President Joe Biden signed H.J.Res.7 on April 10, 2023, officially terminating the COVID-19 national emergency. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and originally introduced in January.
The move comes as the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE), a separate declaration, is set to expire May 11, 2023.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced March 30 that costs incurred for work related to COVID-19 after that date will not be eligible for funding under the COVID-19 Public Assistance Program when the PHE ends. However, the agency will offer a 90-day extension to complete demobilization, disposition, and disposal activities.
FDA Grants EUA to Latest COVID-19 Treatment
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on April 4 granted emergency use authorization to Gohibic (vilobelimab), a monoclonal anti-C5a antibody treatment. The drug is authorized to treat hospitalized COVID-19 patients within 48 hours of receiving invasive mechanical ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (artificial life support).
The agency says the injection, created by the German company InflaRx, targets a part of the immune system that is thought to play a role in the inflammation that leads to COVID-19 disease progression. Data indicates that patients treated with Gohibic face a lower mortality rate by day 28 and day 60 of treatment compared to placebo.
Although COVID-19 infections and related deaths continue to trend downward, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 88.3 percent of all current cases are caused by XBB.1.5, an omicron subvariant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.
HHS Long COVID-19 Fact Sheet
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on April 5 released a fact sheet summarizing federal efforts to address long COVID-19, a prolonged illness that develops after COVID-19.
HHS’s Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality will issue a new Notice of Funding Opportunity for up to $9 million to expand access to care for those facing long COVID-19, particularly in underserved, rural, vulnerable, or minority populations disproportionately affected by the illness.
Additionally, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine’s committee on Long-Term Health Effects Stemming from COVID-19 and Implications for the Social Security Administration, will seek evidence regarding long-term disability that may result from COVID-19 illness.
The report also stated that the Veterans Health Administration now has 23 clinical facilities across the country with fully established long COVID programs for veterans.
Visit the America’s Essential Hospitals coronavirus resource page for more information about the pandemic.
Contact Director of Policy Rob Nelb, MPH, at rnelb@essentialhospitals.org or 202.585.0127 with questions.
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