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.

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.

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.

1. Health: CDC expects new COVID surge starting this month — U.S. fertility dips to its lowest rate since the 1970s.
2. Politics: Federal judge overturns CDC's eviction moratorium — Why Biden's latest vaccine goal is his hardest yet.
3. Vaccines: Moderna says its COVID booster shot shows promise against variants — U.S. will support waiving vaccine patents — Pfizer to offer smaller shipments.
4. Economy: U.S. may have added more than 2 million jobs in April — A surge in youth unemployment.
5. World: U.S. could fill "vaccine diplomacy" void as other powers struggle — The countries facing massive COVID surges.
6. Variant tracker: Where different strains are spreading.

A COVID-19 booster shot developed by Moderna showed a promising immune response against variants first identified in Brazil and South Africa, the company said Wednesday, citing preliminary data.

Why it matters: The variants, which have spread to other countries including the U.S., risk prolonging the pandemic.

Mass anti-government protests unfolded across Colombia on Wednesday, topping off a week of unrest that has left at least 24 people dead, reports The Guardian.

Why it matters: The demonstrations started as a strike against a proposed tax reform but developed into wider outcry "over poverty exacerbated by the pandemic, human rights abuses and the authorities’ heavy-handed response to protests," per The Guardian.

The Justice Department is appealing a federal judge's decision to vacate the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's temporary federal eviction moratorium, which had been extended multiple times since being enacted by the Trump administration last fall.

Why it matters: The nationwide halt on most evictions due to the pandemic was seen as a temporary fix for millions of renters put at risk of losing their homes during the coronavirus pandemic.