FDA says there are no combined flu and Covid vaccines this year

CBS News: Combined flu and COVID shots won’t arrive in time for this year, FDA official says

Vaccines that provide protection against COVID-19 and the flu with a single shot likely won’t be ready in time for this year, a senior federal official said Wednesday. However, adjustments to update current COVID vaccines and drugs are expected soon. The Food and Drug Administration’s top vaccine official, Dr. Peter Marks, previously said in September that vaccines covering both viruses could be rolled out this year. (Pewter, 3/2)

San Francisco Chronicle: Vaccines will hit commercial market with next virus strain

In an update on the potential timeline for the commercialization of COVID-19 medical countermeasures, including vaccines, the Federal Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) said it expects this happen once the doses are reformulated for the next lineage of coronavirus. (Vaziri, 3/2)

CIDRAP: 35 years of US investment in research led to development of mRNA COVID vaccines

In the three decades leading up to the pandemic, the US government invested $31.9 billion in research that supported the development of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines in 2020, of which $337 million was invested before the pandemic. pandemic, according to a study led by Brigham and Women published yesterday in the BMJ. Researchers searched public databases for government-funded grants on four fundamental innovations that directly led to the development of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines, including lipid nanoparticles, mRNA synthesis or modification, advanced protein structure and the biotechnology of mRNA vaccines from January 1985 to March 2022. (Van Beusekom, 3/2)

In other health news across the US –

San Francisco Chronicle: Long COVID linked to lower brain oxygen levels

According to a new study, long COVID is associated with reduced oxygen levels in the brain, poorer performance on cognitive tests and increased psychiatric symptoms. In an analysis of two parallel studies – a laboratory study involving cognitive testing and imaging and a population-based survey – researchers at the University of Waterloo found that people who had symptomatic disease at the COVID-19 showed impaired brain function compared to those who had not been infected. (Vaziri, 3/2)

In other pandemic news –

Dallas Morning News: Ted Cruz tells CPAC Fauci should be jailed for ‘lies’ and COVID-19 warrants

Senator Ted Cruz has called for the prosecution of Dr. Anthony Fauci, telling conservative activists on Thursday that the nation’s most prominent public health expert lied about the origin of COVID-19 and “destroyed” lives by encouraging the closing schools and businesses and urging Americans to wear masks. and get vaccinated. (Gilman, 3/2)

The Boston Globe: How a study sparked questions about masking and COVID – again

You may have thought that the masking issue was settled, or at least that we all agreed to disagree, but no luck. The debate over whether masks limit the transmission of COVID-19 has recently reignited after the publication of a new research review, attracting skeptics and advocates alike, and – as often happens – leaving the bewildered ordinary citizen. (Freyer, 3/2)