Heat Toll Rises; J&J OK for Delta; Another Round of Drug Price Increases

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The heat-related death toll nears 100 in Washington and Oregon combined. (New York Times)

Johnson & Johnson announced that its COVID shot produced strong neutralizing antibody activity against the Delta variant (B.1.617.2).

Concern grows over a possible new surge in the U.S. (CNN)

Ahead of the Fourth of July weekend, an emergency physician — with unvaccinated children — offers suggestions about safe holiday gatherings. (CNN)

About 1,000 U.S. counties have COVID vaccination rates of less than 30%, mostly in the South and Midwest. (CNBC)

As of about 8 a.m. ET, the estimated COVID-19 toll in the nation included 33,680,524 deaths and 605,035, increases of 14,326 and 317, respectively, since the same time Thursday.

Emergence of the Delta variant has sparked new concern about how to prevent its spread and the role that facemasks should play. (The Hill)

Russia, where vaccine hesitancy is widespread, finds itself in the midst of a surge in COVID-19 cases and deaths. (Reuters)

Merck said it plans to voluntarily withdraw its “dangling approval” of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for third-line gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancers; an advisory panel told FDA to pull the accelerated approval earlier this year.

Air concentrations of the carcinogen formaldehyde in certain parts of Houston were discovered at levels 13 times the EPA’s chronic health screening level, according to a Houston Health Department report. (Environmental Integrity Project)

NIH will award as much as $400,000 to support strategies to analyze a large dataset of first-time pregnancies and identify risk factors for adverse outcomes.

The FDA released an action plan to reduce the risk of water- and food-borne illness related to Cyclospora cayetanensis contamination.

To have school-age children fully vaccinated against COVID before the fall term begins, there is no time like the present. (CNN)

Cruise lines walk a tightrope in response to Florida’s ban on businesses requiring proof of vaccination. (NBC News)

Summer of freedom, summer of joy? Not so much for frontline healthcare workers. (New York Times)

Vision loss has emerged as a key adverse effect of the “black fungus” infection accompanying COVID-19 in India. (Fox News)

Lupin Pharmaceuticals announced that the FDA extended approval of secnidazole (Solosec) for trichomoniasis, in addition to bacterial vaginosis.

While Adlon Therapeutics announced approval of updated prescribing information for methylphenidate HCl (Adhansia ER) to reflect symptom control of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in adults for as long as 16 hours.

As an “adverse effect” of COVID-19, many pediatric patients with major psychiatric problems spend days in emergency rooms, awaiting admission to psychiatric units. (ABC News)

Mixed messages about COVID vaccination in Australia have created confusion and contributed to vaccine hesitancy. (CNBC)

Big Pharma gets ready to unload another round of drug price increases. (Fierce Pharma)

With guidance from the National Eating Disorders Association, social media giant Pinterest announced that it will no longer post ads related to weight loss. (NPR)

The D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine has subpoenaed Facebook records related to the social media platform’s handling of misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic. (Politico)

Identification of gene variants that protect against obesity will likely launch a search for drugs that target these variants. (Science)