First bird-flu infection of a human seen
DES MOINES, Iowa -- A Colorado prison inmate has tested positive for bird flu in the first recent confirmed case of a human infected with the disease that has resulted in the deaths of millions of chickens and turkeys, but federal officials say they still see little threat to the general public.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday evening that the man who tested positive had been in a prerelease program and was helping remove chickens from an infected farm. The man reported fatigue for a few days but recovered, state health and CDC officials said.
The man was isolated and continues being treated with an antiviral drug. Other people involved in the bird removal operation in Colorado have tested negative, but they are being retested out of an abundance of caution.
"The inmate was part of a prison work crew composed of inmates nearing release which had been working at the farm before a case of bird flu was confirmed there on April 19," said Lisa Wiley, a spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Corrections.
Despite the infection, the CDC considers the threat to the general public to be low because spread of the virus to people requires close contact with an infected bird.
Signals that could raise the public health risk might include multiple reports of infections in people from exposure to birds, or identification of spread from one infected person to a close contact. The CDC also is monitoring the virus for genetic changes, which could indicate the virus is adapting to spread more readily.
FDA sets children's virus vaccine review
WASHINGTON -- The Food and Drug Administration on Friday set tentative dates in June to publicly review covid-19 vaccines for the youngest American children, typically the final step before authorizing shots.
The announcement follows months of frustration among families impatient for a chance to vaccinate their little children, along with complaints from politicians bemoaning the slow pace.
The FDA said it plans to convene its outside panel of experts June 8 and 21-22 to review applications from Moderna and Pfizer.
Currently only children 5 or older can be vaccinated in the U.S. with Pfizer's shot, leaving 18 million younger tots unprotected.
On Thursday, Moderna submitted data to the FDA that it hopes will prove its two low-dose shots can protect children younger than 6. It has filed FDA applications for older kids, but the FDA hasn't ruled on them. It's not clear if the data for older children will be considered at the June meetings.
Pfizer is expected to announce soon if three of its even-smaller-dose shots work for the littlest kids, months after the disappointing discovery that two doses weren't quite strong enough.
N.Y. judge orders Aug. 23 primaries
ALBANY, N.Y. -- New York will hold its congressional and state Senate primaries on Aug. 23, a state judge ordered Friday.
Steuben County Judge Patrick McAllister said that special master Jonathan Cervas will finish drawing up new maps by May 20.
In the meantime, state and local election officials will prepare to once again hold separate primaries in June and August.
New York is set to hold gubernatorial and state Assembly primaries in June, unless lawmakers decide to delay.
New York's highest court rejected Wednesday new congressional and state Senate maps that had widely been seen as favoring Democrats.
The majority decision largely agreed with Republican voters who argued the district boundaries were unconstitutionally gerrymandered.
The ruling also dashed Democrats' national redistricting hopes, which leaned heavily on their ability to gerrymander New York state to maximize the number of seats they could win in the U.S. House of Representatives.
A state board of elections spokesperson said Thursday the state is asking the U.S. Justice Department to see if a federal court might need to review any change to the date of the primary.
Georgian pleads guilty in Capitol case
A second member of the extremist group Oath Keepers pleaded guilty Friday to seditious conspiracy in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and will cooperate with federal prosecutors.
Brian Ulrich, 44, of Guyton, Ga., was arrested on charges of joining a group of right-wing Oath Keepers members who planned and organized travel to Washington, stashed firearms in an Arlington, Va., hotel, and sent several individuals with tactical gear, helmets and radios into the Capitol.
The group's leader, Stewart Rhodes, was arrested and charged with seditious conspiracy in a superseding indictment with Ulrich and nine others accused of plotting to impede President Joe Biden's inauguration by force. Rhodes has pleaded not guilty.
Ulrich pleaded guilty to two of five felony counts -- seditious conspiracy and obstructing an official proceeding. Each is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
Prosecutors agreed in a plea deal to drop three other counts, and they could also request leniency for Ulrich, who otherwise could face 63 to 78 months in prison under federal guidelines.
Ulrich briefly grew emotional as U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta read the penalties but declined when the judge asked if he needed a short break.
"No your honor. ... It's only going to get harder," he said.