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Coronavirus

Penn Dining spring 2021: Four takeaways
Wayfinding sign at beginning of Penn Eats pickup area.

Penn Dining spring 2021: Four takeaways

As students return to campus, dining services has adopted measures to support new safety and public health protocols at both residential and retail cafés on campus.
A how-to guide for COVID-19 testing at Penn
a person standing in front of a desk receiving instructions on where to go inside of a tent for covid testing

A how-to guide for COVID-19 testing at Penn

With the launch of Penn Cares, Penn Today provides additional details on the new testing program, how eligible members of the Penn community can enroll, and how the testing procedure works.

Erica K. Brockmeier

How can the world allocate COVID-19 vaccines fairly?
Hands holding a box of COVID vaccine vials.

How can the world allocate COVID-19 vaccines fairly?

It’s an ethical question many Penn experts are contemplating. One fact is certain, they say: Distribution must not exacerbate disparities and inequities in health care.

Michele W. Berger

Could cutting or delaying doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to immunize more people make the pandemic last longer?

Could cutting or delaying doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to immunize more people make the pandemic last longer?

Steven Joffe of the Perelman School of Medicine commented on the unknown efficacy of a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, which was designed to be given in two doses. “Those unknowns are why some people say, ‘We should stick with what we know. By all means, do the trials to test [varied regimens], but don’t just wing it.’ Others say, ‘We are in a race against the virus.’ I’m not going to come down on one side or the other,” he said.

Study: One dose of vaccine may be enough for people who had COVID-19

Study: One dose of vaccine may be enough for people who had COVID-19

E. John Wherry of the Perelman School of Medicine expressed skepticism about assertions that coronavirus survivors may not need a second dose of the vaccine because they already have antibodies. “Just because an antibody binds to a part of the virus does not mean it’s going to protect you from being infected,” he said.

Even for people with severe allergies, the COVID-19 vaccine could be a wise decision, experts say

Even for people with severe allergies, the COVID-19 vaccine could be a wise decision, experts say

Pablo Tebas of the Perelman School of Medicine said that in spite of some reports of allergic reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine, the rareness of these events makes it still worth pursuing vaccination. With patients dying daily, “the risk of [getting the vaccine] in a controlled environment is much less, orders of magnitude less, than getting COVID,” he said.