Coronavirus hospital data will now be sent to Trump administration instead of CDC

[bikeama]

You can not make this shit up.

Michael Caputo, the assistant secretary for public affairs at the department, confirmed the change first reported by The New York Times earlier in the day, saying in a statement that the "new faster and complete data system is what our nation needs to defeat the coronavirus and the CDC, an operating division of HHS, will certainly participate in this streamlined all-of-government response. They will simply no longer control it."

The Times said hospitals are to begin reporting the data to HHS on Wednesday, noting also that the "database that will receive new information is not open to the public, which could affect the work of scores of researchers, modelers and health officials who rely on C.D.C. data to make projections and crucial decisions."

 

[bojangle]

What could possibly go wrong?

 

[Climber]

Anytime somebody wants to have the data sent to them instead of the normal reporting agency, they want to manipulate the data for their own benefit.

EVERY SINGLE TIME.

 

[tuxumino]

another problem with this move is breaking away from normal channels means the data collection will be less efficient, less coordinated and more hap-hazard. We are about to lose control of this thing.

 

[Climber]

another problem with this move is breaking away from normal channels means the data collection will be less efficient, less coordinated and more hap-hazard. We are about to lose control of this thing.

Which is likely to be exactly what they want.

If you're Anti-Science, you don't like science getting in the way of your message.

 

[Climber]

If this isn't stopped immediately, a lot of people are going to die unnecessarily.

This hamstrings many, many researchers and there is absolutely zero possibility that they won't be changing the numbers to suit their agenda. This will lead to many people getting false impressions and doing false things.

This is fucking criminal!

 

[Dr_SLO]

This is of huge concern. Although the CDC has not performed well during the US epidemic, sidestepping the organization completely is going to prevent those at the CDC with vast experience in outbreak, epidemic and pandemic management from operating at the highest level.

Here's a link to the document: COVID-19 Guidance for Hospital Reporting and FAQs For Hospitals, Hospital Laboratory, and Acute Care Facility Data Reporting Updated July 10, 2020

 

[bojangle]

Couldn't the hospitals release HIPPA compliant data to anyone who requested it? We don't live under a dictatorship. Couldn't CDC or WHO still gather direct data in addition to it being officially reported straight to the White House?

It can't be that we're just helpless subjects.

 

[Dr_SLO]

Couldn't CDC or WHO still gather direct data in addition to it being officially reported straight to the White House?

This is what I would hope will happen. There is an issue. Because the submission of data to HHS is now compulsory there will be less impetus to also provide data to other organizations; it takes time and money. There's also the possibility of hospitals being guided by state governors that have certain political leanings. All of this together will leave holes in the data making analysis increasingly problematic. It will also hinder the CDC's ability to manage the epidemic if they do not get data in a timely fashion from HHS. Timely data is already a major problem in several states with testing results not being reported for 3-5 days after sampling.

 

[budman]

This is fucking criminal!

I am not sure it is criminal, but it is fucked up. :thumbdown

 

[scootergmc]

I think there's a bit of overreaction going on here and more anti-administration bias. The information was already going to the president: the CDC is a subsidiary of HHS, which is all executive branch. If they're trying to streamline data and make the reporting more accurate in order to make better informed policy decisions, then I'm for it. If the CDC presently has a one week lag in reporting, what good is it doing for policy makers in trying to respond?

 

[Climber]

What part of 'not open to the public' did you miss?

Clearly, you don't even begin to understand the ramifications that the loss of data access presents to numerous critical entities who need this data to continue evaluating this pandemic and coming up with answers.

Also, the possibility of data manipulation before it gets shared is very real and IMHO will absolutely happen.

 

[Slabhappy]

Now those PESKY numbers will start to drop.

 

[scootergmc]

What part of 'not open to the public' did you miss?

None. I think it will get pushed out, but the HHS policy makers will be the first to see it and in conjunction with the CDC form quicker response. To me, that makes sense.

 

[Climber]

None. I think it will get pushed out, but the HHS policy makers will be the first to see it and in conjunction with the CDC form quicker response. To me, that makes sense.

Our perceptions are different on this.

Time will tell what ends up happening.

 

[bosco12]

VA Systems Contractor !

I think anyone who had to use those VA systems knows where this will end up:

TeleTracking has won 29 contracts for federal government work stretching back to 2004. None of its previous contracts paid more than $300,000. The prior contracts were for computer systems and programming at Veteran Affairs hospitals.

Coronavirus data is funneled away from CDC, sparking worries
https://apnews.com/57de8f0d25d9066731e6bd8cad0373c4

AND this:

Ryan Panchadsaram, one of the team behind popular COVID-19 data visualization site Covid Exit Strategy, said the site is already unable to gather data for ICU beds in use following the change. In series of Tweets posted very early this morning, he indicated, "a critical indicator is missing... with @HHSGov as the only source, they need to aggregate this data and make it public. With daily briefings over, the public needs it more than ever."

Covid Exit Strategy
https://www.covidexitstrategy.org/

... In other words, for hospitals to receive federal aid, including access to one of the few known beneficial drugs for treating COVID-19, they will have to comply with the administration's data directive. ...

Trump admin undercuts CDC, seizes control of national COVID-19 data
New directive is White House's latest attempt to cut the CDC out of the loop.
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/07/trump-admin-undercuts-cdc-seizes-control-of-national-covid-19-data/

 

[tuxumino]

I think there's a bit of overreaction going on here and more anti-administration bias. The information was already going to the president: the CDC is a subsidiary of HHS, which is all executive branch. If they're trying to streamline data and make the reporting more accurate in order to make better informed policy decisions, then I'm for it. If the CDC presently has a one week lag in reporting, what good is it doing for policy makers in trying to respond?

I hope you're right but if not get ready for a real shit show. I can't believe for a moment that this administration can actually stream line anything.

 

[scootergmc]

Our perceptions are different on this.

Time will tell what ends up happening.

word!:thumbup

 

[Climber]

This isn't looking good. Perhaps it is just temporary...or not.

Coronavirus hospital data removed from CDC website following Trump plan to reroute information

The information removed from the website is the hospital data that was reported to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network, according to CDC spokesperson Kristen Nordlund.

The data includes...

• the current inpatient and intensive care unit bed occupancy
• Health care worker staffing
• Personal protective equipment supply status and availability

 

[Climber]

Update. Apparently the data is now available from CDC site, though the story on CNN is poorly written. It says this data is available up through July 7. Not sure what was available before, how long the lag was.