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December 18th, 2021 The Out-of-Pocket Health News Digest

Below you will find briefs about recent health policy news stories. Our hope is for students to have an information outlet at their fingertips to keep up-to-date with the most pressing news stories in health policy. This compilation is produced by the HPSA Education Committee: Brynna Thigpen, Christopher Whitlock, Easheta Shah, Hannah Lane, Hassan Kourani, Jourdan Clements, and Lizzy Peppercorn Enjoy your break!

International Travel Bans Ineffective at Preventing Spread of Infectious Disease by Christopher Whitlock

While border control and international travel restrictions have been implemented in over 50 countries worldwide in response to the growing threat of Omicron, the new highly mutated COVID-19 variant, current research suggests travel bans are ineffective and potentially counter-productive in curbing the spread of the disease.  The United States, along with many others, is currently restricting entry of foreign-born international travelers from a list of eight countries in southern Africa including Botswana and South Africa - where the variant was first reported to the international community in November. Since the emergence of COVID-19, many epidemiological studies have been conducted to research the effectiveness of international travel restrictions on limiting the spread of emerging infectious disease. Research studies have shown travel restrictions can provide a “breathing period” of days to weeks if implemented quickly with additional measures to reduce transmission (e.g., hand washing, isolation, mask-wearing), but there is little evidence supporting the effectiveness of travel bans in minimizing the spread of emerging infectious disease. International travel restrictions are easy to implement, but they provide a false sense of security that the disease spread is being controlled when not implemented properly. They foster xenophobia towards people of the affected region and limit the international response to new variants by interfering with transportation of necessary healthcare workers and supplies. These negative consequences are ultimately a deterrent to scientific transparency that could discourage other countries from reporting potential new COVID-19 variants. The World Health Organization (WHO) has already advocated against travel restrictions in response to the Omicron variant. If necessary, the WHO recommends following scientific evidence and making travel restrictions as noninvasive or unintrusive as possible to reduce the negative effects they have on the lives of citizens in the affected countries. Sources:  Journal of Emergency Management, Nature, NPR, Science, World Health Organization

Boosters: Expansion and Controversy by Brynna Thigpen

Booster shots have become commonplace in the United States, and they may be about to become more ubiquitous. On November 19th, the FDA approved boosters for use in adults 18 and over, and on December 9th, the boosters’ eligibility was expanded to teens 16 and up.  As of the writing of this newsletter, boosters are recommended for patients 16+ who are either 6 months or more out from their last Pfizer or Moderna dose, or 2 months or more out from their Johnson and Johnson dose.  Some parents have been asking their children’s pediatricians whether their younger children will soon need to be scheduled for booster appointments. Dr. Fauci shared that he’s skeptical at this time, because children’s immune systems tend to be stronger than those of adults. However, like so much else in this pandemic, there simply isn’t sufficient data currently to say for sure. Controversy over Vaccine Equity The debate over boosters is fierce. While an extra dose has been shown to provide robust protection from the original coronavirus strain and delta variant, data is still incoming about boosters’ effectiveness against omicron (more detail below).  Unlike the U.S., the World Health Organization (WHO) has held back from recommending countries move ahead with booster programs for the general population, given that many countries still remain far behind Western countries in initial vaccination rates (WHO has made exceptions for special populations such as immunocompromised groups). From a global health equity perspective, the fairness of Americans receiving a third dose when much of the rest of the world hasn’t received a first is questionable. Additionally, given that data is still coming in about boosters’ efficacy against the omicron variant, using the new strain as a justification for boosting Americans is unjustified.  As always, as more data comes in, Americans - and governments around the world - will be able to make more informed decisions about how to handle boosters.  Sources: FDA, The Hill, The Washington Post, CNN Health, Nature

One-Liners

Pfizer reports its COVID-19 booster provides protection against Omicron variant: Just weeks after the emergence of the Omicron COVID-19 variant, researchers with Pfizer and BioNTech report three doses of their coronavirus vaccine offer protection against Omicron. Their findings also suggest that two doses alone may not offer sufficient protection to prevent infection with the variant. (New York Times) Obamacare premiums for consumers continuing to get cheaper: For the fourth consecutive year, “silver plans” on the Affordable Care Act insurance exchanges have gotten less expensive on average across the country. (Kaiser Family Foundation) Omicron on campus: The COVID-19 variant, Omicron, was detected on the University of Michigan campus this week. Administration responded to the news by announcing that all students, staff, and faculty will be required to get their COVID booster by February 4th. (Fox2)