Modern Healthcare reports tonight that
HHS spokesperson Michael Caputo on Monday tweeted that HHS intends to extend the COVID-19 public health emergency that is set to expire on July 25. The extension would prolong the emergency designation by 90 days. Several payment policies and regulatory adjustments are attached to the public health emergency, so the extension is welcome news for healthcare providers.
The Centers for Disease Control released updated guidance on the use of cloth face coverings during the COVID-19 emergency.
Cloth face coverings are recommended as a simple barrier to help prevent respiratory droplets from traveling into the air and onto other people when the person wearing the cloth face covering coughs, sneezes, talks, or raises their voice. This is called source control. This recommendation is based on what we know about the role respiratory droplets play in the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19, paired with emerging evidence from clinical and laboratory studies that shows cloth face coverings reduce the spray of droplets when worn over the nose and mouth. COVID-19 spreads mainly among people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet), so the use of cloth face coverings is particularly important in settings where people are close to each other or where social distancing is difficult to maintain.
Healthcare Dive alerts us that
Gilead will charge between $2,340 and $3,120 for a typical course of treatment with its COVID-19 drug remdesivir, which has been shown to speed the recovery of patients hospitalized with the infectious disease.
The drug’s price will depend on whether patients are covered by government insurance or commercial health plans. Gilead will offer remdesivir to governments in developed countries at a price of $390 per vial. In the U.S., private insurers will pay $520 per vial.
Most patients will be treated for five days, using six vials, Gilead said in announcing its much anticipated pricing decision Monday. If treatment stretches to 10 days — initially the standard treatment course — remdesivir’s cost would rise to $5,720 for patients who are commercially insured.
The announced prices are in line with expert predictions.
MedCity News discusses Walmart’s new health clinics.
The company rolled out two Walmart Health clinics this month, in Loganville, Georgia and Springdale, Arkansas.
These aren’t your usual walk-in clinics that might serve as a quick place to get vaccinated or get a cold checked out. Rather, they’re more like a one-stop shop for healthcare, with primary care, urgent care, diagnostics, x-rays, behavioral health and dental care.
Walmart Health’s other big differentiator: A primary care appointment costs just $40. For children? $20.