AP -
December 21, 2020
As companies race to develop a COVID-19 vaccine and countries scramble to secure doses, questions about the use of pork products — banned by some religious groups — has raised concerns about the possibility of disrupted immunization campaigns. Pork-derived gelatin has been widely used as a stabilizer to ensure vaccines remain safe and effective during storage and transport. Some companies have worked for years to develop pork-free vaccines…
ABC News -
December 21, 2020
Tampa Bay Times -
December 21, 2020
NPR -
December 18, 2020
In a 20-0 vote, with one abstention, a panel of advisers to the FDA recommended that the COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Moderna be authorized for emergency use in adults during the pandemic. If the agency authorizes the vaccine for emergency use, as is expected, it would become the second to be deployed in the U.S to fight the coronavirus. … The vaccine is 94% effective in preventing COVID-19, and the agency's analysis said there are no specific safety concerns that would stand in the way of authorization.
AP -
December 18, 2020
Hospitals across California have all but run out of intensive care beds for COVID-19 patients, ambulances are backing up outside emergency rooms, and tents for triaging the sick are going up as the nation’s most populous state emerges as the latest epicenter of the U.S. outbreak. On Thursday, California reported a staggering 52,000 new cases in a single day — equal to what the entire U.S. was averaging in mid-October — and a one-day record of 379 deaths. More than 16,000 people are in the hospital with the coronavirus across the state, more than triple the number a month ago.
HealthDay -
December 18, 2020
For the 12 months ending in May, more than 81,000 people died from an overdose. That is the highest number ever recorded during a 12-month period, scientists from the U.S. CDC said. … The primary driver behind the record-breaking numbers appeared to be the use of synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, which increased 38.4%. Of 38 U.S. jurisdictions with available synthetic opioid data, 37 reported increases in synthetic opioid-involved overdose deaths. In 18 of these jurisdictions, the increase was greater than 50%. Ten Western states reported a more than 98% increase in synthetic opioid-involved deaths, the researchers said.
Reuters -
December 18, 2020
COVID-19 hospitalizations rose to record heights for a 19th straight day, with nearly 113,000 coronavirus patients counted in U.S. medical facilities nationwide on Wednesday, while 3,580 more perished, the most yet in a single day. The virus has claimed over 311,000 lives in the United States to date, and health experts have warned of a deepening crisis this winter as intensive care units (ICUs) fill up and hospital beds spill over into hallways.
AP -
December 18, 2020
Vice President Mike Pence was vaccinated for COVID-19 on Friday in a live-television event aimed at reassuring Americans the vaccine is safe. Pence’s wife Karen and Surgeon General Jerome Adams also received shots.
HealthDay -
December 18, 2020
As a rule, COVID-19 spreads rapidly in most groups, but new research suggests that schools and day care centers appear to be the exception. Among those under 18, the virus is easily spread by close contact with family members who have COVID-19 and at gatherings where people don't wear masks, but going to school wasn't linked to positive COVID-19 tests, according to the researchers.
HealthDay -
December 18, 2020
Suicides among Black people doubled during COVID-19 lockdowns, while suicides in white individuals were cut in half during the same period. … "There were no increase in suicides in general as we expected, but we did see suicides in Blacks almost double," Nestadt said. The findings, which were published online Dec. 16 in JAMA Psychiatry, suggest that the Black community may have been particularly hard hit by the pandemic and its economic consequences.
AP -
December 18, 2020
Tens of millions of people are expected to travel to family gatherings or winter vacations over Christmas, despite pleas by public health experts who fear the result could be another surge in COVID-19 cases. In the U.S., AAA predicts that about 85 million people will travel between Dec. 23 and Jan. 3, most of them by car. If true, that would be a drop of nearly one-third from a year ago, but still a massive movement of people in the middle of a pandemic.