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Cargo ship hits Baltimore’s Key Bridge, bringing it down, Rescuers are looking for people in water
The ship crashed into one of the bridge’s supports, causing the...
2024 Geopolitical Risk: Increasingly complex global risk landscape in landmark election year
Insured losses from civil unrest by 4-year period – 2012 to 2023...
UK rolls out Astra/Oxford COVID vaccine after world-first approval
Crucially for countries with relatively basic health infrastructure, the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine can be stored and transported under normal refrigeration, rather than supercooled to -70 degrees Celsius (-94 Fahrenheit).
India is keen to start administering the new shot next month; Serum Institute of India (SII), the world’s biggest producer of vaccines, has already made about 50 million doses. Chile is also interested.
India drug regulator meets to discuss AstraZeneca vaccine: sources
Experts at India’s drug regulator were meeting on Wednesday to consider approving an AstraZeneca/Oxford coronavirus vaccine for emergency use after Britain became the first country to do so, two sources with knowledge of the matter said.
Suspension of scheduled international passenger flights extended till Jan 31
Scheduled international passenger services have been suspended in India since March 23 due to the coronavirus pandemic. But special international flights have been operating under the Vande Bharat Mission since May and under bilateral “air bubble” arrangements with selected countries since July.
India has formed air bubble pacts with 24 countries including the US, the UK, the UAE, Kenya, Bhutan and France. Under an air bubble pact between two countries, special international flights can be operated by their airlines between their territories.
California nurse tests Covid positive week after receiving Pfizer vaccine
Christian Ramers, an infectious disease specialist with Family Health Centers of San Diego, told the ABC News affiliate that this scenario was not unexpected.
“We know from the vaccine clinical trials that it’s going to take about 10 to 14 days for you to start to develop protection from the vaccine,” Ramers said.
“That first dose we think gives you somewhere around 50%, and you need that second dose to get up to 95%,” Ramers added.
Assessing 2020:Air, water pollution disputes kept NGT busy amid coronavirus
New Delhi, Dec 30: Apex environment adjudication body NGT handled disputes involving multi-disciplinary issues relating to air and water pollution through a smooth digital workflow despite the novel coronavirus pandemic this year resulting in a nationwide...
Labour codes to herald new wave of reforms in 2021; job creation likely to be major challenge
during the pandemic, the central government was successful in getting Parliament’s approval for three labour codes on Industrial Relations, Social Security and Occupational Health Safety & Working Conditions (OSH) this year
The Code on Wages was approved by Parliament last year and its rules have been firmed up. But the implementation of the rules for Code on Wages was held back because the government wanted to implement all four labour codes in one go
Assessing 2020:Fight against COVID-19 kept health ministry on its toes
At present, six COVID-19 vaccines are undergoing clinical trials in India.
They are: Covaxin, developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with ICMR; Oxford vaccine manufactured by SII under licence from AstraZeneca; ZyCOV-D being developed by Cadila Healthcare Ltd in Ahmedabad in collaboration with the Centre”s Department of Biotechnology; Sputnik V vaccine manufactured by Dr Reddy”s Lab, Hyderabad, in collaboration with Russia”s Gamaleya National Centre; one manufactured by Biological E Ltd, Hyderabad, in collaboration with MIT, US and the sixth developed by Pune-based Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Ltd in collaboration with HDT, US.
Besides, there is NVX-CoV2373, which is being developed by SII in collaboration with Novavax and its phase-3 clinical trial is under consideration with the drug regulator.
Wealthy hospitals rake in U.S. disaster aid for COVID-19 costs
Federal Emergency Management Agency has received nearly 2,200 aid requests from hospitals and thus far has approved about 15% of them, for a total of $894 million, the agency told Reuters. Hospitals can request more money as U.S. infections surge, and FEMA officials expect total aid awards to rise significantly.
Some health policy experts say that large and well-capitalized nonprofit systems – which typically pay no taxes – do not need the additional relief money. Among the aid applicants are some of the nation’s best-known health systems, including the Cleveland Clinic, Providence and Stanford Health Care.
Diplomatic headache as China struggles to get nations to trust its vaccines
China has made a global effort to reassure governments and populations about the efficacy and safety of its vaccines. In October, a group of ambassadors and diplomats representing 50 African countries toured a Sinopharm Group Co. facility amid a publicity blitz touting China’s promise to deliver vaccines to Africa. “When the coronavirus vaccine completes research and is put into use, we are willing to prioritize benefiting African countries,” said Liu Jingzhen, chairman of Sinopharm.
Will COVID-19 vaccines work on the new coronavirus variant?
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, said data coming from Britain indicates the vaccines still will block the virus. But the U.S. also will do tests to be sure.
Viruses often undergo small changes as they reproduce and move through a population. In fact, the slight modifications are how scientists track the spread of a virus from one place to another.