Global News

[ad_1] A person receives a COVID-19 vaccination dose, during a free distribution of COVID-19 rapid test kits for those who received vaccination shots or booster shots, at Union Station on January 7, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. Mario Tama | Getty Images The U.S. Food and Drug Administration 's independent panel of advisors raised doubts about the need to "periodically" update Covid vaccines, noting that it's unclear if the virus is seasonal like the flu. Advisors on Thursday unanimously voted that new jabs for the fall should be monovalent — meaning they are designed against one variant of Covid — and target one of the omicron XBB strains . Those are now the dominant variants nationwide.  But the original voting question included language about whether the panel recommends a "periodic update" to Covid shots.  Dr. Peter Marks, head of the FDA's vaccine division, asked the panel's chair to strike the wording from the question after severa

[ad_1] A nurse prepares a dose of Moderna Covid-19 vaccine at Oltepesi Dispensary in Kajiado, Kenya, on September 9, 2021. Patrick Meinhardt | AFP | Getty Images Moderna on Thursday said it has paused plans to build a vaccine-manufacturing site in Kenya after a steep drop in demand for its Covid vaccines . The biotech company said it has not received any vaccine orders for Africa since 2022 and has taken more than $1 billion in losses and write-downs related to the cancellation of previous orders from the continent. Moderna's decision aligns with its broader effort to cut costs by resizing its Covid vaccine-manufacturing footprint. The company's business took a major hit last year as demand for those jabs waned worldwide, with people relying less on protective vaccines and treatments against the virus. Shares of Moderna fell 45% last year, but the stock is up around 6% this year. In March 2022, the company said it would invest about $500 million in the Kenyan site and

[ad_1] New vaccine COMIRNATY® by Pfizer, available at CVS Pharmacy in Eagle Rock, California. Irfan Khan | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images It's déjà vu for some Americans looking for the latest Covid-19 vaccines. Certain people who were lucky enough to snag an appointment for the latest formulation are receiving cancellation notices or showing up to learn there isn't a dose available for them. Some are being told they need to pay more than $100 out of pocket because their insurance provider isn't covering the shots yet. The majority of CVS locations are able to honor scheduled appointments, but delivery delays to some stores are causing them to reschedule shots, a CVS spokesperson said in a statement. Most Walgreens stores have enough supply for existing appointments and more slots are being made available as the shots come in, a spokesperson said. Vaccine manufacturers Moderna and Pfizer said they have shipped millions of doses since the new versions were approve

[ad_1] Syringe with Covid-19 vaccine against the XBB Variant. Fight against virus Covid-19 Coronavirus, Vaccination and immunization. Undefined Undefined | Istock | Getty Images U.S. Food and Drug Administration staff on Monday said updated Covid boosters should target XBB omicron subvariants for the upcoming fall and winter vaccination campaign.  The U.S. should use a monovalent vaccine targeting either XBB.1.5, XBB.1.16, or XBB.2.3, collectively the dominant strains nationwide, the staff said in a briefing document .  related investing news The FDA staff made the conclusion ahead of a meeting on Thursday, when a panel of external advisors to the agency will recommend a strain for new Covid shots to target later this year. There is no set date for when the vaccination campaign will begin. Vaccine manufacturers will be expected to update their shots once that strain is selected. Pfizer , Moderna and Novavax are already developing versions of their respective vaccines targeti

[ad_1] A nurse prepares doses of the Pfizer vaccine during a COVID-19 vaccination event at Josephine's Southern Cooking in Chatham, Illinois, Dec. 30, 2021. Brian Cassella | Tribune News Service | Getty Images A new round of Covid vaccines is finally here in the U.S. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cleared single-strain shots from Pfizer and Moderna for all Americans six months and up on Tuesday, following approvals from the Food and Drug Administration on Monday. Those mRNA vaccines are designed to target a relatively new omicron subvariant called XBB.1.5 .  The first doses of the new shots will be available at some pharmacies and other vaccine distribution locations within 48 hours of the CDC's recommendation, agency staff said Tuesday during a meeting of independent advisors to the CDC. That means jabs could reach Americans as soon as Thursday. Meanwhile, the FDA is still reviewing a third updated vaccine from Novavax for people ages 12 and up.  Th

[ad_1] A man wearing a mask walks past a Nvidia logo in Taipei, Taiwan. Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images Chipmaker Nvidia will invest $50 million in Recursion Pharmaceuticals to speed up the development of the biotech firm's artificial intelligence models for drug discovery, the companies said Wednesday.  Recursion's stock soared 80% following the announcement. Shares of Nvidia, which have helped fuel stock market gains this year amid hopes about its AI computing chips , rose more than 2%.  Recursion uses AI-powered models to identify and design new therapies, and offers those models to other drugmakers, including Roche and Bayer. Salt Lake City, Utah-based Recursion will use its biological and chemical datasets exceeding 23,000 terabytes to train its AI models on Nvidia's cloud platform. AI models usually require vast amounts of data, typically measured in terabytes, to train them. Nvidia can then potentially license those AI models on BioNeMo, the compan

[ad_1] Nikos Pekiaridis | Nurphoto | Getty Images Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Novavax shares jump on news of a settlement payment from the Canadian government. It's unclear how many doses of Novavax's jab – its only commercially available product after 35 years – went unused. Under the amended agreement, Novavax will also provide Canada with fewer doses of its vaccine on a revised delivery schedule.  However, Canada can terminate the contract if Novavax fails to receive regulatory approval for vaccine production at the Canadian government's biomanufacturing facility by Dec. 31, 2024, according to the agreement. The announcement is another sign of hope for investors after the cash-strapped company raised doubts about its ability to stay in business earlier this year.  CNBC Health & Science Read CNBC's latest health coverage: In May, Novavax adopted a more positive outlook and announced a sweeping cost-cutting plan alongside its first-quarter earnings repor