News
Clayton discusses the lack of individual genetic data consent
Mar. 17, 2020—More than half of Americans want money and control when companies or organizations use their genetic data, a new study suggests. Public views about the value of DNA continue to evolve, especially as people become more concerned about privacy, the study authors write in PLoS ONE. “It is striking how much control people want to...
Schaffner talks to the NYT about how individuals can minimize risk of exposure to COVID-19
Mar. 16, 2020—The new coronavirus is a serious threat to the elderly, as federal officials have been at pains to note recently. But they have stepped gingerly around advice for another group of Americans also at special risk from the infection: those with chronic health conditions. “All you folks older than 60 and those who have underlying...
Grijalva to be inducted into American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI)
Mar. 13, 2020—Vanderbilt University School of Medicine faculty are among 80 physician-scientists who will be inducted this year into the American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI), an elite honor society of physician-scientists from the upper ranks of academic medicine and industry. Carlos Grijalva, MD, MPH, associate professor of Health Policy, and program director of the Vanderbilt Center...
NYT turns to Schaffner to explain what the coronavirus does to the body
Mar. 12, 2020—As the coronavirus gained a foothold in the United States, thousands of employees from Seattle to Silicon Valley were told to work from home. Public school districts in several states have shut down, universities are moving classes to online only, and even churches are limiting services or prayer meetings. A global health conference in Orlando, Fla., planned...
Neuzil discusses a coronavirus vaccine
Mar. 12, 2020—Two Maryland biotech firms said Tuesday they will join the effort to make a vaccine against the new coronavirus that is sickening people in the state and across the globe. The University of Maryland School of Medicine’s Center for Vaccine Development also is already working on a vaccine for the new virus as part of...
Schaffner discusses U.S. coronavirus testing
Mar. 12, 2020—Italy is implementing radical new measures against COVID-19, and that could soon be the new normal for other countries fighting the virus. But experts say that a number of unique factors in the U.S. — a sluggish approach to testing, and a lack of public healthcare and paid sick days for some workers — are...
Political turmoil over the ACA led to single-payer discussions ten years later says Buntin
Mar. 12, 2020—The political turmoil over the law may have led, at least in part, to the debate over Medicare for All, says Melinda Buntin, chair of the Department of Health Policy at Vanderbilt University. “Ironically, one of the reasons we are having this discussion about single-payer is because the ACA has been so unsettled,” she says,...
Graves: Coronavirus could be a financial burden for many Americans
Mar. 12, 2020—Americans’ health may not be the only thing at stake as the coronavirus continues its unrelenting spread in the U.S. The virus could also prove financially crippling for many individuals. “There are all kinds of pathways for people to be financially affected by this,” said John Graves, an associate professor of health policy at Vanderbilt...
Early mortality rates for coronavirus are likely misleading says Schaffner
Mar. 10, 2020—It’s possible that COVID-19 isn’t as fatal as most people think. And stockpiling hand sanitizer and masks could hurt people who are truly at risk: the elderly and those with weak immune systems. Dr. William Schaffner, professor of preventive medicine and infectious diseases at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, says our understanding of the...
Creech discusses pediatric coronavirus cases
Mar. 10, 2020—Ten weeks into the Covid-19 epidemic, enough information has emerged to start filling in some of these gaps. Scientists believe the virus that causes the respiratory disease is likely to be transmitted in droplets through coughing. The available data suggests that a single contagious person will infect about 2.2 others, on average. Globally, 3.4 percent of reported...
Older adults should ‘stay at home’ due to coronavirus says Schaffner
Mar. 10, 2020—Amid a coronavirus outbreak in the United States, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is encouraging older people and people with severe chronic medical conditions to “stay at home as much as possible.” This advice is on a CDC website that was posted Thursday, according to a CDC spokeswoman. Dr. William Schaffner, a Vanderbilt University...
Surprise healthcare costs may add to coronavirus worries says Graves
Mar. 6, 2020—Coronavirus is putting Americans’ physical and financial health at risk. It has the potential to wipe out the savings of some everyday Americans who are struggling to afford medical costs. A trip to the ER or urgent care for coronavirus can set them back by thousands of dollars, to the point of bankruptcy, but avoiding treatment for financial reasons could...
PBS News Hour provides a COVID-19 guide with Schaffner
Mar. 6, 2020—In the weeks since the World Health Organization declared novel coronavirus a global public health emergency, the number of cases linked to COVID-19 jumped tenfold, from nearly 8,000 confirmed cases to more than 90,000 cases. More than 3,000 people have died in more than 60 countries. And while the number of new cases in China —...
NBC News talks to Schaffner about what to do if you think you have the coronavirus
Mar. 4, 2020—With a growing number of cases of the new coronavirus confirmed across the United States, having a sore throat or some sniffles might feel like a cause for concern. But in most cases, there is no reason to worry, experts say. “If you have any anxiety or reason to believe you have coronavirus infection, or heck, even...
Health Policy faculty explain how the ACA dented the health care cost curve
Mar. 3, 2020—A decade after the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, there is evidence that the landmark health legislation has contributed to slower growth U.S. health care spending. An analysis published in the March issue of the journal Health Affairs coincides with the 10-year anniversary of the law’s passage and illustrates how the law...