Even Asymptomatic People Carry the Coronavirus in High Amounts - The New York Times

Even Asymptomatic People Carry the Coronavirus in High Amounts - The New York Times

Asymptomatic spread of Covid-19 looking even more likely

From the dawn of the coronavirus pandemic, scientists have worried that people who have no symptoms of Covid-19 could pass the disease on to others. Evidence so far has been largely anecdotal, but a new study conducted in South Korea offers more definitive proof that people without symptoms carry just as much virus in their nose, throat, and lungs as those with symptoms, and for almost as long. “It does confirm what we’ve suspected for a long time — that asymptomatic cases can transmit infection,” epidemiologist Benjamin Cowling told the New York Times.

In other pandemic news:

• Nursing homes face an impossible decision during hurricane season this year: Should they evacuate their residents during the Covid-19 pandemic, risking the health and well-being of their patients and staff in the process? STAT's Natalya Ortolano reports.
• As pressure mounts to develop a successful Covid-19 vaccine, FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn insists any agency approval would “adhere to standards” that ensure safety and effectiveness, STAT's Ed Silverman writes. But Hahn left the door open to an emergency use authorization, raising concerns about political pressure to approve a vaccine before the November election.
• After pressure from advocates in recent weeks, Moderna will now allow individuals living with HIV to be part of a late-stage clinical trial of its Covid-19 vaccine candidate, Bloomberg says. The biotech company had previously said it would exclude people with HIV from the trial. HIV advocates are pressuring vaccine partners Pfizer and BioNTech to do the same.