Forbes - A new Covid antiviral?

Plus: White House science advisor apologizes for bullying staff

It’s possible that there may soon be a new antiviral treatment for Covid for doctors to add to their toolbox: Japanese pharma company Shionogi announced promising results for its antiviral treatment from its mid-stage clinical trials. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said today that his government may consider fast-tracking the approval of the antiviral. The data that’s been released to date suggests that it reduces virus levels in Covid-positive patients by as much as 80% after four days of treatment. The company’s CEO said that it may apply for emergency authorization as early as next week, and the company also plans to shortly begin a large-scale clinical trial as well.  

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More Covid News

A majority of the roughly 2.5 million Americans who dropped out of the labor force during the pandemic and still aren't looking for jobs won't return to work this year, according to economists at Goldman Sachs.

U.S. figure skater Vincent Zhou will not be able to compete in his individual competition in the Beijing Winter Olympics after testing positive for Covid-19, the latest in a string of athletes to be ruled ineligible to compete.

Last night, the entire Canadian women’s hockey team played Russia while wearing N95 masks. They won with a score of 6-1. 

Democratic governors in Delaware and New Jersey said they plan to lift their states’ school mask mandates in March. 

Australia will reopen its borders to all vaccinated travelers later this month, the country’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison said, signaling the end of one of the longest border closures since the start of the pandemic.

What Else We Are Reading

• COVID Vaccines Can Be Safe for People with Prior Allergic Reactions (Scientific American)

• What Happened After the Chicken-Pox Vaccine? (The New Yorker)

• New conditions common 1 to 5 months after positive COVID test (Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy)