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Thursday, March 18, 2010
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September 28, 2009 - A bio-tech firm in Gaithersburg, Maryland is the first of four drug-makers to roll out an H1N1 vaccine approved by the Food and Drug Administration. MedImmune got FDA approval of its seasonal flu vaccine, FluMist, in 2003. It began developing an H1N1 vaccine in April.
Unlike the other vaccines being manufactured, MedImmune's contains a live, weakened form of the virus... sprayed into the nose. MedImmune has produced 40-million doses so far. The first batches should be available the first week of October.
Rebecca Sheir reports...
September 28, 2009 - An H1N1 vaccine is scheduled to be available by next week. A firm based in Maryland is responsible for the first batch. MedImmune has been in the flu business for more than two decades. It introduced the seasonal-flu vaccine, FluMist, in 2003.
George Kemble is MedImmune's vice-president of vaccine research and development. He says the firm has put a lot of time and energy into pandemic preparedness. The nasal-spray vaccine is approved for healthy people ages 2 to 49.
Rebecca Sheir reports...
September 28, 2009 - Thousands of doctors and clinics across Virginia are registering with its health department to administer the new H1N1 vaccines.
The Centers for Disease Control hasn't told Virginia's health department how many doses will be in the initial batch. It's expected to hit clinics next week. This first shipment will be a live strain of the virus that's administered through a nasal spray.
Jim Farrell oversees immunizations in the state. He says the first vaccines have been earmarked for highly-susceptible health care workers. "I think a lot of the upfront work we've agonized over for days now. We're just gonna have to get our hands on it and touch and feel it and see how it works. We feel relatively confident we can make the right decisions, at least initially."
Three weeks after the first shipment, the state should receive a larger batch for the general public.
Peter Granitz reports...
September 28, 2009 - The District is slated to get its first shipment of H1N1 vaccines next week. D.C.'s Department of Health is finalizing a plan to get the drugs from the maker to the patient.
The first batch of vaccines will go primarily to hospitals, clinics and Emergency Medical stations. Beverly Pritchett, with the health department -- says she doesn't know how large the first shipment will be, but doesn't expect much. She says three weeks after the first shipment arrives, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will release a considerably larger amount to the District -- for schools, community clinics and private doctors. "In the best of all worlds they would use up all of their allocation every week and we would continue to order a new allocation for them the following week because that means we'd have very good uptake on the vaccine."
The vaccination sites will give daily progress reports to the health department. The district will request more shipments as needed. Pritchett says if everything goes as planned, most people who want to be vaccinated will be by January.
Peter Granitz reports...
September 28, 2009 - Karen Funcheon traveled from Wichita, Kan. to Washington, D.C. to attend the Gold Star Family Picnic, an annual gathering for people with family members in the military who were killed in action. Karen's son, Sgt. Alex Funcheon, died two years ago in Baghdad.
She says there are some things she goes through that only the people here understand. "If we meet somebody new," Karen says, "Sometimes we say 'We lost our son in Iraq,' and they go, 'Oh, I just lost my Kitty.' And it's like, 'I don't want to hear about your dead kitty.'"
Karen still mourns the loss of her son. She says coming here forces her to confront her pain, but she's comforted by being around other grieving families. "You're around other people who also have a child that died in the same way," she says. "I don't want to grieve by myself. I want to be with other people."
More than 2,000 people attended this year's Gold Star Family picnic at the U.S. Capitol.
David Schultz reports...
September 28, 2009 - Time-crunched people around D.C. are taking advantage of a drive-through flu vaccine clinic in Northern Virginia. The drive-through clinic is operated by a health center called Nova Medical and it's meant to cater to those who don't have time for the doctor's office.
Jessica Forres has more...
September 28, 2009 - A new ban on texting while driving in Maryland has some wondering whether the law lacks punch. The law which takes effect later this week allows for a fine of up to 500-dollars for anyone in Maryland caught creating or sending a text message while operating a motor vehicle in the state.
Critics of the restriction say it doesn't go far enough pointing out that while it prohibits writing or sending, the law still allows reading text messages while driving. A AAA foundation study has shown that text messaging takes a driver's eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, or as long as it takes to travel the length of a football field at 55 miles per hour.
Elliott Francis reports...
September 28, 2009 - There are five weeks left before election day in Virginia. One major development playing out in the gubernatorial race comes from former Virginia Governor Douglas Wilder. Wilder says he won't endorse fellow Democrat Creigh Deeds, despite requests from President Obama and current Governor Tim Kaine.
Jeff Schapiro, a political reporter and columnist for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, joins WAMU's Morning Edition Host Matt McCleskey to talk about the race.
September 28, 2009 - National Wild Horse Adoption Day encourages people to adopt Mustangs removed from public lands but the program is not perfect. A pasture in Lorton, Virginia is the nearest adoption site to Metro DC. Some 100 people are here to view 50 Mustangs.
Each year, the Bureau of Land Management removes thousands of wild horses from federal lands.The program is meant to control their population and open more land for cattle grazing.
Chris Heyde is with the Animal Welfare Institute in DC. He'd like to see horses remain on their natural habitat. "The round ups are very cruel. There's a lot of stress because they chase them with helicopters. So you have fouls that are out running for their lives from helicopters who are chasing them at full speed and many of them will drop over dead."
But the horse enthusiasts I spoke to mostly like the adoptions. In part because they seem to confuse the adoptions with the larger issue of horses that are abandoned in a bad economy.
Martha Manigross is here with her husband. "I've heard horror stories about people just taking their horses to parks because someone couldn't afford it and they wanted to make sure the horse went home with someone. But i'd rather see this happen than dead horses everywhere or starving horses."
Animal advocates have introduced the Restore our American Mustangs Act to both houses of Congress. If passed, it would - among other things - push the Bureau to consider birth control methods to manage their population.
Mana Rabee reports...
Each year, the Bureau of Land Management removes thousands of wild horses from federal lands and puts the Mustangs up for adoption. But some oppose horses being removed from their natural habitat and say the horse roundups are cruel.
Courtesy of: Morgue File
September 28, 2009 - Giving every citizen the kind of health care coverage that members of Congress get - and what that actually means...With eight million workers covered, the Federal Employees' Benefits Program has the biggest insurance pool in the country, which is key to keeping premiums affordable and offering multiple plans to choose from.
Elizabeth Wynne Johnson reports...
September 28, 2009 - In Virginia, candidates for statewide and local offices are wooing the Commonwealth's nearly 50,000 Arab American voters. At the Marriott Hotel in Vienna approximately 200 Arab Americans work their way through dinner as the candidates take to the microphone. It's the Arab American Institutes' annual Virginia Candidates Night.
"In some districts, local districts, local delegate districts, magistrate's districts, we can actually make it or break it," said Saba Shami, co-founder of the Arab American Democratic Caucus.
His counterpart is David Ramadan, co-chair of Virginia's Arab American Republican Caucus. Ramadan says core Republican values such as entrepreneurism coincide with the values of his community. But he acknowledges his party must overcome the negative feelings eight years of Republican foreign policy created. "What we're hoping is make sure they understand that we're looking at here are taxes, we're looking at here is transportation, we're looking at here are schools. All the issues that they're dealing with on the kitchen table with their families every day."
The evening's headliners are the gubernatorial candidates. Democrat Creigh Deeds makes an impassioned address. "Virginia is stronger of our diversity. We are all sons of immigrants, sons and daughters of immigrants."
Congressman Tom Davis represented Republican Bob McDonnell. "Salamalekom. Proud to have you as the fabric of our society here in Northern Virginia."
Some polls suggest Arab Americans favor Democratics by 37 points.
Mana Rabiee reports...
September 28, 2009 - Parents and educators in Virginia now have another way to learn more about preventing the spread of H1N1 swine flu and seasonal flu.
Virginia's Departments of Education and Health have collaborated to produce online videos for parents and educators. The videos are available on the Department of Education's website, and both agencies are asking school divisions around the state to post links to the videos and to e-mail them to parents and employees.
In a statement, Virginia's health commissioner, Karen Remley, says they offer practical steps on how to limit the flu's reach, steps she says can have a real impact on how many children get sick.
Among other suggestions, the videos emphasize that students and school staff who feel ill should stay home until they've been fever-free for at least 24 hours.
Matt McCleskey reports...
September 28, 2009 - The man charged with killing a security guard at the Holocaust Memorial is undergoing a psychiatric evaluation.
The 89-year-old white supremacist, James Van Brunn, is now at the Butner Federal Medical Center in North Carolina. Van Brunn is being evaluated to see if he's competent to stand trial.
Van Brunn's lawyer requested the evaluation, even though Van Brunn himself objected. A federal judge ordered him to go earlier this month. Van Brunn is charged with killing a security guard at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in June. Up until now he was being held at a D.C. jail.
Sabri Ben-Achour reports...
September 28, 2009 - Civil rights and community activists in Richmond are protesting a banner on a downtown strip club depicting President Obama as the Joker from Batman.
Representatives from the NAACP, the Nation of Islam and other groups gathered outside Club Velvet at noon to protest what they called an affront against the nation's first black president and "veiled attacks on all African people."
The news conference was part street theater: a dancer from the club walked through the crowd with a sign that read "Strippers for Obama."
Club owner Sam Moore says the banner is not racist, he's simply unhappy with Obama's policies.
Meymo Lyons reports...
September 28, 2009 - If you use a cell phone or text while driving, Virgina wants you to hang up, especially when driving through a construction zone.
It's a simple warning from highway officials concerned that you or your neighbors may be paying less attention to the road and more attention to your cell phone when motoring past highway construction.
"Orange cones, no phones. When you see the orange cones, you're in a work zone," says Lon Anderson, from Triple A Mid-Atlantic. "Stuff happens really quick there, hang up."
Anderson says new conclusions compiled by Triple A and highway construction firm Transurban reveal that more than half the drivers on the Capital Beltway regularly use their cell while driving. In addition, these drivers are twice as likely to have an accident as a result. Those who text while driving are three times as likely to have an accident, especially when driving through a construction zone.
"We've got heavy construction on this road with workers who's lives are at risk and also drivers who's lives are at risk, so this is an important message," says Anderson.
Eighteen states including Virginia have laws in place which ban cell phone use and, or texting while driving. With construction of new high occupancy toll lanes well underway, Virginia highway police warn they will stop distracted drivers who somehow didn't get the message.
Elliott Francis reports...
September 28, 2009 - There may be hints of an economic recovery but one local food bank says it's already preparing for a busier-than-usual holiday season.
The Arlington Food Assistance Center, or AFAC, is abuzz with activity. About 30 people wait their turn in the front lobby. Next door in the small warehouse, others pack paper grocery bags with food; they're allowed 40 pounds each week.
Still, volunteers such as Connally Gilliam say this is far from as busy as it gets. "We were just commenting on how slow it was today," says Gilliam.
Right now, AFAC serves about 1,200 families a week. Executive Director Christine Lucas says last year at this time the number was about 800 a week.
"The year before that, we were serving 600 a week," Lucas says, "so we were thinking, this is as bad as it's going to get. But it's gotten worse for us."
Lucas says she's praying for an economic recovery, but she says that even if one comes soon, its not likely to make a difference for many families relying on food assistance this holiday season.
"We expect even when there is a recovery, folks will still come to us, because they've got backed up bills, because they've had to meet other expenses," Lucas says.
The Arlington Food Assistance Center gives away about 2 million pounds of food each year.
Jonathan Wilson reports...
September 28, 2009 - Virginia is giving tax procrastinators and evaders a chance to pay up without penalty. The commonwealth is promoting an amnesty program hoping it will bring $48 million to the cash-strapped state.
The amnesty period will run Oct. 7 through Dec. 5. Qualifying taxpayers who settle up with the Department of Taxation during the period can escape a 20 percent late-payment penalty and waive half the interest they owe.
Gov. Timothy Kaine helped kick off "Get Square on Back Taxes" this morning in Richmond. Kaine says the program gives people who owe a strong financial incentive to fulfill their obligations, as well as help the state's general fund.
Meymo Lyons reports...
September 28, 2009 - (September 29) FOR THE LOVE OF FISH A one-night-only performance of For the Love of Goldfish goes up at the Kennedy Center tomorrow night at 7:30pm. "For the Love of Goldfish" is the winner of the VSA arts annual Playwright Discovery Award, written by a high school student from New Jersey. It details the romantic relationship between two co-workers with physical disabilities and their attempts at honesty and intimacy.
(Sep 17-Oct 11) LUCID Gala Hispanic Theatre presents the darkly humorous tale, Lucid, in D.C.'s Columbia Heights neighborhood through October 11th. Enter the world of a family suspended between lucidity and dreams, as a young man blurs reality to escape his domineering mother and a sister who wants to reclaim the kidney she donated to him as a child.
(Sept 28-Oct 2) OPERA TOTS The Music Center at Strathmore in Rockville, Maryland is cultivating tiny opera lovers with Opera Tots, classes for children. The current session begins today and runs through Friday. With treats like Three Bears, Gingerbread Man and the Little Red Hen set to music, young ears can get a taste of the operatic in nursery rhymes and tales and try their hand in their own performance at the end of class.
September 28, 2009 - When college grads can't find jobs, they often enroll in graduate schools and recent data indicate that more of them are applying to grad school this year than last.
As Meredith Cavin reports, as the country copes with a recession and increasing unemployment, many graduates, such as 2009 Georgetown University grad Canaan McCaslin, are eying additional education as their only option.
Cavin served as a Summer 2009 newsroom intern.
September 28, 2009 - The National Institutes of Health in Bethesda is one of the largest employers in Montgomery County. It's so big, it has its own Metro stop. County lawmakers are now reviewing planning and zoning changes that would allow a science-focused development on a similar scale in an area west of Gaithersburg - - anchored by Johns Hopkins University. But the nearest Metro stop is four miles away.
Matt Bush reports on how residents, politicians, planners and the school are battling over what some are calling an impending traffic nightmare....
September 28, 2009 - The District is slated to get its first shipment of H1N1 vaccines next week. D.C.'s Department of Health is finalizing a plan to get the drugs from the maker to the patient.
The first batch of vaccines will go primarily to hospitals, clinics and Emergency Medical stations. Beverly Pritchett, with the health department -- says she doesn't know how large the first shipment will be, but doesn't expect much. She says three weeks after the first shipment arrives, the Centers for Disease Control will release a considerably larger amount to the District -- for schools, community clinics and private doctors. "In the best of all worlds they would use up all of their allocation every week and we would continue to order a new allocation for them the following week because that means we'd have very good uptake on the vaccine."
The vaccination sites will give daily progress reports to the health department. The district will request more shipments as needed. Pritchett says if everything goes as planned, most people who want to be vaccinated will be by January.
Peter Granitz reports...
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