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The early warning disease network that alerted the world to the original SARS outbreak and the start of the Covid-19 pandemic appears to be in peril. A number of the senior moderators of ProMED-mail, a program operated by the International Society for Infectious Diseases, posted a letter of protest early Thursday, challenging a recently revealed plan to charge for subscriptions to the service. The group of 21 moderators, who announced they were suspending work for ProMED, expressed a lack of confidence in the ISID’s administrative operations, suggesting ProMED needs to find a new home. (Branswell, 8/3)

Five years ago, the majority of America could not properly define public health, said Dr. Ashish Jha, who recently left the Biden administration as the nation’s last White House COVID-19 czar. After a global pandemic, he said the science-based field that is designed to protect people’s health has, in some circles, “become a dirty word.” On the latest episode of the Rhode Island Report podcast, Jha reflected on his time working in the White House, the persisting challenges in America’s public health system, what’s next for COVID-19, and the dangers he saw firsthand when misinformation spreads. (Gagosz, 8/3)

When the pandemic began, losing your sense of smell was considered a key indicator of covid-19, and the condition affected about half of those who tested positive for the coronavirus. However, a new study reveals that the chance of smell loss from the latest omicron variants has dropped dramatically since the early days of the pandemic. “So now, three people out of 100 getting covid presumably may lose their sense of smell, which is far, far less than it was before,” said study leader Evan Reiter, the medical director of Virginia Commonwealth University Health’s Smell and Taste Disorders Center. (Yarber, 8/3)

A fourth dose of the bivalent (two-strain) COVID-19 vaccine is substantially more effective against medical treatment and hospitalization than a fourth monovalent (single-strain) dose among both previously infected and never-infected people who had received three monovalent doses, concludes an observational study published yesterday in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. (Van Beusekom, 8/3)

Infectious disease expert Dr. Miguel Reina Ortiz has a collaborative appointment with the University of South Florida College of Public Health. He is also an associate professor with the Boise State University School of Public and Population Health. He said the uptick in COVID-19 cases could be attributed to the increase of social and family gatherings during the summer, particularly for the July Fourth holiday. He added the intense heat outside sending people indoors is also helping to circulate the virus quicker. Another reason, he says, is waning immunity. (Bowman, 8/3)

A recent uptick in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations is hinting at how the virus will keep raising a predictable seasonal threat. But experts warn the U.S. is lacking critical tools to help manage future waves. Infection levels are still relatively low, and immunity from prior infections and vaccinations means the virus is unlikely to reach the same high levels seen during past fall and winter waves. (Moreno, 8/4)

Some restaurant owners have expressed outrage about having to remove and store outdoor dining structures from Nov. 30 until March 31, which will take away a dining option for patrons, especially those who are immunocompromised or otherwise Covid-conscious. Smaller restaurants in particular could find it too expensive or cumbersome to participate. (Fitzsimmons, 8/3)