Covid cases, hospitalizations continue to surge as U.S. reaches 'critical point' in pandemic

Healthcare

U.S. only at ‘the beginning of the steep part’ of the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. Scott Gottlieb says

Carrens October 31, 2020

Dr. Scott Gottlieb warned that the United States is only “at the beginning of the steep part of the epidemic” as the number of coronavirus infections and hospitalizations across the country break grim records.

In an interview on CNBC’s “The News with Shepard Smith” on Friday, the former FDA chief said, “You’ll see cases start to accelerate into the coming weeks, I think the inflection point really is going to be Thanksgiving.”

The U.S. hit 9 million confirmed cases of the virus on Friday, more than any other country. Thursday marked a single-day record by logging 90,456 new cases, according to the latest NBC News tally. For context, that is more than one new case every second. Gottlieb explained that this surge was more confluent across the entire country, as opposed to earlier this year when it was focused first in New York, and then, the South.

“The reason why it doesn’t feel very bad in most parts of the country right now is because it’s moderately bad everywhere,” Gottlieb said.

In Illinois, cases have skyrocketed to more than 6,900 in one day, according to Johns Hopkins. It more than tripled the number of what was added one month

Healthcare

A $200 Debit Card Won’t Do Much for Seniors’ Drug Costs

Melissa Jenn October 30, 2020

If they’ve been listening to President Donald Trump, seniors may be expecting a $200 debit card in the mail any day now to help them pay for prescription drugs.

He promised as much this month, saying his administration soon will mail the drug cards to more than 35 million Medicare beneficiaries.

But the cards — if they are ever sent — would be of little help. Policy experts say that what Medicare beneficiaries really need, as well as younger Americans, are sweeping federal changes to close the gap between what their health insurance pays and what drugs cost them.

The nation’s 46.5 million enrollees in Medicare’s Part D prescription drug program — except for those who qualify for low-income subsidies — face unlimited out-of-pocket exposure to drug costs even though the Affordable Care Act finally closed the infamous “doughnut hole.” After Part D enrollees have spent $6,550 and reached the catastrophic threshold in a given year, they still must pay 5% coinsurance on the list price of their drugs.

Congress was considering legislation to lower drug prices and cap out-of-pocket costs until early this year, when the COVID-19 pandemic

Healthcare

Haiku Winner Unmasked! Read If You Dare

Melissa Jenn October 30, 2020

A big thanks to our readers who participated in our second annual KHN Halloween Haiku Contest. Your entries — like our health care system — ranged from eerie and haunting to downright spooky. And, based on a review by our expert panel of judges, here’s the winner and a sampling of finalists. Also, keep an eye on KHN’s social media accounts (Twitter, Instagram and Facebook) for more of our favorites. Enjoy!