Calendar doesn't matter to COVID-19
Scientists urge more sophisticated testing program to catch mutations; Feds say more pharmacies should be giving COVID-19 shots.
Here are today’s top stories on the COVID-19 pandemic:
Secretary of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar says states are being told to push more vaccines to the public via pharmacy chains CVS and Walgreens to speed up vaccination of older adults and frontline healthcare workers.
The Los Angeles Times reports that many people have found ways to get around the priority list and get COVID-19 vaccines before their turn.
Convalescent plasma reduces severe COVID-19 if given early enough after a person is infected, a new study finds.
Scientists say that the USA is unprepared to conduct the routine genetic testing that catches coronavirus mutations like the one that is raging this month in many places, according to the New York Times. Britain’s routine genetic analysis helped catch the variant that is currently causing many infections.
The CDC says there have been 21 allergic reactions out of the nearly 2 million people vaccinated in the USA since the first COVID-19 vaccine became available last month, and 20 of those people were treated and recovered within minutes.
Pathologists in Florida are investigating whether a physician’s death about three weeks after receiving a vaccine has any connection to the vaccine. Statistically, some deaths would be expected from other, routine causes simply because of the number of people vaccinations.
The Orlando Sentinel won a lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over release of COVID-19 information. The governor’s office now must release the weekly Coronavirus Task Force reports within two business days. The reports had not been provided since early December. Earlier, the governor’s office was accused of delaying COVID-19 data to hide the severity of the surge before the November election.
Canada has begun giving vaccinations to some prison inmates.
That’s it for today. Stay safe.