COVID shot boosters for all adults will help to reduce confusion, FDA says
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 22, 2021
The FDA “heard loud and clear” that a simpler booster strategy was needed, its vaccine chief says. But the action may be too late to head off a winter virus surge, observers say.
‘How good are those vaccines now?’ Mixed AARP nursing home report prompts a thorny question
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 15, 2021
A new AARP report shows encouraging trends in COVID-19 cases and vaccinations. But the steady rate of resident deaths raises concerns for the future as vaccine efficacy wanes, analysts say.
Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine highly effective in octo- and nonagenarians, German study finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 10, 2021
The data, from 700,000 older residents of Bavaria, resolves questions about the vaccine’s protectiveness that weren’t answered by the drugmaker’s clinical trials, investigators say.
LeadingAge releases booster shot toolkit for senior living, home care settings
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 06, 2021
The kit provides links to sources of support for on-site booster clinic set-up and guidance for administrators who must encourage off-site vaccine access.
Clinical briefs for Monday, Oct. 4
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 04, 2021
Patients on chemotherapy likely not fully protected by COVID vaccine … Unauthorized nursing home COVID tests lead to audit demands … ‘Game-changing’ wellness model takes person-centric approach...
Vaccine potency wanes, but third COVID shot restores 95 percent efficacy, new data show
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 16, 2021
New data from vaccine maker Pfizer and Israel’s health ministry may help U.S. health agencies make a case for recommending COVID-19 booster shots, various sources report.
Prescribing off-label COVID boosters may put providers at legal risk: report
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 06, 2021
Clinicians who provide additional COVID-19 shots to fully vaccinated patients may be at risk for legal claims if they prescribe the doses outside of current federal guidelines, CDC says.
COVID vaccine protection drops by 80 percent in 6 months among nursing home residents: study
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 03, 2021
Vaccinated staff members had a similar six-month decrease in immunity levels, investigators say. The data may support recommendations for vaccine booster shots, they contend.
COVID-19 hospitalization rates 30 times higher in the unvaccinated, CDC finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 26, 2021
Despite the known effectiveness of U.S.-sanctioned COVID-19 vaccines, some fully vaccinated individuals will still become infected. But their unvaccinated peers have five times the risk of infection and...
LTC clinicians cheer pandemic milestone: Federal approval of first COVID-19 vaccine
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 24, 2021
Long-term care clinicians are embracing the FDA’s first full approval of a COVID-19 vaccine, saying the decision will support their efforts to increase vaccination coverage and reduce infections and...