Health

B.C. woman diagnosed with COVID-19 after returning from Iran – Edmonton Journal

Published

5 years ago

February 21, 2020

Harry Miller

A new case of COVID-19 has been reported in B.C. from a woman who returned this week from Iran.

B.C.’s health officials are set to share an update on novel coronavirus.

Jason Payne / PNG

By Postmedia News

Another case of the coronavirus has been diagnosed in British Columbia.

The provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, says a woman in her 30s has been diagnosed with COVID-19 after returning this week from Iran. The woman lives in the Fraser Health region.

“Our continued view is that the risk to B.C. is low, we are acting with vigilance,” she said.

Henry said staff were surprised by a new case linked to Iran, which only recently reported it had five cases of COVID-19 and two deaths.

“That could be an indicator that there’s more widespread transmission. This is what we call an indicator or sentinel event,” Henry said during a Thursday news conference.

“That triggered interest from people around the world,” Henry said. “I expect there will be an investigation to determine where the exposure occurred.”

Iran has reported at least 20 other people in various areas who are being tested, Henry said. “And we’ll be linking with them to see where this person had been in Iran — we’re tracing her travel all the way back to Iran.”

Henry says the woman’s case is relatively mild and a number of her close contacts are in isolation.

B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix said the patient’s samples have been sent to the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Man., for final confirmation.

This brings the number of cases of COVID-19 in B.C. to six.

“So far in B.C. all of our cases have been relatively mild and managed mostly at home,” she said.

Henry said earlier that four of the five people diagnosed with the virus were symptom free.

The fifth person, a woman in her 30s who returned from Shanghai, China, is in isolation at her home in B.C.’s Interior.

Henry said over 500 people have been tested for the virus in B.C. and many of those tested positive for the flu.

“We’re in containment,” she explained, adding that because many cases are mild, the virus can apparently be transmitted when people have few symptoms.

“It makes it very difficult to contain the virus. We’re not out of the woods yet.”

Three cases of the virus have also been confirmed in Ontario.

As of Thursday, the World Health Organization said there were 76,214 confirmed cases globally, with 548 new cases reported in the past 24 hours. The majority of those cases are in China, with 2,121 deaths recorded to date in the country.

Outside of China, there have been eight deaths across 26 countries. In Canada, there have only been nine cases to date, with only one case being transmitted outside of China. There have been no deaths due to COVID-19 in Canada.

— With files from Lynn Mitges, Stephanie Ip, and the Canadian Press

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Health

Tips for shopping for Medicare Advantage plans

Published

1 day ago

September 28, 2024

Anne Joseph

Shopping season for Medicare coverage is about to begin. With it comes the annual onslaught of TV ads and choices to consider.

People eligible for the federal government’s Medicare program will have from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7 to sign up for 2025 Medicare Advantage plans, which are privately run versions of the program. They also can add a prescription drug plan to traditional Medicare coverage.

Many people on Medicare Advantage plans will probably have to find new coverage as major insurers cut costs and pull back from markets. Industry experts also predict some price increases for Medicare prescription drug plans.

Shoppers often have dozens of options during this sign-up period. Here are some things to consider.

Don’t put off shopping for Medicare coverage

Start thinking about next year’s coverage before the annual enrollment window begins. Insurers will usually preview their offerings or let customers know about any big changes. That makes anything arriving in the mail from your insurer important to read.

Insurance agents say many people wait until after Thanksgiving to decide coverage plans for the new year. That could be a mistake this year: The holiday falls on Nov. 28, leaving slightly more than a week to decide before the enrollment window closes.

Look beyond the premium

Many Medicare Advantage plans promote a $0 premium. That may sound attractive, but price is only one variable to consider.

Shoppers should look at whether their doctors are in the plan’s coverage network and how prescriptions would be covered. They also should know the maximum amount under the plan that they’d have to pay if a serious health issue emerges.

Plans offer many supplemental benefits, including help paying food or utility bills. Don’t let those distract from understanding the core coverage, said Danielle Roberts, co-founder of the Fort Worth, Texas, insurance agency Boomer Benefits.

“Remember that we buy health insurance for the big things, not the frills,” she said.

How to get help shopping for plans

The federal government operates a plan finder that lets people compare options. The State Health Insurance Assistance Program can be another resource. Insurance brokers or agents also guide customers through searches.

Sometimes a plan’s coverage doesn’t work as expected. If that happens, there’s another enrollment window in the first three-months of each year where some shoppers may be able to make a change.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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Health

The US is mailing Americans COVID tests again. Here’s how to get them

Published

4 days ago

September 26, 2024

Anne Joseph

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans can once again order COVID-19 tests, without being charged, sent straight to their homes.

The U.S. government reopened the program on Thursday, allowing any household to order up to four at-home COVID nasal swab kits through the website, covidtests.gov. The tests will begin shipping, via the United States Postal Service, as soon as next week.

The website has been reopened on the heels of a summer COVID-19 virus wave and heading into the fall and winter respiratory virus season, with health officials urging Americans to get an updated COVID-19 booster and their yearly flu shot.

“Before you visit with your family and friends this holiday season, take a quick test and help keep them safe from COVID-19,” U.S. Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Dawn O’Connell said in a statement.

U.S. regulators approved an updated COVID-19 vaccine that is designed to combat the recent virus strains and, they hope, forthcoming winter ones, too. Vaccine uptake is waning, however. Most Americans have some immunity from prior infections or vaccinations, but under a quarter of U.S. adults took last fall’s COVID-19 shot.

Using the swab, people can detect current virus strains ahead of the fall and winter respiratory virus season and the holidays. Over-the-counter COVID-19 at-home tests typically cost around $11, as of last year. Insurers are no longer required to cover the cost of the tests.

Before using any existing at-home COVID-19 tests, you should check the expiration date. Many of the tests have been given an extended expiration from the date listed on the box. You can check on the Food and Drug Administration’s website to see if that’s the case for any of your remaining tests at home.

Since COVID-19 first began its spread in 2020, U.S. taxpayers have poured billions of dollars into developing and purchasing COVID-19 tests as well as vaccines. The Biden administration has given out 1.8 billion COVID-19 tests, including half distributed to households by mail. It’s unclear how many tests the government still has on hand.

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