What scientists know about the new variants and the Covid-19 vaccines When it comes to the new variants and the Covid-19 vaccines, some of the news is very good. But some is potentially very bad indeed. Andrew Joseph STAT

here is now real evidence that at least one coronavirus variant seems to elude some of the power of Covid-19 vaccines. What, exactly, that means for the pandemic is still being sussed out.

Vaccines Could Blunt U.K. Epidemic in Weeks

LONDON — Britain is on a pace to give the first shot of a two-dose coronavirus vaccine to its entire population by the end of June, if it can avoid supply and logistical issues that threaten to slow one of the world’s fastest rollouts.

The most vulnerable will get their first doses much sooner — likely over the next two weeks — which could drastically reduce deaths. People over 70, nursing home residents and workers, health and social workers, and those whose health problems make them extremely vulnerable are all on schedule to receive their first vaccine shots before Feb. 15. Together these groups have accounted for 88 percent of all Covid-19 deaths.

The timeline shows the promise of vaccination as a path out of the deadliest stage of the pandemic in the countries that are moving quickly. ...

Mutated virus may reinfect people already stricken once with covid-19, sparking debate and concerns The finding, though far from conclusive, has potential implications for how the pandemic will be brought under control, underscoring the critical role of vaccination. Carolyn Y. Johnson, William Wan Washington Post

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AstraZeneca vaccine works against UK coronavirus variant: study The AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine protects against a more transmissible variant of the virus first identified in the United Kingdom, according to research published Friday. Peter Sullivan TheHill

The AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine protects against a more transmissible variant of the virus first identified in the United Kingdom, according to research published Friday.

Countdown to 'catastrophe:' Inside Europe's fight for COVID shots In a meeting last week in the Europa building in Brussels, home of the European Union's political leadership, diplomats for the 27 member states were desperate. Francesco Guarascio, John Chalmers U.S.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - In a meeting last week in the Europa building in Brussels, home of the European Union’s political leadership, diplomats for the 27 member states were desperate.

UK backs CureVac effort to make vaccine for COVID variants LONDON (AP) — The U.K. government announced Friday that it plans to work with a German biopharmaceutical company to develop vaccines targeting emerging variants of COVID-19 as public health... AP NEWS

LONDON (AP) — The U.K. government announced Friday that it plans to work with a German biopharmaceutical company to develop vaccines targeting emerging variants of COVID-19 as public health officials call for new tools to keep the virus in check as it mutates.

J&J applies for emergency authorization; FDA expected to greenlight in coming weeks If it is authorized, the Covid-19 would be U.S.'s third. NBC News

Johnson & Johnson submitted an application to the Food and Drug Administration Thursday for an emergency use authorization for its experimental Covid-19 vaccine.

International Red Cross sets goal of immunizing 500 million people A coalition of Red Cross and Red Crescent organizations set a goal of 500 million coronavirus vaccinations in developing nations, saying international health care disparities would have “deadly Zack Budryk TheHill

A coalition of Red Cross and Red Crescent organizations set a goal of 500 million coronavirus vaccinations in developing nations, saying international health care disparities would have “deadly consequences.”

Factbox: Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus As more countries announce vaccine and immunisation programmes, researchers begin to explore mixing doses of the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccine shots to prepare them for about 4,000 different coronavirus variants worldwide. Reuters Staff U.S.

*New vaccination centres are due to open this month in the heart of two California communities especially hard hit by the coronavirus.

As pandemic fatigue sets in, trauma and exhaustion plague health care workers

NY Times:

 ....  Doctors, paramedics and nurses’ aides have been hailed in the United States as frontline Covid-19 warriors, but gone are the days when people applauded workers outside hospitals and on city streets. A year into the pandemic, with emergency rooms packed again, vaccines in short supply and more contagious variants of the virus threatening to unleash a fresh wave of infections, medical workers are feeling burned out and unappreciated.

Some health care experts are calling for a national effort to track the psychological well-being of medical professionals, much like the federal health program that monitors workers who responded to the 9/11 terrorist attacks.