COVID-19 News and Discussions

[Xyls]

Speaking of Brazil...

Anger as Jair Bolsonaro to allow unvaccinated visitors into Brazil

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/ ... nto-brazil

[Xyls]

[Yuli Ban]

[R8Z]

Speaking of Brazil...

Anger as Jair Bolsonaro to allow unvaccinated visitors into Brazil

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/ ... nto-brazil

(Anedocte follows)

Anger... but only from a small and loud minority from here, I must say. As it's almost summer and covid has been mild since a few months people are leaving it mostly in the past already. The great majority is not caring or scared anymore (be this for good or bad). Blocking travveling by the vaccine treatment status was never even rooted in science for the current tech we have anyway. A proper test blockade should be the only focused block for travellers, imo .

[R8Z]

Very unfortunate but expected

Fauci: It's 'when, not if' definition of fully vaccinated will change https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5 ... ill-change

[wjfox]

[wjfox]

[wjfox]

[wjfox]

[weatheriscool]

FDA authorizes Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine booster shots for 16- and 17-year-olds
Source: Washington Post

Federal regulators Thursday authorized booster shots of Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine for 16- and 17-year-olds, a step that could bolster protection against delta, the dominant variant in the United States, and the emerging omicron version. The Food and Drug Administration’s decision came the day after new data from the companies suggested that boosters may play a critical role in helping control the omicron variant by raising virus-fighting antibodies to block the pathogen that echoed a finding by leading scientists in South Africa released earlier this week.

The FDA’s authorization is expected to be reviewed and endorsed by Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, perhaps as soon as Thursday. The clearance means 16- and 17-year-olds who received the initial two-shot series of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will be able to get a booster six months after the second dose. The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are not authorized for anyone under 18.

The expanded age for boosters is sure to raise questions among parents and doctors about whether — and when — children younger than 16 will need boosters. Scientists inside and outside of the government said more information is needed before a decision is made about boosters for younger children. Some experts believe those children eventually will need boosters, but perhaps can wait more than six months after their second shot. “They probably will need boosts,” said one federal official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue. “The question is: Will they need boosts at six months or could they last longer?”

Pfizer and its partner, BioNTech, have not asked the FDA for the go-ahead for boosters for younger children, according to Kit Longley, a Pfizer spokesman. “We will continue to monitor data from our ongoing clinical trial in addition to real world evidence to assess a potential need,” Longley said. Octavio Ramilo, chief of infectious diseases at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, praised the authorization for 16- and 17-year-olds. “These are the kids who go out, they have very active social lives,” Ramilo said. “So it’s very important that we protect them and the community.”

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2 ... -year-old/