Government
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said nearly $165 million has been earmarked to help rural communities combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
The funding allotment via the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) seeks to assist 1,779 rural hospitals while providing additional... Read More »
The Cerus Corporation has created the INTERCEPT Blood System as a means to reduce pathogens in red blood cells, and now, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is collaborating with it to test the system’s capabilities against SARS-CoV-2.
SARS-CoV-2 is the virus... Read More »
The Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense is poised to assist a national COVID-19 commission that would be created under legislation introduced earlier this month.
Specifically, recommendations and pandemic plans issued by the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense would be reviewed and evaluated by... Read More »
The International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) is calling on Congress to clear regulatory logjams to get relief money from the CARES Act to firefighters and first responders.
IAFC leaders say legal and regulatory minutiae is preventing funding from the Assistance for Firefighter Grant... Read More »
Laredo Port of Entry Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers recently executed a narcotics interception effort yielding hard narcotics with an estimated street value of more than $25 million.
Authorities indicated the seizure occurred at the World Trade Bridge when an officer referred a... Read More »
Criticizing President Donald Trump’s unilateral decision to end funding for the World Health Organization (WHO) as reckless, Democratic members of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs called on the president to restore funding and to stop putting COVID-19 blame on the organization.
Chairman... Read More »
Professional services and technology firm KBR has secured a $63.9 million Department of Defense (DoD) task order to develop interoperability solutions resulting in expanded military testing and training capabilities.
KBR’s scope of work on the DoD’s Test Resource Management Center (TRMC)... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) announced two partnerships this week in its ongoing fight against COVID-19: America’s Blood Centers, to help collect and distribute convalescent plasma, and InBios International, Inc. to hasten the development of serological... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK) introduced a bill in the House that authorizes additional scientific research to fight the novel coronavirus and other infectious diseases.
The legislation -- the Computing Opportunities to Vanquish Infectious Diseases Research Act of 2020 (the COVID Research Act)... Read More »
U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is urging the Trump Administration to shore up the safety of the personal protective equipment (PPE) supply chain and protect hospitals from scammers.
“Hospitals and health care workers are busy saving lives and protecting the... Read More »
The Office of Naval Research (ONR) recently announced that the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Keyport and the Tech Bridge program are providing those on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic with needed equipment.
The entities have manufactured over 500 face shields and... Read More »
Global health, industry, and nonprofit leaders joined this week in pledging support to defeat COVID-19, uniting them in a virtual event that recommitted to the accelerated development and delivery of vaccines, tests, and treatments.
“We will only halt COVID-19 through solidarity,” Dr. Tedros... Read More »
Fallout from Dr. Rick Bright’s sudden removal from his post as director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is growing, as U.S. Sen. Edward Markey calls for an official investigation into the motivations behind the move.
Bright has served as BARDA director... Read More »
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced last week that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is awarding $631 million to 64 jurisdictions in support of the COVID-19 response.
“This new funding secured from Congress by President Trump will help public health... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) has struck a partnership with Cytovale to develop a rapid diagnostic system for sepsis as part of the COVID-19 pandemic response.
Cytovale’s rapid diagnostic system analyzes the biomechanical properties of immune cells, which... Read More »
A group of U.S. Senators recently called on President Donald Trump to address what they see as his administration’s mismanagement of the Strategic National Stockpile.
The senators want to know why states were left without the federal assistance and supplies to combat the coronavirus pandemic.... Read More »
New York State and Bloomberg Philanthropies are working together on a contact tracing initiative to control the infection rate of COVID-19.
Bloomberg Philanthropies, founded by Mike Bloomberg, has committed $10.5 million, along with organizational support and technical assistance, to build out... Read More »
House Energy and Commerce Committee members recently met with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Stephen Hahn to discuss the ongoing COVID-19 response.
“Energy and Commerce Committee members held a productive discussion with Commissioner Hahn,” Committee Chairman Frank Pallone,... Read More »
Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Tom Carper (D-DE) led 14 bipartisan colleagues in forwarding correspondence to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), urging the agency to expand its existing COVID-19 tracking framework.
The legislators are encouraging the CDC to determine and log... Read More »
Under legislation introduced by a collection of nine Democratic senators this week, AmeriCorps would take on more Americans and offer greater compensation, as part of a three-year response and recovery period linked to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Pandemic Response and Opportunity Through National... Read More »
The spread of coronavirus in the United States has unveiled various levels of inequalities in society, including between major cities with more robust hospital systems and rural communities with less access to resources.
The COVID-19: A Frontline Guide for Local Decision-Makers, a global... Read More »
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a plan that will produce bridge ventilators to support local hospitals and health care workers.
Through this effort, local manufacturers will produce at least 3,000 bridge ventilators, which will be deployed to hospitals in the fight against... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is awarding $10 million to help communities combat terrorism and targeted violence across the country.
The funding comes from money appropriated by Congress for the Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (TVTP) Grant Program.
“Attacks by... Read More »
The Department of the Air Force rapidly executed three Department of Defense (DoD) contracts worth $133 million with 3M, Honeywell, and O&M Halyard to increase N95 mask production under the Defense Production Act Title 3.
“As the Department of Defense’s Executive Agent for the Defense... Read More »
Department of Defense (DoD) officials said the agency has earmarked funds for three companies to increase domestic N95 mask production by over 39 million over the next 90 days.
DoD Spokesman Lt. Col. Mike Andrews said the DoD would invest $133 million toward the effort. The contracts have been... Read More »
Despite high scores on the Global Health Security (GHS) index, the United States has fundamentally weak health security, the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) warns, and its struggle with COVID-19 has emphasized its inadequate ability to deal with a pandemic.
COVID-19 has spawned more than... Read More »
Though 72 potential vaccines and treatments for COVID-19 are currently under development, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and its federal health partners note that urgency for additional products remains, and to jumpstart possibilities, they have launched a new Coronavirus Treatment... Read More »
Department of Justice officials recently forwarded a Business Review Letter to AmerisourceBergen, notifying the firm there would be no challenge to efforts to aid COVID-19 treatment efforts.
“We commend AmerisourceBergen’s efforts to assist the United States in responding to the COVID-19... Read More »
Newly developed COVID-19 testing options were approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week, with the granting of emergency use authorization (EUA) for an at-home test.
It marks the first at-home iteration of tests for the disease, which has infected more than 788,000 in the... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and Tangen Biosciences, Inc. are teaming up to develop a rapid diagnostic test for SARS-CoV-2, capable of producing results within an hour.
The test will be paired with the Tangen GeneSpark, a molecular diagnostic system, and... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) is calling on the Trump Administration to develop a comprehensive COVID-19 testing strategy as part of its efforts to reopen the economy.
Pallone, chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, is concerned that the Trump Administration appears to be abandoning... Read More »
Legislation introduced in the U.S. House seeks to ensure greater accountability in the distribution of personal protective equipment (PPE) and other emergency resources under the Defense Protection Act and Stafford Act.
Specifically, the bill -- the Emergency Supply Chain Transparency Act --... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) and Jackie Walorski (R-IN) introduced a bill to shore up the medical supplies in the Strategic National Stockpile.
Their bill, the Medical Supplies for Pandemics Act of 2020, would strengthen the Strategic National Stockpile by enhancing medical supply chain... Read More »
Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) recently led a bipartisan group of colleagues in urging the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to address fire department and emergency medical service (EMS) equipment shortages under the Coronavirus Relief, Aid and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Sen. Jon Tester... Read More »
In a teleconference between experts from the Immunization Action Coalition, FasterCures and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday, one thing was made abundantly clear: the world needs the best possible vaccines to combat COVID-19 as quickly as possible.
In the opinion of Dr.... Read More »
