The FDA’s outside panel of vaccine experts largely agreed for the need to tailor future COVID-19 vaccines during a virtual meeting April 6, though the exact path and timeline to do so is still unclear, according to NPR.
Category: Public Health
It could take years to know what ‘endemic COVID-19’ looks like
It can take years for scientists to determine endemic patterns while pandemics settle, and consequences of widespread illness can be long lasting after new infections fade, leaving the endemic stage of COVID-19 a “mystery,” The New York Times reported …
A Shortfall of ECMO Treatment Cost Lives During the Delta Surge
About 50% of the covid-19 patients who got the last-ditch life support treatment at Vanderbilt University Medical Center died. Researchers wanted to know what happened to the many patients they had to turn away because ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) machines and the specialized staffers needed were in short supply. The grim answer: 90% of those turned away perished.
Biden’s plan for long COVID-19: 4 notes
President Joe Biden on April 5 issued a memorandum directing HHS to coordinate a governmentwide plan to address long COVID-19, estimated to affect 7 million to 23 million Americans.
Why Black and Hispanic Seniors Are Left With a Less Powerful Flu Vaccine
Federal health officials haven’t taken a clear position on whether a high-dose influenza vaccine — on the market since 2010 — is the best choice for people 65 and older. Many in that group already opt for the costlier enhanced shot. Those who get the standard vaccine are disproportionately members of ethnic and racial minorities.
Doctors Trying to Prescribe Abortion Pills Across State Lines Stymied by Legislation
Some doctors are getting licensed in multiple states so they can use telemedicine and mail-order pharmacies to provide medication abortions to more women. At the same time, states are cracking down on telemedicine abortions, blunting the efforts of out-of-state doctors.
$11M for North Carolina Work-Based Rehab Raises Concerns
As overdoses surge and opioid settlement dollars flow, funding to North Carolina rehab foreshadows national discussion about the best approaches to treatment.
The ‘so what wave’: Why the US is so blasé about BA.2
CDC estimates show the omicron subvariant BA.2 now makes up 72 percent of U.S. cases, but the nation’s mood surrounding another potential wave is much different than previous COVID-19 surges.
US COVID-19 cases to jump 64% in 2 weeks, Mayo projects
Daily COVID-19 cases are projected to increase 64.5 percent over the next two weeks as the omicron subvariant BA.2 continues to spread nationwide, modeling from Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic shows.
CDC to undergo structural review
The CDC plans to undergo a one-month review beginning April 11 to inform strategic change and modernizations at the agency, The Washington Post reported April 4.
