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A new review of 15 studies analyzed by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) shows COVID-19 vaccination is protective against developing symptoms of long COVID, or symptoms lasting longer than 4 weeks after the initial infection. The UKHSA said approximately 2% of people in the United Kingdom with COVID-19 have gone on to develop long COVID, with the most common symptoms being lingering fatigue, shortness of breath, and muscle and joint pain. (2/17)

A pair of studies yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) suggest good, durable protection of COVID-19 vaccines against recurrent infection. Researchers from Clalit Health Services in Tel Aviv, Israel, retrospectively analyzed the electronic health records of 83,356 recipients of at least one dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine after recovery from infection and 65,676 unvaccinated survivors. (Van Beusekom, 2/17)

The Maryland Department of Health will begin offering COVID-19 vaccine booster shots at Maryland’s six casinos, Gov. Larry Hogan announced Thursday. The expansion is part of the governor’s booster action plan, which includes the $2 million VaxCash 2.0 Promotion with the Maryland Lottery to further incentivize Marylanders to get a booster shot against COVID-19 and its variants. “Getting a booster shot is a safe bet on your health, and millions of Marylanders have already stepped up to get one,” Hogan said in a statement. “These clinics are another way to get more vaccines to the community, and I want to thank our casinos across the state for being such great community partners.” (2/18)

Although new federal data suggests that the effectiveness of booster shots wanes after about four months, the Biden administration is not planning to recommend fourth doses of the coronavirus vaccine anytime soon. “We simply don’t have enough data to know that it’s a good thing to do,” Dr. Peter Marks, who heads the division of the Food and Drug Administration that regulates vaccines, said in an interview this week. (LaFraniere, 2/17)

New vaccine guidelines call for people who are immunocompromised to get their 4th vaccine shot earlier than previously was recommended — but that’s not the only advice one Utah doctor had this week. “These are people that work in the community. These are students. These are teachers. These are children. They’re really everybody. And it’s very common to have someone in your life with a major immunocompromising condition, especially among patients who may not share that information,” said Dr. Hannah Imlay, a professor of infectious diseases who specializes in immunocompromised patients at University of Utah Health. (Alberty, 2/17)

Although Pfizer (PFE) agreed to make its Covid-19 pill available in 95 low and middle-income countries, the company is simultaneously filing patents in dozens of other nations representing nearly half of the global population, raising fresh questions about restricted access, according to a new report. Such a patent strategy is expected given the potential for the pill, called Paxlovid, to generate significant revenue. Last week, Pfizer forecasted sales of $22 billion this year, although that could rise depending on whether additional contracts are signed or extended with countries not covered by the deal with the Medicines Patent Pool. (Silverman, 2/17)

European Union drug regulators said they will discuss Merck & Co.’s antiviral pill next week amid a report that the drug faces potential rejection. A panel of the European Medicines Agency will consider the drug’s effectiveness at the meeting, Marco Cavaleri, the regulator’s head of biological health threats and vaccines strategy, said at a briefing on Thursday. He declined to comment on the robustness of the evidence to back the pill. (Mulier, 2/17)