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Back in the pandemic’s first wave, Michelle Monje was worried about Covid-19’s power to muddle the brain. Seeing the massive inflammatory response to the virus and early signs of what became known as long Covid’s brain fog, she was reminded of “chemo brain,” that mind-numbing side effect cancer patients endure when therapy to burn tumors away also inflames the brain. Monje’s not a virologist or an epidemiologist. She’s a neuro-oncologist at Stanford who has studied the neurobiological underpinnings of cognitive impairment after cancer therapy for 20 years. But like scientists around the world, for the last two years her research has pivoted to include Covid and its far-reaching impact throughout the body. That includes brain fog, when people can’t do simple math, concentrate for more than a few minutes, or find the right words. (Cooney, 1/28)

Long-haul COVID-19 has proven one of the most troubling mysteries in a virus that’s caused no shortage of bafflement. Why do some people hospitalized with the virus develop symptoms that linger for months after infection? And, perhaps more bewilderingly, why do some patients who recover from mild COVID cases also end up saddled with lingering difficulties, including fatigue, shortness of breath and difficulty concentrating? Dr. Leonard Weinstock, a gastroenterologist at Missouri Baptist Medical Center, believes the answer lies in the body’s mast cells. Those cells are activated in response to allergens or toxins. But for some patients, they seem to run amok. Even when there’s seemingly nothing to aggravate them, they go into attack mode, setting off symptoms like hives, swelling and difficulty breathing. (Fenske, 1/27)

A UK study today shows pulse oximeter readings, which measure the level of oxygen in the blood, are an unreliable tool for gauging COVID-19 severity across different ethnic groups. The study was published in the European Respiratory Journal. (1/27)

Hospitals spent more on remdesivir, the antiviral medication used to treat COVID-19, last year than any other drug, a new report shows. It was the first time since 2012 that AbbVie's rheumatoid arthritis biologic Humira didn't top the list, according to Vizient's drug price outlook. Still, Humira was the largest contributor to drug price inflation last year and will likely remain that way until 2023, when multiple biosimilars are expected to hit the market. (Kacik, 1/27)

The Indiana Senate has approved a bill taking administrative steps that Gov. Eric Holcomb has said are needed in order for him to end the statewide COVID-19 public health emergency. Senators voted 34-11 in favor of the bill Thursday. The Republican-dominated Senate’s proposal is limited to those administrative actions, while House Republicans have pushed through a bill that would also severely limit workplace COVID-19 vaccination requirements. (1/27)

A Florida sheriff fired the president of his department’s deputies union Thursday, capping a three-year battle that escalated when the union chief accused the sheriff of not providing deputies with adequate protective gear against COVID-19. (Spencer, 1/27)

Gov. Jim Justice was full of energy and good spirits Thursday when he came to the state Capitol to address lawmakers and others for his State of the State remarks, two weeks after he had to postpone the address because of a positive COVID-19 test. In a packed House floor surrounded by many unmasked people, Justice joked that he’s been known to be late. (Willingham, 1/28)

Susan Rouse feels lucky that she hasn’t gotten COVID-19 yet. But that’s not the only thing she’s worried about anymore. The 74-year-old from Wake County is incarcerated at Raleigh’s North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women (NCCIW), which, like many of North Carolina’s prisons, experienced a surge in cases as the Omicron variant swept across the state in early January. North Carolina Health News previously reported on the toll the new variant could have on the state’s prison system. Rouse was moved from NCCIW’s minimum security Canary Unit to the prison’s main campus shortly after the Omicron surge began, and the Canary Unit was closed. Even though she is still considered an “honor grade” prisoner, many of the privileges that came with being housed in a minimum security facility – some as simple as being able to get a good night’s sleep, have access to a microwave or work outside the prison – are gone. (Thompson, 1/28)

Two U.S. senators said Wednesday that they were denied access to parts of a federal prison in Connecticut while trying to examine conditions there in response to correctional officers’ complaints about a staffing shortage and lack of coronavirus precautions. Concerns about the spread of COVID-19 itself were behind the denial, the federal Bureau of Prisons said. (Collins, 1/26)