Health Highlights: July 19, 2021

By Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporter

Here's some of HealthDay's top stories for Monday, July 19:

U.S. Surgeon General supports local mask mandates. As the Delta variant races through populations, sickening the unvaccinated, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said moves by local officials to reinstate indoor mask use may be warranted under CDC guidelines. Los Angeles county issued such a mandate over the weekend. Read more

As COVID-19 devastated health, it decimated finances. A new Commonwealth Fund report finds that half of all Americans who were either sick with SARS-CoV-2 or lost their jobs to the pandemic are now struggling with medical debt. Read more

'Shock' therapy can be safe, effective against tough-to-treat depression. Electroconvulsive therapy, widely known as shock therapy, has gotten a bad reputation from its earlier form in decades past. But a major new study finds the modern treatment is radically safer, and very effective against severe depression. Read more

Posted July 2021