September 9, 2021, was a busy day for the federal government and pharmacy stakeholders alike: Just a few hours apart, we saw significant developments in pharmacists’ COVID-19 pandemic practice authorities and prescription drug pricing. Both items yielded positive news for pharmacists and their patients.

Influenza cases and deaths in the United States and worldwide dropped to unprecedented lows between October 3, 2020, and July 24, 2021, according to CDC data. In a typical season, 75 to 150 children die of influenza in the United States, noted pediatric infectious disease specialist Paul Offit, MD, director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, in a recent JAMA Network article. Last influenza season, he said, one child was reported to have died.

A new study published in PLoS One suggests that the influenza vaccine may help safeguard individuals against COVID-19.

In a new analysis, CDC said there was a large decline in essential childhood vaccinations in the early months of the pandemic last year, but rates did not return to pre-pandemic levels with the lifting of the stay-at-home orders.

FDA reminded health care professionals and the public that results from currently authorized COVID-19 antibody tests should not be used to assess a person’s level of immunity or protection from COVID-19 at any time, particularly after the person has received a COVID-19 vaccination.