COVID-19 Pandemic
Associations of Physical Inactivity and COVID-19 Outcomes Among Subgroups
Physical activity before COVID-19 infection is associated with less severe outcomes. The study determined whether a dose‒response association was observed and whether the associations were consistent across demographic subgroups and chronic conditions.Workplace Violence and the Mental Health of Public Health Workers During COVID-19
During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health workers were at an increased risk for violence and harassment due to their public health work and experienced adverse mental health conditions. This article quantifies the prevalence of job-related threats, harassment, and discrimination against public health workers and measures the association of these incidents with mental health symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic.Perinatal Care Changes During COVID-19: A Population-Based Analysis by Race/Ethnicity
The COVID-19 public health emergency created unprecedented disruptions in the use of healthcare services, which could have affected long-standing racial‒ethnic disparities in maternal care use and outcomes. This study evaluates population-level changes in perinatal health services associated with the COVID-19 pandemic overall and by maternal race‒ethnicity.COVID-19 Self-Testing Preferences Linked to Political Perspectives: Social Determinants in the U.S. Pandemic
Throughout the pandemic, partisanship has been strongly associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination status and other pandemic behaviors, such as mask wearing.1,2 It is unknown whether political perspectives are also associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) testing preferences. This research letter examines whether political perspectives in the U.S. are associated with a preference for self-testing at home versus testing in clinical settings.COVID-19 Vaccination and Racial/Ethnic Inequities in Mortality at Midlife in Minnesota
Recent research underscores the exceptionally young age distribution of COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. compared with that of international peers. This paper characterizes how high levels of COVID-19 mortality at midlife ages (45–64 years) are deeply intertwined with continuing racial inequity in COVID-19 mortality.Quitline Promotion to Medicaid Members Who Smoke: Effects of COVID-19–Specific Messaging and a Free Patch Offer
People who smoke are at increased risk of serious COVID-19-related disease but have had reduced access to cessation treatment during the pandemic. This study tested 2 approaches to promoting quitline services to Medicaid members who smoke at high rates: using COVID-19-specific messaging and offering free nicotine patches. The hypotheses were that both would increase enrollment.Family Economics and Mental Health Among High-School Students During COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic has had unprecedented socioeconomic and health impacts in the U.S. This study examined racial/ethnic and school poverty status differences in the relationship between parent job loss, experiences with hunger, and indicators of mental health problems among public high-school students nationwide during the COVID-19 pandemic.Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Nationwide Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Activities
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has underscored the need to prevent chronic disease and promote health.1,2 More than a million American lives have been lost to COVID-19, and life expectancy decreased between 2018 and 2020.3,4 Chronic diseases are major risk factors for COVID-19 morbidity and mortality.5 In addition, COVID-19 morbidity and mortality have been higher among persons from racial and ethnic groups such as those who are African American, Hispanic or Latino, and American Indian or Alaska Native as well as those living at lower SES.COVID-19 Restrictions and Adolescent Cigarette and E-cigarette Use in California
Shelter-in-place orders altered facilitators and barriers to tobacco use (e.g., outlet closures, restricted social gatherings). This study examined whether the duration of time in shelter in place and compliance with different shelter-in-place orders influenced adolescent cigarette and E-cigarette use and how the use may differ by demographic characteristics.Mortality by Education Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic, U.S., 2017–2020
Mortality disparities by SES, including education, have steadily increased in the U.S. over the past decades. This study examined whether these disparities overall and for 7 major causes of death were exacerbated in 2020, coincident with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic.The First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Changes in Preventive Services in Community Health Centers
Community Health Centers provide comprehensive primary healthcare services to many underserved populations. It is unknown how routine preventive and chronic care services in Community Health Centers may have changed nationwide during the COVID-19 pandemic.The PREVENT Pandemics Act: A National Road Map
On March 10, 2022, Senator Patty L. Murray (DWA), Chair of the Senate Health, education, labor, and pensions (HELP) committee, and ranking member, Senator Richard M. Burr, (RNC), introduced their long-awaited PREVENT Pandemics Act (S. 3799).1 The sweeping bipartisan bill, also known as the Prepare for and Respond to Existing Viruses, Emerging New Threats, and Pandemics Act, aims to counter future pandemic threats through preparation and planning.1 Potentially the signature pandemic preparedness bill of the 117th U.S.A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of the Association Between SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination and Myocarditis or Pericarditis
There have been reports of potential negative cardiovascular effects from the COVID-19 vaccine, such as myocarditis or pericarditis. This study sought to ascertain the risk of myocarditis/pericarditis after COVID-19 vaccination by conducting an extensive meta-analysis of published cases.Neighborhood Greenspace and Changes in Pediatric Obesity During COVID-19
Pediatric obesity rates increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examined the associations of neighborhood greenspace with changes in pediatric obesity during the pandemic.COVID-19 Booster Vaccination in the U.S. Military, August 2021–January 2022
A booster dose of messenger RNA vaccine protects against severe COVID-19 outcomes. This study examined the incidence of COVID-19 booster vaccination among active-duty U.S. military servicemembers between August 2021 and January 2022, factors associated with vaccination uptake, and trends over time.Adaptive Strategies for Outpatient Colonoscopies in Response to COVID-19
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused a decline in outpatient colonoscopies that continues at varying levels.1 To prevent delay in colorectal cancer (CRC) diagnoses, centers strategized to expand fecal immunochemical tests (FITs) and triage symptomatic and FIT-positive colonoscopies.2,3 Although much has been written about missed CRC diagnoses,4 few studies have examined the impact of adaptive strategies on CRC and advanced polyp (AP) detection rates.5 It was hypothesized that these strategies would increase detection rates compared with prepandemic levels owing to the targeting of high-risk patients.Control of Atherosclerotic Risk Factors During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the U.S.
Public health response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic led to widespread social and economic changes and disruption of healthcare delivery. During the pandemic, there was a reduction in primary care visits with a higher proportion of telemedicine encounters.1 Telemedicine visits were associated with lower new medication prescriptions and less frequent assessments of blood pressure (BP) and cholesterol levels.2,3Cancer Evaluations During the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Observational Study Using National Veterans Affairs Data
Fewer cancer diagnoses have been made during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pandemic-related delays in cancer diagnosis could occur from limited access to care or patient evaluation delays (e.g., delayed testing after abnormal results). Follow-up of abnormal test results warranting evaluation for cancer was examined before and during the pandemic.Excess Mortality in California by Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Understanding educational patterns in excess mortality during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may help to identify strategies to reduce disparities. It is unclear whether educational inequalities in COVID-19 mortality have persisted throughout the pandemic, spanned the full range of educational attainment, or varied by other demographic indicators of COVID-19 risks, such as age or occupation.Geographic Heterogeneity in Behavioral and Social Drivers of COVID-19 Vaccination
Little is known about how the drivers of COVID-19 vaccination vary across the U.S. To inform vaccination outreach efforts, this study explores geographic variation in correlates of COVID-19 nonvaccination among adults.Intranasal SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines: Indispensable and Inevitable
Their extraordinary efficacy notwithstanding, the parenterally administered mRNA vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have proven incapable of preventing breakthrough infections in otherwise fully vaccinated subjects.1 Interpersonal transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through respiratory droplets and aerosols by fully vaccinated subjects has also proven resistant to vaccine-induced immunity.1 These relative shortcomings of the parenterally administered mRNA vaccines are hardly unanticipated because upper airway protection against SARS-CoV-2 replication and shedding requires local mucosal rather than systemic humoral immunity.Multiscale Dimensions of Spatial Process: COVID-19 Fully Vaccinated Rates in U.S. Counties
This study aimed to examine the heterogeneity of the associations between social determinants and COVID-19 fully vaccinated rate.COVID-19 Vaccination and Intent for Vaccination of Adults With Reported Medical Conditions
Individuals with certain medical conditions are at substantially increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19. The purpose of this study is to assess COVID-19 vaccination among U.S. adults with reported medical conditions.Dispensing of HIV and Hepatitis C Antivirals During COVID-19: An Interrupted Time-Series Analysis of U.S. National Data
Little is known about the potential changes in the dispensation of life-saving hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV antivirals after the initial U.S. outbreak of COVID-19. The objective of this study was to describe the immediate and 1-year impacts of the U.S. outbreak of COVID-19 on monthly dispensing of HIV and HCV antivirals, specifically direct-acting antivirals (DAA) to treat HCV, antiretroviral therapy (ART) to treat HIV, and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV.COVID-19‒Related Childhood BMI Increases in China: A Health Surveillance‒Based Ambispective Cohort Analysis
The COVID-19 pandemic‒related BMI gain and obesity prevalence changes in children have not been clearly elucidated, especially in China. This study aims to assess the impact of pandemic-related BMI and obesity prevalence change in Chinese children aged 8–12 years.
