It is Triple 8 today. It is Friday. Congress is gone. The humidity has fallen and the high tomorrow is only supposed to be 80. (Congress leaves, so does hot air). There is every reason to feel right with the world.
And, it being August, things were admittedly a bit on the slow side.
- FDA Approves New Flu Vaccine Mix for 2008-9 – The agency announced that it has approved this year’s seasonal influenza vaccines that include new strains of the virus likely to cause flu in the United States during the 2008-2009 season. The six vaccines and their manufacturers are: CSL Limited, Afluria; GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals, Fluarix; ID Biomedical Corporation of Quebec, FluLaval; MedImmune Vaccines Inc., FluMist; Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Limited, Fluvirin; and Sanofi Pasteur Inc., Fluzone.
- IR Communications Folks – Take Note – SEC Provides Guidance to Open Up Use of Corporate Web Sites for Disclosures to Investors – While this affects all publicly held companies, pharma take note. This happened on July 30, but I only caught it yesterday. Their work here is quite extensive. In issuing this proposed Guidance, the SEC is trying desperately to catch up to Internet developments, and not exactly being very speedy about it. They even provided a vid on the press release to help you understand. Maybe soon – their own YouTube channel. Perhaps the FDA will catch up as well and begin to at least think about providing some guidance to pharma companies on the uses of digital media. Maybe?
- International AIDS Conference – The XVII International AIDS Conference began last Sunday in Mexico City. The Kaiser Family Foundation covered it well on their site, but failed to feed vids to their YouTube site on a timely basis. That was a disappointment, but nevertheless, most of what they did post from this week I’m slapping up here for those interested. Here is are interviews with the head of the IAS and Kevin Fenton discussing the startling CDC numbers about HIV prevalence in the U.S:
Interview with Craig McClure, International AIDS Society Director – McClure discusses some unique aspects to this year’s International AIDS Conference and previews the science, prevention and treatment programs.
Larry Levitt, vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation and editor-in-chief of kaisernetwork.org, talks with Dr. Fenton about newly-released estimates of the number of annual HIV infections in the U.S.
That’s if folks, have a good weekend.
