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Unable to Sue, Michigan Woman Files Claim in Her Mom’s COVID Vaccine-Related Death
Tatum Strieter-Byron is asking the federal government to compensate her for her mother Sandra Jacobs’ death in April of a confirmed complication of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. “This is about the fact that there was wrongdoing that took place, and we are going to hold them accountable,” Strieter-Byron of Clinton said last week.
Strieter-Byron received confirmation Monday her claim to the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program has been received. It was established because COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers and others are granted liability protections through the Public Readiness Emergency Preparedness Act, enacted in 2005.
In 2020, the U.S. Health and Human Services secretary invoked the act and declared COVID-19 a public health emergency, warranting Johnson & Johnson and others immunity from lawsuits. The only exception is death or serious physical injury caused by “willful misconduct.” The protections, unless amended or rescinded, extend through Oct. 1, 2024.
Pfizer Launches Trial to Test COVID Pill in Children
Pfizer announced Wednesday that it has started a clinical trial testing its COVID-19 antiviral pill in children as young as 6. The drugmaker said it aims to enroll approximately 140 participants in the trial, which will look at whether the drug, called Paxlovid, can safely treat COVID in children who are at risk of becoming severely ill.
Paxlovid has already been authorized for people ages 12 and older.
The company also said it expects to enroll children under age 6 once its scientists have finished developing an appropriate formulation of the pill for that age group.
CDC Needs Serious Scrutiny to Restore Americans’ Trust in Science
Polling last summer showed that many Americans have lost faith in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC). Only 32% of respondents in an August Gallup poll said they believed the CDC was communicating a clear path to prevent COVID infection. Pew data from January showed 60% of respondents found CDC recommendations confusing.
While the CDC was losing credibility, the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress’s watchdog, was quietly investigating the agency’s handling of the COVID crisis. On Jan. 27, the GAO delivered a rare “high-risk” rating to the Department of Health and Human Services, specifically citing the CDC’s poor data management and ineffective messaging. These findings added fuel to congressional proposals to set up an independent COVID commission to examine the CDC’s performance.
New Florida Department of Health Guidance Says COVID Vaccine ‘May Not Benefit’ Healthy 5- to 17-Year-Olds
The Florida Department of Health released new guidance Tuesday that says healthy children between the ages of 5 to 17 do not need to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
Florida is the first state to break from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations that everyone age 5 and older receive the vaccine.
The guidance released Tuesday says that the risks of the vaccine outweigh its benefits in children who don’t have underlying health conditions. It cites reports of increased incidence of myocarditis — inflammation of the heart muscle — in 16- and 17-year-olds who got the COVID-19 vaccine.
WA Advisory Group Recommends Against Adding COVID Vaccine to School-Required Immunizations
A state advisory group has decided against recommending a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for students in K-12 schools, leaving one more step before a final decision is made on the matter next month.
The question of whether Washington students should be required to get a COVID vaccine has divided many school communities over the past year, with some citing a desire to make schools safer and others concerned about a lack of reliable vaccine data for younger kids.
Two Years Ago, I Warned You About The Coming Pandemic; Today I Am Warning You About The Fallout From Ukraine
In February 2020 — two years ago last month — I wrote a column for Forbes entitled “Stop Lying To Yourself About The Coronavirus.”
In my piece, I warned that global supply chains would be disrupted, that economies would be put under enormous stress, and that every business would have to deal with the impact of what was not yet even recognized as a pandemic.
Today, the same thing is happening. This time, the reality that leaders are struggling to face up to is the war in Ukraine.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is an unmitigated disaster — one that is only just beginning to unfold, and one which will have serious and far-reaching consequences for every country and for every company in the world.
NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Chokshi Says COVID Pandemic Has Left U.S. With New Epidemic of Loneliness
As another COVID-19 wave recedes across the country, the full toll of the pandemic on our emotional health is becoming clearer.
Ask someone if they feel disconnected or isolated, and chances are pretty good, regardless of their age, occupation, background, or economic status, that they’ll say yes — and that they’ve never been asked the question before.
According to the latest New York City citywide health surveys, 57% of residents felt lonely some of the time or often, and 67% felt socially isolated in the prior four weeks. Only a third of respondents said they could count on someone for emotional support. And at the same time, one in five respondents reported symptoms of depression.
Funding Bill Includes $15 Billion for COVID, Less Than Earlier Requests
The government funding bill released early Wednesday morning includes $15.6 billion to fight COVID-19 after a battle over the spending, an amount lower than the Biden administration’s original requests.
Much of the funding will go toward the purchase of additional treatment pills and monoclonal antibodies, supplies of which the administration had warned would run out without new money. Some funding, $750 million, will go toward developing vaccines to fight new variants.
An additional $5 billion goes toward global efforts, including vaccinating people in other countries.
COVID Cases, Deaths Continue to Drop Globally, WHO Says
The number of new coronavirus cases and deaths globally have continued to fall in the past week, the World Health Organization said Wednesday, with only the Western Pacific reporting an increase in COVID-19.
In its latest report on the pandemic issued on Wednesday, the U.N. health agency said new COVID-19 infections dropped by 5% in the last week, continuing a declining trend that started more than a month ago. Deaths were also down by 8% and have been falling globally for the last two weeks.
The biggest declines were seen in the Middle East and Africa, where cases dropped by 46% and 40%, respectively.
OSHA to Boost Healthcare Inspections to Prepare for COVID Variants
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration on Tuesday said it is increasing inspection of hospitals and nursing facilities that treat COVID-19 patients over the next few months to prepare for the potential emergence of new variants of the virus.
OSHA released a memo sent to regional staff last week directing inspectors to focus on workplaces that were previously issued citations during the pandemic or where complaints were received but the agency never conducted an in-person inspection.
The agency said the goal of the three-month initiative is to control the spread of any future variants of the coronavirus and protect workers who are at heightened risk of becoming ill.
Idaho Governor: COVID Disaster Declaration Ends in April
Idaho Gov. Brad Little says he will lift the state’s public health emergency disaster declaration on April 15, just over two years since it was put in place because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Some Idaho lawmakers have pushed legislation that would end the disaster declaration without the governor’s sign-off. The Idaho House voted on Monday in favor of a resolution ending the disaster declaration. If the resolution passes the Senate, it could end the declaration before April 15.
South Africa’s Aspen Signs Deal to Package and Sell J&J COVID Vaccine
South African drugmaker Aspen Pharmacare (APNJ.J) on Tuesday concluded an agreement with Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) to package, sell and distribute the American group’s COVID-19 vaccines under its own brand in Africa.
The agreement also allows Aspen to “discuss the expansion of the agreement to include any new versions of the drug substance, such as those developed for new variants or a different formulation for administration as a booster,” Aspen said in a statement.
