Coronavirus Overview: The FDA limits the approval of Johnson & Johnson vaccines

The Office of the Special Chief Inspector for Pandemic Recovery announced its quarterly report last week, which says its investigation service is working on 27 open cases. That’s four times more than last year’s casework.

After summarizing the achievements of the office, special IG Brian Miller wrote about his most pressing needs. “A single, five-year term is not enough time to complete the 27 cases that SIGPR is already working on, let alone close additional cases that we may open in the coming months… therefore [we] Respectfully ask Congress to extend SIGPR’s mandate for another five years, until March 2030, “Miller wrote. Miller also requested that the monitoring service be included in the annual appropriations cycle. He had said Government executive for both of these desires in an interview.

“We are grateful to the President for recommending that Congress provide $ 25 million to SIGPR by September 30, 2025,” Miller wrote, referring to President Biden’s request for a fiscal budget for 2023. “This budget will allow SIGPR to hire more investigators and auditors. It will also reassure my staff that serving the country at SIGPR is a reliable way to provide for themselves and their families. ”Here are some of the other recent headlines you may have missed.

Food and Drug Administration on Thursday limit his permission of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for “Persons aged 18 and over for whom other authorized or approved COVID-19 vaccines are not available or clinically appropriate, and persons aged 18 and over who choose to receive the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine because they would not otherwise receive vaccine against COVID-19. “The FDA made this decision due to a rare and dangerous clotting condition. Last spring, the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended a break in the vaccine due to the clotting condition. The break was lifted after 10 days and a warning label was added for potential risks.

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who has been fully vaccinated and reinforced, tested positive for coronavirus on Wednesday, making him the last high-ranking government official to do so. He is experiencing only mild symptoms and has not seen the president in several days, said Ned Price, a State Department spokesman. statement.

The federal government is “facing an unsustainable fiscal future” and while the “basic conditions” existed long before the pandemic, “the COVID-19 pandemic government’s extensive fiscal response has accelerated federal debt growth”, The government’s accountability office said in a report released on Thursday.

A recent monitoring report examines how the Internal Revenue Service has implemented provisions for a premium tax credit from the US Rescue Plan. “The IRS has taken immediate steps to eliminate the surplus [advanced premium tax credit] repayment of tax returns for 2020, in accordance with [the law]”, And“ as of August 12, 2021, the IRS has provided relief to nearly 1 million taxpayers by eliminating $ 942 million in [tax credit] payments from their declarations, which led to $ 845 million in tax breaks on the accounts of these taxpayers as part of efforts to recover ARPA, “he said. report of the Chief Inspector of Finance to the Tax Administration. However, the inspector general “identified 30,231 taxpayers who can now qualify for additional child tax credits totaling $ 16.4 million.” Also, “the IRS has not developed processes and procedures to verify the accuracy of premium tax credit claims based on unemployment benefits,” the report said.

Help us better understand the situation. You are a federal employee, contractor or military member with information, concerns, etc. about how your agency handles the coronavirus? Send us an email at newstips@govexec.com.