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What We're Reading: Mitigating Variant Spread; Vaccine Supply Garners Concern; Merck Ends Vaccine Development
President to sign travel ban meant to contain more contagious variants of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); limited vaccine supply concerns top health officials; Merck ends COVID-19 vaccine development.
President Biden to Restrict Travel
In an effort to mitigate the spread of emerging variants of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), President Joe Biden plans to sign a travel ban today on most non-US citizens who recently visited South Africa, the United Kingdom, and Brazil. Reported by CNBC, former President Donald Trump lifted international travel restrictions last week even as more contagious variants of COVID-19 were being reported worldwide. The travel ban comes as the nation’s top infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci, MD, notes that current COVID-19 vaccines may be less effective against these more contagious variants, although they will still likely provide enough protection.
Vaccine Supply Garners Concern From Health Officials
As the Biden adminstration progresses toward its goal of administering 100 million COVID-19 vaccine doses in 100 days, top health officials have expressed concern about the current state of limited vaccine supplies. According to POLITICO, state and local health officials nationwide have reported limited vaccine supply, which CDC Director Rochelle Walensky. MD, MPH, said will hopefully be increased after the first 100 days. Walensky further noted that the federal government can't be certain of the current size of the vaccine supply, an issue she attributed to challenges presented by the Trump administration’s vaccine rollout.
Merck Ends Development of COVID-19 Vaccines
Following poor results in early-stage studies, Merck has announced it will end its development of 2 potential COVID-19 vaccines and instead focus on assessing the efficacy of 2 treatments for COVID-19 not yet approved by regulators. Reported by The Associated Press, Merck said that although its vaccine candidates were well tolerated by patients, they provided an inferior immune system response compared with other vaccines. Notably, 1 of the treatments now being assessed, MK-7110, has the potential to minimize effects of an overactive immune response to COVID-19. The US government is paying Merck about $356 million to fast-track production of the potential treatment.
Mitigating Barriers to Cell and Gene Therapy Access
February 14th 2025Cell and gene therapies can be life-changing for patients with certain conditions, but the process of receiving them poses barriers for patients and caregivers that require multistakeholder solutions, according to a white paper from the National Pharmaceutical Council.
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CMS Medicare Final Rule: Advancing Benefits, Competition, and Consumer Protection
May 7th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with Karen Iapoce, senior director of government products and programs at ZeOmega, about the recent CMS final rule on Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage.
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Study Suggests Postdischarge Care Needs Targeted, Multifaceted Approaches
January 15th 2025The findings challenge the effectiveness of these widely used transitional care interventions and suggest a need for more targeted, multifaceted approaches to address the needs of higher-risk patients.
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