The Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory committee has approved the use of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc. (NYC) and BioNTech (Mainz, DEU) in the United States for those ages 16 years and older. The first doses will go to healthcare workers and long-term care residents.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel finalized COVID-19 vaccine priority for healthcare workers and long-term care residents, although the latter received the greenlight only after discussions of safety concerns that led to the one dissenting vote in a 13-1 approval.
The COVID-19 pandemic is coming to a disastrous boiling point in the United States, with one of the nation’s top public health officials predicting a high death toll as the pandemic surges nationwide over the winter months.
Historically, minority populations have been victimized in medical research. People of color and ethnic minorities generally are at risk of more serious outcomes if infected with SARS-CoV-2.
Healthcare workers may be vigilant with personal protective equipment (PPE) around COVID-19 patients, but inadvertently expose colleagues when they take breaks, socialize, and eat.
Healthcare workers could be at risk of multisystem inflammatory syndrome linked to COVID-19, as the poorly understood condition, first seen in children, now is emerging in adults.
