Threats
WHO advocates equitable COVID-19 vaccine access
The World Health Organization (WHO) is advocating equitable COVID-19 vaccine global access, noting that placing low and lower-middle-income nations (LLMICs) without access would cause significant economic damage. The WHO-led ACT Accelerator serves a unique global collaboration supporting... Read More »
Bill targets vaccine public advocacy campaign funding
Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH), Ben Cardin (D-MD), John Thune (R-SD), and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) introduced last week a measure they said is designed to address funding for a COVID-19 vaccine public advocacy campaign. The bill would fund a science-driven public advocacy campaign, ensuring when an... Read More »
BARDA to collaborate with Chembio Diagnostics on two COVID-19 rapid antigen tests
With flu season looming, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) announced plans this week to work with Chembio Diagnostics, Inc. to develop two rapid point-of-care antigen tests capable of detecting and differentiating between COVID-19 and influenza. Both tests -- the... Read More »
INTERPOL warns of global threat to COVID-19 vaccines from organized crime networks
As the world deals with the ongoing chaos and death inflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic, INTERPOL is warning of a new threat to global hopes: organized crime networks are targeting COVID-19 vaccines, both physically and online. In a global Orange Notice alert to the organization’s 194 member... Read More »
GAO reports cites DoD progress on addressing readiness challenges
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found that the Department of Defense has made progress on efforts to improve the readiness and lethality of the U.S. Navy and Marines. The significant readiness challenges have developed over more than a decade of conflict, budget uncertainty,... Read More »
Textron secures Army aircraft contract
The U.S. Army has awarded a $66 million contract to Textron Systems Corporation for 36 Shadow aircraft in the latest Block III configuration. “We are proud to maintain our strong partnership of more than 20 years with the U.S. Army on the Shadow program,” Textron Systems Senior Vice... Read More »
HHS, DoD buy up 650,000 more doses of Eli Lilly’s COVID-19 antibody therapeutic
In preparation for rising cases of COVID-19, the United States Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Defense (DoD) have purchased an additional 650,000 doses of Eli Lilly and Company’s investigational monoclonal antibody therapeutic, bamlanivimab. This puts the total number of... Read More »
FDA grants emergency use authorization to Roche SARS-CoV-2 antibody test
Roche Diagnostics’ new Elecsys SARS-CoV-2 antibody test gained emergency use authorization (EUA) from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week, granting a new blood test to test those who may have been exposed to COVID-19. The test detects antibodies directed against the... Read More »
Valneva, Pfizer hasten pediatric development of Lyme vaccine candidate
Valneva SE, a biotech company headquartered in France, on Wednesday announced plans to accelerate the pediatric development of its Lyme disease vaccine candidate, VLA15, which is being co-developed with Pfizer Inc. “We are pleased that Pfizer and Valneva have decided to accelerate this... Read More »
U.S. Department of Transportation makes plans for immediate shipment of COVID-19 vaccines
The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has made the necessary preparations for the immediate mass shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine once they are ready to go. The Department of Transportation has been working with Operation Warp Speed officials over the past few weeks to coordinate with... Read More »
Smiths Detection wins $4M TSA contract for explosives detectors
Smiths Detection has been awarded a $4 million contract by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to supply an explosives trace detector to airports across the United States. The two-year contract is for the supply of Smiths IONSCAN 500 DT Explosives Trace Detection Systems (ETD). The... Read More »
BARDA partnering with Chrysalis BioTherapeutics to create peptide capable of countering radiation
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is expanding a contract with Chrysalis BioTherapeutics, Inc. to pursue the development of TP508, or Chrysalin, a peptide with the potential to counteract injuries resulting from extreme radiation exposure. Radiation exposure can... Read More »
Former homeland security advisor plots response principles for crisis, emergency managers
Public trust must be maintained in preparing for and responding to another large-scale biological event like the ongoing novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, a former Trump administration emergency management expert told the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense on Monday. Tom Bossert,... Read More »
Pfizer, BioNTech receive first emergency use authorization in world for COVID-19 vaccine
With the temporary approval of the Medicines & Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the United Kingdom has become the first country to initiate an emergency use authorization (EUA) for a COVID-19 vaccine created by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech. Earlier studies showed the vaccine to be 94.1... Read More »
IDSA and other medical experts develop guidelines for treatment of Lyme disease
New guidelines for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of Lyme disease have been developed through a collaboration between the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the American Academy of Neurology, and the American College of Rheumatology. The guidelines offer recommendations for... Read More »
GAO issues recommendations to improve COVID-19 efforts among federal agencies
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) made several recommendations related to the COVID-19 pandemic to increase transparency and accountability among federal agencies. The GAO report outlined that the United States has had more than 10 million cumulative cases of COVID-19 and... Read More »
Bayer solution combats resistant mosquitoes, vector-borne diseases
Bayer officials said a newly introduced spray solution combats resistant mosquitoes and controls worldwide vector-borne diseases. Fludora Co-Max addresses Aedes mosquito-borne arboviruses such as dengue, Zika, and chikungunya by combining two active ingredients with unrelated modes of action -... Read More »
ICE launches vaccine fraud initiative
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel said the agency has launched an initiative designed to address fraudulent COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. The agency's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) initiated Operation Stolen Promise 2.0, which is designed to serve as the next... Read More »
FDA advisory committee to assess Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate this month
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tapped the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) to investigate a second COVID-19 on December 17: mRNA-1273, a Moderna, Inc. candidate that fared well in clinical testing. Moderna recently announced the vaccine had... Read More »
Moderna files for FDA emergency use authorization of COVID-19 vaccine following Phase 3 study
With 94.1 percent efficacy figures pulled from a phase three COVE study of its mRNA-1273 vaccine for COVID-19, Moderna, Inc. has officially filed for emergency use authorization (EUA) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The study consisted of more than 30,000 participants and, at... Read More »
Democratic Senators urge funding for states to distribute COVID-19 vaccine
A group of Democratic U.S. senators recently urged Congressional leaders to provide funding to ensure the swift distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. With the news of at least one COVID-19 vaccine could be available to be distributed before the end of the year, many state and local governments... Read More »
United States contributes $7M for OPCW Centre for Chemistry and Technology
The U.S. government awarded $7 million to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to support the construction of the new OPCW Centre for Chemistry and Technology. The ChemTech Centre seeks to strengthen the OPCW’s capabilities to fully address new and emerging chemical... Read More »
ORS initiative nets Central America transnational crime charges
Department of Justice officials said an Operation Regional Shield (ORS)-centered effort recently resulted in charges against members of Central America transnational criminal organizations. Per authorities, the charges were primarily levied against MS-13 and 18th Street gangs in conjunction with... Read More »
CBP initiates New York biometric facial comparison technology
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials said biometric facial comparison technology implementation at the Peace Bridge in Buffalo, N.Y., enhances identity verification for lawful entry into the country. Authorities noted upon a traveler's arrival at a pedestrian lane or undergoing I-94... Read More »
Altimmune submits single dose COVID-19 vaccine candidate for clinical testing
Following a University of Alabama preclinical study of the Altimmune Inc. investigational COVID-19 vaccine candidate AdCOVID, the company has submitted an application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin Phase 1 clinical testing this month. "We've made exceptional progress... Read More »
NIAID begins enrolling 1,500 patients for fourth Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial
A new trial focused on dexamethasone, remdesivir, and baricitinib use on COVID-19 is underway at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), with plans to enroll as many as 1,500 hospitalized adult patients. The fourth iteration of the Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial... Read More »
Indiana alliance combats substance abuse through Narcan awareness campaign
The Alliance for Substance Abuse Progress in Bartholomew County, Ind., is wrapping up a month-long series of events to educate residents about the life-saving effects of Narcan, a medicine used for the treatment of an opioid overdose emergency. Narcan, or the generic drug naloxone, is an opioid... Read More »
Legislation aims to expand antibiotic pipeline, address antibiotic resistance
Antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest global public health concerns and is projected to be so for the next three decades. In the United States alone, 2.8 million people contract an antibiotic-resistant infection, killing more than 35,000 people each year. Approximately 15 percent of... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Ernst, Tillis advocate expanded service member COVID-19 testing
U.S. Sens. Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) are encouraging the Department of Defense (DOD) to conduct rapid antigen COVID-19 tests of military service members, their families, civilians, and contractors. The effort stems from aiding in detecting asymptomatic virus carriers while... Read More »
BAE Systems secures USS Wasp contract
The Navy has awarded BAE Systems a $197.4 million contract to perform maintenance and modernization work aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp. “BAE Systems is very familiar with USS Wasp, performing substantial upgrade work onboard before its forward deployment to Japan three years... Read More »
Johns Hopkins report details lessons learned from New York City hospitals’ COVID-19 patient surge
From April through June 2020, New York City hospitals were overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients, and now, a working group of 15 hospital intensive care unit directors and the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security have reported on the successes and failures of that time. “Crisis Standards of... Read More »
Study: Zika virus solution may lie in commonly used, tetracycline-based antibiotics
A preclinical study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) suggests that tetracycline-based antibiotics like methacycline, or drugs designed to combat Alzheimer’s and inflammation, may slow infection and reduce neurological problems associated with the Zika virus. This conclusion was... Read More »
Ohio lawmakers request full federal funding for Ohio National Guard’s response to COVID-19
Ohio Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) are urging federal officials to support Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s request to restore and extend full federal funding for the Ohio National Guard’s COVID-19 response mission. Since the pandemic hit, approximately 2,000 members of the Ohio... Read More »
CBP warns shoppers about the hazards of buying counterfeit terms this holiday season
With the onslaught of the holiday shopping season, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) remind shoppers how consumers can protect themselves from buying counterfeit goods and brand name “knock-offs.” “CBP’s primary mission is to protect... Read More »