Fault lines between the FDA and CDC regulatory processes have been on full display in the decisions over which groups of Americans should receive the Pfizer booster shot.
Ongoing tracking is meant to spot very rare risks – like the connection between the Johnson & Johnson shot and Guillain-Barré syndrome. And it relies on public reporting.
As many teens and adults in the US restart their social lives, parents of children under the age of 12 wonder when their kids will also be able to experience the freedom that comes with vaccination.
So far, most vaccines in the US are mRNA vaccines. These represent a new technology and are likely to take over the vaccine world. But how do they work? What are their weaknesses? Five experts explain.
Lana Dbeibo, Indiana University School of Medicine
Now that two COVID vaccines have been authorized by the FDA, questions arise. Today, a physician from Indiana University School of Medicine answers five reader questions.
A serious allergic reaction was reported in a health care worker in Alaska after she received the COVID-19 vaccine. Does this mean that people with allergies need to be concerned? An expert answers.
Zoë McLaren, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
A new over-the-counter COVID-19 test has been authorized by the FDA. Though it can be used to test people with and without symptoms, moderate cost and limited production mean it isn’t a game-changer.
Desi Kotis, University of California, San Francisco
Health systems around the US are on the cusp of receiving COVID-19 vaccines. At the end of this months-long effort are the nitty-gritty details of how health care providers are giving people the vaccine.
The vaccines that will first be used to prevent the spread of COVID-19 will have gone through a special approval process with the FDA. but just what is this expedited process?
In September, production of rapid tests really ramped up in the US. But due to low accuracy and massive numbers needed, these tests alone are unlikely to have much of an effect on the pandemic.
With COVID-19 cases soaring across the US and worldwide, the need for a vaccine could not be greater. Here’s where we stand on vaccine development, including positive results from Pfizer’s trial.
Zoë McLaren, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
The new BinaxNOW antigen test is quick, easy, accurate and cheap. It could solve the US testing problem, but the emergency use authorization only allows people with COVID-19 symptoms to get tested.
Charles Stewart Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health and an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Human Development at the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University