Moderna intends to seek US Food and Drug Administration emergency authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate for frontline medical workers by November 25th at the earliest, and only in late January for use in the general population. That means that the vaccine, if approved on schedule, would only be available for widespread distribution to the […] Continue reading ->
The World Bank will make available up to $12 billion in “fast-track financing” that low- and middle-income countries can access to procure vaccines against Covid-19 – as soon as one is approved, said the Bank’s president David Malpass, on Wednesday. The announcement at a United Nations high-level panel on the pandemic that also included commitments […] Continue reading ->
Billions of dollars in vaccine investments are needed to beat back Covid-19. But on the bright side, Europe is playing a more active global health leadership role. Geneva’s ‘dean’ of global health speaks to Geneva Solutions ahead of Wednesday’s opening of the European Health Forum (Gastein), which brings together key policymakers and experts from across […] Continue reading ->
Some 120 million COVID-19 rapid diagnostic tests will be made available to low and middle-income countries through the World Health Organization-hosted ACT Accelerator, an initiative to scale up COVID-19 drugs, diagnostics, and vaccines. The WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus made the announcement just before the world crossed the 1 million mark for deaths from […] Continue reading ->
While the COVAX Facility, a global initiative to pool procurement of a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine, has been gaining momentum, another global initiative to pool intellectual property rights for tools to combat the pandemic has been moving at a much slower pace. Only three more countries have signed on to support the COVID-19 Technology […] Continue reading ->
A lineup of global health leaders called upon high income countries to join the new global COVID-19 pool, saying that worldwide access to a safe and equitable vaccine is essential to beat the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking at the virtual UN General Assembly (UNGA) side event on Wednesday, the leaders also said that maintaining essential vaccine […] Continue reading ->
United States President Donald Trump told a press conference that any moves by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to delay emergency authorization of any forthcoming COVID-19 vaccine for an additional two months to ensure safety concerns are met, “sounds like a political move more than everything else” and such a delay “has to be […] Continue reading ->
The United States Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday proposed a new rule regarding regulation of medical products that would be the first in the agency’s history to also require the signature of United States Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, before it can be formally adopted. As such it will likely be a test […] Continue reading ->
Some 64 higher income countries have now made binding financial commitments to a precedent-setting COVID-19 global vaccine pool that aims to equitably distribute future vaccines to halt the pandemic raging now. Another 38 countries are expected to commit over the next week, said CEO Berkley, in a WHO press conference Monday that disclosed the landmark […] Continue reading ->
Nairobi, Kenya – Africa is trailing the rest of the world in conducting clinical studies on COVID-19 vaccines and drugs. Less than 70 registered studies for drugs and vaccines are currently taking place in Africa, out of more than 1000 studies being conducted globally. Only 8 of 102 clinical vaccine trials were being conducted in […] Continue reading ->