Moderna Inc. said on April 29 the company is boosting manufacturing capacity for its Covid-19 vaccine and expects to make up to 3 billion doses in 2022, more than twice the previous forecast.

AstraZeneca and Sanofi announced that their MELODY Phase III trial of nirsevimab hit the primary endpoint in medically attended lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) caused by respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in healthy late preterm and term infants. RSV infections cause about 80,000 hospitalizations in children and 500 deaths each year. 

Children attending summer camp can get within 3 feet (1 meter) of each other but should wear masks to limit the spread of Covid-19, according to fresh guidance issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The same group at the University of Oxford and the Jenner Institute that developed the AstraZeneca-Oxford Covid-19 vaccine reported that their investigational malaria vaccine, R21/Matrix-M, demonstrated 77 percent efficacy in children over 12 months of follow-up.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved ALK Inc.’s Ragwitek (Short Ragweed Pollen Allergen Extract) Tablet for Sublingual Use for the treatment of short ragweed pollen-induced allergic rhinitis in persons ages 5 through 65 years old.

Pfizer and BioNTech on March 31 announced data from a Phase III study which showed 100 percent efficacy and robust antibody responses in patients ages 12-15 years old who received the BNT162b2 vaccine.

Covid-19 was the primary or contributing cause of 377,883 deaths in the United States during 2021, with a particularly high toll among the elderly, according to a government report released on March 31.

Top U.S. infectious disease official Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Feb. 28 he was encouraging Americans to accept any of the three available Covid-19 vaccines, including the newly approved Johnson & Johnson shot.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration accepted for Priority Review Pfizer Inc.’s Biologics License Application for TicoVac, the company’s tick-borne encephalitis vaccine for active immunization to prevent TBE in individuals 1 year of age and older.

The University of Oxford launched a study to assess the safety and immune response of the Covid-19 vaccine the company has developed with AstraZeneca Plc in children for the first time.