There’s a lot going on. Here are today’s COVID-19 updates that you should know.
Your daily dose of hope
The F.D.A. has approved the first coronavirus antibody test in U.S. The test could help scientists learn how widespread the infection is, and how long people remain immune after recovering.
Johnson and Johnson is so confident that it’s developed a Covid-19 vaccine that it will start construction of a plant in the U.S. to manufacturer the vaccine before obtaining FDA approval. Assuming completion of testing and approval, millions of doses of the vaccine will be available next spring – and the company will sell the vaccine at cost.
The first hospital in the U.S. has been approved by the FDA to use transfused donated blood plasmas to critically ill COVID-19 patients. This convalescent serum therapy could be a vital treatment in fighting patients afflicted with coronavirus.
News you need to know
The commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt has been removed after saying the US Navy was not doing enough to halt a coronavirus outbreak on board the aircraft carrier. In a letter, Captain Brett Crozier had urged his superiors to act to prevent US troops dying outside of wartime after at least 100 people aboard the vessel have been infected. He received an emotional sendoff last night.
https://twitter.com/AmberSmithUSA/status/1246052144115077120?s=20
The U.K. reports a record number of both new cases and deaths, with the fatality rate at an all-time high.
More than 1,500 members of the New York Police Department have tested positive for coronavirus. 1,354 are uniformed police officers.
Testing for the virus remains low in the U.K. and United States, as the countries grapple with lack of available supplies and coordination struggles while health care workers plead for help.
Data of the day
Quote of the day:
“Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”
– Dylan Thomas
