Tag: CDC

CDC to urge vaccinated people to resume wearing masks indoors in some circumstances as delta variant spreads

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The recommendation would reverse guidance by the agency in May saying that vaccinated individuals did not have to wear masks indoors or out because of protection afforded by vaccines.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to recommend on Tuesday that vaccinated Americans wear masks indoors in certain circumstances, citing the highly transmissible delta variant.

The recommendation, to be unveiled at a 3 p.m. news briefing, would alter the agency’s May 13 guidance saying that vaccinated individuals did not have to wear masks indoors or out because of the protection afforded by vaccines. At the time, cases were dropping sharply and the delta variant, which is 1,000 times more transmissible than earlier versions of the virus, had not gained significant traction in the United States.

President Biden and CDC director Rochelle Walensky have repeatedly said there is a “pandemic of the unvaccinated” because unvaccinated people make up the vast majority of patients hospitalized with the disease. But the delta variant has been a game-changer for the United States, sending cases surging throughout the country, and there is concern that although vaccinated people are unlikely to become severely ill, they may still be able to become infected and spread the virus. Continue reading.

Top CDC official warns US not ready for next pandemic

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The No. 2 official at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is warning that without consistent, long-term funding for public health, the U.S. won’t be any better prepared for the next pandemic.

In an interview with The Hill on Wednesday, Anne Schuchat, the CDC’s principal deputy director, said the U.S. was not prepared for COVID-19 due to years of inadequate investment in public health infrastructure.

Emergency funding has helped public health agencies fight back against the coronavirus, Schuchat said, but unless that level of spending can be sustained, the country is in danger of repeating the same mistakes. Continue reading.

CDC says fully vaccinated people don’t have to wear masks indoors

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The CDC announced in new guidance Thursday that anyone who is fully vaccinated can participate in indoor and outdoor activities without wearing a mask or physically distancing, regardless of crowd size.

What they’re saying: “If you are fully vaccinated, you are protected, and you can start doing the things that you stopped doing because of the pandemic,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky will say at a White House press briefing.

Caveats: The guidance does not apply to those traveling on planes or public transit, health care settings, correctional facilities or homeless shelters. Continue reading.

CDC panel recommends Pfizer COVID vaccine for adolescents

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Adolescents as young as 12 years old across the country can soon start receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine after a federal advisory panel endorsed the measure Wednesday.

The 14-0 vote, with one recusal from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices was part of the final process before the shot becomes widely available to the younger population.

Once CDC Director Rochelle Walensky signs off on the panel’s recommendation, vaccinations will begin in most states, although some clinics in states including Pennsylvania, Maine and Georgia did not wait.  Continue reading.

CDC: Fully vaccinated people don’t need to wear masks outside

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Fully vaccinated people can venture outdoors without masks, according to updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued Tuesday.

The big picture: The guidelines come as more than nearly 29% of people in the U.S. have been fully vaccinated and more than 42% have received at least one dose.

  • 15 governors so far have let their state orders requiring people to wear face coverings in public expire, according to U.S. News. Many cities and local jurisdictions have also begun to increase capacity at restaurants and businesses. Continue reading.

CDC director says racism is ‘serious public health threat’

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday declared racism a “serious public health threat,” becoming the largest federal agency to do so.

“A growing body of research shows that centuries of racism in this country has had a profound and negative impact on communities of color,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement published on the agency’s website.

Walensky noted the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been felt most severely in communities of color, which have experienced disproportionate case counts and deaths. Continue reading.

After Worst Year for Gun Violence in Decades, Phillips Demands Status Report on Gun Violence Research

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WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Rep. Dean Phillips (MN-03) sent a letter to the directors of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institute of Health (NIH) demanding a status report on the progress of taxpayer-funded research on gun violence, as well as an estimate for when that research will yield actionable recommendations for policymakers. Phillips’s letter comes after the recent tragic shootings in Colorado and Georgia along with House passage of bipartisan legislation to strengthen background checks and keep communities safe.

Phillips also recently co-sponsored the Gun Violence Prevention Research Act, which authorizes $250 million in funding to the CDC to study gun violence over the next five years. In 2018, Congress authorized $50 million to fund gun violence research at the CDC and NIH, but experts say that additional funding is sorely needed to complete that research and identify life-saving solutions to America’s gun violence epidemic.

Continue reading “After Worst Year for Gun Violence in Decades, Phillips Demands Status Report on Gun Violence Research”

Pfizer, Moderna vaccines are 90% effective after two doses in study of real-life conditions, CDC confirms

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Report on essential workers is one of the first to estimate protection against any infection, regardless of symptoms

The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines being deployed to fight the coronavirus pandemic are robustly effective in preventing infections in real-life conditions, according to a federal study released Monday that provides reassurance of protection for front-line workers in the United States.

In a study of about 4,000 health-care personnel, police, firefighters and other essential workers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that the vaccines reduced the risk of infection by 80 percent after one shot. Protection increased to 90 percent following the second dose. The findings are consistent with clinical trial results and studies showing strong effectiveness in Israel and the United Kingdom, and in initial studies of health-care workers at the UT Southwestern Medical Center and in Southern California.

The CDC report is significant, experts said, because it analyzed how well the vaccines worked among a diverse group of front-line working-age adults whose jobs make them more likely to be exposed to the virus and to spread it. Continue reading.

Judge rules CDC eviction moratorium unconstitutional

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A federal judge in Texas ruled on Thursday that an order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) temporarily halting evictions amid the pandemic is unconstitutional.

In a 21-page ruling, U.S. District Judge John Barker sided with a group of landlords and property managers who alleged in a lawsuit that the CDC’s eviction moratorium exceeded the federal government’s constitutional authority.

“Although the COVID-19 pandemic persists, so does the Constitution,” Barker, a Trump appointee, wrote. Continue reading.

FDA authorizes Johnson & Johnson’s one-shot COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use

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The Food and Drug Administration on Saturday issued an emergency use authorization for Johnson & Johnson’s one-shot coronavirus vaccine.

Why it matters: The authorization of a third coronavirus vaccine in the U.S. will help speed up the vaccine rollout across the country, especially since the J&J shot only requires one dose as opposed to Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech’s two-shot vaccines. 

  • Unlike Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech’s shots, the J&J vaccine can also be stored at refrigerator temperatures for three months, making it easier to transport. 
  • White House coronavirus coordinator Jeff Zients said on Wednesday that J&J will have 3 million to 4 million doses ready for distribution. Continue reading.