Dec. 10 News: Pfizer vaccine, Flu shots, California homelessness, Drug to treat depression, Vaccine decisions deferred to health providers

Associated Press – Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine faces last hurdle before US decision

Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine faces one final hurdle as it races to become the first shot greenlighted in the U.S.: a panel of experts who will scrutinize the company’s data for any red flags.

Associated Press – Fewer Black kids getting flu shots, worrying CDC officials

More Americans have been getting flu shots this year, apparently heeding the advice of health officials fearful of a flu and coronavirus double pandemic, public health officials said Wednesday.

NPR – California struggles to house thousands of homeless placed in hotels during pandemic

After three years of bouncing between shelters, relatives' couches and a tent she pitched in downtown San Francisco, Gillette Christa, 63, and her 17-month-old dog, Shepherd, finally got into stable housing.

NPR – Progress toward a safer psychedelic drug to treat depression and addiction

A chemically tweaked version of the psychedelic drug ibogaine appears to relieve depression and addiction symptoms without producing hallucinations or other dangerous side effects.

POLITICO – States defer to health providers on who gets first vaccines

States struggling to prioritize who should receive the initial coronavirus shots are handing off those critical decisions to health care providers, giving them less than two weeks to decide how to ration the scarce doses among their own employees.

Kaiser Health News – With Becerra as HHS pick, California plots more progressive health care agenda

President-elect Joe Biden didn’t back “Medicare for All” during his campaign. Yet his choice of California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to serve in the nation’s top health care post is fueling California lawmakers’ most progressive health care dreams, including pursuing a government-run single-payer system at the state level.