COVID-19 Update | February 18, 2021

Staff Contact: Daniel Landon

Gov. Parson and key leaders in his administration participated in a conference call with the MHA membership on the state’s response to the COVID-19 emergency. It was the 27th such call with the MHA membership since the pandemic began. The calls provide an opportunity for an update on state activities and hospital issues, and for hospital executives to ask questions and make comments.

State officials noted encouraging metrics related to COVID-19 community spread and hospitalizations. Most of the call focused on the distribution and administration of COVID-19 vaccine. State officials indicated that their recent guidance on state residency standards for vaccinations does not preclude giving second doses to non-Missourians who received a first dose before the guidance was issued. Also, the state soon will issue a plan for redistributing vaccine from the National Guard vaccination events cancelled this week because of inclement weather. The state expects to begin distributing the Johnson & Johnson single dose vaccine upon its imminent approval. Also, a portal will be created for clinicians to report suspected variants of the COVID-19 virus. The governor and other state officials expressed appreciation for the work of high-throughput hospitals in implementing vaccinations.

Staff Contact: Andrew Wheeler

The Biden administration announced a $1.6 billion investment to expand COVID-19 testing, increase manufacturing of testing supplies and spur virus genome sequencing. The plan includes $650 million to expand testing in schools and underserved congregate settings; $815 million to increase domestic manufacturing of testing supplies; and $200 million to identify, track and mitigate emerging strains through genome sequencing.

Staff Contact: Jessica Stultz

Learning sessions for Managing Hospitals & Patients in a Pandemic ECHO will be held from 4 to 5 p.m. on the first and third Tuesday of the month. Please plan to participate Tuesday, March 2, to learn more about tele-management strategies from Dr. Javeed Siddiqui. Dr. Siddiqui has been actively involved in telemedicine since 2002, and has been recognized as a national thought leader in the field.

Staff Contact: Mat Reidhead

Yesterday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released its provisional estimates of life expectancy in the U.S. for the first half of 2020. For the population as a whole, average life expectancy at birth fell by one full year to 77.8 years — a decrease not seen since World War II. The disproportionate impact of 490,000 COVID-19-related deaths on Black and Hispanic Americans bears out in the latest vital statistics data. For non-Hispanic Black Americans, life expectancy during the first half of 2020 fell by nearly three full years — from 74.7 in 2019 to 72. For Hispanic Americans the decrease was nearly two years — from 81.8 in 2019 to 79.9. The CDC study period included only the first three months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Staff Contact: Keri Barclay

Duke University recently produced a policy brief on best practices for Promoting Utilization of COVID-19 Monoclonal Antibody treatments. The increasing use of monoclonal antibody treatment for COVID-19, with the intent of avoiding downstream hospitalizations or serious complications for newly infected, high-risk COVID-19 patients, is a viable treatment option. While the initial COVID-19 antibody treatments were authorized for emergency use based on limited clinical trial evidence, recently reported results from larger clinical trials have confirmed substantial benefits with little evidence of safety problems for patients who have not progressed to more severe symptoms. These studies show similar efficacy across available treatments, benefits with shorter infusion times, and benefits as potential prophylaxis in households and nursing homes. A range of innovative infusion practices to increase access and use has come to light and are encouraged to be widely shared.

Staff Contact: Mary Becker

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch recently featured caregivers from BJC HealthCare, Mercy, SSM Health and St. Luke’s Hospital who shared personal stories of why they chose to get vaccinated. Each individual made their own decision about vaccination based on what they believe is best for themselves, their loved ones and their communities.

Shawn Rodgers, a patient care technician in the cardiovascular ICU at St. Luke’s Hospital, said his decision to get the vaccine was not a simple one. “I had some hesitations at first, and you may, too. I had concerns about the timeline of the vaccine development and the inclusion of minorities in the vaccine trials. After talking with colleagues, I discovered that minorities accounted for more than one-third of trial participants in the Moderna and Pfizer trials, according to each developer’s results. This disease has taken us all by storm, especially in the minority community where death rates are disproportionately larger. After considering all of the information available, why would I take a chance and not receive the vaccine?”

Staff Contact: Jill Williams

The American Hospital Association’s Physician Alliance released the Well-being Playbook 2.0, a new resource that builds on its 2019 playbook to help hospital and health system leaders support their teams during the COVID-19 pandemic. The update includes curated resources specific to COVID-19 on suicide prevention, operationalizing peer support, and a guide to walk leaders through well-being program development and execution.