Based on the CDC’s Cases in the U.S. website, here is the FEHBlog’s chart of new weekly COVID-19 cases and deaths over the 20th through 34th weeks of this year (beginning May 14 and ending August 26; using Thursday as the first day of the week in order to facilitate this weekly update):

and here is the CDC’s latest overall weekly hospitalization rate chart for COVID-19:

Note that today, the CDC revamped its COVID-19 websites. Sharp eyed readers will notice the CDC changed the scale on this hospitalization chart since last Friday. In any event, both charts continue to move in the preferred downward direction.

The CDC added a webpage on how regular folks should select, wear and clean their protective masks. It should be helpful for health plans to share this CDC webpage on their own sites.

Also, Medpage Today interviewed Dr. Anthony Fauci about the ongoing development of monoclonal antibodies to treat COVID-19.

Fauci explained how the mechanism of monoclonal antibodies “is really one of a direct antiviral.” “It’s like getting a neutralizing antibody that’s highly, highly concentrated and highly, highly specific. So, the mechanism involved is blocking of the virus from essentially entering its target cell in the body and essentially interrupting the course of infection,” he said. While Fauci noted the success of monoclonal antibodies to treat Ebola, he added that they are not practical for other viruses that only last a day or two, where the virus may already be cleared once the patient receives the treatment. “If you have a disease that’s serious enough and prolonged enough, such as what we saw with Ebola, and what we are currently seeing with COVID-19, then you have enough opportunities to get the monoclonal antibody to actually work,” he added.

The article notes that work also is underway to develop these antibodies as an HIV treatment.

Managed Healthcare Executive News reports on issues that providers are encountering with electronic prior authorization and efforts to resolve those issues. For example,

[Rose] Moore says one of the obstacles to a more streamlined approach to prior authorizations is the lack of uniformity. “There must be greater collaboration between payers and providers to set universal guidelines on requirements, starting with the high-volume, low-complexity procedure types that consume the greatest administrative cost across the healthcare continuum,” says Moore.

That should be resolvable.

Finally, Govexec.com reports that “The government will begin deferring withholding payroll taxes for federal employees [beginning September 1] to fulfill a memorandum President Trump issued earlier this month, according to a notice from one of its payroll processors.” Because the executive order cannot and does not waive these taxes permanently, this action will get Congressional attention.