About the public’s health
Here’s what we have to do to show a coronavirus vaccine works: A good review of what it takes to develop a successful vaccine against SARS-CoV-2.
New Ranking of Nations Top Employers’ Response to Pandemic: From Forbes, here are highlights of the top 25 companies. The top 5 are: Verizon, Target, At&T, Walmart, an T-Mobile.
They Evoke Darth Vader, but These Masks May Save Your Doctor’s Life: A good pictorial view of what different masks look like and how well they work.
Where U.S. coronavirus cases are on the rise: “Alabama had the biggest weekly increase at 28%, Missouri’s new cases rose 27% and North Carolina’s rose 26%, according to the analysis of data from The COVID Tracking Project, a volunteer-run effort to track the outbreak.
New cases in Georgia, one of the first states to reopen, rose 21% after two weeks of declines. The state attributed the increase to a backlog of test results and more testing.”
‘The house was on fire.’ Top Chinese virologist on how China and U.S. have met the pandemic: The article is a good summary of what China did to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and what the situation is now.
About pharma
Taxpayers paid to develop remdesivir but will have no say when Gilead sets the price: A reminder that the government funds basic research for many important medications, but does not demand payback from the companies that manufacture and sell the products.
Big Pharmacy Chains Also Fed the Opioid Epidemic, Court Filing Says:”New details emerge in a lawsuit asserting that chains including CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens sold millions of pills in small towns but rarely flagged suspicious orders to authorities.”
FDA updates COVID-19 compounding guidance with reporting clarification:”The FDA updated two separate guidance documents regarding compounding of fifteen drugs that are currently in shortage; most of them are medicines that treat patients who require intubation and mechanical ventilation. The first applies to outsourcing facilities, while the second applies to smaller pharmacy compounders.”
FDA approves 2 drugs to combat COVID-19 shortages: “The FDA approved an application from Amneal Pharmaceuticals to make dexmedetomidine hydrochloride 0.9 percent sodium chloride injection, which is used to sedate ventilated patients and non-intubated patients during surgery.
The agency also approved an application from Accord Healthcare to make succinylcholine chloride injection, which is used for general anesthesia and to provide muscle relaxation during surgery or ventilation.”
Exclusive: big pharma rejected EU plan to fast-track vaccines in 2017:”The world’s largest pharmaceutical companies rejected an EU proposal three years ago to work on fast-tracking vaccines for pathogens like coronavirus to allow them to be developed before an outbreak, the Guardian can reveal.
The plan to speed up the development and approval of vaccines was put forward by European Commission representatives sitting on the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) – a public-private partnership whose function is to back cutting-edge research in Europe – but it was rejected by industry partners on the body.”
About healthcare professionals
Practice closures and staff layoffs resulting from pandemic: “Around 58,000 primary care practices may close by the end of June, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians, while many others have laid off and furloughed stuff.
Via its HealthLandscape interactive web-based tool, AAFP projects that physician practice wages and salaries will plummet by more than $64 billion by the end of June and practice job losses—including physicians—will be slashed by 784,133.
By the end of May, AAFP projects that 38,693 practices will close, 522,756 job losses will occur, and wages and salaries will be reduced by more than $43 billion.
In more bad news, only 47 percent of primary care practices said they had enough cash on hand to stay open for four more weeks, according to an April Primary Care Collaborative survey, and 42 percent are furloughing or laying off staff.”
About hospitals
Ascension reports $2.7B net loss in Q3: A reminder about how much the COVID-19 pandemic has hit hospitals’ finances.
About health insurance
CMS: 88 Part D, Medicare Advantage insurers sign up for insulin copay model: “The Trump administration announced 88 Medicare Advantage and Part D plan sponsors have applied to lower insulin costs for the 2021 plan year in a bid to grapple with the rising expense of the diabetes treatment.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said Tuesday that means more than 1,750 standalone plans have decided to participate in the Part D Senior Savings Model. Participating Part D plans will provide Medicare beneficiaries with insulin capped at a $35 copay for a monthly supply.
That $35 copay will extend from the beginning of the year and through the Part D coverage gap.”
About healthcare quality
Survival After Cancer Treatment at Top-Ranked US Cancer Hospitals vs Affiliates of Top-Ranked Cancer Hospitals: “These findings suggest that short- and long-term survival after complex cancer treatment were superior at top-ranked hospitals compared with affiliates of top-ranked hospitals.” Consider the implications for brand dilution.
About healthcare IT
List of ransomware that leaks victims' stolen files if not paid: Each of 15 companies is profiled. If so much information is available, why haven’t they been shut down?