Califf, Robert M
Officials Wrestle With Whether to Allow New Monkeypox Vaccination Strategy
WASHINGTON — It sounded like a simple solution to the shortage of monkeypox vaccine: Merely by changing the way doses are injected, the federal government could vaccinate five times as many people with the supply it has in hand. But the approach — injecting one-fifth of the current dose into the skin instead of a […]
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As Monkeypox Spreads, U.S. Declares a Health Emergency
Gay rights activists, who have been sharply critical of the administration, have been demanding an emergency declaration for weeks. “This is all too late,” said James Krellenstein, a founder of PrEP4All, an advocacy group that works to expand treatment for people with H.I.V. “I don’t really understand why they didn’t do this weeks ago.” The […]
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F.D.A. to Weigh Over-the-Counter Sale of Contraceptive Pills
WASHINGTON — More than 60 years after the approval of oral contraceptives revolutionized women’s sexual health, the Food and Drug Administration has received its first application for a birth control pill over the counter — just as the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has put access to contraception more squarely at the […]
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Abbott Baby Formula Plant Again Stops Production, This Time Because of Flooding
A baby formula plant in Sturgis, Mich., which resumed production less than two weeks ago after a monthslong closure that exacerbated a nationwide shortage, has again shut down after parts of the facility were flooded during a severe storm. The company that operates the plant, Abbott Nutrition, said on Wednesday that it was forced to […]
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F.D.A. Chief Details ‘Shocking’ Conditions at Baby Formula Plant
The Abbott Nutrition plant in Michigan that was shut down in February, sparking a widespread baby formula shortage crisis, had a leaking roof, water pooled on the floor and cracks in key production equipment that allowed bacteria to get in and persist, Dr. Robert Califf, the head of the Food and Drug Administration, told a […]
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Baby Formula Shortage Has an Aggravating Factor: Few Producers
In the early 1990s, the nation’s biggest makers of baby formula were under fire. The three largest manufacturers, which controlled 90 percent of the U.S. market at the time, were hit with waves of state, federal and corporate lawsuits, accusing them of attempting to limit competition and using their control of the industry to fix […]
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Senate Confirms Califf as F.D.A. Chief in Tight Vote
The Senate on Tuesday narrowly confirmed Dr. Robert Califf as commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, a key federal agency that has been without a permanent chief for more than a yearlong stretch of the coronavirus pandemic. The vote was 50-46, with six Republicans crossing the aisle to support him while five Democrats opposed […]
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