'Natural Immunity' Holds Up Against Severe Omicron Cases in Qatar Study 'Robust' protection from previous infection against hospitalization, death by reinfection Molly Walker medpagetoday

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https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/10/covid-pandemic-mental-health-damage-could-last-a-generation.html?__source=sharebar|email&par=sharebar

Aside from the obvious physical impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, health professionals have told CNBC that many people are struggling with the immense emotional and societal changes it has brought. What’s more, they’re finding it hard to adapt to a “new normal” now that lockdowns are starting to ease. 

Many psychologists and psychiatrists have reported an influx of people seeking mental health support during the pandemic, with the unprecedented global health crisis causing an increase in anxiety and depression as well as exacerbating existing mental health conditions.

“I have never been as busy in my life and I’ve never seen my colleagues as busy,” Valentine Raiteri, a psychiatrist working in New York, told CNBC.

“I can’t refer people to other people because everybody is full. Nobody’s taking new patients ... So I’ve never been as busy in my life, during the pandemic, and ever in my career,” he said, adding that he’s also seen an influx of former patients returning to him for help.

Most vulnerable still in jeopardy as COVID precautions ease Two years into the pandemic Jackie Hansen still left home only for doctor visits, her immune system so wrecked by cancer and lupus that COVID-19 vaccinations couldn’t take hold. Then Hansen got a reprieve — scarce doses of the first drug that promises six months of protection for people with no other way to fend off the virus. AP NEWS

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As state mask rules end, school leaders are in the middle As some of the last statewide mask mandates in the U.S. near an end, decisions about whether students and teachers should continue to wear masks in school are shifting to local leaders, who are caught in the middle of one of the most combustible issues of the pandemic. AP NEWS

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends masks for students and staff inside buildings, leaving district leaders to weigh the federal guidance against what they have seen in their own schools and heard from the parents, teachers and students. ...

The Biden administration will pay community groups to help boost trust in vaccines The Health Resources and Services Administration is distributing $66.5 million to community groups working across 38 states and Washington, D.C. to help with local vaccine outreach. NPR.org

In this politically polarized time, White House health officials have acknowledged that they are not always the best messengers when it comes to promoting COVID-19 vaccines.

You're more likely to die from COVID-19 in the US than in other high-income countries amid omicron, data suggests More infections may lead to a rise in COVID-19 deaths, health experts say. Data shows the U.S. case fatality rate is among the highest in the world. YahooNews

Although the omicron variant of the coronavirus is less likely to cause severe disease compared with previously dominating strains, the USA is still experiencing more COVID-19 deaths than at almost any other point in the pandemic.