CDC director Rochelle Walensky endorsed a two-dose series of Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for kids 5-11, marking the final step in the approval process that makes coronavirus vaccines available to younger children as soon as Friday.
Why it matters: Modeling from the panel suggests that vaccinating 5-11-year-olds will reduce transmission of COVID in the U.S. by 8% between November and March 2022.
Democrats' latest version of a prescription drug pricing deal limits Medicare negotiations to only 20 drugs by 2028 and gives some new drugs a longer period of time after they first come to market during which they're exempt from negotiations, according to a draft of the plan obtained by Axios.
Why it matters: It's still a deal on Medicare negotiations, a huge Democratic priority. But it's a much more moderate version than what most of the party had been pushing for.
Eighty-nine New York Police Department officers have been placed on unpaid leave since the vaccine mandate for city workers went into effect, Commissioner Dermot Shea told NY1 on Tuesday.
Driving the news: The number is in sharp contrast with an Oct. 28 news release from the heads of five major police unions representing the city's officers, which stated that the city was set to pull 10,000 officers from the streets.
Latinos with an unhealthy response to chronic stress, like smoking or constantly eating junk food, tend to report fewer depression symptoms like hopelessness and restlessness in the long run than those with no dangerous coping mechanisms, according to an analysis.
Why it matters: Research has shown that stressors throughout life increase not only the body's wear and tear, known as allostatic load, but also the odds of having depression past age 60.But the study found the link was slightly weakened when Latinos engaged in an unhealthy coping mechanism.
Pfizer forecasts revenue from the COVID-19 vaccine it developed with BioNTech will now reach $36 billion this year, up 7.5% from its previous estimate of $33.5 billion.
Why it matters: This vaccine has quickly become the highest-selling drug in the world, but public health experts and global leaders remain concerned about the vaccine's uneven distribution which has left poorer countries with far fewer doses to administer.
A California judge ruled late Monday against Santa Clara, Los Angeles and Orange counties and the city of Oakland in their lawsuit against several pharmaceutical companies over the marketing of opioid pain medications.
Why it matters: It was the first case in which a judge ruled in favor of drug manufacturers in the more than 3,300 lawsuits filed by states and local governments over the opioid epidemic, according to Reuters.
The number of COVID-19 hospitalizations among older Americans dropped significantly since the vaccine rollout at the start of the year, new federal data show.
Why it matters: The vaccines have worked extremely well for one of the most vulnerable demographics. Roughly 97% of people 65 and older have at least one vaccine dose, and more than 85% of that age group is fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.
Hospitals in the future will look far more tech-enabled and consumer-focused — when patients are actually even getting care in a hospital building itself.
Why it matters: Hospitals were already pushing morecare outside their four walls before the pandemic. COVID accelerated that shift, forcing hospitals to reimagine what's possible to deliver in patients' homes, experts say.
