Nose or Throat Swabs? Antigen Tests for Omicron Are Under Examination 11/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Some researchers and governments are questioning the accuracy of rapid antigen tests to identify Omicron – and it has been suggested that rapid tests based on throat- instead of nasal swabs might be more accurate in detecting the highly infectious COVID-19 variant. Last week, a small pre-print study reported that 29 fully vaccinated and boosted […] Continue reading -> China Nixes Proposal to Grant WHO Rapid Access to Outbreak Sites in Critical Talks About Pandemic Response 10/01/2022 Kerry Cullinan & Elaine Ruth Fletcher China wants to delete language supporting rapid World Health Organization (WHO) access to outbreak sites in future pandemics from a critical document that maps out a way forward in future pandemics, a diplomatic source has told Health Policy Watch. This emerged at Monday’s start of a three-day meeting in Geneva of the global body’s Working […] Continue reading -> Philippine President Threatens to Arrest Unvaccinated Filipinos – One of the World’s Most Extreme Vaccine Mandates 10/01/2022 Raisa Santos Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to order the arrest of Filipinos who refuse to receive COVID-19 vaccinations – in one of the most extreme vaccine mandate edicts to be made by any government worldwide. “Because it is a national emergency, it is my position that we can restrain [unvaccinated people],” said Duterte in a […] Continue reading -> Gloomy New Year Prognosis – WHO Experts Warn Omicron Could Also Spawn More Dangerous Variants 06/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Mass Omicron infection could lead to the formation of new and potentially even more dangerous coronavirus variants, officials from the World Health Organization warned on Thursday. That is despite the fact that the Omicron variant is proving less lethal than its SARS-CoV2 predecessors, such as Alpha, Beta and Delta – which swept through India and […] Continue reading -> WHO Member States Fail to Agree on Raising Assessed Contributions – Key Element of Global Health Agency’s Finance Reform 05/01/2022 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Big pre-holiday hopes that WHO member states might agree on a sweeping financial reforms to put the World Health Organization’s $3 billion annual budget on a more sustainable foundation now seem to be foundering in the New Year. A report by the member state Working Group on Sustainable Financing, published on Tuesday, has stopped short […] Continue reading -> Israel Finds Fourth Pfizer Dose Produces Five-fold Increase in Antibodies, as Country Prepares to Launch Moderna Fourth Shot Trial 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman A fourth shot of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine administered to individuals who received their third shot nearly five months ago produces a five-fold increase in antibodies, according to preliminary results of a first-in-the-world trial being conducted in Israel. The news comes on the same day that the country announced it would launch a trial to […] Continue reading -> As Europe Sees Wave of Seasonal Flu – What are the Risks for ‘Flurona?’ 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman The world’s first case of “flurona” – a co-infection with both seasonal influenza and COVID-19 was reported in Israel last week, as the Omicron variant sweeps across the world. Since then, small numbers of people co-infected with both viruses have been identified in other European countries as well, a World Health Organization official in the […] Continue reading -> New Data on Side Effects of Second Pfizer Shot in Children Shows Fewer Adverse Effects than for Teens 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Two new large scale reviews of the effects of the two-dose Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 5-11 shows fewer severe effects than in older groups. Tuesday’s report, by the Israeli Health Fund Maccabi covering more than 20,000 children, comes on the heels of a similar US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study […] Continue reading -> Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
China Nixes Proposal to Grant WHO Rapid Access to Outbreak Sites in Critical Talks About Pandemic Response 10/01/2022 Kerry Cullinan & Elaine Ruth Fletcher China wants to delete language supporting rapid World Health Organization (WHO) access to outbreak sites in future pandemics from a critical document that maps out a way forward in future pandemics, a diplomatic source has told Health Policy Watch. This emerged at Monday’s start of a three-day meeting in Geneva of the global body’s Working […] Continue reading -> Philippine President Threatens to Arrest Unvaccinated Filipinos – One of the World’s Most Extreme Vaccine Mandates 10/01/2022 Raisa Santos Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to order the arrest of Filipinos who refuse to receive COVID-19 vaccinations – in one of the most extreme vaccine mandate edicts to be made by any government worldwide. “Because it is a national emergency, it is my position that we can restrain [unvaccinated people],” said Duterte in a […] Continue reading -> Gloomy New Year Prognosis – WHO Experts Warn Omicron Could Also Spawn More Dangerous Variants 06/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Mass Omicron infection could lead to the formation of new and potentially even more dangerous coronavirus variants, officials from the World Health Organization warned on Thursday. That is despite the fact that the Omicron variant is proving less lethal than its SARS-CoV2 predecessors, such as Alpha, Beta and Delta – which swept through India and […] Continue reading -> WHO Member States Fail to Agree on Raising Assessed Contributions – Key Element of Global Health Agency’s Finance Reform 05/01/2022 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Big pre-holiday hopes that WHO member states might agree on a sweeping financial reforms to put the World Health Organization’s $3 billion annual budget on a more sustainable foundation now seem to be foundering in the New Year. A report by the member state Working Group on Sustainable Financing, published on Tuesday, has stopped short […] Continue reading -> Israel Finds Fourth Pfizer Dose Produces Five-fold Increase in Antibodies, as Country Prepares to Launch Moderna Fourth Shot Trial 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman A fourth shot of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine administered to individuals who received their third shot nearly five months ago produces a five-fold increase in antibodies, according to preliminary results of a first-in-the-world trial being conducted in Israel. The news comes on the same day that the country announced it would launch a trial to […] Continue reading -> As Europe Sees Wave of Seasonal Flu – What are the Risks for ‘Flurona?’ 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman The world’s first case of “flurona” – a co-infection with both seasonal influenza and COVID-19 was reported in Israel last week, as the Omicron variant sweeps across the world. Since then, small numbers of people co-infected with both viruses have been identified in other European countries as well, a World Health Organization official in the […] Continue reading -> New Data on Side Effects of Second Pfizer Shot in Children Shows Fewer Adverse Effects than for Teens 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Two new large scale reviews of the effects of the two-dose Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 5-11 shows fewer severe effects than in older groups. Tuesday’s report, by the Israeli Health Fund Maccabi covering more than 20,000 children, comes on the heels of a similar US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study […] Continue reading -> Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Philippine President Threatens to Arrest Unvaccinated Filipinos – One of the World’s Most Extreme Vaccine Mandates 10/01/2022 Raisa Santos Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to order the arrest of Filipinos who refuse to receive COVID-19 vaccinations – in one of the most extreme vaccine mandate edicts to be made by any government worldwide. “Because it is a national emergency, it is my position that we can restrain [unvaccinated people],” said Duterte in a […] Continue reading -> Gloomy New Year Prognosis – WHO Experts Warn Omicron Could Also Spawn More Dangerous Variants 06/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Mass Omicron infection could lead to the formation of new and potentially even more dangerous coronavirus variants, officials from the World Health Organization warned on Thursday. That is despite the fact that the Omicron variant is proving less lethal than its SARS-CoV2 predecessors, such as Alpha, Beta and Delta – which swept through India and […] Continue reading -> WHO Member States Fail to Agree on Raising Assessed Contributions – Key Element of Global Health Agency’s Finance Reform 05/01/2022 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Big pre-holiday hopes that WHO member states might agree on a sweeping financial reforms to put the World Health Organization’s $3 billion annual budget on a more sustainable foundation now seem to be foundering in the New Year. A report by the member state Working Group on Sustainable Financing, published on Tuesday, has stopped short […] Continue reading -> Israel Finds Fourth Pfizer Dose Produces Five-fold Increase in Antibodies, as Country Prepares to Launch Moderna Fourth Shot Trial 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman A fourth shot of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine administered to individuals who received their third shot nearly five months ago produces a five-fold increase in antibodies, according to preliminary results of a first-in-the-world trial being conducted in Israel. The news comes on the same day that the country announced it would launch a trial to […] Continue reading -> As Europe Sees Wave of Seasonal Flu – What are the Risks for ‘Flurona?’ 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman The world’s first case of “flurona” – a co-infection with both seasonal influenza and COVID-19 was reported in Israel last week, as the Omicron variant sweeps across the world. Since then, small numbers of people co-infected with both viruses have been identified in other European countries as well, a World Health Organization official in the […] Continue reading -> New Data on Side Effects of Second Pfizer Shot in Children Shows Fewer Adverse Effects than for Teens 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Two new large scale reviews of the effects of the two-dose Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 5-11 shows fewer severe effects than in older groups. Tuesday’s report, by the Israeli Health Fund Maccabi covering more than 20,000 children, comes on the heels of a similar US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study […] Continue reading -> Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Gloomy New Year Prognosis – WHO Experts Warn Omicron Could Also Spawn More Dangerous Variants 06/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Mass Omicron infection could lead to the formation of new and potentially even more dangerous coronavirus variants, officials from the World Health Organization warned on Thursday. That is despite the fact that the Omicron variant is proving less lethal than its SARS-CoV2 predecessors, such as Alpha, Beta and Delta – which swept through India and […] Continue reading -> WHO Member States Fail to Agree on Raising Assessed Contributions – Key Element of Global Health Agency’s Finance Reform 05/01/2022 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Big pre-holiday hopes that WHO member states might agree on a sweeping financial reforms to put the World Health Organization’s $3 billion annual budget on a more sustainable foundation now seem to be foundering in the New Year. A report by the member state Working Group on Sustainable Financing, published on Tuesday, has stopped short […] Continue reading -> Israel Finds Fourth Pfizer Dose Produces Five-fold Increase in Antibodies, as Country Prepares to Launch Moderna Fourth Shot Trial 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman A fourth shot of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine administered to individuals who received their third shot nearly five months ago produces a five-fold increase in antibodies, according to preliminary results of a first-in-the-world trial being conducted in Israel. The news comes on the same day that the country announced it would launch a trial to […] Continue reading -> As Europe Sees Wave of Seasonal Flu – What are the Risks for ‘Flurona?’ 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman The world’s first case of “flurona” – a co-infection with both seasonal influenza and COVID-19 was reported in Israel last week, as the Omicron variant sweeps across the world. Since then, small numbers of people co-infected with both viruses have been identified in other European countries as well, a World Health Organization official in the […] Continue reading -> New Data on Side Effects of Second Pfizer Shot in Children Shows Fewer Adverse Effects than for Teens 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Two new large scale reviews of the effects of the two-dose Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 5-11 shows fewer severe effects than in older groups. Tuesday’s report, by the Israeli Health Fund Maccabi covering more than 20,000 children, comes on the heels of a similar US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study […] Continue reading -> Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
WHO Member States Fail to Agree on Raising Assessed Contributions – Key Element of Global Health Agency’s Finance Reform 05/01/2022 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Big pre-holiday hopes that WHO member states might agree on a sweeping financial reforms to put the World Health Organization’s $3 billion annual budget on a more sustainable foundation now seem to be foundering in the New Year. A report by the member state Working Group on Sustainable Financing, published on Tuesday, has stopped short […] Continue reading -> Israel Finds Fourth Pfizer Dose Produces Five-fold Increase in Antibodies, as Country Prepares to Launch Moderna Fourth Shot Trial 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman A fourth shot of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine administered to individuals who received their third shot nearly five months ago produces a five-fold increase in antibodies, according to preliminary results of a first-in-the-world trial being conducted in Israel. The news comes on the same day that the country announced it would launch a trial to […] Continue reading -> As Europe Sees Wave of Seasonal Flu – What are the Risks for ‘Flurona?’ 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman The world’s first case of “flurona” – a co-infection with both seasonal influenza and COVID-19 was reported in Israel last week, as the Omicron variant sweeps across the world. Since then, small numbers of people co-infected with both viruses have been identified in other European countries as well, a World Health Organization official in the […] Continue reading -> New Data on Side Effects of Second Pfizer Shot in Children Shows Fewer Adverse Effects than for Teens 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Two new large scale reviews of the effects of the two-dose Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 5-11 shows fewer severe effects than in older groups. Tuesday’s report, by the Israeli Health Fund Maccabi covering more than 20,000 children, comes on the heels of a similar US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study […] Continue reading -> Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Israel Finds Fourth Pfizer Dose Produces Five-fold Increase in Antibodies, as Country Prepares to Launch Moderna Fourth Shot Trial 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman A fourth shot of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine administered to individuals who received their third shot nearly five months ago produces a five-fold increase in antibodies, according to preliminary results of a first-in-the-world trial being conducted in Israel. The news comes on the same day that the country announced it would launch a trial to […] Continue reading -> As Europe Sees Wave of Seasonal Flu – What are the Risks for ‘Flurona?’ 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman The world’s first case of “flurona” – a co-infection with both seasonal influenza and COVID-19 was reported in Israel last week, as the Omicron variant sweeps across the world. Since then, small numbers of people co-infected with both viruses have been identified in other European countries as well, a World Health Organization official in the […] Continue reading -> New Data on Side Effects of Second Pfizer Shot in Children Shows Fewer Adverse Effects than for Teens 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Two new large scale reviews of the effects of the two-dose Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 5-11 shows fewer severe effects than in older groups. Tuesday’s report, by the Israeli Health Fund Maccabi covering more than 20,000 children, comes on the heels of a similar US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study […] Continue reading -> Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
As Europe Sees Wave of Seasonal Flu – What are the Risks for ‘Flurona?’ 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman The world’s first case of “flurona” – a co-infection with both seasonal influenza and COVID-19 was reported in Israel last week, as the Omicron variant sweeps across the world. Since then, small numbers of people co-infected with both viruses have been identified in other European countries as well, a World Health Organization official in the […] Continue reading -> New Data on Side Effects of Second Pfizer Shot in Children Shows Fewer Adverse Effects than for Teens 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Two new large scale reviews of the effects of the two-dose Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 5-11 shows fewer severe effects than in older groups. Tuesday’s report, by the Israeli Health Fund Maccabi covering more than 20,000 children, comes on the heels of a similar US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study […] Continue reading -> Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
New Data on Side Effects of Second Pfizer Shot in Children Shows Fewer Adverse Effects than for Teens 04/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman Two new large scale reviews of the effects of the two-dose Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine in children aged 5-11 shows fewer severe effects than in older groups. Tuesday’s report, by the Israeli Health Fund Maccabi covering more than 20,000 children, comes on the heels of a similar US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study […] Continue reading -> Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Can a Fourth Pfizer Dose Halt the Omicron Wave? Israel will be the First Country to Find Out 03/01/2022 Maayan Hoffman JERUSALEM – Israel once again has placed itself in the middle of the global clinical debate on the medical benefits of a fourth Pfizer shot to slow the Omicron wave, when it became the first country to approve such an injection for all citizens over the age of 60 and healthcare workers. Israeli Prime Minister […] Continue reading -> Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Second J& J Jab Provides 85% Protection Against Omicron Hospitalization in New South African Study 30/12/2021 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new South African study shows that a second Johnson & Johnson dose, administered 6-9 months after the initial single-dose vaccine provided 84% protection against hospitalization from the Omicron SARS-CoV2 variant – results that even outperformed those of an earlier South African study looking at effectiveness of the two-dose Pfizer regime in the face of […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts