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Showing posts from January, 2021

UK jobless rate highest since 2016 as second COVID-19 lockdown hits

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  Britain’s unemployment rate hit its highest in nearly five years in the three months to November, when coronavirus cases began to rise for a second time and most of the country returned to a partial lockdown. Redundancies touched a record high, taking the unemployment rate to 5.0%, its highest since mid-2016, according to official data, although the increase was slightly weaker than economists’ forecasts. There were some signs of a limited recovery in December, when lockdown measures eased, although a deterioration is likely in early 2021 as a tougher lockdown shut schools and closed most non-essential businesses to the public. Tax data for December showed a 52,000 increase in the number of staff on company payrolls from November, but there were 828,000 fewer workers on payrolls than in February. Economists said the data showed the jobs market was holding up better than many forecasters had feared.Unemployment has been kept down by the government’s Job Retention Scheme, which support
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UK jobless rate highest since 2016 as second COVID-19 lockdown hits

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  Britain’s unemployment rate hit its highest in nearly five years in the three months to November, when coronavirus cases began to rise for a second time and most of the country returned to a partial lockdown. Redundancies touched a record high, taking the unemployment rate to 5.0%, its highest since mid-2016, according to official data, although the increase was slightly weaker than economists’ forecasts. There were some signs of a limited recovery in December, when lockdown measures eased, although a deterioration is likely in early 2021 as a tougher lockdown shut schools and closed most non-essential businesses to the public. Tax data for December showed a 52,000 increase in the number of staff on company payrolls from November, but there were 828,000 fewer workers on payrolls than in February. Economists said the data showed the jobs market was holding up better than many forecasters had feared.Unemployment has been kept down by the government’s Job Retention Scheme, which support
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Global life insurers impose restrictions, worried about long-term pandemic risks

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   Global life insurers are taking steps to curb payouts stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, including long-term health consequences that are not fully understood, industry sources told Reuters. Life insurers, including Prudential Financial Inc, and Aviva PLC, are now imposing waiting periods before COVID-19 patients, including those who have recovered, can apply for coverage, executives and spokespeople said. Some are also limiting coverage for certain age groups. These changes come as some reinsurers demand new safeguards from life insurers they backstop, and as the industry struggles to ascertain the extent of problems caused by the novel coronavirus. COVID-19 has killed over 2.1 million people globally and infected nearly 100 million, according to a Reuters tally. Some victims suffer long-term consequences including severe respiratory problems, organ damage, circulatory impairment and chronic fatigue. Three weeks after recovery, 10% of COVID-19 patients are still unwell and up
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Merck ends COVID vaccine program, cites inferior immune responses

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  Drugmaker Merck & Co on Monday said it will end development of its two COVID-19 vaccines, and will focus pandemic research on treatments, with initial efficacy data on an experimental oral antiviral expected by the end of March. Merck said in a statement it will record a pretax discontinuation charge in the fourth quarter for vaccine candidate V591, which it acquired with the purchase of Austrian vaccine maker Themis Bioscience, and V590, developed with nonprofit research organization IAVI.In early trials, both vaccines generated immune responses that were inferior to those seen in people who had recovered from COVID-19 as well as those reported for other COVID-19 vaccines, the company said.Merck was late to join the race to develop a vaccine to protect against the coronavirus, which has so far killed more than 2 million people and continues to surge in many parts of the world including the United States. U.S. regulators in December authorized COVID-19 vaccines from Moderna Inc a
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Head of French health regulatory body: COVID situation is worrying

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  The COVID-19 situation in France is worrying, the head of the country’s Haute Autorite de Sante (HAS) health regulator told France Inter radio on Monday, as President Emmanuel Macron’s government considers a new lockdown. France has the world’s seventh-highest COVID-19 death toll, with more than 73,000 deaths.It is a worrying moment. We are looking at the figures, day by day. We need to take measures pretty quickly....but at the same time, not too hastily,” said HAS head Dominique Le Guludec. Jean-François Delfraissy, head of the scientific council that advises the government on COVID-19, had said on Sunday that France probably needed a third national lockdown, perhaps as early as the February school holidays, because of the circulation of new variants of the virus.French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune, when asked about this on French radio on Monday, replied that no firm decision had been taken on the matter. France is currently in a nationwide 6pm to 6am curfew, in a bid
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Turkey to get a further 6.5 million Sinovac vaccines on Monday

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  Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said 6.5 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine made by China’s Sinovac will arrive in Turkey on Monday, part of a second planned shipment, allowing the nationwide rollout to continue. Three million doses of the CoronaVac have already arrived and 10 million more doses were expected in total in Turkey’s second consignment from Sinovac Biotech. “It will reach us in accordance with the procurement plan and the vaccine programme will continue without interruption,” Koca said on Twitter on Sunday. Some 600,000 people were vaccinated in just two days when the vaccine rollout began in mid-January, but the pace later slowed as it moved beyond healthcare workers.
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नेपाल आएको यो “कोभिसिल्ड भ्याक्सिन” यस्ता समस्या हुनेहरुले लगाउन हुँदैन !

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  कोभिड-१९ विरुद्दको खोप उत्पादक कम्पनी सिरम इन्स्टिच्युटले एलर्जीको समस्या भएका, रोग प्रतिरोधात्मक क्षमता कम भएका तथा गर्भवती, ज्वरो आएका तथा रगत पातलो बनाउने औषधि सेवन गरिरहेका व्यक्तिलाई खोप नलगाउन सुझाव दिएको छ। नेपालमा पनि आज पहिलो चरणमा कोभिसिल्ड खोप आएको छ। भारत सरकारले अनुदान सहयोगस्वरुप नेपाललाई १० लाख डोज कोभिसिल्ड खोप उपलब्ध गराएको हो। सिरम इन्स्टिच्यूटल खोप उत्पादनमा प्रयाग गरिएको कुनै पनि घटकको गम्भीर एलर्जी छ भने खोप नगाउन भनेको हो। सिरम इन्स्टिच्युटद्वारा जारी फ्याक्ट सीटमा कोभिसिल्डको पहिलो डोज लगाएपछि कुनै गम्भीर एलर्जी वा अन्य स्वास्थ्य समस्या देखिए ती व्यक्तिलाई दोस्रो डोज नलिन समेत सुचित गराएको छ। कम्पनीको वेवसाइटमा जारी फ्याक्ट सीटमा,‘यदि तपाईलाई कुनै किसिमको औषधि, खाद्य पदार्थ, कुनै खोप वा कोभिसिल्डमा समावेश गरिएका सामग्रीबाट गम्भीर एलर्जी भएको छ। ज्वरो, रगतसम्बन्धि रोग, रगत पातलो बनाउने औषधि सेवन गरिरहको भए वा रोग प्रतिरक्षा शक्ति कमजोर भएको वा औषधि दिइरहनुभएको छ भने खोप नगाउनुहोला।’ साथै, गर्भधारणको योजना बनाइरहेका, गर्भवती र स्तनपान गराइरहेका महिलालाई खोप नलगाउ
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EU says it will make vaccine companies respect supply contracts: Michel

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  The European Union will make pharmaceutical companies respect contracts they have signed for the supply of COVID-19 vaccines, European Council President Charles Michel said on Sunday. Pfizer Inc last week said it was temporarily slowing supplies to Europe to make manufacturing changes that would boost output. On Friday, AstraZeneca also said that initial deliveries to the region will fall short because of a production glitch. We plan to make the pharmaceutical companies respect the contracts they have signed ... by using the legal means at our disposal,” Michel said on Europe 1 radio. He did not mention possible sanctions but said that the EU would insist on transparency about the reasons for the delays.He said that after Pfizer’s first warnings about delays of several weeks, the EU had managed to reduce these delays by taking a tough stance. “We banged our fist on the table and finally announced delays of several weeks turned into a slowdown of deliveries,” he said.
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Covid Is Traumatizing Our Doctors and Nurses

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  Hand it to human beings. We have repeatedly defied predictions that we will buckle under the extreme pressure of adverse events. Time and again, whether it was during the   eight-month blitz in World War II , or after 9/11, people have proved remarkably resilient in the face of adversity. Will it be the same with this pandemic? On aggregate, probably yes.  Most people  have experienced, or  know someone  who has experienced, mental stress as a result of pandemic-related circumstances. (Irritation, anxiety, helplessness, tiredness, sadness, burnout, trouble sleeping or difficulty concentrating — any of these sound familiar?) But once vaccinated and our lives are unlocked, most people will probably return to their individual baseline levels of happiness, even if there are new post-pandemic adjustments to be made. And yet while different people experience   the threat of the virus and repeated lockdowns differently, the  mental health impact  of the crisis  for many  cannot be ignored.
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Pfizer, BioNTech to Supply Up to 40 Million Shots to Covax

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  Pfizer Inc.   and   BioNTech SE   will supply as many as 40 million doses of their Covid-19 vaccine to Covax, a global alliance many poorer countries are relying on to protect their populations. Shipments will start in the first quarter and continue throughout 2021, the companies said in a statement. The agreement follows pacts with  AstraZeneca Plc , whose shot is approved in the U.K., and other drugmakers such as Johnson & Johnson that are working on potential vaccines. Questions remain about when vast swaths of the world will gain access to Covid vaccines as wealthy countries, including the U.S., Britain and members of the European Union, ramp up their immunization drives. This week, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the world was on “the brink of a catastrophic moral failure” as countries rush to finish their own deals and try to “jump to the front of the queue.”The doses Covax secured from Pfizer and BioNTech will be enough to immuniz
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Severe allergic reactions to Moderna vaccine appear rare: CDC report

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  Severe allergic reactions to Moderna Inc’s coronavirus vaccine appear to be quite rare, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday, after over 4 million people had received their first dose. Based on the data, the CDC said anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic reaction, occurred at a rate of 2.5 cases per 1 million shots administered. The agency cautioned that the risk of anaphylaxis was difficult to compare to non–COVID-19 vaccines because it is still so early in the vaccination program.As of Jan. 10, there were 10 cases of anaphylaxis reported among 4.04 million people who received their first doses of Moderna's two-shot vaccine, according to the agency's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. ( bit.ly/3973U4N ) The CDC said the characteristics of severe allergic reactions to Moderna’s vaccine were similar to those reported with the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer Inc and partner BioNTech SE. Earlier this month, the CDC reported severe allergic
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Fire at world's biggest vaccine maker in India

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  A fire broke out on Thursday at India's Serum Institute, the world's largest maker of vaccines, but a source said production of the coronavirus vaccine was not affected. Television channels showed thick clouds of grey smoke billowing from the site in Pune in western India. The Serum Institute produces millions of doses of the Covishield coronavirus vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford. "It is not going to affect production of the Covid-19 vaccine," a source at the Serum Institute told AFP. He said the blaze was at a new plant under construction. An official at the local fire station told AFP that six or seven fire engines had reached the site.We have no other information … on the extent of the fire or whether anyone is trapped," the official said.In January, Indian regulators approved two vaccines – Covishield, produced by the Serum Institute, and Covaxin, made by local copany Bharat Biotech. India began one of the world's biggest v
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92 countries approach India for Covid vaccine

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  Airport workers unloading a box containing Covishield. Ninety-two countries have approached India for Covid-19 vaccines, bolstering New Delhi's credentials as the vaccine hub of the world. Highly placed sources said that scores of countries are approaching India, as the word spreads that Indian vaccines are showing negligible side-effects, since the immunization drive in the country began on Saturday. India is sending its domestically developed vaccines to several neighbouring countries including Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar.In a letter to PM Modi on Tuesday, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit of the Dominican Republic, has also requested for inoculation, signally that the demand for Indian jabs has acquired a transcontinental appeal. "As we enter 2021 and persevere in our fight against Covid-19, Dominica's population of 72,100 is in urgent need of enough doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. I, therefore, request, with great humility and respect, that you assist us by do
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From alcohol to virus shedding, six dos and don'ts after Covid-19 inoculation

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  With Covid-19 vaccination campaigns under way around   the globe, people who receive   an inoculation may wish to minimise actions that may compromise their ability to develop immunity. Here, we discuss key dos and don’ts linked to the Covid-19 vaccine. Do not drink alcohol to excess – or at all Drinking alcohol at about the time of a vaccination is not typically considered a significant danger, but many medical authorities counsel caution nonetheless. In the UAE, people attending vaccine centres are urged not to drink alcohol for four days after their first and second shots. Some medics advise seven days.Last month, Dr Alexander Gintsburg, director of the Gamaleya National Centre of Epidemiology and Microbiology in Moscow, where the  Sputnik V vaccine  was developed, recommended people “refrain from alcohol for three days after each injection, which applies to all vaccines”. This advice stems from alcohol’s ability to suppress the immune system, particularly in heavy drinkers, so th
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UK jobless rate highest since 2016 as second COVID-19 lockdown hits

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  Britain’s unemployment rate hit its highest in nearly five years in the three months to November, when coronavirus cases began to rise for a second time and most of the country returned to a partial lockdown. Redundancies touched a record high, taking the unemployment rate to 5.0%, its highest since mid-2016, according to official data, although the increase was slightly weaker than economists’ forecasts. There were some signs of a limited recovery in December, when lockdown measures eased, although a deterioration is likely in early 2021 as a tougher lockdown shut schools and closed most non-essential businesses to the public. Tax data for December showed a 52,000 increase in the number of staff on company payrolls from November, but there were 828,000 fewer workers on payrolls than in February. Economists said the data showed the jobs market was holding up better than many forecasters had feared.Unemployment has been kept down by the government’s Job Retention Scheme, which support
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PM inducts new ministers in Cabinet

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  Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli appointed eight new Cabinet ministers and one minister of state today, first time after he recommended dissolution of the House of Representatives on December 20. President Bidhya Devi Bhandari administered the oath of office and secrecy to the newly appointed ministers. Portfolios of ministers Name of the minister Portfolio Top Bahadur Raymajhi Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Manichandra Thapa Drinking Water and Sanitation Prabhu Sah Urban Development Prem Bahadur Ale Forest and Environment Ganesh Thagunna Federal Affairs and General Administration Gauri Shankar Chaudhary Labour, Employment, and Social Security Juli Kumari Mahato Women, Children, and Senior Citizens Bhanu Bhakta Dhakal (portfolio changed) Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation Hridayesh Tripathi (portfolio changed) Health and Population Lilanath Shrestha (portfolio changed) Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs Shiva Maya Tumbahangphe (portfolio changed) Land Management, Cooperati
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Covid-19: Preparations on to vaccinate 250-300 million Indians on priority

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A research scientist at India's Serum Institute, the world's largest maker of vaccines. India is gearing up to vaccinate at least 250-300 million people, including about 30 million health care and frontline workers, against  Coronavirus disease (Covid-19)  by July next year, for which it will be looking at procuring about 500-600 million vaccine doses. The Centre is regularly following up with the states to devise measures to successfully launch the Covid-19 vaccination drive across the country that is likely to start in the first quarter of next year when the vaccine is expected to be made available for use. Initially, the approvals to manufacturers are likely to be under the emergency use authorisation, and later after analysing full phase-3 clinical trials data, there will be marketing approvals in place for use by general public.A crucial part of the strategy is to get the exact list of people who need to be vaccinated on priority. States were asked to draw up a list of the
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