Five Priorities For Global Pandemic Preparedness - Health Policy Watch On 27 February, World Health Organization member states will meet to commence formal negotiations on a global pandemic preparedness agreement – unofficially Health Policy Watch

On 27 February, World Health Organization member states will meet to commence formal negotiations on a global pandemic preparedness agreement – unofficially turning the page from responding to COVID-19 to readying ourselves for future health emergencies.

Moderna says its COVID vaccine will remain free for all consumers, even those uninsured Moderna has announced it will provide its COVID vaccine for free to people without insurance, even after government money dries up. ABC News ABC News

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"Everyone in the United States will have access to Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine regardless of their ability to pay," the company said in a statement.

A rare Marburg outbreak sparks a race against time to test vaccines and drugs Finding out if Marburg vaccine candidates actually work in people requires an outbreak, and outbreaks are blessedly rare. But now there are cases in Equatorial Guinea. Helen Branswell STAT

A Marburg fever outbreak in Equatorial Guinea is galvanizing efforts to test drugs and vaccines for a virus that currently has none. But every day counts, warned experts who gathered virtually on Tuesday to try to chart a course for the work.

Bird flu spreads to new countries, threatens non-stop "war" on poultry Avian flu has reached new corners of the globe and become endemic for the first time in some wild birds that transmit the virus to poultry, according to veterinarians and disease experts, who warn it is now a year-round problem. Tom Polansek Reuters

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Three years into the pandemic, nursing home residents are still in Covid’s crosshairs (msn.com)

Federal health agencies worked to get more nursing home residents and staff to take the latest Covid booster all winter, creating social media hashtags, putting money into vaccine hotlines and flagging the worst performing facilities to states.

But their decision to scale back on two vaccine interventions that were critical in getting residents and staff protected from Covid during the first vaccine rollout in late 2020 and 2021 has left the job mostly to facilities, resident advocates say, with disappointing results.

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WHO abandons plans for crucial second phase of COVID-origins investigation Nature - Sensitive studies in China were intended to pinpoint the source of the pandemic virus. Mallapaty, Smriti nature

The World Health Organization (WHO) has quietly shelved the second phase of its much-anticipated scientific investigation into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, citing ongoing challenges over attempts to conduct crucial studies in China, Nature has learned. ...

COVID vaccine uptake low among older people, especially in poorer nations The global vaccination rate in 2022 for people older than 60 was 76%, but it was only 33% in low-income countries. CIDRAP

COVID-19 Mortality and Progress Toward Vaccinating Older Adults — World Health Organization, Worldwide, 2020–2022

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56,000 COVID-19 rapid tests have been recalled WASHINGTON -Thousands of rapid tests for COVID-19 are part of a recall due to the chance it could give users the wrong test results. Universal Meditech Inc. has initiated a nationwide recall of 56,… Larry Hawley WGN-TV

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Universal Meditech Inc. has initiated a nationwide recall of 56,300 Skippack Medical Lab SARS-CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Test Kits. The company says they were distributed without “appropriate premarket clearance or approval” which could lead to inaccurate results since their performance was not properly evaluated by the FDA.

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Paxlovid may help prevent hospitalization, death in COVID outpatients CIDRAP

Two new studies, one from the United States and one from Canada, suggest that the oral antiviral drug Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir-ritonavir) is effective in lowering the odds of hospitalization or death from the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariant.

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