FDA Authorizes 2 Rapid, At-Home Coronavirus Tests

By NPR News
The FDA said Wednesday that Abbott's BinaxNow test and Quidel's QuickVue can now be sold without a prescription for consumers to test themselves at home. CREDIT: Ted S. Warren/AP
Experts believe that the availability of at-home coronavirus tests could help slow the continued spread of the virus, which is contagious even when people are asymptomatic. Abbott's test will be available on grocery and drugstore shelves in the "coming weeks," according to a press release from the company. Quidel did not include a timeline in its release. Read More

4 Ways Our Understanding Of The Coronavirus Has Changed A Year Into The Pandemic

By PBS Newshour
Sisters Seri Sedlacek, left, and Susan Simpkins look in on their father, Chuck Sedlacek, at the Life Care Center, Wednesday, March 18, 2020, in Kirkland. Shuksan Healthcare Center in Bellingham is working to avoid what happened at the Kirkland facility. CREDIT: Elaine Thompson/AP
This month marks one year since the coronavirus pandemic swiftly upended daily life in the United States. In 2020, March brought about emergency declarations and indefinite school closures, followed by record unemployment claims and dozens of stay-at-home orders. By the end of the month, millions of people were either told to stay inside under lockdown or continue carrying Read More

It’s Pedal To The Metal As Washington State Lawmakers Push Ahead With Pandemic-Era Agenda

By Austin Jenkins
Washington state Capitol building in Olympia, March 10, 2021. CREDIT: Austin Jenkins/N3
Washington’s 105-day legislative session has crossed the halfway point and a key deadline for policy (non-budget) bills to clear their chamber of origin has passed. Majority Democrats are moving swiftly to enact a pandemic-era agenda focused on issues like tax reform, police accountability, racial equity and global climate change. Minority Republicans, meanwhile, are Read More

How Inequity Gets Built Into America’s Vaccination System

By NWPB News
People wait in line for the COVID-19 vaccine in Paterson, N.J., Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021. Some hospitals around the U.S. are facing complaints about favoritism and line-jumping after their board members and donors received COVID-19 vaccinations or offers for inoculations. CREDIT: Seth Wenig/AP
It’s a fact that simply being eligible for a vaccine in America doesn’t mean that you can instantly get one. Yet the ability to get to the front of the line isn’t the same for everyone. ProPublica has found that, whether intentionally or not, some vaccine programs have been designed with inherent barriers that disadvantage many people who are most at risk of dying from the Read More

Why We Can’t Make Vaccine Doses Any Faster

By NWPB News
An empty syringe on a table at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center after a care worker received the COVID-19 vaccine on Dec. 16, 2020. CREDIT: Brian van der Brug/AP
Vaccine supply chains are extremely specialized and sensitive, relying on expensive machinery, highly trained staff and finicky ingredients. Manufacturers have run into intermittent shortages of key materials, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office; the combination of surging demand and workforce disruptions from the pandemic has caused delays of four to 12 Read More
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