We all now are able to take the rapid at-home COVID-19 test.   But few know when to do this . Say you suddenly appear to have symptoms like fever, cough, congestion or sore throat, and immediately take a fast antigen test, where you can see your result in 15 minutes.  If negative, feel assured. However, when symptoms begin, you won't test positive until three to five days later . Thus you MUST take a second test in this time frame to ascertain that you are negative. The problem is exactly when?  Second day?  Third?  Fourth?  Fifth?  Many say fifth?  Very confusing.  No consensus. False negatives occur all the time.  False positives are rare. The safest measure is to take both the fast test and a PCR test, which needs to be sent to a lab and can take a couple of days for the result. Thus, the safest strategy is to: Quickly rapid test yourself if you have any kind of condition that suggests you might have COVID. If negative, feel good, but isolate yourself. 3-5 days later take a seco

First, some details about the FDA-approved Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine: Only for 16 years of age and older. Brand name Comirnaty.  Why?  Coined from COvid and the MRNA platform technology.  Also evokes the concept of community. Effectiveness dropped from 95% to 91%, which is still pretty good. Why did it take so long?  The argument is that the normal FDA process takes from 8 to 12 months.  It took only 3.5 months from submittal of the Pfizer application.  Plus, there is yet no permanent commissioner, who currently is Dr. Janet Woodcock as acting.  Why?  Apparently, President Joe Biden  can't find anyone who can win Senate confirmation .  Plus Senator Joe Manchin does not want Woodcock to be promoted for she ran the drug division and was too liberal about opioids. But during this time of pandemic shouldn't some kind of wartime or depression national emergency justification be made to accelerate approval?  I would not be surprised if the FDA does pass through the Moderna application