Breakthroughs are on the ballot.

Science is the way out of this pandemic—and voting is how you can help. BIO has launched a new initiative, Biotech Votes 2020, to help you cast your ballot on November 3.

Biotech Votes 2020 is our new initiative to help you get ready for Election Day. You can:

• Verify your voter registration and find your polling location or mail-in ballot information.
• Register to cast your ballot, get all the information you need with one simple form.
• Learn about candidates across all levels of government as well as key policy priorities for the biotech industry and how they will impact innovation, because an informed voter is the best voter.

You don’t need to be a political junkie to get informed about the issues. Join us Monday, September 14, for our free webinar with analysis on key races all the way down the ticket, “must-pass” legislation, a potential COVID relief package, and the post-conventions landscape. 

Even children know it’s important to exercise your right to vote. Check out and share this adorable and inspirational video from Dr. Michelle’s eight-year-old daughter, Isabella, about why it's important to vote. (And hey, these resources might be helpful for your at-home civics lessons, too.)

Dr. Michelle’s Diagnosis: At BIO, we believe the way out of this new reality is through science—in the form of accurate and rapid testing, and safe and effective vaccines and treatments. We also believe in partnerships—partnerships between companies and health organizations, as well as partnerships with a government run by elected officials who believe strongly in science. This is why elections are so important, and why everyone needs to educate themselves on the candidates and issues—and of course, show up to the polls in November. – BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath

Your vote is critical—no matter which party or candidate you support. Learn more at www.bio.org/vote.

Health Care News: 

Futurity: COVID-19 patients get needless antibiotics, data suggests
“In addition to putting patients at risk of opportunistic infections like Clostridium difficile that can worsen their odds of recovery, antibiotics also pose a broader risk of feeding the epidemic of drug-resistant bacteria that already plagues many hospitals and can put patients and staff at risk.” 

STAT News: U.S. advisory group lays out detailed recommendations on how to prioritize COVID-19 vaccine
“A new report that aims to prioritize groups to receive COVID-19 vaccine focuses on who is at risk, rather than using job categories or ethnic groups to determine who should be at the front of the line.” 

The Wall Street Journal (Opinion): The remdesivir patent isn’t state property
“Attorneys general want to seize Gilead’s right to its drug, but government did little to help create it,” says Sally C. Pipes, President and CEO of the Pacific Research Institute. 

The Washington Post (Opinion): People of color are disproportionately affected by COVID-19. Yet they are underrepresented in vaccine trials.
The lack of diversity in clinical trials is “potentially catastrophic for people of color, who are disproportionately represented among front-line and essential workers—and who are suffering the worst health and economic effects of this pandemic,” writes Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA).

Agriculture and Environment News:

Nature: The mosquito strategy that could eliminate dengue
“The trial, conducted in Yogyakarta in Indonesia, showed that releasing mosquitoes modified to carry a bacterium called Wolbachia, which stops the insects from transmitting some viruses, led to a steep drop in cases of dengue fever in the city. These results are the strongest evidence yet that the Wolbachia technique, in development since the 1990s, could rid the world of some deadly mosquito-borne diseases, researchers say.”