CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — A group of cancer doctors at the Medical University of South Carolina took confidential information to a competitor in an effort to establish a new treatment facility, according to a lawsuit filed this week.
MUSC filed the lawsuit in state court on Monday against six of its departing doctors and HCA Healthcare, which owns North Charleston-based Trident Medical Center.
Charleston-based MUSC wants a judge to halt what it termed the “wholesale departure of physicians, nurses, technicians, staff and fellows” from the hospital’s head and neck oncology division to Trident’s new facility in an effort to impede MUSC’s ability to compete, news outlets reported.
The doctors sought information including case logs, patient lists and other data that belongs to MUSC in the months leading up to and after they announced their resignations, the medical research university alleged in a complaint.
It would take Trident eight to 10 years to independently develop the “misappropriated confidential and proprietary information” that MUSC has, the latter claimed in court documents.
Trident has denied MUSC’s claims.
“Physicians frequently move their practice locations and affiliations,” the health system said in a written statement to The Post and Courier. “We are well-positioned to care for head and neck patients and are excited these physicians have chosen to be part of the Trident team. This last-minute lawsuit appears to be an effort to keep patients away from their doctors.”
MUSC says it is in the public interest for a judge to stop the plan because the hospital is a public university hospital and research institution, whereas Trident is private and for-profit.
MUSC is seeking a hearing on the preliminary injunction before Dec. 1, the day the six defendant physicians will stop working at the hospital.
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — One person is dead and two people have been arrested following Friday afternoon’s shooting on Piner Rd.
The New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call of shots fired at Bennett Village Apartments off Piner Rd just around 3 p.m. Officers discovered 19-year-old Quashawn Pearsall suffering from a gunshot wound.
Pearsall was rushed to New Hanover Regional Medical Center with life-threatening injuries but later died of his injuries.
The sheriff’s office obtained a search warrant for a residence just before midnight Friday and arrested 22-year-old Ahmad Shaheed Tate. Tate has been charged with 1st-degree murder and is currently held with no bond. Tate’s girlfriend, Regina Michelle Davis was also arrested and charged with accessory after the fact. She is being held under a 100,000 dollar bond.
According to the sheriff’s office, the incident seems to be gang-related.
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina say that a man remains in critical condition following Friday’s shooting at a shopping mall that was packed with shoppers on the day after Thanksgiving.
Durham police said Saturday that investigators continue to investigate the incident at The Streets at Southpoint.
The shooting also wounded a 10-year-old child and another man. Both sustained non-life-threatening injuries. Police said that no charges had been filed as of Saturday morning.
Meanwhile, the Raleigh News & Observer reports that the mall was scheduled to reopen at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
The shooting occurred during an apparent fight between two groups, police said. A bystander described “mass hysteria” on one of the busiest shopping days of the year as shoppers ducked into stores for cover or ran for the exits.
Police said another three people were injured as shoppers rushed for exits following the shooting. In a news release, police said their injuries were not life-threatening.
Police said those involved in the fight that led to the shooting fled, but vowed more arrests.
CONCORD, N.C. (WBTV) — Multiple fire departments in Cabarrus County responded to a large house fire on Black Friday that damaged a large number of guitars, according to the Allen Volunteer Fire Department.
According to public records, the home belonged to Jim Avett, father of Scott and Seth of The Avett Brothers.
The Allen Volunteer Fire Department was dispatched to the fire around 12:53 p.m. and could see heavy fire coming from the garage.
No homeowners were injured and two dogs were rescued. However, over 60 guitars were removed from the residence.
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — One local record store participated in Record Store Day on Black Friday. Dozens of shoppers who love their music on vinyl made their way to Record Bar looking for deals.
The biannual event gives independent stores an opportunity to have exclusive music titles to sell.
Record Bar co-owner Tony Stroud said the store saw big lines, with records by Aerosmith, Billie Eilish, and The Life Aquatic Soundtrack being best sellers .
“You know the support locally has been phenomenal. It was raining when we opened this morning, we still had a line outside. We had the sidewalk sale inside this morning, made things a little crazy, but once the weather broke away we were able to put folks out here shopping. They’ve had a big time all day,” said Tony Stroud, Record Bar co-owner.
Record Bar also used the Record Store Day to kick off its weekend of deals, holding a sidewalk sale for records.
The next Record Store Day is next April.
WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, NC (WWAY) — The Town of Wrightsville Beach held its annual holiday kickoff in front of town hall on Friday evening.
Dozens of families attended the holiday kickoff, most appreciating the chance to say hi to Santa Claus and give him their holiday wish list.
The event was held in a drive-through format, similar to last year, due to concerns surrounding the threat of COVID-19. Although some residents miss the traditional format of being able to walk-through the event, many were thankful it was being held, even in its adapted form.
“Just driving up here, just seeing all of the lights and all of the trees and everything, it’s just kind of exciting, and I love it because the kids love it too, but even big kids love it,” said Susie Weiler, attendee.
“And Christmas Music’s on playing and it’s just a fun night and a fun time,” said Debbie Crozier, attendee.
Families were able to see the town’s Christmas tree illuminated and surrounded by holiday decorations.
There was a mailbox for people to drop letters to Santa in and cars were able to drive up and speak to Santa Claus while socially distanced.
“Santa coming into town Flotilla weekend has always been a tradition, you know it’s been for many years here. So we’re excited that we can do something, some alternative, and still have him here for the season,” said Katie Ryan, Wrightsville Beach Recreation program supervisor.
Two event volunteers said the event is a well-loved tradition in the town.
“It’s good to participate in that, and you know just bring the spirit of Christmas. It’s not just about gifts, it’s an experience,” said Tate Woodard, volunteer.
“Yeah, and it’s nice to see everybody being more joyful since the past two years, because we never got to see a lot of people and go out and do this like normal,” said Lila Ciarrocca, volunteer.
Wrightsville Beach hopes to hold the holiday kick-off in it’s traditional walk through format next year.
KURE BEACH, NC (WWAY) — The holiday season has begun in Fort Fisher with the kickoff of the Cape Fear Festival of Trees.
The event, which takes place at the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher, allows visitors to walk through a winter wonderland of flattering trees decorated by local businesses, organizations, and individual artists. There are also joined by a WWAY tree.
Festival admission is included in regular aquarium tickets. You must make a reservation in advance to go into the aquarium. You can see reservation limits and purchase tickets on their website.
LELAND, NC (WWAY) — Christmas is now just a sack of gifts away and shoppers are out hoping to find the perfect gifts to put under the tree.
UPS expects continued upstream supply chain congestion this holiday season as a result of several factors. For consumers looking to plan ahead to ensure their holidays are cheery and bright, UPS has the following tips to win the holidays.
1. Shop sooner rather than later. Take advantage of retailers offering early sales and buy while there’s still inventory.
2. Pack and ship things pronto. Once you have gifts in hand, get them on their way early, avoiding potential winter weather delays.
3. Have a backup plan, like a gift card, services, or event tickets, so you can pivot quickly in case you run into inventory issues.
4. Know the deadlines for shipping to friends and family from your area or around the world, and mark your calendar.
5. Share these tips with your friends and family to make sure everyone gets the gifts they want on time.
Holiday shipping deadlines for UPS are:
- 3-Day Select: Dec. 21
- 2nd Day Air: Dec. 22
- Next Day Air: Dec. 23
Holiday shipping deadlines for USPS are:
- USPS Ground Service: Dec. 15
- First-Class: Dec. 17
- Priority Mail: Dec. 18
- Priority Mail Express: Dec. 23
NEW YORK (AP) — Stephen Sondheim, the songwriter who reshaped the American musical theater in the second half of the 20th century with his intelligent, intricately rhymed lyrics, his use of evocative melodies and his willingness to tackle unusual subjects, has died. He was 91.
Sondheim’s death was announced by his Texas-based attorney, Rick Pappas, who told The New York Times the composer died Friday at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut. Pappas did not return calls and messages to The Associated Press.
Sondheim influenced several generations of theater songwriters, particularly with such landmark musicals as “Company,” “Follies” and “Sweeney Todd,” which are considered among his best work. His most famous ballad, “Send in the Clowns,” has been recorded hundreds of times, including by Frank Sinatra and Judy Collins.
The artist refused to repeat himself, finding inspiration for his shows in such diverse subjects as an Ingmar Bergman movie (“A Little Night Music”), the opening of Japan to the West (“Pacific Overtures”), French painter Georges Seurat (“Sunday in the Park With George”), Grimm’s fairy tales (“Into the Woods”) and even the killers of American presidents (“Assassins”), among others.
“The theater has lost one of its greatest geniuses and the world has lost one of its greatest and most original writers. Sadly, there is now a giant in the sky. But the brilliance of Stephen Sondheim will still be here as his legendary songs and shows will be performed for evermore,” producer Cameron Mackintosh wrote in tribute.
Six of Sondheim’s musicals won Tony Awards for best score, and he also received a Pulitzer Prize (“Sunday in the Park”), an Academy Award (for the song “Sooner or Later” from the film “Dick Tracy”), five Olivier Awards and the Presidential Medal of Honor. In 2008, he received a Tony Award for lifetime achievement.
Sondheim’s music and lyrics gave his shows a dark, dramatic edge, whereas before him, the dominant tone of musicals was frothy and comic. He was sometimes criticized as a composer of unhummable songs, a badge that didn’t bother Sondheim. Frank Sinatra, who had a hit with Sondheim’s “Send in the Clowns,” once complained: “He could make me a lot happier if he’d write more songs for saloon singers like me.”
To theater fans, Sondheim’s sophistication and brilliance made him an icon. A Broadway theater was named after him. A New York magazine cover asked “Is Sondheim God?” The Guardian newspaper once offered this question: “Is Stephen Sondheim the Shakespeare of musical theatre?”
A supreme wordsmith — and an avid player of word games — Sondheim’s joy of language shone through. “The opposite of left is right/The opposite of right is wrong/So anyone who’s left is wrong, right?” he wrote in “Anyone Can Whistle.” In “Company,” he penned the lines: “Good things get better/Bad gets worse/Wait — I think I meant that in reverse.”
He offered the three principles necessary for a songwriter in his first volume of collected lyrics — Content Dictates Form, Less Is More, and God Is in the Details. All these truisms, he wrote, were “in the service of Clarity, without which nothing else matters.” Together they led to stunning lines like: “It’s a very short road from the pinch and the punch to the paunch and the pouch and the pension.”
Taught by no less a genius than Oscar Hammerstein, Sondheim pushed the musical into a darker, richer and more intellectual place. “If you think of a theater lyric as a short story, as I do, then every line has the weight of a paragraph,” he wrote in his 2010 book, “Finishing the Hat,” the first volume of his collection of lyrics and comments.
Early in his career, Sondheim wrote the lyrics for two shows considered to be classics of the American stage, “West Side Story” (1957) and “Gypsy” (1959). “West Side Story,” with music by Leonard Bernstein, transplanted Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” to the streets and gangs of modern-day New York. “Gypsy,” with music by Jule Styne, told the backstage story of the ultimate stage mother and the daughter who grew up to be Gypsy Rose Lee.
It was not until 1962 that Sondheim wrote both music and lyrics for a Broadway show, and it turned out to be a smash — the bawdy “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” starring Zero Mostel as a wily slave in ancient Rome yearning to be free.
Yet his next show, “Anyone Can Whistle” (1964), flopped, running only nine performances but achieving cult status after its cast recording was released. Sondheim’s 1965 lyric collaboration with composer Richard Rodgers — “Do I Hear a Waltz?” — also turned out to be problematic. The musical, based on the play “The Time of the Cuckoo,” ran for six months but was an unhappy experience for both men, who did not get along.
It was “Company,” which opened on Broadway in April 1970, that cemented Sondheim’s reputation. The episodic adventures of a bachelor (played by Dean Jones) with an inability to commit to a relationship was hailed as capturing the obsessive nature of striving, self-centered New Yorkers. The show, produced and directed by Hal Prince, won Sondheim his first Tony for best score. “The Ladies Who Lunch” became a standard for Elaine Stritch.
The following year, Sondheim wrote the score for “Follies,” a look at the shattered hopes and disappointed dreams of women who had appeared in lavish Ziegfeld-style revues. The music and lyrics paid homage to great composers of the past such as Jerome Kern, Cole Porter the Gershwins.
In 1973, “A Little Night Music,” starring Glynis Johns and Len Cariou, opened. Based on Bergman’s “Smiles of a Summer Night,” this rueful romance of middle-age lovers contains the song “Send in the Clowns,” which gained popularity outside the show. A revival in 2009 starred Angela Lansbury and Catherine Zeta-Jones was nominated for a best revival Tony.
“Pacific Overtures,” with a book by John Weidman, followed in 1976. The musical, also produced and directed by Prince, was not a financial success, but it demonstrated Sondheim’s commitment to offbeat material, filtering its tale of the westernization of Japan through a hybrid American-Kabuki style.
In 1979, Sondheim and Prince collaborated on what many believe to be Sondheim’s masterpiece, the bloody yet often darkly funny “Sweeney Todd.” An ambitious work, it starred Cariou in the title role as a murderous barber whose customers end up in meat pies baked by Todd’s willing accomplice, played by Angela Lansbury.
The Sondheim-Prince partnership collapsed two years later, after “Merrily We Roll Along,” a musical that traced a friendship backward from its characters’ compromised middle age to their idealistic youth. The show, based on a play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, only ran two weeks on Broadway. But again, as with “Anyone Can Whistle,” its original cast recording helped “Merrily We Roll Along” to become a favorite among musical-theater buffs.
“Sunday in the Park,” written with James Lapine, may be Sondheim’s most personal show. A tale of uncompromising artistic creation, it told the story of artist Georges Seurat, played by Mandy Patinkin. The painter submerges everything in his life, including his relationship with his model (Bernadette Peters), for his art.) It was most recently revived on Broadway in 2017 with Jake Gyllenhaal.)
Three years after “Sunday” debuted, Sondheim collaborated again with Lapine, this time on the fairy-tale musical “Into the Woods.” The show starred Peters as a glamorous witch and dealt primarily with the turbulent relationships between parents and children, using such famous fairy-tale characters as Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel. It was most recently revived in the summer of 2012 in Central Park by The Public Theater.
“Assassins” opened off-Broadway in 1991 and it looked at the men and women who wanted to kill presidents, from John Wilkes Booth to John Hinckley. The show received mostly negative reviews in its original incarnation, but many of those critics reversed themselves 13 years later when the show was done on Broadway and won a Tony for best musical revival.
“Passion” was another severe look at obsession, this time a desperate woman, played by Donna Murphy, in love with a handsome soldier. Despite winning the best-musical Tony in 1994, the show barely managed a six-month run.
A new version of “The Frogs,” with additional songs by Sondheim and a revised book by Nathan Lane (who also starred in the production), played Lincoln Center during the summer of 2004. The show, based on the Aristophanes comedy, originally had been done 20 years earlier in the Yale University swimming pool.
One of his more troubled shows was “Road Show,” which reunited Sondheim and Weidman and spent years being worked on. This tale of the Mizner brothers, whose get-rich schemes in the early part of the 20th century finally made it to the Public Theater in 2008 after going through several different titles, directors and casts.
He had been working on a new musical with “Venus in Fur” playwright David Ives, who called his collaborator a genius. “Not only are his musicals brilliant, but I can’t think of another theater person who has so chronicled a whole age so eloquently,” Ives said in 2013. “He is the spirit of the age in a certain way.”
Sondheim was born March 22, 1930, into a wealthy family, the only son of dress manufacturer Herbert Sondheim and Helen Fox Sondheim. At 10, his parents divorced and Sondheim’s mother bought a house in Doylestown, Pa., where one of their Bucks County neighbors was lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, whose son, James, was Sondheim’s roommate at boarding school. It was Oscar Hammerstein who became the young man’s professional mentor and a good friend.
He had a solitary childhood, once in which involved verbal abuse from his chilly mother. He received a letter in his 40s from her telling him that she regretted giving birth to him. He continued to support her financially and to see her occasionally but didn’t attend her funeral.
Sondheim attended Williams College in Massachusetts, where he majored in music. After graduation, he received a two-year fellowship to study with avant-garde composer Milton Babbitt.
One of Sondheim’s first jobs was writing scripts for the television show “Topper,” which ran for two years (1953-1955). At the same time, Sondheim wrote his first musical, “Saturday Night,” the story of a group of young people in Brooklyn in 1920s. It was to have opened on Broadway in 1955, but its producer died just as the musical was about to go into production, and the show was scrapped. “Saturday Night” finally arrived in New York in 1997 in a small, off-Broadway production.
Sondheim wrote infrequently for the movies. He collaborated with actor Anthony Perkins on the script for the 1973 murder mystery “The Last of Sheila,” and besides his work on “Dick Tracy” (1990), wrote scores for such movies as Alain Resnais’ “Stavisky” (1974) and Warren Beatty’s “Reds” (1981).
Over the years, there have been many Broadway revivals of Sondheim shows, especially “Gypsy,” which had reincarnations starring Angela Lansbury (1974), Tyne Daly (1989) and Peters (2003). But there also were productions of “A Funny Thing,” one with Phil Silvers in 1972 and another starring Nathan Lane in 1996; “Into the Woods” with Vanessa Williams in 2002; and even of Sondheim’s less successful shows such as “Assassins” and “Pacific Overtures,” both in 2004. “Sweeney Todd” has been produced in opera houses around the world. A reimagined “West Side Story” opened on Broadway in 2020 and a scrambled “Company” opened on Broadway in 2021 with the genders of the actors switched.
Sondheim’s songs have been used extensively in revues, the best-known being “Side by Side by Sondheim” (1976) on Broadway and “Putting It Together,” off-Broadway with Julie Andrews in 1992 and on Broadway with Carol Burnett in 1999. The New York Philharmonic put on a star-studded “Company” in 2011 with Neil Patrick Harris and Stephen Colbert. Tunes from his musicals have lately popped up everywhere from “Marriage Story” to “The Morning Show.”
An HBO documentary directed by Lapine, “Six by Sondheim,” aired in 2013 and revealed that he liked to compose lying down and sometimes enjoyed a cocktail to loosen up as he wrote. He even revealed that he really only fell in love after reaching 60, first with the dramatist Peter Jones and then in his last years with Jeff Romley.
In September 2010, the Henry Miller Theatre was renamed the Stephen Sondheim Theatre. “I’m deeply embarrassed. I’m thrilled, but deeply embarrassed,” he said as the sun fell over dozens of clapping admirers in Times Square. Then he revealed his perfectionist streak: “I’ve always hated my last name. It just doesn’t sing.”
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — A North Carolina man was killed Wednesday in a shooting in Myrtle Beach, according to Horry County Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard.
Adam Jarrett, 42, of Tabor City, died at Grand Strand Regional Medical Center after being shot on South Ocean Boulevard, Willard said.
A second person was also shot and is recovering, according to police.
Police determined both people shot were shooting at each other.
The second person shot has not been identified.
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Riverlights in Wilmington is celebrating the holiday season with a Holiday Tree Lighting and Festival of Trees at Marina Village on Saturday, December 4, 2021.
The neighborhood has partnered with Communities in Schools, Eden Village, paws4people, Cape Fear River Watch, and Honor Flight to decorate trees that showcase their organization in a creative way. Visitors will then vote for the best decorated tree and Riverlights is donating $1,000 to the winning organization.
Each nonprofit will also be accepting donations and sharing more about their mission throughout the evening.
Riverlights is also hitting the play button as holiday music to get everyone in a festive mood to stroll through Marina Village shops, grab a bite to eat, and have your photo taken with movie characters Anna and Elsa (fun for young and young at heart.) Grab some cookies and hot chocolate, compliments of CCU, enjoy two live performances of a scene from the Nutcracker by Wilmington Ballet Company, decorate an ornament to take home, and get your photo taken from the big guy himself SANTA inside the Riverlights Information Center.
For more information click here.
DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) — The Streets at Southpoint has closed early on one of the busiest shopping days of the year after three people were shot Friday.
One person is in custody.
On Friday afternoon, police and fire crews descended on the popular shopping destination. Originally, it was believed that one person was shot but ABC11 later learned that three people were wounded.
Two groups that knew each other were involved in the shooting. The youngest shot was 10 years old.
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — The Lower Cape Fear Historical Society is hosting an evening of history and holiday cheer on Saturday, December 11.
The walk through historic downtown Wilmington will feature five historic homes including the Latimer House. It is an abbreviated version of the annual tradition, but will still include music, caroling, refreshments, and much more.
The homes on the tour will be decked out in their holiday best to welcome the Cape Fear back to holiday happiness!
For more information and tickets click here.
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — The Lower Cape Fear Historical Society is getting ready for the holidays with professional talent! Two design firms are donating time and talent to decorate.
Full Spectrum Design of Shallotte and House of Halstead will decorate the Latimer House for the LCFHS Holiday Open House. Melissa Hunt and Tommy John Halstead will be joined by volunteers to transform the house’s interior and exterior into a visually stunning winter wonderland. The work begins November 29 at 10 a.m. at the property on S. 3rd Street in downtown Wilmington.
The Lower Cape Fear Historical Society is dedicated to the preservation of history and relies on community support. It develops exhibits, educational programs, and preserves archives and collections for the community and for educational resources.
The Holiday Open House at the Latimer House is Saturday, December from 4 to 8 p.m.. Refreshments, music, and tours will ring in the season at the free event.
For more information click here.
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office is currently investigating a shooting on Piner Road in Wilmington.
According to the sheriff’s office, a man was shot around 3 p.m. and transported to the hospital. It is unknown what his condition is at this time.
The sheriff’s office is working to locate the suspect.
This is an ongoing investigation. We will provide more information as it becomes available.
SOUTHPORT, NC (WWAY) — The Southport Police Department issuing a friendly reminder to golf cart owners to have their carts registered.
With several holiday parades and activities planned in Southport in the coming weeks, Chief Todd Coring says all owners need to be in compliance.
A city sticker, a NCDMV license plate, or a BCSO inspection sticker are ways to be in compliance.
The city sticker program/ordinance can be found by clicking here.
SHALLOTTE, NC (WWAY) — Beach House Harley-Davidson, The Marine Corps Reserve, and Toys for Tots are making the holidays brighter in Shallotte on Sunday.
Bring a new, unwrapped toy or a cash donation to Beach House Harley-Davidson between 9 and 11:30am then prepare for a ride through Shallotte, Ocean Isle Beach, and Calabash. There is no registration fee other than the donation.
Kickstands go up at noon and Coastal Catering will serve a free lunch to all participants.
The Marine Corps Toys for Tots is a top-rated charity with 97 percent of all donations going directly to providing toys, books, and other gifts to less fortunate children. No money goes to salaries or any other manpower costs.
For more information on the 12th Annual Toys for Tots Ride in Shallotte click here.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health regulators say an experimental COVID-19 pill from Merck is effective against the virus, but they will seek input from outside experts on risks of birth defects and other potential problems during pregnancy.
The Food and Drug Administration posted its analysis of the pill ahead of a public meeting next week where academic and other experts will weigh in on its safety and effectiveness. The agency isn’t required to follow the group’s advice.
The FDA scientists said their review identified several potential risks, including possible toxicity to developing fetuses and birth defects that were identified in studies of the pill in animals.
Given those risks the FDA will ask its advisers next Tuesday whether the drug should never be given during pregnancy or whether it could be made available in certain cases.
Under that scenario, the FDA said the drug would carry warnings about risks during pregnancy, but doctors would still have the option to prescribe it in certain cases where its benefits could outweigh its risks for patients.
Given the safety concerns, FDA said Merck agreed the drug would not be used in children.
Other side effects were mild and rare, with about 2% of patients experiencing diarrhea.
Regulators also noted that Merck collected far less safety data overall on its drug than was gathered for other COVID-19 therapies.
“While the clinical safety data base was small, there were no major safety concerns identified,” FDA reviewers concluded.
Additionally, the FDA flagged a concern that Merck’s drug led to small changes in the coronavirus’ signature spike protein, which it uses to penetrate human cells. Theoretically, FDA cautioned, those changes could lead to dangerous new variants.
FDA will ask its independent advisers to discuss all those issues and then vote on whether the drug’s overall benefits outweigh its risks.
All COVID-19 drugs currently authorized by the FDA require an injection or IV and can only be given by health professionals. If authorized, Merck’s drug would be the first that U.S. patients could take at home to ease symptoms and speed recovery. It is already authorized for emergency use in the U.K.
The meeting marks the first time regulators have publicly reviewed a new drug for COVID-19, reflecting the intense interest and scrutiny of a pill that could be soon used by millions of Americans.
The drug, molnupiravir, has been shown to significantly cut the rate of hospitalizations and deaths among people with mild-to-moderate coronavirus infections.
Merck’s drug uses a novel approach to fight COVID-19: it inserts tiny mutations into the coronavirus’ genetic code to stop the virus from reproducing.
But that genetic effect has raised concerns that in rare cases the drug could cause birth defects or even spur more virulent strains of the virus.
Pregnant women were excluded from Merck’s study, and both women and men in the study were instructed to use contraception or abstain from sex.
For its part, Merck says results from two company studies in rodents show the drug does not cause mutations or damage to DNA at the doses studied .
FDA reviewers also confirmed previously reported interim results from Merck that the pill cut the rate of hospitalization and death by about half among patients with early symptoms of COVID-19 who faced increased risk due to health problems.
However, on Friday morning Merck announced updated results from the same study that showed a smaller benefit from the drug. The FDA said it is still reviewing the updated data and would present a new assessment of the drug’s effectiveness next Tuesday.
Among more than 1,400 adults in a company study, molnupiravir reduced the combined risk of hospitalization and death by 30%, less than the 50% initially reported based on incomplete results.
Nearly 7% of patients who received Merck’s drug within five days of COVID-19 symptoms ended up in the hospital and one died. That compared to 10% of patients hospitalized who were taking the placebo and nine deaths.
Merck didn’t study its drug in people who were vaccinated for COVID-19. But the FDA will ask advisers to recommend which patients may stand to benefit the most from the drug, based on vaccination status and underlying health problems.
While Merck’s drug is likely to be the first pill for coronavirus in the U.S., more are expected to follow.
Rival drugmaker Pfizer has submitted its own antiviral for FDA review after initial study results showed it cut the combined rate of hospitalization and death by nearly 90%.
Pfizer’s drug is part of a decades-old family of antiviral pills known as protease inhibitors, which revolutionized the treatment of HIV and hepatitis C. They work differently than Merck’s pill and haven’t been linked to the kind of mutation concerns that have been raised with Merck’s drug.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Appellate arguments over a lawsuit challenging South Carolina’s abortion law have been pushed into the new year.
Oral arguments in the case had originally been planned for next month, but the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has rescheduled them for the last week in January, according to an order from the court. Earlier this week, attorneys for the state also requested that the case be heard toward the end of that week, due to a scheduling conflict.
Planned Parenthood is suing South Carolina to over the measure, which was signed into law by Republican Gov. Henry McMaster earlier this year and requires doctors to perform ultrasounds to check for a so-called “fetal heartbeat.” If cardiac activity — which can typically be detected about six weeks into pregnancy — is detected, the abortion can only be performed if the pregnancy was caused by rape or incest, or if the mother’s life is in danger.
Opponents have argued many women do not know they are pregnant at six weeks. And, they argue, with such an early deadline, the law gives women little time to consider whether to have an abortion.
Medical experts say the cardiac activity is not an actual heartbeat but rather an initial flutter of electric activity within cells in an embryo. They say the heart doesn’t begin to form until the fetus is at least nine weeks old, and they decry efforts to promote abortion bans by relying on medical inaccuracies.
The 4th Circuit had originally planned to hear the case the week of Dec. 6. That’s a week after the U.S. Supreme Court hears a challenge to Mississippi’s new abortion law. South Carolina’s law has been blocked, pending the outcome of that legal challenge.
Mississippi wants the high court to uphold its ban on most abortions after the 15th week of pregnancy, telling the court it should overrule the landmark Roe v. Wade decision guaranteeing a woman’s right to an abortion, and the 1992 decision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey that prevents states from banning abortion before viability.
South Carolina is among a dozen states awaiting the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on Texas’ abortion law — the most restrictive in the nation — which bans abortions as early as six weeks and has no exceptions for rape or incest.
Its unique enforcement mechanism also allows anyone — even someone outside Texas — to sue an abortion provider, or anyone else who may have helped someone get an abortion after the limit, and seek financial damages of up to $10,000 per defendant.
In July, 20 mostly Republican-led states went on record in support of South Carolina’s law, arguing that a federal judge was wrong to pause the entire measure instead of just the provision being challenged. Several months later, 20 Democratic attorneys general voiced support for the legal challenge to South Carolina’s law, arguing that the restrictive measure could harm their states by taxing resources if women cross borders to seek care.
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks sank Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly falling more than 1,000 points, as a new coronavirus variant first detected in South Africa appeared to be spreading across the globe. Investors were uncertain whether the variant could potentially reverse months of progress at getting the COVID-19 pandemic under control.
The S&P 500 index dropped 106.84 points, or 2.3%, to close at 4,594.62. It was the worst day for Wall Street’s benchmark index since February.
The index was dragged lower by everything from banks, travel companies and energy companies as investors tried to reposition to protect themselves financially from the new variant. The World Health Organization called the variant “highly transmissible.”
The price of oil fell about 13%, the biggest decline since early in the pandemic, amid worries of another slowdown in the global economy. That in turn dragged down energy stocks. Exxon shares fell 3.5% while Chevron fell 2.3%.
The blue chips closed down 905.04 points to end the day at 34,899.34. The Nasdaq Composite lost 353.57 points, or 2.2%, to 15,491.66.
“Investors are likely to shoot first and ask questions later until more is known,” Jeffrey Halley of Oanda said in a report. That was evident from the action in the bond market, where the yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 1.48% from 1.64% on Wednesday. As a result, banks took some of the heaviest losses. JPMorgan Chase dropped 3%.
There have been other variants of the coronavirus — the delta variant devastated much of the U.S. throughout the summer — and investors, public officials and the general public are jittery about any new variant that’s spreading. It’s been nearly two years since COVID-19 emerged, killing more than 5 million people around the globe so far.
Cases of the new variant were found in Hong Kong, Belgium and Tel Aviv as well as major South African cities like Johannesburg.
The economic impacts of this variant are already being felt. Flights between South Africa and Europe were being subject to quarantine or being shut down altogether. Airline stocks were quickly sold off, with United Airlines dropping 9.6% and American Airlines falling 8.8%..
“COVID had seemingly been put in the rear-view mirror by financial markets until recently,” Douglas Porter, chief economist at BMO Capital Markets. “At the least, (the virus) is likely to continue throwing sand in the gears of the global economy in 2022, restraining the recovery (and) keeping kinks in the supply chain.”
Even Bitcoin got caught up in the selling. The digital currency dropped 8.4% to $54,179, according to CoinDesk.
One sign of Wall Street’s anxiety was the VIX, the market’s measurement of volatility that is sometimes referred to as its “fear gauge.” The VIX jumped 53.6% to a reading of 28.54, its highest reading since January before the vaccines began to be widely distributed.
Fearful of more lockdowns and travel bans, investors moved money into companies that largely benefited from previous waves, like Zoom Communications for meetings or Peloton for at-home exercise equipment. Shares in both companies rose nearly 6%.
The coronavirus vaccine manufacturers were among the biggest beneficiaries of the emergence of this new variant and the subsequent investor reaction. Pfizer shares rose more than 6% while Moderna shares jumped more than 20%.
Merck shares fell 3.8%, however. While U.S. health officials said Merck’s experimental treatment of COVID-19 was effective, data showed the pill was not as effective at keeping patients out of the hospital as originally thought.
Investors are worried that the supply chain issues that have impacted global markets for months will worsen. Ports and freight yards are vulnerable and could be shut by new, localized outbreaks.
“Supply chains are already stretched,’’ said Neil Shearing, an economist with Capital Economics in London. “A new, more dangerous, virus wave could cause some workers to temporarily exit the workforce, and deter others from returning, making current labor shortages worse.’’
The variant also puts more pressure on central banks that are already faced with a dilemma: whether and when to raise interest rates to combat rising inflation. “The threat of a new, more serious, variant of the virus may be a reason for central banks to postpone plans to raise interest rates until the picture becomes clearer,’’ Shearing said.
Stock trading the Friday after Thanksgiving is typically the slowest day of the year, with the market closing at 1 p.m. Eastern. However volume on Friday was much higher than it would typically be for a holiday-shortened day. Roughly 3.4 billion shares exchanged hands on the New York Stock Exchange, which is only modestly below the 4 billion shares traded on an average day.
ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. (WNCN) – Two men have been arrested in connection to a homicide that happened on Thanksgiving night in Rocky Mount.
Police responded to reports of shots fired the 2500 block of Sexton Road just before midnight.
Upon arrival, officers located 31-year-old Levaska Smith, III lying in the yard of a home in the area.
Smith was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Authorities have arrested 35-year-old Kenneth Parker of Rocky Mount and 33-year-old Raylon Parker of Enfield in connection to the homicide.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration on Friday recommended an overhaul of the nation’s oil and gas leasing program to limit areas available areas for energy development and raise costs for oil and gas companies to drill on public land and water.
The long-awaited report by the Interior Department stops short of recommending an end to oil and gas leasing on public lands, as many environmental groups have urged. But officials said the report would lead to a more responsible leasing process that provides a better return to U.S. taxpayers.
“Our nation faces a profound climate crisis that is impacting every American,″ Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement, adding that the new report’s recommendations will mitigate worsening climate change impacts “while staying steadfast in the pursuit of environmental justice.″
The report completes a review ordered in January by President Joe Biden, who directed a pause in federal oil and gas lease sales in his first days in office, citing worries about climate change.
The moratorium drew sharp criticism from congressional Republicans and the oil industry, even as many environmentalists and Democrats said Biden should make the leasing pause permanent.
The new report seeks a middle ground that would continue the multibillion-dollar leasing program while reforming it to end what many officials consider overly favorable terms for the industry.
The report recommends hiking federal royalty rates for oil and gas drilling, which have not been raised for 100 years. The federal rate of 12.5 percent that developers must pay to drill on public lands is significantly lower than many states and private landowners charge for drilling leases on state or private lands.
The report also said the government should consider raising bond payments that energy companies must set aside for future cleanup before they drill new wells. Bond rates have not been increased in decades, the report said.
The Bureau of Land Management, an Interior Department agency, should focus potential leasing on areas that have high potential for oil and gas resources and are in proximity to existing oil and gas infrastructure, the report said.
The White House declined to comment Friday, referring questions to Interior.
The federal leasing program has drawn renewed focus in recent weeks as gasoline prices have skyrocketed and Republicans complained that Biden policies, including the leasing moratorium, rejection of the Keystone XL oil pipeline and a ban on oil leasing in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, contributed to the price spike.
Biden on Tuesday ordered a record 50 million barrels of oil released from America’s strategic reserve, aiming to bring down gas prices amid concerns about inflation. Gasoline prices are at about $3.40 a gallon, more than 50% higher than a year ago, according to the American Automobile Association.
The Biden administration conducted a lease sale on federal oil and gas reserves in the Gulf of Mexico last week, after attorneys general from Republican-led states successfully sued in federal court to lift the suspension on federal oil and gas sales that Biden imposed when he took office.
Energy companies including Shell, BP, Chevron and ExxonMobil offered a combined $192 million for offshore drilling rights in the Gulf, highlighting the hurdles Biden faces to reach climate goals dependent on deep cuts in fossil fuel emissions.
The leases will take years to develop, meaning oil companies could keep producing crude long past 2030, when Biden has set a goal to lower greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50%, compared with 2005 levels. Scientists say the world needs to be well on the way to that goal over the next decade to avoid catastrophic climate change.
Yet even as Biden has tried to cajole other world leaders into strengthening efforts against global warming, including at this month’s U.N/ climate talks in Scotland, he’s had difficulty gaining ground on climate issues at home.
The administration has proposed another round of oil and gas sales early next year in Wyoming, Colorado, Montana and other states. Interior Department officials proceeded despite concluding that burning the fuels could lead to billions of dollars in potential future climate damages.
Emissions from burning and extracting fossil fuels from public lands and waters account for about a quarter of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Environmentalists hailed the report’s recommendation to raise royalty rates, but some groups said the report falls short of action needed to address the climate crisis.
“Today’s report is a complete failure of the climate leadership that our world desperately needs,” said Taylor McKinnon of the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group.
The report “presumes more fossil fuel leasing that our climate can’t afford” and abandons Biden’s campaign promise to stop new oil and gas leasing on public lands, McKinnon said.
The American Petroleum Institute, the top lobbying group for the oil industry, said Interior was proposing to “increase costs on American energy development with no clear roadmap for the future of federal leasing.”
Other groups were more upbeat.
“This report makes an incredibly compelling case both economically and ecologically for bringing the federal oil and gas leasing program into the 21st century,” said Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation. “Enacting these overdue reforms will ensure taxpayers, communities and wildlife are no longer harmed by below-market rates, insufficient protections and poor planning.”
The wildlife federation and other groups urged the Senate to include reforms to the oil and gas program in Biden’s sweeping social and environmental policy bill. Many reforms, including an end to drilling in the Arctic refuge and a ban on offshore drilling along the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts and the eastern Gulf of Mexico, were included in a House version of the bill approved last week.
Jennifer Rokala, executive director of the left-leaning Center for Western Priorities, said the report “provides a critical roadmap to ensure drilling decisions on public lands take into account (climate) impacts on our land, water and wildlife, while ensuring a fair return for taxpayers.”
Republicans called the report a continuation of what they call Biden’s war on domestic energy production.
While the report hides behind language of “necessary reforms” and royalty rates adjustments, ”we know the real story,” said Arkansas Rep. Bruce Westerman, the top Republican on the House Natural Resources Committee.
The Biden administration “will bog small energy companies down in years of regulatory gridlock, place millions of acres of resources-rich land under lock and key (and) ignore local input,” Westerman said. “Ultimately, the American consumer will pay the price. Look no further than the skyrocketing prices you are already paying at the gas pump.”
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WPDE) — Carolina Country Music Fest (CCMF) is not only announcing their Black Friday sale, but also another artist joining the lineup for the 2022 festival.
Jon Pardi was announced Friday morning on Twitter.
He joins Gabby Barrett, Riley Green, Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean and Keith Urban and others.
STANLEY, N.C. (WSOC) — A woman was killed and her neighbor has been arrested after a shooting on Thanksgiving in Stanley, according to Gaston County police.
Around 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, police responded to reports of a shooting in the 2300 block of Stanley-Lucia Road.
Inside the home, Kathy Smith, 58, was found dead from a gunshot wound, officials said.