International [U.S COVID Vaccine News] CDC to Lift COVID-19 Testing Requirement for international Travelers

[Arkain2K]

This is the official thread for the latest Scientific News from reputable sources on the U.S COVID vaccines, including:

• Pfizer (with Germany's BioNTech)
• Moderna (with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
• Johnson & Johnson
• Novavax

For other types, see the related threads on the British, Chinese, and Russian vaccines.

Reading-Comprehension skill is an absolute requirement in this discussion for educated adults. If you are behind on the curve, please read up on the basic facts provided in the OP to catch up to everyone else on the subject matter, instead of jumping in face-first to embarrass yourself.

If you are not interested in Scientific News, there is the Vaccine protest thread for the WR's anti-vax community to share misinformation, myths, and conspiracy theories from Twitter, as well as the Partisan thread for the Republicrats to squabble about U.S politics.

I will remind the forum that this is not a thread to spam shitposting. We have two other megathreads about the vaccines and lockdown for that.

Bring discussion of evidence, including citation of it, or do not post in this thread. Do not clutter the thread with personal spats or partisanship. I will be cleaning out posts and posters who fail to abide.
Thank you.

Useful Resources:

• U.S Vaccination Progress Updates by States
  
• Facts About COVID-19 Vaccination
• Common COVID-19 Vaccine Side Effects - and What to Do for Them
  
• Debunked COVID-19 vaccine myths
• Worldwide COVID-19 Vaccines tracker
• Comparing COVID-19 Vaccines: Timelines, Types and Prices
• The history of mRNA applications
• COVID Variants of Concern: Alpha (B.1.1.7 - U.K), Beta (B.1.351 - South Africa), Delta (B.1.617.2 - India), Gamma (P.1 - Brazil)

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Thread Index:

• Moderna says 'bivalent' Covid booster provides stronger protection (6/8/22)
  
• Novavax starts shipping COVID vaccine to the European Union (2/23/22)
  
• Novavax's Covid Vaccine Shipments to Europe Have Started (1/10/22)
  
• Novavax files final vaccine data to FDA (12/31/21)
• EU approved Novavax vaccine (12/20/21)
  
• WHO approved Novavax vaccine (12/17/21)
• South African doctor who first spotted Omicron variant says symptoms seem 'mild' (11/29/21)
  
• Pfizer's Pediatric vaccine for children ages 5-11 receives final approval (11/02/21)
• Novavax files for its first COVID-19 vaccine authorization in UK (10/27/21)
• FDA clears Moderna and J&J boosters for high-risk groups, allows 'mix and match' shots (10/20/21)
  
• CDC urges pregnant women to get vaccinated against COVID (9/30/21)
  
• FDA grants full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine (8/23/21)
• COVID-19 vaccine by J&J comes with rare nerve syndrome warning. (7/14/21)
• Low Vaccination Rates Meet High Case Counts as U.S. Covid Infections Surge (7/13/21)
  
• Rates of new Covid-19 cases are now 3 times higher in states with low vaccination rates (7/5/21)
  
• 20 states have reached 70% vaccination rate (7/2/21)
• 1,000 counties in the U.S. still have Covid vaccination coverage of less than 30% (7/1/11)
• FDA adds rare heart inflammation to Pfizer and Moderna vaccines factsheets (6/26/21)
  
• Nearly all COVID hospitalizations and deaths in the U.S now are unvaccinated people (6/24/21)
• U.S hits 6-month anniversary of first COVID vaccine shots
  
• Novavax shows 90.4% overall efficacy in US/Mexico Phase 3 trial (6/14/21)
• U.S. health officials report 537 rare cases of heart inflamation out of 130,000,000 fully vaccinated people (6/10/21)
  
• 70% of adults in 12 states have received at least 1 COVID vaccine dose (6/2/21)
  
• Moderna says its Covid vaccine 100% effective in clinical trial for teens, plans to seek FDA OK in early June (5/25/21)
  
• Pfizer vaccine 88% effective against India's Delta variant (5/23/21)
  
• Pfizer Vaccine Can Now Stay Longer At Warmer Temperatures (5/19/21)
• FDA authorizes Pfizer Covid vaccine for ages 12-15 (5/10/21)
  
• Real-world data confirms Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine offers strong protection against all dominant variants (5/5/21)
• Pfizer to begin exporting U.S-made doses (5/1/21)
  
• Novavax preparing to request US authorization (4/27/21)
• CDC Study Involving More Than 35,000 Expectant Mothers Shows COVID-19 Vaccine Is Safe For Pregnant Women and Unborn Babies (4/26/21)
  
• Moderna Pediatric Vaccine Trials to Proceed (4/23/21)
• Half of US adults have received at least one vaccine dose (4/17/21)
  
• CDC Data Shows Just 0.008% of Fully-Vaccinated People Have Contracted COVID (4/16/21)
  
• J&J Vaccine Pause Creates 'Perfect Storm' For Misinformation (4/17/21)
  
• CDC and FDA recommend US pause use of J&J's vaccine over 6 blood clot cases in 6.8 Million (4/13/21)
  
• CDC study shows Pfizer and Moderna vaccines highly effective in real-world use (3/29/21)
  
• Pfizer vaccine shows 94% effectiveness against asymptomatic transmission (3/11/21)
  
• COVID-19 vaccine trials underway for children, pregnant women (3/1/21)
  
• Pfizer to begin clinical trial in pregnant women (2/18/21)
  
• Israeli: COVID sickness dropped 95.8% after both Pfizer shots (2/20/21)
• Novavax's prelim data shows it's highly effective (2/1/21)
• Israeli find Pfizer vaccine greatly reduces transmission (2/19/21)
• Israeli finds 94% drop in symptomatic COVID-19 cases with Pfizer vaccine (2/14/21)
  
• BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine confirmed effective against variants (2/8/21)
  
• J&J's one-shot vaccine is 66% effective overall (1/29/21)
  
• Just 0.04% of Israelis caught COVID-19 after two shots of Pfizer (1/28/21)
• Moderna Says Vaccine Still Protects Against Virus Variants (1/25/21)
• Israeli hospital reports 98% of staff who got 2nd shot have high-level antibodies (1/18/21)
• Moderna to find 3,000 adolescent volunteers for COVID-19 vaccine trial (1/14/20)
  
• Israel Data Suggests 33% Decrease in Covid-19 Infection Among the Innoculated (1/14/20)
• Pfizer and BioNTech’s overlooked third partner will distribute the vaccine in Greater China (1/9/21)
• Prelim study finds Pfizer's vaccine effective against new strains (1/8/21)
  
• CDC: With nearly 5 million Americans vaccinated, just 29 have had confirmed allergic reactions (1/6/21)
• Novavax to begin enrollment for Phase 3 trial
  
• Fight Breaks Out Over Which Groups Get Vaccine First
• Fauci, other top health officials receive Moderna vaccine (12/22/20)
• Singapore is first Asian country to receive Pfizer's vaccine (12/21/20)
  
• Police, firefighters, teachers will be next in line for COVID-19 vaccine (12/20/20)
• Moderna, McKesson and U.S. Army general ready to roll out new vaccine (12/19/20)
  
• Fact check: Nurse who fainted after COVID-19 vaccination is alive and well (12/23/20)
• FDA Advisory Committee Votes to Support EUA for Moderna's Vaccine (12/18/20)
  
• China Secures Deal for 100 Million Pfizer-BioNTech Doses (12/16/20)
  
• Canada prepares to distribute the Moderna vaccine (12/16/20)
  
• Pfizer and Moderna to Offer Covid Shots to Volunteers Who Had Placebo (12/15/20)
  
• FDA: Moderna vaccine safe and 94.1 effective (12/15/20)
• 'Relieved': U.S begins COVID-19 vaccinations in largest campaign in country's history (12/15/20)
  
• A guide to who can safely get the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine (12/14/20)
  
• US administers 1st doses of Pfizer vaccine to healthcare workers (12/14/20)
• Who's next as Canada, UK and US approve COVID-19 vaccines? (12/13/20)
• U.S Healthcare Workers first in line for vaccination (12/13/20)
  
• Pfizer COVID vaccine ingredients are pretty standard, experts say (12/13/20)
  
• FDA Clears Pfizer Vaccine, 2.9 Millions of Doses Will Be Shipped Right Away (12/10/20)
• Canada health regulator approves Pfizer’s vaccine (12/9/20)
• First Britons receive Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine (12/8/20)
  
• FDA Analysis Of Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Finds It Effective And Safe (12/8/20)
  
• Pfizer clinical trial results published in peer-reviewed New England Journal of Medicine (12/10/20)
  
• Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine will go into use next week in the UK (12/2/20)
  
• U.K. Approves Pfizer Coronavirus Vaccine, a First in the West (12/2/20)
  
• France welcomes Recipharm and Moderna agreement over COVID vaccine manufacturing (11/27/20)
  
• Germany to set up hundreds of vaccination centers from December (11/26/20)
• As U.S., U.K. plan to roll out vaccines in December, Canada largely silent on distribution

 

[Arkain2K]

Preparation for a big COVID-19 vaccine rollout is underway in the U.S
By Mary Beth Griggs | December 5, 2020​

​

In the US, COVID-19 vaccines are just around the corner, leaving the entire country peering out the window in anticipation of their arrival. Officials and healthcare systems, already taxed by skyrocketing case counts are making sure that everything is prepared when they show up. Here’s a few things still on their vaccine to-do lists:

Save the dates: In the next few weeks, committees with the Food and Drug Administration will meet to decide whether or not to authorize vaccine candidates for Pfizer / BioNTech and Moderna. The Pfizer vaccine is up first, with a meeting scheduled for December 10th. Moderna’s meeting will happen a week later, on December 17. The committee will meet to discuss the mountains of data from the clinical trials, and decide if they are safe and effective enough to be distributed.

While the US is taking some time to do thorough background checks on the vaccines, others have expedited the process. This week, the UK authorized the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine, putting pressure on the US to do the same.

Seating arrangements: Once the FDA has decided which vaccines are invited to the party, states need to have a plan for their allotted doses. Friday, December 5 was the deadline for states to place orders for the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine. And earlier this week, a committee of the CDC met to finalize their recommendations as to who should get the vaccine first. The VIPs who are most likely to receive the vaccine first are healthcare workers and people living and working in long-term care facilities.

Menu planning: As expected, the vaccine front runners are both two dose vaccines, and the vaccines have to be given weeks apart. This is a challenge for states who now have to make sure that everyone gets the right vaccine at the right time. They plan to use digital databases to track who got which vaccine, and when they got their shot.

Clearing out the fridge(s): These vaccines have to be kept very cold. They can both stay potent for a while at refrigerator-like temperatures, but for longer-term storage Pfizer / BioNTech’s needs to chill at minus 70 degrees Celsius. That has states clearing out cold storage and buying up dry ice anywhere they can as they prep for the vaccine’s arrival. In Maine, community college freezers may be pressed into service as the state starts vaccinating more people, the head of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention told Slate.

There’s still a lot more to do before the first doses start trickling in. First on the priority list, there’s a surge of cases and hospitalizations that must be stopped. Then, transparent plans and communications need to set the tone for a vaccine campaign. The vaccines need to be delivered equitably, and researchers will have to keep a watchful eye on the long-term effects of the vaccines. But if all of those can be accomplished, and this hastily-planned vaccine effort can be pulled off, it will be a triumph.

https://www.theverge.com/platform/a...ovid-19-vaccine-rollout-preparation-antivirus

​

 

[Arkain2K]

As U.S., U.K. plan to roll out vaccines in December, Canada largely silent on distribution
John Paul Tasker · CBC News · Posted: Nov 24, 2020

​

Two of Canada's closest allies have laid out plans to distribute new vaccines against the deadly novel coronavirus, with the first shots expected to be delivered in December.

Canada, meanwhile, has been largely silent on how promising vaccine candidates will be distributed here after Health Canada regulators give them the green light — providing few, if any, details beyond a promise to work with the provinces and territories and buy cold storage.

The federal government has procured some 358 million doses from seven companies — an insurance policy against the possibility that some of the vaccines in development prove to be ineffective in clinical trials. Little is known about how and when the vaccines will be made available, however.

"Our government has worked hard to secure tens of millions of doses, so we're prepared once a safe, effective vaccine is ready for Canadians," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said today, adding that it's "premature" to say when communities will have access to the vaccines.

Trudeau said Canada — unlike the U.S., the United Kingdom and Germany — doesn't have any domestic vaccine manufacturing capacity, which means it could be a while yet before Canadians get a dose. "We're looking forward to being able to vaccinate Canadians in the coming months," he said.

Dr. Moncef Slaoui is the chief scientific adviser to Operation Warp Speed — the U.S. mission to develop a vaccine, manufacture it in large quantities and push it out into communities. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is set to meet on Dec. 10 to make a final decision on Pfizer's highly-effective vaccine and Slaoui said inoculations will begin immediately.

"Our plan is to be able to ship vaccines to the immunization sites within 24 hours from the approval," Slaoui said in an interview with CNN.

"I would expect maybe on day two after approval, on Dec. 11 or Dec 12, hopefully, the first people will be immunized across the U.S., across all states, in all areas where the state departments of health have told us to deliver the vaccine."

20 million Americans to be vaccinated in December

Slaoui said as many as 20 million Americans will be vaccinated in December, and 30 million more Americans will be vaccinated in every subsequent month.

Since October, Pfizer has been manufacturing hundreds of thousands of doses each week — even though it hasn't yet received regulatory approval. The company hopes to make 100 million doses available this year and another 1.3 billion in 2021. Each patient will need two doses of Pfizer's vaccine.

The National Health Service (NHS) in England has designated 1,250 local health clinics as vaccine sites where, starting as early as Dec. 1, staff will be on hand to administer the vaccine over 12-hour shifts, seven days a week. Each clinic site is expected to inoculate at least 975 people per week.

The NHS already has started booking vaccine appointments, designating blocks to priority groups. Vaccinations in the U.K. will start with older adult residents in long-term care homes and care home workers, all those 80 years of age and over and health and social care workers, before being offered to those aged 75 years or younger.

"I have tasked the NHS with being ready from any date from Dec. 1. The logistics are complex, the uncertainties are real and the scale of the job is vast, but I know that the NHS, brilliantly assisted by the armed services, will be up to the task," Matt Hancock, the U.K.'s health secretary, told Parliament last week.

In May, the U.S. tapped a retired four-star army general, Gen. Gustave Perna, to coordinate the distribution efforts — a massive task that will see millions of doses of the vaccine deployed to every state starting next month, through a partnership with U.S. drug distribution giant McKesson.

Perna is a former commanding general for the U.S. Army Materiel Command, which manages the Army's global supply chain, making him uniquely qualified to run such a complicated distribution network.

"The country's existing public health infrastructure is well tested — we see evidence every fall when Americans receive the flu vaccine in large numbers. But these are not normal times," Perna said in a media statement. "Leveraging our military planning and logistics capability and combining that with proven methods will allow existing systems to scale quickly to get the vaccine to the American people."

More than 1 million standard kits — which would cover 100 million vaccine doses — have been assembled by Operation Warp Speed.

The military and McKesson will distribute vaccines along with ancillary kits with all the required supplies to administer them, such as needles, syringes, alcohol pads and limited personal protective equipment.

Pfizer has an assembly centre in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and the drug manufacturer plans to use private shipping companies such as UPS and FedEx to deliver vaccines to hospitals and vaccination sites within hours.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/us-uk-vaccinations-start-december-canada-silent-1.5814176

Trudeau Liberals pressed for vaccine delivery plan by opposition

​

Both the premier of Saskatchewan and the opposition parties in the House of Commons attacked Prime Minister Justin Trudeau again Wednesday over his government's efforts to buy and distribute COVID-19 vaccines.

"I was very concerned and frankly, quite troubled to hear the prime minister's comments yesterday that Canada may be at the back of the line when it comes to receiving a vaccine," Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said at his daily briefing Wednesday.

"This is quite the opposite of the assurances that the prime minister has been providing us as Canadians for a number of weeks and even a month or two."

Trudeau explained Tuesday that while his government has signed advance purchase contracts with seven companies to provide Canada with more than 350 million doses of vaccines — ensuring a supply from whichever vaccine is proven to work — Canada simply does not have the ability to manufacture a COVID-19 vaccine in-country the way the U.S., U.K. and Germany do.

"Our government has worked hard to secure tens of millions of doses, so we're prepared once a safe, effective vaccine is ready for Canadians," Trudeau said Tuesday. "We're looking forward to being able to vaccinate Canadians in the coming months."

That explanation did little to calm Conservative concerns in the House as Trudeau was pressed by the opposition for answers on when vaccines would arrive and the government's plan is for distributing them.

"Did you even bother to negotiate the right for Canada to manufacture these vaccines at home? Did you? Do we have the ability to do this and when are Canadians going to get these vaccines?" asked Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner.

Trudeau replied that Canada has the best portfolio of potential vaccine contracts of any country in the world and blamed the Conservatives for Canada's inability to produce COVID-19 vaccines domestically.

"The member opposite was asking what happened to domestic manufacturing in Canada; the Conservative government happened to domestic manufacturing," Trudeau said.

"In 2007 AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers closed their Canadian manufacturing operations. In 2010 Johnson & Johnson, Merck closed their facilities. In 2011 Teva closed one of its Canadian manufacturing operations. In 2012 AstraZeneca, GSK … announced closing and layoffs; that is what happened to manufacturing in Canada," Trudeau said.

Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc told CBC News Network's Power & Politics that none of the vaccines that have shown promise so far has been approved by regulators in Canada, Europe or the U.S., but he would be talking to the premiers on Thursday about the government's plans to roll them out.

"We're going to talk about vaccines and we're going to be explaining to Canadians in the coming days and weeks the plan that has been developed over many, many weeks and months with provinces and territories as to how we're going to quickly, safely and effectively vaccinate Canadians," LeBlanc told host Vassy Kapelos.

He said the premiers would also be briefed on the contracts that the federal government has signed and when they can expect those vaccines to arrive in their provinces.

"The contracts say that we will start to receive the first doses of these vaccines in January and it will ramp up over the months of 2021," Leblanc said.

"We will have well before that, that logistical plan with provinces and territories," he added.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-moe-conservatives-vaccine-1.5816866

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The slippery non-answers from politicians:

 

[JDragon]

One thing to consider is that the US, UK, and Germany all were involved in vaccine development. Of course they would try to be first in line, anything else is impossible to communicate to the electorate.

 

[Legicato]

No worries blackface boy will get it at his cottage long before any other citizens.

 

[mb23100]

Does this mean they have to stop laughing at our healthcare system?

 

[Arkain2K]

One thing to consider is that the US, UK, and Germany all were involved in vaccine development. Of course they would try to be first in line, anything else is impossible to communicate to the electorate.

Many countries in Asia and Europe who couldn't develop their own vaccines already signed licensing deals to produce them locally (from India to Korea to Japan to Australia).

Which means Canada will in fact be one of the last countries in the world to be vaccinated, along with those whom we call "the third world".

 

[THEfightsAREfixed]

It’s not a deadly virus over 99% survive, they should correct that part

 

[Yehudim]

Does this mean they have to stop laughing at our healthcare system?

Canadians aren’t nearly as harsh on our healthcare system as Europeans are since they often take a trip down south for good and fast treatment (and expensive as with any quality product)

 

[Supereem]

Many countries in Asia and Europe who couldn't develop their own vaccines already signed licensing deals to produce them locally (from India to Korea to Japan to Australia).

Which means Canada will in fact be one of the last countries in the world to be vaccinated, along with those whom we call "the third world".

Australia is also producing multiple vaccines.

 

[Goonerview]

We can all thank God Emperor Trump for this.

 

[Wet Blanket]

Canadians aren’t nearly as harsh on our healthcare system as Europeans are since they often take a trip down south for good and fast treatment (and expensive as with any quality product)

No they don't.

 

[Hellowhosthat]

Canada going to stand by while the vaccine turns the rest of us into zombies.

 

[irish_thug]

No they don't.

Sure they do. I know people who have had to. Things like treatments for MS that aren't covered by OHIP.

 

[Natural Order]

We expected anything more from a can like Trudeau?

Worst PM in Canadian history by a fucking mile, laughably taking the title from his father in easy fashion.

 

[HockeyBjj]

It won’t because profit margins, but covid should be a wake up call to nations that they need to be able to produce anything truly needed domestically

 

[irish_thug]

Funny. He was just one the news a couple of weeks ago going on about how he had deals in place with Pfizer and others that would ensure every Canadian got their doses. Guess he forgot to mention we'd have to wait till the rest of the developed world already got theres.

 

[irish_thug]

It won’t because profit margins, but covid should be a wake up call to nations that they need to be able to produce anything truly needed domestically

Ontario's premier has been preaching this for months.

 

[Natural Order]

Didnt Trudeau just announce 400k new immigrants per year for next three years? 1.3 million in a pandemic. LOL!

Those job gaps....

 

[Sisyphos]

This vaccine thing is going way too fast for reason.
Pfizer is making billions on this deal though.

I'll be happy to wait until the mass vaccinations happen to see the outcome.
What a complete cluster fuck.