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COVID Fear Is Keeping Chronically Ill People From Getting Medical Care

The novel coronavirus pandemic is keeping Americans away from the doctor’s office. For most people, that means little more than postponing a dental checkup or enduring a minor illness at home.

But those with chronic medical conditions ― especially ailments that make them more susceptible to infections like COVID-19 ― face a nerve-wracking choice between staying home and letting their health deteriorate or taking their chances with the virus to get their regular care.

An estimated 45% of Americans, or about 133 million people, have some kind of chronic medical condition, like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and arthritis, according to an analysis published in 2018.

These ailments require ongoing care in the form of frequent doctor visits, lab tests, scans, and medications administered in medical facilities. But these facilities are also places where people can contract the coronavirus, making life-or-death decisions about other health care more complicated.

“The stakes are much higher for you” if you have certain chronic diseases like kidney failure, said Joseph Vassalotti, a medical doctor and the chief medical officer of the National Kidney Foundation in New York. “You’re going to be at increased risk for severe COVID-19.”

Since the coronavirus reached the United States in January, physicians and other medical providers have seen significant reductions in the number of patients they’ve treated. Those numbers began to rebound in May and June, but with COVID-19 infections soaring again around the country, they likely are declining again.

Fear is a major driver of this phenomenon. Last month, 52% of those surveyed said they or a family member had skipped needed medical care because they worried about contracting COVID-19, according to a poll conducted by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Research also shows a sharp decline in emergency department visits for chest pain and heart attacks and a significant decrease...

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