Coronavirus

The Hill reports: Susan Wright, the widow of the late Rep. Ron Wright (R), announced Wednesday she will run for her husband’s vacant seat in Texas’s 6th Congressional District. Ron Wright first won his seat in 2018 before winning reelection in 2020. He died on Feb. 7 after battling both the coronavirus and lung cancer. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) …

The Washington Post reports: Moderna said Wednesday that it has manufactured a new version of its coronavirus vaccine that is tailored to quell infection by the variant first identified in South Africa. A small amount of vaccine has been sent to the National Institutes of Health for a trial to determine whether boosting humans with the modified vaccine will stimulate …

The Associated Press reports: Fry’s Electronics, the go-to chain for tech tinkerers looking for an obscure part, is closing for good. The company, perhaps even more well known for outlandish themes at some of its stores, from Aztec to “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” said Wednesday in an online posting that the COVID-19 pandemic had made it impossible to continue. The …

CNBC reports: The Food and Drug Administration’s staff endorsed Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use, a critical step in bringing a third shot to the U.S. marketplace. The staff report released Wednesday is meant to brief the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, which will meet Friday to review J&J’s request for emergency use authorization. The …

CNN reports: Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said he expects US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance for fully vaccinated people will be coming soon. Fauci said that the CDC wants “to make sure they sit down, talk about it, look at the data and then come out with a recommendation …

ABC News reports: President Joe Biden plans to mark the milestone of 500,000 Americans killed by the COVID-19 virus with a somber ceremony Monday evening at the White House. First lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff will join Biden in a candle-lighting ceremony outside on the White House South Portico at sunset followed by …

The New York Daily News reports: People who wear glasses could be up to three times less likely to get coronavirus, according to a new study conducted in India. The preliminary study suggests that glass-wearers may have the extra protection because they tend to touch their eyes less frequently than most people. “Touching and rubbing of the eyes with contaminated …

The Associated Press reports: President Joe Biden will mark the U.S. crossing 500,000 lives lost from COVID-19 with a moment of silence and candle lighting ceremony at the White House. The White House said Biden will deliver remarks at sunset to honor those who lost their lives. He will be joined by first lady Jill Biden and Vice President Kamala …

The Associated Press reports: U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday was setting out a road map for lifting one of Europe’s strictest national lockdowns — but the millions of Britons eager for a haircut or an evening out still face a long wait. Johnson is expected to announce a plan to ease coronavirus restrictions in increments, starting by reopening …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: A Florida restaurant created a stir this month when it shared its anti-mask sign on social media. “FACE DIAPERS NOT REQUIRED! EVERYONE WELCOME,” declares the sign at BeckyJack’s Food Shack near Weeki Wachee Springs State Park. It’s accompanied by an image of a blue disposable mask overlaid by a red “banned” symbol, to indicate that the …

The Associated Press reports: It sounded so ambitious at first blush: 100 million vaccination shots in 100 days. Now, one month into his presidency, Joe Biden is on a glide path to attain that goal and pitching well beyond it to the far more ambitious and daunting mission of vaccinating all eligible adults against the coronavirus by the end of …

NBC News reports: The U.S. death toll from the coronavirus topped 500,000 on Sunday,according to an NBC News tally — a milestone that underscores the grave threat the virus still poses nationwide even as more Americans get vaccinated. The coronavirus has claimed the lives of more than 2,462,000 people worldwide, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The death …

NBC News reports: Israel reopened swathes of its economy including malls and leisure facilities on Sunday, with the government saying the start of a return to routine was enabled by Covid-19 vaccines administered to almost half the population. Shops were open to all, but access to gyms, hotels and theatres was limited to people with a “Green Pass”: those who …

Politico reports: The new sites, which were announced Friday, will be in areas of Jacksonville, Tampa, Miami and Orlando picked through a federal vulnerability index that considered things like minority population, socioeconomic status and housing types. When up and running in roughly two weeks, the four sites are expected to collectively give 12,000 daily vaccines, giving a boost to areas …

The Wall Street Journal reports: The Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE generates robust immunity after one dose and can be stored in ordinary freezers instead of at ultracold temperatures, according to new research and data released by the companies. The findings provide strong arguments in favor of delaying the second dose of the two-shot vaccine, as …

Orlando’s ABC News affiliate reports: Two women took a page out of “Mrs. Doubtfire” in an attempt to get their second COVID-19 vaccine shot. The two women dressed up as “grannies,” complete with bonnets and gloves, in an effort to pass as elderly women old enough to get their second COVID-19 vaccine at the Orange County Convention Center, health officials …

The San Francisco Chronicle reports: A San Francisco priest has died from COVID-19, a week after his church temporarily shut down after at least three priests and clergy members tested positive for COVID-19. Father Bob Stein of Saints Peter and Paul Church died early Tuesday morning, per a statement published by the North Beach institution on its website. The church …

The Washington Post reports: Andy Slavitt, White House senior adviser on the coronavirus response, said vaccine-producing companies plan to update their shots to address variants of the virus. During a Washington Post live interview Thursday, he said the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines “work well for” the most prominent variant spreading throughout the United States, which is the one first identified …

The Associated Press reports: Life expectancy in the United States dropped a staggering one year during the first half of 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic caused its first wave of deaths, health officials are reporting. Minorities suffered the biggest impact, with Black Americans losing nearly three years and Hispanics, nearly two years, according to preliminary estimates Thursday from the Centers …

The New York Daily News reports: Federal prosecutors and the FBI are probing the Cuomo administration’s handling of nursing homes and long-term care facilities during the COVID crisis, according to a report Wednesday. The U.S. attorney’s office in the Eastern District of New York has launched an investigation focusing on the work of some of the senior members of the …