GoLocal Daily RI Vaccination Update: Moderna Announces New Booster for UK and SA Strains

Monday, January 25, 2021

GoLocalProv News Team

 

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Monday’s GoLocal vaccination update provides the most up-to-date information and data on the Rhode Island vaccination program as well as emerging national and global developments.

1. Moderna Announces Success Against New Strains

Moderna announced on Monday its COVID-19 vaccine appeared to be protective against emerging variants of the coronavirus in laboratory tests, but that as a precaution it will start testing whether a booster shot improves immune responses, including a new vaccine targeting the strain first identified in South Africa.

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According to Modern, its vaccine produced immune-system agents known as neutralizing antibodies against emerging virus variants tested, including strains first identified in the U.K. and South Africa.

“As we seek to defeat the COVID-19 virus, which has created a worldwide pandemic, we believe it is imperative to be proactive as the virus evolves. We are encouraged by these new data, which reinforce our confidence that the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine should be protective against these newly detected variants,” said Stéphane Bancel, Chief Executive Officer of Moderna. “Out of an abundance of caution and leveraging the flexibility of our mRNA platform, we are advancing an emerging variant booster candidate against the variant first identified in the Republic of South Africa into the clinic to determine if it will be more effective to boost titers against this and potentially future variants.”

These new strains appear to spread more easily from person to person, and there are signs that the U.K. variant is more deadly than earlier forms of the virus.

The company said it expects its standard, two-dose vaccine to be protective against the emerging strains to date.

 

2. According to the CDC and updated on this weekend, RI has now:

Received 149,255 doses

Administered 63,249 doses (less than 3,000 administered in past 24-hours)

Of the vaccine doses received, RI has utilized 42% —a drop from 53%*

updated 1/24/2021

 

3. McKee Delays Announcement of Coronavirus Team

Soon to be Governor Dan McKee delayed the announcement of his management team that is to guide the state’s response to the coronavirus. The announcement was supposed to be released last week and then was postponed to the weekend. Now, it has been delayed again.

 

4. Boston Announces Mass Vaccinations at Fenway Park

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker announced that the Commonwealth will open its second mass vaccination site on February 1 at Fenway Park under the operation of Cambridge-based health tech company CIC Health.

Rhode Island officials have yet to announce a single mass vaccination.

This was developed after the launch of the MA’s first large-scale vaccination site at Gillette Stadium on January 18, CIC Health will manage vaccine administration at the home of the Boston Red Sox to priority groups in the State’s phased timeline. 

“Mass vaccination sites like Fenway Park are critical to our state’s vaccine distribution process — providing convenient, safe, and efficient access for thousands of residents,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “Joining Gillette Stadium, our administration is hugely grateful to our hometown sports teams for stepping up to support the Commonwealth during the pandemic. We thank the Red Sox and CIC Health for their partnership, and look forward to opening more mass vaccinations sites soon.”

CIC Health is one of the largest facilitators of COVID-19 testing in New England, known for easy online scheduling, no lines, and quick turnaround. The company is applying lessons learned in the testing realm to vaccine distribution at Fenway Park and Gillette Stadium as sports venues across the country pivot to serve as immunization hubs. 

“Efficient vaccine distribution and routine testing work in tandem to stop the spread of COVID-19 and set us on the road to recovery,” said Tim Rowe, founder and CEO of CIC Health. “We are proud to collaborate with the Commonwealth, the Red Sox, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and other health care delivery partners to bring large-scale vaccinations to the City of Boston. This is a crucial step to ensure vaccine access for residents who have suffered disproportionately in the pandemic.” 

Fenway Park is the fifth Major League Baseball team to announce mass vaccinations at its ballpark alongside Citi Field in New York, Petco Park in San Diego, Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, and Minute Maid Park in Houston. 

 

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