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☆ Home delivery of medications can help improve access, especially when time is tight
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Deidre Mcphillips | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

As the supply of Paxlovid has grown, efforts have been made to improve timely, equitable access to the treatment. Transportation is one significant barrier to health care access for many people, experts say, but creating equitable outcomes will involve a much more comprehensive approach. The initiative is meant to increase access to Covid-19 treatment, particularly for those in socially vulnerable or medically underserved communities. “It’s a combination of things that prevent access to care,” said Werner, whose research has focused on health equity. And those may be the ones that I think would be ripe for this kind of home-based delivery system,” Werner said.

☆ Face masks come back to forefront amid triple threat of Covid-19, flu, RSV
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Local officials mulling over masksThe US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers specific guidance on when masking is recommended based on its Covid-19 community levels. The agency says that people may choose to wear masks at any time but that a “high-quality mask or respirator” is recommended for everyone when a county has a “high” Covid-19 community level. As of Thursday, about 5.66% of US counties have high community levels, including some places in Arizona, Wyoming, Oregon and the Dakotas. Even without a mandate, she emphasized community efforts like wearing masks inside when possible and getting Covid-19 vaccines or boosters. “We do know that 5% of the population is living in places with a high Covid-19 community level.

☆ Wrong Covid test results in China raise concerns 'the pandemic may never end'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesBEIJING — Local frustration with Covid controls in China has increasingly targeted virus testing requirements and the big business they've fueled. The article listed several instances of allegedly forged virus test results this year across the country, including in Shanghai and Beijing. Last week, Lanzhou city health authorities blamed one of those companies for reporting some positive virus test results as negative. In the U.S., a surge of pop-up virus testing stations raised concerns of fraud as well as identity theft. In May, the central government promoted the idea that in large cities, a Covid testing station should be within 15 minutes' walking distance.

The move was criticized by some mental health professionals who said the city should focus on long-term solutions and avoid treating people who refuse. New York Civil Liberties Union Executive Director Donna Lieberman also condemned the plan. New York City continues to contend with crime on public transit. Instead, he said, the city needs sustained engagement, housing, health care support and financial assistance for those in need. “In an ideal situation, you want mental health crisis teams to be the front line.

☆ As Ebola outbreak grows in Uganda, US ramps up preparedness plans
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

“All primary and secondary schools in Uganda are directed to close by November 25th, 2022 for third term holidays as a measure to contain Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the country,” Museveni said in a statement. Major US cities get Ebola plans in placeThe CDC estimates that 20% of travelers from Uganda will arrive without a cell phone or US-based phone number. “CDPH continues to work with our hospitals to screen patients for travel history and be alert for symptoms of Ebola virus disease or, more likely, malaria or circulating respiratory viruses. ‘We need to be prepared’The Ebola virus is transmissible – but not as transmissible as some other infectious diseases, like Covid-19. “If we do see any cases in the United States, the hope is that they will be identified quickly before there is further spread,” Barouch said.

☆ Thanksgiving is two weeks away. Get your updated Covid-19 shot now, health officials warn
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —With Thanksgiving just two weeks away, people who are eligible for an updated Covid-19 vaccine booster but still haven’t received the shot will need to roll up their sleeves Thursday to get as much protection as possible before the holiday. After getting the updated Covid-19 vaccine, that biological process can take about 10 to 14 days. Health officials say it’s fine to get the updated Covid-19 booster and flu vaccine at the same time. The vaccine candidate contains components of the companies’ updated Covid-19 booster and their investigational flu vaccine. Moderna is also developing a combined flu and Covid-19 mRNA vaccine and another combination vaccine targeting flu, Covid-19 and RSV.

☆ LGBTQ beach sanctum faces demolition in New York
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Dave Lucas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A person sits in the surf during an event called "Ralph's Neon Oasis Beach Party" at Jacob Riis Park in Queens, N.Y., September 17, 2022. The New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, which owns the site, has met with neighbors and LGBTQ...moreA person sits in the surf during an event called "Ralph's Neon Oasis Beach Party" at Jacob Riis Park in Queens, N.Y., September 17, 2022. The New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, which owns the site, has met with neighbors and LGBTQ community members to discuss their concerns. "We will continue to engage these communities to learn how we can accommodate their concerns while ensuring public safety," Stephanie Buhle, deputy press secretary for the agency, said in an email. The public hospitals agency has not announced specific plans for the site, and Buhle has not responded to requests for more details.

☆ Poliovirus found in Brooklyn and Queens sewage, New York health officials say
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Kathy Hochul has extended the state of emergency declared in response to the spread of poliovirus after sewage tested positive in Brooklyn and Queens. The New York State Department of Health, in a statement Tuesday, said the sewage sample that tested positive in Brooklyn and Queens is genetically linked to the virus that paralyzed an unvaccinated adult in Rockland County over the summer. A total of 70 sewage samples have tested positive for poliovirus in the New York City metropolitan area so far, according to New York state health officials. More than 28,000 doses of polio vaccine have been administered since July in Rockland, Orange, Sullivan and Nassau countries, according to state health officials. State, national, and global health authorities believe the poliovirus found in New York originated from a country that still uses the oral polio vaccine.

☆ Life after monkeypox: Men describe an uncertain road to recovery
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Benjamin Ryan | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +16 min

Following recovery from this skin lesion–causing virus, people often find themselves waiting anxiously over the course of months to see whether monkeypox will leave them with permanent scarring. The marks are also signals of an infection that because it largely transmits through sex between men, can be highly stigmatized. Gerald Febles points to a scar left from his monkeypox outbreak. He founded a Zoom-based monkeypox support group for people with the virus he met mainly through social media. “I need to get back to my normal life,” said Galaise, who works for a New York City governmental agency.

The arrival of thousands of migrants in New York, Washington, Chicago and beyond has sent officials in those cities scrambling to establish a system of support services, with mixed success. The Office of Migrant Services in Washington, D.C., will offer urgent medical care and connection to resettlement services. Phillips said migrants have been calling volunteer groups in the city “constantly” with problems, leaving volunteers in rapid-response mode. Mental health services are lackingStill, Enriquez said, there is a major hole in that care: mental health services. Mental health screenings are also part of the initial medical checkups at city health centers, Jochum said.

☆ Gay meteorologist, allegedly fired for using adult webcam site, pleads for his job back
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Zachary Schermele | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

A gay meteorologist in New York City who was allegedly fired after someone sent nude webcam photos of him to his employer and to his mother is pleading for his job back and accusing the sender of revenge porn. He said he was not paid for his appearances on the site and apologized for taking part. “I unequivocally do not apologize for being sex-positive and for being myself — for being an openly gay man,” he said. Adame, 39, said he never spoke at work about his involvement with the website, which is owned by Unit 4 Media Ltd. New York City Council Member Erik Bottcher, who represents the Manhattan district where Spectrum NY1 is located, appears to agree.

☆ Worries over stigma are driving a push to rename monkeypox, but the process is slow
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-15 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The naming of the species is the responsibility of WHO's International Committee on Taxonomy of VirusesScientists have been calling this virus "monkeypox" for 64 years. The current species known as "monkeypox virus" and the others would then be renamed to "orthopoxvirus 'something,' " he said in an email to CNN. Prior to more modern conventions about names, scientists would name a variant for the region where it emerged and was circulating. It cited "growing concern for the potentially devastating and stigmatizing effects that the messaging around the 'monkeypox' virus can have on these already vulnerable communities." "Stigma and discrimination can be as dangerous as any virus," Tedros said when he declared monkeypox a global health emergency in July.

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