HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

September 9,  2020 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Covid-19 drug rationed in the US is plentiful in developing countries (CNN)
• Patients may have seen ‘significant’ delays in medicine deliveries by USPS, Senate report finds (Washington Post)
• Dr. Fauci warns Labor Day could cause spike in coronavirus cases (10 News)
• Live updates: After Trump promised an October vaccine, a major human trial stops for an ‘unexplained illness’ (Washington Post)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• A Stormy Summer in the Northern Hemisphere (Inside Science)
• The 5G lie: The network of the future is still slow (Washington Post)
• Facebook to limit last-minute political ads before U.S. elections, label premature victory claims (Reuters) 
• How a Plan to Save the Power System Disappeared (The Atlantic)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

HEALTH

Covid-19 drug rationed in the US is plentiful in developing countries (CNN)

During the coronavirus surge in Texas this summer, Dr. Thomas Patterson said he only had enough of the anti-viral drug remdesivir for about a third of his patients, and was forced to pick and choose who would get the only drug authorized in the United States to treat Covid-19. ….A CNN investigation into remdesivir finds that doctors in several developing countries report ample supplies of the drug, while US patients have faced shortages -- even though the drug is made by a US pharmaceutical company and was developed with the help of US taxpayer money… At a press conference Tuesday, physicians, advocates and a member of Congress excoriated the Trump administration for failing to secure a larger supply of remdesivir.

Patients may have seen ‘significant’ delays in medicine deliveries by USPS, Senate report finds (Washington Post)

Several large pharmacies told Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Robert P. Casey that delivery times have ticked up, leading to a flood of customer complaints.

Dr. Fauci warns Labor Day could cause spike in coronavirus cases (10 News)

Dr. Anthony Fauci told NBC News on Wednesday that he is concerned that the United States could see a spike in coronavirus cases if Americans aren’t cautious for the upcoming holiday weekend. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that there were a number of cases tied to the Memorial Day and Fourth of July holidays.

Live updates: After Trump promised an October vaccine, a major human trial stops for an ‘unexplained illness’ (Washington Post)

As President Trump pushes for a coronavirus vaccine before the November election, one major vaccine trial has been halted after a participant developed symptoms of a “potentially unexplained illness.” After the British participant became sick, AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford paused human trials to evaluate whether the person’s condition could be related to the vaccine.

SCIENCE AND TECH

A Stormy Summer in the Northern Hemisphere (Inside Science)

Touring the world through storm watchers 

The 5G lie: The network of the future is still slow (Washington Post)

We speed tested 5G phones against 4G ones. America’s new nationwide 5G networks weren’t much faster — and in some places they were slower.

Facebook to limit last-minute political ads before U.S. elections, label premature victory claims (Reuters) 

 Facebook Inc (FB.O) said on Thursday it would stop accepting new political ads in the week before the U.S. Election Day on Nov. 3, in a series of moves that the company billed as its final plan for reducing the risks of misinformation and election interference. 

How a Plan to Save the Power System Disappeared (The Atlantic)

A federal lab found a way to modernize the grid, reduce reliance on coal, and save consumers billions. Then Trump appointees blocked it.