In an unusually frank statement, the United States’ embattled top infectious disease expert, Dr Anthony Fauci, expressed hopes that the US would resolve its conflicts with the World Health Organization. Fauci, an expert on the White House Coronavirus taskforce and director of the National Institute for Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), in an interview with […] Continue reading ->
Some 75 new countries have submitted expressions of interest to join the COVAX Facility, potentially supporting 90 other countries who have already joined the COVAX Advanced Market Commitment initiative created to pool demand and secure lower prices for bulk purchases of a COVID-19 vaccine. Meanwhile, Moderna is pulling ahead in the COVID-19 vaccine rat race […] Continue reading ->
On Monday, the Geneva-based NCD Alliance launched the first-ever fund to bolster the efforts of NGOs worldwide fighting chronic diseases alongside the COVID-19 pandemic with some $US 300,000 in initial seed capital. The effort is unique in that it links major pharma interests that develop and produce drugs for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) to the support […] Continue reading ->
It is still too early to tell how long immunity to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, may last after infection, the World Health Organization’s Technical Lead for COVID-19, Maria Van Kerkhove said at Monday press briefing. Van Kerkhove’s comments came just after the publication of a new study by researchers from Kings College, London, […] Continue reading ->
Just three days after almost 240 scientists criticized WHO for downplaying the risks of airborne transmission of tiny SARS-CoV-2 particles, or aerosols, the Organization edged closer to its critics point of view. WHO’s latest scientific brief, published Thursday, acknowledges that “short-range aerosol transmission cannot be ruled out”. The tiny virus particles floating through the air […] Continue reading ->
An independent evaluation of the global response to the coronavirus pandemic, including steps taken by the World Health Organization, will be led by former Prime Minister of New Zealand Helen Clark and former President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. The former world leaders will co-chair and Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response (IPPR), the […] Continue reading ->
First came the dry cough. Then the shortness of breath and fever. But what Noely, a 32 year old COVID-19 patient in Lima Peru, hadn’t expected, was her lost sense of taste, worsening anxiety, and impaired motor function. “At first, I had symptoms of atypical pneumonia, with a lot of chest pain, and I lost […] Continue reading ->
BREAKING – The United States on Tuesday gave formal notice to the United Nations and the US Congress that it intends to withdraw from the World Health Organization as of 6 July 2021, following President Donald Trump’s announcement after the World Health Assembly on 18 May. The administration first notified the United Nations, and sent […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization said Tuesday that it would reconsider its longtime stance that airborne transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus occurs only rarely – after a group of over 239 scientists published a commentary on Monday in the Journal of Clinical Infectious Diseases, urging the agency to acknowledge the greater role played by tiny virus […] Continue reading ->
Cape Town, South Africa – The US government’s recent purchase of almost the entire available stock of Gilead’s remdesivir – a medicine shown to help speed up the recovery of people who are moderately sick with COVID-19 – has raised fears about whether poorer countries will also be left in the dust if a vaccine […] Continue reading ->