World/National News
Prince Phillip’s Funeral By: Alexandra Burke On April 9th, 2021 Prince Phillip at the age of 99 passed away. Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh, was the longest serving royal consort in British history. Queen Elizabeth is now in mourning of her husband of 73 years. The funeral was held April 17th on the grounds of Windsor Castle. It was a relatively small ceremony compared to the other funerals held for the royals. It was a ceremonial funeral instead of
a state funeral. Due to the pandemic no people of the public were allowed to attend. On the day of the funeral there was a period of national mourning. Phillip’s coffin was lowered into the Royal Vault underneath St. George Chapel which will not be his final resting place. When Queen Elizabeth passes away they will both be buried in the King Image courtesy of Haveuheard.net George VI memorial chapel.
Johnson & Johnson Vaccine By: Mary Grlic
As the coronavirus vaccine becomes more readily available across the US, appointments are filling up quickly and people are excited to finally get rid of COVID once and for all. The two-dose Moderna and Pfizer vaccines have seen much success among the public. In fact, the Pfizer vaccine is even available to the younger age group, 12 years and up. However, these vaccines require that one receives two doses about three weeks apart from one another. This poses an inconvenience to some with scheduling issues, discomfort, or illness due to the vaccination. For this reason, the company Johnson and Johnson pushed out a single-dose vaccine that many people have also received. However, the company has experienced a lot of trouble and pushback that may prevent them from further administering their vaccination. As of April 12, nearly 7 million Americans received the J&J vaccine. Among these millions of
4
people, six experienced severe blood clotting in the brain called cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST), coupled with thrombocytopenia, low levels of blood platelets. Each of the women were aged 18 to 48, and one tragically passed away following her vaccination and blood clotting. With rising concerns regarding the effects of the J&J vaccine, the CDC paused its administration. Some Americans who were concerned about the vaccine in the first place do not feel any safer receiving a dose. They fear the novelty and uncertainty associated with vaccination, and the severe blood clotting instilled even more fear. However, US health officials continue to push forward the vaccine, claiming that all of the positives outweigh any drawbacks. With that, some people feel that the vaccine is important to stop the spread of COVID and return to “normal” life. The percentage of people who experienced such severe health issues
following the vaccine is so low, making it very rare. It is more common to get ill or die from any other daily life activities than from a vaccine. J&J also experienced other forms of pushback that impacted the vaccine. A factory mix up in early April destroyed 15 million vaccines when a Baltimore Emergent Biosolutions Inc. factory experienced a manufacturing error at the plant. However, the company quickly underplayed the situation by saying that they already met the most recent delivery target. Furthermore, Biden stated that regardless of the mix up, the US is still expected to have enough doses of the vaccine for all adults in May. With Pfizer and Moderna still administering vaccines, it is probable that this is the case. Hopefully in the near future everyone will be eligible to get the vaccine and there will be enough supplies to reach the demand, bringing us one step closer to normalcy.
