Countermeasures
A group of Congressional lawmakers recently urged House and Senate leadership to develop policy plans to prevent and mitigate the impact of future pandemics.
In a letter signed by 134 senators and members of the House, the lawmakers pointed out that the United States leads the world with more... Read More »
A Michigan system that tracks suspected opioid deaths and naloxone use by first responders gives a better picture of how opioid overdoses rose after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The real-time tracking system developed by the University of Michigan Injury Prevention Center (IPC), in... Read More »
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) said the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) has been ratified by 50 nations and will enter into force early next year.
The initiative serves as a call to action, accelerating progression to a world without nuclear weapons.
NTI CEO Ernest J.... Read More »
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has crafted Cybersecurity Framework guidelines addressing positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) data - to strengthen critical infrastructure.
The new guidelines are designed to help mitigate cybersecurity risks endangering systems... Read More »
New research from the University University of Maryland’s National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) found tremendous diversity in hate crime offenders' backgrounds and motivations.
Researchers determined that these criminals are a diverse group, varying... Read More »
Researchers from McGill University are tracking the global race for a COVID-19 vaccine with a new online tool that tracks real-time progress on the development of the more than 50 candidates currently in human trials.
"Our goal with the vaccine tracker is to help the public find and access... Read More »
Leaders of the effort to develop a COVID-19 vaccine said Tuesday more than 60,000 Americans have volunteered to participate in clinical trials at six different pharma companies with the goal to begin distributing a vaccine by January.
Operation Warp Speed, created by the Trump administration... Read More »
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) SIGMA+ program conducted a test of advanced chemical and biological sensing systems in the Indianapolis area this past August.
DARPA collected more than 250 hours of daily life background atmospheric data in the city that helped train... Read More »
Law enforcement authorities in the United States and Mexico are seeking to identify individuals lasing aircraft along the U.S.-Mexico border from Del Rio, Texas/Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila to Eagle Pass/Piedras Negras.
During multiple evening operations earlier in October, aircraft operated by the... Read More »
On the second anniversary of the passage of the SUPPORT for Patients and Community Act, U.S. Representative David B. McKinley (R-WV) urged fellow legislators not to overlook the opioid crisis facing the country during the Covid-19 epidemic.
On Friday, McKinley said that Congress must continue... Read More »
A month after the federal government announced it would provide 150 million Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 tests throughout the United States, states have begun detailing how they, in turn, will utilize those tests for maximum effect.
For most of the 32 states and the District of Columbia, which have... Read More »
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) gained a $20 million investment from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) last week to support the development of vaccines targeting emerging infectious diseases.
These funds will be provided over a five year period,... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Edward Markey (D-MA) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced legislation that seeks to restore oversight of Saudi Arabia’s nuclear capabilities and impede access to technologies that could pave the way to Saudi Arabia’s first nuclear weapon.
The Stopping Activities Underpinning... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL) and Michael Waltz (R-FL) are seeking a briefing from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Director of National Intelligence, and the Attorney General on Russian and Iranian interference in the 2020 election.
The request follows an announcement last week by FBI... Read More »
A group of lawmakers is seeking the National Guard’s assessment of wildfire readiness as a means of aiding states in preparing, fighting, and recovering from such occurrences.
Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) recently joined... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and General Services Administration (GSA) personnel are touting the opening of a new
commercial land crossing facility at the Alexandria Bay Port of Entry.
“This new facility truly fits the needs of the current times as the United States continues to stand... Read More »
Roche and Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. are now collaborating on the development, manufacture, and distribution of AT-527, an Atea-created investigational oral antiviral for use on COVID-19.
The drug, which is currently in phase two clinical trials for hospitalized patients with moderate COVID-19,... Read More »
While the pursuit of treatments and vaccines for COVID-19 is ongoing, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a major milestone last week with the approval of the first treatment for the deadly disease: Gilead Sciences Inc.’s Veklury, also known as remdesivir.
The approval is... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Andy Barr (R-KY), Michael McCaul (R-TX) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) introduced the China Task Force Act, which includes bills and recommendations laid out by the House China Task Force (CTF) to combat economic, military, political and technological threats from China.... Read More »
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) has expanded the manufacturing network for its COVID-19 vaccine portfolio.
The nonprofit foundation, which finances independent research projects to develop vaccines against emerging infectious diseases, has signed vaccine manufacturing... Read More »
The threat detection and security screening technologies firm Smiths Detection is touting the benefits of integrating its CTX 9800 DSi explosive detection system with a tote-based Baggage Handling System (BHS).
“We have gained expertise by working with a broad range of baggage handling system... Read More »
National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) officials said a geospatial technology lab slated for launch at the T-REX innovation center in St. Louis, Missouri, would advance regional NGA, industry, and academia efforts.
“We will deliver trusted GEOINT with the speed, accuracy, and precision... Read More »
A joint effort from U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) and U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) produced the ATF Improvement and Modernization (AIM) Act this week to revamp the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and bolster national gun safety efforts.
The legislation would end what... Read More »
FirstNet announced a major expansion to its high-speed broadband communications platform for first responders this week, with additional cell sites and more than 2,000 other network enhancements tacked onto its Florida operations.
These additions will include cell sites constructed for the Band... Read More »
The New Jersey Legislature’s Assembly Health Committee on Wednesday unanimously passed a bill that would require opioid-antidote prescriptions for certain high-risk patients.
Assembly bill 3869, sponsored on March 23 by Assemblymen John Armato (D-Atlantic) and Valerie Vainieri Huttle... Read More »
Researchers with The Pew Charitable Trusts have found that expanding access to naloxone, and changing public policy to ensure the opioid-overdose reversal drug gets into the hands of those who need it, can reduce opioid-related overdose deaths.
Additionally, researchers said, expanded access to... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) opened the Center for Countering Human Trafficking, the U.S. government’s first law enforcement operations center directly related to human trafficking and forced labor.
The center is based in Washington and is led by U.S. Immigration and Customs... Read More »
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has launched a new initiative designed to reduce violent crime in communities throughout the country.
The DEA’s Project Safeguard will identify and prioritize ongoing drug trafficking investigations with a nexus to violent crime. Working with federal,... Read More »
BioIndustrial Manufacturing and Design Ecosystem (BioMADE) has secured an $87 million Department of Defense (DoD) pact for a new Manufacturing Innovation Institute (MII).
The seven-year award to the University of Minnesota-based firm will collaborate with public and private entities to advance... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) has enlisted its clinical studies network's services to assist with a COVID-19 clinical trial.
Officials said Technical Resources International, Inc. (TRI), a BARDA subsidiary, would support the clinical trial in conjunction... Read More »
The National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (NIBSC) in the United Kingdom and Q2 Solutions in the United States became the latest labs to join the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations’ (CEPI) centralized laboratory network for COVID-19 vaccines this week.
“We are... Read More »
Last year, CARB-X awarded $127.5 million and 23 awards to developers pursuing novel ways to fight antibiotic resistant bacteria, according to its fourth annual report.
This marks the largest funding effort so far conducted by CARB-X, which coincided with several other successful milestones. For... Read More »
The Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) awarded more than $536 million in fiscal year 2020 for various policing, school safety, and anti-opioid efforts.
The money went to various programs to increase law enforcement hiring and improve school... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar (R-TX) introduced legislation designed to protect border communities against the COVID-19 pandemic by amending the U.S.-Mexico Border Health Commission Act.
This bill, the Binational Health Strategies Act of 2020, directs the U.S.-Mexico Border Health Commission to... Read More »
National Institutes of Health (NIH) personnel have joined other federal entities in outlining support for a $350 million multi-year HEALing Communities Study to address opioid use disorder (OUD) interventions.
The HEALing Communities Study is funded by the NIH Helping to End Addiction... Read More »
