The Chinese doctor, who sounded the alarm on the potential of a deadly coronavirus outbreak, has died after contracting the virus. The Wuhan Central Hospital has confirmed his death, after there was a period of confusion in the media.
Why it matters: Li Wenliang, 34, was an ophthalmologist at Wuhan Central Hospital. In December he sent a warning to other physicians about the potential of a respiratory illness he had seen in several patients, per the Washington Post. Chinese authorities ordered him and other doctors to stop promulgating "rumors" about the SARS-like cases.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has shipped the diagnostic test for the novel coronavirus to more than 100 public health labs nationwide, allowing states to test for coronavirus cases themselves and receive results quicker.
Why it matters: The FDA bypassed usual regulatory channels to distribute the test under an Emergency Use Authorization, which has been used in life-threatening situations like MERS, Ebola and the Zika virus.
The Trump administration announced Wednesday more changes designed to make Medicare Advantage more appealing and to lower prescription drug costs for seniors.
Why it matters: Although the proposal mainly tinkers around the edges, it could have a meaningful impact on some seniors' pocketbooks while furthering the administration's commitment to Medicare Advantage, a cash cow for insurers.
Two State Department-charted flights carrying some 350 Americans evacuated from Wuhan, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus in China, landed in California on Wednesday, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials confirmed.
Details: Per the CDC, 178 evacuees on one flight landed at Travis Air Force Base in Solano County. The other plane touched down at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego.
An adult in Wisconsin with a history of travel to Beijing, China, has contracted the coronavirus, the state health department and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed on Wednesday.
What's happening: The individual, who is currently isolated at home, "was exposed to known cases" of 2019-nCoV while in China. Immediate health risk to the general public in Wisconsin is low, the state health department said.
Four planes will arrive at four different military bases in the U.S. this week, carrying American passengers from Wuhan, China, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday.
The big picture: Upon landing, the CDC will evaluate the passengers and issue quarantine orders starting from the day the flights took off through 14 days thereafter. Already, one plane landed in the U.S. last week. The total number of passengers has not yet been released.
Why it matters: There is a growing national effort to address homelessness, but access to services that deal with both issues is complicated. Domestic violence is often addressed separately, even though the two struggles are frequently intertwined, the NCFH writes.
After a high-level meeting to address the deadly coronavirus, China's leaders are prescribing even tighter information controls around the outbreak.
Why it matters: The suppression of vital information about the coronavirus during its earliest weeks of transmission contributed to the devastating epidemic China is now facing.
As confirmed cases of coronavirus increase around the globe, billionaires and multinational corporations around the world are deploying their dollars to help health authorities combat the disease.
Why it matters: Investors and businesses fear that the virus if not contained could wreak havoc on the global economy by cutting into China's 2020 growth, Axios' Dion Rabouin and Joann Muller report.
The novel coronavirus outbreak has continued its global rampage, but experts are beginning to see signs of improvement in detection and treatment on the horizon.
Driving the news: S&P Global announced Tuesday it expects the crisis will "stabilize globally in April 2020, with virtually no new transmissions in May. Our worst-case projection holds that the virus stops spreading in late May, and optimistically in March."
The demand for nurse practitioners has exploded recently.
By the numbers: The number of nurse practitioners more than doubled from 2010 to 2017, far outpacing the number of new doctors or registered nurses, according to a study published this week in Health Affairs.
President Trump claimed last night during the State of the Union that he will "always protect patients with pre-existing conditions" — a statement that's misleading at best.
Why it matters: Pre-existing conditions protections are popular, and both parties are trying to claim credit for them. But only one of the parties has a track record of defending those protections, and it's not the GOP.
Researchers continue delving into the coronavirus that struck China and is spreading globally will reach the dreaded pandemic stage.
The big question:Concern has been growing over whether the virus will spark a pandemic, which would likely kill multitudes and decimate economies. So far the outbreak is largely contained to China and hasn't spread from person-to-person consistently, Anthony Fauci of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases tells Axios.
