News
COVID-19 spread means Congress should ‘cool it’ when fraternizing with public
Strategies including social distancing, telework and avoiding large crowds should be practiced by all Americans, including members of Congress, to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, said top federal health officials during a reconvened hearing on Capitol Hill on Thursday. Really sick... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions begins development of two product candidates to prevent, treat COVID-19
Emergent BioSolutions Inc. announced Wednesday that it is adding to the list of potential novel coronavirus treatments by beginning work on two plasma-derived candidates meant to treat and prevent COVID-19 and its cause, SARS-CoV-2. Both products, COVID-HIG and COVID-EIG, will be developed on... Read More »
Senators seek answers from prison officials on coronavirus preparedness
A group of U.S. Senators recently asked the U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and the three largest private prison operators about the procedures they have in place to manage a potential spread of the coronavirus in federal prisons. Over 175,000 individuals are incarcerated in federal prisons and... Read More »
DHS supports law enforcement driving skills program
A report by the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial Fund finds that law enforcement officers face a higher risk of death and injury traveling to the scene of an incident than at the actual scene itself. The report revealed that vehicle-related collisions are one of the leading causes of... Read More »
FLIR unveils new surveillance system
FLIR Systems officials are espousing the benefits of a new high-definition midrange surveillance system designed to detect illegal activities in degraded weather conditions while distinguishing true threats and false alarms. The FLIR Ranger HDC MR is a high-performance HD thermal imaging system... Read More »
Lockheed Martin touts successful missile test results
Lockheed Martin officials said the recent testing of its next-generation long-range missile resulted in a flawless second performance following the missile's inaugural flight last December. The weapon designed for the Army's Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) program was tested at White Sands... Read More »
FDA to postpone foreign inspections through April, pushing concerns of coronavirus impact on supply chain
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced this week that it will continue to forego most foreign inspections through April, due to ongoing coronavirus concerns -- the same concerns that have prompted Congressional leaders to inquire about potential impacts to the medical product supply... Read More »
Democrats introduce additional COVID-19 actions to ensure health workers’ safety
Building off of the momentum embodied in an $8.3 billion emergency funding package approved earlier this month, House Democrats have introduced legislation meant to guarantee health care facilities have exposure control plans in place to protect workers from COVID-19. The COVID-19 Worker... Read More »
Kadlec details role coordinating coronavirus response across HHS, federal government
Dr. Robert Kadlec, Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), on Wednesday confirmed his duties as the top emergency preparedness official coordinating the COVID-19 coronavirus response from both the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the federal... Read More »
WHO officially declares COVID-19 a pandemic amidst warnings of inaction
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday officially declared COVID-19 a pandemic, making it the first pandemic caused by a coronavirus. Though WHO had already determined the novel coronavirus a matter of the highest risk globally, the new declaration ended weeks of questioning and... Read More »
Sandia Labs partners with nonprofit on initiative to end bioweapon threat
Sandia National Laboratories has joined forces with the Council on Strategic Risks to launch an initiative to make bioweapons obsolete. The two organizations have released a report called “Making Bioweapons Obsolete: A Summary of Workshop Discussions. It makes recommendations for significantly... Read More »
Bill to cure coronavirus introduced in Congress
A bill that seeks to develop treatment and a cure for the COVID-19 coronavirus was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives this week. The Cure the Coronavirus Act (HR 6019) encourages the rapid innovation and approval of a treatment to prevent or cure the 2019 coronavirus. The World... Read More »
Session addresses coronavirus response plans
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) recently conducted a roundtable discussion with federal, state, and local public health officials regarding the coordinated response to the coronavirus outbreak. “I am grateful to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Illinois Department of Public Health,... Read More »
Agencies target deceptive coronavirus advertising
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials have forwarded warning correspondence to seven companies for allegedly selling unapproved products that include deceptive coronavirus claims. “There already is a high level of anxiety over the potential spread of... Read More »
Coronavirus symptoms can take five days to show, study finds
Those infected by SARS-CoV-2 -- the newly identified virus which causes COVID-19 -- could walk around without symptoms for an average of five days, but as many as 12, according to new U.S.-based research. Through analysis of cases from China and abroad, the team determined that anyone still... Read More »
First large scale COVID-19 diagnostic test gets federal advanced development support
A new molecular diagnostic test created by Hologic, Inc. to quickly identify the virus that causes COVID-19 will receive advanced development support from the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). The test could theoretically be attached to a system capable of... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions teams with drug company to develop COVID-19 vaccine
Emergent BioSolutions Inc. on Tuesday agreed to support both preclinical testing and phase 1 safety trials for a novel coronavirus vaccine candidate being developed by Novavax Inc., a clinical-stage vaccine company. “We are pleased with our Novavax collaboration, which reflects Emergent’s... Read More »
Sens. Menendez, Booker call on HHS to release emergency funding for coronavirus
U.S. Sens. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) are urging the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to unlock emergency funds allocated for state and local governments to deal with the coronavirus. The emergency funding was allocated in an $8.5 billion supplemental spending... Read More »
DHS seeking applicants for Privacy Technology Demonstration event
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) is looking for companies that develop technology that enhances privacy. It’s for a first-time event called the 2020 Privacy Technology Demonstration, a showcase for technologies intended to protect the... Read More »
CEPI urges need for $2B investment COVID-19 vaccine in light of recent investment from UK
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness (CEPI) welcomed this week a £20 million ($26.2 million) investment from the U.K. government while highlighting the need for upwards of $2 billion to develop a vaccine against the virus that causes COVID-19. CEPI, a global partnership dedicated to the... Read More »
HHS fielding development proposals of medical products to identify, prevent and treat coronavirus infections
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) recently updated a broad agency announcement to solicit new medical products capable of diagnosing, preventing, or treating coronavirus infections, with an eye on COVID-19. BARDA, as part of the Department of Health and Human... Read More »
Air Force receives B-21 design update
Air Force officials recently met with Northrop Grumman personnel to garner insight regarding B-21 engineering and manufacturing developments. Air Force senior leadership visited Northrop Grumman’s Melbourne B-21 Raider design and development headquarters, with scientists there offering updates... Read More »
House advances legislation extending Transportation Security Officer rights, protections
The House of Representatives has advanced a bill designed to extend Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) equal rights and protections provided other workers under Title 5 of the U.S. Code. Reps. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) and Nita Lowey (D-NY) sponsored the Rights for Transportation Security... Read More »
Reps. Degette, Bucshon introduce bill to improve FDA oversight of diagnostic testing
A bipartisan bill that would establish a framework for overseeing diagnostic testing at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. Public health officials have long called for greater oversight of diagnostic testing. Health care providers and... Read More »
Maryland Congressional leaders discuss funding from DoD to fight infectious diseases
Members of Congress from Maryland met with defense department officials last week to discuss funding for the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) and the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense (USAMRICD). The meeting was precipitated... Read More »
CBP reports meth, fentanyl seizures on rise
Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) February 2020 operational update indicated rises in meth and fentanyl seizures along the southwest border, as well as a significant tunnel discovery. “The processing pathways and repatriation initiatives which have been implemented by the administration... Read More »
Senators hold hearing with DHS, HHS to address COVID-19 priorities
Officials from the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services appeared before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee last week to address steps being taken to contain COVID-19 and prevent future epidemics. The novel coronavirus has... Read More »
HHS to bolster Strategic National Stockpile with 500 million N95 respirators
Resolute in the face of equipment shortages, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced last week that it intends to purchase 500 million N95 respirators for the Strategic National Stockpile over the next 18 months. N95 respirators are close-fitting, efficient systems that filter... Read More »
Johns Hopkins University experts brief Capitol Hill on coronavirus
Virologists still don’t know a lot about the coronavirus (COVID-19), but expect important facts surrounding length of incubation and repeat infections to be answered in the coming weeks as public and private institutions introduce widely available testing for the dangerous disease, a panel of... Read More »
Strategic National Stockpile requires more funds to bolster inventory, says former director
The former director of the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) told Homeland Preparedness News on Friday that Congress should go above and beyond requested supplemental funding to ensure the United States is more prepared to fight the coronavirus outbreak and other future threats. “There is... Read More »
President signs into law $8.3B emergency funding to fight coronavirus outbreak
President Donald Trump signed into law an $8.3 billion emergency funding package on Friday aimed at combatting the spread of the coronavirus that has led to more than 3,000 deaths globally. The legislation, H.R. 6074, the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act,... Read More »
NTI helps launch fund to help countries prepare for pandemics
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) is part of a new initiative to help fill gaps in pandemic preparedness that have emerged with the rapidly evolving COVID-19 coronavirus crisis. NTI, along with other global health security organizations, is helping to launch a fund called the Global Health... Read More »
House subcommittee leads initiative to combat transnational trafficking
A bipartisan coalition of Congress members recently launched an effort to combat transnational trafficking. The Counter-Trafficking Initiative is designed to explore and expose the breadth and reach of transnational trafficking networks and their illicit finances. “Whether it’s human... Read More »
Sen. Durbin initiates inquiry into transfer of funds from National Guard and Reserve Equipment Account
During the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee’s hearing on the President’s Fiscal Year 2021 budget for National Guard and Reserve Components, Sen. Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) inquired about a funds transfer. Durbin, vice chairman of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee,... Read More »