Early during the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly two thirds of unpaid caregivers of adults reported adverse mental or behavioral health symptoms, compared with approximately one third of noncaregivers † (1). In addition, 27% of parents of children aged <18 years reported that their mental health had worsened during the pandemic (2). To examine mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic among U.S. adults on the basis of their classification as having a parenting role (i.e., unpaid persons caring for children and adolescents aged <18 years, referred to as children in this report) or being an unpaid caregiver of adults (i.e., persons caring for adults aged ≥18 years), § CDC analyzed data from cross-sectional surveys that were administered during December 2020 and February-March 2021 for The COVID-19 Outbreak Public Evaluation (COPE) Initiative. ¶ Respondents were categorized as parents only, caregivers of adults only, parents-caregivers (persons in both roles), or nonparents/noncaregivers (persons in neither role). Adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for any adverse mental health symptoms, particularly suicidal ideation, were higher among all respondents who were parents, caregivers of adults, or both compared with respondents who were nonparents/ noncaregivers and were highest among persons in both roles

Background The purpose of this study was to examine selected measures of racial and ethnic disparities in the reported incidence of syphilis and gonorrhea from 1981 to 2013 in the United States. Methods For each year from 1981 to 2013, we calculated values for five disparity measures (Gini coefficient, two versions of the index of disparity, population attributable proportion, and the black-to-white rate ratio) for five racial/ethnic categories (Non-Hispanic White, Non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Asian/Pacific Islander). We also examined annual and 5-year changes to see if the disparity measures agreed on the direction of change in disparity. Results With a few exceptions, the disparity measures increased from 1981 to 1993 and decreased from 1993 to 2013, whereas syphilis and gonorrhea rates decreased for most groups from 1981 to 1993 and increased from 1993 to 2013. Overall, the disparity measures we examined were highly correlated with one another, particularly when examining 5-year changes rather than annual changes in disparity. For example, all five measures agreed on the direction of change in the disparity of syphilis in 56% of the annual comparisons and in 82% of the 5-year comparisons. Conclusions Although the disparity measures we examined were generally consistent with one another, these measures can sometimes yield divergent assessments of whether racial/ethnic disparities are increasing or decreasing for a given STD from one point in time to another, as well as divergent assessments of the relative magnitude of the change.

Syphilis testing among women after stillbirth was less than 10%, illustrating limited adherence to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology recommendations. Such low prenatal and delivery syphilis testing rates may impact the number of stillbirth cases identified as congenital syphilis cases and reported to the national surveillance system. Our results emphasize the need to improve syphilis testing to improve diagnosis of syphilitic stillbirths, identify women with syphilis infection, and provide treatment to these women to avoid syphilis-related adverse outcomes.