Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CDC Recommends Two Shots Of Mpox Vaccine
Reuters: Those At High Risk Of Mpox Should Get 2 Doses Of Bavarian Nordic Vaccine, US CDC Says
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging people at high risk of mpox to get two doses of Bavarian Nordic's (BAVA.CO) Jynneos vaccine, based on new evidence from a U.S. study showing that the regimen is more effective at preventing infection than one shot. The study, published on Thursday, offered some of the first evidence on the efficacy of the Jynneos vaccine, which was deployed last year during a global outbreak of mpox that affected more than 30,000 people in the United States. (Leo, 5/18)
CIDRAP: Case Study Details Mpox Spread Among Casual Heterosexual Partners
A letter published yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine describes 16 adult cases of mpox seen in Bayelsa, Nigeria, among casual heterosexual partners, confirming that heterosexual intercourse plays a role in transmission of the virus, though not nearly to the degree that male-to-male sexual contact has. (Soucheray, 5/18)
In updates on the RSV vaccine —
USA Today: RSV Vaccine For Babies: FDA Panel Recommends Pfizer Maternal Shot
A federal advisory committee raised questions Thursday about the safety of a proposed vaccine to protect newborns against respiratory syncytial virus or RSV, but ended up voting in favor of its approval. "This is a disease we've been trying to prevent for half a century and this is the first time we've had a chance to do it with a vaccine," said Dr. Arnold Monto, an epidemiologist at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, who voted to support the approval. (Rodriguez, 5/18)
On norovirus —
The Washington Post: Stomach Viruses Are Back Up On Cruise Ships, With Hundreds Falling Ill
As cruise passengers return to the seas in force following a pandemic lull, an unwelcome side effect is also back: outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, so far this year there have been 11 outbreaks of vomiting and diarrhea that reach the threshold for public notification on cruise ships visiting U.S. ports. The mid-May tally has already exceeded the total number of outbreaks reported in 2019 and tied the yearly number for both 2017 and 2018. (Sampson, 5/18)
