How would vaccine makers adapt to COVID-19 variants?

COVID-19 vaccines appear to be working against today’s variants, but companies are making plans to update their shots if needed.

Pfizer researching effects of 3rd COVID-19 vaccine dose

Pfizer said it will offer a third dose to 144 volunteers, drawing from people who participated in the vaccine’s early-stage U.S. testing last year.

Amid COVID-19 pandemic, flu has disappeared in the US

February is usually the peak of flu season, with doctors' offices and hospitals packed with suffering patients. But not this year. Flu has virtually disappeared from the U.S., with reports coming in at far lower levels than anything seen in decades.

Philadelphia opens second mass vaccination clinic Thursday in Juniata Park

Philadelphia will open its second mass vaccination clinic Thursday morning at a charter school in Juniata Park as the city continues to expand vaccine availability to high-risk people in traditionally underserved communities.

Active-duty military begins giving vaccines in New York area

Active-duty personnel began to administer coronavirus vaccine shots at new hubs in New York this week and have been staffing sites in New Jersey since earlier this month.

Moderna begins clinical trials for booster doses of COVID-19 vaccine to combat South Africa variant

Moderna says it has sent its new COVID-19 vaccine candidate designed specifically to combat the highly transmissible South Africa coronavirus variant to the National Institutes of Health for a Phase 1 clinical trial.

US military begins delivering COVID-19 vaccine doses to Texas, New York

The U.S. military is beginning to deliver shots at coronavirus vaccination centers in Texas and New York and says service members will start staffing four centers in Florida and one in Philadelphia next week.

Pfizer's COVID-19 shot is 92% effective at reducing severe illness, 'real world' mass vaccination study finds

A large real-world test of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine confirms that it’s very effective at preventing serious illness or death, even after one dose. The results come from a mass vaccination campaign in Israel.

Fauci: In country as ‘rich and sophisticated’ as US, 500,000 shouldn’t have died of COVID-19

In a recent interview, Dr. Anthony Fauci — the nation’s leading infectious disease expert — called the COVID-19 death toll in the U.S. “stunning in its magnitude” and said it should not have happened in such a “rich and sophisticated” country.

COVID-19 antibodies were present for up to 3 months in people infected with coronavirus, NIH study finds

NIH researchers have found some evidence that suggests people previously infected with COVID-19 may have lasting antibodies that help protect against reinfection, though the extent to which that protection holds up against emerging variants remains unclear.

Phillies ‘likely’ to have some fans in stands for home opener, Farley says

Philadelphia Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley says the Phillies, Sixers and Flyers all want fans back and are seeking the city’s approval. 

Phoenix mother of 7 left devastated after husband dies from COVID-19

After losing her husband to COVID-19, a Phoenix mother of seven children is left to pick up the pieces. "It's the most awful, awful feeling I've ever experienced."

Mexico's president says nation handling COVID-19 pandemic better than US

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Tuesday that his country is doing better than the United States in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, even though Mexico’s per capita death rate is probably higher and the country has vaccinated less than 1% of its population.

Chester County Health Department recommends cutting social distance from 6 to 3 feet between students

The Chester County Health Department sent out a letter recommending cutting social distance from six to three feet between students as long as county COVID-19 transmission rates are below the highest level.