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☆ Measles outbreak in central Ohio grows to more than 50 children, driven by ‘lack of vaccination’
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —A measles outbreak in central Ohio is growing, sickening more than 50 children, with many of them needing hospitalization, according to data updated Tuesday by Columbus Public Health. “Measles can be very serious, especially for children under age 5,” Columbus Public Health spokesperson Kelli Newman wrote in an email Monday. In the Ohio outbreak, the hospitalized children have been seen at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “For measles, it is the most infectious disease we have,” she said. Pediatric hospitals already strainedWhile the measles outbreak spreads across central Ohio, the United States has been battling a surge of respiratory illnesses, such as flu and RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

The spread of RSV appears to be slowing, though Covid cases have risen since Thanksgiving and flu hospitalizations remain at a decade high, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said Monday. "This year’s flu season is off to a rough start," Dr. Sandra Fryhofer, board chair of the American Medical Association, said at a CDC press briefing. Nationally, the number of positive weekly RSV tests fell from more than 19,000 in the week ending Nov. 12 to around 7,500 in the week ending Nov. 26. Average daily Covid cases, however, have risen 16% over the last two weeks, according to NBC News' tally. The CDC recorded a nearly 18% increase in average daily hospital admissions due to Covid from the week ending Nov. 22 to the week ending Nov. 29.

☆ China eases controls but gives no sign when ‘zero Covid’ will end
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

BEIJING — China is easing some of the world’s most stringent anti-virus controls and authorities say new variants are weaker. That spurred hopes for a quick end to “zero Covid.” But health experts and economists warn it will be mid-2023 and possibly 2024 before vaccination rates are high enough and hospitals are prepared to handle a possible rash of infections. Ahead of the protests, the Communist Party promised to make “zero Covid” less costly and disruptive but said it was sticking to the overall containment strategy. Travelers at the Chinese capital’s train stations and three airports are required to show a negative virus test within the previous 48 hours. Xi’s government has held up “zero Covid” as proof of the superiority of China’s system compared with the United States and Western countries.

☆ Demand for hospital-grade cribs on the rise as viral illnesses continue to surge
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Carma Hassan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Pediatric hospital beds have been more full than usual for months. Corewell Health Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital has brought out both specialized and non-specialized cribs from storage to meet the demand of pediatric patients. Demand at Hard Manufacturing, which makes cribs, bassinets and youth beds for hospitals, has shot up, President Marjorie Bryen said. “At Nemours Children’s Health, these supply challenges are magnified due to pediatric populations needing more specialized equipment to accommodate different stages of growth. “The Administration has exercised regulatory flexibilities to help health care providers and suppliers continue to respond to COVID-19.

☆ CDC encourages people to wear masks to help prevent spread of Covid, flu and RSV over the holidays
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Centers for Disease Control Prevention on Monday encouraged people to wear masks to help reduce the spread of respiratory illnesses this season as Covid, flu and RSV circulate at the same time. The CDC director said the agency is considering expanding its system of Covid community levels to include other respiratory viruses such as the flu. The system is the basis for when CDC advises the public to wear masks. About 5% of the U.S. population lives in counties where the CDC is officially recommending masks due to high Covid levels. Dr. Sandra Fryhofer, board chair of the American Medical Association, said the circulation of Covid, flu and RSV at the same is a "a perfect storm for a terrible holiday season."

There have been at least 8.7 million illnesses, 78,000 hospitalizations, and 4,500 deaths from flu so far this season, according to CDC estimates. She said flu season started earlier and "hospitalizations for flu continue to be the highest we have seen at this time of year in a decade." People also likely have weakened defenses after not being exposed to flu and RSV while working or schooling from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. About 12% fewer pregnant women have been vaccinated so far this season compared to last season, and about 5% fewer children, Walensky said. COVID-19 cases have risen following the Thanksgiving holiday and COVID-related hospitalizations have also increased about 15% to 20% over the last week, Walensky said.

☆ Flu vaccine appears to be a very good match to circulating strains, CDC says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —This year’s flu shot appears to be “a very good match” to the circulating strains, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said at a news briefing Monday. Flu vaccinations for children are down about 5% compared with where they were before the Covid-19 pandemic, Walensky said. The good news is that looks like it is a very good match,” Walensky said of the early start to the respiratory virus season. She noted that the CDC would have more definitive data later in the season but that the data is encouraging. It’s not very good at interrupting transmission, and it is not very good at preventing milder infection,” he said.

☆ Flu and RSV Are Sickening More Kids This Year
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Brianna Abbott | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

After two years in the background, RSV and the flu have roared to the fore in pediatricians’ offices and children’s hospitals across the country. Pediatric hospitals have been strained for weeks by an early surge in common seasonal pathogens including respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. Hospitalizations for RSV among kids under 5 are outpacing those for Covid-19, CDC data show. Public-health experts said the crush of patients is likely due in part to a larger pool of susceptible children compared with prior seasons, giving the virus more room to spread as people mingle indoors.

☆ Flu brought nearly twice as many people to the hospital last week as the week before, updated CDC data show
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Deidre Mcphillips | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

There have been nearly 17 flu hospitalizations for every 100,000 people, rates typically seen in December or January. The cumulative hospitalization rate hasn’t been this high at this point in the season in more than a decade. Less than two months in, the RSV hospitalization rate this season is already nearing the total RSV hospitalization rate from the entire 2018-19 season. With the holiday season – and flu season – underway, Dr. Anthony Fauci warned this week of the potential for an emergency situation. “When you have very little wiggle room of intensive care beds, when you have like almost all the intensive care beds that are occupied, it’s bad for the children who have RSV and need intensive care.

☆ Noom sells psychology-driven weight loss — but former employees say they were unprepared for and overwhelmed by users' eating disorders, depression, and trauma
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +31 min

Before joining Noom, users fill out a questionnaire asking about what diet programs or mental health apps they've used in the past. Very overly optimistic and happy, doesn't acknowledge what I'm really saying," one Noom user wrote on Reddit. Some of the coaches Insider interviewed said they were interacting with Noom users within two weeks of starting. Emotional bandwidthRachel Clair was hired as a Noom coach in 2018, at a time when the coaching staff grew from 60 to about 200. Annette Riedl/picture alliance via Getty ImagesIn October, 500 more Noom coaches were abruptly called into a virtual meeting and laid off.

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.

☆ China's people are protesting the country's severe zero-COVID policies, and public-health experts agree with them
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | Paola Rosa-Aquino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Protests are erupting across China over the country's restrictive zero-COVID policies. Public-health experts say the policies are unsustainable, ineffective, and unnecessarily severe. Without vaccination campaigns targeting older adults, China's lockdowns may only delay a catastrophic COVID wave. Tyrone Siu/ReutersThere is no easy way forward for China, but constant 2020-style lockdowns are not the solution, according to public-health experts, who called the policies unsustainable, ineffective, and irrational. As a result, Huang thinks the zero-COVID lockdowns are completely unwarranted.

☆ Amid homeless crisis, New York to step up forced hospitalization of mentally ill
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A man sleeps on a cardboard box along 34th street near Pennsylvania Station in New York City, U.S., April 26, 2022. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File PhotoNov 29 (Reuters) - New York City Mayor Eric Adams rolled out a plan on Tuesday to allow more homeless and mentally ill people to be hospitalized against their will in order to tackle "a crisis we see all around us." The Democratic mayor has made addressing the city's homelessness crisis a priority for his administration since taking office earlier this year. New York law allows for involuntary hospitalization when a person's mental illness prevents them from providing for their own basic needs, as well as when they present a danger to themselves or others. He said there would be a telephone line for police officers to get in touch directly with clinicians for consultation while dealing with cases of mental illness.

☆ Flu season continues to intensify in the US, and holiday gatherings could make it worse
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Deidre Mcphillips | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

And the CDC estimates that there have been at least 6.2 million illnesses, 53,000 hospitalizations and 2,900 deaths from influenza this season. Less than two months in, the RSV hospitalization rate this season is already nearing the total RSV hospitalization rate from the entire 2018-19 season. The latest surveillance data does not capture Thanksgiving week or the effects of holiday gatherings. Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths reached record high levels during last year’s holiday season – and this holiday season could also bring a rise in spread. Flu shots are lagging, too, with millions fewer vaccinations at this point in the season than in the past two years.

☆ Flu hospitalizations increase nearly 30% as U.S. enters holiday season
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Flu has hit unusually hard and early this season, putting pressure on emergency departments across the nation. Flu activity normally picks up after Thanksgiving, but hospitalizations were already at a decade high in early November. Scientists and public health experts are worried flu hospitalizations will surge even more after millions traveled to see family and friends for Thanksgiving. About 11 people out of every 100,000 have been hospitalized with the flu since early October, the highest level in a decade. "The fact that we're already at this high level going into the holiday season makes me nervous," said Scott Hensley, a microbiologist and flu expert at the Penn Institute for Immunology.

This year, hospitals are being overwhelmed with a combination of Covid, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and the flu. This “tripledemic” of flu, Covid and RSV is a reminder that even as the pandemic ends, the threat of seasonal respiratory viruses remains. When and where respiratory viruses are surging, mask mandates should be reinstated. A recent study found that Boston school districts that had lifted mandates averaged 45 more Covid cases per 1,000 students and staff than those with mandates. This means that RSV — for which a vaccine is still being developed — can be mitigated through both mask-wearing and hand-washing.

☆ Omicron boosters probably aren't very effective against mild Covid illness, but will likely prevent hospitalizations, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The new omicron Covid boosters probably aren't very effective at preventing Covid infections and mild illness, but they will likely help keep the elderly and other vulnerable groups out of the hospital this winter, experts say. For seniors, the booster was 19% effective at preventing mild illness when administered as their fourth dose, compared to the unvaccinated. It was 23% effective against mild illness when given as their fifth dose. Though the vaccine's effectiveness against mild illness was low, people who received the boosters were better off than those who did not. Moore said people at higher risk from Covid have every reason to get a booster since it modestly increases protection.

☆ Omicron BQ Covid variants that threaten people with compromised immune systems are now dominant in U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A person receives a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) test as the Omicron coronavirus variant continues to spread in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., December 22, 2021. The omicron BQ coronavirus subvariants have risen to dominance in the U.S. as people gather and travel for the Thanksgiving holiday, putting people with compromised immune systems at increased risk. The omicron BA.5 subvariant, once dominant, now makes up only a fifth of new Covid cases. The BQ subvariants are more immune evasive and likely resistant to key antibody medications, such as Evusheld and bebtelovimab, used by people with compromised immune systems, according to the National Institutes of Health. President Joe Biden, in an October speech, told people with compromised immune systems that they should consult with their physicians and take extra precautions this winter.

Covid, flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are together driving a national wave of respiratory illnesses. Covid, flu and RSV can be difficult to distinguish, since they share many common symptoms. But a loss of taste and smell is more commonly associated with Covid than with flu or RSV. Flu symptoms tend to develop more suddenly than those of Covid or RSV. To reduce the length of flu symptoms, though, doctors usually prescribe Tamiflu or one of three other approved treatments.

☆ New subvariants, family gatherings may bring more Covid-19 after holiday, but experts don’t expect severe surge
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Experts expect that Thanksgiving gatherings will stir up social networks and give new coronavirus subvariants fresh pockets of vulnerable people to infect. And we are concerned that after holiday gathering, lots of people coming together, that we may see increases in Covid-19 cases as well,” Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Tuesday on CNN. For the week ending Nov. 19, the CDC estimates that BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 were causing about half of all new Covid-19 cases in the US. Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths have remained flat for the past four weeks. “It’s probably got a bit more of a fitness advantage, so what we’re seeing is gradual replacement without a massive change in the total number of Covid-19 cases,” he said.

On social media, families say they’ve hunted for hours for Tamiflu and the first-line antibiotics amoxicillin and Augmentin. They have one viral illness after another. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than half of US states have “high” or “very high” respiratory virus activity. As for the antibiotics amoxicillin and Augmentin – a combination of amoxicillin and clavulanate, an agent that helps guard against antibiotic resistance – it’s not entirely clear why demand is so high. Some viral illness, like influenza, can leave the body more vulnerable to secondary bacterial infections that may need treatment with antibiotics.

☆ Which to Choose: Medicare or Medicare Advantage?
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Paula Span | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +13 min

Which to Choose: Medicare or Medicare Advantage? Medicare Advantage plans, like traditional Medicare, are funded by the federal government, but they are offered though private insurance companies, which receive a set payment for each enrollee. The proportion of eligible Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans has hit 48 percent. Which is better: Medicare or Medicare Advantage? Credit... Kenny Holston for The New York Times Unlike most Medicare Advantage plans, traditional Medicare does not include drug coverage.

☆ At 3 weeks old, she caught RSV, the virus that's packing hospitals across the US
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Christina Zdanowicz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

And pediatric hospitals are feeling the strain, with more than three-quarters of their hospital and ICU beds occupied for the past few months. Her prematurity “increased her risk of how her body would react to the RSV virus,” the doctor explained. Medical teams at Greater Baltimore Medical Center helped Ayra Pokharel before she was transferred to another hospital. Sending patients to other facilities for treatment is common during the height of flu and RSV seasons, Nguyen said. RSV symptoms RSV is a common virus, but it can cause serious illness, especially in younger infants and older adults.

☆ Flu, RSV and Covid-19 Add to Crunch on Pediatric Hospitals
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-19 | by ( Brianna Abbott | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The early rise in RSV cases might be due to prior Covid-19 precautions that reduced exposure to many viruses. A drive-through testing center in Berkeley, Mo. Flu activity continued to rise across the U.S. in the past week, adding to a crunch on emergency departments and pediatric hospitals from an early surge in respiratory viruses. Flu has caused an estimated 4.4 million illnesses, 38,000 hospitalizations and 2,100 deaths so far this season including seven pediatric deaths, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday. The highest flu hospitalization rates are among adults ages 65 and older, followed by children under the age of 5, the CDC said.

☆ RSV Cases Surge in Kids and Adults. What Symptoms to Watch for and When to Worry.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Sumathi Reddy | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Respiratory syncytial virus—commonly referred to as RSV—has hit earlier than usual this year, causing a surge of cases in emergency rooms and pediatric hospitals. Doctors say the early rise in cases and hospitalizations this year is likely due to Covid-19 precautions that reduced our exposure to many viruses, including RSV, in the past few years. Many young children who weren’t exposed to RSV earlier are getting it for the first time this fall.

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