Holiday Breaks COVID Travel Record; Meet the Alpha Variant; New Mask Rules for Camps

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More than 2 million people passed through airport security checkpoints on Friday, the highest number of travelers since the start of the pandemic. (Washington Post)

To simplify the naming of coronavirus strains, the World Health Organization (WHO) will now label variants of concern with letters of the Greek alphabet, with the U.K. variant now dubbed Alpha, the Indian variant called Delta, and so forth.

Idaho Gov. Brad Little (R) repealed an executive order banning mask mandates, which had been signed by the state’s lieutenant governor while he was out of town. (NBC News)

As of Tuesday at 8:00 a.m. EDT, the unofficial COVID-19 toll in the U.S. was 33,264,595 cases and 594,568 deaths, increases of 120,417 and 3,871, respectively, since this time last week.

Some of the relaxed state regulations on telemedicine, liquor, and medical marijuana — put in place to make COVID restrictions more bearable — might be here to stay. (Politico)

Moderna filed for full FDA approval of its COVID-19 vaccine, the company announced.

On Friday, the EU’s drug regulator approved the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for use in kids ages 12 to 15. (Wall Street Journal)

CDC announced that it is investigating cases of myocarditis and pericarditis after injection with mRNA vaccines, but emphasized it still recommends vaccination for all people 12 and older.

The agency also relaxed its mask guidance for summer camps, saying fully vaccinated kids and counselors can go maskless. (CNN)

WHO’s top emergency expert said the search for COVID’s origin is being “poisoned by politics“; separately, the head of the organization called for an international treaty to strengthen pandemic preparedness and fight future outbreaks. (Reuters)

Peru said its true COVID-19 death toll is nearly three times the reported count, making it one of the hardest-hit countries in the world. (New York Times)

Following detection of a new coronavirus variant, Vietnam banned all nonessential activities in Ho Chi Minh City, and plans to test all 9 million residents. (Washington Post)

In the U.K., all people employed by the public healthcare system may be required to get the COVID-19 vaccine. (AP)

The FDA warned an online vendor to stop marketing bleach products as a treatment for COVID-19.

In other news:

• The FDA approved omadacycline (Nuzyra), an oral regimen for treating community-acquired bacterial pneumonia, announced Paratek Pharmaceuticals.
• On Friday the agency approved infigratinib (Truseltiq) for the treatment of metastatic cholangiocarcinoma carrying certain mutations.
• Climate change caused 37% of all global heat deaths over the last 30 years, according to a new study. (AP)
• A man in China has been confirmed as the first human case of the H10N3 bird flu. (Reuters)
• As the deadline approaches for an FDA decision on aducanumab — Biogen’s investigational Alzheimer’s drug aimed at slowing deterioration in the brain — proponents and critics continue to debate whether the clinical trial data is strong enough for approval. (Washington Post)