Healio (4/3, Michael) reported, “Mothers who experienced symptoms of depression near the end of their pregnancy were more likely to have children with lowered immunity than mothers without depressive symptoms, according to a study recently published in Clinical & Experimental Allergy.” Specifically, the researchers “found that women who had elevated depressive symptoms in their third trimester that later declined had infants with significantly lower mean fecal sIgA concentrations compared with women with few depressive symptoms.” Moreover, “these women were twice as likely to have infants with concentrations of sIgA in the lowest quartile.”

Women Less Likely To Have More Children If They Develop Mental Health Problems Following Delivery Of First Child, Research Indicates. HealthDay (4/3, Priedt) reported “women who develop mental health problems after delivering their first child are much less likely to have more, a Danish study finds.” The researchers found that among women who “developed problems such as depression, anxiety, mania and schizophrenia within six months after” their first live birth, “sixty-nine percent of these women went on to have a second child, compared to 82% of mothers who had no mental health issues after their first live birth.” The findings (3/29) were reported in the journal Human Reproduction.

Related Links:

— “Maternal depression could lead to lowered immunity in infants, “Erin Michael, Healio, April 3, 2020

The Hill (4/3, Chalfant) reported the Trump Administration announced “the federal government will reimburse hospitals treating uninsured patients for the novel coronavirus.” President Trump said the funding will be provided by the economic relief package passed by Congress last month.

Related Links:

— “Administration says it will reimburse hospitals for treating uninsured coronavirus patients, ” Morgan Chalfan, The Hill, April 3, 2020

Psych News Alert (4/3) reported “inpatient psychiatric units all over the country are grappling with the need to continue treating patients in the midst of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.” The “APA and the National Association for Behavioral Healthcare hosted a webinar” on Wednesday “with the leaders of three inpatient facilities so they could share their experiences so far.” The speakers emphasized “the importance of addressing COVID-19 in health systems in a way that does not limit people’s access to behavioral health care.”

Related Links:

— “Speakers Share Insights on Inpatient Psychiatric Care During COVID-19 Pandemic, Psych News Alert, April 3, 2020

USA Today (4/2, Stanglin) reports that as of Thursday, there are more than 1 million confirmed cases of coronavirus in the world. However, the number was probably reached earlier, because of untested cases including “asymptomatic individuals; people who may have died of complications of the virus without anyone knowing it; and those whose symptoms were not serious enough to qualify for testing.”

The Hill (4/2, Klar) reports that the US “has more than 235,000 cases and 5,600 deaths,” while “Italy and Spain follow with more than 115,000 and 110,000 cases, respectively, and over 24,000 deaths between them.” Meanwhile, China has “reported more than 82,000 cases and 3,300 deaths from the virus, though U.S. intelligence agencies have reportedly concluded that Beijing has underreported both the total number of cases and confirmed deaths.”

Newsweek (4/2, Kim) reports that in the US, “New York continues to report the country’s highest number of cases, with more than 83,700 confirmed infections to date, including 47,439 cases in New York City, the office of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo confirmed as of Wednesday.”

Related Links:

— “There are 1 million coronavirus cases worldwide. But there are probably many more people who have the disease., “Doug Stanglin, USA TODAY, April 2, 2020

Psychiatric News (3/25) reports that “In a letter…APA again urged the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to allow psychiatrists to provide psychiatric services to Medicare and Medicaid patients via the telephone without requiring a video component and to reimburse those services the same as an in-person visit.” In a news release about the letter, APA President Bruce Schwartz, M.D., said, “Even if we can’t physically see our patients, we can provide medication management and psychotherapy.”

Related Links:

— “Five Strategies to Protect Patients, Staff in Psychiatric Inpatient Units From COVID-19, Psychiatric News, March 25, 2020