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New Covid-19 pill less effective than first thought
26 Nov, 2021 17:32
American drugmaker Merck has stated that the latest data on its Covid-19 treatment showed the pill to be less effective than initially reported, just days before a panel meeting where US regulators will review the new drug.
Merck announced on Friday that new data showed a lower efficacy of its Covid-19 pill, which aims to reduce virus-related hospitalizations and deaths, than previously reported. Last month, the pharma firm said the antiviral drug, molnupiravir, showed around a 50% efficacy level, while Friday’s figures showed that figure was 30%.
The company’s update came as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released details of its analysis of the medication so far. The agency is to hold a public meeting on November 30 to consult outside experts on the new drug’s safety and efficacy.
The FDA said its scientists found the drug to be effective against Covid, but they also identified a number of possible health risks from the experimental treatment including potential birth defects. It wants the independent expert group to discuss these concerns, the AP reported, though it is not obliged to take the advice on board.
The discussion will also weigh whether the drug’s benefits outweigh its risks. The FDA said that Merck has already agreed that the medication is not intended to be used by children.
There are also concerns about the fact that the new drug led to small changes in the Covid-19 signature spike protein, which the virus uses to enter human cells. In theory this could mean the creation of dangerous new mutations, the agency noted, as per AP. Additionally, it turns out that Merck collected less safety data on this drug than for other Covid-19 therapies, FDA regulators observed.
If given the green light, Merck’s drug would be the first Covid-19 pill in the US that could be taken at home to promote a speedy recovery. Earlier this month, the UK became the first country to authorize the drug for emergency use only.
Of course, Ivermectin is far more effective, but Big Pharma can't make kazillions of dollars off the off-patent medication so it wont be made available by governments.
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Denmark - First EU country to back Covid jabs for 5-y/os
26 Nov, 2021 16:05
The Danish National Board of Health has recommended that children aged between five and 11 should be able to get vaccinated against Covid-19, becoming the first EU nation to make the move.
On Friday, Helene Probst, the deputy director of the National Board of Health, told the press the decision had come at a time of concern for the Nordic nation, as Covid cases continue to rise. “We have seen a worrying infection in the hospitals, and that the number of hospitalizations has risen to over 400,” she stated.
I am really happy that we now have an approval for children aged between five and 11 years old. We need that. We are still in the midst of an epidemic and a historic health crisis.
The board’s recommendation comes after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) recommended on Thursday that the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine could be safely used in children from the age of five.
Probst stated that while children in the age group were not at risk of developing severe Covid-19, vaccinating them could help protect family and friends. “We want to break those chains of infection with the vaccination,” she added.
The National Board of Health is yet to set a specific target for how many five- to 11-year-olds should be vaccinated. “But if we reach 70%, then it will be good,” Probst told the media.
The government has created a booklet for parents, informing them about vaccinating their young children.
Dozens of travelers from Omicron hotspot Covid-positive
on arrival in EU
27 Nov, 2021 00:19
As growing fears of the Omicron variant trigger global travel bans, at least 61 of the 600 arrivals from South Africa tested at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport have turned out to be positive for Covid-19.
On Friday, the Dutch government imposed a ban on arrivals from South Africa and several other neighboring countries, citing fears of a new and reportedly more contagious coronavirus variant.
More than 600 people on two flights were already en route to Schiphol when the decision was made, and special testing sites were set up at the airport to deal with them.
Initial testing late on Friday revealed that there were 15 coronavirus cases among the arrivals, but by Saturday, the number of infected had grown to 61, the Dutch health authorities said in a statement, adding that they were continuing to obtain samples from the travelers.
“Of the positive test results, we are researching as quickly as possible whether they are the new variant of concern, now named ‘Omicron’,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, passengers on KLM flights from Cape Town and Johannesburg have been complaining that they were obliged to remain on board the aircraft for hours while the testing went on.
On Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the B.1.1.529 strain of the coronavirus, which was first detected in Botswana, to be a new variant of concern. Though the WHO cautioned against the imposition of travel bans, a number of governments – including those of the EU, the US, and Russia – have placed restrictions on travelers arriving from Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.
Schiphol was Europe’s third-busiest airport prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, handling 71.7 million passengers in 2019. Passengers from the two flights from South Africa who tested negative will be allowed to leave but must quarantine for five days, the Dutch authorities said. Those who tested positive will be transferred to a quarantine hotel.
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Israel introduces world’s strictest bans to contain Omicron strain
27 Nov, 2021 23:26
Israel has banned all foreigners from entering the country and tasked intelligence services with locating and tracking all recent arrivals from the hotspots of the newly-emerged Omicron coronavirus variant.
The new rules are set to go into effect on Sunday night, making Israel the first country to completely seal its borders to foreign nationals for at least 14 days, following an emergency meeting of the Corona Cabinet. Only those specifically approved by a so-called Exceptions Committee will be allowed entry.
“The Government of Israel is working quickly and vigorously thanks to the conclusions that were formulated following the 'Omega' national drill which gamed various situations regarding the appearance of new variants,” Prime Minister Naftali Bennett noted, referring to a national drill conducted just two weeks ago to assess Israel’s preparedness for an outbreak of a potential unknown new strain of Covid-19.
All Israeli citizens returning from abroad – even those fully-vaccinated with two doses and a booster – will be forced to quarantine for at least three days, while those coming from “red” states will have to stay in designated military-run hotels until they test negative for the virus twice.
Those who had visited an African state over the past week were urged to undergo a test and isolated voluntarily, while internal security agency Shin Bet was tasked with monitoring the compliance using its cell phone tracking capabilities.
The controversial contact-tracing program was first used during the outbreak of the original Covid-19 virus back in 2020, but has since been ruled “no longer justifiable” by the High Court of Justice.
The harsh measures come after Israel detected a single confirmed and seven suspected cases of the new variant B.1.1.529, first registered earlier this month in Botswana. During an emergency meeting on Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially designated the new strain a “variant of concern,” calling it Omicron.
Growing fears of the Omicron variant promptly triggered global travel bans, with flights from South Africa and several of its neighboring countries being barred by a growing number of states. While little is known about the variant thus far, experts worldwide have already raised the alarm over its multiple mutations and potential for infection. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control designated the strain as presenting a “high to very high” risk, adding that there was “considerable uncertainty related to the transmissibility, vaccine effectiveness, risk for reinfections and other properties of the Omicron variant.”
Keep borders open despite Covid variants, WHO pleads
28 Nov, 2021 19:05
The World Health Organization has encouraged countries to keep their borders open, despite fears about the Omicron variant of Covid-19, as South Africa denounces global travel restrictions that it has called “unjustified.”
Avoiding shutting down borders, the WHO said, will prevent a “heavy burden on lives and livelihoods.”
Makes you wonder on who's side WHO is on?
If restrictions are put in place, the organization warned, they should not be “unnecessarily invasive or intrusive.”
“Covid-19 constantly exploits our divisions. We will only get the better of the virus if we work together for solutions,” Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO’s Regional Director for Africa, said.
The comments come in response to multiple countries putting forth travel restrictions after the variant was discovered in southern Africa. Along with South Africa, the US has also restricted travel to and from multiple other nations in response to the new variant.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a Sunday address that no new restrictions would be imposed “at this stage” in the country, and he urged other countries to “urgently” lift their travel restrictions, calling these “unjustified.”
The decision to not implement travel restrictions in South Africa, however, will be reviewed in a week and is contingent on more citizens getting vaccinated.
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