- The Department of Defense (DOD) is developing an algorithm to predict whether someone has COVID-19 days before showing symptoms using data collected from “bio-wearables” such as fitness watches.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) plans to announce new metrics for informing decisions about how to implement COVID-19 restrictions. The new metrics are intended to gauge the practical effect of the level of infections—such as hospitalizations and emergency room visits—in response to higher levels of vaccination and unique effects of the Omicron variant.
- Pharmaceutical companies Sanofi and GSK will ask regulators to authorize their protein-based COVID-19 vaccine, which they say is effective as a primary vaccine or booster.
White House and Federal Agencies
- President Biden extended the COVID-19 national emergency declaration.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) plans to announce new metrics for informing decisions about how to implement COVID-19 restrictions. The new metrics are intended to gauge the practical effect of the level of infections—such as hospitalizations and emergency room visits—in response to higher levels of vaccination and unique effects of the Omicron variant.
Economy, Vaccines, Testing and Treatment
- The CDC changed its advice on spacing the first and second doses of Pfizer and Moderna’s vaccines, recommending that recipients wait eight weeks between the two doses, which is longer than the current spacing regimen of 3-4 weeks.
- Studies on the BA.2 subvariant of Omicron found no increased risk of hospitalization compared with BA.1, and that reinfection (with BA.2) in individuals who recovered from BA.2 is extremely uncommon.
- Pharmaceutical companies Sanofi and GSK will ask regulators to authorize their COVID-19 vaccine, which they say is effective as a primary vaccine or booster.
- The vaccine is protein-based, which is different than Pfizer and Moderna’s mRNA-based vaccines.
- Data from phase 3 clinical trials—conducted during Delta and Omicron circulation—shows that that two doses were 100% effective against severe cases, including hospitalization.
- New research shows multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children MIS-C caused by COVID-19 vaccines is extremely rare.
- MIS-C is more likely to be caused by COVID-19 infection. It typically presents four to six weeks after infection. This means an increase of cases is expected soon, following the recent Omicron-driven wave of cases.
- A study comparing the Moderna vaccine’s effectiveness against hospitalization from the Delta and Omicron variants found that vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization with both variants after three doses was greater than 99%, despite a decreased effectiveness against Omicron infection compared to Delta.
- The Department of Defense (DOD) is developing an algorithm to predict whether someone has COVID-19 days before showing symptoms using data collected from “bio-wearables” such as fitness watches.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Updates
- The CDC published the following reports and website updates:
- Cases in the U.S.
- COVID-19 Vaccinations in the United States
- Pediatric Emergency Department Visits Associated with Mental Health Conditions Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, January 2019–January 2022
- Pediatric Emergency Department Visits Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, January 2019–January 2022
