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Report: CT had among highest telehealth usage in 2020
Zachary Vasile, Hartford Business Journal, Dec. 6
Despite using telehealth less than more rural states before the pandemic, Connecticut was quicker than most states to adapt to remote health services during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic last year.
More women than men put off medical appointments due to pandemic, survey finds
Kristina Tedeschi Wayne, Connecticut Health Investigative Team, Dec. 8
More women than men delayed or missed medical care they thought they needed at the height of the pandemic. Child care is cited as a contributing factor for this disparity, and while telehealth services made health care more accessible, it’s not always a suitable option for some health needs.
Data science proved what Pittsburgh’s Black leaders knew: Racial disparities compound COVID risk
Christine Spolar, Kaiser Health News, Dec. 7
Black researchers, medical professionals, and allies knew that people of color, even before COVID, experienced inequities in public health. A grassroots coalition took on the role of collecting missing COVID-19 race and ethnicity data and advocating for better public health data collection practices.
Why addressing racism against Black women in health care is key to ending the US HIV epidemic
Nabila El-Bassel, The Conversation, Dec. 6
Disparities in HIV diagnoses, treatment, and mortality rates persist for Black women. In order to end this crisis, researchers suggest that the health care field must address life contexts and experiences, provide culturally tailored HIV care, and increase the number of Black doctors as well as provide structural racism training to health care providers.
Amid push to vaccinate children, other challenges deluge pediatricians
Noah Weiland, The New York Times, Dec. 7
Many children who are most in need of the COVID-19 shot because they have chronic medical conditions, live in crowded housing, or have vulnerable family members have yet to receive it. This is in part due to caregivers being wary of the vaccine or focusing on getting treatment for more immediate mental and physical problems that have gone unchecked for much of the pandemic.