Parson, 65, returned to work Monday after isolating in the Governors Mansion for 10 days. He traveled to Bolivar over the weekend to join the first lady, 67, who isolated at their home in Bolivar.
On Monday, he also resumed campaign strategy meetings as he faces off against Democratic Auditor Nicole Galloway for a full, four-year term on Nov. 3.
In the morning, for example, Parson was at one of his campaign offices in downtown Jefferson City. Among those in attendance were Jones and Parsons chief of staff, Aaron Willard.
As she was leaving the office, the Post-Dispatch asked for a quick interview with the governor. Jones, who later said she was on leave from her taxpayer-paid position while visiting the campaign office, said that would be unlikely.
I doubt it, she said.
In the evening press release, Parson said, Teresa and I are so grateful that we are two of well over 100,000 Missourians that have recovered from this virus. We are glad to be back and want to again thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers. We are humbled every day to be surrounded by such great people across the state.
Parsons plans for the week include several ceremonies in the capitol, St. Joseph and St. Louis, according to a schedule released by his office.
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President Donald Trump is set to be discharged from the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Monday, according to a tweet from the president, after being admitted to the hospital on Friday to treat "mild symptoms" of Covid-19. The president experienced twodrops in his oxygen levels over the course of his illness, but has since improved. Trump's bout with the coronavirus sent shock waves through the Republican Party and comes amid uncertainty around his path to reelection and another stimulus deal.
Here are some of the biggest developments Monday:
The following data was compiled by Johns Hopkins University:
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Coronavirus infections in Westmoreland County jumped by nearly 600 cases over the past month, a statistic that county and state officials said Monday was attributed to a general community spread of the virus.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health disclosed that more than 100 cases were identified in the county over the past three days, including another 45 on Monday which was one less than reported in Allegheny County. Those numbers come as case totals continued to climb in Westmoreland County over the past several weeks and amid an ongoing outbreak at Westmoreland Manor, the 408-bed, county-owned nursing home in Hempfield that since mid-September has seen 86 cases among residents and 28 involving employees.
The county on Monday reported another three residents tested positive for covid-19.
This is a virus that spreads, said Roland Mertz, the countys public safety director. Even taking the Manor out, the numbers in the general population have risen as well.
State health officials Monday listed Westmoreland as among 46 counties with moderate transmission levels for the virus.
Meanwhile, deaths attributed to the virus rose by one Monday, standing now at 57, according the health department.
County officials continue to express concern they havent received additional information about the potential origin of diagnosed cases identified by contact tracing.
Dr. Carol Fox, senior vice president and chief medical officer at Excela Health in Greensburg, said contact tracing among cases diagnosed by the local hospital system determined that most have been related to patients who reported attending gatherings and parties where unmasked people attended. She said eating in public is a significant risk for potential exposures to the virus.
Were seeing more cases as people let their guard down. People need to wear masks because you are at risk when you are around others, Fox said.
Most contact tracing is performed by the state. Maggi Mumma, spokeswoman for the state health department, in an email Monday said the increased caseload in Westmoreland County was not attributed to rising numbers at the Manor, though she identified no other events as a potential spreader for the virus.
Of those new cases, there are 143 from long-term care facilities residents and 20 staff. Therefore, the majority of incoming covid-19 cases are not from long-term care facilities, it is likely community spread, Mumma said.
Commissioner Gina Cerilli said the countys increasing case totals is not unexpected.
If we want to keep our businesses and schools open, we have to continue to wear masks and to be careful. As more businesses continue to open, more cases is something that we have to expect, Cerilli said.
The increased number of cases, Fox said, is in part of function of more testing that is being performed by Excela and others. And even as daily hospitalizations continue to increase, it jumped from just a few several weeks ago to 22 patients now, Fox said the severity of the illness has been far less than what doctors saw over the summer.
Just one patient in the county is on a ventilator to assist with breathing, according to the state.
There is definitely a higher number of cases, but fewer require the most-intensive treatment, Fox said.
Rich Cholodofsky is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Rich at 724-830-6293, rcholodofsky@triblive.com or via Twitter .
Categories:Coronavirus | Local | Murrysville Star | Norwin Star | Penn-Trafford Star | Top Stories | Westmoreland
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Community spread blamed for spiking covid-19 cases in Westmoreland County - TribLIVE
Experts are hopeful that a vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 virus will become available sooner rather than later.
Will there be a coronavirus vaccine before the Nov. 3 presidential election? Incumbent US President Donald Trump certainly hopes so. But even if his long-shot prediction were to come true, the realities of producing, distributing and administering one or more COVID-19 vaccines mean it could still take months before most people in the US received one -- and possibly even longer before life returns to some semblance of normal. That hasn't stopped the Trump administration from ratcheting up expectations.
And vaccine manufacturers aren't the only ones responding to pressure from the White House to hurry along the approval of a vaccine, either. The New Yorker reports that some Chinese officials are taking Trump's timeline seriously enough to rush approval of their own vaccines. That revelation comes on the heels of another investigation by the New York Times that details how China has been administering significant numbers of experimental coronavirus vaccines outside the typical testing process. Many worry that a similar disregard for safety protocols could lead to the premature approval of a vaccine in the US.
Currently, there are seven vaccine candidates being tested in the US, three of which are nearing the final stages needed for Food and Drug Administration approval. Considering SARS-CoV-2 -- the virus that causes COVID-19 -- was only discovered less than a year ago, the progress is actually happening at a faster clip than ever before in the history of infectious disease (vaccines take, on average,about 10.7 years to develop), despite Trump's claim that vaccine development is being intentionally stifled.
Keep track of the coronavirus pandemic.
Here, we survey the current landscape for a developing coronavirus vaccine. This article updates frequently and is intended to be a general overview and not a source of medical advice. If you're seeking more information about coronavirus testing, here's how to find a testing site near you.
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An effective coronavirus vaccine might be the only way to bring a stop to preventative measures, like social distancing and face masks.
Several acceleration efforts are currently underway, like theWhite House's Operation Warp Speed, which is meant to cut through regulatory red tape to speed up vaccine development and be ready to distribute vaccines as soon as they receive FDA approval. So far, the US government haspledged over $10 billionto several vaccine manufacturers to secure a total of 800 million vaccine doses.
Vaccines typically take about10 to 15 years to developand approve, through four phases that includehuman trials. But with Operation Warp Speed, rather than submitting all sections of the application after all four phases are done, approved vaccine projects can submit data to the FDA bit by bit.
Meanwhile, the program is also financially backing efforts to start manufacturing doses while clinical trials are still ongoing. That means if and when those vaccines do get approved, there will already be a store of doses ready to distribute nationally. "I would hope that by the time we get well into the second half of 2021 that the companies will have delivered the hundreds of millions of doses they have promised," Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Forbes in August.
Experts say recent surges in coronavirus cases aren't merely the result of the US doing more testing, as a higher percentage of those tested are coming up positive compared to earlier stages of the pandemic.
Here's a quick look at some of the frontrunners in the race to find a vaccine for COVID-19, including where the vaccines are being developed, where they are on testing them, and when scientists think they might be ready for widespread distribution, if known.
Oxford University/AstraZeneca (UK):AstraZeneca has paused testing of its vaccine, which it had begun on100,000 human volunteers in at least three countriesand was preparing to begin in the US. Lead researcher Dr. Sarah Gilbert had initially said they're aiming for a fall 2020 release, which may now be delayed. However, UK Health Minister Matt Hancock has said such a pause is "not necessarily" a setback.
Moderna (US): An apparent scuffle with government regulatorsdelayed large-scale human testing, butModerna's CEO has told Barron's he still expects the company will know by Thanksgiving if the vaccine is safe and effective and should be able to distribute it in early 2021 if it is.
Pfizer (US): Although its four COVID-19 vaccine candidates are still in early-stage human trials, two of them have been fast-tracked by the FDA. Pfizer's chief business officer told the US Congress the company may be ready to apply for FDA approval by October.
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SinoVac (China): Currently testing its vaccine on about 10,000 human volunteers in China and about 9,000 in Brazil and is set to begin testing on about 1,900 test subjects in Indonesia soon. CEO of BioPharma, SinoVac's Indonesian partner, has said he expects the vaccine to be ready by early 2021.
SinoPharm (China): Currently testing about 15,000 volunteers in the Middle Eastin a trial the state-owned company expects to last three to six months. Early results suggest the drug is safe and at least somewhat effective. SinoPharm recently built a second facility to manufacture the vaccine, doubling its capacity to about 200 million doses per year.
CanSino Biologics (China): Set to begin large-scale human trials this summer, CanSino's vaccine has already been approved for the Chinese military. The vaccine is based on a modified common cold virus, which some experts warn could make it less effective than other vaccine efforts.
Wearing a face mask remains the surest way of preventing transmission of the coronavirus.
We probably won't know until next year, but Fauci has suggested it might requireseveral different vaccinesmade and distributed by different labs to bring an end to the pandemic, in apaper published May 11 in the journal Science. He also has said he foresees different vaccines being given to different patient populations. For example, one vaccine for elderly or other high-risk patients, another for healthy adults, another for children, etc.
Coronaviruses are a large class of viruses andso far there are no vaccinesfor any of them. While there are promising early results, there's no guarantee of a vaccine by 2021. Statistically, only about 6% of vaccine candidates ever make it through to market,according to a Reuters special report.
Early evidencesuggests that the coronavirus doesn't appear to mutateas quickly or often as the flu, and it's thought that thevirus has not yet mutated significantly enoughto disrupt vaccine development -- although our knowledge could change.
Most experts expect a vaccine for the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, by 2021.
The longer we go without a vaccine, the more likely focus will shift toward treatments, such as theexperimental antiviral drug remdesivir, which has reportedly shown promising results, and dexamethasone, a steroid that doctors say increases survival rates among the most serious cases. With effective therapeutic treatments, many viruses that used to be fatal are no longer death sentences. Patients with HIV, for example, can now expect to enjoythe same life expectancyas non-HIV-positive individuals, thanks to tremendous advances in treatment.
Eventually, the global population may reach the 60% to 70% rate required forherd immunityto protect those who aren't immune, which is, ultimately, the goal of a vaccine.
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U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin speaks before Vice President Mike Pence at a campaign appearance at the Dairyland Power Cooperative Frank Linder Service Center in La Crosse on Monday.(Photo: Mark Hoffman, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said Saturday that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and will be isolating at his home in Oshkosh.
"I feel fine, I feel completely normal," Johnson said during a conference call with reporters.
Johnson is the thirdRepublican U.S. senator to test positive for the novel coronavirus within the last 24 hours.
Mike Lee of Utah and Thom Tillis of North Carolina also announced positive tests Friday.
On Saturday, U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., said he'll go into a quarantine until Oct. 14 as a result of Johnson's positive test, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Peters isthe ranking member of the Johnson-ledHomeland Security Committee. Peters said he underwent a COVID-19 test Saturday and the result was negative.
Johnson disclosed his diagnosis a day after speaking to the Ozaukee County Republican Party Oktoberfest Dinner at the River Club of Mequon on Friday night.
Johnson said after hearing that Lee had come down with the virus earlier Friday, he stopped in for a COVID-19 test while traveling to the dinner.
He said he had been tested numerous times over the past few months, with negative results, but learned he had tested positive late Friday night after his dinner appearance.
Johnson said he had his staff notify the GOP organizers before Friday's event that he would be taking precautions to ensure he's healthy and ready to vote on Judge Amy Coney Barrett's nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court.
"I would not come early. I would not stick around. I would not take photographs. I would maintain social distancing. And I would just come in and speak and I would leave. And that's exactly what happened," Johnson said they were told.
Johnson had recently been in a 14-day quarantine after his chief of staff, Tony Blando,had been diagnosed with the virus. Blando has since recovered, Johnson said.
He said his physician believes he most likely contracted it through his chief of staff.
"I do a really good job with social distancing," he said.
Johnson did not attend the Sept. 26 White House ceremony announcing Barrett's nomination, an event that has drawn attention as a potential source of an outbreak in Washington, D.C.
Lee and Tillis wereamong several prominent people including President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump whoattended the Rose Garden ceremony andhave since tested positive for the coronavirus. Many in attendance did not wear masks, and photographs and videos taken afterward showed many of them shaking hands and embracing one another.
With three Republican U.S. senators sidelined by COVID-19, it raises questions about the Senate's ability to act quickly on Barrett's judicial nomination. Lee and Tillis are on the Senate Judiciary Committee that will firstconsider the nomination, while Johnson is not.
Johnson said he has been adjusting his schedule and taking precautions so he can take the vote on Barrett, "even if I got quarantined for two weeks or developed symptoms or whatever."
"I think we're catching this early enough, and hopefully everybody else will take the measures I was doing," he said.
Johnson's positive test also comes at a time when Wisconsin has emerged as one of the nation's coronavirus hot spots, including Johnson's home area in the northeast part of the state.
Despite the recent surge in cases,Wisconsin Republican lawmakers on Friday urged a judge to strike down the state's mask mandate. The GOP lawmakershave offered no plan to contain the virus.
Johnson advocates for wearing masks but said, "I'm not in favor of mask mandates. I think it's up to individuals to be responsible."
Earlier this year, Johnson raised some eyebrows with statements on the coronavirus.
In an interview in March with the Journal Sentinel Washington bureau chief Craig Gilbert, Johnson said:Im not denying what a nasty disease COVID-19 can be, and how its obviously devastating to somewhere between 1% and 3.4% of the population."
But that means 97 to 99 percent will get through this and develop immunities and will be able to move beyond this. But we dont shut down our economy because tens of thousands of people die on the highways. Its a risk we accept so we can move about. We dont shut down our economies because tens of thousands of people die from the common flu, Johnson said.
Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, pushed back at Johnson's comments, saying it was a "false equivalency to compare traffic accidents" to the coronavirus.
In a pair of tweets Saturday, Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin said that"given the outbreak in the Senate," she received a COVID-19 test Friday and it wasnegative.
"I am sorry to hear that a number of my colleagues have tested positive for COVID-19, including Senator Johnson," Baldwin said. "I wish them all a healthy recovery as they quarantine to protect others and get better."
At a voter registration event at Fiserv Forum Saturday, U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Milwaukee, said she offered "thoughts and prayers" to Johnson and others who have the virus.
This is a treacherous disease, and not only does it cause premature death but sometimes a debilitating impact afterwards, she said.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, a Democrat, alsosaid he hopes Johnson, Trump and others infected with the virus recover quickly.
I wish Sen. Johnson, I wish President Trump and the First Lady and all Americans that have been infected with this disease, a full and speedy recovery, Barrett said. My prayers are with them and their families, and I know this is a difficult time for literally millions of Americans.
Journal Sentinel reporter Ricardo Torres contributed to this article.
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U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin tests positive for COVID-19 - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
HHS Secretary Alex Azar on Friday said that data that could allow for emergency authorization of experimental COVID-19 therapeutics could be available in a matter of weeks.
Azar made the comments during a congressional hearing conducted by the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis when Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.) asked about promising preliminary results from trials on an experimental Regeneron drug that is being developed to treat less severe cases of COVID-19.
"We could be literally many weeks to a month or two away from having data to support emergency authorizations of these if the data proves they are safe as well as effective," Azar said.
Luetkemeyer said he was trying to highlight that there are also therapeutics in the drug development pipeline, not just vaccines.
Early data showed that Regeneron's antibody cocktail, dubbed REGN-COV2, appeared to reduce the time it took for patients' symptoms to alleviate compared with trial participants who received placebos.
The Regeneron drug and a competing Eli Lilly drug are combinations of monoclonal antibodies, meaning that the drugs are supposed to act as synthetic substitutes for antibodies. Eli Lilly's Phase 2 trials on LY-CoV555, which showed mixed results, were conducted on nonhospitalized patients.
Azar's testimony came just hours after President Donald Trump announced he had tested positive for COVID-19. Trump's doctor on Friday said the president received a dose of Regeneron's antibody cocktail.
Trump has often touted the accelerated timeline for vaccine approval on the campaign trail. In the first presidential debate Tuesday, he teased that a COVID-19 vaccine could be "weeks away," and contradicted the opinions of some of his top public health experts who have projected vaccines will be widely available by mid-2021.
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Azar: COVID-19 therapeutic data for emergency use could be weeks away - Modern Healthcare
TheWest Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) reportsas of 10:00 a.m., October 1, 2020, there have been 567,801 total confirmatory laboratory results receivedfor COVID-19, with 16,024 total cases and 354 deaths.
DHHR has confirmed the deaths of a 70-year old female from OhioCounty, a 79-year old male from Berkeley County, a 61-year old male fromKanawha County, and a 48-year old female from Marion County. Every death reported is a reminder that each of us has a role to play in preventing the spread of COVID-19,said Bill J. Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary. We send our sincere sympathy tothese families.
CASESPER COUNTY: Barbour(83), Berkeley (1,049), Boone (240), Braxton (13), Brooke (114), Cabell (858),Calhoun (25), Clay (37), Doddridge (28), Fayette (634), Gilmer (48), Grant(162), Greenbrier (129), Hampshire (109), Hancock (150), Hardy (92), Harrison(402), Jackson (278), Jefferson (439), Kanawha (2,772), Lewis (38), Lincoln(179), Logan (627), Marion (292), Marshall (182), Mason (144), McDowell (90),Mercer (430), Mineral (174), Mingo (392), Monongalia (2,059), Monroe (151),Morgan (58), Nicholas (114), Ohio (375), Pendleton (53), Pleasants (18),Pocahontas (59), Preston (158), Putnam (590), Raleigh (538), Randolph (259),Ritchie (13), Roane (55), Summers (56), Taylor (131), Tucker (37), Tyler (16),Upshur (91), Wayne (407), Webster (7), Wetzel (61), Wirt (12), Wood (375),Wyoming (121).
Pleasenote that delays may be experienced with the reporting of information from thelocal health department to DHHR. As case surveillance continues at the localhealth department level, it may reveal that those tested in a certain countymay not be a resident of that county, or even the state as an individual inquestion may have crossed the state border to be tested.
Pleasevisit the dashboard located at http://www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more information.
Free COVID-19 testinglocations are available today in Boone, Cabell, Kanawha, Marion, Taylor, andWayne counties:
Boone County, October 1,1:00 PM 6:00 PM, Boone County Health Department, 213 Kenmore Drive, Danville,WV
Cabell County, October 1,9:00 AM 2:00 PM, Cabell County Health Department, 703 Seventh Avenue,Huntington, WV
Kanawha County, October1, 11:00 AM 5:00 PM, South Charleston High School, 1 Eagle Way, SouthCharleston, WV (flu shots offered)
Kanawha County, October1, 9:00 AM 5:00 PM, George Washington High School, 1522 Tennis Club Road,Charleston, WV (flu shots offered)
Marion County, October 1,12:00 PM 3:30 PM, Marion County Health Department, 300 Second Street,Fairmont, WV
Taylor County, October 1,12:00 PM 2:00 PM, First Baptist Church of Grafton, 2034 Webster Pike (US Rt.119 South), Grafton, WV
Wayne County, October 1,10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Tolsia High School, 1 Rebel Drive, Fort Gay, WV
Testing is available to everyone,including asymptomatic individuals. For upcoming testing locations, pleasevisit https://dhhr.wv.gov/COVID-19/pages/testing.aspx.
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COVID-19 Daily Update 10-1-2020 - West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources
Promising new clinical data for an experimental COVID-19 treatment hints at a secondary but possibly more important takeaway for investors: if this neutralizing antibody treatment works in coronavirus patients, so will the vaccines that are in development.
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. REGN, +1.49% on Tuesday shared preliminary data from a Phase 1/2/3 clinical trial for REGN-COV2, finding that the investigational therapy reduced viral load and made symptoms go away sooner in some non-hospitalized patients with mild or moderate cases of COVID-19. It was most effective in patients with higher viral loads who had not tested positive for antibodies. Regenerons stock was up 0.1% in Thursday trade.
We believe our data will have positive implications for the likelihood of success of vaccines that target the same spike protein that REGN-COV2 targets, Regeneron CEO Leonard Schleifer told investors on Tuesday, according to a FactSet transcript of the call.
See also: Abbott exec: Why better COVID-19 tests may help the U.S. get back to normal
Of the different types of therapies being tested as COVID-19 treatments, at least two are what is called neutralizing antibody cocktails. Along with Regenerons candidate, Eli Lilly & Co. LLY, -2.52% is also developing one, called LY-CoV555 and produced using the plasma of people who have recovered from COVID-19 infections. In mid-September, the drugmaker released promising interim data from a Phase 2 trial for LY-CoV555.
Wall Street analysts view an emergency use authorization for REGN-COV2 as somewhat inevitable We live in interesting times, Bernstein analysts wrote in an investor note and perhaps one that will arrive before the election in November. SVB Leerinks Geoffrey Porges predicts that both Lilly and Regenerons antibody cocktails will receive authorization from the FDA this year. Yet what excited them the most was the broader implication that if an antibody-based cocktail appears to work in some COVID-19 patients, how will that finding carry over to the closely watched field of vaccine development.
We are most focused on [second] derivative read-through, Raymond James analysts wrote in a note on Tuesday to investors. If treatment works, prophylaxis should work, and if prophylaxis works, vaccines should work.
Read: There are seven coronavirus vaccine candidates being tested in the U.S. heres where they stand
There are seven vaccine candidates in clinical trials in the U.S., including four that have moved into Phase 3 trials. (The late-stage study for AstraZeneca AZN, -0.91% AZN, +0.26% and the University of Oxfords vaccine candidate is still paused in the U.S.) The vaccines use what is called the S-protein as their immunogen. Regenerons therapy includes two different forms of S-protein antibodies.
The implications here for timing of market opening are positive, Bernstein analysts wrote. To the extent antibody cocktail is available in additional [to] vaccines in early 2021, the confidence individual[s] will have in de-distancing will increase.
So far this year, Regenerons stock has soared 50.6%, shares of Lilly are up 9.9%, and the S&P SPX, +0.52% has gained 4.1%.
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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) Flu season during a coronavirus pandemic has doctors at UPMC on guard. Theyve mass vaccinated employees against the flu in record time a matter of days.
Usually, we dont reach near 100 percent vaccination for flu among our health care workers for seven to eight weeks, says Dr. Donald Yealy, UPMC senior medical director and chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh.
As for whether the coronavirus is spread by droplets or smaller airborne particles?
The virus may be transmitted by both mechanisms, says Dr. Graham Snyder, medical director of infection prevention and hospital epidemiology at UPMC.
To minimize the risk of infection, along with masks, staff members are instructed to use eyewear. And UPMC urges the public to get flu shots, too.
UPMC is particularly concerned about one special population, the elderly. Over 90 percent of annual flu deaths occur in people 65 and older, the same group that is most vulnerable to COVID-19, says Dr. David A. Nace, chief medical officer at UPMC Senior Communities. If youre young and healthy, getting the flu vaccine is important to protect your family, friends, neighbors and coworkers.
To conserve resources, UPMC will only be testing symptomatic people for COVID-19. An accessible vaccine may not come about quickly or be the reset button some people expect.
I know we are all hoping for a COVID vaccine to become widely available before the end of the year. This is simply not going to happen. And when it is ready, the vaccine is unlikely to work as well in the very people who need that protection the frail and older adults than in the younger population, Dr. Nace says. Recent polls have indicated that many Americans, if not more than half, may actually decline the first generation COVID-19 vaccine, making it much more problematic in protecting the elderly and the rest of us.
But we have the next best thing a mask.
This is your best protection. This is the mask that you should be wearing, because this, whether you were young or old, this is your current vaccine. Dr. Nace said.
Dr. Nace says masks have reduced the severity of the infection. He says with universal masking in UPMCs senior care facilities, cases there have been asymptomatic or only mildly symptomatic.
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