Today’s NewsStand

Today’s NewsStand

By Iowa Hospital Association|
|April 15, 2021

Iowa news

Iowa veteran Brandon Ketchum, who died by suicide, honored with bill to improve VA mental health care

All four of Iowa’s US House members are supporting the “Sgt. Ketchum Rural Veterans’ Mental Health Act,” which is scheduled for a hearing in Congress Thursday, April 15. The bill’s title honors Ketchum, a Davenport veteran who died by suicide in 2016 after being denied inpatient psychiatric care at the Iowa City Veterans Administration Medical Center. (Iowa City Press-Citizen)

University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics reports near-record patient volumes

Suresh Gunasekaran, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics CEO of University of Iowa Health Care told the state Board of Regents Wednesday that if it weren’t for the mandatory two-month shutdown because of COVID-19 in 2020, UIHC would have set all-time records for patient volumes in the hospital. Treating patients from all 99 counties in the state in 2020, Gunasekaran told the regents that UIHC has tried to maintain some level of expense control, while also dealing with unprecedented volumes during the pandemic. (The Daily Iowan)

Iowa partners with federal government for plan to help more people with mental disabilities land jobs

Iowa is one of seven states partnering with the federal government to help people with mental disabilities join the workforce. The US Department of Labor announced Wednesday that it will provide researchers to help the state create a plan for an initiative. The state also will partner with mental health advocacy groups in Iowa. (Des Moines Register)

 

National news

Ex-FDA chief sees ‘struggle’ to vaccinate more than half of US population

One in 4 Americans would refuse a coronavirus vaccine if offered, a recent NPR/Marist poll found. Another 5% are “undecided” about whether they would get the shot. And some researchers are growing worried that this reluctance will be enough to prevent the nation from reaching what’s known as herd immunity. A former head of the Food and Drug Administration also has doubts about reaching herd immunity, the point at which the virus can no longer spread easily through the population. (National Public Radio)

Women report worse side effects after a COVID-19 vaccine

In a study published last month, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed safety data from the first 13.7 million COVID-19 vaccine doses given to Americans. Among the side effects reported to the agency, 79.1% came from women, although only 61.2% of the vaccines had been administered to women. Nearly all of the rare anaphylactic reactions to COVID-19 vaccines have occurred among women, too. CDC researchers reported that all 19 of the people who had experienced such a reaction to the Moderna vaccine have been female, and that women made up 44 of the 47 who have had anaphylactic reactions to the Pfizer vaccine. (The New York Times)

At least 5,800 Americans infected despite vaccination

The US has more than 31.4 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 564,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The global totals: 138 million cases and more than 2.97 million deaths. More than 250.99 million vaccine doses have been distributed in the US and 194.7 million have been administered, according to the CDC. (USA Today)

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