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Top public health officials and long-term care stakeholders have both praised West Virginia for how quickly it’s been able to distribute and administer COVID-19 vaccines to long-term care facilities. Last week, the state announced that it’s now administering doses to more seniors after finishing initial vaccine rounds at all of its nursing homes. Its success sent experts digging to see just how the state was able to master its long-term care vaccination program, while so many others are struggling. “The first important point is that West Virginia opted out of a federal partnership program that relies on the giant CVS and Walgreens pharmacy chains to deliver vaccines to nursing homes.

Many are counting the hours until Inauguration Day, when Joe Biden becomes the nation’s 46th presidents. He inherits the country from a dysfunctional administration that will leave behind a spate of unimaginable carnage, more of which will be revealed in the coming weeks. Biden’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic will be front and center on his agenda. Unfortunately, it will take the first two years of his administration to gain traction in the battle. By that time, history suggests that Republicans will likely have gained control of both the House and the Senate, a common phenomenon in midterm elections. As such, COVID-19 will not only define Biden’s presidency, it may be its undoing. 

As COVID-19 vaccine production ramps up, with millions of doses distributed into the nation’s immunization supply chain every week, state and county public health departments are working to immunize a growing cohort of the population. The CDC recently reduced the age eligibility guidance for immediate immunization to 65 years, and added younger adults (those 16 to 64 years old) with underlying health conditions including cancer, chronic kidney disease, COPD, heart disease, obesity, sickle cell disease, diabetes and smoking, and those immunocompromised due to organ transplant. 

Morocco’s OCP group, world’s major phosphates and fertilizers producer, has been selected among the seven finalists vying for the prestigious Frank Edelman Award 2021. The Moroccan state-owned company has been commended for using optimization models to enhance production, marketing and logistical processes to facilitate global distribution. The focus on optimization has boosted OCP’s innovation and entrepreneurship. Leading companies such as Amazon, Ali baba, JD.com, Lenevo, medical center “Memorial Sloan Kettering” and UN World Food Program (WFP) have also been shortlisted for the Franz Edelman award which recognizes and rewards outstanding example of operations research, management science, and advanced analytics.

The U.K.'s highly contagious B.1.1.7 variant of the coronavirus is starting to spread throughout the U.S., making the already difficult task of slowing the virus even more challenging. With recent studies confirming that the new variant of the virus is significantly more transmissible than the current dominant COVID strain in the States, some experts are warning that it's safest to immediately stop doing certain activities to avoid the new COVID strain. Read on to see what you should be staying away from as the pandemic rages on, and for an update on where the U.K. variant is already, check out The New COVID Strain Is Now in These 12 States.