  Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is caused by the severe acute respiratory
syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that is rapidly spreading across the globe.
The clinical spectrum of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia ranges from mild to critically
ill cases and requires early detection and monitoring, within a clinical
environment for critical cases and remotely for mild cases. The fear of
contamination in clinical environments has led to a dramatic reduction in
on-site referrals for routine care. There has also been a perceived need to
continuously monitor non-severe COVID- 19 patients, either from their
quarantine site at home, or dedicated quarantine locations (e.g., hotels).
Thus, the pandemic has driven incentives to innovate and enhance or create new
routes for providing healthcare services at distance. In particular, this has
created a dramatic impetus to find innovative ways to remotely and effectively
monitor patient health status. In this paper we present a short review of
remote health monitoring initiatives taken in 19 states during the time of the
pandemic. We emphasize in the discussion particular aspects that are common
ground for the reviewed states, in particular the future impact of the pandemic
on remote health monitoring and consideration on data privacy.
