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Biotechnology company Moderna is proposing to increase the number of doses per vial of its coronavirus vaccine by up to 50% to address a bottleneck in manufacturing.
Moderna president Dr. Stephen Hoge announced that the firm seeks to fill each vial with up to 15 doses instead of the current 10, according to a statement provided to CNN on Monday.
The move was first reported by CNBC. CNN has also reached out to the FDA for comment.
According to Hoge, it’s not just the amount of vaccine available that might put a ceiling on production – it’s also the number of vials that can be filled in a certain amount of time.
This comes as the company has been expanding its manufacturing capacity to nearly 1 million doses per day, according to the statement.
On her 100th birthday, Mildred Grassman got flowers, candy, money – and her second shot of the Covid-19 vaccine.
It also means that eventually, Grassman will be able to get back to what she loves – playing cards and bingo and being with her friends – once most people are vaccinated.
“She’s very social,” her daughter, Mary Carl, said of Grassman. “She’s never met a stranger,” she said, so the pandemic has been rough for Grassman, who has her own home at an independent living facility for seniors in Evansville.
When Grassman arrived at the clinic Monday morning, sporting a T-shirt with a Rosie the Riveter-like image and a face mask that read “Fabulous since 1921,” she was greeted with the “Happy Birthday” song over the sound system, and everyone wearing party hats.
Even without the party, Grassman said she was looking forward to getting that last shot.
“I thought it was a good birthday present,” she said.
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Democrats on Capitol Hill are willing to allow President Joe Biden the opportunity to attempt to garner Republican support for his broad Covid-19 relief package – but they aren’t willing to wait long, or to shrink the size of the package as GOP leaders are suggesting.
The universal urgency felt by congressional Democrats was demonstrated by the decision to immediately introduce budget resolutions that begin the process of passing the relief package through reconciliation.
That process could take up to a month, which would give Republicans the chance to come to the table – but also leaves open the option to get the job done without them. For Democrats, the timeline is the priority, not getting Republicans to support the plan.
North Carolina has surpassed 1 million coronavirus vaccine doses administered, according to the state’s Department of Health and Human Services.
So far, the state has administered 1,061,308 doses. North Carolina is currently vaccinating healthcare workers, long-term care staff and residents, and anyone aged 65 or older, regardless of health status or living condition.
Since the start of the pandemic, the state has reported 761,302 Covid-19 cases and 9,342 deaths, according to local authorities.
Even if you’ve had coronavirus, there’s a “very high rate” of being reinfected with the new variants if they become dominant, Dr. Anthony Fauci says.
Fauci emphasized the importance of getting vaccinated to prevent severe and potentially fatal illness that may require hospitalization.
“We need to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as we possibly can, and when vaccine becomes available to individuals please take the vaccine, even though there is a diminished protection against the variants, there’s enough protection to prevent you from getting serious disease, including hospitalization and deaths. So, vaccination is critical,” Fauci said.
Read more about the new Covid-19 variants here.
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The National Hockey League (NHL) has postponed the next three New Jersey Devils games after four additional players were added to the Covid-19 Protocol Absence list.
The Devils now have 10 players on the list – Mackenzie Blackwood, Connor Carrick, Aaron Dell, Andreas Johnsson, Janne Kuokkanen, Michael McLeod, Kyle Palmieri, Sami Vatanen, Pavel Zacha, and Travis Zajac.
The team says its training facilities have been closed indefinitely to all players on the active roster.
There have been 14 NHL games postponed this season due to Covid-19 related issues.
The statement from the league reads as follows:
The Biden administration is encouraging all individuals, regardless of immigration status, to get the Covid-19 vaccine, saying that federal immigration agencies will not conduct enforcement operations “at or near vaccine distribution sites or clinics,” according to a Homeland Security statement.
The statement is a significant departure from the department’s tone under the Trump administration, which sought to clamp down on illegal immigration.
US Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement – two immigration enforcement agencies under DHS – usually refrain from enforcement actions when faced with extraordinary circumstances, like a hurricane, and at sensitive locations, like hospitals.
On Monday, the department said CBP and ICE will also not conduct enforcement operations “at or near vaccine distribution sites or clinics.”
There’s no evidence animals are playing a significant role in the spread of coronavirus to people, but precautions are important, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials said Monday.
Evidence suggests that Covid-19 likely originated in animals before becoming widespread among humans.
“As of the middle of January, we’re aware of 187 animals from 22 countries with a confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection,” she added, noting those numbers do not include mink on mink farms. Behravesh said that companion animals, especially cats and dogs, are the leading group of animal species impacted by coronavirus.
While animal to human transmission risk is low, people can spread coronavirus to their pets, Behravesh said. Those who may have Covid-19 can protect their pets from transmission the same way they would with other humans.
She said infected people should avoid contact with pets and wear a mask when contact can’t be avoided.
People who suspect their pets may have coronavirus should consult with a veterinarian, Behravesh added. She noted that among 93 cases of Covid-19 in cat and dogs in the US, 53% showed no symptoms. The most common symptoms reported in animals have been respiratory sings, like coughing or sneezing. Other symptoms reported include fever, lethargy, vomiting and diarrhea.
Pets who have tested positive for coronavirus should be isolated away from humans and other animals, she said.
There’s no evidence that pets are carrying or spreading coronavirus on their skin or hair, and it’s important not to wipe or bathe pets with chemical disinfectants, Behravesh said.
“Pet poison controls have actually had an increase in calls due to these types of exposures among pets,” she said.
The US Food and Drug Administration has not approved any drugs for the treatment or prevention of Covid-19 in animals, Behravesh noted.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced today that Michigan has administered over one million Covid-19 vaccines, according to a release from the governor’s office.
“Reaching this milestone is good news for our families, frontline workers, and small business owners, but there is more work to do,” Whitmer said. “My administration is working closely with the federal government to help us get the supply we need to reach our goal and return to the normalcy we all crave. I ask for patience from Michiganders as our frontline workers work around the clock to administer vaccines.”
Maj. Gen. Paul Rogers, Adjutant General and Director of Michigan’s Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, added that members of the Michigan National Guard continue working hard to administer vaccines across the state.
“One of the most important things Michiganders can do right now is to make a plan to get the safe and effective vaccine when it becomes available to you,” Chief Medical Executive and MDHHS Chief Deputy for Health Dr. Joneigh Khaldun said. “The state and our partners in health care and business will continue working day and night to reach our goal of 50,000 shots in arms per day.”
The first case of the B.1.1.7 variant of Covid-19 identified in South Carolina has a history of international travel, according to the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.
The state’s first known case of the variant was identified in an adult from the Lowcountry region who traveled internationally, the agency said in a statement dated Jan. 30.
No further details will be released to protect the person’s privacy, the agency added.
American Airlines is updating its mask rules to match the Biden administration’s new transportation mask mandate.
American says passengers claiming a medical exemption must ask for airline approval and show proof of a negative coronavirus test within 72 hours of their flight—a caveat laid out in a CDC order published last Friday.
American is also updating its rules on bandanas and gaiters, now more restricted under the new federal rules.
Starting Tuesday, the Transportation Security Administration will begin enforcing masks in airports, at security checkpoints, and on-board flights.
American Airlines COO David Seymour said “this federal mandate will provide additional support to our crew members who are working diligently to enforce our policy and further reinforce the safety of air travel during COVID-19.”
The B.1.1.7 variant of Covid-19, colloquially known as the UK variant, has been detected in Iowa, according to a news release from the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH).
Three cases of the variant have been discovered in the Hawkeye State, with two cases detected in Johnson County and the third case appearing in Bremer County, IDPH says. All three cases are adults, and the presence of the variant was identified by the State Hygienic Lab (SHL), according to IDPH.
Regarding the three cases, “state and local public health officials are conducting additional epidemiological investigation to gather more details about illness, travel history, and potential exposures,” IDPH spokesperson Sarah Ekstrand tells CNN in an email Monday afternoon.
Colorado is seeing variants of Covid-19, just as the number of cases in the state ticks downward and the number of vaccinated residents increases, according to state health officials.
Dr. Rachel Herlihy, Colorado’s epidemiologist, told reporters during a Zoom news conference that scientists have identified a total of 16 Covid-19 variants in the state, 13 of which are known as the United Kingdom’s B117 variant. Three are the variant known as L4524 that’s been causing infections in California.
Herlihy said that the number of Covid-19 cases in Colorado has been steadily declining after a “little bit of a holiday spike.” Similarly, hospitalizations have declined over that same period, she said.
Brigadier Gen. Scott Sherman of Colorado’s National Guard, who’s honchoing the state’s vaccine distribution said 90% of moderate risk, front-line healthcare workers have received both doses of the vaccine, 100% of skilled nursing facilities have received their first doses, he said, with 71% receiving a second.
Thirty-nine percent of Coloradans aged 70 and older have received their first vaccine dose, Sherman said, as they move towards a goal of 70% of those 70 and older getting vaccinated by the end of February.
Sherman said he’s hoping 75% or higher of educators can be fully vaccinated by March 5, ahead of spring break, depending on how many teachers are up for taking the vaccine.
Sherman said state health officials are “working hard” on vaccine distribution equity across the state diverse population, and on better transparency regarding that issue.
More than 32 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered in the United States, according to data published today by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC reported that 32,222,402 total doses have been administered, about 65% of the 49,936,450 doses distributed. The data shows that all states have reported that at least half of distributed doses have been administered.
Nationally, about 1.1 million more doses have been administered since reported yesterday, for a 7-day average of about 1.3 million doses per day.
More than 26 million people have now received at least one dose of the vaccine and nearly 6 million people have been fully vaccinated, CDC data shows.
Note on the data: States have 72 hours to report vaccine data, so data published by the CDC may be delayed – and may not necessarily mean all doses were administered on the day reported.
The French government will be closely watching this week’s coronavirus numbers in the hope of avoiding another lockdown, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on RTL radio on Monday morning.
“This week is critical because if the choices we made bear fruits, we will be able to avoid another lockdown,” Le Maire noted.
He echoed French Prime Minister Jean Castex who said that “we still have a chance to avoid confinement” during an address to the nation on Friday.
“We all want to be able to return to our normal life. We are all tired of living like this,” Le Maire added on Monday morning, acknowledging the impact of measures on French people’s morale.
The government is also weighing the economic costs of a confinement, knowing that the curfew “limits economic damages.”
While the current nighttime curfew costs the French state around $7.2 billion per month, a full lockdown costs $18 billion per month, Le Maire explained.
On Monday evening, France recorded 4,347 more coronavirus cases – though Monday’s numbers always tend to be lower.
There are now 3,218 patients in intensive care units, a jump of 70 from the previous day, according to data released by the health agency on Monday evening.
The number of coronavirus patients in hospital increased by 301, totaling at least 27,874 on Monday, according to the same numbers.
On Monday evening, at least 1,537,614 people had received a first injection of Covid-19 vaccine, and 69,464 had received a second dose.
There are now 19 known cases of the UK Covid-19 variant B.1.1.7 in Georgia, the Department of Health said in a news release.
The cases are in individuals ages 15 to 61. Eight are male and 11 are female, the release said.
The cases live in metro Atlanta – Carroll, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fulton, Gwinnett, and Paulding counties. DPH is working to identify close contacts of the individuals, and will monitor them closely.
The Department of Health is not releasing any other information on the individuals.
Russia has extended a ban on flights to and from the United Kingdom until Feb. 16, Russian state media reported citing the country’s coronavirus task force.
Russia imposed the flight ban on Dec. 22 in light of the new coronavirus variant circulating across the UK and several other countries.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said everyone in the country would be offered a coronavirus vaccine by Sept. 21.
Speaking at a news conference after a virtual meeting with pharmaceutical company representatives and the state prime ministers of the German states, Merkel said the vaccine would need to be available for 73 million adults.
Speaking at the same news-conference, the Hamburg mayor Peter Tschentscher warned that the vaccine situation would remain tight in the first quarter.
And Markus Soeder, Prime Minister of Bavaria, said coronavirus was a serious stress test for the population. He warned not to endlessly look back and analyze mistakes.
South African president Cyril Ramaphosa announced several measures to ease Covid-19 restrictions as infection rates continue to drop in the country.
Ramaphosa announced that public spaces, pools, and rivers will now open and he rescinded the ban on alcohol sales and transportation – with certain restrictions. Ramaphosa also announced an easing of a nationwide curfew to between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. local time as well as certain restrictions on religious gatherings.
South Africa had been hit by a significant second wave of the virus driven by a more infectious variant identified late last year. Tighter restrictions were put in place in late December.
Ramaphosa was on hand earlier Monday in Johannesburg to receive one million doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute in India.
More than 441,000 people in the United States have died of Covid-19 since the pandemic began about a year ago. About 22% of those deaths – more than 95,000 – were reported in January, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
December was the second deadliest month with more than 77,000 reported deaths, followed by April with nearly 61,000 reported deaths.
More than half of all Covid-19 deaths were reported in those three months: January 2021, December 2020 and April 2020.
The seven-day average of new cases has dropped nearly every day since reaching a peak on Jan. 8, but reported deaths remain high. In January, there were more than 3,000 deaths reported each day, on average.
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