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For the first time since the pandemic started, Idaho activated its “crisis standards of care” in two districts in the northern part of the state due to staffing shortages and a lack of ICU beds; only four of the state’s 400 ICU beds remain open. (Boise State Public Radio, New York Times)

World Health Organization officials said that COVID, like the flu, is likely here to stay. (CNBC)

As of 8 a.m. EDT Wednesday, the unofficial COVID-19 toll in the U.S. was 40,282,910 cases and 650,691 deaths, increases of 263,708 and 1,576, respectively, from this time a day ago.

That death toll includes 13 school workers in Miami who have died of COVID-19 since mid-August. (Washington Post)

More than a fourth of the roughly 1 million new weekly cases involve children, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, with weekly cases in kids hitting its highest point for the pandemic.

A new video game? An ice cream cake? Some soon-to-be 12 year olds just want a COVID shot for their birthday. (New York Times)

As of Tuesday, 75% of U.S. adults have received at least one dose of a COVID vaccine, and 64.3% are fully vaccinated, according to the latest CDC data.

Studies suggest that some people simply have “superhuman immunity” to COVID-19. (NPR)

CDC raised the travel alerts for Jamaica, Sri Lanka, and Brunei due to surging COVID cases in those countries. (Reuters)

With COVID and other respiratory viruses already circulating, health officials are warning of overwhelmed hospitals for the upcoming flu season. (NBC News)

FDA sent a warning letter to Kaleido Biosciences for conducting a human trial of its microbiome drug without an investigational new drug application.

Mexico’s Supreme Court unanimously voted to decriminalize abortion. (NPR)

TransMedics announced broader FDA approval of its organ-prolonging OCS Heart System for use with organs from donors after brain death.

Lawyers for Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes may portray her as a true believer of the blood diagnostic tech as part of her defense. (Reuters)

Are investigational JAK inhibitors on thin ice after the FDA’s new labeling restrictions in already approved drugs? (Fierce Biotech)

Two CNN correspondents share their personal stories to raise awareness on pediatric brain cancers.

Another casualty from the pandemic, according to the Global Fund: progress in the fight against HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria.

An outbreak of meningitis in the Tshopo province of the Democratic Republic of Congo has killed 129 people. (Reuters)

Last Updated September 08, 2021