Yanked COVID Gene Sequences; Britney Wants to Be Freed; Smuggling Remdesivir

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COVAX will be focusing less on partnering with rich countries as part of an internal overhaul. (Reuters)

Why were early Chinese COVID cases purged from a gene sequencing database? (Wall Street Journal)

As of 8 a.m. EDT today, the unofficial U.S. COVID-19 toll reached 33,578,819 cases and 602,838 deaths, reflecting increases of 12,744 and 373, respectively, since this time a day ago.

Missouri is a cautionary tale for other states, holding the dubious honor of having the highest rate of new COVID infections in the country. (AP)

Of young adults who had mild COVID-19 during the first wave in Norway, more than half still had symptoms 6 months later. (Nature Medicine)

U.S. border protection agents have confiscated shipments of contraband remdesivir (Veklury) being smuggled to Mexico. (Wall Street Journal)

Britney Spears spoke out at a hearing about her professional and medical struggles as a person managed under a conservatorship. (Variety)

Biogen said it’s working to speed up the confirmatory trial that’s required for aducanumab (Aduhelm), the newly approved Alzheimer’s drug, to stay on the market. (Reuters)

Coronavirus survivors in India who have lost an eye to mucormycosis tell their stories. (Washington Post)

Orchestras can cut down on airborne disease transmission by seating wind instruments closer to vents or stage doors. (Science Advances)

Doctors need mental health support and some have been left in distress during the pandemic. (Vox)

A week-long course of doxycycline beat azithromycin as a treatment for rectal chlamydia in men who have sex with men, according to a randomized trial. (New England Journal of Medicine)

Members of the Uganda delegation to the Tokyo Olympics are quarantining after a coach tested positive for COVID-19 during screening at Narita airport. (France24)

Japan’s vaccination campaign remains sluggish before the Olympics and may be attributed in part to a shortage of doctors and nurses in the country. (CNBC)

The COVID state of emergency in New York expires on Thursday and will not be renewed. (syracuse.com)

People receiving a coronavirus vaccine in Massachusetts get a chance to win two new iPads: one for them and one for someone who had encouraged them to get vaccinated. (NBC10 Boston)

Women vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 during pregnancy (or during the first 2 postpartum months) are being studied in the new MOMI-VAX study.

Cyclosporine ophthalmic emulsion 0.1% eye drops (Verkazia) was approved to treat vernal keratoconjunctivitis in children and adults, Santen Inc. announced.

Film director Nick Guthe is raising awareness about long COVID after his wife’s pain and suicide. (CNN)

University of California is ending affiliations with hospitals that impose religious restrictions on care such as abortions, euthanasia, and assisted suicide. (Los Angeles Times)