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-COVID-19 is the disease caused by the new coronavirus that emerged in China in December 2019.

-The new coronavirus can be spread from person to person. It is diagnosed with a laboratory test.

-COVID-19 symptoms include cough, fever or chills, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, muscle or body aches, sore throat, new loss of taste or smell, diarrhea, headache, new fatigue, nausea or vomiting and congestion or runny nose. COVID-19 can be severe, and some cases have caused death.

-There is no coronavirus vaccine yet.

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-The COVID-19 outbreak and the economic downturn it engendered swelled the ranks of unemployed Americans by more than 14 million, from 6.2 million in February to 20.5 million in May 2020.

-The pandemic is fueling efforts for some states to expand Medicaid as a result of the thousands of uninsured and unemployed citizens.

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-Unfortunately, some states argue that tax revenues have dropped due to a decline in business productivity and amid the social distancing guidelines as a result of the pandemic. Because of this, they are saying they can not afford this kind of expansion and implied that there are better ways to help the unemployed.

-Some governors, facing budget shortfalls, have even proposed cutting Medicaid funding as the virus’s economic impact sets in—and just as many people may need coverage most (Armour, 2020).

-Republican Trump Administration also wanted to overturn the ACA and its expansion of Medicaid.

-Although it seems challenging, ballot initiatives for Medicaid expansion in other Republican-led states have been largely passed.

-A poll of people living in the states that didn’t expand Medicaid found that 61% of residents wanted the program expanded, compared with 29% who wanted the program to remain as is, based on a 2020 survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation (Armour, 2020).

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-In times like this when unemployment levels are at an all time high and we are in the middle of a pandemic, it is essential for health care to be affordable and accessible.

-The pandemic has exposed the already familiar gaps in America’s health care system revolving around the lack of access for those with low incomes and in communities of color.

-About half of Americans receive health coverage through their employer, and with record numbers filing for unemployment insurance, millions find themselves without health insurance in the midst of the largest pandemic in a century.

-Even those who maintain insurance coverage may find care unaffordable (Mann, 2020).

-Medicaid expansion would provide a significant source of federal funding for states to pay providers and ensure people have coverage during the COVID-19 crisis.

-Although it is something that is highly controversial, it is something that states in need may want to consider in order to protect its citizens in need.

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6. Health Administration Professor Discusses Effects of COVID-19 on Country’s Health Care System

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6. Health Administration Professor Discusses Effects of COVID-19 on Country’s Health Care System

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Auburn University Health Administration professor Cathleen Erwin discussed the predicted impact of the coronavirus on the U.S. health care system at the start of the pandemic and during the time this article was written.
Video posted April 7, 2020

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To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, everyone should:

-Clean your hands often, either with soap and water for 20 seconds or a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.

-Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

-Put distance between yourself and other people (at least 6 feet).

Cover your mouth and nose with a mask when around others.

-Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.

-Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces daily.

CDC recommends that people wear masks in public settings and when around people outside of their household, especially when other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.

-Masks may help prevent people who have COVID-19 from spreading the virus to others.

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-In states like Michigan and Oklahoma, it can be expected to find Medicaid expansion initiatives listed on voting ballots.
-Democrats have proposed Medicaid expansion because they argued the pandemic has heightened the need to provide people with fair medical coverage.
-Democrats aim to build support for the issue on the 2020 ballot to unseat Republican lawmakers at the state level who oppose expanding Medicaid.