Africa

Cameroon starts world's first malaria vaccine program for children Cameroon will be the first country to routinely give children a new malaria vaccine as the shots are rolled out in Africa. AP News

Cameroon will be the first country to routinely give children a new malaria vaccine as the shots are rolled out in Africa.

The campaign due to start Monday was described by officials as a milestone in the decades-long effort to curb the mosquito-spread disease on the continent, which accounts for 95% of the world’s malaria deaths.

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Report: Measles cases and deaths increase worldwide, as childhood vaccinations rates decline A dangerous decline in the rate of children vaccinated against measles is spurring a global increase in cases and deaths from the highly contagious virus, according to a new report. Helen Branswell STAT

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Pfizer more than doubles price of lifesaving Covid-19 medication Paxlovid as US transitions out of pandemic phase | CNN The price of the lifesaving Covid-19 antiviral medication Paxlovid will more than double as the United States transitions out of the emergency phase of the pandemic, drugmaker Pfizer said Wednesday. Meg Tirrell CNN

The list price, before insurance, will be $1,390 for a five-day course, Pfizer said in a statement. That’s 2.6 times higher than the $530-per-course price paid by the US government, which provided Paxlovid free to patients during the pandemic. The Wall Street Journal first reported the new price.