics, this time for a $15,000 contribution to the Texas Republican Bash. Abortion-rights advocates are sounding the alarm that the donation, dated Aug. 5 in accordance to condition ethics fee data, arrived practically a few months after Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed into regulation a monthly bill banning most abortions in the state. Pepsi suggests it made the donation in 2020 but that the state party didn’t cash its examine right up until the next year. (Ceron, 1/25)


    AP:
    New Mexico Lawmakers Propose $1 Million For ‘Baby Boxes’ 


    Two lawmakers are proposing funding “baby boxes” in each of New Mexico’s 33 counties in an exertion to improve solutions for dad and mom who want to abandon their toddlers beneath the state’s present safe haven legislation. A invoice to fund the initiative released by Sens. David Gallegos, a Republican, and Leo Jaramillo, a Democrat, would allocate all-around $30,000 for every single of the packing containers, which would be outfitted with warmth regulation and silent alarms. (1/25)

    In other news from throughout the U.S. —


    AP:
    Nationwide Blood Lack Places Idaho Hospitals In Dire Need 


    A nationwide blood scarcity brought about by a surge in omicron scenarios has strike Idaho really hard, with some hospitals practically jogging out of the significant medical source before they are resupplied, point out well being officers stated Tuesday. A great deal of the southern 50 percent of the condition entered disaster specifications of treatment on Monday, partly due to the fact of workers shortages and partly since the inventory of blood solutions employed in transfusions, surgeries and other remedies is operating dangerously low. The designation will allow hospitals to ration treatment as needed when they don’t have sufficient resources for all clients. (Boone, 1/26)


    AP:
    Georgia Lawmakers Purpose To Deal with Spike In Suicides, Overdoses 


    Dealing with a surge in overdose fatalities and rural suicides, Ga lawmakers want to bolster the state’s dismal psychological wellness care system by pressuring personal insurers to strengthen protection and expanding condition funding for procedure and crisis expert services. Users of the condition Legislature are scheduled to unveil a policy package deal for mental wellbeing and compound abuse on Wednesday. Efforts to make certain non-public insurers provide the exact amount of positive aspects for depression, stress and anxiety and other psychological disorders as they do for health care ailments are expected to be a central element of the laws. (Thanawala, 1/26)


    Philadelphia Inquirer:
    CHOP Is Opening A $289 Million Facility In King Of Prussia As Other Hospitals Struggle


    Whilst normal hospitals are fiscally stretched slim by the COVID-19 pandemic, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is opening a new $289 million, 52-bed healthcare facility fewer than 20 miles northwest of its city flagship, in the coronary heart of King of Prussia’s shopping district. The facility, which has a pediatric emergency division and 16-bed intense treatment device, is supposed to simplicity stress on CHOP’s crowded West Philadelphia hospital and catch the attention of new client people from farther west, who might not have been ready or willing to vacation into Philadelphia for treatment. Opening Wednesday, it shares a campus with one of CHOP’s busiest specialty care centers, on South Goddard Road. (Gantz, 1/25)

  • FRIDAY UPDATES: Columbia Public Library and curbside pickup to closed through Wednesday due to staffing shortage

    FRIDAY UPDATES: Columbia Public Library and curbside pickup to closed through Wednesday due to staffing shortage

    The Columbia Public Library is closing due to COVID-related staffing shortages Saturday, through Wednesday.

    Curbside pickup service will also be closed during that time

    Bookmobile visits are suspended.

    The other Daniel Boone Regional Library locations will remain open at regular hours.

    Boone County Health Department says no hub update due to high number of COVID cases

    The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services says there will not be an information hub Friday due to the high number of new coronavirus cases.

    Officials say the increase in positive COVID-19 cases over the past few weeks also comes with an increased workload for our staff.

    The department will also be changing how information is reported to help staff while still providing data to the public.

    Boone County ranks fifth in the state with the most coronavirus cases in total volume in the past week and is first when sorted by cases per 100,000. Cases are up 15.8{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} when comparing last week to the prior week. The county has a 38.1{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} positivity test rate, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS).

    The Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard reports that 117,305 residents have received their first dose in Boone County and 103,914 Boone County residents have completed their vaccine doses.

    Boone County has the third-largest percentage of county residents in Missouri that have received at least one dose of the vaccine with 65{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}. The largest county in the state is St. Louis County with 69.3{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}.

    Boone County is third in the state with a reported 57.6{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of residents that have completed their coronavirus vaccine doses. St. Louis County is the first county in the state with 60.9{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of residents having completed the doses for vaccination. The city of Joplin has 61.7{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of the population fully vaccinated.

    Cole County has the second-highest first vaccination rate in Mid-Missouri with 54.9{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}. Callaway County is third with 51{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}.

    Cole County reported over 190 new coronavirus cases

    The Cole County Health Department reported 192 new coronavirus cases Friday.

    According to the dashboard update, there are 15,358 residential cases and 312 long-term care facility resident cases. That is 15,670 total cases in the county.

    “Because of a reporting issue with a local healthcare system that resulted in a backlog of data, the Cole County Health Department anticipates receiving a large number of positive COVID-19 cases over the next few days from MO Department of Health and Senior Services.  The positive cases date back to the first part of December,” said Kristi Campbell, director of Cole County Health Department, on Tuesday.

    January 2022 Case Total Per Day 1-21-22
    Cole County Health Department cases by day in January

    Cole County has reported 175 coronavirus deaths since the pandemic began.

    Cole County ranks sixth in the state for counties with the most coronavirus cases per 100,000 in the past week and 12th overall in total volume. Cases are up 1.6{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} when comparing last week to the prior week. The county has reported a 38.8{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} positivity test rate, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

    The Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard reports about 54.9{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of the county have initiated their first dose of the vaccine and 50.6{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of the county’s population have been fully vaccinated.

    State of Missouri passes one million confirmed coronavirus cases

    The state of Missouri passed one million confirmed coronavirus cases since March 2020.

    The state reported 18,708 new and probable coronavirus cases for Friday.

    The state of Missouri’s daily average of new coronavirus cases has gone back up to a 9,025 seven-day average (63,174 confirmed cases from the previous week of reporting) as the state reports new coronavirus cases across the state according to state health department reporting. The daily average looks at the last seven days and doesn’t account for the past three days, which will push that number even higher.

    The state reported 11,365 new coronavirus cases through PCR testing and another 7,343 probable cases identified in antigen testing from Friday, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services coronavirus dashboard. Missouri has now reported 1,008,681 confirmed cases for the pandemic and more than 242,374 probable cases.

    The state recorded 330 new deaths for 13,865 total and 50 new probable death was added for a total of 3,156.

    Missouri’s new cases are down 1{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} over the past week, the state reports, as recent cases surge nationwide.

    The rate of positive tests is 35.1{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} for the last week. A higher positivity suggests higher transmission and that there are likely more people with coronavirus in the community who haven’t been tested yet.

    Source: Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services

    Boone (1), Callaway (4), Saline (5), Cole (6), Pettis (7), Miller (9), Osage (15) and Moniteau (39) counties are all in the top 40 Missouri counties in cases per capita over the last week, according to state statistics.

    The state reports that 5.97{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} (a .23{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} increase from last) of vaccinated Missourians have developed COVID-19 infections. The state reported 7,732 breakthrough infections. The state is reporting 200,922 breakthrough cases out of 3,366,901 fully vaccinated people. The state has reported 994 breakthrough deaths.

    Experts continue to tout vaccination as the best tool to fight the wave of new cases.

    Still, new vaccinations have effectively stalled in Missouri, with more boosters being given daily than first or second shots. The state reported Thursday that 54.9{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of Missouri residents are fully vaccinated.

    COVID-19 hospitalizations are also trending upward, with the state reporting 18{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of total inpatient capacity and 17{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of ICU capacity remaining. Those numbers are at 23{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} and 30{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} in Central Missouri, respectively. The state has reported a record number of hospitalizations with 3,784 patients. There are currently 711 patients in Missouri ICUs.

    Federal team heading to St. Louis to ease hospitals’ coronavirus strain

    A specialized U.S. military medical team including doctors and nurses will be sent to the St. Louis area next week to help support hospital staff under strain from the omicron wave, Gov. Mike Parson’s office said Friday.

    The team will be based at BJC Christian Hospital, according to a release from Parson’s office.

    The deployment is in response to a state request made through FEMA, Parson said. The team will be made up of 40 military medical personnel, he said.

    “This team will help support our dedicated local medical professionals who work hard each day to care for Missourians,” Parson said in the release. “The best way Missourians can help aid our hospitals and health care workers is by considering vaccination to protect themselves and their families.”

    The Missouri State Emergency Management Agency had already helped with the deployment of a 17-member task force to the Kansas City area that has been in place since Jan. 7 and is expected to be in place through Feb. 4.

    FEMA is also helping with two AmeriCorps teams to assist at community testing sites in St. Charles, St. Louis and Springfield. Another team is helping at sites in the Kansas City area, according to the release.

    The state Department of Health and Senior Services is also granting requests for waivers of rules to add flexibility for hospitals to expand bed capacity.

    Missouri’s hospitals are treating more patients with COVID-19 than at any time in the pandemic, and COVID-19 intensive care admissions are also at record levels. Hospital bed capacity is at 16{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} in the St. Louis area, with ICU capacity at 12{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}.

    State adds 249 deaths in weekly review

    The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services added 249 coronavirus deaths to the state’s total in its weekly review of death certificates.

    The state released the numbers late Thursday. Most of the new deaths — 211 — happened in January, according to a news release. The state added one death each for January, October and November 2021 and 35 new deaths for December.

    The new deaths bring the state’s total to nearly 14,000 since the pandemic began, along with another 3,106 probable deaths from COVID-19. Deaths are down nearly 30{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} in the past week, according to the state’s coronavirus dashboard.