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Few Nursing Home Residents Have Gotten Latest Covid Vaccine
Good morning and welcome to the Weekly New York Health Care newsletter, where we keep you posted on what's coming up this week in health care news, and offer a look back at the important news from last week.
Beat MemoUptake of the updated Covid vaccine remains sluggish as the holiday season rapidly approaches, even among vulnerable groups that are much more likely to be hospitalized or die from the virus.
Just over one-fifth of New York nursing home residents have gotten the latest shot, according to federal survey data.
That's slightly higher than the national average of 17 percent across all U.S. Nursing homes but still a low number for a group at higher risk of suffering severe Covid outcomes.
Experts say the low rate is partly a consequence of the country's shift to commercial rather than government distribution for the latest vaccine.
"When we had the government distribution, nursing homes were highest priority," New York Health Commissioner James McDonald told POLITICO in an interview last month. "What you saw with the transition to the commercial market is chain pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS got the vaccine first. Nursing home long-term care pharmacies did not."
McDonald said nursing homes' vaccine uptake rates concern him, although he sees momentum building.
Still, two months into the rollout of the updated vaccine, over 8,000 nursing home residents across New York are still waiting for a shot, according to state data released on Wednesday.
That accounts for about 8 percent of the state's 97,000 nursing home residents.
"Clearly, nursing homes were not made a top priority," Jim Clyne, CEO of the long-term care provider association LeadingAgeNY, told POLITICO.
One-third of New York nursing homes have not administered the updated Covid vaccine at all, despite a Health Department directive that nursing homes must offer all consenting residents an opportunity to receive it, according to the most recent state data.
A Health Department spokesperson said its Office of Aging and Long-term Care and Office of Public Health have "taken several steps to protect long-term care facility residents and their staff by reiterating the importance of vaccination for all consenting residents and health care personnel, as well as encouraging them to implement infection control and prevention measures."
IN OTHER NEWS:
— Protesters rallied outside NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull on Saturday to demand information about the death earlier this month of Christine Fields during childbirth. Fields died after undergoing an emergency C-section, News12 reported. The health system said it is unable to discuss the care and treatment of specific patients due to health privacy laws.
"The health and safety of our patients is our highest priority, and we express our sincere condolences to those affected by this tragic loss," Health + Hospitals spokesperson Stephanie Buhle said in a statement. "NYC Health + Hospitals has a steadfast commitment to providing quality, dignified, culturally responsive care to all New Yorkers without exception. We will continue to make advances to protect the safety and health of new mothers and address the national crisis of high rates of maternal mortalities."
— Gov. Kathy Hochul signed legislation Friday to require camps and youth sports programs to establish implementation plans for automated external defibrillators and have at least one person on hand at camps, games and practices who is properly trained to use them. The device is used to help people experiencing cardiac emergencies.
"By requiring that at least one person is trained to properly use an AED at every sports event, camp and practice, this new law will help protect tens of thousands of kids in New York State — and is a really important step in saving lives," Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin said in a statement. Hamlin, 25, suffered cardiac arrest during a game in January and was revived by CPR and an automated external defibrillator.
ON THE AGENDA:
— Tuesday, 6 to 8 p.M. Mount Sinai will host a public forum on the proposed closure of the Beth Israel campus at Baruch College's Engleman Hall.
— Thursday at 1 p.M. The HHC Insurance Company/Physician Purchasing Group hosts its annual meeting.
— Thursday at 3 p.M. The NYC Health + Hospitals Board of Directors hosts its monthly public meeting.
GOT TIPS? Send story ideas and feedback to Maya Kaufman at [email protected].
Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You'll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day's biggest stories.
What you may have missed— A long-awaited expansion of the Essential Plan, which covers low-income New Yorkers who are ineligible for Medicaid, has been delayed until at least April 1. The plan to extend eligibility to those earning between 200 percent and 250 percent of the federal poverty line was first authorized by state lawmakers in the 2022-23 state budget and was slated to roll out on Jan. 1.
The Health Department applied in May for federal approval of the expansion but asked in September for officials to pause their review. The state submitted an updated application last week, which eliminates the previously planned $15 monthly premiums for enrollees in the newly eligible income tier.
The updated application also lays out plans to reimburse insurance companies for lost premium revenue as a result of the Essential Plan expansion, which is expected to spur the migration of about 69,000 relatively healthy, low-cost enrollees off qualified health plans. The subsidies will total about $45 million in 2024 and $63 million annually in subsequent years and be paid with federal pass-through savings. But the state is on the hook if those are exhausted.
Odds and EndsNOW WE KNOW — A mysterious respiratory illness sickening dogs across the U.S. Could be caused by a new type of bacterial infection.
TODAY'S TIP — Keeping a (good) secret to yourself can have an energizing effect.
STUDY THIS — In the first half of 2023, up to one-quarter of people seeking abortions did not receive them due to new state bans, according to new estimates.
What We're Reading— Mount Sinai moves up closure of some Beth Israel services, Crain's New York Business reports.
— Senators call for investigation of health insurers' role in driving up drug costs, The Wall Street Journal reports.
— A biotech slump is emptying labs and threatening research on new drugs, Bloomberg reports.
— Via The New York Times: Why long-term care insurance falls short for so many.
Around POLITICO— Via Daniel Payne and Erin Schumaker: "No one's promising you can keep your doctor anymore."
— Medicare Advantage plans under Congress' microscope for care denials, Robert King reports.
— Expiring Covid benefits and new limits on safety net programs could hurt Biden in 2024, a team reported.
MISSED A ROUNDUP? Get caught up on the New York Health Care Newsletter.
CDC, FDA Expedite Availability Of Additional Doses Of RSV Vaccine For Infants
BALTIMORE - Viruses seem to be everywhere this time of year.
That's why some parents are looking to protect their babies from the Respiratory Syncytial Virus, or RSV, which can lead to serious illness.
The CDC announced on Thursday the release of more than 77,000 additional doses of Beyfortus, a vaccine designed to protect infants from RSV.
CDC and FDA will continue to be in close contact with manufacturers to ensure the availability of additional doses through end of this year and for early 2024 to meet the demand.
"CDC and FDA are committed to expanding access to this important immunization so that more parents have peace of mind during the winter virus season," said Dr. Nirav D. Shah, CDC's principal deputy director.
Parents, however, have recently run into problems trying to get the newly approved RSV vaccine for children.
"It all started originally when we took my daughter to her routine four-month pediatrician visit and they said the RSV vaccine has been approved by the FDA, it's coming, you should get it," parent Kelly Bocskor said. "We said OK, we'll probably have it in a couple of weeks, so we waited a couple of weeks, we called, and they said we don't have it."
From her living room in Severn, the mother of two cuddles her baby girl Emily as she shares what the past few months have been like.
"RSV is just a really bad virus for babies, especially young babies," Bocskor said. "They are recommending it for babies under eight months, and my daughter, she just turned 5 months a couple of days ago."
Cases on the rise: how to protect infants from RSV 02:04Bocskor spent Emily's infancy fighting to gain access to the RSV shot to protect her ahead of what could be a dangerous respiratory virus season.
"We can't find the vaccine anywhere," she said.
And that is where the problem lies.
"Nobody I have talked to has gotten access to this vaccine," Bocskor said. "At this point, it's like a figment of the imagination. Nobody has had access to it."
This comes just months after the vaccine was approved in July by the CDC.
Pediatrician Dr. Monique Soileau-Burke says it became clear the demand was greater than the supply.
"Parents are not the only ones that are frustrated," Soileau-Burke said. "Pediatricians are frustrated as well. We have been waiting for this magic wand for so many years."
RSV gets its scary reputation from the more serious infections that come with a fever, cough, runny nose and trouble breathing, and in some cases, it leads to hospitalization.
"It is a very expensive vaccine. They were able to order some, but I think in order to minimize losses, the drug companies are not making as much as probably intended to, and then kind of waiting for insurances to see what they would do with reimbursement," Soileau-Burke said. "It really put us at a crossroads that has led to where we are now where we just don't have enough supply."
Soileau-Burke is dedicating her time to improve the barriers and manage expectations parents are facing.
"We know that RSV is very serious," Soileau-Burke said. "There are children that can go into full respiratory failure and even die from RSV."
While it may be hard to find, Soileau-Burke says all isn't lost.
"We do have another alternative especially for protecting young children," Soileau-Burke said. "Moms can get the vaccine when they are pregnant, so there is a different RSV vaccine for moms that are between 32 to 36 weeks are eligible for and that can be very protective for your baby during that first RSV season."
That's an option Soileau-Burke says will transfer protection to the baby.
"I have been a pediatrician for over twenty years now," Soileau-Burke said. "I do find that it's frequent that children's issues only get brought up when there is a problem."
At this time, the vaccine cannot be reordered through the vaccine's maker, Pfizer, because there is such a limited supply.
While there is a shortage of the vaccine for babies, it is still available for pregnant mothers.
The RSV shot for elderly people is also widely available.
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Nicky ZizazaVaccine Bus Returning In December
The Island Boards of Health are hosting a flu and COVID-19 vaccine clinic on Dec. 10.
The Island Boards of Health are hosting a flu and COVID-19 vaccine clinic on Dec. 10.
The Island Boards of Health will hold a flu and COVID-19 vaccine clinic on Sunday, Dec. 10, from 9 am to 5 pm, at the Martha's Vineyard Regional High School.
The vaccines will be given out on a charter bus that has come to the Island the past several years following the pandemic to provide inoculation.
COVID boosters and flu vaccines are for adults and children ages 6 months and older.
Preregistration is strongly encouraged to ensure adequate vaccine availability. Register here: bit.Ly/BusVaccineAppt.
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