Threats
Sen. Baldwin sponsors bill to protect frontline workers from pandemics
U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) introduced legislation designed to protect first responders and frontline workers in the fight against the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The COVID–19 Workers First Protection Act (S. 3584) directs the Department of Labor (DOL) to issue an emergency temporary... Read More »
HHS awards $1.3 billion in relief funding to health centers
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded roughly $1.3 billion to health centers to help them respond to the coronavirus pandemic. The funding – through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) – went to 1,387 different health centers. The awards may be... Read More »
Royal Philips agrees to double production of U.S. hospital ventilators by May
Teaming up with the United States government, health technology provider Royal Philips has agreed to double the production of hospital ventilators at its U.S. manufacturing sites by May and push for a four-fold increase by the third quarter. These supplies would then be usable in both the U.S.... Read More »
Report concludes that Assad regime used chemical weapons in 2017
A new report from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) attributes three instances of chemical weapons use in 2017 to the Assad regime in Syria. The report from the OPCW Investigation and Identification Team (IIT) concluded that there are grounds to believe that the... Read More »
HHS to issue healthcare worker protective suits
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials reached an agreement with DuPont to obtain Tyvek suits for frontline healthcare workers responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. DuPont will deliver 450,000 Tyvek suits, via FedEx, to the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) from its Hanoi,... Read More »
Nanomix tapped by BARDA to develop 15 minute COVID-19 diagnostic
Nanomix is working to create a 15 minute rapid mobile COVID-19 test, capable of diagnosing current or past infection by SARS-CoV-2 through nasal and throat swabs. The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is teaming up with Nanomix to achieve this, pumping $569,647 into... Read More »
Senators urge Trump officials to distribute funding immediately to hospitals
A group of Democratic U.S. Senators recently urged Trump administration officials to immediately distribute an initial round of emergency funding to hospitals and other health care providers. This funding would come from the $100 billion that was authorized to hospitals and healthcare... Read More »
Inovio gets FDA approval to start trials on COVID-19 vaccine candidate
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration accepted Inovio Pharmaceuticals investigational new drug (IND) application for its vaccine candidate designed to prevent COVID-19 infection. This action by the FDA paves the way for Phase 1 clinical testing of this vaccine candidate, INO-4800, in healthy... Read More »
Potential COVID-19 vaccine efficacy assessed
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers maintain when tested in mice a potential vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, the new coronavirus causing the COVID-19 pandemic, produces antibodies for potential neutralization. The study findings detailed via eBioMedicine, which is published by... Read More »
Science and Technology Directorate seeks participants for GPS vulnerabilities event
The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) is seeking participants for its third 2020 GPS Testing for Critical Infrastructure (GET-CI) event later this year. “Accurate and precise position, navigation and timing (PNT) information is vital to the... Read More »
BARDA, Genentech to run clinical trial of Actemra as potential COVID-19 treatment
Actemra, a drug more commonly used to treat moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis, will undergo a Phase 3 clinical trial for its potential to help patients suffering from COVID-19, under an expanded partnership between Roche’s Genentech and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development... Read More »
Grifols partners with BARDA, DoD to create plasma-based COVID-19 treatment
Global healthcare company Grifols is collaborating with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and the United States Department of Defense (DoD) to collect plasma and create a COVID-19 treatment based on it. The effort is based on previous government calls for... Read More »
BARDA working with OraSure on rapid home coronavirus test
The federal Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is working with OraSure Technology to develop a test for the coronavirus (COVID-19) that could bring testing closer to the patient. OraSure’s point-of-care test will be available at home and in clinical settings. It... Read More »
GlaxoSmithKline, Vir to work together on coronavirus treatments
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Vir Biotechnology will collaborate to research and develop solutions for coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The partnership will leverage Vir’s proprietary monoclonal antibody platform technology to identify new anti-viral antibodies... Read More »
CDC to provide $186M in COVID-19 support grants for state, local jurisdictions
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would provide $186 million to state and local jurisdictions for COVID-19 support. “Testing and surveillance is a vital piece of our efforts to beat the coronavirus, and this new... Read More »
Bill targets future pandemic preparedness
A group of legislators recently introduced legislation designed to create a commission to assess the nation's response and make recommendations for future pandemic preparedness. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL) joined 12 colleagues in presenting the Pandemic Rapid Response Act, which establishes the... Read More »
Sandoz, Bayer donate 31 million doses of hydroxychloroquine to Strategic National Stockpile
Hydroxychloroquine is flooding the Strategic National Stockpile this week as a potential treatment for COVID-19, thanks to a 30 million dose donation from Sandoz and another 1 million gifted by Bayer Pharmaceuticals. Both hydroxychloroquine sulfate and chloroquine phosphate were given U.S. Food... Read More »
HHS to purchase COVID-19 rapid point-of-care test from Abbott Diagnostics Scarborough
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) intends to purchase the ID NOW COVID-19 rapid point-of-care test developed by Abbott Diagnostics Scarborough Inc., to expand the supply of diagnostics available to state, territorial and tribal public health labs. Designed for the ID NOW... Read More »
Massachusetts governor launches contact tracing initiative to mitigate the spread of COVID-19
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced the creation of the COVID-19 Community Tracing Collaborative (CTC) to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus in Massachusetts. This collaboration with Partners In Health focuses on tracing the contacts of confirmed positive COVID-19 patients and... Read More »
Bill addresses public health accountability for foreign officials
A Republican group of legislators announced plans to introduce the Li Wenliang Global Public Health Accountability Act designed to address foreign officials who attempted to conceal early onset COVID-19 public health information. The Act would also sanction any foreign official who may conceal a... Read More »
Measure bolsters security of stockpile supply chain during COVID-19 crisis
Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón recently led a bipartisan group of lawmakers in introducing a measure that bolsters the U.S. supply chain amid the COVID-19 pandemic. González-Colón and Reps. Donna Shalala (D-FL), Rob Bishop (R-UT), Darren Soto (D-FL), Ruben... Read More »
New CDC COVIDView report pledges weekly summaries of coronavirus data
As part of ongoing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) efforts to promote reliable COVID-19 information, it has modified its existing surveillance systems to form a weekly new report known as COVIDView, which will summarize and interpret data each Friday. The first COVIDView... Read More »
FDA looks to develop new COVID-19 therapies based on blood donations from survivors of the virus
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has stepped in to fast-track development of and access to two more investigational therapies for COVID-19 based on convalescent plasma and hyperimmune globulin from human blood. By using blood donated from those who have recovered from the SARS-CoV-2... Read More »
How Emergent BioSolutions mounts rapid response to COVID-19
Mounting a rapid and effective response to emerging public health threats is a continuing challenge, which will only become more important in an increasingly connected world, says Dr. Richard Welch, vice president and head of development services at Emergent BioSolutions Inc., a global life... Read More »
Sens. Tester, Moran advocate National Guard pay, benefits initiatives
Senate Veterans' Affairs Ranking Member Jon Tester (D-MT) and Chairman Jerry Moran (R-KS) are encouraging Secretary of Defense Mark Esper to ensure National Guard members receive benefits and pay earned from their time in active duty responding to COVID-19. The senators are advocating the action... Read More »
Sen. Warren questions hydroxychloroquine, chloroquine availability
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has forwarded correspondence to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seeking clarity regarding reported shortages of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Warren maintains the drugs, which are generally used to treat lupus,... Read More »
Novartis begins clinical trials to evaluate Jakavi to help with coronavirus reactions
Novartis will initiate a Phase III clinical trial in collaboration with Incyte to evaluate the drug Jakavi for the treatment of severe immune overreactions caused by the coronavirus. The reaction – called cytokine storm -- can lead to life-threatening respiratory complications in patients... Read More »
BARDA to partner with Luminex, GenMarx on COVID-19 diagnostics
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) announced two new corporate partnerships last week, with the Luminex Corporation and GenMark, Dx, respectively, to get more COVID-19 diagnostic tests to market. Both are rapid diagnostic tests. The Luminex test draws from nasal... Read More »
More than half a million medical supplies seized from price gougers to be redistributed
The federal government has seized hundreds of thousands of personal protective equipment (PPE) from price gougers with the intent of redistributing them to frontline workers working amid the COVID-19 crisis in New York and New Jersey. The items -- which included around 192,000 N95 respirator... Read More »
Nationwide study of health practitioners, first responders examines use of anti-malarial drug to counter COVID-19
Sarah Lofgren’s voice had a tinge of excitement when she explained why the bright green dots on one scientific slide disappeared on the next. The co-investigator at the University of Minnesota Division of Infectious Disease and International Medicine showed how SARS, or severe acute respiratory... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions working with federal government on COVID-19 therapy
Emergent BioSolutions is working with the U.S. government to develop a therapy for patients diagnosed with coronavirus, also known as COVID-19. The partnership is through a $14.5 million grant from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to develop a COVID-Human Immune... Read More »
VirScan tool can help researchers detect coronavirus for vaccine development
A research tool known as VirScan will be able to detect evidence of coronavirus from a single drop of blood. Geneticist Steve Elledge, who helped develop VirScan, has added the virus, formally known as SARS-CoV-2, to VirScan's library of pathogens. This action could potentially help researchers... Read More »
Sen. Peters seeks answers from Trump officials on PPE shortage
U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) is urging the Trump Administration to address the nationwide shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers and emergency responders. In his home state, Peters cited the travails of the Detroit Police Department, which has had to quarantine... Read More »
Ohio receives thousands of medical supplies from Strategic National Stockpile, will not meet immediate or future needs
The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) received its share of personal protective equipment from the Strategic National Stockpile in full this week, granting an equipment influx of hundreds of thousands to meet the threat of COVID-19. Ohio was among early requesters for additional equipment and its... Read More »