A false and dangerous rumor has recently been making the rounds that could put more people’s lives at risk, with some rumor mongers accusing hospitals of inflating the numbers, claiming that the hospitals have some kind of profit motive for treating COVID patients.  Let’s talk about why this rumor is false and dangerous.

Can hospitals classify deaths as whatever they want?

NO. There are strict policies and procedures in place, not to mention incurring huge liability and the possibility of audits if done incorrectly. Determining the cause of death is much more complicated than just filling in whatever looks most likely. Medical examiners investigate, test, and when necessary, do autopsies. They report cause of death based on CDC guidelines. Death certificates are also accountable to federal jurisdiction, with each state’s public health division reporting back to the CDC. In addition, knowingly falsifying medical records is a felony crime with a potential fine of $250,000 or 5 years in jail.

Does it cost more to treat COVID-19 patients?

Yes, and most hospitals are losing money due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  COVID-19 patients stay in the ICU, and the PPE, medications, and the equipment they use–including ventilators–is extremely expensive. In addition to the exorbitant cost of treating a COVID-19 patient, most hospitals have had to restrict routine care and elective procedures, so they are losing revenue. Read more about how Medicare pays hospitals here.

What’s the truth?

Deaths are most likely being under-reported, not inflated. Due to a lack of adequate testing and the people who die at home and aren’t counted, it is most likely that the official numbers have underestimated the amount of COVID-19 related deaths, in addition to the scope of the virus.  Some states also give physicians the option of counting the cause of death for a COVID-19 positive patient as due to an underlying condition, rather than the virus if their symptoms weren’t respiratory.  But as we are finding out, COVID-19 can present in many ways unrelated to breathing that have only recently started to be investigated. Read more about how and why the numbers are being updated here.

For additional reading about the true scope of COVID-19 deaths, click here.

Yours in Strength,

The Take Back Control Team

Essential workers have been on the frontlines in the past months, risking exposure to the virus to continue providing essential services, often for low pay and without the option of staying home and receiving unemployment.  Their rights, or lack thereof, have been one of the main parts of a national discussion as COVID-19 has thrown United States’ infrastructure and working conditions into sharp contrast with other developed nations. As many parts of Wisconsin suddenly reopen following the State Supreme Court decision issued on Wednesday, it is not only essential workers who are having to leave the relative safety of their homes, and many workers are uncomfortable with the protection and accountability measures enacted by the government to ensure their safety in the workplace during this pandemic.

 

Some counties are issuing their own stay-at-home or social distancing orders, but many still have not. You can find more information on individual county mandates here.

 

But what if businesses don’t follow safe practices or employees still don’t feel safe to return to work?  There are depressingly few options and very little legal guidance available for workers at this time, but we are committed to following this issue and providing updates.  

 

When refusing to return to work is tantamount to quitting, that’s not an option for most people.  What else can you do? You can file a complaint with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), contact your local law enforcement (don’t call 911 or emergency services), contact the Department of Health or other relevant agencies. 

 

This leaves workers concerned about their health in a very difficult position. Here are some recommendations on how to handle this situation if you find yourself in the position of having to go back to work before you feel comfortable to do so:

 

·       Familiarize yourself with suggested reopening business guidelines and report to the recommended agencies, with the option to do so anonymously, if you feel the business is operating unsafely. Read more about recommended reopening guidelines here.

·       If it is still an option to work remotely, do so.

·       If your work is not providing PPE, do your best to wear your own PPE and follow social distancing protocols.  

·       Do not touch your face. 

·       When you get home, disrobe and wash your clothes immediately and then take a shower.  

Because this is such a novel situation we are in, legal precedents have yet to be set. If you cannot find PPE in your area, the resource section on our website has links to how to make your own masks and disinfectant under “Protective Guidance.”

 

To file a complaint through OSHA, click here.

To file a complaint through the Department of Health, click here.

 

This article provides some additional information on what the ruling means for businesses, workers, and consumers. 

 

Yours in Strength,

The Take Back Control Team

 

What is contact tracing? Contract tracing is an infrastructure that allows COVID-19 cases to be tracked down and isolated, significantly mitigating the spread of the virus.  Tracers find active coronavirus cases, contact the positive individual and find out where they have been and who they have had contact with in the recent weeks.  The tracers provide necessary information and advice to the infected individual and contact those who may have been exposed.  All positive cases are encouraged to self-isolate for two weeks and to continue to monitor their condition.  For more detail on the principles of contact tracing, read the CDC’s contact tracing guide here.

Contact tracing is a necessity to contain COVID-19.  It is a technique already used and credited with containing SARS and Ebola outbreaks.  When implemented properly, it requires data monitoring and management, ongoing communication with the public, housing options for those who need to self-isolate and a comprehensive testing infrastructure.

Before the current outbreak, the US employed about 2,200 tracers but experts say that the US will need closer to 100,000 in order to combat the spread of COVID-19. While this may help offset currently staggering unemployment numbers, it is not clear whether the US stimulus bills so far passed will have enough funding designated to hire the necessary amount of tracers to make a dent.  

To manage COVID-19 epidemics going forward, communities in the United States need: (1) ready access to rapid diagnostic tests for all symptomatic cases or those with a reasonable suspicion of COVID-19 exposure; (2) widespread serological testing to understand underlying rates of infection and identify those who have developed immunity and could potentially return to work or school without fear of becoming infected; and (3) the ability to trace all contacts of reported cases. In order to trace all contacts, safely isolate the sick, and quarantine those exposed, we estimate that our public health workforce needs to add approximately 100,000 (paid or volunteer) contact tracers to assist with this large-scale effort. This workforce could be strategically deployed to areas of greatest need and managed through state and local public health agencies that are on the front lines of COVID-19 response. To do this, we also estimate that Congress will need to appropriate approximately $3.6 billion in emergency funding to state and territorial health departments.

–Excerpt from A National Plan to Enable Comprehensive COVID-19 Case Finding and Contact Tracing in the US, by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Google, Apple and other technology companies are working on tracing initiatives using apps, location data and Bluetooth technology, but this has also raised concern over privacy and data sharing. While information necessary for tracking the virus is highly personal, developers assure users you must opt-in and that no information will be used to identify individuals. For more information on tracking technological development, check out this CNN article. You can read more about the relative merits of contacting tracing technology versus privacy protection in this publication from Cornell. 

Contact tracing is vital to fighting COVID-19.  It’s funding and implementation will be what allows for reopening at any level.  For contact tracing training, click here.  To apply for contact tracing jobs, contact your state’s Department of Health.

Yours in Strength,
The Take Back Control Team