WHO

WHO classifies India variant as being of global concern

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The World Health Organziation said on Monday that the coronavirus variant first identified in India last year was being classified as a variant of global concern, with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.

The B.1.617 variant is the fourth variant to be designated as being of global concern and requiring heightened tracking and analysis. The others are those first detected in Britain, South Africa and Brazil.

“We are classifying this as a variant of concern at a global level,” Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead on COVID-19, told a briefing.

“There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility.”

Indian coronavirus infections and deaths held close to record daily highs on Monday, increasing calls for the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lock down the world’s second-most populous country.

The WHO has said the predominant lineage of B.1.617 was first identified in India in December, although an earlier version was spotted in October 2020.

The variant has already spread to other countries, and many nations have moved to cut or restrict movements from India.

Van Kerkhove said more information about the variant and its three sub-lineages would be made available on Tuesday.

“Even though there is increased transmissibility demonstrated by some preliminary studies, we need much more information about this virus variant and this lineage and all of the sub-lineages,” she said.

Soumya Swaminathan, WHO chief scientist, said studies were under way in India to examine the variant’s transmissibility, the severity of disease it causes and the response of antibodies in people who have been vaccinated.

“What we know now is that the vaccines work, the diagnostics work, the same treatments that are used for the regular virus works, so there is really no need to change any of those,” Swaminathan said.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the WHO Foundation was launching a “Together for India” appeal to raise funds to purchase oxygen, medicines and protective equipment for health workers.

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Read alsoIndia posts record daily rise in coronavirus deaths

Hungary is among the first EU countries to vaccinate 16-18 year olds

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Reopening the economy depends on implementing a successful vaccine drive, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in a video posted on social media.

In the video posted after the first day of a European Union Porto Social Summit, Orbán said the main topics were “vaccine, inoculation, and the restarting the economy”.

The body welcomed the World Health Organization’s decision to recommend another vaccine for use, he said, referring to the WHO’s decision to recommend the emergency use of Sinopharm.

The body agreed they have to stand up to anti-vaxxers, and “we have to try to convince everyone in Europe to get the vaccine.”

Reopening the economies hinges on the vaccine drive, he said.

In order to make this possible, Hungary has been continuosly negotiating with vaccine manufacturers and has achieved to have a wide variety of vaccines available for its citizens. Recently, a new shipment has arrived:

Fully 1.2 million doses of Sinopharm vaccine arrived in Hungary from China at dawn on Saturday, Peter Szijjártó, the foreign minister, said.

“This is the biggest shipment of vaccines so far,” he said on Facebook, adding that Hungary has now received 3.3 million doses altogether. Another 1.7 million doses of the Sinopharm jab are under contract to be delivered in the future, too.

Szijjártó said “the next milestone” was the target of five million vaccinated in Hungary, “bringing us closer to a life of normalcy”.

“We are in a position to vaccinate anyone who needs it,” the minister said.

Another great news is that the vaccination of 16-18 year olds will soon start in Hungary and the number of registered people is very promising.

The number of 16-18 year olds who have registered to receive a jab exceeded 84,000 by Friday midnight – more than 40 percent of the age group – and registrations are still ongoing, according to information received by MTI.

Hungary is among the first European Union countries where the vaccination programme is so advanced that 16-18 year olds are now eligible for inoculation.

People 16 or above who register after the Friday midnight deadline, however, will have to join a waiting list alongside people aged 18 or above.

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Hungary was right to use the Chinese vaccine – WHO approves only now

Sinopharm Chinese Vaccine Vakcina Oltás

The World Health Organization (WHO) approved for emergency use a COVID-19 vaccine from China’s state-owned drugmaker Sinopharm on Friday, bolstering Beijing’s push for a bigger role in inoculating the world.

The vaccine, one of two main Chinese coronavirus vaccines that have been given to hundreds of millions of people in China and elsewhere, is the first developed by a non-Western country to win WHO backing.

It is also the first time the WHO has given emergency use approval to a Chinese vaccine for any infectious disease. Earlier this week, separate WHO experts had expressed concern about the quality of data the company provided on side effects.

A WHO emergency listing is a signal to national regulators that a product is safe and effective.

It also allows it to be included in COVAX, a global programme to provide vaccines mainly for poor countries, which has hit supply problems.

“This expands the list of COVID-19 vaccines that COVAX can buy, and gives countries confidence to expedite their own regulatory approval, and to import and administer a vaccine,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a briefing.

Senior WHO adviser Bruce Aylward said it would be up to Sinopharm to say how many doses of its vaccine it can provide to the programme, but added: “They are looking at trying to provide substantial support, make substantial doses available while at the same time of course trying to serve China’s population.”

The WHO had already given emergency approval to COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and, last week, Moderna.

“This … signifies that the quality, safety, efficacy and accessibility of Sinopharm CNBG’s COVID-19 vaccine meet the requirements of WHO standards, which will contribute more Chinese power to the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic,” Sinopharm said in a social media statement published on Saturday.

The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) approval of the Sinopharm vaccine is

“a justification” for the Hungarian government’s vaccination policy,

Human Resources Minister Miklós Kásler said on Friday evening, in reaction to WHO’s announcement.

“Hungary’s vaccination policy has been driven exclusively by health-care considerations, political or economic considerations did not play any role,”

he said on Facebook.

Kásler noted that China has delivered to Hungary enough doses to have more than one million people fully inoculated against coronavirus.

The national vaccination programme has allowed a gradual reopening of the country, he said.

‘EASY STORAGE’

The decision to approve Sinopharm’s vaccine was taken by WHO’s technical advisory group, which met since April 26 to review the latest clinical data and manufacturing practices.

“Its easy storage requirements make it highly suitable for low-resource settings,”

a WHO statement said.

Tedros said that, following the approval, its separate Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) had recommended that adults over 18 receive two doses of the Sinopharm vaccine.

“On the basis of all available evidence,

WHO recommends the vaccine for adults 18 years and older, in a two-dose schedule with a spacing of three to four weeks,”

the WHO said in a statement.

The vaccine, developed by Beijing Biological Products Institute, a unit of Sinopharm subsidiary China National Biotec Group, has an estimated efficacy of 79% for all age groups, it said.

Alejandro Craviato, SAGE panel chair, said: “The information we have for people over 60 is still very scarce. There is no reason to think the vaccine would behave differently in this older age group.”

But noting gaps in clinical data, he said that

Sinopharm or national authorities should monitor people over 60, those with co-morbidities and pregnant women after vaccination.

The WHO has said it could reach a decision on China’s other main COVID-19 vaccine, made by Sinovac Biotech, next week. The technical experts reviewed it on Wednesday.

Arnaud Didierlaurent, chair of WHO’s technical advisory group, told the news conference: “We have started to review the report from Sinovac. We actually requested additional information to the manufacturer … which we hope to receive very soon to make a decision.”

Sinopharm, which has two COVID-19 vaccines approved in China, has supplied over 200 million doses at home and abroad, and Sinovac has shipped over 300 million doses of its shot worldwide, including at home. Both companies’ vaccines have been exported to many countries, particularly in Latin America, Asia and Africa, many of which have had difficulty securing supplies of vaccines developed in the West.

Hungary prepares on further reopening while nr of new infections, deaths is still high

coronavirus hungary hospital

Fully 188 patients, generally elderly with co-morbidities, died over the past 24 hours, while 1,692 new infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Wednesday.
So far 3,774,221 people have received a first jab, while 1,773,900 have been fully vaccinated.

The number of active infections stands at 250,143, while hospitals are treating 5,907 Covid patients, 702 of whom need respiratory assistance. There are 33,429 people in official quarantine, while 5,327,413 tests have been officially carried out.

Since the first outbreak, 774,399 infections have been registered, while fatalities have risen to 27,172. Fully 497,084 people have made a recovery. So far, most infections have been registered in Budapest and Pest County, followed by the counties of Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen, Gyor-Moson-Sopron and Hajdu-Bihar.

Coronavirus map Hungary
https://koronavirus.gov.hu/terkepek/fertozottek

Human resources minister welcomes WHO’s immunisation strategy

Human Resources Minister Miklós Kásler on Monday welcomed the World Health Organisation’s new Immunization Agenda 2030 strategy, saying it would help save more than 50 million people over the next decade.

“Vaccines in the current phase of the fight against the pandemic mean hope and life in our country and the world over,” Kásler said in a video on Facebook.

“It is in this spirit that I encourage my compatriots to take the vaccine.”

The minister noted that the new strategy was introduced by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as part of the organisation’s World Immunization Week 2021 campaign.

Terraces have opened on Saturday

The number of Hungarians vaccinated against Covid-19 reached 3.5 million yesterday, so restaurant and bar terraces have opened this Saturday.

Gergely Gulyás told a press briefing on Thursday that open-air facilities, similarly to shops, can stay open until 9.30pm, while the night-time curfew will begin an hour later at 11pm. Reopening catering facilities is “the first step towards regaining freedom”, Gulyás said, adding that he hoped faster steps could follow.

He added that “a large amount of vaccine is expected to arrive soon”.

During the next week one million doses of the Chinese vaccine will arrive, as well as 200,000 first doses of the Russian vaccine, Gulyás said, adding that the second dose of the latter would follow promptly. Over 300,000 doses of Pfizer will also arrive next week, he added.

So far, some 4.4 million have registered for the vaccine and 73% of them have received their jabs. Hungary will need some 6 million people vaccinated to reach herd immunity, he added.

U.S. Secretary of State Blinken slams China for not being transparent enough on how COVID-19 started

anthony blinken united states politician

China’s failure to provide access to global health experts made the COVID-19 pandemic worse than it had to be, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Sunday, and it was important to “get to the bottom” of the origin of the novel coronavirus.

The top U.S. diplomat’s sharp words underscored criticism from other members of the Biden administration over Beijing’s lack of transparency in the crucial early days of the pandemic.

China did not give access to international experts or share information in real time to provide true transparency, Blinken said in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

As a result, the virus “got out of hand faster and with, I think, much more egregious results than it might otherwise,” Blinken said.

The World Health Organization director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said on March 30 that data was withheld from WHO investigators who traveled to China to research the origins of the pandemic.

A WHO report, written jointly with Chinese scientists, released at the time said the virus had probably been transmitted from bats to humans through another animal, and that a lab leak was “extremely unlikely” as a cause.

Tedros said the issue required further investigation.

The events highlight why there needs to be a stronger global health security system to ensure this doesn’t happen again, Blinken said. Reforms must include a commitment to transparency, information sharing and access for experts “and China has to play a part in that,” he said.

Blinken said it was important to reach a more conclusive accounting of how the pandemic began.

“We need to do that precisely so we fully understand what happened, in order to have the best shot possible preventing it from happening again,” he said. “That’s why we need to get to the bottom of this.” 

When the WHO report was issued in March, the United States, the European Union and other Western countries called for China to give “full access” to independent experts to all data about the original outbreak in late 2019.

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Global COVID-19 death toll surpasses 3 million

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Coronavirus-related deaths worldwide crossed 3 million on Tuesday, according to a Reuters tally, as the latest global resurgence of COVID-19 infections is challenging vaccination efforts across the globe.

Worldwide COVID-19 deaths are rising once again, especially in Brazil and India. Health officials blame more infectious variants that were first detected in the United Kingdom and South Africa, along with public fatigue with lockdowns and other restrictions. According to a Reuters tally, it took more than a year for the global coronavirus death toll to reach 2 million.

The next 1 million deaths were added in about three months.

Brazil is leading the world in the daily average number of new deaths reported and accounts for one in every four deaths worldwide each day, according to a Reuters analysis.

The World Health Organization acknowledged the nation’s dire condition due to coronavirus, saying the country is in a very critical condition with an overwhelmed healthcare system.

“Indeed there is a very serious situation going on in Brazil right now,

where we have a number of states in critical condition,” WHO epidemiologist Maria Van Kerkhove told a briefing last Thursday, adding that many hospital intensive care units are more than 90% full.

India reported a record rise in COVID-19 infections on Monday, becoming the second nation after the United States to post more than 100,000 new cases in a day. India’s worst-affected state, Maharashtra on Monday began shutting shopping malls, cinemas, bars, restaurants, and places of worship, as hospitals are being overrun by patients.

The European region, which includes 51 countries, has the highest total number of deaths at nearly 1.1 million.

Five European countries including the United Kingdom, Russia, France, Italy and Germany constitute about 60% of Europe’s total coronavirus-related deaths.

The United States has the highest number of deaths of any country at the world at 555,000 and accounts for about 19% of all deaths due to COVID-19 in the world. Cases have risen for the last three weeks but health officials believe the nation’s rapid vaccination campaign may prevent a rise in deaths. A third of the population has received at least one dose of a vaccine.

At least 370.3 million people or nearly 4.75% of the global population have received a single dose of COVID-19 vaccine by Sunday,

according to latest figures from research and data provider firm Our World in Data.

However, the World Health Organization is urging countries to donate more doses of approved COVID-19 vaccines to help meet vaccination targets for the most vulnerable in poorer countries.

WHO does not back vaccination passports for now

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The World Health Organization does not back requiring vaccination passports for travel due to uncertainty over whether inoculation prevents transmission of the virus, as well as equity concerns, a spokeswoman said on Tuesday.

“We as WHO are saying at this stage we would not like to see the vaccination passport as a requirement for entry or exit because we are not certain at this stage that the vaccine prevents transmission,” WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris said.

“There are all those other questions, apart from the question of discrimination against the people who are not able to have the vaccine for one reason or another,” she told a U.N. news briefing.

The WHO now expects to review China’s COVID-19 vaccines Sinopharm and Sinovac for possible emergency use listing around the end of April, Harris said.

“It’s not coming as quickly as we had hoped because we need more data,” she said, declining to provide more information, citing confidentiality.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus appealed last month to countries with excess vaccine supplies to donate 10 million doses urgently to the COVAX facility which it runs with the GAVI vaccine alliance. Export restrictions by India left the vaccine-sharing programme short of supplies of AstraZeneca’s vaccine made by the Serum Institute of India.

Harris said she had no update on any countries stepping forward, adding:

“We are very much looking for more vaccine”.

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Europe recasts COVID-19 vaccine playbook after first-round flop

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Europe, under fire for fumbling its vaccine roll-out and fighting a fresh wave of infections, is scrambling to speed up the pace of injections and avoid being left further behind by Britain and the United States.

In Paris, the city’s hallowed national soccer stadium is being transformed into a mass vaccination hub, while Italy – with 20,000 infections daily – has put the army and civil defence agency in charge, after new Prime Minister Mario Draghi fired the country’s vaccine czar.

Over Easter, Germany’s North Rhine-Westphalia state is relaxing rules on who can get 450,000 doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine. Clotting concerns have prompted the country to limit the vaccine to people over the age of 60, but North Rhine-Westphalia hopes its measures will now allow more people in that age group to get a first dose.

Originally, it had wanted to give the AstraZeneca vaccine to pregnant women and their partners, among other priority groups.

“We can’t do that anymore, because I assume that those people … are under 60,” North Rhine Westphalia’s Health Minister Karl-Josef Laumann told reporters.

“We didn’t want to bunker these shots, we decided we would get them via vaccination centres to people as quickly as possible.”

Europe’s urgency to reverse what the World Health Organization branded on Thursday an “unacceptably slow” start to vaccinations is growing, as variants first detected in Britain, South Africa and now Brazil whip up angst that acting too slowly will let the virus proliferate again.

The chaos of Europe’s roll-out has been exacerbated by squabbling over vaccine exports, health concerns over AstraZeneca’s vaccine and some temporary delivery delays affecting Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines.

The European Union was slower than Britain and the United States, not only to order vaccines last year from companies but also in approving them. Even once they were approved, vaccination rates have been disappointing.

The WHO estimates just 4% of 750 million people in 53 countries across continental Europe, from wealthier Scandinavia to poorer Balkan countries, have been fully vaccinated, a quarter of the U.S. count.

While the European Union’s vaccination rate is slowly climbing, only 13.4% of adults in the bloc have had at least one shot, according to Europe’s vaccine tracker.

By contrast, more than half of adult Britons and 38% of U.S. adults have received at least one dose, official figures and Reuters calculations show.

Still, the situation is improving: A Reuters analysis shows the seven-day average for the four largest countries – Germany, France, Italy and Spain – was at its highest yet during the last week.

Since Spain resumed AstraZeneca shots on March 24 after suspending them temporarily over clotting concerns, its seven-day rolling average of vaccinations rose to nearly 200,000 shots a day, from 95,283 daily a week earlier, Spanish officials said.

The country is now converting venues like conference centres and, like France, football stadiums, into mass vaccination centres, and expects to inoculate 70% of its 47 million population by the end of summer.

Spanish Health Minister Carolina Darias has said that April will be “an inflection point”, as more vaccines flood into the country.

The EU expects a major ramp-up of deliveries in the second quarter will be sufficient to inoculate at least 255 million people, or 70% of its adult population, by July.

About 200 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine are due in the quarter, enough for 100 million people, while deliveries of Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose shot will start this month.

VETS, DENTISTS, COMPANIES

France is also converting veterinarian and dentists’ offices into vaccine centres, while Italy has abandoned primrose-shaped pavilions in its squares and is getting doctors, dentists and pharmacists to dispense doses instead.

The aim is to more than double daily vaccinations to half a million from 230,000 currently.

Pharmacies in Switzerland are also preparing to start offering doses to people over 65 this month, but the government expects that once mass vaccinations become possible, likely sometime in May, private companies will have a role, similar to flu clinics some offer each year to employees.

The Swiss government expects 10.5 million doses by July, enough for roughly 5.2 million people.

“There won’t just be shots in vaccination centres, doctors and pharmacists,” Swiss Health Minister Alain Berset said on Wednesday. “That’s something we’re hoping for, something we’re supporting.”

WHO says European COVID-19 vaccine campaign is “unacceptably slow”

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Europe’s rollout of vaccinations against COVID-19 is “unacceptably slow,” the World Health Organization’s European head said on Thursday, raising concern that delays in giving shots could prolong the pandemic as cases of variants spread.

Only 10% of the region’s population have received one vaccine dose, and 4% have completed a full course, Hans Kluge said.

“The rollout of these vaccines is unacceptably slow,” he said in a statement. “… We must speed up the process by ramping up manufacturing, reducing barriers to administering vaccines, and using every single vial we have in stock, now.”

Europe was slower than Britain and the United States, not only to order vaccines last year from companies but also in approving them. Even once they were approved by the bloc, rates of vaccinations there have largely trailed behind British and U.S. efforts.

Kluge said new infections in Europe were rising in every age group except those aged over 80, a sign that the vaccinations that have gone to older groups are working but that the stuttering rollout was leaving younger people vulnerable.

“As variants of concern continue to spread and strain on hospitals grows, religious holidays are leading to increased mobility,” the WHO said in its statement.

“Speeding up vaccination rollout is crucial.”

In addition to tight supplies, squabbles over exports and delays by some vaccine manufacturers, and concerns over the safety of the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine after rare clotting events emerged have also curbed vaccination momentum.

Some countries are still not giving the British-Swedish company’s shots and others, including Germany, are restricting them to people over 60 years old.

Regulators and the WHO have declared that the shot’s benefits outweigh risks and continue to study the clotting incidents.

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Leaders of 23 countries back pandemic treaty idea for future emergencies

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Leaders of 23 countries and the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday backed an idea to create an international treaty that would help deal with future health emergencies like the coronavirus pandemic by tightening rules on sharing information.

The idea of such a treaty, also aimed at ensuring universal and equitable access to vaccines, medicines and diagnostics for pandemics, was floated by the chairman of European Union leaders, Charles Michel, at a summit of the Group of 20 major economic powers last November.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has endorsed the proposal, but formal negotiations have not begun, diplomats say.

Tedros told a news conference on Tuesday that a treaty would tackle gaps exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. A draft resolution on negotiations could be presented to the WHO’s 194 member states at their annual ministerial meeting in May, he said.

The WHO has been criticised for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and was accused by the administration of U.S. president Donald Trump of helping China shield the extent of its outbreak, which the agency denies.

A joint WHO-China study on the virus’s origins, seen by Reuters on Monday, said it had probably been transmitted from bats to humans through another animal, and that a lab leak was “extremely unlikely” as a cause. But the study left many questions unanswered and called for further research.

On Tuesday, the treaty proposal got the formal backing of the leaders of Fiji, Portugal, Romania, Britain, Rwanda, Kenya, France, Germany, Greece, Korea, Chile, Costa Rica, Albania, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, the Netherlands, Tunisia, Senegal, Spain, Norway, Serbia, Indonesia, Ukraine and the WHO itself.

“There will be other pandemics and other major health emergencies. No single government or multilateral agency can address this threat alone,” the leaders wrote in a joint opinion piece in major newspapers.

“We believe that nations should work together towards a new international treaty for pandemic preparedness and response.”

The leaders of China and the United States did not sign the letter, but Tedros said both powers had reacted positively to the proposal, and all states would be represented in talks.

The treaty would complement the WHO’s International Health Regulations, in force since 2005, through cooperation in controlling supply chains, sharing virus samples and research and development, WHO assistant director Jaouad Mahjour said.

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COVID-19 probably passed from bats, further studies required – WHO-China report

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A joint WHO-China study on the origins of COVID-19 says that the virus was probably transmitted from bats to humans through another animal, and that a lab leak was “extremely unlikely” as a cause, a summary seen by Reuters said on Monday.

The WHO did not immediately reply to a query seeking comment, but said the full report by the independent experts would be published on Tuesday at 1400 GMT after member states have been briefed.

The findings, first reported by the Associated Press, match what WHO experts have said previously about their conclusions following a Jan-Feb visit to the central Chinese city of Wuhan where the first human cases were detected in late 2019.

Three laboratories in Wuhan working with coronaviruses had “well-managed”, high-quality biosafety levels, and there had been no reports of compatible respiratory illness among staff during the preceding months, the report said.

Nor had they tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus in subsequent blood screening for antibodies, the report said.

“In view of the above, a laboratory origin of the pandemic was considered to be extremely unlikely,” it said.

WILDLIFE

Many questions remain unanswered about the virus that sparked the pandemic and the team proposed further research in bats and pangolins in China as well as in southeast Asia. Surveys of other wild animals – including civets, mink and ferrets – known to be infected by the virus were recommended.

Many early human cases were associated with the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan, which also sold wildlife, “but a similar number of cases were associated with other markets and some were not associated with any market”, the report said, adding it was not possible to draw any conclusions.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreysus acknowledged receipt of the report but declined to give details, telling a Geneva news briefing:

“All hypotheses are on the table and warrant complete and further studies.”

The report does not require any approval by member states.

The United States expects the WHO-led investigation to require further study of the virus, perhaps including a return visit to China, a senior U.S. official told reporters last week. He hoped it would be “based on science”.

The probe was plagued by delays, concern over access and bickering between Beijing and Washington, which under former U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration accused China of hiding the extent of the initial outbreak.

The WHO declared on Jan. 30, 2020, that COVID-19 constituted an international emergency, its highest level of alert.

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Germany, Italy, France hit pause on AstraZeneca amid safety fears, disrupting EU shots

MERKEL, Angela

Germany, France and Italy said on Monday they would hit pause on AstraZeneca COVID-19 shots after several countries reported possible serious side-effects, throwing Europe’s already struggling vaccination campaign into disarray.

Denmark and Norway stopped giving the shot last week after reporting isolated cases of bleeding, blood clots and a low platelet count. Iceland and Bulgaria followed suit and Ireland and the Netherlands announced suspensions on Sunday.

The moves by some of Europe’s largest and most populous countries will deepen concerns about the slow rollout of vaccines in the region, which has been plagued by shortages due to problems producing vaccines, including AstraZeneca’s.

Germany warned last week it was facing a third wave of infections, Italy is intensifying lockdowns and hospitals in the Paris region are close to being overloaded.

German Health Minister Jens Spahn said that although the risk of blood clots was low, it could not be ruled out.

“This is a professional decision, not a political one,” Spahn said adding he was following a recommendation of the Paul Ehrlich Institute, Germany’s vaccine regulator.

France said it was suspending the vaccine’s use pending an assessment by the EU medicine regulator due on Tuesday. Italy said its halt was a “precautionary and temporary measure” pending the regulator’s ruling.

Austria and Spain have stopped using particular batches and prosecutors in the northern Italian region of Piedmont earlier seized 393,600 doses following the death of a man hours after he was vaccinated. It was the second region to do so after Sicily, where two people had died shortly after having their shots.

The World Health Organization appealed to countries not to suspend vaccinations against a disease that has caused more than 2.7 million deaths worldwide.

“As of today, there is no evidence that the incidents are caused by the vaccine and it is important that vaccination campaigns continue so that we can save lives and stem severe disease from the virus,” WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said.

The United Kingdom said it had no concerns, while Poland said it thought the benefits outweighed any risks.

The EMA has said that as of March 10, a total of 30 cases of blood clotting had been reported among close to 5 million people vaccinated with the AstraZeneca shot in the European Economic Area, which links 30 European countries.

Michael Head, a senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton, said the decisions by France, Germany and others looked baffling.

“The data we have suggests that numbers of adverse events related to blood clots are the same (and possibly, in fact lower) in vaccinated groups compared to unvaccinated populations,” he said, adding that halting a vaccination programme had consequences.

“This results in delays in protecting people, and the potential for increased vaccine hesitancy, as a result of people who have seen the headlines and understandably become concerned. There are no signs yet of any data that really justify these decisions.”

“UNUSUAL” SYMPTOMS

AstraZeneca’s shot was among the first and cheapest to be developed and launched at volume since the coronavirus was first identified in central China at the end of 2019 and is set to be the mainstay of vaccination programmes in much of the developing world.

Thailand announced plans on Monday to go ahead with the Anglo-Swedish firm’s shot after suspending its use on Friday but Indonesia said it would wait for the WHO to report.

The WHO said its advisory panel was reviewing reports related to the shot and would release its findings as soon as possible. But it said it was unlikely to change its recommendations, issued last month, for widespread use, including in countries where the South African variant of the virus may reduce its efficacy.

The EMA has also said there was no indication the events were caused by the vaccination and that the number of reported blood clots was no higher than seen in the general population.

The handful of reported side-effects in Europe have upset vaccination programmes already under pressure over slow rollouts and vaccine scepticism in some countries.

The Netherlands said on Monday it had seen 10 cases of possible noteworthy adverse side-effects from the AstraZeneca vaccine, hours after the government put its vaccination programme on hold following reports of potential side-effects in other countries.

Denmark reported “highly unusual” symptoms in a 60-year-old citizen who died from a blood clot after receiving the vaccine, the same phrase used on Saturday by Norway about three people under the age of 50 it said were being treated in hospital.

“It was an unusual course of illness around the death that made the Danish Medicines Agency react,” the agency said in a statement late on Sunday.

One of the three health workers hospitalised in Norway after receiving the AstraZeneca shot had died, health authorities said on Monday, but there was no evidence that the vaccine was the cause.

AstraZeneca said earlier it had conducted a review covering more than 17 million people vaccinated in the European Union and the UK which had shown no evidence of an increased risk of blood clots.

Investigations into potential side-effects are complicated as the history of each case and circumstances surrounding a death or illness are examined.

Austrian authorities have said their review of the AstraZeneca batch will take about two weeks.

Long-awaited results from AstraZeneca 30,000-person U.S. vaccine trial are currently being reviewed by independent monitors to determine whether the shot is safe and effective, a top U.S. official said on Monday.

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Bird flu restrictions lifted in Hungary

Hungary’s food safety authority (NÉBIH) on Tuesday lifted the last restrictions imposed to curb the spread of bird flu in the country.

The last case of bird flu was registered on February 2, the authority said on its website.

The measure also lifts restrictions on the commercial delivery of poultry within the country and the European Union, the authority said.

Under the regulations of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), Hungary will be considered free of bird flu only from May 23 this year if no further cases are detected, freeing the country to export to third countries that currently fully ban Hungarian poultry.

Farmers are still required to keep the animals in enclosures to prevent infections from migratory birds. Feeding and watering should also happen in closed places.

Feed and litter must be stored in closed places too, NÉBIH said.

Risk of human spread of H5N8 bird flu deemed low: WHO

The risk of human-to-human spread of the H5N8 strain of bird flu appears low after it was identified for the first time worldwide in farm workers in Russia, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on 26 of February.

A separate influenza strain, H1N1, that emerged from pigs and spread rapidly worldwide among humans led the WHO to declare an influenza pandemic in 2009-2010. The outbreak turned out to be mild among humans.

Russia registered the first case of a strain of bird flu virus named influenza A(H5N8) being passed to humans from birds and has reported the matter to the WHO, Anna Popova, head of consumer health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor.

Seven people in Russia were found to be infected with H5N8, but all were asymptomatic following an outbreak on a poultry farm in the southern oblast (region) of Astrakhan, a WHO statement said. The death of 101,000 of the farm’s 900,000 egg-laying hens in December had sparked the investigation, it said.

“All close contacts of these cases were clinically monitored, and no one showed signs of clinical illness,” it said. “Based on currently available information, the risk of human-to-human transmission remains low.”

The WHO advised against any special traveller screening at points of entry or restrictions on travel and or trade with the Russian Federation, it added.

Outbreaks of the H5N8 strain were reported last year in poultry or wild birds in Britain, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Germany, Hungary, Iraq, Japan, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Russia, according to WHO.

The WHO statement said that developing zoonotic influenza candidate vaccine viruses for potential use in human vaccines remains an essential part of WHO strategy for influenza pandemic preparedness.

Read alsoBird flu restrictions lifted in Hungary

Hungarian man convicted for selling fraudulent anti-virus treatment

csongrád

The District-Court of Csongrád County convicted a local man in the first instance for preparing and selling a drug said to be an antiviral remedy. The “medicine man” earned money by scamming clients with false and dangerous anti-virus concoction.

According to Index, the court found the 53 year-old-man guilty of a drug counterfeiting crime and sentenced him to two years in prison, later suspended for three years. The court ordered as well the confiscation of 1.172 million HUF against him.

The high school graduate man, without any criminal record, founded a company in Romania for the production and distribution of medications in August 2017. According to the indictment, on behalf of the company, he established a Hungarian webshop in December 2017, designating himself as the contact person.

The site advertised a solution containing sodium chloride, hydrochloric acid and citric acid, claimed to “kill malaria out of the body in 48 hours”, remove influenza, bacteria and viruses permanently and be suitable for preventing and treating various infections and diseases.

The scammer promoted his products on different social media interfaces as well as in numerous videos in which he explained the effects and the usage of the magic concoction.

The products were packed by the man himself in his apartment in Csongrád, for which the customers could pay firstly by cash on delivery, then online. Until the deletion of the website in July 2019, the man earned about 1.2 million forints from the solution.

The product marketed by the defendant, which he made widely available to users, counts as a medicine according to the law. However, the man was not licensed to market the drug.

The National Chief Medical Officer reported the case following a call from the WHO and a report from an individual to the National Center for Public Health. According to the WHO, the product is being marketed for the second time since 2010 and has experienced adverse effects in several countries, so placing the product on the market poses a risk to public health.

The National Institute of Pharmacy and Food Health also made a statement, emphasising that it is in fact a preparation with a similar effect to household cleaning supplies, such as bleach.

The defendant and his counsel filed an appeal against the verdict for mitigation and non-confiscation of property.

hungary police
Read alsoCorrupt doctor exposed by patient after issuing fake sick papers

COVID-19 vaccines “not a silver bullet”, says WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) regional office for the Western Pacific on Thursday called for greater vigilance amid the roll-out of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine, saying the vaccine is not a “silver bullet” that will end the nearly year-long pandemic which have already killed over 1.6 million.

“Whoever you are, wherever you live, as long as the virus is circulating somewhere, we all remain at risk, and we must keep preparing for the worst-case scenario,” WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific Takeshi Kasai said in a virtual media briefing.

Kasai appealed to the younger and socially active people aged under 40 to “do everything you can to avoid infection for yourself and everybody around you” despite the anxiety and uncertainties brought about by the pandemic.

“By following the advice of health authorities you can directly contribute to protecting the lives of people in your community and in doing so to reviving your society’s economies in 2021,” Kasai said.

“I urge you to think about those who may be at high risk of severe COVID. If you catch the virus, you could unknowingly pass it on to your parents or grandparents, your neighbor or friend with an underlying condition,” Kasai said.

Moreover, he urged the young to “think of health workers who have been working day and night for almost a year. They are exhausted.”

Kasai also appealed to the governments across the region “to use an additional layer of surveillance that picks up an early sign of infection among those groups that are difficult to catch with the existing system.”

Kasai said the COVID-19 vaccines “are not a silver bullet that will end the pandemic in the near future.”

“The development of a safe and effective vaccine is one thing but producing them in adequate quantities and reaching everyone that needs them is another. They will initially only be available in limited quantities and high-risk groups should be prioritized first,” he said.

“This means that we are tired of this pandemic, we must stick to the actions and behavior which protect not only ourselves but also those around us. Hand washing, mask-wearing, physical distancing and avoiding places that have a high risk of transmission,” he added.

“For now we must keep making the choices that will reduce transmission of the virus and protect our families and our communities. By doing so we can go into 2021 with hope,” Kasai said.

Babatunde Olowokure, WHO regional emergency director, echoed Kasai, saying that “COVID-19 vaccine itself is not a silver bullet to end the COVID-19.”

“There is no room for complacency. So we must continue to remain vigilant, continue to comply with our public health interventions,” he said.

He further urged governments to “look at strategies” which could help younger population cope with public health interventions and to manage those appropriately.
There are now 985,539 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Western Pacific Region, including 18,641 deaths.

corona vaccine
Read alsoPfizer to be the first coronavirus vaccine in Hungary

WHO Director-General meets with Hungarian foreign minister

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in Geneva

It is clear that the World Health Organisation (WHO) appreciates the measures the Hungarian government has taken so far to combat the coronavirus pandemic and is satisfied with the way the country handled the first wave, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said after talks with WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in Geneva on Tuesday.

At the same time, it is also clear that the second wave of the pandemic will be different, posing far greater challenges than the first one did, Szijjártó said. What made the first wave difficult was that the world had been completely unprepared for a global pandemic, he said, adding, however, that the world’s health-care systems have now had time to prepare for the next wave.

The WHO has expressed satisfaction with Hungary’s purchase of the necessary protective equipment, Szijjártó added. He said the WHO was also clearly aware of the disagreement being voiced by Hungary’s opposition parties regarding the procurement of protective gear. The organisation believes it is better for a country to over-stock on protective equipment than for people to die due to their shortage, he said.

“The Hungarian health-care system is prepared [to deal with the pandemic] and the WHO recognises this,” Szijjártó said.

Concerning his talks with WHO leaders, the minister said both sides agreed that Hungary should only impose another lockdown “as a last resort”. The WHO’s guidelines and the opinions expressed by the Hungarian people in the latest National Consultation survey both make it clear that the country must function, he added.

Protecting public health and ensuring that Hungary functions are two completely compatible goals, he said. The WHO agrees that if vulnerable groups are protected and large crowds are prevented, while the public is encouraged to act responsibly, the country can continue to function, he added.

The Hungarian government is following the organisation’s guidelines, Szijjártó said, arguing that the country’s rules on wearing face masks, testing practices, quarantine regulations and measures aimed at protecting the elderly “are all consistent with the WHO’s protocols”.

“The WHO clearly recognises Hungary’s efforts and agrees that it is possible to keep the country functioning while protecting people,”

Szijjártó said. “Hungary did a good job handling the first wave of the pandemic and the health-care sector’s level of preparedness gives us a good chance to be just as successful in tackling the second wave.”

Szijjártó also held talks with Daren Tang, director-general of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). Commenting on his talks, the minister said the WIPO also had a positive view of Hungary. The country is ranked around 30th in the global innovation rankings, he said, adding that this was a good position, considering that Hungary ranks 92nd in terms of its population.

coronavirus split airport
Read alsoWHO chief hopes pandemic to last less than two years

WHO: People are sick and tired of the epidemic – Are you?

BKK, tram, coronavirus, Hungary

According to the World Health Organisation, Europe got tired of the coronavirus epidemic, which means that people are getting more and more demotivated and ignore the epidemic rules and measures. At this stage of the epidemic, the WHO states that this phenomenon is understandable, and countries need to think carefully about introducing new restrictions. 

24 reported that a new word was introduced to the world because of the coronavirus epidemic, and that is pandemic fatigue. It means that many people around the world cannot stand anymore the measures and restrictions (mask-wearing, social distancing, avoiding crowded places) introduced because of the epidemic, even though the second wave of the epidemic is getting stronger and stronger in the world. The epidemic could only end with the introduction of a coronavirus vaccine, but until that moment, restrictions and measures remain in place. The main problem is that after six months, people are getting more impatient, and many of them do not pay attention to pandemic rules anymore. The WHO stated that European citizens are drastically losing their patience and motivation to pay attention to mask-wearing, social distancing, and other rules. Therefore, governments need to pay attention to avoid a catastrophe.

According to the definition, pandemic fatigue is being demotivated to obey the coronavirus measures and restrictions, and it is influenced by experiences, emotions, and interactions.

The phenomenon is natural. When the epidemic broke out in spring, everyone was stressed and scared and did everything to protect themselves and other people as the break-out of an epidemic was new to everyone. Since no change has happened since then, getting used to a new life form made people exhausted and impatient. It does not mean that the number of people who deny the existence of the epidemic increased, but the attitude towards the coronavirus has changed in a negative direction. 

Demotivation is mainly influenced by the fact that people got used to the existence of the virus and accepted that it is a part of their everyday lives. Also, as many people lost their jobs during the spring season, now people are more interested in earning a living and keeping their jobs no matter what it takes. The WHO reported that around 60% of the people all around the world are demotivated.

Pandemic fatigue results in not only demotivation but also insomnia, eating disorders, stress, and constant worrying, especially among the members of the younger generation who need to interact with people. For the lack of a better example, it does not matter that pubs and clubs close at 11 pm in Hungary, as all the parties start earlier to have enough time to have fun. 

The psychological background of the problem is simple: people need to control their own lives. Once someone takes it away (governmental orders), they start to resist. The WHO also highlighted that what people cannot do is no longer important, the emphasis is on how to adjust to restrictions differently.

For example, Israel opened a cinema where people can watch movies from a boat in a lake, being socially distanced from other people. In Prague, the Pride Festival was not postponed but held online, allowing thousands of people to take part in a fun event from their own homes. The WHO added that pandemic fatigue can be overcome, but the mentality of governments and people need to change. 

Featured image: www.facebook.com/bkkbudapest

WHO: New record hit in COVID-19 infections in single day

coronavirus

The number of COVID-19 cases reported in one day hit a new record, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Sunday.

There were 307,930 new infections with the novel coronavirus globally over the past 24 hours, the highest single-day figure ever registered and about 1,000 more than the previous recording-setting daily caseload a week earlier.

Around the world, more than 28.6 million cases have been registered so far and the death toll exceeded 917,400, according to the WHO tally.

The United States still tops the global rank of COVID-19 caseload and fatalities, with its total number of infections surpassing 6.5 million on Sunday,

according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

The U.S. case count rose to 6,501,904, with the national death toll reaching 193,843 as of 1:26 p.m. local time (1726 GMT), according to the CSSE.

Brazil registered the world’s second-highest COVID-19 death toll, after the United States, and the world’s third-largest case count.

Brazil on Sunday said 415 deaths from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the past 24 hours pushed the total death toll to 131,625.

According to the Brazilian Ministry of Health, in the same period, tests detected 14,768 new cases of infection, taking the total caseload since the onset of Brazil’s outbreak in Sao Paulo on Feb. 26 to 4,330,455.

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Read alsoSecond-highest number of daily cases registered in Hungary!