Americans ready for summer vacations despite COVID surge

C. A. Bridges, Fort Myers News-Press
·4 min read
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Welcome to today's edition of the Florida Coronavirus Watch Newsletter, which comes out every Monday and Thursday or as urgent news dictates.

Here's what's happening

- 'We don't see any cancellations': Americans ready for summer vacations despite COVID surge. COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are rapidly rising again, but many Americans have returned to their pre-pandemic routines and plans. This summer, that means traveling.

“Nobody wants to get sick, but it’s definitely not at the forefront of my thought process anymore,” one woman said, snacking on shave ice on Waikiki Beach. "I’m to the point now where I just want to go back to living and enjoying life, and not being so worried.”

- After 1 million dead from COVID in the U.S., loved ones look back on those they've lost.

“Lizzy girl, I’m home." Lizzy Hayes of Naples remembers her husband Fred, two years after he died from COVID-19 and pneumonia.

Auburndale High School will name one of its academic buildings after coach Paul Green, a longtime fixture in the high school’s hallways and the Auburndale community. Green died of COVID in 2021.

Indialantic resident Carol Herba's husband Bruce died of COVID in January 2021. "I just still can't get it through my head that that happened."

And USA TODAY has a section devoted to talking about the victims and their stories, for subscribers.

- She lost her sense of smell. It almost ended her business. While Americans knew the coronavirus might steal their sense of smell, at least temporarily, long-term parosmia has come as a shock to many. They’d never heard of the condition that now makes them retch at the scent of their favorite foods or experiences, or even the people they love.

There’s no surefire cure for these smell disorders. And nobody – not those affected, not their doctors, not even researchers – is sure what will happen next.

USA TODAY has the story for its subscribers.

- People treated with Paxlovid who get rebound COVID should isolate again for 5 days, CDC advises. There's a chance they might be contagious if they have this rebound effect, said the CDC's Dr. Lauri Hicks.

This is the first time the CDC has issued guidance on what people should do if they test positive again a few days after testing negative for COVID-19. Although the guidance is specific to those taking Paxlovid, Hicks, chief medical officer of CDC's COVID-19 response, said anyone who tests positive or feels poorly again should stay away from others.

COVID info to know

COVID-19 will be an issue for a long time to come, and we think more education is better. Here's what you need to know.

ABOUT COVID

AVOIDING COVID

TESTING

DO YOU HAVE COVID?

What do you want to know about COVID-19? You ask, we'll try to answer

From a reader: "My husband and I got COVID in February, hadn't received the free kits from the government so bought kits from Walgreens and CVS. In March I sent in the receipts from those purchases to Medicare for reimbursement. I received notice that the purchases for that month wasn't covered, only April although all the notices said from February on. What do we do now?"

Unfortunately, while free at-home tests were made available nationwide in February for people with private insurance and for the uninsured, Medicare didn't cover them until April 4, 2022, and according to their site Medicare will not provide reimbursement for any tests purchased before then.

Thanks to the patchwork of medical health care plans currently active in the U.S., there were holes in the coverage when the at-home test program was launched. Medicare was not initially included in the home-test mandate because the Biden administration did not believe at that time that it had clear legal authority to pay for the over-the-counter tests, according to Sabrina Corlette, founder and co-director of the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University. This was cleared up in February after some pushback but the program didn't begin until April and it was not made retroactive.

It was a pretty big deal; this is the first time that Medicare has covered an over-the-counter self-administered test. Moving forward you can get up to 8 tests per month until the public health emergency is over. But I'm afraid that doesn't help you with tests bought before it started. I'm sorry I don't have any better news.

Anything you'd like to know? Ask your questions here.

Thank you for reading! We appreciate you trusting our statewide journalists to keep you safe and informed. If you are encouraged by our work and want to support your local journalists, please consider subscribing. Know someone who would benefit from this newsletter? Forward this email so they can sign up.

Chris' note of the day: Monday is Memorial Day. Lots of people will be enjoying free time on a three-day weekend and whether you're traveling or staying home and watching movies, we've got tips and recommendations.

But please remember that Memorial Day was set aside to mourn U.S. service members who died carrying out their duties. (Confused by which armed forces commemoration is which? Here's a handy guide). It's a good time to contemplate what we have, and the high price many of us have paid for it.

Next Monday's Coronavirus Newsletter will come out on Tuesday instead.

Here's what else is happening with the coronavirus in Florida today.

— C. A. Bridges, cbridges@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Americans ready for summer vacations despite COVID surge