π Paxlovid underprescribed π· Letter Campaign to White House for free N95s π Tell NIH to fund science-based Long Covid treatment studies π§ͺ Petition: Healthcare settings Need Mask requirements π·
Nobody is immune to advertising and influence campaigns, buyer beware too-good-to-be true stuff being peddled on social media.
Contents:
- Events, Actions, & Campaigns
- Pandemic field notes & βLiving with the virusβ
- In the News (virus & adjacent media, science, news, and op-eds)
- This is NOT Fine section (gaslighting & other outrages)
- He(a)rd Scuttlebutt (the pandemic grapevine)
πΊπΈ USA Letter campaign: Urge the White House and Congress to Provide Free N95 Masks!
The White House restarted its free rapid test distribution program, but this alone is not enough. The White House needs to also launch a program to mail free N95 masks to the public. Right now, in many cities and states across the country there is no distribution of free N95 masks to the general public. The federal N95 mask distribution program at pharmacies ended awhile ago. By MandateMasksUS
πΊπΈ USA Petition: Require masking in all healthcare settings
Just in time for flu season, withΒ 300-400Β US residents dying from COVID-19 daily, the CDC revised its infection control guidelines regarding mask-wearing in healthcare settings, from hospitals and clinics to home care providers and nursing homes. The new guideline recommended masks only need to be worn in healthcare settings when COVID Community Transmission rates are high, based on the CDC map. This change is dangerous, unethical and based on flawed data. By the Peopleβs CDC
πΊπΈ USA Petition: NIH must stop Long COVID trials on debunked, damaging therapies and fund strategic therapeutic research.
It is neglectful that RECOVER would choose to focus on exercise and forms of CBT when there are dozens of drugs available waiting to be tested that could lead to better outcomes and/or more clues as to the pathophysiology of Long COVID. It is a waste of taxpayer money, limited resources, and crucial time to be testing harmful, debunked hypotheses. By STRATEGIES FOR HIGH IMPACT
NIH is planning to spend dangerously limited resources to research remedies that have already been debunked
I have heard that the UK government has pushed CBT and GET therapies as a way to shift responsibility to the patient for their illness and lack of recover, and it made it harder for people with certain conditions, such as ME or Long Covid, to qualify for disability benefits. Now that scheme seems to be in full swing here in the U.S. The longer they can spend wasting time chasing already debunked remedies, the longer they can claim people arenβt βreallyβ sick, and shirk responsibility for the ongoing public health disaster. This is not okay and we must hold the NIH accountable for better.
ποΈ In the news
Medical Xpress: Experts: Underuse of COVID-19 drug Paxlovid shortchanging patients by Ariel Hart, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution December 30, 2022 ("I think we're seeing a lot of physicians just pause, even though there's very clear indication that this drug not only saves lives, but it saves hospital days, it reduces long COVID risk," said Dr. Bronwen Garner, an infectious disease specialist at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital.)
WBUR: Health experts dissatisfied with CDC pandemic response forms 'The People's CDC' January 04, 2023 (audio report) (Since the early days of the pandemic, the American public has turned to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for guidance on everything from mask-wearing to vaccines. But nearly three years later, a group of doctors and public health experts are dissatisfied with the CDC's pandemic response, and they want to do something about it. The groupΒ β which calls itself the People's CDC β has criticized the government agency for lax restrictions and for creating the appearance the pandemic is over. Here & Now's Celeste Headlee speaks with Mindy Thompson Fullilove, a social psychiatrist at The New School. She's also a members of the People's CDC.)
Fortune: Strokes, heart attacks, sudden deaths: Does America understand the long-term risks of catching COVID? BY CAROLYN BARBER (Even the fittest are not immune. Researchers have noted a troubling pattern of sudden cardiac death in athletes in the wake of the pandemic, owing possibly to COVID-related heart complicationsβmyocarditis and pericarditis.)
Forbes: Long Covid Is Keeping Millions Of People Out Of Work by William A. Haseltine (He then used Covid-19 case counts and labor force participation rates to estimate that 3.5 million people are out of work due to long Covid. Culter estimated lost wages at approximately $200 billion per year. It is also important to remember that, staggering as they are, these estimates do not represent the full economic burden of Long Covid. They focus only on lost wages and not the reduced capacity of caretakers and the significant healthcare costs for Long Covid patients.)
Wendell Potter NOW: The price of health insurance has increased 24% over the last year (According to the Bureauβs September Consumer Price Index report, all items in the index increased 8.3% collectively over the previous 12 months. So when I saw how much the price of health insurance had gone up relative to overall inflation, I assumed it must have been because the cost of drugs and medical services had gone way up. But no. During those same 12 months, medical care services overall increased 5.6%. Drilling down into the charts a bit, I saw that physiciansβ services increased 1.1% during the year, while hospital services and prescription drugs were up 4.0% and 3.2% respectively. Itβs worth noting that the big health insurers reported massive profits last year. Now we know one reason why.)
This is NOT fine
Teachers, underpaid and high risk exposure to viral infections.
Economic Policy Institute: The teacher pay penalty
He(a)rd Scuttlebuttβ¦ pandemic grapevine ππ±
Iβm still hearing stories of people in the U.S. (and elsewhere), including seniors, being refused Paxlovid from their family doctors because the doctors are uninformed about Paxlovid, or are full of misinformation. There is evidence that Paxlovid is helpful, including in potentially reducing the risk of Long Covid.
Masks work! They work for all the variants. Yet someone told me that their doctor told them that the virus circulating now mysteriously evades masks. This is disinformation from the anti-mask zealots and good gravy, doctors should be more careful about consuming online disinformation.
Social media accounts get bought and sold by different organizations. Especially ones that have a niche large following. Then, they appear to slowly insert different narratives and propaganda, to persuade those people in a different direction. It's subtle because if they just do a sharp turn you wouldn't fall for it. So if you think some account you used to think was cute is now slipping in some stuff that doesnβt sound rightβ¦ it may not be your imagination.
Nobody is immune to advertising campaigns and the vast majority of stuff I see now on Twitter is wellness woo to Qanon pipeline bait. There are a lot of people trying to sell expensive stuff to desperate and worried people. I find it appalling to see the level of predator behaviour on social media from dubious influencers. Buyer beware. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is!
Twitch streamer Homozygoat has sessions where he answers peopleβs questions about science and scientific studies and often reviews the latest pandemic news and disinformation.
βThereβs a struggle going on right now for the soul of public health.β β Gregg Gonsalves, December 2022