Iowa news
In wake of Chauvin trial, University of Iowa to provide mental health support
The University of Iowa Counseling and Student Disability Services will provide open space for students to discuss self-care, burnout, and Zoom fatigue through two virtual sessions next week. The discussion will focus on unplugging from devices and developing a daily self-care routine, according to a campus email sent Wednesday. (The Daily Iowan)
In midst of vaccine effort, helpers offer a lifeline
Early in the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, when demand was much greater than the supply making its way into the state, many Iowans tried and failed to find doses. Some described the rush to vaccine providers’ websites to get an appointment likening to “the Hunger Games” that left vulnerable individuals behind. In the midst of it, some Iowans have made it their mission to aid others in their search for a vaccine as part of a larger effort to help the community reach immunity against the novel coronavirus. Some have created websites or social media pages to send out public alerts for open appointments. (The Gazette)
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds appeals to unvaccinated Iowans: ‘What are you waiting for?’
Gov. Kim Reynolds implored Iowans on Wednesday to seek COVID-19 shots, as she did last month. The Republican governor said Wednesday that “vaccine hesitancy is beginning to become a real factor” in Iowa and across the country. Demand for the shots appears to have waned in Iowa in recent weeks. Iowa set a record on April 8, when more than 50,000 Iowans received a dose of COVID-19 vaccine — either their first dose or the booster shot required for the Pfizer and Moderna formulas. That was during the first week in which all Iowan 16 or older were eligible for it. The next week’s high was just 35,900 doses administered in a single day. (Des Moines Register)
National news
How do we stop the next pandemic? Here’s a new strategy
Over the past few decades, the US government has spent hundreds of millions of dollars hunting down new viruses in animals, largely wild animals, in hopes of stopping a pandemic. And yet those efforts failed to find – and stop — SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, before it spread worldwide. Now, writing in the journal Viruses, Dr. Gregory Gray and his colleagues at the Duke Global Health Institute propose an alternative approach to hunting down new viruses that they believe will have a better chance of stopping the next pandemic. (Iowa Public Radio)
Biden says goal of 200 million COVID-19 vaccinations in 100 days has been met
President Biden announced Wednesday that Americans have received 200 million COVID-19 vaccinations since he took office, double his initial goal of 100 million vaccinations in his first 100 days, and what he called “an incredible achievement for the nation.” President Biden, who will officially cross the 100-day mark next week, also announced the availability of tax credits to employers who give their workers paid leave to get a shot. (Iowa Public Radio)
US regulators find more flaws at plant where doses were ruined
Federal regulators have found serious flaws at the Baltimore plant that had to throw out up to 15 million possibly contaminated doses of Johnson and Johnson’s coronavirus vaccine, casting doubt on further production in the US of a vaccine that the government once viewed as essential in fighting the pandemic. FDA regulators said the company manufacturing the vaccine, Emergent BioSolutions, may have contaminated additional doses at the plant. They said the company failed to fully investigate the contamination, while also finding fault with the plant’s disinfection practices, size and design, handling of raw materials and training of workers. (The New York Times)