The Wall Street Journal reports that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has cleared Pfizer and BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for use in Europe, declaring it safe and effective against the virus. Distribution could start next week, following administrative protocols needed to coordinate a launch across 27 member states. The European Union (EU) also is facing a new strain of COVID-19 in Britain, which has spurred many countries to ban passenger flights from that country to prevent the spread of the more infectious variant. Health officials say a vaccine rollout to 450 million Europeans will take months, at the very least, with supplies of the vaccine limited. The EMA's decision now requires clearance by the European Commission, which must first survey all 27 EU members. Authorities do not expect certain countries to begin vaccination until Dec. 29 as procedural and logistical issues are addressed. The EU has ordered 300 million doses over the next year, enough to immunize up to 150 million people, and has lined up another 160 million shots of Moderna's double-dose vaccine. If the EMA approves it, EU states expect sufficient doses over the next several months to cover most healthcare workers and the very old.

Officials for the state of Texas announced that seniors over 65 and those over age 16 with chronic health problems will be next in line to receive the state's COVID-19 vaccine, reports the Dallas Morning News . Yet it is likely that several weeks will pass before those Texans — about 8 million in all — can get inoculated. The state first has to offer the shots to roughly 1.9 million healthcare workers and long-term care community residents. The first doses in Texas went to hospitals, and the state's latest decision diverged from federal guidelines recommending that people older than 75 and essential workers like firefighters, teachers, and grocery staff be next in line. Texas policy is based on data from the Department of State Health Services indicating that seniors constitute more than 70 percent of COVID-19 deaths statewide, and evidence that adults with underlying medical conditions are more likely to develop severe infections. "The focus on people who are age 65 and older or who have comorbidities will protect the most vulnerable populations," said the Department of State Health Services' Imelda Garcia.

The Washington Times reports that a proposal to expand veterans' access to dementia care supported by the four members of Maine's congressional delegation is scheduled to be signed into law. The sponsors — Sens. Susan Collins (R) and Angus King (I) and Reps. Chellie Pingree (D) and Jared Golden (D) — said the measure will provide the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs more flexibility so they can allow veterans with early-stage dementia to receive needed care. The bill passed both the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate unanimously. Maine Veterans Homes CEO Kelley Kash said the law change will fix an administrative problem that has made it more difficult for veterans to access care.

A study in Acta Neuropathologica Communications details research that characterized the development of Aβ fibrils and the evolution of plaques in Alzheimer's disease, reports News-Medical . "Early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease is crucial to prevent Aβ from causing irreparable damage in the brain," explained Dominik Röhr at Ruhr-Universität Bochum's Center for Protein Diagnostics. Promising drugs are currently undergoing approval testing, including the antibody aducanumab, which can break down plaques in the brain. Via infrared microscopy, the researchers determined that the development of plaques could be halted at an early stage by preventing the formation of oligomers. These are considered to be particularly harmful to the brain, and the applications of suitable drugs could minimize the toxic effect of Aβ.

A study in Scientific Reports found social isolation may be a risk factor for falls among seniors, reports HealthDay News . The investigators analyzed the longitudinal association between loneliness, social isolation, and falls among older adults. They noticed a 5 percent gain in the risk for self-reported falls for a 1-point increase in loneliness independent of sociodemographic factors — but when adjusting for individual differences in health and lifestyle measures, the link was no longer significant. The danger of self-reported falls was higher among people living alone and those with low social contact, even after controlling for sociodemographic, health, and lifestyle differences. Associations also were similar for hospitalizations following a fall. "Whilst this study uses data collected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, its findings are particularly important in light of the pandemic as there is likely a heightened risk of loneliness and social isolation due to lockdown and social distancing measures," the authors concluded.

A study in Science Translational Medicine suggests the brain protein YKL-40 may contain a clue into a possible connection between Alzheimer's disease and circadian dysfunction, reports News-Medical . According to the researchers, YKL-40 is both regulated by clock genes and plays a role in clearing away potentially toxic accumulation of Alzheimer's proteins in the brain. Furthermore, Alzheimer's patients who carry a genetic variant that reduces YKL-40 levels maintain their cognitive faculties longer than people without it. "If your circadian clock is not quite right for years and years, you routinely suffer from disrupted sleep at night and napping during the day; the cumulative effect of chronic 'dysregulation' could influence inflammatory pathways such that you accumulate more amyloid plaques," said Washington University in St. Louis professor Erik Musiek. "Amyloid plaques in the brain are one of the early hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease."

InsuranceNewsNet reports that U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) recently proposed the Improving Seniors' Timely Access to Care Act, under which private insurers companies operating Medicare Advantage (MA) plans must establish an electronic prior authorization (ePA) system to approve medical services in a more timely manner. The bipartisan bill would help to simplify prior authorization processes and promote safe, timely, and affordable access to evidence-based care for MA enrollees and the providers and suppliers who care for them. "Our bipartisan legislation would ensure that everyone knows the rules of the road," Thune said. "It would also promote real-time decisions for routine services when feasible, making healthcare more efficient and patient-centered." The legislation also would require the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services to formulate a list of items and services eligible for real-time decisions under an MA ePA program. Finally, it would standardize and streamline the prior authorization process for routinely approved items and service and ensure prior authorization requests are reviewed by qualified medical staff.

WTVA reports that the Claiborne at Adelaide assisted living community in Starkville, Miss., has been taking residents on a 90-minute-long Christmas lights tour throughout local neighborhoods every Wednesday in December. Residents tour by bus on these so-called "Jingle Joy Rides," which offer fun while keeping residents safe during the pandemic. "Being here with an epidemic, we don't get out and visit around much at all, so it's a real treat to be able to get out and view what's going on in the city," said resident Cliff Mitchener. Passengers also wear masks and are socially distanced. Claiborne Activity Director Jonnie Silva said passengers get treats while looking at the lights. "We have fresh, homemade hot cocoa provided from our kitchen," he noted. "Our wonderful dining staff gives us homemade cookies. We're singing Christmas carols. We're driving by their loved ones' house so it gives the family members that opportunity to safely connect with their resident here at the community."

National Public Radio reports that a federal advisory committee to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended that people 75 and older and frontline essential workers should be next in line to get a COVID-19 vaccine, after frontline health care workers and nursing community residents. The panel's vote, which passed with 13 in favor and one opposing, established the group's recommendation for the remainder of Phase 1 of vaccine distribution. The vote determined that adults 75 and older, as well as frontline workers key to societal functioning — like teachers, police officers, fire fighters, prison officers, and grocery store workers — should be prioritized in Phase 1b, which is expected to start in January. Access to COVID-19 vaccines in Phase 1c would expand to adults 65 and older, along with people with underlying medical conditions that put them at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19, and other critical non-frontline workers including those working in trucking and food service.

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice this week declared that all assisted living communities in the state, including residents and staff, should be inoculated against COVID-19 in the next 30 days, reports WTRF-TV . He added that West Virginia had already vaccinated 2,000 residents and staff in long-term care communities as of Wednesday. The first Pfizer vaccines should be administered on Dec. 21, and Justice said West Virginia's nursing home community is on a faster timetable.