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Non-Life

NIH grants $470 mln to conduct studies on long-term effects of COVID-19

The grant is part of an initiative the main U.S. health research body launched in February to understand why symptoms of the illness persist long after infection in some cases – a condition known as “long COVID”- and why some individuals develop new or returning symptoms after recovery.

The most common prolonged symptoms include pain, headaches and fatigue, but the condition has been linked to a higher risk of kidney problems as well as smell distortions in other studies.

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Govt ropes in global tech firms to transform India’s outmoded agricultural industry

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration, which is seeking to ensure food security in the world’s second-most populous nation, has signed preliminary agreements with the three U.S. titans and a slew of local businesses starting April to share farm statistics it’s been gathering since coming to power in 2014.

PM Modi is betting the private sector can help farmers boost yields with apps and tools built from information such as crop output, soil quality and land holdings.

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Fresh cyclonic circulation to bring heavy rainfall over east India from Sep 18-19

”A cyclonic circulation (is) likely to develop over north Bay of Bengal on September 17. It is likely to move west-northwestwards towards Odisha-West Bengal coast during the subsequent three days,” the IMD said.

”Rainfall activity is likely to increase over Odisha and Gangetic West Bengal with fairly widespread to widespread rainfall and isolated heavy falls over above areas on September 18-19,” it added.

Earlier this week, a deep depression brought heavy rainfall over Odisha and Chhattisgarh.

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Total market cap of listed InsurTechs surpasses $22 billion in 2020:Capgemini Report

For the first time, 50% of customers today are willing to consider coverage from a new age player.

“As traditional insurers expand their ecosystems to remain competitive, they must increasingly consider the value achievable through trusted partners, including BigTechs, InsurTechs and non-traditional players like original equipment manufacturer (OEMs). The numbers clearly suggest that exponential InsurTech growth is here to stay, so delivering superior customer CARE(Convenience, Advice and Reach) is essential. Future success in the industry will depend on players’ existing capabilities across the value chain, willingness to invest, and desire to own the customer relationship,” said John Berry, CEO of Efma.

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Asia supercharges vaccination efforts after slow start, U.S. lags

While each country’s inoculation strategies differ, Asia’s momentum reflects pent-up demand for the shots as a means to ease lockdowns, said Paul Griffin, an infectious disease expert at the University of Queensland in northeast Australia.

Australia is giving priority supplies to its largest cities, which are in lockdown to contain a third wave of infections fuelled by the Delta variant. It expects to have enough to complete vaccinations of those older than 12 by mid-October. read more

Japan has overcome initial logistics hurdles to give about a million shots a day since mid-June, as urgency has grown after Delta unleashed an unprecedented wave of infections and serious cases in August.

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Allianz Partners expands its Digital Health Assistant to ten markets in Asia-Pacific

“We are very excited to bring Digital Health Assistant to our customers and partners in the Asia-Pacific region. Allianz Partners’ focus on accelerating its Digital Access to Care initiatives comes at a time of increasing demand for telehealth solutions and comprehensive digital health services particularly in the context of the ongoing Pandemic. We’ve reached a new milestone in bringing peace of mind and reassurance to our customers with this all-in-one platform. Allianz Partners will continue to invest in bringing market leading health and mental wellbeing solutions to support our customers and communities,” comments Vinay Surana, CEO Asia Pacific, Allianz Partners.

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EU launches health crisis body to prepare for future pandemic

The new health emergency preparedness and response authority (HERA) will assess potential health threats, promote research, ensure the availability of critical production and help build stockpiles.

If a new health crisis struck, it would activate emergency funding and help coordinate monitoring, procurement and purchase of medical equipment or treatments.

The authority is partly designed to avoid a repeat of the ad hoc measures taken by individual EU countries at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, some of them inefficient, others coming at the expense of other EU members.

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