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| Presented By UnitedHealth Group |
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| Axios Vitals |
| By Tina Reed ·Nov 19, 2021 |
| 😎 Happy Friday, Vitals readers. Today's newsletter is 711 words or a 3-minute read. |
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| 1 big thing: America's new COVID vaccine flashpoint |
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| Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios |
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| Some health officials are now arguing that people should only be considered "fully vaccinated" against COVID-19 after they've get a booster shot, Axios' Caitlin Owens writes. Why it matters: Booster shots provide remarkably strong protection against coronavirus infections, but getting the majority of Americans to stick out their arm again could be extremely challenging. Driving the news: Two governors said this week that they don't consider people who haven't received a booster shot to be fully vaccinated. - "We're 11 months into the vaccination program. In my view, if you were vaccinated more than six months ago, you're not fully vaccinated," Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said yesterday.
- The New Mexico state health secretary told the AP that changing the definition of fully vaccinated is being discussed and he expects a new public health order to be released in the next few weeks.
- The U.K. will adjust the definition to include booster shots, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Monday.
Reality check: Only 17% of U.S. adults have received a booster shot, according to the CDC. Most adults aren't even eligible yet. - The FDA is expected to OK booster shots for all adults at least six months out from their first round of Pfizer or Moderna. The CDC will also begin considering the change today.
What they're saying: NIAID director Anthony Fauci told Axios earlier this week that changing the definition federally "hasn't been on the table yet," but didn't rule it out in the future. The other side: Changing the definition "would have major implications across many aspects of the pandemic, in some cases making it more difficult to control," said Walid Gellad, a professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh. Go deeper. |
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| 2. Black Americans more likely to die preventable deaths |
 Data: The Commonwealth Fund; Map: Kavya Beheraj/Axios Black Americans in almost every state were more likely than white Americans to die from preventable and treatable health conditions, Axios' Marisa Fernandez writes about a report released Thursday by the Commonwealth Fund. - Only six states had an above-average performance for all racial and ethnic groups — Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, Hawaii and Oregon.
What they're saying: "If we want to get the pandemic under control and mitigate these inequities, we need to dismantle the racist policies and practices that have led us here," Commonwealth Fund president David Blumenthal said in a statement. Share this story. |
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| 3. Tweet du jour: Hospital vax rates |
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| Screenshot: @EricTopol (Twitter) |
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| A message from UnitedHealth Group |
| Health care's $320 billion opportunity |
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| The U.S. health system could save $320 billion over the next decade by treating common conditions in a primary care setting instead of the emergency department. See how UnitedHealth Group is helping people access high-quality, affordable health care that meets their unique needs. |
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| 4. Fear, loneliness calls increased in early pandemic |
 Fear and loneliness replaced relationship and livelihood concerns during the pandemic, a team of scientists found from looking at millions of helpline calls in multiple countries, Axios' Eileen Drage O'Reilly writes. The big picture: Doctors and policymakers are trying to assess the toll of quarantines, school closures and other public health measures. Using helpline data could become an important assessment tool, the researchers said. What they found: The team examined 8 million calls or texts to 23 helplines in 14 EU countries, the U.S., China, Hong Kong, Israel and Lebanon from 2019 to early 2021. - They found a 35% rise on average in helpline calls that peaked about six weeks after the initial outbreak.
- "There were two main motives for people to call: They were anxious about the virus and anxious about getting infected. The other one was loneliness, [as] people with stay-at-home orders were cut off from their social circle," said Marius Brülhart, professor of economics at the University of Lausanne and co-author of the study, published Wednesday in Nature.
- The risk of suicide did not appear to increase, he said.
If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (En Español: 1-888-628-9454; Deaf and Hard of Hearing: dial 711 then 1-800-273-8255) or the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741. |
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| 5. Catch up quick |
- CBO: Democrats' package saves about $160B on drug prices. (The Hill)
- Texts or calls to 988 must route to suicide prevention hotline by July. (Axios)
- Fauci says he expects babies and toddlers will have a COVID-19 vaccine by spring 2022. (Insider)
- CVS Health to close hundreds of drugstores over next three years. (ABC News)
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| 6. Dog of the week |
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| Photo: Kathy Wilson |
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| Meet Dove, a fearless 8-year-old Jack Russell terrier. - Dove lives in Marshfield, Massachusetts, with her dads, Jonathan Cleveland and Michael Delia.
- When Dove's not hamming it up for the camera in time for Thanksgiving, she loves digging for clams at the beach, swimming in the ocean, and going for walks at the nearby cranberry bogs.
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| A message from UnitedHealth Group |
| Helping older Americans access care at home |
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| UnitedHealth Group is working to expand access to convenient, high-quality, home-based care for seniors. See how we're helping to close gaps in care by providing more than 1.7 million seniors access to free, in-home primary care this year. |
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