Each week, HealthDay's Physician's Briefing division rounds up the most important COVID-19 developments in the medical field. See this week's edition below for August 3-August 7.
U.S. Cancels Blanket Warning for International Travel
FRIDAY, Aug. 7, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- On Thursday, the Trump administration canceled its warnings against international travel because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Associated Press reported.
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300,000 American Deaths Projected by December Without More Face Mask Use
FRIDAY, Aug. 7, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- As the U.S. COVID-19 case count neared 5 million on Thursday, a new model predicted that nearly 300,000 Americans could die of COVID-19 by December if more people do not wear masks or practice better social distancing.
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Telestroke Consultations Down During COVID-19 Pandemic
FRIDAY, Aug. 7, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The median number of weekly consults seen through a telestroke network decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic, with Black patients significantly less likely to present with strokes, according to a study published online Aug. 5 in Stroke.
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SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies Detected in 13.7 Percent of NYC HCPs
FRIDAY, Aug. 7, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Among health care providers in the New York City area, 13.7 percent have severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 antibodies, a rate similar to adults randomly tested in New York state, according to a research letter published online Aug. 6 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Moderna Charging Much More for COVID-19 Vaccine Than Others
FRIDAY, Aug. 7, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Moderna is charging $37 a dose for its experimental vaccine, which is far more than what other companies say they plan to charge for their vaccines, CBS News reported Wednesday. Because two doses of the vaccine are needed to immunize people from COVID-19, total costs could be $74 per person.
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COVID-19 Tied to Higher Risk of Large Vessel Occlusion Strokes
FRIDAY, Aug. 7, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- COVID-19 is associated with large vessel occlusion strokes, according to a study published online July 29 in the American Journal of Roentgenology.
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Scientists Call for Broader Use of Faster COVID-19 Tests
THURSDAY, Aug. 6, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- As COVID-19 cases continue to surge across America, scientists on Wednesday called for widespread adoption of simpler, less accurate tests, as long as they are given often and quickly.
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Johnson & Johnson Makes $1 Billion Vaccine Deal
THURSDAY, Aug. 6, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. government will pay Johnson & Johnson $1 billion for 100 million doses of its vaccine if it is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Washington Post reported Wednesday.
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Early Use of IL-6 Inhibitors May Improve COVID-19 Outcomes
THURSDAY, Aug. 6, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- For patients with severe COVID-19, administration of an interleukin-6 receptor inhibitor earlier in the disease course is associated with improved outcomes, according to a study published online July 25 in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases.
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ED Visits Decreased in Five States From January Through April 2020
THURSDAY, Aug. 6, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- As the COVID-19 pandemic intensified, there was a decrease in emergency department visits in five states from January through April 2020, according to a study published online Aug. 3 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
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Seven States Join Pact to Speed COVID-19 Testing
WEDNESDAY, Aug. 5, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- As the daily U.S. COVID-19 death toll averaged more than 1,000 for the ninth straight day on Tuesday, governors from seven states banded together to shorten turnaround time for COVID-19 test results.
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Experimental COVID-19 Vaccine Shows Encouraging Results
WEDNESDAY, Aug. 5, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Maryland-based Novavax said Tuesday that preliminary trials of an experimental COVID-19 vaccine were promising.
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COVID-19 Case Fatality Rate 29 Percent in Multiple Myeloma Patients
WEDNESDAY, Aug. 5, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- For patients with multiple myeloma and COVID-19, the case fatality rate is 29 percent among hospitalized patients, with increased odds of adverse outcomes among racial/ethnic minorities, according to a study published online July 30 in Blood Cancer Discovery.
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Study Looks at Optimal Strategy for Reopening Schools in U.K.
WEDNESDAY, Aug. 5, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Population-wide testing and effective contact tracing are necessary to prevent an epidemic rebound following school reopening in the United Kingdom; and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 transmission rates were low in an educational setting in Australia, according to two studies published online Aug. 3 in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health.
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President Says Medicare Should Expand Telehealth Services
TUESDAY, Aug. 4, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- President Donald Trump signed an order on Monday that will broaden the role of telehealth for Medicare patients, the Associated Press reported.
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Trump's Plan Limits Free Nursing Home COVID-19 Tests
TUESDAY, Aug. 4, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The plan to give every nursing home a fast COVID-19 testing machine has a catch, the Associated Press reported Tuesday. The catch is that under the Trump administration plan, the government will not give kits to check staff and residents more than a couple of times.
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Number of Newly ID'd U.S. Patients With Cancer Dropped During COVID-19
TUESDAY, Aug. 4, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- During the COVID-19 pandemic period, there was a significant decline in newly identified U.S. patients with six common types of cancer, according to a research letter published online Aug. 4 in JAMA Network Open.
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Burnout High Among Nonphysician Frontline Health Care Workers
TUESDAY, Aug. 4, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- More than 40 percent of nurses on the front lines during the pandemic may be experiencing burnout, according to a research letter published online Aug. 4 in JAMA Network Open.
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Risk for Positive COVID-19 Test Up for Health Care Workers
MONDAY, Aug. 3, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Frontline health care workers have an increased risk for reporting a positive test for COVID-19, according to a study published online July 31 in The Lancet Public Health.
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Obesity Ups Risk for Intubation, Death With COVID-19 in Adults <65
MONDAY, Aug. 3, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Obesity is associated with an increased risk for intubation or death among hospitalized adults with COVID-19, with the association observed in adults younger than 65 years but not in older adults, according to a study published online July 29 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
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Risk for Acute Cerebrovascular Events Low in COVID-19 Patients
MONDAY, Aug. 3, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- For hospitalized COVID-19 patients, the risk for acute cerebrovascular events is low, according to a study published online July 20 in Stroke.
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