Top in ID: HHS funds mRNA pandemic flu vaccine development; uptake of new RSV vaccines low

HHS will give Moderna approximately $176 million to support the development of a messenger RNA pandemic influenza vaccine, according to an agency press release.

The announcement comes as the United States faces an outbreak of avian influenza. So far, health officials identified four confirmed human cases of avian influenza A(H5N1), or bird flu. The CDC considers risk to the general public to be low. However, to prepare for future public health emergencies, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, through which HHS awarded the funds, issued a request for proposal to Moderna and other companies for the development of mRNA vaccines for influenza viruses, including bird flu.

“Adding this technology to our pandemic flu toolkit enhances our ability to be nimble and quick against the circulating strains and their potential variants,” Dawn O’ Connell, HHS assistant secretary for preparedness and response, said in the release.

It was the top story in infectious disease last week.

Another top story was about the low uptake of new vaccines against respiratory syncytial virus. Healio spoke with experts regarding the factors that caused this low uptake, including lack of awareness and real-world data on the vaccines.

Read these and more top stories in infectious disease below:

US gives Moderna $176 million to develop mRNA pandemic flu vaccine

HHS announced that it will give Moderna around $176 million to accelerate the development of a mRNA-based pandemic influenza vaccine amid an ongoing outbreak of avian influenza. Read more.

Will new approvals, stronger recommendations improve RSV vaccine uptake?

Last fall and winter, older adults and pregnant women in the United States had a chance to receive the world’s first approved vaccines for RSV. Read more.

Should the CDC do away with shared clinical decision-making?

Rather than telling a patient they should get a vaccine, the CDC’s shared clinical decision-making recommendations advise patients to speak to providers about certain vaccines and decide on an individual basis if they should receive them. Read more.

CDC: Fourth US dairy farm worker tests positive for bird flu

A dairy farm worker in Colorado became the fourth person to test positive for avian influenza in the ongoing outbreak affecting dairy cows in the United States, the CDC announced. Read more.

Beta-lactam de-escalation may be an important tool in AMR prevention

De-escalation of beta-lactam antibiotics was associated with a decreased risk of new resistance development compared with no change in beta-lactam antibiotic use, researchers found. Read more.