Tag Archives: COVID19

By Deena Beasley    Nov 5 (Reuters) – A trial of Pfizer Inc’s experimental antiviral pill for COVID-19 was stopped early after the drug was shown to cut by 89% the chances of hospitalization or death for adults at risk of developing severe disease, the company said on Friday.    The results appear to surpass those seen with Merck & Co Inc’s pill molnupiravir, which was shown last month to halve the likelihood of dying or being hospitalized for COVID-19 patients also at high risk of serious… Source link

Authorization for Moderna’s (MRNA) COVID-19 vaccine for ages 12-17 was put on hold Friday in light of concerns over a rare side effect known as myocarditis, or a heart inflammation. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration decision gives Pfizer’s (PFE), which has a similar technology, an advantage in the market. In advisory panel discussions prior to Pfizer’s authorization for adolescents, the myocarditis risks were raised, but ultimately the panel decided the benefits outweigh the risks. As a… Source link

President Joe Biden touted the country’s progress in the fight against COVID-19 this week as new cases decline and vaccination rates rise. But despite the recent progress, health officials are warning that the pandemic is far from over, even with the Delta variant in retreat, saying Americans should brace for another wave this winter. “It’s just a matter of time before we have another surge,” Dr. Murtaza Akhter, University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix Emergency Physician told… Source link

The U.S. continues to struggle to increase vaccinations, despite recent gains from employer mandates. The struggle of public health and government agencies to cut through anti-vaccine messaging is partially to blame, experts say.  Two experts who have been monitoring and sharing trusted information, as well as calling out misinformation, are Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of the School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, and Dr. Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research… Source link

By Lewis Krauskopf and Manojna Maddipatla (Reuters) – Positive clinical trial results for Merck & Co’s experimental antiviral COVID-19 pill reverberated through the healthcare sector on Friday, sending the drugmaker’s stock price soaring while denting high-flying shares of vaccine companies and makers of other coronavirus therapies. Merck shares jumped as much as 12.3% and hit their highest level since February 2020 after data showed the company’s pill molnupiravir… Source link

With the Pfizer (PFE)/BioNTech (BNTX) booster guidance in the rearview mirror, the CDC and the country’s other regulatory and public health agencies are gearing up to tackle Moderna’s (MRNA) and eventually Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ) booster filings for recipients of those vaccines. Meanwhile, many have wondered why the U.S. is not following Europe’s and Canada’s lead in allowing mixing and matching of vaccine brands in order to be considered fully vaccinated or for booster doses. CDC Director… Source link

The argument that natural immunity against COVID-19 is an alternative to vaccination is emerging as a potential legal challenge to federally mandated vaccination policies. Vaccination is already required for certain workers and some college students. The federal government, despite steeper legal hurdles to imposing vaccination, has also invoked the U.S. Department of Labor to mandate inoculation for health care workers and is expected to roll out a larger policy effectively mandating… Source link

Cue Health, which makes at-home Covid-19 testing kidds, made its public market debut Friday. Cue Health In April, Google started sending at-home Covid-19 tests to its U.S. employees from a little-known start-up in San Diego called Cue Health. Most of Cue Health’s business up to that point had come from a deal with the U.S. Department of Defense to provide rapid tests to the federal government. Google instantly became the health-tech company’s biggest private sector customer. Cue Health has used… Source link

The month-long process leading to final interim guidance from the U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), following an authorization of Pfizer (PFE)/BioNTech’s (BNTX) COVID-19 vaccine booster shot has left some experts feeling queasy. “If you were paying attention to the play-by-play, it’s somewhat nauseating. It just feels weird and terrible,” said Dr. Aaron Carroll, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Indiana. Starting in August when President Joe Biden announced all… Source link

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) announced promising booster data Tuesday showing 94% efficacy for its COVID-19 vaccine when given after six months of the initial dose. In addition, the initial dose of the vaccine continued to provide consistent protection against the virus, including against the Delta variant, the company said in a statement. The latter news puts the vaccine in stark contrast to mRNA vaccines, which have shown waning immunity over time. Mathai Mammen, J&J’s global head of R&D, told… Source link