After months of delay, a pared-down WHO research team charged with investigating the origins of the SARS-CoV2 virus finally arrived in China on Thursday – but two members of the team were left behind in Singapore after they tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies, WHO said. In the 24 hours since, one of these two members […] Continue reading ->
DELHI, INDIA – In the last week of December 2020, Chanda Devi heard a truck roll into her neighborhood in North Bhopal, Central India. Residents were called outside by a voice, booming through loudspeakers. They were eligible to collect Rs 750 (about US$10) to receive a “corona vaccine”. The people said that they were recruiters, […] Continue reading ->
NEW YORK/ GENEVA. The World Health Organization, UNICEF and two leading international health and humanitarian civil society organizations announced on Tuesday the establishment of a global Ebola vaccine stockpile to ensure rapid response to future outbreaks. Establishment of the stockpile was led by the International Coordinating Group (ICG) on Vaccine Provision, which also includes the […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) has “outsourced” its role in vaccine access and sidelined member states by leaving the running of the COVAX vaccine procurement facility to GAVI, The Vaccine Alliance and CEPI (Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Initiative), Third World Network’s Sangeeta Shashikant told a civil society forum on Tuesday. “Disparity in access is the […] Continue reading ->
A US$40 million research consortium has been created to repurpose existing medicines for hepatitis, tuberculosis and malaria into long-acting treatments that can benefit low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where people often have trouble accessing medicine over and over again, Unitaid experts told Health Policy Watch. The consortium on Tuesday launched the new Centre of Excellence […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) research investigation in China to study the origin of the SARS-CoV2 virus that triggered a worldwide pandemic of COVID-19 is not intended to apportion blame, Executive Director of WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme Michael Ryan stressed in a press briefing on Monday. The statement was made hours after WHO Executive Director […] Continue reading ->
After months of delay, China has confirmed that a WHO research team investigating the origins of the SARS-CoV-2 virus will finally be allowed to enter the country on Thursday, 14 January – a week after Beijing blocked their entry, leaving two international experts stuck in transit. Members of the task force will now be able […] Continue reading ->
Some 42 countries around the world are now rolling out brand new COVID-19 vaccines to their populations. But 36 of those are high-income countries, 6 are middle-income countries, and none at all are low-income countries, said WHO’s Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at a WHO press briefing on Friday. He and other WHO officials […] Continue reading ->
The United Kingdom has approved the mRNA vaccine developed by Moderna, securing an additional 10 million doses to its initial 7 million: but supplies aren’t expected until spring. Despite procuring 17 million doses of the vaccine, a rollout isn’t anticipated for some time, with Moderna vaguely stating that “deliveries of the COVID-19 Vaccine … from […] Continue reading ->
WHO called on European countries to step up their game to curb the highly contagious COVID-19 variants that are overtaking the region, already straining overstretched health systems. Meanwhile some researchers were warning that the new virus variants could spell double trouble if the mutation first identified in South Africa, in particular, makes new vaccines just […] Continue reading ->