12.02.20 (Wired.com)
| The UK approves its first coronavirus vaccine, lawmakers announce a $908 billion stimulus plan, and two teams search for the virus’s origin. Here’s what you should know:Headlines UK regulator approves Pfizer and BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine The UK medicine regulator has approved Pfizer and BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine, making the country the first in the world to do so. The UK has already ordered 40 million doses—enough for 20 million people—and the first 800,000 are due to arrive in the next few days. They will go first to elderly people living in group homes and their caretakers, then to anyone over 80 as well as to healthcare and social workers. The first vaccinations are likely to happen at hospitals that already have the facilities to store the vaccine at ultra-cold temperatures. Bipartisan group announces $908 billion coronavirus stimulus plan On Tuesday a bipartisan group of lawmakers put forth a $908 billion coronavirus stimulus plan. It includes provisions for $300 a week in unemployment benefits for the next four months, $160 billion in funding for state and local governments, a temporary moratorium on some coronavirus-related lawsuits against companies, and more. It was drafted as negotiations between Senate leadership and the administration stalled. Two global teams are searching for the origin of the novel coronavirus Two teams of international researchers are working to trace SARS-CoV-2 back to its origin and, hopefully, discern lessons that can help stop something like this from happening again. Spearheaded by the WHO and The Lancet, the missions face both scientific and political obstacles. Virus spillovers from animals to humans are often less linear than one would think. And the Chinese and US governments have both peddled questionable theories about the virus’s origins for political gain. |