CDC Statement on COVID-19 Apple App
Featured, Featured Stories April 1, 2020
Today, Apple Inc. – in partnership with the White House Coronavirus Task Force and the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – released an app and website
that guides Americans through a series of questions about their health and exposure to determine if they should seek
care for COVID-19 symptoms. The tool provides CDC recommendations on next steps including guidance on social
distancing and self-isolating, how to closely monitor symptoms, recommendations on testing, and when to contact a
medical provider.
This launch is a direct response to President Trump’s call for an all-of-America approach and will help Americans heed
CDC guidelines and self-isolate to limit COVID-19 transmission.
Users can download the free app from Apple’s App Store or access the tool online at www.apple.com/covid19 .
Everyone has a role to play as we work together to stop the spread of COVID-19. The latest recommendations can be
found at www.coronavirus.gov .
CDC works 24/7 protecting America’s health, safety and security. Whether disease start at home or abroad, are curable
or preventable, chronic or acute, or from human activity or deliberate attack, CDC responds to America’s most
pressing health threats. CDC is headquartered in Atlanta and has experts located throughout the United States and the world.
Flu season expected to ramp up in coming weeks
News November 18, 2018
HIAWASSEE, Ga. – Flu season is upon us, and reported cases of influenza are expected to rise despite repeated warnings from physicians to acquire vaccinations to guard against the dreaded illness.
Clay County Health Department, located adjacent to Towns County in North Carolina, recently reported one confirmed case of Type A influenza, the strain which has been most prevalent since mid-summer, according to the Center for Disease Control.
The Department of Public Health (DPH) states that the confirmed cases of influenza are currently considered moderate. Peak flu season is predicted to occur between the months of December and Feburary, although the virus could linger until spring.
“Every individual over the age of six months should get a flu vaccine, not just for their own protection, but to protect others around them who may be more vunerable to the flu and its complications,” Georgia DPH Interim Commissioner J. Patrick O’Neal advised earlier this year.
Approximately 36,000 Americans die each year from complications associated with the illness. Last year, 151 cases proved fatal in Georgia alone. The young, the elderly, and those with weakened immune symptoms are most vunerable to complications. According to the CDC, it make take up to two weeks for vaccinations to become effective.
The flu is easily transfered between individuals through oral and nasal secretions, with germs capable of surviving on surfaces for extended periods of time. Hand-washing is vital in thwarting the spread of the illness.
Influenza symptoms may include a fever higher than 100 degrees, head and body aches, fatigue, chills, respiratory distress, cough and a sore throat. Prescriptions such as Tamiflu, a medication geared toward reducing severity, should be administered within 48 hours after the onset of symptoms although later administration may weaken extreme symptoms.
CDC reveals deadliest drug in America
Health, News December 15, 2018According to the latest numbers from the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics, Fentanyl is now the most commonly used drug involved in overdoses.
The new report says that the rate of drug overdoses involving the synthetic opioid increased by about 113% each year from 2013 through 2016.
What is fentanyl?
Pharmaceutical fentanyl is a synthetic opioid pain reliever, approved for treating severe pain, typically advanced cancer pain. It is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine.
It is prescribed in the form of transdermal patches or lozenges and can be diverted for misuse and abuse in the United States.
However, most recent cases of fentanyl-related harm, overdose, and death in the U.S. are linked to illegally made fentanyl. It is sold through illegal drug markets for its heroin-like effect. It is often mixed with heroin and/or cocaine as a combination product–with or without the user’s knowledge–to increase its euphoric effects.
Illicitly-made fentanyl use is on the rise
The rate of overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids other than methadone, which includes fentanyl, doubled from 2015 to 2016. Roughly 19,400 people died from overdoses involving synthetic opioids other than methadone in 2016.
Reports from law enforcement indicate that much of the synthetic opioid overdose increase may be due to illegally or illicitly made fentanyl. According to data from the National Forensic Laboratory Information System, confiscations, or seizures, of fentanyl increased by nearly 7 fold from 2012 to 2014. There were 4,585 fentanyl confiscations in 2014. This suggests that the sharp rise in fentanyl-related deaths may be due to increased availability of illegally made, non-pharmaceutical fentanyl, and not prescribed fentanyl.
The number of states reporting 20 or more fentanyl confiscations every six months is increasing. From July to December 2014, 18 states reported 20 or more fentanyl drug confiscations. By comparison, six states reported 20 or more fentanyl drug confiscations from July to December 2013.
What can be done?
CDC suggests the following actions in response to increases in fentanyl-related overdose deaths:
Improve detection of fentanyl outbreaks
- Public health departments:
Explore methods for more rapidly detecting drug overdose outbreaks, including fentanyl. - Medical examiners and coroners:
Screen for fentanyl in suspected opioid overdose cases in regions reporting increases in fentanyl confiscations, fentanyl-related overdose fatalities or unusually high spikes in heroin or unspecified drug overdose fatalities. Not all jurisdictions routinely test for fentanyl. - Law enforcement:
Law enforcement can play an important role identifying and responding to increases in the distribution and use of illegally-made fentanyl.
Expand Use of Naloxone
Naloxone is a safe and effective antidote to opioid-related overdoses, including heroin and fentanyl, and is a critical tool in preventing fatal opioid overdoses. Depending on state and local laws, this medication can be administered by EMS, law enforcement, other drug users, or family and friend bystanders who have obtained the medication.9
- Health Care Providers:
Multiple doses of naloxone may need to be administered per overdose event because of fentanyl’s high potency relative to other opioids.10 - Harm reduction organizations:
Conduct trainings on naloxone use to persons at risk for opioid-related overdose and their friends and family members.