Coronavirus

UPDATED: Coronavirus In Connecticut

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There were 5 new COVID-19 deaths reported since yesterday, bringing the death toll to 7,995; hospitalizations dropped by 19 to total 486, the Department of Public Health (DPH) reported. Residents testing positive for the virus totaled 329,062, an increase of 1,062 since yesterday’s report. The state reported 8,248,401 tests completed, up 46,768. The positivity rate is 2.04%. For a county-by-county breakdown of cases, go here and click on “Daily Data Report.”

Nursing Homes

Whether By Luck Or Safety Protocols, Some Nursing Homes Remain COVID-19 Free

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The coronavirus has decimated many of the nation’s nursing homes, where elderly, chronically ill residents account for 64% of Connecticut’s death toll of 4,201 and rising. They are roughly 100 times more likely to die of the virus than other people in the state. So, the fact that some 41 of Connecticut’s 214 nursing homes have managed to keep out the virus, according to an analysis by C-HIT, is both remarkable and mystifying. Did they just get lucky? Administrators at several COVID-19-free facilities use the word “fortunate” to describe a situation they acknowledge could change at any time.

Fines & Sanctions

Nursing Home Deaths Soar

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In Connecticut, nursing home residents represent more than one-half of all coronavirus deaths, according to a new report by the state Department of Public Health (DPH). Deaths in nursing homes rose to 1,249 from 758 in one week.  The 1,249 deaths represent 55% of the state’s 2,257 COVID-19 deaths. COVID-19 cases in nursing homes increased from 3,423  to 4,814, DPH said. Of the state’s 215 nursing homes, 150 have at least one confirmed case of COVID-19, up from 135 a week ago. Kimberly Hall North in Windsor and Riverside Health and Rehab Center in East Hartford reported the most COVID-19 deaths at 39 each, followed by Abbott Terrace Health Center of Waterbury, with 37; and Sheridan Woods Health Care Center in Bristol, with 28.

Outdoors A Respite As Coronavirus Restrictions Tighten

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Residents took advantage of the sunny weather over the weekend to get out of their houses and enjoy the outdoors. In Edgewood Park in New Haven, there were people on bicycles and skateboards, people practicing yoga and playing cards in the sunshine, enjoying a reprieve from their coronavirus concerns and Gov. Ned Lamont’s increased restrictions, which begin today. Lamont on Sunday ordered that all “non-essential” workers stay home beginning at 8 tonight. Some “essential” operations, including health care providers, food stores, gas stations and pet stores, will remain open. For a complete list, go here.

Environmental Health

As Lyme Disease Spreads, Danbury Lab Focuses On Diagnostic Tools

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For nearly nine years, scientists inside the boxy brick Western Connecticut Health Network Research Center have been working to develop a more accurate test to diagnose the scourge of the Connecticut woods: Lyme disease. Lyme disease is carried by the tiny blacklegged tick, commonly known as a deer tick. When a blacklegged tick infected with Lyme bites a human, it can transmit a tiny microscopic organism, called a spirochete, that moves around the human body, evading easy detection. Researchers in Danbury have been trying to detect that spirochete, similar to those that cause syphilis and other diseases, in people’s blood. Pathology research scientist Donna Guralski powered up her microscope and computer recently to show the culprit: a fluorescent green corkscrew-shaped organism that twisted around the screen, just as it would burrow through a person’s blood vessel walls and into tissue.

Lawmakers Plan To Rein In Weaponized Drones

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When Clinton resident Austin Haughwout uploaded YouTube videos of his pistol and flamethrower-equipped drones last year, he triggered a national debate over the use of weaponized drones that is expected to result in new state legislation. Eight states, including Vermont and Maine, now have laws prohibiting or limiting the weaponization of drones, and Connecticut is expected to take up a similar ban in the next legislative session. A proposal in Connecticut to make it a felony to carry a weapon or an explosive in a drone was approved by the House during the 2016 legislative session, but the Senate failed to take action. “Hopefully, next year, we will get the legislation across the finish line,” said Rep. Stephen Dargan, D-West Haven, co-chair of the legislature’s Public Safety and Security Committee. Nationally, there were 632,068 drones registered as of December, according to Alison Duquette, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

New Law

State Prepares To Tighten Prescription Monitoring

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Connecticut’s shift next month from weekly to “real-time” reporting of prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances is an effective way to help stem opioid-related deaths, a new study suggests. Researchers from Vanderbilt University who analyzed states’ prescription drug monitoring programs – central databases that log controlled substances dispensed to patients — found that programs that were “updated with greater frequency” and that reported data for a broad range of drugs were associated with greater declines in opioid-related deaths. The study in the journal Health Affairs comes as Connecticut prepares to put a policy in place requiring that pharmacies report controlled substance (Schedule II to V) prescriptions “immediately,” or at least within 24 hours after they are dispensed, into the central database, known as the Connecticut Prescription Monitoring and Reporting System (CPMRS). The CPMRS, maintained by the Department of Consumer Protection, can be accessed by doctors and pharmacists to give them a complete picture of a patient’s medication use, including prescriptions by other providers. It also can be used by law enforcement officials to investigate physician prescribing.

Injury Death

In Connecticut, Suffocation Deaths “Distinctive Injury”

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A new report that identifies the most distinctive cause of injury death for each state, compared to national rates, has some findings that might be expected:

Seven states in Appalachia and the Southwest, for example, had unintentional firearms deaths roughly two to four times the national rate. Those states have high gun ownership rates and lack safe-storage laws. Three states – Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska – had as their most distinctive injury motor vehicle crashes involving passengers. Four safety provisions – primary seatbelt laws, mandatory key ignition locks for drunk drivers, booster seats, and nighttime driving restrictions for teens – are absent in Montana, while South Dakota and Nebraska have only one each. Connecticut had as its most distinctive cause of injury death “unintentional suffocation” – the only state with that outlier cause.

America's Health Rankings

Connecticut Ranks Sixth Healthiest State In National Report

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Connecticut slipped two spots, to sixth place, in an annual report on the nation’s health, with high scores on infectious disease prevention and immunizations, but relatively poor rankings on drug-related deaths and excessive drinking. The 2015 version of the longstanding America’s Health Rankings shows Connecticut remains among the top 10 healthiest states overall, behind Hawaii, Vermont, Massachusetts, Minnesota and New Hampshire, in that order. In 2014, Connecticut ranked fourth after Hawaii, Vermont and Massachusetts. The report, issued by the United Health Foundation, shows Connecticut fares well on measures such as obesity, occupational fatalities, health insurance access, and the incidence of infectious disease. It is among the 10 best-ranked states in terms of cancer deaths (seventh), premature death (third), availability of primary care physicians and dentists (sixth and fifth, respectively), and percent of children living in poverty (eighth).

Women's Health

Don’t Soak Up The UV Rays; Skin Cancer Rates On The Rise

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As melanoma rates continue to rise nationally, particularly among young people, experts warn that skin cancer will become increasingly common unless community leaders and policy makers emphasize its prevention. More than 9,000 people nationwide die of melanoma each year, and the rate of new cases doubled between 1982 and 2011, according to a recent U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report. In 2011 alone, the most recent year for which CDC data is available, there were 65,000 cases diagnosed in the United States. In Connecticut, residents are diagnosed with skin cancer at the same rate as residents of Florida, CDC data shows. Outreach efforts and policy changes could prevent an estimated 21,000 new cases of melanoma each year, the CDC said.