Category: Health

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HHS Reverses Policy Allowing LGBTQ Discrimination In Healthcare

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra (image via Twitter)

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra (image via Twitter)
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra (image via Twitter)
The Department of Health and Human Services has affirmed that federal laws banning sex discrimination in health care also protect LGTBQ people. From the Washington Post:

The Biden administration said Monday it would provide protections against discrimination in health care based on gender identity and sexual orientation, reversing a policy of its predecessors that had been a priority for social conservatives and had infuriated civil liberties advocates.

The reversal is a victory for transgender people and undoes what had been a significant setback in the movement for LGBTQ rights.

The shift pertains to health-care providers and other organizations that receive funding from the Department of Health and Human Services. Civil rights groups had said the Trump policy would allow health-care workers and institutions, as well as insurers, to deny services to transgender individuals.

Today’s update was made in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County. That decision affirmed federal nondiscrimination protections in employment and said that sex discrimination includes discrimination against people on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Research shows that one-quarter of LGBTQ people who faced discrimination postponed or avoided receiving needed medical care for fear of further discrimination. In a statement, American Medical Association president Susan R. Bailey applauded the move:

“The Biden administration did the right thing by terminating a short-lived effort to allow discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation when seeking health care.

“As we said in our letter to the previous administration, the interpretation was contrary to the intent and the plain language of the law. It’s unfortunate that such an obvious step had to be taken; the AMA welcomes this common-sense understanding of the law.

“This move is a victory for health equity and ends a dismal chapter in which a federal agency sought to remove civil rights protections.”

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Free Beer: Brewery Hosts ‘Shot And A Chaser’ Vaccination Clinic

Free beer was on the menu at a Buffalo brewery which hosted a 'shot and a chaser' pop-up vaccination site
(photo: Pavel Danilyuk/Pexels)
Free beer was on the menu at a Buffalo brewery which hosted a ‘shot and a chaser’ pop-up vaccination site. I am not mad at this. From Buffalo News:

Saturday was the first day that Erie County worked with a local microbrewery to host its Shot and a Chaser program, offering individuals who got their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine at Resurgence Brewing Company a free pint glass and coupon for the vaccinated person’s drink of choice.

County Executive Mark Poloncarz, who was nursing his own drink in one hand while directing vaccine recipients to open table with the other, was happy to see the county’s first Shot and a Chaser effort going so well. Before the vaccinations started at 11 a.m., there was a line out the door.

If free beer wasn’t your thing, the local theme park Darien Lakes will host a pop-up vaccination clinic on Tuesday offering free admission to anyone who gets their shot. We’ve gone from former presidents encouraging vaccinations to major sports groups like Major League Baseball, the NFL, the NBA and more giving away free tickets to get those shots in arms. Whatever gets it done, folks.

(h/t JoeMyGod)

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Herd Immunity May Not Be Achievable In US

(photo: Anna Shvets/Pexels)
Medical experts have said that the goal in defeating the coronavirus in the U.S. would be to achieve ‘herd immunity’ – when some 80 percent of Americans would be protected from the virus via natural infection or vaccines. Now, with vaccination rates slowing down, health officials aren’t sure we’ll actually reach that level. From the New York Times:

Instead, they are coming to the conclusion that rather than making a long-promised exit, the virus will most likely become a manageable threat that will continue to circulate in the United States for years to come, still causing hospitalizations and deaths but in much smaller numbers.

How much smaller is uncertain and depends in part on how much of the nation, and the world, becomes vaccinated and how the coronavirus evolves.

It is already clear, however, that the virus is changing too quickly, new variants are spreading too easily and vaccination is proceeding too slowly for herd immunity to be within reach anytime soon.

Medical experts originally thought 60-70 percent of Americans getting vaccinated would get us to herd immunity, but they’ve upped that estimate to 80 percent due to the new variants of the virus spreading. Polls show nearly 30 percent of Americans have no plans to get vaccinated. Read the full article here.

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Doctor Dies Of COVID Just Weeks After Calling Vaccines ‘Totally Unnecessary’

Dr. Stephen Karanja

Dr. Stephen Karanja
Dr. Stephen Karanja (image via Update of Nepal Banda)
A doctor in Kenya who virulently opposed the use of COVID-19 vaccines has died from the virus just weeks after calling the shots “totally unnecessary.” From the BBC:

Dr Stephen Karanja, chairman of the Kenya Catholic Doctors Association, advocated steam inhalation and hydroxychloroquine tablets.

Health authorities and the World Health Organization (WHO) rejected his claims.

“[The vaccine] being distributed in Kenya, has been reviewed and found safe not only by the WHO rigorous process but also by several stringent regulatory authorities,” the WHO said in March.

In a letter dated 3 March Dr Karanja said that “there are drugs that have been repurposed and used effectively to treat Covid-19,” adding that “we also know that vaccination for this disease is totally unnecessary making the motivation suspect.”

I don’t celebrate the death of any man, but this is would seem to be yet another lesson to those who continue to fall for or espouse anti-vaccine propaganda. #Choices

(h/t JoeMyGod)

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100 Million Americans Fully Vaccinated Against COVID

Vials of COVID-19 vaccine

Vials of COVID-19 vaccine White House coronavirus response director Jeff Zients announced today that over 100 million Americans are now fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. From CNN:

The news comes as CNN reported that Biden’s coronavirus advisers are moving into the next phase of their response, from ramping up availability of Covid-19 vaccines to reaching those who have not yet gotten the shot.

White House officials have three overarching goals for the next 100 days: increasing accessibility, combating misinformation and assisting those without the resources to get vaccinated.

The US has administered approximately 237 million shots of the three Covid-19 vaccines as of Friday morning, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

With 330 million people in the United States, medical experts say the minimum needed in order to reach the goal of ‘herd immunity’ is 70 percent or 231 million.

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Short Film Dives Into Deep Waters Of Eating Disorders

Michael Henry in ‘How Do I Look?’ (screen captures)
For years now, funny guy Michael Henry has explored LGBTQ culture with lots of humor and creativity. His latest short film takes a different tone as he addresses the inner demons many gays battle in regard to body image and eating disorders. The video begins with Henry staring into space as images of fit, lean gays attending a fun and frolicsome pool party float by. Henry is there as well, but wearing his t-shirt and shorts as he chills in the pool. We follow Henry’s silent observations as he ponders burgers, fries…or fruit? Or not? He double-taps on InstaHunk after InstaHunk as he eats alone in the dark. Potato chips and his bedroom mirror bedevil him leading him to utilize the one escape route he knows. As the images come faster and faster, time rewinds until we land on the view of a West Hollywood billboard that succinctly sums up Henry’s message without uttering a single word.

The 100 second video is striking in its embrace of silent storytelling. And for someone who’s made a name for himself knowing how to crack wise as he spoofs gay culture, it’s clear the topic at hand is important to Henry. “I wanted to make this film with the sole intention being that you’re not alone,” wrote the writer/director in an Instagram post. “Millions of men have disordered eating behaviors and gay/bisexual men are at an even higher risk.” Studies have shown that among men who have eating disorders, 42 percent identify as gay even though LGBTQ people only make up about 4 percent of the U.S. population. A national survey of LGBTQ youth in 2018 found that 54 percent of respondents had been diagnosed with an eating disorder. If you or someone you know needs assistance when it comes to disordered eating call or text the National Eating Disorders Helpline at 1-800-931-2237. https://www.instagram.com/p/COLiH-_BbeZ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

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Washington: Super-Spreader Event Leads To Spike In COVID Infections

A super-spreader event in Washington state has led to nearly 100 COVID-19 infections

A super-spreader event in Washington state has led to nearly 100 COVID-19 infections
(screen capture via KREM2)
The pandemic deniers are still at it. From NBC News affiliate KREM2:

A three-day-long super-spreader event in Republic, Washington is causing a spike in COVID-19 cases in Ferry County. As of Wednesday, nearly 100 people had been infected.

The event was set up to recruit new Eagle’s Club members the weekend of April 9-11. Some said it was advertised as a protest against COVID-19 restrictions. The club president said it was simply a dinner and poker night to attract new members.

Health officials in Republic said patient zero was traced back to the event. Since then, infections have reached far into the community.

The bank in town had to shut down early and brought in temporary workers. One of the only grocery stores also had limited capacity and county services have taken a hit with court cases being delayed because so many workers are either home sick or in quarantine.

These kinds of events have been happening throughout the past year as the pandemic has raged on.

(h/t JoeMyGod)

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Health Officials: Fully Vaccinated Can Skip Masks When Outdoors

New York state is about to drop its face mask mandate as COVID-19 cases continue to drop in the Empire State.

A man wearing a face mask during the pandemic As vaccinations for the coronavirus have begun to slow, federal health officials announced today that those Americans who are fully vaccinated will no longer need face masks when exercising outdoors, or at small outdoor gatherings or indoors with family members of their household. From the New York Times:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stopped short of telling those people that they could shed their masks altogether in outdoor settings — citing the worrying risk that remains for transmitting the coronavirus, unknown vaccination levels among people in crowds and the still high-caseloads in some regions of the country.

Federal health officials and President Biden were announcing the updated advice on Tuesday, linking the news with the administration’s public campaign to get most American adults vaccinated by summer and trying to offer reassurances that some semblance of normal life can return.

But the C.D.C. is maintaining advice on other safety measures, saying vaccinated adults should continue wearing masks and staying six feet apart in large public spaces, like outdoor performance or sports events, indoor shopping malls and movie theaters, where the vaccination and health status of others would be unknown. And they still should avoid medium and large gatherings, crowds and poorly ventilated spaces, officials said.

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Study Warning About Face Masks Debunked, Soon To Be Retracted

Stock photo of a man working out

Stock photo of a man working out
(stock image via Depositphotos)
A study that purportedly criticized the efficacy of wearing face masks during the pandemic is about to be retracted after some funky facts came to light. From Retraction Watch:

A study that warned of the perils of using face masks as a precaution against contracting Covid-19 appears slated for retraction, Retraction Watch has learned. The 2020 paper, “Facemasks in the COVID-19 era: A health hypothesis,” was written by Baruch Vainshelboim, who listed his affiliation as Stanford University and the VA Palo Alto Health System.

But the study gained wide circulation earlier this month, thanks in part to some conservative politicians, and became the subject of fact-checks by the Associated Press and Snopes, which pointed out that the paper was published by an exercise physiologist with no academic connection to Stanford University or the NIH in a journal that accepts “radical, speculative and non-mainstream scientific ideas.

Stanford has disavowed both Vainshelboim and the paper. Snopes, the fact-checking site, cited the study as false and misleading: “The paper was published by an exercise physiologist with no academic connection to Stanford University or the NIH in a journal that accepts ‘radical, speculative and non-mainstream scientific ideas.'” Vainshelboim is not a medical doctor but reportedly holds a PhD in exercise physiology from the University of Porto in 2014. The paper got renewed traction this month after the far-right leaning fake-news site, The Gateway Pundit, which has been banned from Twitter for repeatedly posting misinformation.

(h/t JoeMyGod)

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Half Of US Adults Have Received At Least One COVID Shot

Getting my second dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine

Getting my second dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine
Getting my second Pfizer vaccine shot last month
The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new data on Saturday that shows nearly half of U.S. adults (49.7%) have received at least one dose of the corona virus vaccine. That accounts for more than 128 million over the age of 18 having received at least one shot. More than 82 million, or 31.8% of adults, are fully vaccinated. See the full data here. The U.S. is averaging just over 3 million vaccine shots a day, which is good news considering a recent poll showed 49% of Republican men have no intention of getting the shot. A big part of overcoming the pandemic relies on folks getting vaccinated in order to stop the spread of the virus. That equation now includes a focus on about new, more potent variants which now make up about half of new infections in the U.S. With that in mind, the White House announced Friday that it will allocate $1.7 billion from the recent stimulus package to target the detection, surveillance and mitigation of the variants.