COVID-19

If you're sick and tired of hearing about yet another Omicron subvariant taking over the world you're not alone. But there is one subvariant called Centaurus, aka B.27.5, that provides a fascinating example of how a seemingly-minuscule mutation can have a profound effect on the virus. And, at no extra cost, a Dreaded Chemistry Lesson From Hell! Plus a gratuitous shot at Dr. Oz.
What is being called "Paxlovid rebound" is not uncommon. In fact, President Biden experienced just this after a course of the drug. What should be done? Drs. Henry Miller and Josh Bloom discuss just this.
How are politicians similar to bacteria? ACSH advisor Dr. Henry Miller explains.
Paxlovid, the most effective Covid drug to date has its share of critics. But is the criticism fair? Drs. Henry Miller (an ACSH advisor) and Josh Bloom examine the benefits and limitations of the drug.
Environmental Working Group claims that "obesogenic" chemicals are helping to make everybody fat. Is EWG correct? Next, do we need a COVID booster shot that specifically targets Omicron sub-variants?
There's been a lot of news, some of it fear-mongering, about Pfizer's Covid drug Paxlovid. Some people are having their symptoms return after completing the five-day course. Does that mean there is something wrong with the drug, or it's simply a property of the virus? Drs. Henry Miller and Josh Bloom try to provide an answer in Issues & Insights.
A recent study showed that Pfizer's Paxlovid, the most effective Covid drug, failed to prevent infection when given to people who were exposed to the virus but had not yet become infected. Bad news, right? Actually, no - it's quite the opposite. Here's why.
President Eisenhower worried that we were creating a scientific/technologic elite that controls the narrative and stifles heterodoxy. But the digital age and the democratization of knowledge threaten the scientific "priesthood" – much in the way the printing press threatened the controlling interest of an earlier time. The priesthood must learn to adapt to a world where it no longer has a monopoly on specialized knowledge.
Dr. Fauci, along with two of his colleagues, writes in a journal on the concept of herd immunity and COVID-19. Buckle up; it will be a bumpy ride, at least in the media.
Should the COVID drug Paxlovid be available without a prescription? Some argue that pharmacists should be able to distribute the drug to people who have tested positive for COVID while others, including the AMA, believe that only physicians should be able to prescribe the drug because of some potentially dangerous drug-drug interactions. Cato Institute's Dr. Jeffrey Singer weighs in.
Canada has approved Medicago's plant-based COVID-19 vaccine. The new shot itself is an impressive development, but the technology it's built on suggests that we may be growing more drugs in greenhouses in the coming years.
There’s considerable discussion about whether COVID vaccines are responsible for the barrage of variants that keep hitting us. Is selective pressure driving this – like with bacteria and antibiotics? Let's take a look.