A Step Toward At-Home COVID Tests

Also: Mass. residents reflect on one year of the coronavirus in Mass. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  [View in Browser]( | [Donate [WBUR]]( [WBUR](  [WBUR]( February 1, 2021 Good (snowy) afternoon, If you've been running into any fights over masking on public conveyances, a [new CDC order]( kicks in tonight could help: Everyone on planes, trains, boats and the like is now required to wear masks. Meanwhile, the state's rollout of coronavirus vaccines is [bumping along](. The Mass. Health and Hospitals Association sums up the central problem nicely: "It's all about supply." To wit: Roughly one million Massachusetts residents are now eligible to get vaccinated, but the state only expects to get about 100,000 doses a week in the near future. Gov. Baker says that could go up to more than 300,000 doses per week by mid-month. In short, it's a time of shortage. If you're over 75 or otherwise eligible, Thursdays are when the state will release slots for mass vaccination sites like Fenway Park and Gillette Stadium. And [here are some helpful tips]( from readers who beat the flaws in the system. — Carey Goldberg, CommonHealth editor newsletters@wbur.org Must Reads url[U.S. Cuts $231 Million Deal To Provide 15-Minute COVID-19 At-Home Tests]( The Food and Drug Administration gave emergency authorization to Ellume's rapid test in December, after it showed 96% accuracy in a U.S. clinical study. [Read more.](   #%23%23[Twitter](  #%23%23[Facebook](    ['I Was Afraid Every Day': Mass. Residents Reflect On A Year Of COVID-19]( On Feb. 1, 2020, a UMass Boston student was diagnosed with the virus, back when it seemed like a distant malady, something linked to China, a mystery illness that had not yet come too close. "Go about your daily life," was the word from state and federal officials. And wash your hands. But in medical circles and at hospitals, experts knew a dangerous threat was brewing. [Read more.](   Support the news [Some Community Health Centers, Key Partners In Vaccine Rollout, Don’t Have Any]( Community health centers are expected to be key partners in the state’s effort to vaccinate residents of cities and towns with the highest coronavirus infection rates. But as phase two begins, some community health centers aren't sure they can be players. They have little, if any, vaccine. [Read more.](  [Beyond COVID-19: 4 Other Key Health Issues Congress Recently Addressed]( Late last month, Congress passed a legislative bundle that included a ban on surprise medical bills. Lawmakers also answered pleas from strained health facilities in rural areas, agreed to cover the cost of training more new doctors, sought to strengthen efforts to equalize mental health coverage with that of physical medicine and instructed the federal government to collect data that could be used to rein in high medical bills. [Read more.]( What We're Reading Should teachers get vaccinated[before 65-year-olds]( [Assisted living]( essential workers? All this will be grist for ethicists for many years to come. Different states are formulating different orders of priority for the many groups that are at various levels of risk for catching and dying of COVID-19. One thing is clear, writes epidemiologist Gregg Gonsalves from the Yale School of Public Health for The Atlantic: "[The Vaccine Line Is Illogical]( and in a great many cases the neediest will not be first – especially when it comes to global distribution. Though he could get vaccinated, Gonsalves writes, the equity issues bother him so much that he's going to hold off for now. “ I can’t help but think there’s a bias toward end-of-life care somewhere in the administration. — C.R. Lyons, president of the Massachusetts Funeral Directors Association, "[Funeral Industry Awaits Response On Request to Be Prioritized In Vaccine Rollout]( ICYMI [With Latinos Dying At Higher Rates From COVID, Brigham And Women’s Hospital Intervenes]( Hospitals across the country are [reporting higher hospitalizations and deaths]( for Black and Latino patients as compared to whites. But when a team at the Brigham compared Black and brown patients to white patients with similar chronic illnesses, they found no difference in the risk of death from COVID. A difference did emerge for Latino patients who don’t speak English. They had a 35% greater chance of death.      Did you know that each colony of naked mole rats [has its own squeak dialect?]( 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📨 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news [WBUR]( [WBUR][WBUR]( [95289b97-66e8-43d4-a174-3bc3520a79a9.png]( [Instagram](  [Twitter]( [Facebook]( Want to change how you receive these emails? [Stop getting this newsletter by updating your preferences.]( I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. [Unsubscribe from all newsletters](. Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2021 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved. You signed up for this newsletter at wbur.org. Our mailing address is: WBUR-FM 890 Commonwealth AveBoston, MA 02215-1205 [Add us to your address book](