From the COVID vaccination front, the CDC’s COVID Data Tracker indicates that over two-thirds of the U.S. population over five years old in fully vaccinated.
The American Medical Association’s column about “What Doctors Wish Patient Knew” explains
A Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that one-third of parents say they planned to get their children vaccinated right away. Yet other parents are taking a wait-and-see approach to COVID-19 vaccination for kids. But with the Delta-Omicron variant tag team, widespread vaccination is an essential tool for preventing COVID-19 deaths, hospitalizations and illnesses.
To help parents move from that “wait-and-see” mentality and calm their fears, two physicians shared what to know about COVID-19 vaccine safety for children.
Check it out.
From the Omicron treatment front, the Food and Drug Administration announced today that the agency has
revised the authorizations for two monoclonal antibody treatments – bamlanivimab and etesevimab (administered together) and REGEN-COV (casirivimab and imdevimab) [which are made by Eli Lilly & Co. and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.] – to limit their use to only when the patient is likely to have been infected with or exposed to a variant that is susceptible to these treatments.
Because data show these treatments are highly unlikely to be active against the omicron variant, which is circulating at a very high frequency throughout the United States, these treatments are not authorized for use in any U.S. states, territories, and jurisdictions at this time. In the future, if patients in certain geographic regions are likely to be infected or exposed to a variant that is susceptible to these treatments, then use of these treatments may be authorized in these regions.
Monoclonal antibodies are laboratory-made proteins that mimic the immune system’s ability to fight off harmful pathogens such as viruses, like SARS-CoV-2. And like other infectious organisms, SARS-CoV-2 can mutate over time, resulting in certain treatments not working against certain variants such as omicron. This is the case with these two treatments for which we’re making changes today. * * *
Importantly, there are several other therapies – Paxlovid, sotrovimab, Veklury (remdesivir), and molnupiravir – that are expected to work against the omicron variant, and that are authorized or approved to treat patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 who are at high risk for progression to severe disease, including hospitalization or death. Healthcare providers should consult the NIH panel’s COVID-19 treatment guidelines and assess whether these treatments are right for their patients.
From the COVID vaccination mandate front, Federal News Network reports that
Last week’s court injunction that blocked the Biden Administration’s vaccine requirement for federal employees will put a temporary halt to disciplinary actions in federal agencies. But it won’t be of much help to feds who’d already been disciplined or fired for refusing the vaccine prior to last Friday.
That’s according to new guidance the administration’s Safer Federal Workforce Task Force issued Monday. The four-page document answers some basic questions on exactly how agencies should deal with the federal employee mandate now that a Texas judge has temporarily barred its implementation and enforcement.
Among the nuances: workers who’ve been suspended for failing to comply need to have their suspensions lifted, and new proposals to fire or suspend employees need to be “held in abeyance” for as long as the injunction is in place, the task force said. But agencies don’t need to reverse other disciplinary procedures that have already taken full effect.
From the free OTC tests front, Govexec.com asks
What group is especially vulnerable to the ravages of COVID-19 even if fully vaccinated and boosted? Seniors. And who will have an especially tough time getting free at-home COVID tests under the Biden administration’s plan? Yes, seniors.
As of Jan. 15, private insurers will cover the cost of eight at-home rapid COVID tests each month for their members — for as long as the public health emergency lasts.
Finding the tests will be hard enough, but Medicare beneficiaries face an even bigger hurdle: The administration’s new rule doesn’t apply to them.
It turns out that the laws governing traditional Medicare don’t provide for coverage of self-administered diagnostic tests, which is precisely what the rapid antigen tests are and why they are an important tool for containing the pandemic. * * *
The Medicare program does cover rapid antigen or PCR testing done by a lab without charging beneficiaries, but there’s a hitch: It’s limited to one test per year unless someone has a doctor’s order.
Because the article describes orignal Medicare as exempt, one must assume that Medicare Advantage plans also are offering reimbursement for OTC COVID tests. The original Medicare exemption is a weak cup of tea because no commercial health plans covered OTC testing before the mandate.
From the No Suprises Act front, The American Hospital Association informs us that
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will host a conference call for health care providers Jan. 26 at 1 p.m. ET on the balance billing provisions of the No Surprises Act. To participate in the Special Open Door Forum, dial 888-455-1397 and reference passcode 5109694. Slides for the call are available here. P
Participants may email questions in advance to Provider_Enforcement@cms.hhs.gov, noting “Questions for 1/26 Open Door Forum” in the subject line. A replay will be available after the call through Jan. 28 by dialing 800-308-7855 and entering the passcode.
The CMS slides are helpful.
From the telehealth front, Fierce Healthcare tells us that
Integrating virtual care can save the healthcare system significant amounts of money, as well as avoid unnecessary visits to the emergency department or urgent care center, according to a new study from Cigna.
The study, conducted alongside its telehealth arm MDLive, found that patients who saw virtual providers also saw 19% fewer visits to the ER or urgent care. In addition, virtual urgent care visits reduced duplication of care by 16% compared to other virtual primary care providers or specialists.
Cigna notes that these reductions in unneeded visits are especially crucial as hospitals face down the current COVID-19 surge, caused by the highly infectious omicron variant.