Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the middle of the week. Congratulations on making it this far and remember there are only a few more days until the weekend arrives. So keep plugging away. After all, what are the alternatives? While you ponder the possibilities, we invite you to join us for a delightful cup of stimulation. Our choice today is the refreshing chocolate raspberry. Remember that no prescription is required. So feel free to join us. Meanwhile, here is the latest menu of tidbits to help you on your way. Have a wonderful day and please do stay in touch …
Bavarian Nordic, which makes the only approved monkeypox vaccine, is exploring the viability of using technically expired doses to help bridge a growing gap between demand and supply due to the current outbreak, Reuters tells us. Bavarian chief executive officer Paul Chaplin says global demand for the shot is “exceeding our ability to deliver.” More than 40,000 confirmed cases of monkeypox in over 80 countries where the virus is not endemic have been reported since May. About a third of the current global case count is in the U.S. One way to address supply problems is to evaluate whether millions of doses delivered to the U.S. in previous years that have technically expired are still viable.
Moderna asked the Food and Drug Administration to authorize a new version of its Covid-19 vaccine that targets the latest coronavirus strains, The Wall Street Journal says. The company is ready to ship doses of the new shot in September if it is cleared by the agency. U.S. health authorities have been seeking such boosters for a campaign to bolster immune defenses of people during the fall and winter. Pfizer and BioNTech have also applied for clearance of a new vaccine shot. Federal officials expect to start offering updated booster shots next month. The Moderna shot is designed to prevent against the original coronavirus strain as well as subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.
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