Researchers found that severe COVID-19 could cause lasting changes in stem cell gene expression that made the immune system produce more white blood cells. Researchers found that severe COVID-19 could cause lasting changes in stem cell gene expression that made the immune system produce more white blood cells. What you need to know
In a small study supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), severe cases of COVID-19 were shown to cause long-lasting changes to the immune system.
Researchers found that severe cases of COVID-19 can change which genes are turned on or off in certain stem cells. The study focused on stem cells that produce white blood cells, a part of the immune system. The stem cells of people who recovered from severe COVID-19 produced more white blood cells which then produced more inflammatory signals than the cells of healthy counterparts.
The researchers received blood samples from 38 people recovering from severe COVID-19 and 19 healthy people. They identified differences in gene expression between the recovering and healthy participants stem cells. The gene expression in the recovering participants stem cells was associated with higher production of white blood cells. The white blood cells created by recovering participants also seemed to produce more chemicals that trigger inflammation, compared with the white blood cells of healthy participants. These changes lasted for up to 1 year after the participants recovered from severe COVID-19.
The researchers aimed to find out whether one inflammatory chemical messenger, called IL-6, can cause the changes to gene expression. When the researchers tested blocking IL-6 in the cells of people with COVID-19, there were fewer changes to their stem cells gene expression than in the cells of people who had recovered from COVID-19 without blocking IL-6. When IL-6 was blocked in mouse models with a disease similar to COVID-19, murine hepatitis virus 1 (MHV-1), the mice had fewer changes to gene expression and less organ damage from the disease than mice that had not had IL-6 blocked.
Many people are at increased risk of severe COVID-19, including older adults, pregnant people, and people with weakened immune systems.
Because this was a small study, researchers did not establish a direct association between changes to gene expression and poor health outcomes. But the study shows one way that severe COVID-19 can have a long-term impact on the immune system, and its results can inform future research on possible treatments.
Severe COVID-19 may lead to long-term innate immune system changes
NIH Launches Clinical Trials for Long COVID Treatments
Factors That Affect Your Risk of Getting Very Sick from COVID-19
Cheong, J., Ravishankar, A., Sharma, S., Parkhurst, C. N., Grassmann, S. A., Wingert, C. K., Laurent, P., Ma, S., Paddock, L., Miranda, I. C., Karakaslar, E. O., Nehar-Belaid, D., Thibodeau, A., Bale, M. J., Kartha, V. K., Yee, J. K., Mays, M. Y., Jiang, C., Daman, A. W., Josefowicz, S. Z. (2023). Epigenetic memory of coronavirus infection in innate immune cells and their progenitors. Cell, 186(18), 3882-3902.e24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2023.07.019
Suffolk County reported the following information related to COVID-19 on October 25, 2023
According to CDC, hospital admission rates and the percentage of COVID-19 deaths among all deaths are now the primary surveillance metrics.
COVID-19 Hospitalizations for the week ending October 14, 2023
Daily Hospitalization Summary for Suffolk County From October 25, 2023
NOTE: HOSPITALS ARE NO LONGER REPORTING DATA TO NYSDOH ON WEEKENDS OR HOLIDAYS.
Fatalities 10/25/23
COVID-19 Case Tracker October 23, 2023
Note: As of May 11, 2023, COVID-19 Community Levels (CCLs) and COVID-19 Community Transmission Levels are no longer calculatable, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
* As of 4/4/22, HHS no longer requires entities conducting COVID testing to report negative or indeterminate antigen test results. This may impact the number and interpretation of total test results reported to the state and also impacts calculation of test percent positivity. Because of this, as of 4/5/22, test percent positivity is calculated using PCR tests only. Reporting of total new daily cases (positive results) and cases per 100k will continue to include PCR and antigen tests.
COVID-19 Vaccination Information
Last updated 5/12/23
Vaccination Clinics
As of September 12, 2023, the Suffolk County Department of Health Services is not authorized to offer COVID-19 vaccines to ALL Suffolk County residents.
The department will offer the updated vaccine to only uninsured and underinsured patients through New York State's Vaccines for Children program and Vaccines for Adults program, also known as the Bridge Access Program.
Those with insurance that covers the COVID-19 vaccine are encouraged to receive their vaccines at their local pharmacies, health care providers offices, or local federally qualified health centers.
The department has ordered the updated COVID-19 vaccine and will announce when the vaccine becomes available.
FOR HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS
New York State Links
CDC COVID Data Tracker Rates of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 hospitalizations by vaccination status
For additional information or explanation of data, click on the links provided in throughout this page.
Harrisburg, PA - The Shapiro Administration announced the recipients of the 2023 Governors Awards for Excellence this week, which includes a Department of Health cross-bureau taskforce which led the response to the 2022 mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) outbreak.
The members of the taskforce recognized with the awards are Bureau of Communicable Diseases Director Jill Garland; Public Health Program Directors Beth Butler, Thomas McCleaf, and Mari Jane Salem-Noll; Community Health Nurse Supervisor Mia Russo; Bureau of Emergency Preparedness and Response Director Andrew Pickett; Bureau of Epidemiology Assistant Director Lisa McHugh; Epidemiologist Manager Atmaram Nambiar; Bureau of Community Health Systems Nursing Director Jennifer Shirk; and Microbiologist Supervisor Melinda Johnston.
I am proud of the way this team strategically worked together to overcome logistical challenges and successfully distribute mpox tests, treatment, and vaccines to the populations most in need, said Dr. Debra Bogen, Acting Secretary of Health. Thanks to this team working together across the Department, we were able to prevent mpox cases and deaths while supporting health equity in Pennsylvania.
The mpox team advocated for equitable vaccine distribution across the Commonwealth, working with federal partners and local health departments to ensure vaccine availability where the need was greatest. The team overcame a variety of challenges associated with a limited vaccine supply, developing a strategic plan to ensure that the vaccine and test kits were delivered to locations where individuals most impacted by the outbreak already receive services. Other jurisdictions across the country would later emulate the model used by Pennsylvania.
While the mpox outbreak spread throughout the country, this teams efforts kept Pennsylvania case counts low, with no deaths occurring in the Commonwealth.
The Governors Awards for Excellence recognize Commonwealth employees for exemplary job performance or service that reflects initiative, leadership, innovation and/or increased efficiency. A total of 54 employees from eight agencies received awards for accomplishments in 2022.
MEDIA CONTACT: Mark O'Neill - ra-dhpressoffice@pa.gov
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Sexual activity appears to be the most common route of mpox (formerly monkeypox) transmission even among people who do not report sex between men, but some cases of household transmission were reported in a recent US study. A second report found that the infection is uncommon among children outside of Africa.
Asaidsmap previously reported, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) detected the first cases in a new global mpox outbreak in May 2022.As of 30 September 2023, UKHSA has identified 3805 confirmed and probable cases in the UK. Worldwide, there have been more than 91,000 cases, resulting in 157 deaths,according to the World Health Organisation. Mpox case numbers have fallen dramatically since last years peak, though sporadic small clusters are still being reported. Experts attribute the decline to a combination of behaviour change, natural immunity after infection and vaccination.
The global mpox outbreak has largely affected gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, differing from the historical pattern in central and western Africa. In various studies in the UK, Europe and the US, upwards of 90% of cases have been among cisgender men, most of whom reported sex with other men, often including sex with multiple partners or in group sex settings.
A person whose gender identity and expression matches the biological sex they were assigned when they were born. A cisgender person is not transgender.
A rash is an area of irritated or swollen skin, affecting its colour, appearance, or texture. It may be localised in one part of the body or affect all the skin. Rashes are usually caused by inflammation of the skin, which can have many causes, including an allergic reaction to a medicine.
By comparing the genetic sequence of the virus in different individuals, scientists can identify viruses that are closely related. A transmission cluster is a group of people who have similar strains of the virus, which suggests (but does not prove) HIV transmission between those individuals.
Small scrapes, sores or tears in tissue. Lesions in the vagina or rectum can be cellular entry points for HIV.
However, some mpox cases have occurred among women and heterosexual men, and over the course of the outbreak, a growing proportion of case reports lacked information about sexual orientation, sexual activity and other exposure risk factors. A study published last year characterised mpox cases among cisgender and transgender women and non-binary individuals in 15 countries.
While some older public health information based on historical data from Africa cautioned that mpox virus could spread via surfaces and potentially even through the air, this appears to be rare in the context of the global outbreak.
As described recently in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, researchers with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and various city and state health departments aimed to characterise mpox cases among adults with no reported male-to-male sexual contact. Approximately 30% of US cases met this criteria or had missing exposure data.
During November and December 2022, the researchers identified 122 people with mpox, age 18 or older, from six jurisdictions (New York City and San Diego and the states of California, Georgia, Louisiana and Pennsylvania) who did not report male-to-male sex during the three weeks prior to symptom onset or were missing exposure data. These jurisdictions accounted for 13% of all mpox cases reported to the CDC during this period. These cases were reviewed in more depth and a subset of individuals were contacted for interviews.
After further review, 52 people were identified who did not report male-to-male sexual contact or for whom such contact could not be ruled out. The median age of this subgroup was 36 years. Nearly two thirds (62%) were cisgender men, 29% were cisgender women and 6% were transgender women. Half were Black, 33% were Hispanic and 10% were White. Among the 45 people with a known sexual orientation, 67% were heterosexual, 16% were gay or lesbian and 13% were bisexual. Of the 32 people whose status was known, 25% were living with HIV. Of the 30 individuals with mpox vaccination data, three had received at least one dose of the MVA-BN vaccine ( sold asImvanexin Europe andJynneosin the US).
Within this group of 52 people, 14 (27%) had a known exposure to a person with confirmed or suspected mpox, including eight who reported sexual activity or other close intimate contact and six who reported household contact.
There was one identified household cluster in which the index patient, a cisgender man, was apparently exposed to mpox after being held in jail with a person who had characteristic mpox lesions. This individual, who developed symptoms the day after his release, had sex with his female partner, who developed symptoms a week later. The couple shared their home with another woman and a preschool child, both of whom also contracted mpox.
Other reported exposures in this group included shared transportation (three cases), close face-to-face contact (two cases), caregiving (two cases), occupational exposure (one case) and attendance at a large social gathering where a person with mpox was present (one case). One caregiver reported cleaning her sonshome while he was in hospitalized with mpox. She had no direct contact with her son and reported she wore gloves while cleaning, but she developed mpox lesions on her hand.
Among the 38 people with no known exposure to a person with mpox, self-reported activities preceding symptom onset included sexual activity (17 people, or 45%), close face-to-face contact (14 people, or 37%), attending large social gatherings or venues including gyms bars and restaurants (11 people, or 29%) and being in occupational settings involving close skin-to-skin contact (10 people, or 26%). However, six of the 17 people who reported sexual activity only had sex with a partner who did not have mpox symptoms, so other routes of infection are possible.
Overall, people without male-to-male sexual contact had symptoms similar to those reported by men who have sex with men. Almost all of the 49 people with available symptom data reported a rash, most commonly in the genital or anal area (48%).
These findings suggest that sexual activity remains an important route of mpox exposure among patients who do not report male-to-male sexual contact, the study authors concluded. However, other transmission modes, including household transmission, were reported.
Messaging for uninfected persons sharing or visiting a living space where a person with mpox resides should consider emphasizing maintenance of adequate hand hygiene; adhering to home cleaning and disinfection guidelines; and avoiding touching potentially contaminated surfaces or sharing personal items including bedding, clothing, towels or utensils, they advised.
They also recommended vaccination for people exposed to the mpox virus and those at increased risk for exposure. The MVA-BN vaccine can be given as post-exposure prophylaxis for up to two weeks after exposure, though it is most effective within the first few days.
In a second report, published in CDCs Emerging Infectious Diseases, World Health Organization epidemiologist Dr Ana Hoxha and colleagues analysed global surveillance data on mpox cases among children and adolescents, who accounted for 1.3% of cases in the global outbreak. This is in sharp contrast to the situation prior to this outbreak, when upwards of half of all mpox cases were among children, mostly in Africa.
Between January 2022 and May 2023, a total of1,118 mpox cases were identified among people under 18 years of age. Most (62%) occurred in the Americas, followed by Africa(30%) and Europe (8%). Less than 1% of cases occurred in the eastern Mediterranean and western Pacific regions, and none were reported in south-east Asia.
Of the 1,102 paediatric cases with available data, about 60% were among boys and 40% among girls, though males made up a greater proportion of cases outside of Africa. Among the 166 teens with a self-reported sexual orientation, 22% were young gay or bisexual men. Eleven paediatric mpox patients were living with HIV (including one with advanced immune suppression) and six had compromised immunity due to other causes.
Only a minority of cases had available data on exposure risk. Sixty-seven of these (23%) had contact with a known mpox patient. Children under 12 mostly contracted mpox through nonsexual person-to-person contact or contact with contaminated surfaces. Thirty-four teenagers with available data contracted mpox via sexual transmission. Although not specified in this report, researchers previously described a cluster of nine mpox cases among teens in Spain connected to a tattoo and piercing parlour.
The percentage of patients <18 years of age was lower than had been feared early in the outbreak, amid concerns that the epidemic could shift from primarily affecting [men who have sex with men] to a more generalised epidemic spread, including among school-age children, the study authors wrote.
Among teenagers who reported being infected through sexual contact, 44% had a genital rash. Genital rash may be indicative of the transmission route of mpox but can also be present when transmission has not occurred through sexual contact, the researchers noted. Among those with available data, 47 paediatric mpox patients (14%) were hospitalised, but only one required intensive care and none died. Prior to this outbreak, a greater proportion of cases among children in Africa were severe.
"The lower observed severity in children and adolescents in this outbreak than for previous outbreaks may be caused by a combination of increased ascertainment of mild cases, differing access to healthcare between settings, differing health status of the host populations and lower virulence of clade IIb," the mpox strain responsible for most cases in the global outbreak outside of Africa, the study authors suggested.
While mpox remains uncommon among children and adolescents outside of Africa, the researchers advised that, Clinicians should consider mpox as a possible diagnosis in these age groups when they have indicative symptoms, even with no known epidemiologic link to another case.
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Why do some people have a more severe course of COVID-19 disease than others? A genome sequence database created by an international collaboration of researchers, including many from the University of Toronto and partner hospitals, may hold the answers to this questionand many more.
The origins of the Canadian COVID-19 Human Host Genome Sequencing Databank, known as CGEn HostSeq, can be traced to the earliest days of the pandemic.
Lisa Strug, senior scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and academic director of U of T's Data Sciences Institute, one of several U of T institutional strategic initiatives, says genetic data was top of mind for her and other researchers in late 2019 and early 2020 as reports of a novel form of coronavirus emerged from China and then other locations across the globe.
"In my research, I use data science techniques to map the genes responsible for complex traits," says Strug, who is a professor in U of T's departments of statistical sciences and computer science in the Faculty of Arts & Science and in the biostatistics division of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health.
"We knew that genes were a factor in the severity of previous SARS infections, so it made sense that COVID-19, which is caused by a closely related virus, would have a genetic component, too.
"Very early on, I started getting messages from several scientists who wanted to set up different studies that would help us find those genes."
Over the next few months, Strugwho is also the associate director of SickKids' Centre for Applied Genomics, one of three sites across Canada that form CGEn, Canada's national platform for genome sequencing infrastructure for researchcollaborated with nearly 100 researchers from across U of T and partner hospitals and institutions, as well as other researchers from across Canada to enroll individuals with COVID-19 and sequence their genomes.
Some of the key team members from the Toronto community included: Stephen Scherer, chief of research at SickKids Research Institute and a University Professor in U of T's Temerty Faculty of Medicine, as well as director of the U of T McLaughlin Centre; Rayjean Hung, associate director of population health at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health, and a professor in U of T's Dalla Lana School of Public Health; Angela Cheung, clinician-scientist at University Health Network, senior scientist at Toronto General Hospital Research Institute and a professor in U of T's Temerty Faculty of Medicine; and Upton Allen, head of the division of infectious diseases at SickKids and a professor in U of T's Temerty Faculty of Medicine.
Identifying associations between individual genes and complex traits typically requires thousands of genomesboth from those with the trait and those without. Though there was no shortage of cases to choose from, it was critical to gather and sequence DNAand then organize the data in a way that would be ethical, efficient and useful to researchers now and in the future.
"One of our key mandates at the Data Sciences Institute is developing techniques and programs that ensure that data remains as open, accessible and as re-producible as it can be," Strug says.
"That vision was brought to bear as we assembled the data infrastructure for this projectfor example, ensuring that consent forms were as broad as possible so that this data could be linked with other sources, from electronic medical records to other health databases.
"We wanted to be sure that even after the COVID-19 pandemic was over this could be a national whole genome sequencing resource to ask all kinds of questions about health and our genes. The development of the database and its open nature also enabled Canada to collaborate effectively with similar projects in other countries."
In the end, the project gathered more than 11,000 full genome sequences from across Canada, representing patients with a wide range of health outcomes. Results are published in BMC Genomic Data. Those data were then combined with even more sequences from patients in other countries under what came to be called the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative.
It didn't take long for patterns to start to emerge. A paper published in Nature in 2021 identified 13 genome-wide significant loci that are associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection or severe manifestations of COVID-19.
Since then, even more data have been added, and subsequent analysis has confirmed the significance of existing loci while also identifying new ones. The most recent update to the project, published in Nature earlier this year, brings the total number of distinct, genome-wide significant loci to 51.
"Identification of these loci can help one predict who might be more prone to a severe course of COVID-19 disease," says Strug.
"When you identify a trait-associated locus, you can also unravel the mechanism by which this genetic region contributes to COVID-19 disease. This potentially identifies therapeutic targets and approaches that a future drug could be designed around."
While it will take many more years to fully untangle the effects of the different loci that have been identified, Strug says that the database is already showing its worth in other ways.
"It can be difficult to find datasets with whole genome sequence and approved for linkage with other health information that are this large, and we want people to know that it is open and available for all kinds of research well beyond COVID through a completely independent data access committee," she says.
"For example, several investigators from across Canada have been approved to use these data and we've even provided funding to trainees to encourage them to develop new data science methodologies or ask novel health questions using the CGen HostSeq data.
"This was a humongous effort, where researchers from across Canada came together during the COVID-19 pandemic to recruit, obtain and sequence DNA from more than 11,000 Canadians in a systematic, co-operative, aligned way to create a made-in-Canada data resource that will hopefully be useful for years to come. I think that was really miraculous."
More information: S Yoo et al, HostSeq: a Canadian whole genome sequencing and clinical data resource, BMC Genomic Data (2023). DOI: 10.1186/s12863-023-01128-3
Journal information: Nature
A significant number of Lake County residents continue to feel the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, leaving them behind with mortgage payments or even facing foreclosure.
Help continues to be available through the Illinois Housing Development Authoritys federally funded Illinois Homeowners Assistance Fund, but there are only days left to apply.
People must apply online to the housing authority for help from the Homeowners Assistance Fund by 11:59 p.m. Tuesday to receive up to $60,000 in assistance with a delinquent mortgage, property taxes or homeowners organization payments.
Andrew Field, the housing authoritys deputy director of communications, said the program started over three years ago with approximately $270 million in federal funds when lots of people were dealing with economic hardships because of COVID-19.
Though the incidences of the disease have eased, Field said people did not have to make payments when there was a moratorium, but that is over. Others had forbearance agreements with lenders. They are now short of funds to bring their loans current.
Those forbearance agreements are coming due, and they still cant pay them, Field said, For them, foreclosure is a real possibility.
Ofelia Navarro, the deputy director of the Lake County Housing Authority, said she knows of close to 30 people with applications pending that were filed through her organization. For them, the impact of the pandemic is still very real.
People continue to get COVID-19 and expenses can mount because of it. Navarro said there are people who are going through foreclosure because they fell behind on payments since their income never returned to pre-pandemic levels.
There are a lot of seniors applying, Navarro said. Theyre not retired, but theyre not making as much money as they did. Some are retired, but the cost of living is high and going up more than their pension or Social Security.
Self-employed people also incurred financial setbacks during the pandemic. Navarro said they, too, have not been able to retire the debts they incurred at the time. Now their mortgage is becoming a challenge.
People need help in Lake County like Ive never seen before, Navarro said. Its huge, and impacting their mortgage payments. They can call us, or come to our office, and well help them.
Field said people behind on a mortgage, property taxes or condominium homeowner association fees because of a COVID-19 related situation are eligible for up to $60,000 in relief. They must earn less than 150% of the areas median income.
For a family of four, Field said the annual income must be less than $165,450, $132,400 for a couple and $115,850 for an individual.
Navarro urges those with an issue on their mortgage, real estate taxes or homeowner association assessments not to delay. As long as the application is filed before the deadline, the applicants request will be evaluated.
Get in there and apply, Navarro said. Do it before the application deadline. You know what can happen at the last minute with a lot of people trying to get online at the same time.
Most of the $270 million has been disbursed, but just under $20 million remains in the fund to help homeowners. While an individual can receive up to $60,000, Field said the average disbursement is around $18,000. Payments go directly to the lender, the tax collector or homeowners association.
FAU medical experts back CDC's latest COVID-19 vaccine recommendations in new study
Researchers from FAU published their recommendations in the American Journal of Medicine. (Credit: WTGS).{ }
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12)
Medical experts at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) published new guidance to health care providers following recommendations from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding the latest COVID-19 vaccines.
The CDC is recommending the public get the latest COVID-19 vaccines that were recently granted Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The EUA's were issued for the latest mRNA COVID-19 vaccines by Moderna and Pfizer back on Sept. 11, 2023.
Researchers from FAU published their recommendations in the American Journal of Medicine.
The war on COVID-19 continues to be fought valiantly and selflessly by health care professionals in communities and hospitals across the nation., said Allison H. Ferris, M.D., senior author, chair of the Department of Medicine, and program director of the internal medicine residency program for the FAU Schmidt College of Medicine. As competent and compassionate physicians, we must redouble our efforts to promote evidence-based clinical and public health practices, including vaccination of all eligible U.S. adults and children with the new vaccine."
FAU experts said reliable evidence shows the benefits of the COVID-19 vaccines outweigh the potential risks, noting that vaccine eligible children will also benefit from receiving the vaccine, leading to a reduction of death and hospitalizations of their parents, grandparents, childcare providers and schoolteachers.
In the face of continuing opposition to masking, social distancing and crowd avoidance in the U.S., vaccination is the best defense against a new emerging strain, said Dr. Charles H. Hennekens, M.D., P.H., co-author, and the first Richard Doll Professor and senior academic advisor to the dean in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at FAU. This approach coupled with a prescription of Paxlovid as needed during the first five days following infection will also further reduce hospitalizations and deaths.
The study was co-authored by Sarah K. Wood, MD, FAAP, M.D., senior author, director of the Harvard Macy Institute at Harvard Medical School and former professor of pediatrics and vice dean for medical education at FAU Schmidt College of Medicine and Dennis G. Maki, M.D., Ovid O. Meyer professor of medicine, director of the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit and an infectious disease clinician and epidemiologist from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, and Mia Glickman, a second-year medical student at the FAU Schmidt College of Medicine.
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Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and his Republican challenger, Attorney General Daniel Cameron, clashed on abortion, education and the coronavirus in their third debate, continuing themes from their previous meetings.
In his opening statement, Cameron again said that the governors race is about crazy versus normal and tied Beshear to national Democratic figures like President Joe Biden. Camerons criticisms of Beshear included closing schools and churches during the coronavirus pandemic.
Ladies and gentlemen, we do not have to accept this crazy agenda any longer, Cameron said. We can have leadership that makes sure that we have good quality schools, that we keep our streets safe from crime and drugs, that we support our public school teachers, and yes, we eliminate Kentuckys income tax.
Beshear criticized Cameron for nationalizing the race and being overly partisan while reminding Kentuckians who led the state through hard times like the pandemic and natural disasters.
This race is about us. It is about Kentucky, Beshear said in his opening statement. And to truly lead this state forward, you cant be on team red or team blue. You have to lead team Kentucky.
Saturdays debate was hosted by the League of Women Voters of Louisville and TV station WLKY. Questions included a range of topics, such as the coronavirus pandemic, the economy and crime.
During a couple tense moments, Beshear directly asked Cameron to answer questions about abortion and school voucher programs. Cameron said last month that he would sign legislation adding exceptions in cases of rape and incest to Kentuckys near-total abortion ban if the General Assembly passed it. However, he has not directly said if he personally supports those exceptions and continues to call himself the pro-life candidate.
Ill tell you what, I got a few seconds left. So, General Cameron, will you look at the camera and say, I support exceptions for rape and incest? Beshear said Saturday as part of a rebuttal to Cameron.
Ive already said that I will sign the exceptions if they are brought to my desk, Cameron responded. At the end of the day, this governor wants more abortions. There is no difference between him and Joe Biden on this issue.
Beshear also claimed during the debate that Camerons education plan which he calls a Catch-Up Plan, includes support for school vouchers to allow public school funds to follow students who attend private schools, but it does not. Cameron, however, has gained support from school choice groups.
Both candidates were asked about their position on school vouchers Saturday.
Beshear, who had the first opportunity to answer, said he opposes them and believes they would defund our public education system in devastating ways.
In his answer, Cameron brought up his family ties to educators and promised to support public education in his first budget, but did not answer whether he would support school vouchers if he becomes governor.
In his rebuttal, Beshear asked Cameron directly: Do you support vouchers that take money from public education and send them to private schools?
Both candidates were cut off by a moderator before going to the next question, but Cameron pushed back at Beshearon his support for public schools, saying he shut our schools down for nearly two years.
During Saturdays debate, both candidates were asked if the state should have an ongoing plan for a future pandemic, like the COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2020, as well as what they thought were successes and failures in the response to the coronavirus.
Cameron, who answered the question first, criticized Beshear for closing schools, businesses and churches during the pandemic. He has made similar comments on the campaign trail and in press conferences.
What Andy Beshear did was wrong. I will respect your constitutional rights. I will look out for our most vulnerable populations, Cameron said. But at the end of the day, I will make sure that we respect you as a citizen and your constitutional rights.
Beshear called the pandemic the challenge of our lifetime and said it killed 18,000 Kentuckians. He also praised health care workers who worked during the pandemic and added that it was a slap in the face of the heroism that they showed for Cameron to refuse to act like this pandemic was as deadly as it was.
I made decisions to save lives, Beshear said. Its clear this attorney general would have played politics. That would have caused more death, more destruction. Id rather save lives than win reelection.
Both candidates also discussed eliminating Kentuckys income tax.Cameron has often voiced support for completely doing away with the state income tax and vowed again Saturday to be the governor who eliminates Kentuckys income tax.
The attorney general criticized Beshear for vetoing legislation in 2022 that would have lowered Kentuckys income tax.
In response, Beshear said the General Assembly created guardrails to gradually lower the income tax based on indicators of the states fiscal health, but Daniel Cameron wants to take the train off the track. The governor said a similar plan in Kansas, which he referenced in his 2022 veto, was later reversed because of strains on that states economy.
Beshear and Cameron addressed crime Saturday and were asked about how they would particularly make Louisville, Kentuckys largest city, safer.
Cameron referred to his previously released public safety plan, and emphasized his support for adding a Kentucky State Police post in Louisville. He also criticized Beshear for commuting the sentences of nearly 2,000 inmates during the coronavirus pandemic. The criteria for the people who were released included being medically vulnerable, near the end of the sentences and not having been convicted of violent or sexual offenses.
Beshear said he was surprised Cameron just criticized me for following Donald Trump the former Republican president who endorsed Cameron before highlighting pay raises for state troopers during his administration, as well as a lower recidivism rate.
The next gubernatorial debate is Monday, hosted by KET, followed by the last debate on Tuesday, hosted by WKYT.
Beshears running mate, Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman, and Camerons running mate, state Sen. Robby Mills, will face each other in a KET debate on Oct. 30.
This article is republished under a Creative Commons license from Kentucky Lantern, which is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com. Follow Kentucky Lantern on Facebook and Twitter.
McKenna Horsley covers state politics for the Kentucky Lantern. She previously worked for newspapers in Huntington, West Virginia, and Frankfort, Kentucky. She is from northeastern Kentucky.
This development will simplify winter vaccination programmes. Credit: VERONICAGARAVAGLIA via Getty Images.
Pfizer and BioNTech have reported positive results from the Phase I/II clinical study evaluating a combination vaccine for influenza and Covid-19.
The topline results showed that the lead formulations of the combination vaccine elicited strong immune responses against influenza A and B and SARS-CoV-2. The mRNA-based combination vaccine previously received Fast Track Designation from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
This development will simplify vaccination practices and address the seasonal nature of respiratory diseases, including Covid-19.
Pfizer head of vaccine research and development Annaliesa Anderson said: This vaccine has the potential to lessen the impact of two respiratory diseases with a single injection and may simplify immunisation practices.
The Phase I/II study (NCT05596734) evaluated the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of combination vaccine candidates on healthy adults ages 18 to 74, with a licensed influenza vaccine and the companies Omicron BA.4/BA.5 Covid-19 vaccine.
Pfizer and BioNTechs Covid-19 vaccine Comirnaty was authorised in the UK less than a year after the Covid-19 pandemic was declared, with the rest of the world following soon after. The UKs healthcare regulator the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved Pfizer and BioNTechs vaccine for temporary emergency use.
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The latest MHRA approval came on 6 September for the adapted Comirnaty vaccine, targeting the Omicron XBB 1.5 subvariant. This kind of approval obtained through the European Commission (EC) Decision Reliance Route is valid only in the UK. This is the third adaptation of the vaccine targeting new variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Comirnaty remains the leading Covid-19 vaccine by total forecast sales, forecast to reach over $51.7bn in sales between this year and 2029, according to GlobalData. However, both companies are expecting a hit to Covid-19 revenues with the sales expectations for the Comirnaty vaccine being reduced in recent earnings reports.
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Getting vaccinated against both flu and COVID-19 is an important step for staying healthy this fall and winter as both viruses continue to circulate.
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Flu season is upon us again, and while case numbers in Texas remain relatively low, a physician with Texas A&M University Health Services says the best time to get vaccinated is right now.
Dr. Tiffany Skaggs, senior director of primary care and specialty medical care, says 2023 has been a light year for influenza so far, though infection rates are still slightly higher than they were last year at this time. Texas A&M Today recently spoke with Skaggs about the outlook for the rest of flu season and the simple steps Texans can take to keep themselves and others safe.
There is not a major change expected in symptoms and hospitalization based on strain differences this year compared to last year. However, everyone 6 months and older (especially those at high risk such as pregnant, elderly or those with underlying health conditions) should get this years flu vaccine. Last years vaccine will not protect against this years strains.
The best time to get it is now, before rates start to increase.We used to think that the vaccine wore off after a few months, but now we know that the more viral replications, the more drift from the strain that the vaccine was made for. In other words, early vaccination in the population is a good thing because it prevents infections, thus decreasing the viral replications as the virus circulates through a community.
Because COVID-19 and flu can both cause severe and life-threatening complications, the dual threat of these circulating at the same time has put the health care system on high alert. Healthcare facilities learned during the height of COVID-19 how to prepare for surge capacity in order to care for potentially large numbers of very ill people.
You can and you should.
If you are sick, stay home. Consider wearing a face covering if you are ill and in public or you will be in close proximity with anyone with a respiratory illness. Wash your hands and use good respiratory safety and etiquette (sneeze and cough into your elbow, and wash your hands before and after a cough, sneeze, rubbing eyes or nose.)
The CDC has excellent flu monitoring that can help forecast your areas activity.
University Health Services is providing no-cost flu vaccines for current Texas A&M students. Visit the University Health Services website to learn more and schedule a vaccination appointment.
