Dr. Fauci says Covid vaccines may be simply tailored to new variants as drug makers work on boosters

Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergies and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a press conference in the James S. Brady press briefing room at the White House in Washington on Thursday, January 21, 2021.

Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Pfizer and Moderna’s current Covid-19 vaccines can be easily adapted to new strains of the virus, which drug makers are already working on, said White House Health Advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci, on Wednesday.

New strains of the coronavirus have emerged in the UK, South Africa and Brazil, which is a cause for concern among scientists. While it’s no surprise that the virus is mutating, researchers are quick to figure out what the changes could mean for recently developed life-saving vaccines and treatments for the disease.

Some early results that were published on the preprint server bioRxiv and have not yet been peer-reviewed indicate that the variant identified in South Africa, known by scientists as the B.1.351 strain, has been affected by some coronavirus treatments antibodies provided and the effectiveness of the current line of available vaccines. Fauci told CNN in an interview that it was very similar to the new strain in Brazil.

There is some good news, though: the newly developed mRNA technology used to make Pfizer and Moderna’s vaccines makes it easier to adapt to the new strains, Fauci said. He added that drug manufacturers are already working on “booster” shots targeting the variant found in South Africa that appears to be more problematic than the others.

“We are already trying to get a step or two ahead of the game so that when we actually have a situation where the South African strain is here – it’s here but it is certainly not dominant so you can really achieve something.” from a protection standpoint, “said Fauci.” You’re going to want a vaccine that works specifically against this strain.

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“Excessive Faculty Musical” star Monique Coleman says her character wore headbands as a result of the crew did not know learn how to model black hair

“High School Musical” star Monique Coleman says her character wore headbands because the crew didn’t know how to style black hair

It cannot be emphasized enough – representation is so important, from the producers to the dressing room, when it comes to television and film. The story of “High School Musical” star Monique Coleman is a prime example.

She recently announced in an interview with Insider that she had the idea that her “High School Musical” character Taylor McKessie should wear different headbands in the 2006 film because the styling crew didn’t know how to wear black ones Hair works.

“We’ve grown a lot in this industry, we’ve grown a lot in representation, and we’ve grown a lot to understand the needs of an African American actress,” said 40-year-old Coleman in an interview on the film’s 15th anniversary. “But the truth is they did my hair and they did it very badly in the front,” she said.

Coleman said crew members didn’t have much time to fix their hair before filming began. So she suggested “incorporating headbands into her character” and “just making that part of who she is”.

Coleman added that she and her castmates were “lucky” because Disney and the movie’s wardrobe were “very open to our feedback”.

The look stayed with her character throughout the franchise, as Taylor also wore an assortment of headbands that went perfectly with her outfits in the 2007 and 2008 sequels to High School Musical.

In addition to suggesting a headband, Coleman brought together Taylor’s look for the final number of the first film, “We’re All Together”.

She said Taylor’s button-down shirt and pleated skirt pays homage to Britney Spears’ 1998 music video for “Baby One More Time.”

“I thought, ‘Oh, I think Taylor would really enjoy having a moment of awakening like this,” Coleman said. “And I thought the tie was really cute.

“It was so long ago that the ‘One More Time’ video was still relevant and I was like, ‘Huh, wouldn’t it be kind of cool if Taylor’s look somehow hinted at it?'”

Coleman definitely shared her appreciation for participating in the films, saying she was grateful for the opportunity to play Taylor and be a role model for fans who rarely saw themselves reflected on the big screen.

“I’m really grateful to have been someone who could bring representation in a time when there wasn’t much, and I’m so happy when I see this next generation of young artists and there’s just so much more room for Colored people, ”Coleman said.

She added that her part “High School Musical” was special to her as Taylor was not a stereotypical black character.

“It means the world to me, especially because Taylor is such a dynamic character and the smartest person in school, all at a time when black girls were often the ones with an attitude or being naughty. ” She said.

Coleman added, “And I appreciated that it was why people didn’t love Taylor. They loved her because she was smart and supportive. And it definitely means a lot to me when people see her. There was Taylor before the Obamas were a thing. So we didn’t have people to look up to … Knowing that this generation has to look up to them is really special to me. “

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In response to Watchdog, HHS has abused tens of millions of well being insurers through the years

The US Department of Health building in Washington.

Caroline Brehman | CQ Appeal, Inc. | Getty Images

Federal Ministry of Health and Human Services officials raided funds from a little-known agency dedicated to vaccine research and emergency preparedness and spent millions moving furniture and paying unrelated salaries, according to a new report from a federal guard.

An office within HHS that oversees the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) does not have more than $ 500 million, according to a new report from the HHS Inspector General’s office used for administrative expenses between 2007 and 2016 taken into account “investigative arm of the agency. The HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response has channeled so much money into its own coffers from BARDA, which oversees the country’s vaccination programs, “that there was a name for it within the agency:” Bank of BARDA, “Special Adviser Henry J. Kerner said in a letter to President Joe Biden on Wednesday.

As recently as 2019, federal on-call officials inappropriately took up $ 25 million in research funding from the small agency, the investigation found. The money was intended to fund emergency preparedness initiatives for public health threats such as Ebola, Zika and Covid-19.

The report does not report the total amount of misappropriated funds, but the investigation describes widespread misuse of funds that includes both the Trump and Obama administrations. The research also provides insights into factors that may have poorly prepared a little-known but powerful biomedical research agency to respond effectively to the demands of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“I am deeply concerned about the (apparent) misuse of millions of dollars in public health emergencies as our country is currently facing the COVID-19 pandemic,” Kerner said in a statement. “Equally worrying is how widespread and well-known the practice has appeared to be for nearly a decade, even dubbed the ‘Bank of BARDA’.”

Kerner called BARDA “a slush fund for unrelated spending” and urged Congress and HHS to “take immediate action” to streamline spending. The report comes to the conclusion that federal officials at ASPR “violated the purpose law” and “possibly violated the anti-deficiency law”.

HHS launched its own internal review of the agency’s use of funds from 2015 to 2019 to identify possible violations of the Antideficiency Act, according to the Office of Special Counsel. HHS has also tapped into an undisclosed outside accounting firm to look into the agency’s use of some funds, the watchdog said.

BARDA was brought into the national spotlight in May when then-director Rick Bright was abruptly removed from his position as the agency was at the center of the nation’s response to the pandemic. Bright filed a whistleblower complaint alleging that he was ostracized for resisting pressure to recommend hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug, as a Covid-19 treatment, despite no data showing its effectiveness.

Former President Donald Trump hailed the drug as a treatment for the disease and pressured the Food and Drug Administration to get an emergency permit. Research later revealed that the drug was of no benefit and could even increase the risk of death in Covid-19 patients. The FDA later revoked its emergency approval for the drug.

Tilray CEO expects the US federal authorities to legalize hashish inside two years

Brendan Kennedy, CEO of medical cannabis producer Tilray, poses in a greenhouse of the Canadian company’s European production site in Cantanhede on April 24, 2018.

Patricia De Melo Moreira | AFP | Getty Images

Brendan Kennedy, CEO of Canadian cannabis company Tilray, is optimistic that the US will take steps to federally legalize marijuana in the near future, which will shake the industry forever.

“I assume that the pressure from the north and the south will eventually cause the US to implement a federal program here sometime in the next 18 to 24 months,” said Kennedy in an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” on Wednesday.

Mexico released regulations on medical cannabis use earlier this month, and Kennedy is confident that Mexico and Canada’s positive stance on marijuana will put more pressure on the US

Tilray announced Tuesday that it has been selected by the country’s National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Health Products as a supplier of medical cannabis for experiments in France.

The company has been selling its cannabis products in Germany since 2017. With the French program launched in the first quarter, Kennedy is optimistic that other European countries will run medical marijuana programs as well.

“While we look forward to our opportunities in Germany and France, we expect additional opportunities for our European companies in the coming quarters,” said Kennedy in an interview with CNBC.

Tilray has licenses to produce cannabis in Canada and Portugal, where the main cannabis facility is located.

Inventory futures tumble after a pointy sell-off on Wall Road, Apple and Tesla tumble after revenue

Traders work on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

NYSE

Stock futures fell slightly in overnight trading on Wednesday as the market extended a strong sell-off amid concerns over increased speculative trading.

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 20 points lower. S&P 500 futures fell 0.2% and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.4%.

In its earnings report for the first quarter of fiscal 2021, Apple achieved its highest revenue in its history of $ 111.4 billion. Sales for each product category increased by double-digit percentage points. However, the tech giant’s shares fell 3%.

Tesla fell more than 3% in expanded retail after the electric automaker posted worse-than-expected earnings last quarter. The company expects average annual delivery growth of 50% in the future.

Wall Street suffered heavy losses on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and Dow recording their worst day since October as the speculative spending spree on sharply shortened stocks kept investors on their toes. Some fear that hedge funds could be forced to reduce their holdings in order to raise cash.

The trading volume exploded in the previous session with 23.7 billion shares changing hands. This was the heaviest trading day since at least 2007.

Brick and mortar video game retailer GameStop, a target on the Reddit wallstreetbets chat room, rose another 134% on Wednesday and boosted its profits to a whopping 1,744% in January. AMC Entertainment was up over 300% on Wednesday alone, posting the highest volume ever.

GameStop fell 7% in expanded trading while AMC Entertainment fell 20%. Other heavily shortened names that had bounced back this week, including Bed Bath & Beyond and National Beverage, also fell after hours.

Facebook stock remained relatively unchanged in over-the-counter trading after the company warned that a reversal in pandemic trends could hurt its advertising business. The social media company made its way up and down in the fourth quarter.

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Trump supporters arrested for pipe bombs, mentioned assault on Twitter, Fb

A California man charged with possession of five pipe bombs spoke during a discussion on the “war” to ensure former President Donald Trump stays in the White House, targeting Democrats, and social Media giants Twitter and Facebook.

“I want to blow up such a bad Democratic building,” Napa County’s man Ian Benjamin Rogers wrote in a text message listed in a criminal complaint in federal court in California listing a wide variety of firearms, ammunition, equipment for the manufacture of bombs and warfare manuals in his possession.

“The Democrats have to pay,” wrote Rogers, owner of the UK auto repair shop in the Napa Valley.

In another text message, Rogers said he was “thinking of the Sac Office’s first target,” which an FBI agent suspects was the Sacramento office of California Governor Gavin Newsom.

“Then maybe Bird and Face Offices,” wrote Rogers, according to the complaint filed in federal court for the Northern District of California.

“Sorry it came to that, but I’m not going down without a fight … These commies need to be told what’s going on.”

The agent said the text appears to refer to Twitter, whose logo is a blue bird, and Facebook “because both social media platforms blocked Trump’s accounts to prevent him from sending messages on those platforms,” ​​briefly After the January 6 uprising, the US Capitol was loved by a crowd of its supporters.

Rogers wrote in another text in which Trump was apparently the 45th president: “I hope 45 goes to war, if he doesn’t I will.”

Rogers admitted during an interview with FBI agents that “he built the pipe bombs but said they were for entertainment purposes only,” the complaint read.

However, the complaint states that these and other text messages suggest that Rogers mistakenly believed Trump won the 2020 presidential election and “his intention to attack Democrats and Democrat-affiliated venues to ensure Trump stays in office.”

“I continue to believe that the messages express Rogers’ intention to commit acts of violence locally in the absence of an organized ‘war’ to prevent Joe Biden from assuming the presidency,” the FBI agent wrote.

The agent noted that Rogers wrote in a January 10 text message, “We can attack Twitter or the Democrats you choose … I think we can either attack easily.”

When the person he texted suggested, “Let’s go after Soros” – well-known liberal investor George Soros – Rogers replied that Twitter or Democrat would be “easy” now, while “Soros” was on a “road trip” would require. “said the complaint.

The complaint said that the Napa County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, and the Napa Special Investigations Bureau raided Rogers’ home and business on Jan. 15 and found a large gun safe in his shop that contained several weapons and the five pipe bombs.

Other items found in the safe were materials used to create destructive devices, including gunpowder, pipes and end caps.

Authorities also found manuals, The Anarchist Cookbook, US Army Improvised Munitions Handbook, and Homemade C-4: A Recipe for Survival, as well as the US Army Special Forces Guide to Unconventional Warfare and the manual included the Army’s Guerrilla Warfare Handbook.

A Nazi flag was also found in his safe, according to a prosecutor.

In total, the authorities confiscated 49 firearms from his home and business, including around two dozen ammunition boxes with thousands of rounds of ammunition.

One of the firearms is “an apparently kit-built MG-42 belt-drive machine gun that can fire fully automatically,” says the complaint.

The MG-42 during World War II was made in Germany and used by Nazi forces.

According to the criminal complaint, a sticker on a Rogers vehicle has a symbol for the anti-government group of three percent.

Rogers is not being charged in connection with the attack on the Capitol by the thousands of Trump supporters who made violent but botched efforts to get Congress to reject Joe Biden’s election as president. Five people died in connection with the riot, including a Capitol policeman who was beaten by people in the crowd.

The FBI continues to search for people who left two pipe bombs in front of the national headquarters of the Republican and Democratic National Committees on the same day in the riot.

In addition to federal charges of illegal possession of an unregistered destructive device, Rogers is facing charges in state court of possessing illegal or unregistered firearms, authorities said.

A Twitter spokesman declined to comment.

Facebook did not have an immediate comment.

– CNBC’s Hannah Miao contributed to this report.

Bank card fraud is growing as a result of Covid pandemic

According to the latest data from the Nilson report, payment card fraud losses reached $ 28.65 billion worldwide in 2019. The United States alone is responsible for more than a third of the world’s total loss, making it the most vulnerable country in the world to card fraud.

Julie Conroy, a research director for the Aite Group’s anti-fraud and money laundering practices, said, “We estimate the US lost $ 11 billion to credit card fraud by the end of 2020.”

The coronavirus pandemic is also causing explosive growth in card fraud activity.

“What happens in any economic downturn is the attacks become more successful,” warned Julie Fergerson, CEO of the Merchant Risk Council. “So, over the next two to three years, I expect the number of credit card fraud to increase in a pretty significant way.”

Credit card fraud affects consumers, merchants and issuers alike. The economic cost goes well beyond the cost of illegally purchased goods. Organizations often spend millions protecting themselves from fraud.

“Fraud is like an arms race,” said Fergerson. “Regardless of what technology is implemented, the scammers will eventually find a workaround and you will have to keep investing. And that is the cost of doing business.”

While the Fair Loan Settlements Act, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act, and the Truth in Lending Act, the latter two Regulations E and Z, are designed to protect consumers from card fraud, some experts say they are not enough to run smaller businesses to protect against the chargebacks caused by fraudulent transactions.

“For a large company, they can absorb a loss even at a fairly significant loss,” Fergerson said. “If a small one-shop or restaurant suddenly has a loss of $ 10,000, it could be the difference between payroll and non-payroll for that business.”

Credit card issuing companies are looking for technological solutions to stop the fraud. Mike Lemberger, Visa senior vice president and regional risk officer for North America, said Visa is working with financial institutions and merchants to help prevent fraud. The company “stopped $ 25 billion in fraud using Visa AI technology last year,” he said in a statement to CNBC.

However, experts in the field are not optimistic that card fraud can end. “I don’t see any solution to the current construct,” said Colin Sims, CEO of Forter, a fraud prevention company. “As long as money is transferred digitally, it will be a problem.”

Teen Mother’s Chelsea Houska shares new child footage from the hospital

Chelsea Houska gives birth to baby No. 4

Chelsea Houska takes a moment to celebrate life around her.

Just two days after welcoming her fourth child, the former Teen Mom 2 star took to Instagram and shared a brand new photo with her husband Cole DeBoer and newborn daughter Walker June.

“What a life we’ve built @coledeboer,” she wrote to her followers on Wednesday, January 27th. Cole later commented, “Beyond Grateful !!”

Earlier this month, at the Teen Mom 2 reunion, Chelsea announced that their due date wasn’t until February 16. Based on social media posts, all family members appear to be fine – including Baby Walker.

“Glow bug for a few days,” Chelsea revealed online. “Part of getting there a little early.”

Before the co-founder of Aubree Says announced her departure from Teen Mom 2 to focus on other adventures, she spoke about her growing family. As she explained to E! News, this pregnancy was unlike any other.

Biden indicators govt orders on local weather change

United States President Joe Biden holds up a face mask as he speaks about fighting the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic at the White House in Washington on January 26, 2021.

Kevin Lamarque | Reuters

President Joe Biden will sign several executive orders on Wednesday to combat climate change and move the country to a clean energy economy, the White House said.

Executive measures include setting climate change as a national security priority, preserving at least 30% of the state and oceans by 2030, and terminating new oil and gas leases for public land and bodies of water based on a review of administrative orders.

Biden’s executive agenda will also focus on creating green jobs and union opportunities, as well as environmental justice for communities disproportionately affected by climate change.

The government said the climate action would build modern and sustainable infrastructure while restoring scientific integrity in the federal government. The arrangement supports the president’s agenda to reduce CO2 emissions from the electricity sector by 2035 and achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

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Biden joins the Paris climate accord to fight global warming
2020 was one of the hottest years in existence, combined with 2016

Biden, who has staffed the White House with a historic number of climate experts, signed an order last week to reintroduce the US to the Paris Agreement, a landmark deal between nations to curb their emissions. He also canceled construction of the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the United States

The president plans to leave remarks and sign the orders at 1:30 p.m. ET. Biden’s special climate officer John Kerry and national climate adviser Gina McCarthy will brief reporters on the government’s plans.

The Biden government will also convene the Climate Leaders’ Summit on April 22nd, which will bring together world leaders to discuss climate change issues. The summit will likely be remote during the coronavirus pandemic.

Future is All Smile with pal Dess Dior on her final film date

Future and Dess Dior

Roommate, Future certainly had a fair share of women (and a long list of kids to prove it), but many are starting to believe that with current girlfriend Dess Dior he could be in it for the long term. Future and Dess were spotted on a movie date in Atlanta recently – and while that’s definitely not a big deal … Future’s big smile is in the photos.

Since his ex-girlfriend Lori Harvey is the talk of the town thanks to her new relationship with A-List actor Michael B. Jordan, Future fits in well with a relationship of its own.

Future and Dess Dior have been dating for a few months and aside from a few annoying rumors they recently broke up, the two have managed to keep their relationship going. Future is known for always having a pretty straight face and is rarely seen without his branded glasses, but he recently turned it up on both fronts.

When he and Dess were photographed out of an Atlanta movie theater, Future rocked the biggest smile we’ve ever seen from him … and there were no sunglasses in sight.

He has also been a professional supporter of Dess, as he recently shared a snippet of her new song “Don’t Play” on social media and rumors have started that they may also be dropping some music together.

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