Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on June 22 called for a renewed commitment to value-based care based on Medicare claims data that provides an early snapshot of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Medicare population. Medicare patient data, from January 1 to May…

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Editor's Note In this study, researchers from five universities confirm that a persistent cough and fever are the most prevalent symptoms of adults infected with COVID-19. However, there is a large proportion of people who have the virus but do not display symptoms. Among the findings of this analysis of…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced June 24 that it has revised its position statement on preventing nosocomial COVID-19 infections as healthcare organizations resume regular care delivery. The Joint Commission supports the following positions: Continuing to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations for universal masking of staff, patients,…

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Editor's Note Researchers from Florida Atlantic University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science and Schmidt College of Medicine (all in Boca Raton) announced on June 24 that they have received a 1-year, $90,000 National Science Foundation RAPID project grant to design a COVID-19 knowledge base and risk assessment tool powered…

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Editor's Note A new Avalere analysis estimates the cost of COVID-19 hospitalizations could range between $9.6 billion and nearly $17 billion this year, depending on infection and hospitalization trends, the June 23 Fierce Healthcare reports. The analysis considers the cost of hospitalizations in three scenarios: $9.6 billion, if there is…

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Editor's Note This study from Mayo Clinic researchers finds that investigational COVID-19 convalescent plasma is safe following transfusion in 20,000 hospitalized patients. From April 3 to June 11, 2020, the 7-day mortality declined from 12% in the first 5,000 transfused patients to 8.6% in 15,000 subsequent patients. Mortality was higher…

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Editor's Note As hospitals begin ramping up elective surgical procedures, healthcare leaders face significant challenges, the June 23 Becker’s Hospital Review reports. A market research survey by Lumeon (Boston) found that the top operational concern for healthcare leaders is making sure patients feel safe to schedule and come into hospitals…

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Editor's Note: The American College of Physicians (ACP) on June 18 issued new practice points on the effectiveness of N95 respirators, surgical masks, and cloth masks for the prevention of COVID-19 in addition to standard precautions in healthcare and community settings. The ACP Practice Points, which were funded by the…

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Editor's Note Sandia National Laboratories (Albuquerque, New Mexico), one of three National Nuclear Security Administration research and development laboratories in the US, announced on June 22 that it is partnering with hospitals and device manufacturers to increase the availability of respirator masks for healthcare workers. Sandia is helping manufacturers test…

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Editor's Note In this retrospective study, researchers from the French Society of Neuroradiology found three main brain MRI patterns in patients with severe COVID-19. The analysis of 37 patients from 16 centers found: signal abnormalities in the medial temporal lobe (43%), an area of the brain related to cognitive and…

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