Most US COVID markers show declines Deaths were up a bit, but hospitalizations, emergency department visits, and test positivity trended downward. CIDRAP

COVID metrics showed more declines last week, though deaths from the virus—one of its severity indicators—rose 4.2% compared to the previous week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in its latest data update. Deaths were up a bit in a number of states but were up more sharply in Oregon.

COVID-19 vaccine uptake in pregnancy linked to previous vaccine acceptance Advanced maternal age, obesity, Asian race, and private insurance were all correlated to COVID-19 vaccine uptake. CIDRAP

Pregnant patients who accepted recommended tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap) and flu vaccines in pregnancy were more likely to also get vaccinated against COVID-19, according to a new study in the Journal of Infection.

Vaccine refusal linked to mistrust in health authorities Chinnapong/iStock CIDRAP

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In a new study in JAMA Network Open, authors review 28,000 interviews on vaccine uptake and hesitancy conducted in Hong Kong and Singapore from February 2020 through January 2022 to determine what was driving vaccine refusal.

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A New Way to Inspire People to Get a COVID Vaccine Research on what makes people willing to donate organs shows how to motivate many of the unvaccinated this fall Benjamin Rosenberg,Jason Siegel,Katelyn Jetelina Scientific American

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Pfizer more than doubles price of lifesaving Covid-19 medication Paxlovid as US transitions out of pandemic phase | CNN The price of the lifesaving Covid-19 antiviral medication Paxlovid will more than double as the United States transitions out of the emergency phase of the pandemic, drugmaker Pfizer said Wednesday. Meg Tirrell CNN

The list price, before insurance, will be $1,390 for a five-day course, Pfizer said in a statement. That’s 2.6 times higher than the $530-per-course price paid by the US government, which provided Paxlovid free to patients during the pandemic. The Wall Street Journal first reported the new price.

U.S. income inequality grew through pandemic years, Fed survey shows American families on average saw large gains in income and wealth from 2019 to 2022 and households became less fragile during a period marked by the severe disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic and massive subsequent government spending, a Federal Reserve survey published Wednesday showed. Ann Saphir Reuters

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Prepandemic ICU performance related to lower COVID mortality rates Caiaimage/Martin Barraud/iStock CIDRAP

... in Chest, a review of intensive care units (ICUs) across 10 Brazilian states shows that those with lower mortality rates pre-pandemic saw lower COVID-19 death rates.

Moreover, efficiently managed ICUs also saw lower mortality from the novel coronavirus, suggesting that hospital management is directly linked to patient outcomes.

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Think You Have COVID? Here's The Best Way To Test Yourself Now. There's a chance you've been doing it wrong lately. MSN

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Why Diarrhea Symptoms Happen With COVID-19 Although COVID-19 is largely regarded as a respiratory illness, diarrhea is a common gastrointestinal (GI) symptom that can occur during the early stages of the infection. In some people, diarrhea may be the only symptom. Others may experience persistent diarrhea as a feature of long COVID (a condition in which COVID symptoms persist for more than 12 weeks after the infection has cleared). Yahoo Life

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Changing nature of Covid: Is it just a regular winter bug now? There were more flu deaths than Covid ones last winter - but for some, the fear remains. Why? BBC News

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there is a much more seasonal pattern to the virus, with a long lull during spring and summer.

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