Given a paragraph, generate a claim that is supported by the given paragraph. 1) The claim must contain information from within the paragraph. 2) A sentence within the paragraph can be used as a claim. 3) The claim should not have contradictions within the paragraph. 4) The claim should be at most one sentence long.

Q: The story makes clear the “big unknown” remains the price and “how much people are willing to spend to cut a day or so off of a bout of flu.” The story reports that Genentech, the drug’s manufacturer, said it’s too early to comment on the drug’s U.S. price. The story also notes that in Japan, where the drug was invented, it “sells for the equivalent of about $43.50.” The story uses terms like “a little more than a day” and “nearly a day” and “substantially” to describe the drug’s reduction in flu symptoms, fever, and coughing and sneezing, respectively. It does not explain, as the news release does, that: “Similar efficacy results were seen between baloxavir marboxil and [Tamiflu] in relation to duration of symptoms and fever reduction.” In other words, on the symptom front, both drugs were the same. According to the news release, a difference was seen in the length of time the virus was shed from the body (presumably through coughing and sneezing): 24 hours for baloxavir marboxil verses 72 hours for Tamiflu. The news release also states that there was also a difference seen in the level of virus in the nose and throat, but it provides no precise numbers. It is not known whether this benefit translates into less infection transmission, and the story should have made that clear. The news release issued by Genentech about the FDA’s decision to grant priority review describes baloxavir marboxil’s most common side effects: diarrhea, bronchitis, nausea and sinusitis. The news release also states that overall incidence of adverse events seen in patients taking baloxavir marboxil were lower than those seen in both the placebo group and the group taking Tamiflu. The STAT News story does not mention any potential harms. This evidence comes from the randomized phase III Capstone-1 study the FDA will review, which included 1,436 people in the US and Japan. It excluded people older than 64. The news story does not note this exclusion, nor does it state a key problem with this study: It has never been published in a peer-reviewed journal (instead, a study abstract was released as part of ID Week 2017). This means the full data analysis has never been seen by anyone other than the researchers. We explained why this is important in February 2018, when we discussed news coverage of the drug’s approval in Japan. The 2017-2018 flu season was the worst the US had experienced in nearly a decade. The flu impacted the entire country, and was responsible for 172 pediatric deaths. The news article did not use these or any other flu-related statistics to increase fear about the flu and, in turn, the need for this medication. The article includes two sources: Mark Eisner, Genentech’s VP of product development for immunology, infectious diseases and ophthalmology and Richard Webby, head of the World Health Organization’s influenza collaborating center at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis. Eisner’s affiliation with Genentech, the drug’s manufacturer, is clearly noted. Webby does not appear to have any conflicts of interest. The article would have been stronger if it had included a third source who commented on what–if anything–is known about whether reducing the duration of symptoms leads to reduced levels of transmission that result in fewer people contracting the flu and fewer deaths. The story explains that the only other drug approved to treat the flu is Tamiflu, which is not widely used. The writer explains that both drugs need to be taken within 48 hours of symptom onset and that baloxavir marboxil is a single one-time dose, while Tamiflu must be taken twice daily for five days. It is clear from the story that the FDA is expected to decide by the end of the year whether to approve this new flu medication. The story explains that it’s been more than 20 years since a new class of flu drug has been developed and marketed. (It is available in Japan.) The catalyst for the story was a news release issued by Genentech about the FDA granting priority review of baloxavir marboxil, but the story does not use direct quotes from the news release.

A: A flu drug — shown to reduce the duration of symptoms — could upend treatment in U.S.
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Q: All 46 schools in the district serving Grand Junction and the surrounding area were closed and won’t reopen until after the Thanksgiving break so custodians can disinfect surfaces. Norovirus is a highly contagious bug that causes diarrhea, vomiting and other symptoms, and can spread quickly in public places. It’s most common in winter but can be seen any time of year. The outbreak was first seen last week at a high school before spreading to other schools. Officials in the district, the largest in western Colorado with 22,000 students, believe there is now another related strain of the virus that has affected some students who were previously sick. “We are taking this highly unusual action because this virus is extremely contagious and spreading quickly across our schools,” district nursing coordinator Tanya Martin said. It’s not clear how many students have become sick. Some custodians also became ill, slowing down the cleaning process, but it’s unknown if the suspected viruses were to blame. Nicole Comstock, communicable disease deputy branch chief for the state Department of Public Health and Environment, told The Daily Sentinel that there are about 150 to 200 suspected norovirus outbreaks in the state each year. She said most occur at nursing homes but outbreaks at schools are not uncommon. The U.S. Air Force Academy outside Colorado Springs reported that 400 cadets have been sickened by norovirus since October, but the outbreak hasn’t disrupted classes. The Gazette reported that infected cadets are kept on bed rest for at least three days after their symptoms disappear before they can be cleared to return to class and training.

A: Suspected norovirus outbreak closes 46 Colorado schools.
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Q: Tapping mounting concern in Europe about climate change, especially among young people, ‘Die Gruenen’ won 20.5% of the German vote in May’s European Parliament elections, their best-ever result. Their success has caused convulsions in Merkel’s fragile coalition of conservatives and center-left Social Democrats (SPD), who have dominated German politics since World War Two. “This is in no way just a protest vote or a hoovering-up of Social Democrat (SPD) votes, it’s a longer-term trend,” said  Heinrich Oberreuter, a politics professor at Passau University. “The advantage for the Greens is they own the issue of climate change which is a long-term problem.”  Merkel has lost the status she enjoyed as “Climate Chancellor” for pushing global leaders to address climate change, and the SPD’s green credentials have been tarnished by close ties to the coal industry. Hitting 27%-29% in opinion polls in June, the Greens became Germany’s strongest party, spawning headlines about popular co-leader Robert Habeck becoming the chancellor. That may be a long shot, but they could well join the government and replace the SPD - the junior partner in the  coalition - as the main center-left force, say experts. Inspired by the peace movements of the 1960s and founded in 1980, the party was long dismissed as a fringe group of tree -huggers. Politically, it is closest to the SPD, with which it shared power under Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in 1998-2005. A pro-European party that welcomed refugees in the 2015 migrant crisis, it wants a total switch to renewable energy, an end to the combustion engine and higher taxes on SUVs. The chances of a snap election before 2021 have increased since the European vote when the Greens pushed the SPD into third place. In turmoil, with ratings near all-time lows, the SPD may quit its loveless coalition with Merkel by the end of the year. Polls suggest the Greens would be big winners in an election. One option for national government would be a conservative-greens coalition, albeit without Merkel who, after 14 years leading Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, says this is her last term. But radically different positions on energy, tax cuts and migration would pose challenges for such an alliance. “(It) would need to direct its focus and available financial resources to climate protection and the energy transition,” said Deutsche Bank in a research note. “Citizens and corporates cannot hope for major tax relief.”  However, the Greens may prefer a left alliance. In a May state election in Bremen, they emerged as kingmaker, but joined hands with the SPD and radical left instead of the conservatives, who had won most votes. The Greens have won over urban professionals by embracing social issues such as soaring rents in cities, and the leadership duo of scruffy-looking but media-friendly Habeck and less charismatic Annalena Baerbock, is also popular. “They have a pragmatic, rational political style and so far are acting wisely and keeping internal differences quiet,” said Manfred Guellner, head of the Forsa pollster. Habeck last month overtook Merkel to become Germany’s most popular politician. A novelist and children’s writer, he is the likelier candidate for the top job, said Guellner. He and Baerbock, an ex-trampoline competitor who studied international law, brush off questions about their ambitions but acknowledge the pressure is on. “We have awakened hopes that must be fulfilled. Everyone knows we must deliver,” Habeck said after the European election. On the plus side, they have something of a track record. In government, the Greens helped usher in a nuclear phase-out and bottle deposits to promote recycling, and they share power in nine of Germany’s 16 states. Yet the road to the chancellery is long. In the 2017 federal election they won just 8.9% of the vote and previous poll highs, especially after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, have evaporated fast. They are weak in the former Communist East, where the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is strong. With some 85,000 members, the party is about a fifth the size of the main parties. Germans’ love affair with the car is also a hurdle. Keenly aware of the potency of popular movements like the yellow vests in France who opposed fuel tax plans, the Greens will not want to hurt an export-oriented economy that relies on companies like Daimler, BMW, Volkswagen and Porsche. Plans for a fuel-tax rise cost them votes in 1998. Winning the chancellery in a spring 2020 election may be a tall order, said Oberreuter, but movements, not traditional parties, have taken hold in France, Austria, Britain and Italy. “This goes to show that almost anyone can become chancellor  - so who knows?” he said.

A:
Climate fears lift Greens' chances of running Germany.
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