Great News! Over 20,000 Front Line Workers In Sierra Leone To Be Vaccinated Against Ebola -- To Prevent "The Fire Next Time"...

We've now covered Ebola outbreaks for 12 years. We started because Merck and NewLink ultimately made what was then the only FDA-approved Ebola vaccine.

But it led to our coverage of all sorts of potential pandemic viral agents, and their vaccines and emerging monoclonal therapeutics. Today, we note an encouraging milestone: Sierra Leone, that saw nearly 10,000 deaths from Ebola in 2014-15, has announced a preventative vaccine program -- available to all potential front line health workers, and to cab drivers who might unwittingly transport a person hosting the virus (even without symptoms), in the future.

This prophylactic program will deploy the well understood and safe Merck vaccine -- and I note it (as fluffy Friday snows fall here -- and in Music City), to remind Mr. Kennedy that in the scientifically-literate world (i.e., Africa), vaccines are well-known to save millions of lives.

So this is a wonderful morning, 20,000 doses strong -- even as Trump gets sentenced; Rudy sees contempt in DC and at least half of that Jack Smith report will be released, over the demagogue Aileen Cannon's specious Florida objection (given the denial of Trump 2.0 last night). Progress -- indeed. Here's the latest:

. . .Sierra Leone is embarking on a nationwide campaign with the rVSV-ZEBOV vaccine, trademarked as Ervebo [a Merck property].

The campaign will target 20,000 frontline workers in 16 districts. These include healthcare workers, traditional healers, community health and social workers, laboratory personnel, motorcycle taxi drivers and security forces. Anybody who will be involved in any response to future outbreaks. . . .

The Ervebo^® vaccine, developed by Merck, is a single-dose vaccine. It works by using a modified virus to produce antibodies against Ebola, equipping the immune system to recognise and neutralise the virus upon exposure. Clinical trials have shown its efficacy exceeds 95% in preventing infection from the Zaire Ebola virus strain, the deadliest variant. . . .

Now you know -- onward to enjoying a high-science snow day, here and there -- in fact, across much of the nation, even as we keep the people of LA in our meditations. Be excellent to one another -- scientific sanity will make. . . a comeback.

नमस्ते