NASA has announced plans to deliberately crash a spacecraft into an asteroid. This is the world’s first planetary defense test against potential threats to Earth from outer space, and it’s very close to making Star Wars a reality.
In healthcare today, Moderna has asked the FDA to approve an updated booster shot, but the challenge remains to convince people to get yet another COVID-19 vaccine.
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Moderna Seeks Approval for Updated COVID Booster
Moderna said Tuesday it has submitted a request to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve an updated version of its COVID-19 vaccine targeting the latest Omicron subspecies.
App appeared ahead of the Autumn Booster Shot campaign. Assuming the FDA signs off, the company said the shots will be ready to ship in September.
The application is for the currently circulating BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of Omicron and a “bivalent” vaccine that targets the original form of the virus, according to a previous FDA directive. is.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said it expects the bivalent vaccine to be licensed only as a single dose to those who have completed the primary vaccination series. Also, as long as you have your first series, it doesn’t matter how many times you’ve been dosed with boosters before.
Trial Gambit: Like Pfizer, Moderna said it doesn’t have clinical trial data for the vaccine. increase.
Because human clinical trials are currently ongoing, no results are available that the FDA can consider in making a decision.
Big challenge: But given the delay in getting the first booster injections, it remains unclear how many people will get the new boosters, despite a potential spike in COVID-19 in the fall and winter.
Please check this out for details.
Pfizer vax is 73% effective in children under 5
Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine was 73.2% effective against the disease in children under five, the company said Tuesday.
The company touted the data as reinforcing the importance of a vaccine approved in June after months of waiting for a vaccine for its youngest children.
Effective after 3 doses of vaccine. Pfizer’s vaccine approval was delayed earlier this year to allow time to consider a third dose, based on the belief that two doses would not be enough.
Updated vaccine in the works: Pfizer said Tuesday it was working on a vaccine for children under 12 that would specifically target BA.5, consistent with its approach for adults.
Ages 12+.
“Based on the strong safety and immunogenicity data that led to FDA approval of a COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 6 months to 4 years, we believe that complete vaccination helps protect against symptomatic disease. We are pleased to share the confirming evidence at a time when Omicron’s BA.2 stock was dominant,” said Albert Bourra, CEO of Pfizer.
How many people will it take? It is an ongoing challenge for parents to get their young children vaccinated. So far, she has vaccinated only about 5% of children under the age of 5, ABC News reported last week.
Please check this out for details.
Life expectancy dropped by almost two years
New data show that life expectancy in the United States fell by 1.8 years from 2019 to 2020.
A new National Vital Statistics report shows declines in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.
Cause: The National Center for Health Statistics and its Division of Vital Statistics attribute the decline to the COVID-19 pandemic and an increase in drug overdose deaths.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said last year that the decline was the largest year-over-year change in more than 75 years.
- New York State experienced the largest decline, with a three-year decline, with DC a close second at 2.7 years.
- In 12 other states, including the southern border states of Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Louisiana, Mississippi, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan and South Carolina,2 A year-on-year decrease was observed.
- In Hawaii it decreased by only 0.2 years. Oregon, Washington, Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire also saw him drop less than a year.
The CDC recorded 528,891 more deaths in 2020 than the previous year. According to the report, COVID-19 was the featured cause of 350,831 deaths, or 10.4% of his total in 2020.
Please check this out for details.
Monkeypox has reached all 50 states
The monkeypox virus has reached all 50 states.
Wyoming reported one case of the virus on Monday, making it the last state in the country to do so, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In a news release, the Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) said the only virus case was from a male Laramie County resident, and that state public health officials were tracking down the infected individual to find out if other residents were infected. He added that he had checked to see if he had been in direct contact with him. .
- “Because monkeypox is spread by close contact, we do not believe the risk of the virus is currently a major concern for the community or most people in Wyoming,” said a state health officer and state epidemiologist. author Alexia Harist said. “Monkeypox doesn’t spread as easily as common viruses like the flu or his COVID-19.”
As of Monday, the United States had reported 15,433 cases of monkeypox, with New York having nearly 3,000 reported cases, followed by California, Florida, Texas and Georgia, according to CDC data.
Please check this out for details.
Fauci on threat of Republican investigation: ‘It doesn’t surprise me’
Anthony Fauci, the White House’s chief medical adviser, said Tuesday that his recently announced decision to step down from his government office was in no way affected by threats of an investigation from Republicans in Congress. .
Upcoming party schedule: Several Republican lawmakers have vowed to open an investigation into Fauci’s actions during the COVID-19 pandemic if he regains control of Congress in the midterm elections.
- Fauci’s plans to step down later this year have not deterred lawmakers from planning future investigations. Several Republican leaders have vowed to continue investigating the top infectious disease expert, even if he doesn’t work for the government.
CNN’s White House correspondent Caitlan Collins asked Fauci on Tuesday how much the threat of an investigation played a role in his decision to end his decades-long tenure in the government.
- “Not at all, Caitran. Not at all, not even the slightest bit,” Fauci said. “I have nothing to hide and I have been able to defend everything I have done. It goes backwards.”
Collins asked Fauci if he would agree to attend hearings and appear before Congress after he resigned if a Republican made such a request.
Fauci said he would “certainly” consider the request.
“Of course, I’m happy to cooperate, as long as it’s not just bringing up nonsense or attacking my character, but making it what should be a respectable oversight. It’s not an oversight,” he said. Told.
Please check this out for details.
what we are reading
- $18,000 breast biopsy: When insurance costs so much (Kaiser Health News)
- US plan to expand supply of monkeypox vaccine already hits hurdles (Stat News)
- Some bars are playing a big role in the LGBTQ community’s fight against monkeypox (NPR)
by state
- Dog dies from mysterious disease in northern Michigan, authorities under investigation (Detroit Free Press)
- Democratic lawmakers call on health department to stabilize Montana state hospitals with federal accreditation (Montana Free Press)
- Mississippi Delta loses its only neonatal intensive care unit (Mississippi Today)
hill editorial
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