The Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office for Civil Rights issued guidance today explaining that COVID-19 vaccine status would not be covered under Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rules.
Within its new guidance, HHS reminded that HIPAA does not apply to employer or employment records on the grounds that the rules only apply to HIPAA-covered entities like health care providers...
The U.S. has fallen far behind in distributing the vaccines that it pioneered.
In April, when I received my second Moderna shot, America was on a roll. Adjusted for population, the United States had distributed more COVID-19 vaccines per capita than any country but Israel, Chile, the United Kingdom, and a smattering of small nations and islands. With a surge of doses, we could have been No. 1 in the world.
Five months later, the U.S. is...
While many assume that side effects from a COVID-19 vaccine mean that the shot is working, researchers at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore state that people should not interpret the symptoms that way.
The researchers found that whether one experienced side effects or not, the vaccines worked exceedingly well at generating a strong immune response.
Overall, 99.9% of the study participants successfully developed antibodies for fighting...
A new heart disease drug hailed as “life changing” has been approved for use in areas of the United Kingdom.
The manufacturer, Novartis, and the National Health Service (NHS) of England and Wales struck a deal to offer the drug at a reduced cost.
The decision came after a global trial showed that the drug can “safely cut cholesterol by 50% .”
If 300,000 people receive the drug,...
The mu variant of the coronavirus was first identified in Colombia in January and has since caused isolated outbreaks in South America, Europe and the United States.
It's a version of the coronavirus that was first identified in Colombia in January and has since caused isolated outbreaks in South America, Europe and the United States.
The World Health Organization last month listed it as a “variant of interest”...
Mandates for hospital employees to get the shot could end up raising tensions.
In July, stories about Olivia Guidry’s death went viral. The 24-year-old had, earlier in the pandemic, posted a vaccine conspiracy theory to her Twitter account. “This vaccine has been released using recombinant DNA faster than any vaccine in the world,” it read. “Do. Not. Get. It. It’s not safe.” Then,...
Washington — President Biden announced Wednesday he is ordering the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to require nursing homes to have vaccinated staff for them to be able to participate in Medicare and Medicaid and receive funding from the federal programs.
The vaccination requirement will be the first time the federal government has implemented any type of vaccination requirement besides those for ...
The World Health Organization (WHO) Solidarity trial provided information about four potential COVID-19 treatments at the beginning of the pandemic.
After determining that none were effective, the researchers paused the trial at the end of 2020.
The trial is now entering a new phase, with up to 50 countries expected to take part.
The WHOTrusted Source has announced that its Solidarity clinical trial,...
An untold number of Americans have managed to get COVID-19 booster shots even though the U.S. government hasn't approved them.
DENVER (AP) — When the delta variant started spreading, Gina Welch decided not to take any chances: She got a third, booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by going to a clinic and telling them it was her first shot.
The U.S. government has not approved booster shots against the virus, saying it has yet...
America’s Covid-19 vaccination rate is at around 60 percent, for ages twelve and up. That’s not enough to reach so-called herd immunity, and in states like Missouri — where a number of counties have vaccination rates under 25 percent — hospitals are overwhelmed by serious outbreaks of the more contagious Delta variant.
The vaccine resisters offer all kinds of reasons for...
Medical groups' calls for COVID-19 vaccination mandates for healthcare workers reached a fever pitch on Monday, with the American Medical Association (AMA), American Nurses Association, and 55 other organizations joining the chorus supporting mandatory vaccination.
"It is critical that all people in the healthcare workforce get vaccinated against COVID-19 for the safety of our patients and our colleagues," said Susan R. Bailey, MD,...
A coalition of medical organizations on Tuesday called on health care facilities to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations for employees.
"Prior experience and current information suggest that a sufficient vaccination rate is unlikely to be achieved without making COVID-19 vaccination a condition of employment," the statement from the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), the Infectious Diseases Society of America...