December 7, 2020

Dear Friends,

The Food and Drug Administration scheduled a December 17 meeting of the Vaccines and Related Biologics Advisory Committee to consider Moderna’s request for emergency use authorization of its vaccine candidate.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a report reinforcing a combination of 10 evidence-based strategies that individuals, families, and their communities can implement to slow the spread of COVID-19.

The Department of Health and Human Services released $9.3 million in additional funding to 188 Rural Health Clinics nationwide for COVID-19 testing.

Texas Updates
The Department of State Health Services (DSHS) submitted the first week’s allocation plan of COVID-19 vaccine distribution in Texas to the CDC. DSHS will distribute 224,250 doses of the Pfizer vaccine to 109 hospitals in 34 counties as early as the week of Dec. 14, depending on vaccine authorization.

• DSHS will make changes to the DSHS Coronavirus Data Dashboard on Friday, emphasizing reporting on positivity rates and probable cases. The changes are explained in a note on the dashboard.

Until next time, this is your doctor's note.

Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D.