Covid-19 Policy Update: April 2024
April 12, 2024
The CDC recently updated its isolation guidance, so it felt like a good opportunity to send out another update. I hope everyone is well!
Top Three
CDC Lifts COVID Isolation Guidance: CDC Guidance / Press Release / Background for CDC’s Updated Respiratory Virus Guidance:
CDC dropped its five-day COVID-19 isolation recommendations suggesting that people return to normal activities if symptoms improve and they are fever-free for at least 24 hours without needing medicines.
“CDC is making updates to the recommendations now because the U.S. is seeing far fewer hospitalizations and deaths associated with COVID-19 and because we have more tools than ever to combat flu, COVID, and RSV.”
Katelyn Jetelina: The CDC's decision to update COVID-19 isolation guidance is supported by data from models, real-world examples, and surveys, suggesting that the change will not significantly increase community transmission.
WSJ: "You should now follow the same precautions with Covid as you take with the flu, according to new guidelines from the CDC. That means staying home until you’ve gone a day with no fever and symptoms start to improve. Take other precautions for the next five days, including wearing a mask and limiting close contact with others."
“After resuming normal activities, the CDC recommends people consider additional strategies for the next five days to prevent the spread of the virus, including wearing a well-fitted mask and keeping a distance from others.”
“Many people have not been following the five-day isolation guidance anyway, health officials say. A recent survey by the CDC found less than half the people questioned said they would use an at-home COVID test if they had COVID symptoms.”
"Last month, the California Department of Public Health issued guidance similar to what CDC is considering implementing nationwide. Several school districts in the state have communicated that new guidance to their communities."
"Practices across the country are mixed, however. Some communities long ago dropped required 5-day isolation periods for those testing positive for COVID but having no symptoms, while other localities have maintained the protocol."
What the Data Says About Pandemic School Closures, Four Years Later: Via NYT:
"Some schools, often in Republican-led states and rural areas, reopened by fall 2020. Others, typically in large cities and states led by Democrats, would not fully reopen for another year."
"A variety of data — about children’s academic outcomes and about the spread of Covid-19 — has accumulated in the time since. Today, there is broad acknowledgment among many public health and education experts that extended school closures did not significantly stop the spread of Covid, while the academic harms for children have been large and long-lasting."
Mounting Research Shows That COVID-19 Leaves An Indelible Mark on the Brain: Via the Conversation.
"In addition to brain fog, COVID-19 can lead to an array of problems, including headaches, seizure disorders, strokes, sleep problems, and tingling and paralysis of the nerves, as well as several mental health disorders."
"Severe COVID-19 that requires hospitalization or intensive care may result in cognitive deficits and other brain damage that are equivalent to 20 years of aging."
"Another study ... documented worse memory function at several time points up to 36 months following a positive SARS-CoV-2 test."
Researchers found that some recovering COVID-19 patients still had blood markers that show ongoing brain injury while they registered as healthy on routine blood inflammation tests, a study published in the journal Nature Communications said."
KFF Survey: An estimated 17 million adults currently have long COVID.
COVID-19 RESEARCH
FDA Authorizes New Drug to Protect High-Risk Patients From Covid: FDA granted an emergency use authorization for Invivyd's antibody Pemgarda to help bolster immune defenses in patients 12 and older who have a medical condition or are receiving immunosuppressive medications that may render vaccines less effective. The therapy was authorized solely as a preventive measure, and not as a treatment for COVID infection or protection for a recent exposure to an infected patient.
Promoting Public Health with Blunt Instruments: Evidence from Vaccine Mandates: NBER paper:
"Our findings suggest that vaccine mandates may have worsened healthcare workforce shortages: following adoption of a state-level mandate, the probability of working in the healthcare industry declines by 6%"
Vaccine Mandates May Not Have Been Effective: Study in PNAS:
"Results showed that COVID-19 vaccine adoption did not significantly change in the weeks before and after states implemented vaccine mandates, suggesting that mandates did not directly impact COVID-19 vaccination."
"Compared to states that banned vaccine restrictions, however, states with mandates had lower levels of COVID-19 booster adoption as well as adult and child flu vaccination, especially when residents initially were less likely to vaccinate for COVID-19."
Bivalent COVID Vaccine Shows 54% Protection in School-age Kids: Via CIDRAP.
Bivalent COVID Vaccine Effective Against Severe Illness in Children: Two new studies suggest that the bivalent (two-strain) Pfizer/BioNTech mRNA COVID-19 vaccine offered children and adolescents good protection against severe outcomes such as hospitalization during Delta and Omicron predominance.”
Reports of COVID-19 Vaccine Adverse Events in Predominantly Republican vs Democratic States: Via JAMA: States with a 10% increase in Republican voting reported a 5% increase in COVID-19 vaccine-related adverse events (AEs), a 25% increase in severe AEs, and a 21% higher proportion of AEs characterized as severe, with more pronounced associations in older people.
Delays, Mixed Messages in COVID Booster Rollout May Have Cost Nearly 30,000 Lives: Via CIDRAP.
Repeat COVID Testing May Be Better Strategy Than Quarantine: CIDRAP on a daycare study.
“The test-to-stay strategy avoided an estimated 7 to 20 days of quarantine per child, with no significant increase in infections. A regression-discontinuity-in-time analysis suggested a 26% reduction in COVID-19 cases.”
The Fourth Anniversary of the Covid Pandemic: Via the NYT.
Resources
Why School Absences Have ‘Exploded’ Almost Everywhere: NYT on new AEI Return to Learn tracker data.
Republicans Haven’t Learned From Trump’s COVID Failures: Via Jonathan Chait
"Soon, evidence began emerging that school closings did little to stop the spread of the 2020 pandemic. But many progressives, acting out of attachments to both stern mitigation practices and teachers unions, resisted this evidence."
"Emily Oster became a hate target for her early research demonstrating what is now conventional wisdom. Not everybody on the left was wrong, but almost everybody who was wrong about this was on the left. I started writing about the issue in early February 2021. Over time, pointing out the error of school closings generated less and less blowback, and it has finally become a widely accepted position"
A Generation of Kids Still Needs Help: Via The 74 / Education Recovery Scorecard.
Despite K-2 Reading Gains, Students Face a ‘Much Harder Journey’ Ahead: Via Amplify / The 74:
The number of K-2 students on track in literacy has increased by 2 percentage points compared to last year, but the progress is slower than the 5 percentage point leap between 2021-22 and 2022-23.
Despite improvements, students still haven't reached pre-COVID reading performance levels, and experts suggest that while many students have now hit grade-level performance, reaching those who are severely behind remains a challenge.
Exploring GenAI Capabilities: It’s difficult to grasp the full range of GenAI capabilities unless you see some of them in action. Over the last year, I’ve delivered dozens of GenAI presentations and compiled more than 100 examples and prompts in this master deck to illustrate some use cases.
Celebrating The Life of Don Shalvey: Obituary and more via National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, EdSource, and the University of the Pacific. Don Shalvey, a national education leader for over 50 years, passed away at the age of 79. He is remembered as a devoted educator who worked tirelessly to create learning opportunities for all students. Shalvey founded Aspire Public Schools, sponsored the first charter school in California in 1992, and served as the Deputy Director for K-12 Education at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation from 2009 to 2020. His visionary leadership, entrepreneurial spirit, and dedication to student success had a profound impact on education throughout the nation.
Remembering Bentley: Bentley recently passed away. For 11 years, he brought immeasurable happiness to everyone he encountered, from the little children who eagerly hugged him to the adults who couldn't help but smile when they saw his head poking out of the car's sunroof during drives. He loved to run, but the last year of his life was marked by challenges as he battled a degenerative spinal disease that gradually robbed him of the use of his legs. As his mobility declined, walks were replaced by rides in a wagon so he could still visit the dog park. He only complained when he didn’t get enough pets. His last day was filled with a steady stream of people who stopped over to say goodbye, so his last memories were of those who loved him. The house feels empty without his presence, but I’m so grateful for each day, every tail wag, all the walks, and the incredible gift of love that he offered unconditionally.
