Medical Treatments

FDA Considers Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine For Emergency Use Authorization

4:53pm February 26, 2021

by Joe Palca

An advisory committee to the Food and Drug Administration met to consider the application for emergency use authorization for the Janssen, the vaccine division of Johnson & Johnson, COVID-19 vaccine.

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Health & Safety

VP Harris Holds Event In Washington, D.C., Pharmacy To Get More Vaccines In Arms

5:34pm February 25, 2021

by Tamara Keith

Vice President Harris went to a grocery store pharmacy Thursday to see first-hand the challenge of getting more vaccines into arms.

Vaccine makers are moving to test booster shots, prompted by new coronavirus variants that have sprung up in South Africa, the U.K. and elsewhere.

COVID-19 Vaccine Makers' Booster Shots Aim At A Moving Target: Coronavirus Variants

1:53pm February 25, 2021

by Bill Chappell

In the future, different circumstances will likely determine which vaccine or booster a person receives, based on their antibodies — and which variant is common in their region.

Xavier Becerra, President Biden's nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, contended with critics of abortion rights on the first day of his confirmation hearings Tuesday.

'It's a Minefield': Biden's Pick For Health Secretary Faces Abortion Politics

2:32pm February 24, 2021

As California's attorney general, Xavier Becerra fought Trump-era restrictions on reproductive health. If confirmed, he'll navigate an even more difficult legal and political landscape.

Sepsis, which is sometimes called blood poisoning, is essentially the body's overreaction to an infection.

Health & Safety

Vitamin C Fails Again As Treatment For Sepsis

2:26pm February 24, 2021

by Richard Harris

Sepsis is one of the most common causes of death for hospitalized patients. The search for an effective treatment has been frustrating.

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Dr. Rochelle Walensky likens the call she got from the Biden team, asking her to lead the CDC amid a pandemic, to a hospital alarm that goes off when a patient's heart has stopped. "I got called during a code," she says. "And when you get called during a

Biden's Straight-Talking CDC Director Has Long Used Data To Save Lives

11:21am February 24, 2021

by Carey Goldberg

Dr. Rochelle Walensky says scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were "muzzled" and "diminished" by the Trump team, especially during the pandemic. She aims to fix that.

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At a Kedren Community Health Center vaccine clinic in South Central Los Angeles this month, 89-year-old Cecilia Onwytalu (center) signals she's more than ready to get her immunization against COVID-19.

Health & Safety

Race Versus Time: Targeting Vaccine To The Most Vulnerable Is No Speedy Task

9:37pm February 23, 2021

by Yuki Noguchi

The Biden team wants to swiftly vaccinate people of color and others most vulnerable to COVID-19. But health centers are learning that speed and achieving racial equity don't always go hand in hand.

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Health & Safety

Vitamin C Apparently Not Useful For Sepsis After All

5:06pm February 23, 2021

by Richard Harris

A seemingly easy and cheap treatment for a deadly disease has failed in a major study. Vitamin C is apparently not useful for sepsis after all. That's a lesson for similar COIVD-19 treatments.

Embalmer and funeral director Kristy Oliver (left) and funeral attendant Sam Deras load the casket of a person who died after contracting COVID-19 into a hearse in El Cajon, Calif. People who work in hospitals and in funeral homes are witnesses to the los

'A Loss To The Whole Society': U.S. COVID-19 Death Toll Reaches 500,000

7:47pm February 22, 2021

by Pien Huang

As the country faces another wrenching milestone, there are signs of hope that we may be beating back the virus. But a brighter future won't bring back precious lives lost.

Amelia Hunt (left), principal of Stevens Early Learning Center in Washington, D.C., and Dr. Craig DeWolfe, a hospitalist at Children's National.

Guards, Generosity, Patience: A Volunteer Effort To Vaccinate Public School Workers

6:05pm February 21, 2021

In Washington, D.C., hospital staff vaccinated 1,750 public school workers in one day. It was a hard-won success amid a fragmented nationwide vaccination campaign fraught with challenges.

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