An informed guide to the pandemic, with the latest developments and expert advice about prevention and treatment. |
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 | | Daily reported coronavirus cases in the United States, seven-day average.The New York Times |
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Moving ahead with boosters |
The F.D.A. is aiming to authorize booster doses of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine for all adults as early as Thursday, according to people familiar with the agency's plans. |
If both the F.D.A. and the C.D.C. sign off this week, any adult who received a second vaccine at least six months earlier would be eligible for a booster as soon as this weekend. But some states aren't waiting. |
Arkansas, Colorado, California and New Mexico have expanded eligibility to all adults, and the authorities in New York and West Virginia have also encouraged all adults to get the booster. New York City yesterday became one of the first major cities to tell all adults they could get another shot if they wanted one. |
The question of whether you should get one may invite knotty ethical questions, like one from Miriam, in New York, who recently wrote in to Kwame Anthony Appiah, the Ethicist for The New York Times Magazine. |
Miriam, 49, a public-school teacher, wanted to know if she should get a booster shot, even though she was on sabbatical and quite healthy. "I'm eager to protect myself, as well as those around me, but I am unsure if getting the booster would prevent someone who is needier from getting one," she wrote. |
Kwame responded: "Get the booster. There is a reasonable rule in place, and under that rule, you are eligible. Given the widespread availability of the vaccine here, you won't be depriving someone in greater need of it. And plenty of people who are less in need than you — including young, healthy teachers in their 20s — will be getting the booster. I can't help adding that your letter presents a painful paradox: While some people may forgo a jab because they care so much about the larger community, others skip getting vaccinated because they don't care enough." |
Pills for the unvaccinated |
In a key clinical trial, Paxlovid was found to sharply reduce the risk of hospitalization or death when given to high-risk unvaccinated volunteers soon after they started showing symptoms. It appears to be more effective than a similar offering from Merck, known as molnupiravir, that could be authorized as soon as early December. |
Pfizer's drug is designed to stop the coronavirus from replicating by blocking a key enzyme that the coronavirus uses to replicate itself inside cells. Merck's pill works differently, by inserting errors into the virus's genetic code — a mechanism that has raised concerns among some scientists. They worry that Merck's drug could trigger genetic mutations that cause reproductive harm. That difference could give Pfizer's pill an advantage. |
Hybrid work isn't working |
As more companies reopen offices and adjust to hybrid work — with people both at home and in the office — few are finding it to be a smooth transition. |
Remote workers, for example, may feel undercut, and it's not hard to imagine why. They might be muted in a heated discussion or shut out of lunchtime bonding. But in-person employees might feel just as neglected, in some cases being forced to join meetings on their laptops from the office. |
"It's the American-in-Europe rule," said Nicholas Bloom, a Stanford professor who has surveyed hundreds of hybrid companies. "When an American is traveling abroad, you look around the room and everyone is speaking English for your benefit. If there's one person working from home, everyone in the office dials into the meeting." |
Last year, doctors and politicians across the country urged Americans to skip a big group meal for Thanksgiving. But this year, months after vaccines have become widely available, the guidance from officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is more relaxed — and families are getting together to celebrate. |
As holiday traditions change — yet again — we'd love to hear how you and your loved ones are adjusting. We're asking readers to tell us their Thanksgiving plans, and how they differ from last year's. |
What else we're following |
The very best thing about telework is if you have to work late you don't have to stay late. It is wonderful not to waste time and money commuting and buying lunches and coffees. Also there is no big yank out the door in the morning and constant laundry and dry-cleaning. Screw the water cooler culture. Let me do my job and I promise, as an adult, I will provide you with an excellent product in a timely matter. I love eating dinner at a reasonable hour and my dogs have never loved me more. — Bonnie Myhre, Md. |
Let us know how you're dealing with the pandemic. Send us a response here, and we may feature it in an upcoming newsletter. |
| Amelia Nierenberg contributed to today's newsletter. |
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