The manufacturer of the world’s only vaccine approved for monkeypox, Bavarian Nordic, closed its European vaccine production plant this spring and won’t reopen again until late 2022 – leading to a global monkeypox vaccine shortage, Health Policy Watch has learned. With only 16.4 million doses of the MVA-BN vaccine available worldwide, it is unclear how […] Continue reading ->
MONTREAL – Ninety countries will benefit from a voluntary licensing agreement announced on Thursday that will enable generic companies to produce a long-acting injectable antiretroviral, cabotegravir (CAB-LA), to protect people from HIV infection. CAB-LA’s manufacturer, UK pharmaceutical company ViiV, has given the license to the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) for patents in least-developed, low-income, lower-middle-income […] Continue reading ->
About 10% of people with Monkeypox require hospitalization and children are at the highest risk of severe disease, says WHO. Meanwhile, there are only about 1 million doses of the EMA and US FDA-approved MVA-BN vaccine readily available today across the globe – but that vaccine is also untested against monkeypox at large scale. The […] Continue reading ->
WHO’s Regional Director for Europe, Hans Kluge, has asked the 53 countries in the WHO region to “act with urgency” in halting the Monkeypox emergency that has hit the region hardest  – noting that “vaccines alone won’t end the outbreak”.  Kluge’s statement Tuesday followed Saturday’s declaration by WHO of a global public health emergency over […] Continue reading ->
(DELHI, India via The New Humanitarian) – As medical professionals across the globe grappled with COVID-19 infections, microbiologist Dr. Bhavani Eshwaragari was confronting a quieter – though no less dangerous – pandemic. Reviewing patient samples in her laboratory in Continental Hospital in the southern India city of Hyderabad, she began to notice an alarming trend […] Continue reading ->
After missing the target to vaccinate 70% of people in every country against COVID by July 2022, WHO’s new vaccine strategy prioritises 100% coverage for health workers and older people – but admits that every country will have to decide for itself.  The World Health Organization has published an update to the Global COVID-19 Vaccination […] Continue reading ->
Overcoming years of stalemate, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) agreed to negotiate a proposed treaty on genetic resources and related traditional knowledge (TK) that are key components in both traditional and new medicines. Delegates to WIPO’s General Assembly decided that the negotiations both to begin the draft international instrument and to conclude the talks […] Continue reading ->
COVID-19 exposed Africa’s vulnerabilities and its urgent need for local innovation and drug development. Leading African scientist KELLY CHIBALE discusses some of the key challenges. Improving scientific skills in Africa and stemming the continent’s brain drain weigh heavily on Professor Kelly Chibale’s mind, particularly as COVID-19 pandemic has damaged fragile health systems and reversed hard-fought […] Continue reading ->