Updates
House Democrats Renew Investigation Into Trump-Era COVID-19 Response-NPR
House Democrats are renewing their investigation into the Trump administration's handling of the coronavirus crisis, citing new documents and what they call evidence of political interference in the government response to the virus. House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., sent letters to White House chief of staff Ron Klain and acting Health and Human Services Secretary Norris Cochran informing them of the investigations and additional evidence. Clyburn cites an internal … Continue Reading
February 05, 2021
New Israeli Drug Cured 29 Of 30 Moderate/Serious COVID Cases In Days — Hospital-Times Of Israel
A new coronavirus treatment being developed at Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Medical Center has successfully completed phase 1 trials and appears to have helped numerous moderate-to-serious cases of COVID-19 quickly recover from the disease, the hospital said Friday. Hailing a “huge breakthrough,” the hospital said Prof. Nadir Arber’s EXO-CD24 substance had been administered to 30 patients whose conditions were moderate or worse, and all 30 recovered — 29 of them within three to five days. Times Of … Continue Reading
February 05, 2021
AstraZeneca Covid-19 Vaccine Effective Against U.K. Variant In Trial-The Wall Street Journal
A Covid-19 vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca PLC is effective against a variant of coronavirus that is spreading rapidly in the U.S. and around the world, according to a new study, a reassuring sign for governments banking on mass vaccination to bring the pandemic to an end. The preliminary findings, published in a study online Friday that hasn’t yet been formally reviewed by other scientists, follow similarly positive results from other manufacturers. The Wall … Continue Reading
February 05, 2021
Pentagon Will Deploy Troops To Assist COVID-19 Vaccine Drive-The Associated Press
The Pentagon will deploy troops to assist getting Americans vaccinated against COVID-19, the White House said Friday. Coronavirus senior adviser Andy Slavitt announced that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has approved a request for assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It means about 1,000 active duty military personnel will deploy to help state vaccination centers. The Associated Press, … Continue Reading
February 05, 2021
Countdown To 'Catastrophe:' Inside Europe's Fight For COVID Shots-Reuters
In a meeting last week in the Europa building in Brussels, home of the European Union’s political leadership, diplomats for the 27 member states were desperate. The EU had paid billions of euros toward shots to curb a pandemic that was killing thousands of Europeans every day. Now vaccine-makers had cut back deliveries, and the EU was trapped in a public fight. Reuters, … Continue Reading
February 05, 2021
Some Health Workers Say They're Not Refusing The Vaccine, They Just Need Some Time-NPR
In North Carolina, the health secretary has said more than half of nursing home workers are declining the vaccine. A national survey found that 15% of health care workers who had been offered the vaccine said no, with nursing home personnel more likely to refuse than hospital staffers. New data shows nursing home residents are getting vaccinated at a higher rate than workers. NPR, … Continue Reading
February 04, 2021
How COVID-19 Ended Flu Season Before It Started-FiveThirtyEight
In the third week of 2021, clinical laboratories nationwide tested 23,549 specimens for influenza. Of those, just 0.3 percent (65 tests) turned up positive — a number that is, to put it mildly, absolutely wild. Although the U.S. continues to struggle with COVID-19, it has apparently beaten the flu into submission. Since the end of September, the combined total of positive flu cases identified by both public health and clinical labs is fewer than 1,500. There are high schools with more people … Continue Reading
February 04, 2021
World Faces Around 4,000 COVID-19 Variants As Britain Explores Mixed Vaccine Shots-Reuters
The world faces around 4,000 variants of the virus that causes COVID-19, prompting a race to improve vaccines, Britain said on Thursday, as researchers began to explore mixing doses of the Pfizer and AstraZeneca shots in a world first. Thousands of variants have been documented as the virus mutates, including the so-called British, South African and Brazilian variants which appear to spread more swiftly than others. British Vaccine Deployment Minister Nadhim Zahawi said it was very unlikely … Continue Reading
February 04, 2021
Why Some Hospitals Have To Scramble For Oxygen To Treat Covid-19 Patients-STAT
As Covid-19 cases began spiking last month, Mara Bryant and her hospital staff had to scramble to ensure enough oxygen was available. As the number of patients at Adventist Health White Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles reached 200 a day, the facility quickly began using six times its normal amount of oxygen. To cope, a 6,000-gallon tank was added as a backup to the usual 9,000-gallon tank, but finding that extra tank took two weeks. And once it was in place, it had to be refilled every day or … Continue Reading
February 04, 2021
USAID Nominee Power Calls For US To Lead On Global COVID-19 Response-Devex
The United States needs to take a leadership role in global COVID-19 response and play an active part in helping address the mounting number of world crises — from the coup in Myanmar to the protracted conflicts in Yemen, Syria, and Venezuela, according to Samantha Power, the nominee to lead the U.S. Agency for International Development. Devex, … Continue Reading
February 04, 2021
Digital Race For COVID-19 Vaccines Leaves Many Seniors Behind-NPR
With millions of older Americans eligible for coronavirus vaccines and limited supplies, many continue to describe a frantic and frustrating search to secure a shot, beset by uncertainty and difficulty. The efforts to vaccinate people who are 65 and older have strained under the enormous demand that has overwhelmed cumbersome, inconsistent scheduling systems. The struggle represents a shift from the first wave of vaccinations — health care workers in health care settings — which went … Continue Reading
February 03, 2021
Ethiopia Looks To Germany Amid EU Funding Fight-Devex
With the European Union withholding payments to the Ethiopian government over the conflict in its Tigray region, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed spoke to one of the bloc’s most influential national leaders Tuesday on improving bilateral ties. "Good phone call with Chancellor Angela Merkel on national and regional issues,” Abiy tweeted, “including #COVID19 as well as strengthening development and economic cooperation between #Ethiopia and Germany." Devex, … Continue Reading
February 03, 2021
Moscow Gains New Leverage With Coronavirus Vaccine Breakthrough-Politico
When news broke last August that Russia was the first country to approve a vaccine against the coronavirus, it was met with raised eyebrows around the globe. The shot — named Sputnik V — hadn’t gone through the standard testing regime. Experts warned that the rushed process risked undermining public confidence in the shot. Meanwhile, media reported that production snags were delaying its rollout. Impressive late-stage clinical trial results published in one of the world’s most prestigious … Continue Reading
February 03, 2021
Fauci Warns Against Super Bowl Parties To Avoid Virus Spread-The Associated Press
The nation’s top infectious disease expert doesn’t want the Super Bowl to turn into a super spreader. Dr. Anthony Fauci, says when it comes to Super Bowl parties during the pandemic, people should “just lay low and cool it.” He said during TV interviews Wednesday that now isn’t the time to invite people over for watch parties because of the possibility that they’re infected with the coronavirus and could sicken others. Big events like Sunday’s game in Tampa, Florida, between the Kansas City … Continue Reading
February 03, 2021
WHO Team Probing COVID-19 Visits Wuhan Lab, Meets 'Bat Woman'-Reuters
A team of investigators led by the World Health Organization visited a virus research laboratory in China’s central city of Wuhan and met with a prominent virologist there in its search for clues to the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. The experts spent about 3-1/2 hours at the heavily-guarded Wuhan Institute of Virology, which has been at the centre of some conspiracy theories that claim a laboratory leak caused the city’s first coronavirus outbreak at the end of 2019. “Extremely important … Continue Reading
February 03, 2021
A Rocky Road On The Way To Herd Immunity For COVID-19-NPR
Scientists estimate that somewhere between 70% and 85% of people need to be immune from the coronavirus before the disease will wane through a process known as herd immunity. Both natural immunity and vaccines can play a role in achieving that goal. But getting there won't be easy. New variants of the virus, for example, could create a new wave of infections, even in people who have been vaccinated or previously exposed. That could slow progress toward herd immunity - or, if the virus … Continue Reading
February 02, 2021
Child Psychiatrists Warn That The Pandemic May Be Driving Up Kids' Suicide Risk-NPR
Anthony Orr was almost done with his high school coursework when the governor of Nevada ordered a statewide shutdown of nonessential businesses on March 17, 2020. "He was looking forward to all of the senior activities, prom and graduation," says his mother, Pamela Orr. But all he got was a "mini [graduation] ceremony," with only a handful of students walking, wearing masks and at a distance from each other. But in August of last year, Anthony died by suicide. He was one of 19 students who has … Continue Reading
February 02, 2021
Why Are We Still Deep-Cleaning Surfaces For COVID?-Scientific American
By May, the WHO and health agencies around the world were recommending that people in ordinary community settings—houses, buses, churches, schools and shops—should clean and disinfect surfaces, especially those that are frequently touched. Disinfectant factories worked around the clock to keep up with heavy demand. But Goldman, a microbiologist at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in Newark, decided to take a closer look at the evidence around fomites. What he found was that there was little … Continue Reading
February 02, 2021
Pfizer Expects $15 Billion In 2021 Sales From Its COVID-19 Vaccine-Reuters
Sales from the vaccine - on track to be the drugmaker’s top product this year - could top $15 billion if the company signs more supply contracts, it said. Pfizer said it expects there could be a long-lasting need for COVID-19 vaccines, to combat new virus variants that emerge and to “boost” peoples’ waning immune responses. Reuters, … Continue Reading
February 02, 2021
A Baltimore Pastor, Preaching About Vaccines To The Black Community, Emphasizes Personal Agency-STAT
Terris King is intimately familiar with the Black community’s skepticism about Covid-19 vaccines. The Baltimore pastor — who has also worked for 30 years in federal and other public health programs — has been using his remote pulpit for almost a year to preach about the power and safety of vaccines, weaving together science and religion in a way he may be uniquely qualified to do. STAT, … Continue Reading