Vaccines are key to China’s zero-Covid exit but scepticism poses challenge Backing down from existing policies remains a political problem of the first order the Guardian

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COVID spread fears grow as China unwinds zero-tolerance curbs As many Chinese embraced new freedoms after Beijing dropped parts of its tough COVID regime, concerns mounted that the virus, which had largely been kept in check, could soon run wild. Brenda Goh,Ella Cao Reuters

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Senate report spotlights systemic problems behind early COVID response missteps The 242-page document is the latest to retrace early U.S. shortcomings to address the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. CBS News

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While some of the details are new, the report's authors acknowledge several of their ultimate findings stem from systemic problems known long before President Donald Trump took office.

U.S. FDA authorizes Moderna, Pfizer updated COVID boosters for 6 months old The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday authorized updated COVID-19 booster shots from Moderna and Pfizer and its partner BioNTech for children as young as 6 months of age. Reuters Reuters

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Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress Combating COVID-19 Governor Hochul updated New Yorkers on the state's progress combating COVID-19. Governor Kathy Hochul

From NY State government press satement:

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Omicron boosters are weaker against BQ.1.1 subvariant that is rising in U.S., study finds

Covid shots designed to protect against the omicron variant trigger a weaker immune response against the rapidly emerging BQ.1.1 subvariant than the previously dominant strain, according to a new lab study.

Scientists at the University of Texas Medical Branch, in a study published online Tuesday in Nature Medicine, found that the booster shots performed well against the BA.5 subvariant they were designed to target.

Study spotlights disparities in COVID-19 clinical trials | CIDRAP

A study yesterday in JAMA Internal Medicine shows women and racial minorities were underrepresented in both COVID-19 clinical treatment trials and in disease prevention trials.

The research was conducted by a team from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, as well researchers from Beijing and London.

Youngkin moves toward reimbursements for ‘unjust’ COVID-19 fines in Virginia Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) announced on Tuesday that he plans to reimburse individuals and businesses who paid fines for violating most state COVID-19 restrictions put in place by his Democra… zschonfeld The Hill

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Emerging from the COVID pandemic, again For much of the world, 2022 marked the beginning of the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. Michele Gershberg Reuters

..Global health officials cautioned the public against letting its guard down, while acknowledging a change in outlook nearly three years after the virus was first detected. The World Health Organization (WHO) has yet to declare an end to the COVID public health emergency introduced in January 2020.

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