Pfizer: Effective vaccine may be here by October
The chairman and CEO of Pfizer said Thursday the company may have an effective coronavirus vaccine by the end of October.
“We may be able to say the product is safe and efficacious in the October time frame and submit immediately for approval and authorization,” Dr. Albert Bourla told the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations.
That timeline is “conceivable” but not likely, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, told CNN Thursday.
Bourla said the U.S.-based company, which is developing its vaccine in partnership with German biotechnology company BioNTech, has enrolled 23,000 participants in its Phase 3 clinical trial and aims to enroll 30,000 total. A “significant number” of participants have already started getting the second dose of the experimental vaccine, Bourla said.
Vt. traffic deaths up; pandemic may be factor
Speeding and traffic fatalities are both up in Vermont, and law enforcement officials think they know the reason: fewer cops to enforce traffic laws because of the coronavirus.
The state has seen 43 traffic deaths this year, up from 21 at the same point last year. And 125 motorists were cited for speeding faster than 99 mph through Sept. 1, up from 107 during the same period last year, reports the Barre Montpelier Times Argus.
“When you drive around, people seem to be speeding more. They seem to be looking at their phones more. They do not see law enforcement out as much as they used to,” Bill Jenkins of the state Highway Safety Office said. “I think some people, unfortunately, got the message that they could do things that they shouldn’t be doing.”
Top Canada doctor suggests mask during sex
Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, is warning Canadians to practice safe behaviors with their sex lives amid the pandemic.
Among the measures that Tam suggested Canadians take to avoid their risk: Wearing a mask if they do have sex and avoiding kissing. “The most important step is to establish a trusting relationship with your sexual partner,” Tam added.
Cyberattacks hit Florida school district
Florida’s largest school district has been plagued with outages and cyberattacks as it reopens virtually amid the pandemic.
Students and teachers in recent days have both said they can’t access the online platform used by Miami-Dade County schools, the Miami Herald reported. Moreover, Ron Steiger, the district’s chief financial officer, said Wednesday that a $15.3 million contract with the online platform at the center of the crisis was missing the superintendent’s signature.
District officials have determined the cyberattackers have demanded no ransom, and some of the attacks came from outside the U.S.
On Wednesday, an email was sent to all secondary school teachers asking them to use Microsoft Teams and Zoom until Sept. 11. The district will then assess if grades six through 12 will use the platform beginning Sept. 14 or stick with Microsoft Teams and Zoom.
U. of South Carolina reports 1,000-plus cases
More than 1,000 students at the University of South Carolina have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the university’s dashboard. But President Robert Caslen on Wednesday said he has no plans of shutting down the school, The State newspaper reported.
“We do not have any plans to close,” Caslen said during a virtual town hall. “The last thing I want to do is take this university, shut it down and dump the problem on the city of Columbia. I prefer to work through this if I can.”
One way school officials plan to do so is by testing more students.
Also in South Carolina, Furman University suspended the Kappa Alpha fraternity for at least four years after it hosted parties that helped spread the virus.