The Food and Drug Administration last week reissued its emergency use authorization of Quest Diagnostics’ SARS-CoV-2 rRT-PCR test for use with pooled samples containing up to four individual swab specimens collected under observation.
Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) News
Below are links to AHA Today stories on novel coronavirus (COVID-19). For all coronavirus resources and news updates, visit our COVID-19 page.
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A COVID-19 trial vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca produced neutralizing antibody responses in patients with SARS-CoV-2, according to a study published July 20 in The Lancet.
The New England Journal of Medicine last week released a study showing that the use of dexamethasone resulted in a lower, 28-day mortality rate among patients receiving invasive ventilation or oxygen.
In 2016, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and former Archbishop Desmond Tutu spent one week together in deep discussion about joy. How to obtain it and hold on to it in a changing and often chaotic world.
The Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response July 21 at 12 p.m. ET will host a COVID-19 webinar on “Critical Care: Lifesaving Treatment and Clinical Operations.”
The Food and Drug Administration at 8 p.m. will close its COVID-19 hotline for questions related to COVID-19 diagnostic tests and device shortages, including personal protective equipment and respirators.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is developing guidance that will no longer recommend a second negative test within 24 hours before COVID-19 patients emerge from isolation, according to news reports from a press call with Brett Giroir, M.D., assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services.
The Federal Reserve Board modified the Main Street Lending Program to provide a new borrowing option for nonprofit organizations including hospitals, a move advocated for by the AHA.
The AHA, American Medical Association, and American Nurses Association urged Senate leaders to include in the next COVID-19 relief bill provisions to strengthen the federal response for racial and ethnic minority and marginalized communities, which are disproportionately affected by the pandemic.
In situations where supplies are limited, the National Institutes of Health’s COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines Panel recommended prioritizing remdesivir for use in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 who require supplemental oxygen but are not mechanically ventilated or on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.
The Department of Health and Human Services announced that it will distribute a second round of funding from the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund to hospitals that have been highly impacted by COVID-19. Payments totaling $10 billion will go out to over 1,000 hospitals as early as July 20.
Congress returns to Washington, D.C., on Monday, and the stakes are extremely high. The Senate will begin serious negotiations on the next COVID-19 relief package, and we expect Congress to pass legislation before the August congressional recess.
Disproportionate rates of COVID-19 illness and death among racial and ethnic minorities likely stem from a higher probability of exposure to the virus at work and at home, according to a study by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality researchers published in Health Affairs.
The Food and Drug Administration added to its FAQs on testing for SARS-CoV-2 a list of laboratories that should no longer be used.
AHA issued a refresh of its COVID-19 resource on ways hospitals and health systems are caring for mothers and babies during the pandemic.
The Internal Revenue Service July 6 issued a clarification on the tax treatment of funds received from the Provider Relief Fund.
Americans overwhelmingly support hospitals and further aid as front-line health care providers fight to defeat COVID-19, regardless of party affiliation, according to a poll released by the Coalition to Protect America’s Health Care.
Through its 100 Million Mask Challenge AHA partnered with Microsoft, UPS, Kaiser Permanente, Goodwill, Merit Solutions and consulting firm Kearney to create HealthEquip, a smart app to connect hospitals treating COVID-19 patients with donations of personal protective equipment.
The Food and Drug Administration added dexamethasone sodium phosphate to its lists for temporary compounding by outsourcing facilities and pharmacy compounders during the COVID-19 emergency.
Two new case studies affirm that cloth face coverings “are a critical tool in the fight against COVID-19 that could reduce the spread of the disease, particularly when used universally within communities,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.