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Why we might need a booster for COVID-19 vaccines
Pfizer is ready to administer them, and the CDC says they aren’t needed at this time, find out why booster shots may become necessary.
Just the FAQ, USA TODAY
Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca PLC and the University of Oxford are conducting early-stage research into whether potential modifications to their coronavirus vaccines could reduce or eliminate the risk of rare but serious blood clots, Wall Street reported Newspaper.
The Journal, citing sources it described as close to the process, said outside scientists were also joining the effort and new clots of clot formation bolster hopes of identifying the cause. AstraZeneca hopes to update its shot by next year, the Journal said.
It’s too early to know whether the J&J snapshot or the AstraZeneca snapshot can be edited, or if that would make commercial sense, the Journal wrote. AstraZeneca said it “is actively working with regulators and the scientific community” to learn more about rare blood clotting events, including information on early diagnosis and treatment.
In addition to scientific hurdles, changes may require changes in property rights or regulatory approvals. Yet the unprecedented scale and urgency of the COVID-19 vaccine deployment could accelerate scientific research and legal issues, according to the Journal, just as it accelerated vaccine development.
Use of the J&J vaccine, hailed for its convenience in a single injection, was suspended for 10 days in April as federal health agencies investigated reports of several women developing severe blood clots within two weeks of receipt. vaccine. The agencies then determined that the vaccine’s benefits outweighed its risks. Almost 13 million J&J shots have been administered.
Also in the news:
►The state government of Tennessee has fired its top immunization official. Dr Michelle Fiscus angered some Republicans when she sent information to medical providers explaining the state’s legal mechanism for vaccinating minors over 14 without parental consent.
► Malaysia closed a mass vaccination center on Tuesday after more than 200 medical staff and volunteers tested positive for the coronavirus.
►Utah Governor Spencer Cox apologized on Monday after his administration discovered that a state agency falsely stated last week that 70% of state residents had received a dose. The percentage, when corrected, fell to 67%.
►Federal health officials have stuck to their position that Americans fully vaccinated against COVID-19 do not need a booster after meeting with representatives of vaccine maker Pfizer on Monday.
The numbers of the day: The United States has recorded more than 33.8 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and more than 607,400 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Global totals: over 187.4 million cases and over 4 million deaths. Nearly 160 million Americans – 48% of the population – have been fully immunized, according to the CDC.
What we read: As many teens and young adults prepare to return to school in the fall term amid the spread of the delta variant, lagging vaccination rates among Gen Z are causing concern among experts.
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A wave of infections swept through many summer camps in Texas, Illinois, Florida, Missouri and Kansas, spreading in some places to the whole community. The clusters emerged as the number of new confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States reversed course, increasing by more than 60% in the past two weeks, from an average of around 12,000 per day to around 19,500, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. .
Christian service camp in west-central Pettis County, Missouri, has experienced an epidemic. Local health center administrator JoAnn Martin said it had been difficult to get people to get vaccinated.
“It’s been a challenge since the first case,” she said. “You have people who still say it’s not real. You have people who say it’s a cold. You have people who say what’s wrong. You have people who say this is all. a government conspiracy.
Nearly a million people in France have made an appointment for a vaccine in a single day amid the pressure to save the summer holidays and save the French economy. An application that centralizes France’s vaccine appointments, Doctolib, announced on Tuesday that 926,000 people had made an appointment on Monday, a daily record since the country rolled out coronavirus vaccines in December. Those under 35 represent 65% of new appointments.
Infections are on the rise in France, prompting talk of the possibility of President Emmanuel Macron announcing vaccination requirements – and prompting a new demand for nominations. About 41% of the French population has been fully vaccinated.
The Food and Drug Administration is warning of a possible link between this Johnson & Johnson vaccine and the autoimmune disease known as Guillain-Barré syndrome. In a statement, the agency said the data “suggests an association” between the vaccine and a higher risk of disease, but not enough “to establish a causal relationship.” Approximately 12.8 million doses of J&J shot have been administered.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says on its website that people who have had Guillain-Barré syndrome can be vaccinated against COVID-19 and that no cases of illness have been reported in clinical trials for the vaccines Pfizer and Moderna. One case has been reported in the J&J lawsuits, the CDC said.
The death toll from a catastrophic fire that broke out in a coronavirus hospital ward in southern Iraq the day before rose to 64 on Tuesday, Iraqi medical officials said. Two health officials said more than 100 people were also injured in the blaze that burned down the coronavirus ward at al-Hussein University Hospital in the city of Nasiriyah on Monday.
Anxious relatives were still looking for traces of their loved ones Tuesday morning, searching among the debris of blankets and charred effects inside the burnt remains of the room. The blackened skull of a deceased patient from the ward has been found. Many have cried openly, their tears stained with anger, accusing both the provincial government in Dhi Qar, where Nassiriyah is located, and the federal government in Baghdad, for years of mismanagement and neglect.
“The whole state system collapsed, and who paid the price? The people inside here. These people have paid the price, ”said Haidar al-Askari, who was at the scene of the fire.
During the night, firefighters and rescuers – many of whom only had flashlights and using blankets to put out the small fires that were still smoldering in places – had worked frantically to search the service in the dark. At dawn, bodies covered with sheets were laid on the floor outside the hospital.
Previously, officials said the blaze was caused by an electrical short circuit but provided no further details. Another official said the fire broke out when an oxygen cylinder exploded. Officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to reporters.
– Associated Press
In the last seven days in the United States, new cases of COVID-19 have increased 97.4% from the previous week, with 47 states now reporting an increase in infections, according to data from Johns Hopkins University . But the main increase is likely from states that did not report during the July 4 vacation and were closed on Monday, likely artificially inflating the number of new infections.
The United States is again reporting cases at a rate of nearly 1,000 per hour. This is more than double the rate the country experienced just a few weeks ago, before the number of cases started to rise again.
More than 99% of deaths now involve unvaccinated people, reports the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
“If (the patients) are sick enough to be admitted to the hospital, they are not vaccinated. This is the absolute common denominator between these patients,” Springfield emergency physician Dr. Howard Jarvis told CNN Monday, Missouri. “I can see the regret on their faces. You know, we ask them, because we want to know, are you vaccinated? And it’s very clear that a lot of them regret (not being vaccinated).”
-Mike Stucka
New California state rules prohibit K-12 students from attending in-person classes without a mask, according to new state regulations released Monday.
The rules go against CDC recommendations that allow vaccinated students to attend classes without a mask. California has added stricter rules in addition to federal recommendations.
State Superintendent of Education Tony Thurmond told the Los Angeles Times that part of the reason is that those 12 and under are still not eligible to be vaccinated. Masks are a useful addition when physical distancing can be difficult with full participation.
“It makes it more tenable that everyone can come back and everyone can be safe,” Thurmond said. “So I see this as a common sense move to promote safety but give everyone a chance to come back.”
California Department of Public Health tweeted on Monday that school guidelines will be clarified regarding mask application and safety.
Contribute: The Associated Press.
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