Axios Vitals: Big booster questions

Plus, half of cancer patients report medical debt | Thursday, March 17, 2022

Open in app View in browser   Presented By PhRMA   Axios Vitals By Tina Reed ·Mar 17, 2022 Good morning, Vitals readers. Today's newsletter is 1,049 words or a 4-minute read.     1 big thing: The COVID booster debate is back Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios   Pfizer says that at least some Americans will soon need a fourth shot of its coronavirus vaccine. The problem is that, if true, that may raise questions about the utility of the vaccine in the long run, Axios' Caitlin Owens writes. The catch: Regulators want to see more data before they're convinced another booster is necessary. If the data does show the third shot's ability to ward off severe disease drops after a few months, that may suggest Americans need a better booster. Driving the news: Pfizer announced Tuesday that it will submit a request to the FDA for a fourth dose of its COVID vaccine to be authorized for people 65 and older. In an interview on Sunday with CBS' "Face the Nation," however, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla didn't specify which age groups he thinks will need a fourth shot — which raised plenty of eyebrows. "We know that the duration of the protection doesn't last very long," Bourla said. "It is necessary, a fourth booster right now." The other side: "Pfizer seems to be saying that, because their vaccine isn't very good, people need more of it. If FDA approves another dose it would make sense to use a stronger vaccine instead, like Moderna or eventually Novavax," said Cornell virologist John Moore. What they're saying: Officials will be paying close attention to effectiveness against hospitalization over time, NIAID director Anthony Fauci said in an interview. The big picture: The debate over a fourth dose is at its outset plagued by a familiar question: Is the point of the COVID vaccines to prevent infections, or to keep people alive and out of the hospital? Yes, but: There's plenty of emerging data that suggest protection against infection wanes pretty quickly after the third shot, and that Pfizer loses its effectiveness faster than Moderna. Experts say this is typical with vaccines. Some experts think waning may have been accelerated by the Omicron variant, which the vaccine wasn't made to target. What we're watching: Bourla told "Face the Nation" that Pfizer is trying to create a longer-lasting vaccine. Moderna is also tweaking its existing vaccine in order to provide longer-lasting protection. Go deeper.     2. COVID cases, deaths falling nationwide Data: CDC; Map: Kavya Beheraj/Axios COVID cases and death rates from the coronavirus fell sharply across the country over the last week. But there could be trouble on the horizon, Axios' Kavya Beheraj and I report. The big picture: The numbers are a continuation of a positive trend seen as pandemic restrictions were lifted and life returned to normal for many Americans. Yes, but: They are being watched closely as Europe experiences a resurgence of COVID cases likely driven by its own relaxations of pandemic rules and the spread of the Omicron subvariant BA.2, which accounts for an increasing proportion of new U.S. cases, NBC News reports. By the numbers: Nationwide, the U.S. is averaging roughly 32,094 new COVID cases a day — a 41% drop over the past two weeks. Case rates fell in every state. Deaths nationwide have fallen to about 1,226 people per day, down 33% from more than 1,800 a day two weeks ago. What we're watching: Whether cases start to rise again in the coming weeks. The experience in Europe, and data from the CDC estimating nearly a quarter of new COVID cases in the U.S. are from Omicron's sister variant, raise the possibility of an upswing soon.     3. Omicron hit little kids hard Data: CDC; Chart: Jacque Schrag/Axios The Omicron variant resulted in five times as many hospitalizations of children ages 4 and younger than during the previous COVID peak, when the Delta variant was the prevalent strain, Axios' Adriel Bettelheim writes about CDC data released on Wednesday. Why it matters: The findings are more evidence that the virus can cause severe illness in very young children who aren't eligible for COVID-19 vaccines. Go deeper: Weekly hospitalizations peaked in early January at 14.5 per 100,000 infants and young children compared to the peak of 2.9 per 100,000 during the Delta wave in mid-September, the agency said. Infants younger than six months accounted for 44% of the Omicron hospitalizations, though indicators of severity like respiratory support didn't vary by age. 63% of hospitalized infants and children during the Omicron wave had no underlying medical conditions. Background: Authorizing vaccines for very young children has proven to be one of the thorniest decisions for federal health regulators during the pandemic. The bottom line: The CDC said infants under six months can receive protection against COVID from antibodies their mothers acquired through vaccines — and urged women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or trying to become pregnant stay current on COVID-19 shots.     A message from PhRMA Voters want Congress to address health insurance     Many Americans reject so-called government "negotiation" once they learn it could sacrifice access, choice and innovation. The story: Respondents find health care coverage costs unreasonable and a top priority health care issue for policymakers to address today. Read more in the new survey.     ⚡️ 4. Health care industry lightning round 💵 Morgan Health — the health care arm of JPMorgan Chase — announced its latest investment, a funding round for physician-led data analytics company Embold Health. 🕹 If upstart video game publisher DeepWell has its way, you'll someday be able to buy a video game and see a label about what therapeutic benefits you'd get from playing it. 💊 Biogen finally got the data published on its controversial Alzheimer's drug Aduhelm, but it's in a little-known journal, Stat News reports.     5. Half of cancer patients report medical debt Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios   More than a quarter of cancer patients depleted most or all of their savings in order to cover the costs of their care, according to a study released today by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. Why it matters: The cost of cancer care is having a substantial impact on the lives of cancer patients, even among those who have insurance. By the numbers: The poll of more than 1,2o0 cancer patients conducted between Feb. 9 and 23 found more a majority of patients and survivors said they were unprepared for the costs of their care. In order to afford their care, 28% of respondents said they'd gone into credit card debt, 20% had borrowed money from relatives and friends and more than one in 10 took out another type of loan, borrowing from a payday lender or refinancing their homes. About half of patients said they incurred cancer-related medical debt, with about half of those patients who had incurred debt reporting it had gone to collections and hurt their credit.     6. Overdose deaths hit another grim milestone Annual U.S. drug overdose deaths hit yet another record high according to provisional CDC data released Wednesday. Nearly 106,000 people died in the U.S. in the 12 months ending October 2021, a majority involving synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.     A message from PhRMA Voters want Congress to address health insurance     According to a new poll, 71% of Americans would like to see Congress focus more on reducing the overall costs of health care coverage such as premiums, deductibles and copays. The reason: Many believe current health insurance coverage options are confusing and unaffordable.   Like this email style and format? It's called Smart Brevity®. Over 200 orgs use it — in a tool called Axios HQ — to drive productivity with clearer workplace communications.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Suite 1300, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. 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