Situation Report

COVID aid fuels telehealth expansion in rural America - Roll Call As rural hospitals deal with workforce shortages and declining populations, some say telehealth offers a chance to bridge the gap. Lauren Clason Roll Call

...

Federal pandemic aid also helped slow the rate of rural hospital closures. But as facilities contend with lingering inflation, workforce shortages and declining populations, the pace of those closures is picking up again.

Telehealth offers a chance to bridge the gap in hospital deserts.

...

Germany's highest court annuls a decision to repurpose COVID relief funding for climate measures Germany’s highest court has annulled a government decision to repurpose 60 billion euros ($65 billion) originally meant to cushion the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic for measures to help combat climate change and modernize the country. AP News

...

The court ruled that the government’s move was unconstitutional and said it will have to find other ways of filling the resulting hole in the climate fund.

...

Report: Measles cases and deaths increase worldwide, as childhood vaccinations rates decline A dangerous decline in the rate of children vaccinated against measles is spurring a global increase in cases and deaths from the highly contagious virus, according to a new report. Helen Branswell STAT

...

Nearly half of US veterans had long-COVID symptoms up to 6 months later Risk factors for long COVID were Black race, ages 50 to 64, diabetes, and severe infection. CIDRAP

Nearly half of 363,000 US veterans who tested positive for COVID-19 still had symptoms up to 6 months later, and the risk factors for this condition were Black race, older age, diabetes, and severe infection, concludes a study published yesterday in the Annals of Epidemiology.

...