Testing Supplies and Capacity This N.Y. Times article details continuing challenges regarding availability and processing of coronavirus testing kits in Arizona, which has experienced a surge in COVID-19 cases. Drive-up testing sites have 3-mile lines, labs have twice as many
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TRIAGE AND RESOURCE ALLOCATION This webinar on Thursday at 3pm EST from the Network for Public Health Law includes expert speakers on critical ethical issues related to COVID-19, including ventilator allocation, triage priority, and the consideration of age, disabilities, and
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This article comes from the European Cardiology Review: Released on 4/27/2020. Researchers detail the ethical decision-making issues when treating elderly patients with coronavirus disease globally and specifically in Madrid, Spain, an area hit particularly hard by COVID-19. Prioritization, Ageism, and
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HEALTH CARE WORKERS This article focuses on the continued problem of nursing home staffing as highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Even before the pandemic, nursing home shortages of direct-care staff were common and persistent. The fact that nursing home residents
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DRUGS This op-ed by Crutchfield, Gibb, and Redinger tackles issues of distributing remdesivir, an antiviral drug that shows promise in reducing COVID-19 recovery time. Using Michigan as an example, the authors argue that fair allocation of the drug requires prioritizing
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DRUGS: Patients with chronic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus who rely on hydroxychloroquine continue to face obstacles obtaining their medication due to increased demand for the drug as a potential COVID-19 treatment. Despite studies casting doubt on the
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The authors of this paper argue that advance care planning and discussing goals of care are of heightened importance for patients with chronic, life-limiting disease, due to COVID-19 for three reasons: 1) It is an ethical imperative to avoid providing
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TESTING: Tennessee is taking a bold approach to testing for COVID-19, making testing available to any person who wants it, even without symptoms or specific exposure risks. Test shortages have led most states to limit availability, but Tennessee’s approach has
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Resource allocation and disability rights: Growing consensus against categorical exclusions There is growing consensus among ethical, legal, health policy experts that protocols for triage or allocation of scarce resources during a public health emergency must be improved to ensure they
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Ethical Challenges: Protecting patients and providers The COVID-19 pandemic poses significant ethical challenges for health care professionals, including nurses, who represent the largest share of the global health care workforce. While facing the danger of infection is an accepted part
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