The NIH is investing $82 million over five years to establish 11 multidisciplinary research centers focused on emerging zoonotic diseases in partnership with 28 other countries. If the effort succeeds, a worldwide surveillance network will be able to coordinate responses to evolving pathogens before they cause another pandemic.

Several hospital and health system executives discuss how their health IT teams could evolve in the next 12 months in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Bridget Barnes, CIO and vice president of Oregon Health and Science University, said the system's core technology teams are focusing more on improving patient experience through higher engagement and direct communication with end users, while Scott Arnold, CIO and chief innovation officer at Tampa General Hospital, said the facility is developing IT talent with cloud migration and multicloud-management skills to help scale up the hospital's infrastructure to handle growth.

Tandigm Health CEO and longtime musician Frank Ingari was moved by the dedication of frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, so he wrote and recorded the song, "My Hero Is A Nurse," which has raised more than $19,000 in donations for the American Nurses Foundation Coronavirus Response Fund on PlayItForward.com. Ingari, who was aghast at the lack of personal protective gear at the onset of the pandemic, said service is not valued in the US the way it should be and the public health infrastructure has been allowed to erode.

Current and former executives from Teva, Novartis, Celgene, Amgen, Bristol Myers Squibb and Mallinckrodt, are set to testify next week at a House panel hearing on drug pricing and competition. The panel's chair, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said the investigation will focus on pricing practices, profits and measures that can be implemented to reduce drug prices.

The US government's plan to track coronavirus vaccine results by sharing information from public and private databases has drawn the ire of privacy advocates, who point out Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act restrictions may not apply. Attorney Linda Malek says that although many states have beefed up privacy laws, the situation amounts to "a patchwork system."

The House approved legislation that would avoid a government shutdown and fund the federal government through Dec. 11. The measure, which now goes to the Senate, would also extend the deadline for health care providers and hospitals to start repaying Accelerated and Advance Payment Programs relief fund loans enabled under the CARES Act.

The FDA has opened its Digital Health Center of Excellence under its Center for Devices and Radiological Health that aims to accelerate digital health breakthroughs, provide knowledge to bolster best practices, and create regulations facilitating efficient oversight while maintaining adherence to FDA standards.

A free app developed at the Department of Veterans Affairs' National Center for PTSD gives users a central location for mental health resources, such as voice-guided stress reduction exercises, says health science specialist Beth Jaworski, who led development of the app. COVID Coach includes a section specifically for veterans and service members, but it is independent of the VA and keeps users' identities anonymous.