The Biden administration surprised the world last night by coming out in favor of waiving patents for coronavirus vaccines — but Europe is divided on the issue.
What they're saying: European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen said Brussels would be willing to discuss it; French President Emmanuel Macron said he backed the U.S. position, but a German government spokesman said the proposal would cause "severe complications" for vaccine production.
There have been twice as many deathsfrom COVID-19 around the world as have been reported, according to the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), which analyzed excess mortality and other factors.
The big picture: The U.S. has undercounted by over 300,000 deaths, while the death tolls in India and Mexico — second and third on the list, respectively — are nearly three times the official numbers, according to the analysis.
The European Union, Canada and South Africa are withholding Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccines produced at an Emergent BioSolutions plant in Baltimore, Maryland, for safety testing after quality-control problems, according to the New York Times.
Driving the news: Johnson & Johnson said in March that workers at the Emergent facility, which had been producing Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca vaccines, had ruined about 15 million doses of its vaccine by contaminating a batch with ingredients used in the AstraZeneca vaccine.
The idea of banning menthols was first floated in 2017 by former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb. But around 85% of Black smokers prefer menthols, largely due to racially targeted marketing, and this has led to concerns about how enforcement could disproportionately impact Black Americans.
Axios Re:Cap digs into the history of this proposed ban, what enforcement could look like, and when it might go into effect with Gottlieb.
The high maternal mortality rate for Black women in the U.S. is part of the systemic racism that permeates the country's health care system, Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) told Axios at virtual event on Thursday.
Why it matters: The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rates in the developed world, largely due to high mortality rates among Black mothers, according to research by Commonwealth Fund.
The Biden administration's support for a proposal to waive certain patent protections for coronavirus vaccines would create “severe complications” for vaccine production, a German government spokesperson said Thursday, according to Bloomberg.
Why it matters: The patent waiver proposal, which proponents say will help increase vaccine production and deliver doses to the developing world, is working its way through the World Trade Organization and all 164 member countries will have to consent to the decision, according to Reuters.
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona told MSNBC on Thursday he expects "all schools to be open full-time in-person for all students" by September.
Driving the news: A survey released Thursday by the Department of Education suggests Biden has met his goal of having "most" elementary and middle open for full-time in-person learning by the end of his first 100 days in office, according to AP.
One in six U.S. workers with employer insurance are staying in a job they may otherwise leave because they're afraid of losing their health benefits, according to a new West Health-Gallup survey.
Between the lines: Black and low-income workers are particularly likely to say they're staying at their job for the health benefits it provides. More than half of respondents said they were concerned that the costs of health care services and prescription drugs will continue to rise until they're unaffordable.
Even if most middle and high schoolers become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine over the summer, most schools aren't likely to mandate them, at least not this year.
Driving the news: The Food and Drug Administration is expected to authorize the use of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds soon.
It will take more than waiving patent protections for coronavirus vaccines — which the Biden administration now says it supports — to fix the gaping global divide in access.
Why it matters: Waiving drug companies' intellectual property rights risks setting a bad precedent for future investment in new drugs. And that risk may not be worth it without additional steps to meaningfully increase the availability of shots across the world.
Coronavirus infections in the U.S. are now at their lowest levels in seven months, thanks to the vaccines.
The big picture: The vaccines are turning the tide in America's battle with the coronavirus. Deaths and serious illnesses have dropped significantly, and now cases are falling too — an important piece of protection for the future, if we can keep it up.
India has seen demand for oxygen jump "seven-fold" as the country set a new world record for daily COVID-19 cases on Thursday, per AP.
By the numbers: India's health ministry reported 412,262 new infections, taking the official tally past 21 million, and 3,980 deaths from the coronavirus in the past 24 hours. The official death toll now stands at 230,168. The actual numbers are believed to be much higher.
Adolescents vaccinated against COVID-19 will be able to remove face masks if they're outside at summer camps, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director Rochelle Walensky said Wednesday.
Why it matters: Critics had called CDC guidance, issued last month, stating that everyone at summer camps should be masked unless eating, drinking or swimming "unfairly draconian."
A bipartisan trio of lawmakers is asking Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen for latitude to use some of the president’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus package for addressing the opioid crisis.
Why it matters: The opioid crisis — America's other rampant public health emergency — appears to be getting even worse, likely exacerbated by the isolation and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Federal Aviation Administration announced plans to impose massive fines on four airline passengers for unruly behavior, including two who allegedly assaulted flight attendants after refusing to comply with face mask guidelines.
Why it matters: The proposed civil penalties ranging from $9,000 to $32,750 are part of the FAA's new "zero tolerance" policy, introduced after an uptick in incidents of disobedient passengers on flights stemming from their refusal to wear masks and January's U.S. Capitol riot. Airlines have reported some 1,300 cases since February — about 1,000 more than in a typical year.
Researchers are creating "digital twins" of coronavirus patients to study long-haul COVID-19.
Why it matters: An estimated 1 in 20 COVID-19 patients are likely to suffer from some long-term effects, but doctors still don't know why or how best to care for them. Digital twins promise to speed efforts to investigate a major medical mystery.
