Fox Health

Pfizer/BioNTech have initiated an application for full FDA approval of its COVID-19 vaccine booster shot for individuals aged 16 and up, the companies announced Wednesday, noting an expected completion by the end of the week.

Overall rates of drug use among American adolescents held stable six months into COVID-19 pandemic, however shifting trends indicated an uptick in nicotine and prescription drug misuse while alcohol use fell.

Salmonella outbreaks linked to meats like prosciutto and salami have been reported in 17 states, sickening dozens and hospitalizing at least 12 people.

Johnson & Johnson said Wednesday that a second dose of its COVID-19 vaccine was found in a study to generate a strong immune response, justifying a booster shot after eight months.

Unvaccinated individuals are 29 times more likely to be hospitalized from COVID-19 than those who are fully vaccinated, according to a study from the Centers for Disease Control.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s leading infectious disease expert, during a White House briefing Tuesday appealed to eligible unvaccinated Americans to roll up their sleeves, receive shots and accelerate the timeline to the pandemic’s end.

An entire town in Texas was forced to shut down after half of the residents tested positive for COVID-19.

Diabetes surged among American children, teens and adolescents to 2017, according to new federally-funded research spanning nearly 20 years finding a 45% increase in type 1 diagnoses, and a 95% growth in type 2 diagnoses.

The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, now marketed as Comirnaty, was granted full FDA approval on Monday, but when could vaccines developed by Johnson & Johnson and Moderna win full approval?

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla on Tuesday said the company believes a COVID-19 vaccine-resistant variant will likely one day emerge, though the company has a system in place to turn around a variant-specific jab within some three months.

Children under 12 should not yet receive COVID-19 vaccines, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), as regulators await data on safety, efficacy and dosing.

Igor Vovkovinskiy, the tallest man in the United States, has died in Minnesota. He was 38.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top disease expert in the U.S., said in an interview Monday that he misspoke when he said the country may get the virus under control by fall 2022—another full year.

Federal data indicates one-third of adolescents aged 12-15 are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as the school year gets underway amid rising infections and a divide over mask mandates.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reiterated a warning against the use of ivermectin as a COVID-19 treatment amid growing reports of individuals taking the drug often used to treat parasitic worms in animals.

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on Sunday called the number of novel coronavirus cases nationwide "deeply concerning," adding that there are more children being hospitalized in the United States with COVID-19 than at any other time during the pandemic as a result of the highly contagious delta variant.

Researchers released a nutritional index this week aiming to inform guidelines and help Americans achieve healthier and more environmentally stable diets. The index ranked foods by minutes gained or lost off healthy life per serving, with processed meats and sugary drinks among the biggest offenders.

AstraZeneca released Phase 3 data showing promising results for a combination antibody therapy that prevents COVID-19, possibly opening the door to an alternative option for people who may not see the full protective benefits from the currently authorized vaccines.

Over 121,000 children tested positive for COVID-19 last week, data revealed, marking a 5% increase in cases since the beginning of the month.

The evidence behind a federal plan to rollout COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to Americans beginning the week of Sept. 20, pending FDA review, has left some experts divided.