Require vaccination for state's K-12 teachers

 It is ludicrous that upcoming entertainment events have more muscular COVID-19 prevention protocols than almost all Minnesota K-12 schools.

Planning to see British pop star Harry Styles at St. Paul's Xcel Energy Center on Sept. 22? Fans must show proof of COVID vaccination or a negative test, and then mask up once inside.

Guests at all performances at the Orpheum, State and Pantages venues will have to do the same, Hennepin Theatre Trust announced this week.

The vaccination or test requirements, which some sports teams are also enacting, are sensible responses to the surging delta variant that has overwhelmed hospitals in the South. Many private employers are following suit, requiring vaccines for employees or regular testing.

The institutions to which Minnesota's children are entrusted ought to be ramping up the fight against delta as well. Because kids under 12 aren't yet eligible for the COVID vaccine, the teachers and staff they're around for hours each day should be vaccinated or expected to provide proof they don't have COVID.

It is an outrage that so few Minnesota districts will require these pragmatic precautions. The conscientious exceptions include the Red Lake district, which serves the Red Lake Nation in northern Minnesota and is believed to be the first in the state to require staff vaccinations. On Friday, the St. Paul Public Schools' school board voted unanimously to require immunization for employees.

These two districts are admirably prioritizing community health and doing everything possible to prevent learning disruptions. All Minnesota schools should follow their lead on staff vaccination and accompanying mask requirements.

Recent reports drive home how vital it is to vaccinate educators. One unimmunized California teacher infected 12 of her 24 students after taking off her mask to read to them, according to a disturbing new federal analysis. The students were too young to be vaccinated.

In Texas, a school district had to temporarily close after two teachers developed COVID and died. In Minnesota, an outbreak in Albert Lea during the first week of school underscores vulnerability here.

University of Minnesota infectious disease expert Michael Osterholm is now strongly advocating for school vaccine mandates, as well as improved ventilation, distancing and using high-filtration masks in classrooms.

Eight states, plus Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, have heeded rising concerns and will requiring educator vaccinations or testing, according to Education Week. It's shameful that Minnesota isn't among them.

The decision currently rests with local leaders because, according to his office, Gov. Tim Walz cannot mandate shots for teachers; the Legislature would need to enact such a policy.

Lawmakers would not face opposition to this from Education Minnesota, the state's teachers union. In fact, the organization has developed contract language to help districts wanting to require the shots. Officials estimate about 90% of union members are vaccinated.

But legislative action seems unlikely. Instead of worrying about the health of educators and students, Republican lawmakers are continuing to play pandemic politics, this time by attacking Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm.

State Sen. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka, recently suggested at an anti-masking rally that she should lose her job. He's wrong; Malcolm has provided surehanded pandemic leadership. Abeler also misrepresented vaccine safety stats at the rally, damaging his reputation as a thoughtful legislator.

The pandemic is far from over, and new strategies will be necessary to thwart an evolving virus. At this moment, that means requiring teacher vaccinations and universal K-12 masking. Legislators' gamesmanship is regrettable.

https://www.startribune.com/require-vaccination-for-states-k-12-teachers/600094063/

Jha: 'going to see more variants'

 Dr. Ashish Jha, a physician and the director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, said on Sunday that the U.S. and world is “going to see more variants” as the coronavirus spreads.

“What I think people need to know is we’re going to see more variants. And the reason we're going to see more variants is a global pandemic, and when large outbreaks are happening around the world we’re going to see more variants. And, of course, the best way to suppress it is to get the world vaccinated,” Jha told host Chris Wallace on “Fox News Sunday.”

Jha noted, however, that he is “not particularly worried” about the mu or lambda variants yet, but said health officials will “follow the data.”

He also said he believes the vaccines  available in the U.S. “are going to hold up,” adding that officials will have to “pay attention to the data.”

Jha also touted the effectiveness of getting inoculated in protecting against COVID-19, telling Wallace “this is all a vaccine-preventable disease now.”

“So none of this should be happening,” he added.

https://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/570906-director-of-harvard-global-health-institute-says-we-are-going-to?rnd=1630855282

Md. Gov: Getting 'mixed messagings' from Biden admin on boosters

 Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) said on Sunday that his administration is getting “mixed messagings” from the Biden White House when it comes to COVID-19 booster shots.

“I mean we're getting some mixed messagings out of the administration, out of the CDC, the FDA and the White House and, you know we need clear guidance on these booster shots because it undermines the credibility of it,” Hogan said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Hogan noted that there was confusion among people regarding which individuals would be eligible for the COVID-19 booster shot. 

The Biden administration had initially signaled that individuals who had received both doses of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine would be eligible for a booster shot starting in September.

Biden administration officials signaled last month that COVID-19 booster shot rollout for people who had either  vaccine would begin as early as Sept. 20, pending approval by both the FDA and a CDC advisory committee. However those plans now seem murky.

However, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walenksy and Janet Woodcock, the acting commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), reportedly met White House coronavirus coordinator Jeff Zients to say that only some people who received the Pfizer vaccine may now only be eligible currently for the third shot of the COVID-19 vaccine. 

Additional confusion also swirled about the timeline in which health officials would be administering a third shot to individuals after President Biden said the timeline between second and third shots could be shortened.

Biden’s chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci clarified that timeline was still eight months after a second dose was administered but noted the timing was flexible.

“We're still planning on eight months. That was the calculation we made. This rollout will start on the week of September the 20th. But as we've said all along, Chuck, in the original statement, that's the plan that we have, but we are open to data as they come in,” Fauci told NBC’s Chuck Todd on “Meet The Press” last week.

https://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/570907-maryland-governor-were-getting-mixed-messagings-from-biden

Fauci says Pfizer booster shot likely approved by Sept. 20, Moderna to follow

Anthony Fauci on Sunday said the Pfizer-BioNTech shot will likely be the only approved COVID-19 vaccine booster by Sept. 20, the date the Biden administration previously recommended for beginning to administer booster shots for all fully vaccinated individuals.

When asked by guest host Weijia Jiang on CBS’s “Face the Nation” if the Biden administration is still planning to administer booster shots starting Sept. 20, Fauci said that is still the plan “in some respects,” noting that Pfizer will likely be ready at that date but that Moderna will need some additional time for appropriate approval.

“We were hoping that we would get the, both the candidates, both products, Moderna and Pfizer, rolled out by the week of the 20th. It is conceivable that we will only have one of them out, but the other would likely follow soon thereafter,” Fauci said.

“And the reason for that is that we, as we've said right from the very beginning, we're not going to do anything unless it gets the appropriate FDA [Food and Drug Administration] regulatory approval and then the recommendation from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Looks like Pfizer has their data in and likely would meet the deadline,” he added.

Fauci told Jiang that while health officials had hoped to roll out both booster shots “simultaneously,” they will do it “sequentially” if they have to.

“So the bottom line is very likely at least part of the plan will be implemented but ultimately the entire plan will be,” he added.

Top Biden administration health officials released a joint statement last month that said people will need booster shots eight months after receiving a second dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

Fauci, who is currently serving as President Biden’s chief medical adviser, suggested that people receive the same booster shot as the original shot they were inoculated with, but he noted that studies are underway to determine if mixing vaccines is effective.

https://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/570905-fauci-says-likely-only-pfizer-booster-shot-will-be-approved-by

Booster shots hitch: Some may miss the Sept. 20 start

 President Joe Biden’s plans to start delivery of booster shots by Sept. 20 for most Americans who received the COVID-19 vaccines are facing new complications that could delay the availability of third doses for those who received the Moderna vaccine, administration officials said Friday.

Biden announced last month that his administration was planning for boosters to be available for all Americans who received the mRNA vaccines in an effort to provide more enduring protection against the coronavirus, pending approvals from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration.

Those agencies, though, are awaiting critical data before signing off on the third doses, with Moderna’s vaccine increasingly seen as unlikely to make the Sept. 20 milestone.

According to one official, Moderna produced inadequate data for the FDA and CDC to recommend the third dose of its vaccine and FDA has requested additional data that is likely to delay those boosters into October. Pfizer, which is further along in the review process, in part because of data collected from the vaccine’s use in Israel, is still expected to be approved for a third dose for all by Sept. 20. A key FDA panel is to review Pfizer’s data on boosters on Sept. 17.

Data for boosters on Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine won’t be available for months, since that shot wasn’t approved until February, officials said.

Dr. Janet Woodcock, the acting FDA commissioner, and CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, briefed White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients and other officials about the expected Moderna delay on Thursday, officials said.

Most of the 206 million Americans at least partially vaccinated against COVID-19 received the Pfizer shot, but about 80 million received the Moderna vaccine, according to CDC data.

The administration’s public pronouncement about booster availability, a break from the more deliberate and behind-the-scenes planning that defined its early vaccination campaign, sparked concerns from some that the White House was getting ahead of the science on boosters.

“The announcement in August kinda jumped the gun,” said Dr. Stephen Ostroff, former acting FDA commissioner during the Obama administration. “They needed to say something, but they could have just said, ‘we’re working on boosters, more to come.’”

The White House said it was merely preparing for the boosters’ eventual approval, and that the reviews were “all part of a process that is now underway.”

“We are awaiting a full review and approval by the FDA and a recommendation by the ACIP,” said White House spokesman Chris Meagher, referencing the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. “When that approval and recommendation are made, we will be ready to implement the plan our nation’s top doctors developed so that we are staying ahead of this virus.”

Even before Biden’s announcement last month, his administration had been preparing for months for the possibility that boosters would be required, maintaining America’s supply of doses and devising promotion plans with the same “intensity” that it brought to the initial vaccination campaign, Zients told reporters Thursday.

Biden on Aug. 18 touted boosters as a protection against the more transmissible delta variant of the virus, which is raging across the country and slowing the economic recovery from the pandemic, as well as potential variants to come.

“Just remember, as a simple rule — rule: Eight months after your second shot, get a booster shot,” he said then, adding that health experts were aiming to be ready to administer them by Sept. 20, pending approval by the regulatory agencies.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, has become an outspoke champion of the booster campaign, as the Biden administration looks to curtail the delta variant.

He told reporters on Thursday he believes it is likely that Americans will all need to get a third dose of the mRNA vaccines to be considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

“From my own experience as an immunologist, I would not at all be surprised that the adequate, full regimen for vaccination will likely be three doses,” he said.

A formal determination that the third dose is required for “full vaccination” would have broad implications for schools, businesses and other entities that have implemented vaccination mandates.

https://apnews.com/article/business-health-coronavirus-pandemic-c7c6de905cd614d66cdf727dda661c5a

Rapid Blood Test Gauges T-Cell Covid Response; Gives Full Picture of Immune Response

 The COVID-19 pandemic has lasted for around 21 months now. During this time, much has been learnt about the role of antibodies in providing protection against the SARS-CoV-2 virus However, scientists have found that antibodies alone do not form the protection conferred against the coronavirus—T cells play a vital role as well. Now, scientists have developed a simple and rapid test that can measure T cell response against the novel coronavirus.

In a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, scientists have described a new method that can detect and measure the T cell immune responses against the SARS-CoV-2. The test is as sensitive and reliable as existing methods used to identify and quantify the activity of T cells.

"Our research offers a feasible approach that can overcome the current limitations faced in detecting spike-specific T-cell responses, and will help better evaluate the protective role played by T cells in our immune system," said Dr. Anthony Tanoto Tan, first author of the study, in a statement.

There has been much discussion about antibodies offering protection against COVID-19. However, there is an increasing body of data that shows that T cells also play an important part in the immune response against the SARS-CoV-2. T cells, also known as T lymphocytes and thymocytes, are a type of white blood cells (lymphocytes). They play a crucial role in the adaptive immune system of the body.

T cells comprise sub-types such as Helper T cells, Cytotoxic T cells, Memory T cells, and Regulatory T cells, among others. Studies have found that each of these T cells has their own impact on COVID-19 and are affected by it in their own ways. For example, some papers have stated that Memory T cells facilitate rapid viral clearance during re-infection and those specific to SARS-CoV-2 are long-lasting (up to 10 months) after recovery from COVID-19.

Other researches have suggested that T cells such as Killer T cells may help boost immunity against the SARS-CoV-2 as newer and trickier variants emerge. While some scientists have stressed that the focus of vaccines must not be antibodies alone and that they must engage with T cells as well. Interestingly, the exhaustion of T cells has also been observed in patients battling severe cases of the respiratory infection.

Therefore, a complete picture surrounding the protection against COVID-19 involves both factors. "T cells play a vital role alongside antibodies in protecting people against COVID-19, but they are much harder to detect and measure," noted Dr. Tan.

For the study, the authors collected blood samples from volunteers who had been infected with COVID-19 and recovered (three–12 months, n=130), or who had been vaccinated against it with Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine (three months or more after the boost vaccination, n= 112). Blood samples from individuals (n=12) who had contracted SARS (Severe acute respiratory syndrome)—caused by the SARS-CoV-1 coronavirus –18 years ago and recovered from it were also taken.

Next, small fragments of the novel coronavirus' spike protein were introduced into the blood samples directly. As a response to these pieces of spikes, chemicals called cytokines were released by T cells. Cytokines are signaling molecules that draw immune cells to the site of infection. They are easier to both detect and measure when compared to T cells.

In fact, monitoring of T-cell activity leveraging for the diagnosis of infections such as tuberculosis are already in use. Thus, they measured the secretion of two cytokines— IFN-γ (Interferon-gamma) and IL-2 (Interleukin-2)—to evaluate T cell response.

Based on this, the team demonstrated that the test known as Cytokine Release Assay (CRA) can detect and measure the number of T cells present in blood samples reliably. These samples included all three cohorts. Utilizing these blood samples, the team showed that the CRA was as sensitive as existing techniques such as the ELISPOT (enzyme-linked immune absorbent spot) that are used to detect and measure the activity of T cells.

Importantly, the test detected T cell activity in recovered SARS blood samples; nearly two decades after resolution. The novel technique also showed that levels of IFN-γ and IL-2 were dynamic in vaccinated individuals. However, the authors stated that further analysis is required to ascertain whether T cells induced by vaccines are maintained at levels that are similar to those induced through infection (beyond a period of three months).

"This discovery allows a rapid and large-scale expansion of studies to track T-cell activity across the world, while not requiring specialised or expensive equipment," expressed Dr. Antonio Bertoletti, corresponding author of the study.

Emphasizing the relationship between antibodies and T cells, he added, "The study results confirm that the level of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in blood samples does not always correlate with the T-cell response. With this rapid test, we can help define the correlates of protection from T cells and antibodies for the development of COVID-19 vaccines."

https://www.ibtimes.co.in/new-rapid-blood-test-measures-t-cell-response-against-covid-19-can-provide-full-picture-bodys-840400

Costco brings back temp limits on some items amid COVID-19 delta surge

 Costco is bringing back temporary purchase limits on some items at its warehouse locations as the delta variant continues to sweep the U.S.

According to an update on its website last Saturday, Costco said "some warehouses may have temporary item limits on select items."

The retailer did not specify which items might see limits in the amount customers can purchase per trip.

Last month, Costco said it will also follow mask regulations for state and local jurisdictions, and "strongly recommends that all members and guests wear face masks inside our locations."

As the delta variant continues its rapid spread through the U.S., more Americans are reportedly stockpiling toilet paper, similar to when consumers cleared store shelves in March 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a result last year, many retailers placed limits on the number of certain products they could purchase in one trip, such as toilet paper and paper towels.

In a statement emailed to USA TODAY, Kimberly-Clark, which makes Cottonelle and Scott toilet tissue, and Kleenex, said it "is monitoring the situation closely." Georgia-Pacific, which makes Angel Soft and Quilted Northern toilet paper as well as Brawny and Sparkle paper towels, said customers "may be experiencing small demand surges locally and we are responding."

onsumer goods company,Procter and Gamble,which produces Charmin toilet paper, could not be immediately reached for comment.

In July, Costco said it would continue to hold special operating hours for members 60 and older and vulnerable shoppers twice a week, until further notice. This announcement came weeks after the company said it would end the senior hours effective July 26.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/shopping/2021/09/01/costco-bring-back-temporary-limits-items-amid-delta-variant-rise/5681231001/