Moderna ships 100 millionth COVID-19 vaccine dose
Moderna, a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines, announced Monday that it has shipped the 100 millionth dose of its COVID-19 vaccine to the U.S. government. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 67 million doses of the... Read More »
HHS to expand older adult COVID-19 vaccine access
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently partnered with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Administration for Community Living (ACL) to expand older adult COVID-19 vaccine access. The initiative would provide nearly $100 million to assist with... Read More »
Singapore scientists create diagnostic to detect SARS-CoV-2, mutations
Faced with an already mutating SARS-CoV-2 virus, the world has found itself needing to adapt its countermeasures -- and a team of scientists from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore has responded with a new test capable of detecting even mutated strains. The VaNGuard test, as it is... Read More »
ATOM consortium adds three DOE national laboratories to collaborative AI-driven drug discovery efforts
A total of five national laboratories are now a part of the Accelerating Therapeutics for Opportunities in Medicine (ATOM) consortium, assisting public-private efforts to develop an artificial intelligence(AI)-driven drug discovery platform. The latest labs to join this week were the U.S.... Read More »
Senators introduce bill to build on Abraham Accords, normalize Israel relations
U.S. Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Jim Risch (R-ID), Todd Young (R-IN), and Ben Cardin (D-MD) introduced last week the Israel Relations Normalization Act of 2021, hoping to strengthen and expand peace and normalization agreements between Israel and surrounding nations. The bill... Read More »
Bill seeks to bolster relations between United States, Taiwan
U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) recently reintroduced a bill designed to enhance the relationship between the United States and Taiwan. The Taiwan Relations Reinforcement Act would strengthen the relationship between the nations by creating an interagency Taiwan policy task... Read More »
Bill targets bolstering military survivor benefits
Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester (D-MT) and Sen. John Boozman (R-AR) recently introduced a measure they said adjusts monthly benefits for family members and survivors of veterans who lost their lives in service to the nation. The Caring for Survivors Act of 2021 seeks to... Read More »
GSK, Vir Biotechnology submit COVID-19 antibody treatment for FDA emergency use authorization
Investigational SARS-CoV-2 monoclonal antibody VIR-7831 was submitted for emergency use authorization (EUA) at the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week by developers GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) and Vir Biotechnology, Inc. Pitched as a treatment for mild to moderate cases of... Read More »
Senators urge VA to counter coronavirus vaccine misinformation spreading among veterans
A bipartisan group of senators, led by U.S. Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), wrote to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) last week with concerns about and calls to action against coronavirus vaccine misinformation being sown among veterans. While misinformation has been a... Read More »
Phoenix man charged with fraud over $450,000 in COVID relief funds
A Phoenix man is in custody after being charged with fraudulently applying for Paycheck Protection Program loans, investigators with the federal government said. James Theodore Polzin, 47, of Mesa, Ariz., was charged with three charges of fraud in connection with major disaster or emergency... Read More »
Rep. Meeks, Sen. Durbin offer input on GAO Mexico firearms trafficking report
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) have offered thoughts regarding the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) update of its January 2016 report assessing firearms trafficking from the United States to Mexico. Meeks and Durbin provided input regarding how the report... Read More »
Bill seeks to empower immigration courts
Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) has introduced four bills designed to empower immigration courts and make offender aliens deportable. “The Biden administration’s reckless policies are openly inviting gangs and cartels to flock to the border, so it’s more urgent than ever that we ensure dangerous... Read More »
Galveston National Lab confirms combo antibody-remdesivir therapy protects against advanced Marburg virus
According to a new study from the Galveston National Laboratory, published last week in Nature Communications, combining monoclonal antibodies and the antiviral remdesivir can make for a potent defense against the lethal Marburg virus (MARV). Conducted at the University of Texas Medical Branch... Read More »
More than 300 Medical Reserve Corps units assisting U.S. COVID-19 vaccination efforts
The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) is playing a major role in the fight against COVID-19 in the United States, deploying more than 300 units to assist vaccination efforts in 43 states, plus Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. “MRC units started training for COVID-19... Read More »