Category: Brief Messages or Announcements

CDC ACIP Meeting Today on Vaccines

There’s a CDC ACIP Meeting scheduled to start at 8:00 AM EST today (caught me off guard). The slides are here.

Noteworthy: Dr. Denise Jamieson, MD, MPH is chair of the CMV Working Group. She is Vice President for Medical Affairs and the Tyrone D. Artz Dean, Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine at University of Iowa. In the Q&A session following the Covid-19 vaccine presentation, Dr. Jamieson expressed a preference for a universal recommendation (citing implementation and uptake challenges, which other attendees mentioned as well) for the Covid-19 vaccine as opposed to a risk-based or permissive recommendation. See slide labeled “Discussion” below:

There was no vote scheduled for today’s meeting on the Covid-19 vaccine.

The presentation by Moderna on the new Covid-19 vaccine, mRNA-1283, was helpful. I gather there will be an FDA meeting about it in June.

Jim vs Donald Trump on Cribbage Pro

President Donald Trump and I made a deal about his plan to make Canada the 51st state of America. If President Trump wins, he goes ahead and tries it. If I win, he lets it go.

I won.

This is satire! Happy April Fool’s Day!

Stead Family Children’s Hospital NICU Gets a Wave from the AAP with New Designation

The University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit was recently recognized by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) as one of only two such units in the U.S. having the highest levels of neonatal care.

It reminds me of the Iowa Hawkeye football games where, at the end of the first quarter, all the players and football fans wave from the field to the pediatric patients and their families watching the game from UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital. It’s called the Wave, one of the best traditions in college sports.

Well, the AAP waves to Stead Family Children’s Hospital NICU.

FDA Announces Clozapine REMS Program Eliminated

As of February 24, 2025, the FDA has eliminated the Clozapine Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) program. See the FDA link for details. Below is the announcement.

“Latest Update

February 24, 2025 – Beginning today, FDA does not expect prescribers, pharmacies, and patients to participate in the risk evaluation and mitigation strategies (REMS) program for clozapine or to report results of absolute neutrophil count (ANC) blood tests before pharmacies dispense clozapine. FDA still recommends that prescribers monitor patients’ ANC according to the monitoring frequencies described in the prescribing information. Information about severe neutropenia will remain in the prescribing information for all clozapine medicines, including in the existing Boxed Warnings.    

Although the risk of severe neutropenia with clozapine still exists, FDA has determined that the REMS program for clozapine is no longer necessary to ensure the benefits of the medicine outweigh that risk. Eliminating the REMS is expected to decrease the burden on the health care delivery system and improve access to clozapine. FDA has notified the manufacturers that the clozapine REMS must be eliminated. FDA has instructed the clozapine manufacturers to formally submit a modification to eliminate the Clozapine REMS and to update the prescribing information, including removing mandatory reporting of ANC blood tests to the REMS program.  

In the coming months, FDA will work with the clozapine manufacturers to update the prescribing information and eliminate the Clozapine REMS.”–FDA

New Snow Shovels!

The new shovels were delivered today. Both required some assembly. I’m the least handy person when it comes to that. I did OK with the snow plow but Sena had to come to the rescue when it came to the cordless snow shovel. The handle was tricky for some reason.

The batteries for the electric shovel needed minimal charging and it roared to life. It doesn’t sound like a toy.

Now all we need is snow. I can wait.

Happy Dad Joke Your Way Into the Holidays!

Happy Christmas Eve! Hey, I found all these Dad Jokes on the web. These ought to keep you busy well into New Year’s Eve and beyond. And remember, you don’t have to be a Dad to tell Dad jokes. It might help to attend Dad-joke University of Humour (DUH) though.

Here’s kind of a dad joke about our red Hippeastrum, which bloomed nicely!

And you can hear a dad joke in the Claymation Christmas video below (hint: a taxi is involved).

The Greatest Christmas Record of All Time

Last Friday night on the Big Mo Blues Show on KCCK radio, I heard Eric Clapton sing a song that I later found out was a cover of a song originally co-written by William Bell and Booker T. Jones, “Every Day Will Be Like a Holiday.” A Wikipedia entry about it reports that it has been called the greatest Christmas record of all time by Hot Press magazine in 2017. It has been covered by many musicians.

That song is still in my head. I had never heard of William Bell. He’s been a top rhythm and blues performer for decades. He’s 85 years old and is still going strong. I hope he has a lot more Christmases to go.

CDC Meeting Results in Recommending a 2nd Covid-19 Vaccine Dose for Those 65yr and Older and for the Immunocompromised

I missed the October CDC meeting which resulted in a decision to recommend a 2nd dose of the Covid-19 vaccine for those 65 years and older and for the immunocompromised.

The Evidence to Recommendations (EtR) slides by Roper indicated Covid-19 circulates year round, peaking in late summer and winter.

The recommendation that those in the above-named populations should get 2 doses of Covid-19 vaccine spaced 6 months apart seems based on reasonable considerations.

It looks like the vaccine would be the same as the one previously recommended for this year.