Editor’s note: The blog will shift in the days ahead to more episodic publishing. Members of Congress raced at the year’s end to avoid the consequences of a brutal snowstorm battering huge swaths of the country. Before hitting the holiday exits, lawmakers approved a whopping $1.7 trillion bill to fund the federal government through the….
Continue ReadingInfections
As U.S. battles latest viral surge, GOP targets military vaccine mandate
The nation’s military defense understandably takes a leading priority in public spending. But congressional Republicans have managed to put plenty of unpalatable elements into a Brobdingnagian appropriations bill that affirms an extreme view, undercutting the value of service personnel protecting themselves from deadly infections. Over the objections of Pentagon brass and the White House, GOP….
Continue ReadingPandemic and respiratory ills are taking a broad and terrible toll
The coronavirus pandemic may not hold the iron grip it once held on newspaper front pages and lead stories on broadcast and online news outlets. The infection, however, keeps inflicting major harms — taking a disproportionate and lethal toll now on older Americans, wreaking sustained havoc on the credibility of public health information and medical….
Continue ReadingAs STD epidemic rages, the sexually active scorn a familiar protection
In some not-so-great news for the nation’s sexual well-being, the rubber has hit the road for too many guys. The familiar and oft-ridiculed prophylactic could play a significant role in battling an epidemic of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) that has engulfed the nation, the Washington Post reported. But condom use has declined significantly, for example,….
Continue ReadingGiving many thanks on yet another holiday fraught with health concerns
Millions of us will have much to give thanks for during the annual holiday, which, like several of its recent versions, again will be a time of health wariness and uncertainty, too. The seasonal feast — which brings so many the joy of not only a grand meal but also the pleasure of gathering with….
Continue ReadingNursing homes reckon with big suits and prospect of tough staffing rules
The Biden Administration is encountering stiff industry opposition but is forging ahead with plans to announce in coming months major regulatory reforms that advocates hope finally will force nursing homes to meet minimum staffing guidelines to care for some of the nation’s most vulnerable. The tragic devastation of long-term care facilities and their residents by….
Continue ReadingHospitals assailed for Emergency Department crush, causing long, risky waits for patients
Almost three dozen leading groups representing a range of doctors, specialists, and other health workers have called on the Biden Administration to deal urgently with the long-running but increasing and dangerous practice of hospitals allowing their emergency care facilities to be overwhelmed because they also are parking patients waiting for rooms and treatment. This “boarding”….
Continue ReadingFDA knew of, but didn’t act on little devices’ deadly racial problems
Until the coronavirus pandemic struck, few regular folks knew about pulse oximeters, much less had one on hand for urgent use. The devices, which fit over a finger, are supposed to give fast readings on the levels of oxygen in patients’ blood — a key measure of their respiratory wellness. But the devices, whether in….
Continue ReadingFungi posing bigger health risks, as drugs’ potency wanes, experts warn
People around the planet must be more wary of the fungus among us, because the too often overlooked pathogens are becoming “increasingly widespread, resistant to treatment, and deadly.” That’s the view of the World Health Organization, as reported by the New York Times and other media organizations. WHO has sought to heighten awareness about an….
Continue ReadingSeasonal flu hitting early and hard, increasing fears of ‘tripledemic’
The damage that seasonal flu causes can be difficult to forecast. But doctors, hospitals, and public health experts already are seeing the illness hit “hard and early,” especially in the Washington, D.C., area. The indicators are shaping up that this will be the most severe flu year in the last 13. This is exponentially concerning,….
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