New WHO Foundation Equity Fund Eyes AI-based Technology to Help Stroke Patients 07/03/2023 Maayan Hoffman A company that is using AI-powered technologies to help rehabilitate people with severe brain injuries, including those caused by strokes, has caught the eye of the World Health Organization (WHO) Foundation. The foundation’s Global Health Equity Fund (GHEF), formed in September will soon be ready to make its first round of investments. The WHO Foundation […] Continue reading -> U.S. Government Invested $31.9 Billion in mRNA Vaccine Research and Procurement 02/03/2023 Stefan Anderson A new study published in the BMJ has found that the United States invested at least $31.9 billion in public funds directly into the development, production and purchasing of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines through channels ranging from the National Institutes of Health to the Department of Defense. That vast pool of U.S. public funding was indispensable […] Continue reading -> Merck to Appeal EU Regulator’s Decision to Reject COVID-19 Drug 27/02/2023 Stefan Anderson Merck will appeal the recommendation by the Europe Union’s (EU) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) rejects its COVID-19 antiviral, Lagevrio (molnupiravir). The decision comes after months of deliberation by European regulators, who began looking at Lagevrio, in November 2021. The CHMP said there was a lack […] Continue reading -> Natural Immunity Against COVID-19 ‘At Least’ On Par With Vaccination in Preventing Death 21/02/2023 Stefan Anderson New research published in The Lancet suggests that individuals who have previously been infected with COVID-19 have an 88% lower risk of hospitalization or death than those who have not. The study is the most comprehensive review of data on natural immunity to date, covering data from 65 studies across 19 countries published since January […] Continue reading -> Pathogen Sharing: Pandemic Accord Could Offer Solutions or Further Tangle the Web of Confusion 17/02/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Just 66 days after the SARS-CoV2 genetic sequence was shared by a Chinese scientist online, the first COVID-19 vaccines went into production – in record time for R&D that yielded the first approved vaccines less than a year later. But there are looming concerns that the relatively open models of data and pathogen sharing that […] Continue reading -> WHO Aims to Accelerate Trials of Vaccine Candidates for Marburg Disease as Equatorial Guinea Reports Nine Deaths 14/02/2023 Megha Kaveri Following a first-ever outbreak of deadly Marburg virus disease in Equatorial Guinea, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday called an emergency meeting of the Marburg virus vaccine consortium (MARVAC) to receive an urgent update on possible vaccine candidates for the filovirus that can have an 80% fatality rate. At the meeting, the agency received […] Continue reading -> Amid Scarcity and Soaring Prices, China Could Issues Compulsory License for Paxlovid 09/02/2023 Zhenyan Zhu, Yuanqiong Hu & Guangjian Xue After three years of its “Zero COVID” policy, the Chinese government allowed a return to relative normalcy for its citizens in early December 2022. Due to the ongoing transmission of Omicron and its numerous COVID subvariants in China, the sudden policy shift was accompanied by rapid community transmission across the country and high numbers of […] Continue reading -> Tedros’ 10-Point Proposal for Reforming Global Emergency Response Gets Mixed Review 30/01/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new 10-point proposal by the World Health Organization’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for improving preparedness and response to health emergencies received mixed reviews from WHO member states in Monday’s opening session of this week’s Executive Board (EB) meeting, the agency’s 34-member governing body. It was the first substantive issue to be tackled […] Continue reading -> WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
U.S. Government Invested $31.9 Billion in mRNA Vaccine Research and Procurement 02/03/2023 Stefan Anderson A new study published in the BMJ has found that the United States invested at least $31.9 billion in public funds directly into the development, production and purchasing of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines through channels ranging from the National Institutes of Health to the Department of Defense. That vast pool of U.S. public funding was indispensable […] Continue reading -> Merck to Appeal EU Regulator’s Decision to Reject COVID-19 Drug 27/02/2023 Stefan Anderson Merck will appeal the recommendation by the Europe Union’s (EU) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) rejects its COVID-19 antiviral, Lagevrio (molnupiravir). The decision comes after months of deliberation by European regulators, who began looking at Lagevrio, in November 2021. The CHMP said there was a lack […] Continue reading -> Natural Immunity Against COVID-19 ‘At Least’ On Par With Vaccination in Preventing Death 21/02/2023 Stefan Anderson New research published in The Lancet suggests that individuals who have previously been infected with COVID-19 have an 88% lower risk of hospitalization or death than those who have not. The study is the most comprehensive review of data on natural immunity to date, covering data from 65 studies across 19 countries published since January […] Continue reading -> Pathogen Sharing: Pandemic Accord Could Offer Solutions or Further Tangle the Web of Confusion 17/02/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Just 66 days after the SARS-CoV2 genetic sequence was shared by a Chinese scientist online, the first COVID-19 vaccines went into production – in record time for R&D that yielded the first approved vaccines less than a year later. But there are looming concerns that the relatively open models of data and pathogen sharing that […] Continue reading -> WHO Aims to Accelerate Trials of Vaccine Candidates for Marburg Disease as Equatorial Guinea Reports Nine Deaths 14/02/2023 Megha Kaveri Following a first-ever outbreak of deadly Marburg virus disease in Equatorial Guinea, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday called an emergency meeting of the Marburg virus vaccine consortium (MARVAC) to receive an urgent update on possible vaccine candidates for the filovirus that can have an 80% fatality rate. At the meeting, the agency received […] Continue reading -> Amid Scarcity and Soaring Prices, China Could Issues Compulsory License for Paxlovid 09/02/2023 Zhenyan Zhu, Yuanqiong Hu & Guangjian Xue After three years of its “Zero COVID” policy, the Chinese government allowed a return to relative normalcy for its citizens in early December 2022. Due to the ongoing transmission of Omicron and its numerous COVID subvariants in China, the sudden policy shift was accompanied by rapid community transmission across the country and high numbers of […] Continue reading -> Tedros’ 10-Point Proposal for Reforming Global Emergency Response Gets Mixed Review 30/01/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new 10-point proposal by the World Health Organization’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for improving preparedness and response to health emergencies received mixed reviews from WHO member states in Monday’s opening session of this week’s Executive Board (EB) meeting, the agency’s 34-member governing body. It was the first substantive issue to be tackled […] Continue reading -> WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Merck to Appeal EU Regulator’s Decision to Reject COVID-19 Drug 27/02/2023 Stefan Anderson Merck will appeal the recommendation by the Europe Union’s (EU) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) rejects its COVID-19 antiviral, Lagevrio (molnupiravir). The decision comes after months of deliberation by European regulators, who began looking at Lagevrio, in November 2021. The CHMP said there was a lack […] Continue reading -> Natural Immunity Against COVID-19 ‘At Least’ On Par With Vaccination in Preventing Death 21/02/2023 Stefan Anderson New research published in The Lancet suggests that individuals who have previously been infected with COVID-19 have an 88% lower risk of hospitalization or death than those who have not. The study is the most comprehensive review of data on natural immunity to date, covering data from 65 studies across 19 countries published since January […] Continue reading -> Pathogen Sharing: Pandemic Accord Could Offer Solutions or Further Tangle the Web of Confusion 17/02/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Just 66 days after the SARS-CoV2 genetic sequence was shared by a Chinese scientist online, the first COVID-19 vaccines went into production – in record time for R&D that yielded the first approved vaccines less than a year later. But there are looming concerns that the relatively open models of data and pathogen sharing that […] Continue reading -> WHO Aims to Accelerate Trials of Vaccine Candidates for Marburg Disease as Equatorial Guinea Reports Nine Deaths 14/02/2023 Megha Kaveri Following a first-ever outbreak of deadly Marburg virus disease in Equatorial Guinea, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday called an emergency meeting of the Marburg virus vaccine consortium (MARVAC) to receive an urgent update on possible vaccine candidates for the filovirus that can have an 80% fatality rate. At the meeting, the agency received […] Continue reading -> Amid Scarcity and Soaring Prices, China Could Issues Compulsory License for Paxlovid 09/02/2023 Zhenyan Zhu, Yuanqiong Hu & Guangjian Xue After three years of its “Zero COVID” policy, the Chinese government allowed a return to relative normalcy for its citizens in early December 2022. Due to the ongoing transmission of Omicron and its numerous COVID subvariants in China, the sudden policy shift was accompanied by rapid community transmission across the country and high numbers of […] Continue reading -> Tedros’ 10-Point Proposal for Reforming Global Emergency Response Gets Mixed Review 30/01/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new 10-point proposal by the World Health Organization’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for improving preparedness and response to health emergencies received mixed reviews from WHO member states in Monday’s opening session of this week’s Executive Board (EB) meeting, the agency’s 34-member governing body. It was the first substantive issue to be tackled […] Continue reading -> WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Natural Immunity Against COVID-19 ‘At Least’ On Par With Vaccination in Preventing Death 21/02/2023 Stefan Anderson New research published in The Lancet suggests that individuals who have previously been infected with COVID-19 have an 88% lower risk of hospitalization or death than those who have not. The study is the most comprehensive review of data on natural immunity to date, covering data from 65 studies across 19 countries published since January […] Continue reading -> Pathogen Sharing: Pandemic Accord Could Offer Solutions or Further Tangle the Web of Confusion 17/02/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Just 66 days after the SARS-CoV2 genetic sequence was shared by a Chinese scientist online, the first COVID-19 vaccines went into production – in record time for R&D that yielded the first approved vaccines less than a year later. But there are looming concerns that the relatively open models of data and pathogen sharing that […] Continue reading -> WHO Aims to Accelerate Trials of Vaccine Candidates for Marburg Disease as Equatorial Guinea Reports Nine Deaths 14/02/2023 Megha Kaveri Following a first-ever outbreak of deadly Marburg virus disease in Equatorial Guinea, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday called an emergency meeting of the Marburg virus vaccine consortium (MARVAC) to receive an urgent update on possible vaccine candidates for the filovirus that can have an 80% fatality rate. At the meeting, the agency received […] Continue reading -> Amid Scarcity and Soaring Prices, China Could Issues Compulsory License for Paxlovid 09/02/2023 Zhenyan Zhu, Yuanqiong Hu & Guangjian Xue After three years of its “Zero COVID” policy, the Chinese government allowed a return to relative normalcy for its citizens in early December 2022. Due to the ongoing transmission of Omicron and its numerous COVID subvariants in China, the sudden policy shift was accompanied by rapid community transmission across the country and high numbers of […] Continue reading -> Tedros’ 10-Point Proposal for Reforming Global Emergency Response Gets Mixed Review 30/01/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new 10-point proposal by the World Health Organization’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for improving preparedness and response to health emergencies received mixed reviews from WHO member states in Monday’s opening session of this week’s Executive Board (EB) meeting, the agency’s 34-member governing body. It was the first substantive issue to be tackled […] Continue reading -> WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Pathogen Sharing: Pandemic Accord Could Offer Solutions or Further Tangle the Web of Confusion 17/02/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Just 66 days after the SARS-CoV2 genetic sequence was shared by a Chinese scientist online, the first COVID-19 vaccines went into production – in record time for R&D that yielded the first approved vaccines less than a year later. But there are looming concerns that the relatively open models of data and pathogen sharing that […] Continue reading -> WHO Aims to Accelerate Trials of Vaccine Candidates for Marburg Disease as Equatorial Guinea Reports Nine Deaths 14/02/2023 Megha Kaveri Following a first-ever outbreak of deadly Marburg virus disease in Equatorial Guinea, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday called an emergency meeting of the Marburg virus vaccine consortium (MARVAC) to receive an urgent update on possible vaccine candidates for the filovirus that can have an 80% fatality rate. At the meeting, the agency received […] Continue reading -> Amid Scarcity and Soaring Prices, China Could Issues Compulsory License for Paxlovid 09/02/2023 Zhenyan Zhu, Yuanqiong Hu & Guangjian Xue After three years of its “Zero COVID” policy, the Chinese government allowed a return to relative normalcy for its citizens in early December 2022. Due to the ongoing transmission of Omicron and its numerous COVID subvariants in China, the sudden policy shift was accompanied by rapid community transmission across the country and high numbers of […] Continue reading -> Tedros’ 10-Point Proposal for Reforming Global Emergency Response Gets Mixed Review 30/01/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new 10-point proposal by the World Health Organization’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for improving preparedness and response to health emergencies received mixed reviews from WHO member states in Monday’s opening session of this week’s Executive Board (EB) meeting, the agency’s 34-member governing body. It was the first substantive issue to be tackled […] Continue reading -> WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
WHO Aims to Accelerate Trials of Vaccine Candidates for Marburg Disease as Equatorial Guinea Reports Nine Deaths 14/02/2023 Megha Kaveri Following a first-ever outbreak of deadly Marburg virus disease in Equatorial Guinea, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday called an emergency meeting of the Marburg virus vaccine consortium (MARVAC) to receive an urgent update on possible vaccine candidates for the filovirus that can have an 80% fatality rate. At the meeting, the agency received […] Continue reading -> Amid Scarcity and Soaring Prices, China Could Issues Compulsory License for Paxlovid 09/02/2023 Zhenyan Zhu, Yuanqiong Hu & Guangjian Xue After three years of its “Zero COVID” policy, the Chinese government allowed a return to relative normalcy for its citizens in early December 2022. Due to the ongoing transmission of Omicron and its numerous COVID subvariants in China, the sudden policy shift was accompanied by rapid community transmission across the country and high numbers of […] Continue reading -> Tedros’ 10-Point Proposal for Reforming Global Emergency Response Gets Mixed Review 30/01/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new 10-point proposal by the World Health Organization’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for improving preparedness and response to health emergencies received mixed reviews from WHO member states in Monday’s opening session of this week’s Executive Board (EB) meeting, the agency’s 34-member governing body. It was the first substantive issue to be tackled […] Continue reading -> WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Amid Scarcity and Soaring Prices, China Could Issues Compulsory License for Paxlovid 09/02/2023 Zhenyan Zhu, Yuanqiong Hu & Guangjian Xue After three years of its “Zero COVID” policy, the Chinese government allowed a return to relative normalcy for its citizens in early December 2022. Due to the ongoing transmission of Omicron and its numerous COVID subvariants in China, the sudden policy shift was accompanied by rapid community transmission across the country and high numbers of […] Continue reading -> Tedros’ 10-Point Proposal for Reforming Global Emergency Response Gets Mixed Review 30/01/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new 10-point proposal by the World Health Organization’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for improving preparedness and response to health emergencies received mixed reviews from WHO member states in Monday’s opening session of this week’s Executive Board (EB) meeting, the agency’s 34-member governing body. It was the first substantive issue to be tackled […] Continue reading -> WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Tedros’ 10-Point Proposal for Reforming Global Emergency Response Gets Mixed Review 30/01/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new 10-point proposal by the World Health Organization’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for improving preparedness and response to health emergencies received mixed reviews from WHO member states in Monday’s opening session of this week’s Executive Board (EB) meeting, the agency’s 34-member governing body. It was the first substantive issue to be tackled […] Continue reading -> WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
WHO Provides New Medicines List, Policy Recommendations for Nuclear Emergency 27/01/2023 Maayan Hoffman The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday released an updated list of medicines that should be stockpiled in the event of a radiological and nuclear emergency, along with new policy advice in the event of such an incident. “Preparedness for radiation emergencies is consistently reported as the weakest area of preparedness in many countries,” the […] Continue reading -> Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Africans Struggled to Get COVID-19 Tests – What Must Change Before the Next Pandemic? 26/01/2023 Kerry Cullinan Most Africans could not get a COVID-19 test unless they were hospitalised or could afford to pay a private laboratory for a pricey test – yet rapid tests were being dished out free in the US and Europe. High prices, slow regulatory approval, and outdated ideas about self-testing were some of the barriers that prevented […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts