09.30.20 (Wired.com)
| A new aid package moves forward in the House, Europe approves a 15-minute Covid-19 test, and researchers propose applying the US HIV/AIDS strategy to Covid-19. Here’s what you should know: Pelosi and Mnuchin collaborate in the hopes of passing a skinnier stimulus bill before the election House Democrats’ new, less expensive $2.2 trillion aid package may come up for a vote as soon as today. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin spoke at length yesterday in the hope of reaching a deal for coronavirus relief before the election on November 3. The new bill includes another round of $1,200 direct checks to taxpayers, plus $500 per dependent, and would extend the Paycheck Protection Program. 15-minute Covid-19 test is approved for commercial use in Europe A Covid-19 antigen test that returns results in 15 minutes was approved for use in Europe today. The test is portable and can be done at the point of care. It should be commercially available in participating countries by the end of the month. It was granted emergency use authorization in the States in July, but the FDA recommends that negative results be confirmed by another, more precise testing method. Now its manufacturer says a new clinical study affirming its accuracy has been submitted to the FDA for review. Public health experts propose modeling national Covid-19 strategy on the HIV/AIDS response A group of HIV researchers has proposed using the US’s National HIV/AIDS Strategy as the blueprint for a comprehensive, nationwide Covid-19 response. The US’s current predicament is similar to its early days of HIV in that different federal agencies were left to handle elements of a response on their own in the absence of a national plan. If that disease doesn’t provide a sufficient model, other existing national plans for fighting antibiotic-resistant bacteria or pandemic influenza might. |