Did Trump Have COVID at First Debate? Cats Busted for Misinfo; Myeloma Drug Yanked

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Donald Trump tested positive for COVID-19 days before the first presidential debate against Joe Biden, according to his chief of staff at the time and other former aids; Trump denounced the claims as “fake news.” (Washington Post)

In order to track travel-related Omicron cases, the CDC ordered airlines to share data on passengers arriving to the U.S. who travelled to southern Africa over the past couple of weeks. (Reuters)

The black box that is Omicron may be changing minds about boosters. (New York Times)

An Israeli doctor, the first in his country to contract the variant, met dozens of mostly vaccinated and boosted people leading up to his positive test — so far only one contact is known to have tested positive for the variant as well. (New York Times)

GlaxoSmithKline said its authorized monoclonal antibody therapy sotrovimab still retains activity against the new variant in preclinical studies.

As of Thursday at 8 a.m. EST, the unofficial U.S. COVID-19 toll is 48,695,518 cases and 782,106 deaths, up 135,238 and 1,865, respectively from this time yesterday.

The Biden administration will extend mask mandates for travelers on buses, trains, and planes through March 2022. (CNN)

After banning new bookings on incoming international flights to thwart Omicron, Japan reversed. (AP)

Meanwhile, Dutch officials say pre-flight testing regardless of vaccine status is needed, as 90% of the passengers from South Africa who tested positive had been vaccinated. (Reuters)

Could Omicron and its many mutations have evolved in an animal host? Some experts say yes. (STAT)

In cat-related news, our furry feline friends are apparently being used to push COVID-19 misinformation online. (New York Times)

Did training for school shootings save lives in the Oxford High School shooting? (Washington Post)

Another accelerated approval goes bust — following discussions with the FDA, the multiple myeloma drug panobinostat (Farydak) will be withdrawn from the market, drugmaker Secure Bio announced.

The agency approved a subcutaneous daratumumab-hyaluronidase formulation (Darzalex Faspro) in combination with carfilzomib (Kyprolis) and dexamethasone as second-line therapy for adults with relapsed or refractory myeloma, Amgen announced.

In other coronavirus news, Novavax has a protein subunit vaccine in the works, in case you forgot. (NPR)

Bristol Myers Squibb is facing a lawsuit from employees for not allowing religious exemptions to its vaccine mandate. (Reuters)

Two Utah health systems have stopped requiring the COVID-19 vaccine for healthcare workers after a federal judge blocked the CMS rule. (FOX 13)

NBA superstar LeBron James, of the Los Angeles Lakers, is out indefinitely after testing positive for COVID-19. (TheGrio)

Germany is increasing restrictions on unvaccinated individuals in an attempt to slow its ongoing surge in cases. (Reuters)