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FDA gives full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine
Pentagon considers deadline extension U.S. military looks at staying in Afghanistan past Aug. 31 despite Taliban’s objections By DAVE MASON NEWS-PRESS MANAGING EDITOR
RAFAEL MALDONADO / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS
Lorenzo Vasquez, left, and Leticia Rodriguez, right, get the first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital on Dec. 17. Dr. Lynn Fitzgibbons, chair of the infectious disease division, administered the first shots.
Mandates, higher vaccination rates seen as likely
A vaccination clinic at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort this spring inoculated a long line of residents.
By ANNELISE HANSHAW NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which will now be marketed as Comirnaty, for the prevention of COVID-19 in individuals 16 and older. Santa Barbara County’s medical experts are hopeful the full approval, as opposed to the emergency-use authorization, will encourage more community members to trust the vaccine. Just over three in 10 (31%) of unvaccinated respondents in a Kaiser Family Foundation survey said they’d be more likely to get vaccinated if the FDA granted full approval. “If I can count on 30% of the unvaccinated. . . roughly 42,000 people, if I can count on those 42,000 to get vaccinated, that would move the needle in a very big way,” Dr. Van Do-Reynoso, the Santa Barbara County public health director, told the News-Press Monday. Current case rates mirror July 2020, even with 54.2% of the county’s population fully vaccinated. “I think the timing of this Please see VACCINES on A4
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Direct Relief helps during disasters Goleta nonprofit works to help Haiti, Northern California and the South By DAVE MASON NEWS-PRESS MANAGING EDITOR
Goleta-based Direct Relief is working to respond to several major disasters. The nonprofit this week is sending aid to Haiti, where the death toll continues to climb after the 7.2 earthquake on Aug. 14. As of Monday, the number of deaths exceeded 2,000. Direct Relief also has worked on efforts to assist Northern California, hit by wildfires, and Tennessee and North Carolina, impacted by flash flooding. “A combination of existing relationships with disaster response agencies, safety net health clinics, and government agencies, as well as data analysis and pre-positioned supplies, have enabled Direct Relief to respond efficiently and precisely to requests after each incident,” Direct Relief said Please see relief on A2
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The Pentagon is considering an extension of the Aug. 31 deadline to pull out the remaining 6,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the Pentagon is considering the extension during its discussions with President Joe Biden and allies. He also said the U.S. is aware of the Taliban’s objections to changing the date. “The goal is to get as many people out as fast as possible,” Mr. Kirby said. “The focus is trying to do this as best we can by the end of the month.” But Mr. Kirby said there are no plans for the U.S. to retake Bagram Airfield to quicken evacuations. State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters Monday that he couldn’t report a precise number of Americans evacuated “in part because that number changes all the time.” He said that 10,400 people were evacuated within the previous 24 hours. He also noted the State Department believes there are several thousand Americans who would like to leave Afghanistan. Last week, estimates put the number of Americans in Afghanistan at somewhere between 10,000 and 15,000. Since Aug. 14, the U.S. has evacuated or enabled the evacuation of approximately 37,000 people, Mr. Price Please see AFGHANISTAN on A2
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Saturday’s SUPER LOTTO: 12-22-36-44-47 Mega: 20
Monday’s DAILY 4: 4-7-7-5
Friday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 41-43-51-57-70 Mega: 1
Monday’s FANTASY 5: 6-19-23-30-35
Monday’s DAILY DERBY: 01-09-02 Time: 1:49.60
Saturday’s POWERBALL: 16-28-36-39-59 Meganumber: 4
Monday’s DAILY 3: 0-6-6 / Midday 4-1-1