Week in Washington is brought to you by Michael Cohen, PhD. Tune in each week to read the latest on healthcare policy and get a glimpse of what’s on the horizon.
Week in Washington
8/19/2021
Boosters
The Biden Administration announced this week plans for providing COVID vaccine boosters to those 60 and older. While the FDA needs to ultimately approve of the booster, there appears to be increasing momentum for vaccine boosters to be provided in the Fall (currently scheduled for the week of Sept.20). Recently, Israel, which has provided much of the data on mRNA boosters, announced plans for extending booster availability to the general population (starting with those over 40).
COVID
Unfortunately, COVID cases, hospitalizations, and deaths continue to climb. Hospitalizations rose about 15%, and deaths topped 1,000 deaths yesterday. While a few states (Louisiana) appear to be improving, most state's situations continue to worsen. Data from Washington Post.
Hospital Utilization
KFF analysis of utilization trends found that that overall hospital admissions remain below expected levels. Similarly, hospital spending (for hospitals and ambulatory care) remains below expected levels (at least through June 2021). You can read more of the findings (and caveats) here
Medicaid
Missouri has begun accepting applications for Medicaid Expansion. While the applications won’t be processed until October 1, this is a sign that Medicaid Expansion in the state will finally happen.
Previous editions:
8/12/2021: Week in Washington
8/06/2021: Week in Washington
7/15/2021: Week in Washington
7/08/2021: Week in Washington
7/02/2021: Week in Washington
6/23/2021: Week in Washington
6/17/2021: Week in Washington
6/10/2021: Week in Washington