FDA Licenses Merck’s Capvaxive Pneumococcal Vaccine
On June 17, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) licensed Merck & Company, Inc.’s new pneumococcal conjugate vaccine Capvaxive (formerly V116) for adults 18 years of age and older. The vaccine is designed to protect against 21 types of the bacteria causing pneumococcal disease, which can lead to severe infection in the lungs […]
Polio Outbreaks in Burundi and Other African Nations Caused by Vaccine Strain of the Virus
The government of Burundi has declared a national public health emergency due to an outbreak of live vaccine strain poliovirus infections in that country. A mutated strain of the vaccine strain poliovirus, which originally came from the type 2 monovalent oral polio vaccine (mOPV2), was identified in a four-year-old boy in western Burundi and in […]
Hammerin’ Hank’s COVID-19 Vaccination: A “Double-Edged Sword”?
When baseball Hall of Famer Hank Aaron was given a COVID-19 vaccination at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia on Jan. 5, 2021, it came across as an event meant to encourage other people, particularly African-Americans, to also get vaccinated. Shortly after getting Moderna’s experimental mRNA-1273 vaccine, Aaron told The Associated Press, “[Getting vaccinated] […]
