Updates
China Is Inoculating Thousands With Unapproved COVID-19 Vaccines. Why?-NPR
One early November morning, a Peking duck cook, several construction workers and a software engineer patiently lined up outside a Beijing vaccine facility, awaiting their turn to be injected with a coronavirus vaccine still awaiting regulatory approval. As countries around the world race to develop the first viable coronavirus vaccine, China's two biggest vaccine firms have already begun inoculating hundreds of thousands of mostly state workers in a bid to get a head start. But deploying … Continue Reading
November 11, 2020
Future Of Business Travel Unclear As Virus Upends Work Life-The Associated Press
Brian Contreras represents the worst fears of the lucrative business travel industry. A partner account executive at a U.S. tech firm, Contreras was used to traveling frequently for his company. But nine months into the pandemic, he and thousands of others are working from home and dialing into video conferences instead of boarding planes. Contreras manages his North American accounts from Sacramento, California and doesn’t expect to travel for work until the middle of next year. Even then, … Continue Reading
November 11, 2020
Why Do COVID Death Rates Seem To Be Falling?-Nature
Many regions of the world have experienced the pandemic in punishing waves, but Chennai in India endured a six-month flood, according to Bharath Kumar Tirupakuzhi Vijayaraghavan. The Apollo Main Hospital, where Vijayaraghavan works as an intensive-care specialist, was never overwhelmed, but it was relentlessly busy. One shining light that he can point to is his intensive-care unit’s dwindling fatality rate. In April, up to 35% of those in the unit with COVID-19 perished, and about 70% of those … Continue Reading
November 11, 2020
Cold Storage Challenges Could Hamper Distribution Of Pfizer, Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines-Reuters
Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, on Wednesday said it would be challenging to distribute vaccines that use messenger RNA based technology in developing countries, owing to their cold storage requirements. The comments come days after Pfizer Inc said its experimental COVID-19 vaccine is more than 90% effective based on initial trial results and that it expects to file for U.S. emergency authorization this month. Reuters, … Continue Reading
November 11, 2020
Is Low Mask Wearing In Rural Communities A Sign Of Poor Health Messaging?-STAT
As the U.S. heads toward a third peak in the pandemic, rural counties are among the areas most severely affected by Covid-19. While their absolute numbers of cases are still relatively small compared with large cities, case rates and death rates are growing fastest in rural counties. This is especially worrisome because characteristics associated with poor Covid-19 outcomes, like older age, poorer general health, and fewer health care providers per capita, are more common in rural communities. … Continue Reading
November 11, 2020
Meat Manufacturer Sues New Mexico After Plant Ordered To Close Due To COVID-19 Cases-NPR
A meat manufacturer is suing New Mexico, saying the state violated an executive order from President Trump by ordering a plant to temporarily close. Health officials ordered Stampede Meat to close its Sunland Park, N.M., plant last week after six employees tested positive for the coronavirus in a five-day period in late October. A state directive calls for businesses to be shut down for 14 days if four or more employees test positive within a 14-day period. NPR, … Continue Reading
November 10, 2020
How To Minimize COVID Risk And Enjoy The Holidays-Scientific American
With COVID-19 cases hitting an all-time high, a decision not to gather in person may be the most loving one a family can make this holiday season. This is especially the case if its members include individuals in higher-risk categories, such as older adults and people with diabetes or cancer, to name just a few. But not every type of holiday celebration carries the same risk, and the dangers of people getting together need to be weighed against the benefits of social interaction, says … Continue Reading
November 10, 2020
Iran, Lebanon To Impose Lockdowns, Curfews As Virus Surges-The Associated Press
Iran imposed a nightly curfew on businesses in Tehran and other cities on Tuesday while Lebanon was preparing for a two-week nationwide lockdown later this week as both countries battle a major surge in coronavirus infections. Restaurants and nonessential businesses in Tehran and 30 other cities were ordered to close at 6 p.m. for one month, to keep hospitals from becoming overwhelmed and to slow the worsening outbreak, which has killed more than 39,000 — the highest toll in the Middle East. … Continue Reading
November 10, 2020
One In Five COVID-19 Patients Develop Mental Illness Within 90 Days-Reuters
Many COVID-19 survivors are likely to be at greater risk of developing mental illness, psychiatrists said on Monday, after a large study found 20% of those infected with the coronavirus are diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder within 90 days. Anxiety, depression and insomnia were most common among recovered COVID-19 patients in the study who developed mental health problems. The researchers from Britain’s Oxford University also found significantly higher risks of dementia, a brain impairment … Continue Reading
November 10, 2020
Drug Companies Deliver A Vote Of Confidence In Adaptive Trial For Covid-19-STAT
A novel clinical trial that uses artificial intelligence to rapidly compare Covid-19 treatments has attracted participation from two major drug companies, a key milestone in the effort to shake up the way trials are conducted. Amgen and the Japanese pharmaceutical company Eisai will become the first pharma companies to test their experimental therapies in REMAP-CAP, an adaptive clinical trial that seeks to rapidly evaluate potential Covid-19 treatments in patients around the world. STAT, … Continue Reading
November 10, 2020
Operation Warp Speed's Logistics Chief Weighs In On Vaccine Progress-NPR
A top U.S. Army general who is co-leading the federal COVID-19 vaccine initiative anticipates that the first of millions of Americans could start receiving COVID-19 vaccines as soon as next month. "I think a safe and effective vaccine will be available initially in December," Gen. Gustave Perna told NPR's Mary Louise Kelly in an interview Monday. If the Food and Drug Administration authorizes a vaccine by then, "10 to 30 million doses of vaccine will be available that we can start … Continue Reading
November 09, 2020
Scientists Criticize Use Of Unproven Covid Drugs In India-Nature
In India, which has the world’s second-largest COVID-19 outbreak, there is a desperate need for effective treatments. But researchers are concerned about how the country’s drug regulator is handling potential therapies. The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has approved several repurposed drugs for ‘restricted emergency use’ for treating the disease, the first time it has used such powers. Yet scientists say it’s unclear on what basis the drugs were approved, and critics argue that the … Continue Reading
November 09, 2020
Europe Hunkers Down But Also Notes Wins Against Virus Surge-The Associated Press
Portugal and Hungary on Monday became the latest European countries to impose curfews against the resurgent tide of coronavirus infections and deaths lashing the continent and filing its emergency wards. But glimmers of hope emerged from France, Belgium and elsewhere that tough restrictions might be starting to work. The Associated Press, … Continue Reading
November 09, 2020
Novavax On Track To Begin U.S. Trial Of COVID-19 Vaccine This Month-Reuters
Novavax Inc said on Monday it was on track to begin a delayed U.S.-based late-stage study of its experimental coronavirus vaccine later this month. The company also said the vaccine, NVX-CoV2373, had gained the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s “fast-track” status and that expected data from the trial could support U.S. authorization and approval. Reuters, … Continue Reading
November 09, 2020
Covid-19 Vaccine From Pfizer And BioNTech Is Strongly Effective, Early Data From Large Trial Indicate-STAT
Pfizer and partner BioNTech said Monday that their vaccine against Covid-19 was strongly effective, exceeding expectations with results that are likely to be met with cautious excitement — and relief — in the face of the global pandemic. The vaccine is the first to be tested in the United States to generate late-stage data. The companies said an early analysis of the results showed that individuals who received two injections of the vaccine three weeks apart experienced more than 90% fewer … Continue Reading
November 09, 2020
Biden Names 13 Health Experts To COVID-19 Transition Advisory Board-NPR
President-elect Joe Biden named 13 health experts to his Transition COVID-19 Advisory Board on Monday, advancing his plans despite uncertainty over how much the Trump administration will cooperate amid its ongoing legal challenge to the election results. The coronavirus has spread at alarming rates in the U.S. in recent weeks. NPR, … Continue Reading
November 06, 2020
AstraZeneca To Deliver Vaccine Trial Data By Year’s End-The Associated Press
AstraZeneca hopes to show its COVID-19 vaccine is effective by the end of this year and is ramping up manufacturing so it can supply hundreds of millions of doses starting in January, Chief Executive Pascal Soriot said Thursday. The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker is working with the University of Oxford to develop one of the most closely watched COVID-19 vaccines, which is in late stage trials in the U.S., Britain and other countries to determine its safety and effectiveness. Once those results are … Continue Reading
November 06, 2020
Germany's COVID-19 Monitoring App Shows Second Wave Unbroken-Reuters
A fitness tracker app launched this spring in Germany to monitor the spread of COVID-19 indicates that recently imposed social-distancing measures have yet to slow a second wave of infection, the scientist leading the project told Reuters. Reuters, … Continue Reading
November 06, 2020
Funders Grapple With Underrepresentation In COVID-19 Trials-Devex
As the COVID-19 death toll rose, the disparities were impossible to ignore: The novel coronavirus was taking a disproportionate toll on underserved communities. Imbalances between ethnic groups gained the most attention, but the disparities extended to older adults and communities grappling with job and food insecurity, as well as poverty. Devex, … Continue Reading
November 06, 2020
Spread Of Mutated Coronavirus In Danish Mink ‘Hits All The Scary Buttons,’ But Fears May Be Overblown-STAT
Denmark set off alarm bells this week with its announcement that it is culling the nation’s entire mink herd — the largest in the world — to stop spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in the prized fur species because of potentially dangerous mutations. Inter-species jumps of viruses make scientists nervous — as do suggestions of potentially significant mutations that result from those jumps. But is this latest twist in the Covid-19 saga reason to be deeply concerned? STAT, … Continue Reading