Monday, November 30 top news briefs
It is Monday, November 30. Here are today’s top news briefs.
Moderna will apply today for FDA authorization for its vaccine today. Moderna said new data shows that the vaccine is 94% effective at preventing Covid-19 and 100% effective at preventing severe cases. In trials over the past months involving 30,000 people, the company provided vaccines to 15,000 people and only 11 developed Covid-19. They provided 15,000 other people with placebos (no vaccine, just saline) and 185 of them developed Covid-19. So that’s a big difference. Moderna also said that the 11 who received Covid-19 after getting the vaccine did not develop severe illness, while 30 of those who received placebos became severely ill and one of them died — because the placebos had “nothing’ in it. Moderna’s chief medical officer, Dr. Tal Zaks, said he has a full expectation that the vaccine will change the course of the pandemic. He said he became emotional when he saw the results and allowed himself to cry.
Pfizer and BioNTech has already applied for emergency authorization after their trials found their vaccine to be 95% effective. News reports said Pfizer is now flying out batches of its vaccine to major cities in preparation for quick distribution when they get a green light from the FDA.
Dr. Anthony Fauci said it could take several months before a vaccine is approved for children under 12. He explained to NBC News that children and pregnant women are vulnerable so they want to make sure that a vaccine is established in an adult population before moving on to tests involving children.
Dr. Deborah Birx from the White House Coronavirus Task Force told CBS News that those who traveled for the Thanksgiving holiday and gathered with many people should assume they are infected with Covid-19 and get tested in five to 10 days. She said you should not go near other people without a mask in the meanwhile.
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The actor who played Darth Vader in the first three Star Wars films, Dave Prowse, passed away on Saturday at the age of 85. His daughter said he died from Covid-19. Prowse was a 6’6 tall bodybuilder and provided the “body” of Darth Vader’s character. The voice was dubbed by James Earl Jones.
California’s Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has blocked parole for Leslie Van Houten, who was a member of the Manson Family and convicted of murdering Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in California in 1969 when she was 19 years old. She is now 71 and is serving a life sentence. This is the fourth time that the California governor blocked her parole.
That’s all the top news briefs for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/30/health/moderna-vaccine-fda-eua-application/index.html
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/pfizers-covid-19-vaccine-arrives-at-chicagos-ohare-airport-source/2382026/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-thanksgiving-deborah-birx-testing-face-the-nation/
https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/video/fauci-it-s-going-to-be-months-before-vaccine-is-approved-for-children-96815173876
https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-55117704
https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/celebrity-deaths/star-wars-actor-dave-prowse-who-played-darth-vader-has-died-aged-85/news-story/c5c2615b7b680c7f76f5556367b47c6c
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/11/29/charles-manson-parole-rejected-leslie-van-houten/6455929002/