Latin America Plagued by Slow Vaccine Rollouts, While Region Remains Major COVID Epicenter

17/06/2021 Madeleine Hoecklin & Raisa Santos

Despite the global decline in COVID-19 cases by 12% over the last week, countries in Central and South America continue to be epicenters of pandemic, with high mortality rates and insufficient access to vaccines. Over 1.1 million new COVID-19 cases and 31,000 deaths were reported in the Americas over the last week, officials from the […] Continue reading ->

Pakistan Introduces Single-Use Syringes as it Battles Fast-Rising HIV/AIDS Infections

16/06/2021 Rahul Basharat Rajput & Muhammed Nadeem Chaudhry

ISLAMABAD – Faced with one of the sharpest increases in HIV/AIDS rates in Asia, Pakistan will ban the manufacture and import of conventional syringes from next month, government officials have told Health Policy Watch. The move is in an effort to stem a three-year increase in HIV cases – 39% of which are estimated to […] Continue reading ->

Groundbreaking Study: Mosquitoes Armed with Wolbachia Bacteria Reduced Symptomatic Dengue Infections by 77% In Indonesian Trial

16/06/2021 Madeleine Hoecklin

In a “groundbreaking” trial conducted in Indonesia, lab-grown mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia bacteria reduced the rate of symptomatic dengue infections by 77%, and hospitalizations by 86%, in communities where the bacteria-armed mosquitoes were released. The three-year study, which was led by the World Mosquito Program, provides compelling evidence for a new method of controlling dengue. […] Continue reading ->

Africa’s COVID-19 Vaccination Rollouts Falter as Third Wave Grips Parts of the Continent

15/06/2021 Kerry Cullinan

Twenty-two African countries are experiencing a surge in COVID-19 infections, yet the vaccination rollouts on the continent have ground to a halt because of lack of supply. African vaccination figures, as recorded by the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are dismal. Apart from the tiny island state of Seychelles, only Morocco’s vaccination rate […] Continue reading ->

WHO to Study Social Measures That Keep COVID-19 at Bay – in Case of No Vaccines in Future Pandemics

14/06/2021 Kerry Cullinan

The World Health Organization (WHO) is planning to study the public health and social measures that countries have used to keep COVID-19 at bay successfully – in case there is no quick vaccine for the next pandemic. A special working group has been set up with the support of Norway to study these measures, WHO […] Continue reading ->

Novavax could make 100 million monthly doses of COVID-19 vaccine by October

14/06/2021 Paul Adepoju

Biotech manufacturer Novavax announced on Monday it would be able to manufacture 100 million doses of its two-dose COVID-19 vaccine every month by the end of the third quarter of 2021 and 150 million doses per month by the end of the year – once it has secured regulatory approval for its vaccine. This follows […] Continue reading ->

New Chinese Research on Bat Coronaviruses & Wuhan Markets Published Ahead of US-EU Meeting Asking for Answers on SARS-CoV2 Origins

11/06/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher & Chandre Prince

Chinese researchers have this week published two papers that shed new light into the likely bat origins of SARS-CoV2 and related foodborne risks – even as pressures from the United States and the European Union grow for a more complete investigation into the origins of SARS-CoV2. The US and EU are expected to issue a […] Continue reading ->

FDA Orders Some 60 Million Johnson & Johnson Vaccines Made by Emergent to be Destroyed

11/06/2021 Kerry Cullinan

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorised the release of two batches of the Janssen/ Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine – about 10 million doses – manufactured at the Emergent BioSolutions facility in Baltimore, according to a statement on Friday. However, it also “determined several other batches are not suitable for use” while […] Continue reading ->

Boris Johnson Wants G7 to Commit to Donating One Billion Vaccines, But People’s Vaccine Alliance Calls for More

11/06/2021 Kerry Cullinan

Before the G7 leaders sat down on Friday afternoon in Cornwall to discuss how to “build back better” a world devastated by COVID-19, UK Prime Minister and summit host Boris Johnson challenged the Group to accept a target of providing one billion doses to developing countries. But the People’s Vaccine Alliance, a network of over […] Continue reading ->

Ugandan Dairy Farmer Promotes Plan to Curb Drug-Resistant ‘Superbugs’ in Agriculture

11/06/2021 Esther Nakkazi

Dairy farmer Tonny Kidega is passionate about his cattle and his country’s health systems – and has been championing the importance of limiting the use of antibiotics to curb the development of drug-resistant “superbugs” and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Based in the Gulu district in northern Uganda, Kidega is a veterinarian and the Managing Director of […] Continue reading ->