September 22, 2020

The FDA announces it will tighten coronavirus vaccine authorization standards, a move widely seen as an effort to reassure the public that political pressure will not override safety. The Washington Post reports the new rules would require manufacturers to follow trial participants for at least two months after they receive the second shot, a timeline that makes an Election Day authorization nearly impossible. Trump, speaking at the UN, urges the body to hold China accountable for the pandemic, while Fauci calls the 200,000 death toll “sobering, and in some respects, stunning.”

A study finds up to 70% of KN95 masks imported from China do not meet filtration standards, raising questions about the PPE supply chain that went largely unasked during the spring procurement panic. The New York Times runs a piece headlined “The Fall Surge Is Here,” while STAT News charts the road ahead for the next 12 months, with health authorities saying it may not be until the end of 2021 before there is a degree of post-COVID normalcy. Boris Johnson says the military could be used to help enforce new lockdown rules in the UK, as the government shifts from voluntary guidance to coercive measures, and the NFL fines two more coaches for mask violations on the sidelines. Finland announces plans to deploy coronavirus-sniffing dogs at Helsinki Airport.