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Biden Accuses Republican Governors of Risking Lives as 24 States Threaten Legal Action
President Biden accused some Republican governors on Thursday of “the worst kind of politics” by using their powers to push back against vaccination and testing requirements. “The governors of Florida and Texas are doing everything they can to undermine the lifesaving requirements that I proposed,” he said in remarks from the White House about his economic plans.
Meanwhile, Republican attorneys general from 24 states including South Carolina, Missouri and Florida threatened to “seek every available legal option” against the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate plans. In an open letter published Thursday, they called the vaccine requirements for millions of federal employees, contractors and nearly two-thirds of the private sector workforce, “disastrous and counterproductive,” adding that such a move would be a “threat to individual liberty” and could overburden companies.
Health Canada Grants Full Approval to Moderna and Pfizer COVID Shots
Pharmaceutical Technology reported:
Health Canada has granted full approval to Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines, Spikevax (elasomeran mRNA vaccine) and Comirnaty respectively for use in people aged 12 years and above.
This marks the first full approval for Moderna’s Spikevax, which is indicated for active immunisation to prevent COVID-19.
The vaccine secured Canadian authorisation under an Interim Order for individuals aged 18 years and above in December last year. The authorisation was expanded last month to include adolescents aged 12 years and above.
Children’s Health-Related Behaviors Negatively Impacted by COVID Pandemic
Researchers from the Department of Exercise Science have illuminated additional ways that the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted children’s health.
A recent study by members of the Arnold Childhood Obesity Initiative research group has already revealed accelerated increases in children’s BMI and weight gain since the pandemic began. Now the team has published findings from a study on the impacts of the pandemic on children’s health-related behaviors (e.g., physical activity, diet, screen time, sedentary behavior, sleep).
“Compared to pre-pandemic measures, children’s physical activity, sleep timing, screen time, and diet have significantly worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic,” says Bridget Armstrong, assistant professor of exercise science and lead researcher on the study published in Pediatric Obesity. “While any one of these behavioral changes might be concerning, their confluence for such an extended period of time may have significant health impacts, including dramatic increases in childhood obesity.”
CDC Data: Moderna Vaccine Has Edge in Preventing COVID Hospitalizations
The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine is slightly more effective at preventing serious illness from the virus than its counterpart from Pfizer-BioNTech, according to data released Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, both two-dose vaccines, which have similar formulations, are better at reducing the risk for hospitalization due to coronavirus infection than the one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot, the data showed.
What Happened to Variant-Specific COVID Vaccines? — Are Vaccines Tailored to Beta or Delta Still Even Necessary?
With the FDA poised to weigh in on the data supporting boosters for COVID-19 vaccines — for the Pfizer-BioNTech shot (Comirnaty), at least — questions have been raised as to whether there’s still a need for variant-specific vaccines.
Earlier this year, some vaccine makers announced that they were developing variant-specific or multivalent vaccines. But as current versions of vaccines seem to provide lasting protection against severe illness, it’s not clear whether the other versions still have a role to play.
“Unless there is clear evidence of loss of protection, updating the vaccines every time a new variant takes over the population might not be the best strategy,” Ramon Lorenzo Redondo, PhD, a molecular virologist at Northwestern University in Chicago, told Bloomberg.
Pediatrician Discusses Timeline for COVID-19 Vaccine Approval for Children Under 12
The Food and Drug Administration said studies for the Pfizer vaccine in children ages 5 to 12 are ready for review.
Dr. Pia Fenimore, a Lancaster County pediatrician, said the fact that studies are ready for review means the vaccine could be ready sooner than expected – possibly in mid- to late October.
“A lot of people were willing to volunteer their child for these studies, so we were able to get the numbers of children in these studies faster than we thought we would,” she said.
FDA Panel Is First Key Test for Biden COVID Booster Plan
Associated Press via MSN.com reported:
The Biden administration’s embattled plan to dispense COVID-19 booster shots to most Americans faced its first major hurdle Friday as a government advisory panel met to decide whether to endorse extra doses of the Pfizer vaccine.
Scientists inside and outside the government have been divided in recent days over the need for boosters and who should get them, and the World Health Organization has strongly objected to rich nations giving a third round of shots when poor countries don’t have enough vaccine for their first.
U.S. Booster Policy Is in Flux as Studies Add to Dissent
Almost a month ago, President Biden announced a plan to make coronavirus booster shots available to most adults in the United States eight months after they received their second dose. But a week before the plan is to roll out, its contours are up in the air amid a chorus of dissent inside and outside the government.
The White House has already been forced to delay offering boosters to recipients of the Moderna vaccine, and for now it is planning third shots only for those who received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Depending on what two public health agencies decide in the coming days, the administration may have to change course again, perhaps restricting extra shots to older Americans and others who are particularly vulnerable to serious illness.
Pandemic Caused Many Women to Abandon Plans for More Children
Nearly half of mothers report they halted plans to have additional children because of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a study published online Sept. 15 in JAMA Network Open.
Linda G. Kahn, Ph.D., from the NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City, and colleagues assessed changes in pregnancy intention following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis included 1,179 participants in the New York University Children’s Health and Environment Study who were currently pregnant or recently postpartum.
Moderna President: ‘We Don’t Really Know’ if Additional COVID Shots Will Be Necessary
Amid the growing controversy over whether the U.S. is in need of booster or additional vaccine doses to protect against COVID-19, Moderna (MRNA) president Stephen Hoge admits much remains unknown.
“We don’t really know” if a third shot will be the final or if more are needed, Hoge told Yahoo Finance.
In addition, who would benefit most from an additional shot is still a question.
After Resident Dies, Caregivers Allege Vax Coverup at Assisted Living Facility
Two whistleblowers who previously worked for a senior assisted living facility are leveling some damning accusations about the treatment of residents, including the claim that they are being told the COVID-19 vaccine is just a flu shot.
Cassandra Renner, who worked as a Medical Technician at Aegis Living in Issaquah, Washington, spoke to Project Veritas and said she came forward because she could no longer bear the corruption taking place at the facility.
