So, coronavirus...

[Lobby]

Interesting read on the Valneva vaccine - French designed but being produced in and for the UK:

There was an interview with one of their head honchos. Said that the French government weren't interested, but the UK came straight in and offered funding etc.

I get the feeling the French Government were convinced their biggest pharma Company, Sanofi, was going to be successful and lead the world in vaccines, and so weren’t interested in backing anyone else. To much national embarrassment, Sanofi’s candidate has had disappointing results, and they were left with nothing.

Ironically, even if it had been successful, most of its funding came from the US, rather than the French Govt.

[tabascoboy]

[Sandstorm]

Japan have been very slow out of the blocks with vaccines.

[BnM]

Dad has finally got his 2nd AZ jab booked, 11.5 weeks after the first.

[Saint]

Interesting re the differences between flight ban implementations in different countries. UK announces a move for India to Red list (so not a ban just a quarantine) and gives 4 days notice. Canada announces a ban (not even hotel quarantine) at 10.15pm starting at 11.30pm that day (yesterday). Before anyone asks I have no idea what happened to any flights already in the air (if there were any at that time - I suspect not)

[Saint]

More good news from Israel, which recorded no daily deaths yesterday - the first time since last June

[Line6 HXFX]

As a Carer, who has been out and about in the virus for the last 13 or 14 months out of necessity, and who hasn't caught it or passed it onto the people I care for (though I thought I had it when I had a campylobacter infection) just fucking mask up and wash and disinfect your hands.
It is as effective as anything.
Get the Vaccine too of course.

[Raggs]

India out of oxygen in many private hospitals, I presume the public ones were already fecked, just didn't have the sway to get noticed. Seeing now that their health minister seemingly endorsed natural medicine to cure it too. Huge fecking mess.

On home shores in the UK, 95% of over 50s have got at least one jab. That's amazing news and brilliant uptake! Although care workers is still only at 80%. I'd regulate it that they have to be vaccinated if working with the elderly or immuno-compromised. 45-49 is already at 59% too.

[fishfoodie]

India out of oxygen in many private hospitals, I presume the public ones were already fecked, just didn't have the sway to get noticed. Seeing now that their health minister seemingly endorsed natural medicine to cure it too. Huge fecking mess.

On home shores in the UK, 95% of over 50s have got at least one jab. That's amazing news and brilliant uptake! Although care workers is still only at 80%. I'd regulate it that they have to be vaccinated if working with the elderly or immuno-compromised. 45-49 is already at 59% too.

I have a horrible feeling that India is going to end up being >50% of the global death toll.

[Fangle]

I hadn’t realized how poorly Brazil was doing. Horrible numbers.

[Raggs]

I hadn’t realized how poorly Brazil was doing. Horrible numbers.

Unlikely to be that accurate, the hospitals failed, no oxygen etc, it'll be even worse than the official figures. UK wasn't that far off apparently, oxygen was being redistributed between hospitals etc to keep up with demand I believe. Another week longer at peak (or worse, climbing) and we may have seen similar collapse, albeit perhaps temporarily as we got a grip on the numbers

[Biffer]

Neither Brazil nor India will likely be reporting the full numbers, given lower levels of testing and death certification.

[BnM]

I've no idea how Bolonsaro was elected let alone still in power.

[Uncle fester]

I've no idea how Bolonsaro was elected let alone still in power.

His subjects are too ill to revolt?

[Saint]

USA has finally lifted a ban on export of vaccine components to India. Ventilators, Oxygen also being shipped in, but it's all too little guven the scale if the problem

[Insane_Homer]

[Rinkals]

Sorry, IH, but I draw the line at the Daily Mail.

[SaintK]

Just the turn of phrase he would use!

[Slick]

Just the turn of phrase he would use!

Don't be silly.

FWIW, I think the top bit is a trick question, so I'm going for the one on the left.

[Paddington Bear]

USA has finally lifted a ban on export of vaccine components to India. Ventilators, Oxygen also being shipped in, but it's all too little guven the scale if the problem

The US has a VP who dines out on her Indian heritage but seemed fairly content to leave them to it in what's turning into a humanitarian disaster. Suspect the U turn comes from a combination of the moral element being tough to sustain, and more importantly India being crucial to containing China.

[tc27]

USA has finally lifted a ban on export of vaccine components to India. Ventilators, Oxygen also being shipped in, but it's all too little guven the scale if the problem

The US has a VP who dines out on her Indian heritage but seemed fairly content to leave them to it in what's turning into a humanitarian disaster. Suspect the U turn comes from a combination of the moral element being tough to sustain, and more importantly India being crucial to containing China.

Just like Biden's connections to Ireland they will do the bare minimum to pay lip service to it but it will be dropped the second US self interest becomes involved.

[Calculon]

Yeah, China sending aid to India while at the same time the USA is banning the export of vaccine components was just a bit too much.

[Rinkals]

USA has finally lifted a ban on export of vaccine components to India. Ventilators, Oxygen also being shipped in, but it's all too little guven the scale if the problem

The US has a VP who dines out on her Indian heritage but seemed fairly content to leave them to it in what's turning into a humanitarian disaster. Suspect the U turn comes from a combination of the moral element being tough to sustain, and more importantly India being crucial to containing China.

Just like Biden's connections to Ireland they will do the bare minimum to pay lip service to it but it will be dropped the second US self interest becomes involved.

I think it's fairly obvious that Biden will be looking after America's interests first and I suspect the Pharmaceutical industry's is lobbying hard to protect their revenue streams.

I've made the point repeatedly on here that containing the virus in your own narrow area is doomed to failure if the pandemic is allowed to run rampant in poorer areas outside.

[Paddington Bear]

The US has a VP who dines out on her Indian heritage but seemed fairly content to leave them to it in what's turning into a humanitarian disaster. Suspect the U turn comes from a combination of the moral element being tough to sustain, and more importantly India being crucial to containing China.

Just like Biden's connections to Ireland they will do the bare minimum to pay lip service to it but it will be dropped the second US self interest becomes involved.

I think it's fairly obvious that Biden will be looking after America's interests first and I suspect the Pharmaceutical industry's is lobbying hard to protect their revenue streams.

I've made the point repeatedly on here that containing the virus in your own narrow area is doomed to failure if the pandemic is allowed to run rampant in poorer areas outside.

Agree with all of this. India strikes me as an absolute petri dish for variants. What's happening is enough to justify humanitarian intervention on it's own, but the risk of variants strikes me as justifying it from naked self interest as well.

I've been fortunate through work and cricket to get to know a lot of Indians, and what they're sharing on social media is really, really concerning. People desperately trying to find oxygen/hospital beds pretty much every day. I was on calls last week with a guy in Delhi with a horrendous cough who ended up calling in sick Thursday and Friday.
It must be one of the hardest places in the world to contain an epidemic and as of now the government seems to have lost control. Will get worse before it gets better.

[Rinkals]

Just like Biden's connections to Ireland they will do the bare minimum to pay lip service to it but it will be dropped the second US self interest becomes involved.

I think it's fairly obvious that Biden will be looking after America's interests first and I suspect the Pharmaceutical industry's is lobbying hard to protect their revenue streams.

I've made the point repeatedly on here that containing the virus in your own narrow area is doomed to failure if the pandemic is allowed to run rampant in poorer areas outside.

Agree with all of this. India strikes me as an absolute petri dish for variants. What's happening is enough to justify humanitarian intervention on it's own, but the risk of variants strikes me as justifying it from naked self interest as well.

I've been fortunate through work and cricket to get to know a lot of Indians, and what they're sharing on social media is really, really concerning. People desperately trying to find oxygen/hospital beds pretty much every day. I was on calls last week with a guy in Delhi with a horrendous cough who ended up calling in sick Thursday and Friday.
It must be one of the hardest places in the world to contain an epidemic and as of now the government seems to have lost control. Will get worse before it gets better.

Yes. Initially, I was very concerned about the impact of the pandemic, given the high density of the living conditions in their urban areas and the difficulty of maintaining social distancing or access to washing facilities. Much as we have here, but hundreds of times worse.

And yet, they seemed to have gotten off fairly lightly: the cricket series against England had spectators for the first few games and they seemed to have it under control. Something that was possibly ascribed to the use of Ivermectin by some.

However, that lull has apparently ceased and they are now seeing 300,000 plus new cases a day.

Just goes to show that, after having this thing under the collective microscope for a year and a half, we still don't know enough about the mechanics of it's spread or how it is inhibited by weather, physiology or behavioural patterns.

[sorCrer]

They're getting absolutely smashed in India. Very very grim situation.

[Saint]

44 year olds in England now being invited to book their appointment online (if their local surgery hasn't already sorted them out). Two thirds of 45-49 year olds have already had their first jab now.

[tabascoboy]

44 year olds in England now being invited to book their appointment online (if their local surgery hasn't already sorted them out). Two thirds of 45-49 year olds have already had their first jab now.

That's very specific, surely not going to an age year-by-year rollout now?!

[Saint]

44 year olds in England now being invited to book their appointment online (if their local surgery hasn't already sorted them out). Two thirds of 45-49 year olds have already had their first jab now.

That's very specific, surely not going to an age year-by-year rollout now?!

Not sure - I think there's still some concerns over delivery schedules, especially as Moderna are going to underdeliver this month and next. Apparently there will be some guidance for 40-43 year olds as to what to expect in the next few days.

But in some parts of England local surgeries are already moving onto under 40 year olds......

[BnM]

https://www.politico.eu/article/europea ... shortages/
THe whole contract https://gript.ie/wp-content/uploads/202 ... REPORT.pdf

I get that AZ got its forecasts woefully wrong but this hurts everyone.

The European Commission confirmed it began legal proceedings against AstraZeneca for its vaccine-delivery shortages.

“Indeed the Commission has started last Friday a legal action against the company AstraZeneca on the [basis] of breaches of the advanced purchase agreement," Commission spokesperson Stefan De Keersmaeker announced Monday.

“The reason indeed being the terms of the contract, or some terms of the contract, have not been respected, and the company has not been in a position to come up with a reliable strategy to ensure the timely delivery of doses," De Keersmaeker explained. "What matters is to us in this case is that we want to make sure that there is a speedy delivery of sufficient number of doses that the European citizens are entitled to and which have been promised on the basis of the contract.”

Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides shortly after tweeted that the Commission's "priority is to ensure #COVID19 vaccine deliveries take place to protect the health of [the EU]. This is why @EU_Commission has decided jointly with all Member States to bring legal proceedings against #AstraZeneca. Every vaccine dose counts. Every vaccine dose saves lives."

AstraZeneca's contract promised to provide 300 million doses to the EU by the end of June, but now it looks likely to only deliver a third of that. By the end of March, the company had sent 30 million doses to the EU, and the company expects to deliver another 70 million by the end of June.

Earlier this week, some EU countries had reservations over whether a lawsuit would further damage AstraZeneca's reputation in the bloc or whether the lawsuit, first reported by POLITICO, would even help the EU get more doses. However, all countries backed the lawsuit by Friday morning, according to several diplomats.

This article is part of POLITICO’s premium policy service: Pro Health Care. From drug pricing, EMA, vaccines, pharma and more, our specialized journalists keep you on top of the topics driving the health care policy agenda. Email pro@politico.eu for a complimentary trial.

[tcc_dc]

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/25/worl ... urope.html

The all mighty dollar and euro always wins...hey your vaccinated...let's bring in the tourism

......

My colleagues in India lost two people last week who could not get into the hospital. Both gentlemen in the early 50s :( Both men kept saying they were fine but when it intensified, it was too much.

[Calculon]

Presumably they'll go to countries with few or no restrictions. I think it is great news.

[Uncle fester]

Might be misremembering but didn't India have curiously low numbers while the rest of the world was battling first and second waves?

[Flockwitt]

That was my take on it. I also never understood how South Africa was so little impacted also in the initial waves (in relation to what was happening elsewhere in the world at the time).

[Calculon]

South Africa's first wave was a complete damp squib. Unfortunately I had to spend several weeks in the local hospital during the height of the first wave. A large section of this hospital was set aside for the expected influx of covid19 patients. At the time I asked one of the nurses how many patients were in the covid hospital. It was 3. In the second wave we got a decent number of deaths but I don't recall the hospitals being in danger of being overwhelmed, presumably a lot of people dying at home. We are all waiting to see if we are going to get a third wave.

[Saint]

USA now apparently on the brink of releasing all it's AZ stock. Not clear if it's heading to Canada/Mexico, or India

[fishfoodie]

Might be misremembering but didn't India have curiously low numbers while the rest of the world was battling first and second waves?

(1) The numbers from India were/are always bullshit; even these days, there are people counting bodies being cremated, & they're saying that some of the official numbers are an order of magnitude lower than what they are seeing.

(2) Demographics; India has a very lower average age; & as we now know, that mattered in the 1st & 2nd waves

(3) Mutations; the latest variants all seem to be impacting younger people far more than the 1st & 2nd waves.

[Fangle]

In many US states there is an oversupply because of reluctance. It’s disturbing. Even walk-up vaccinations aren’t helping much.

[Sandstorm]

(3) Mutations; the latest variants all seem to be impacting younger people far more than the 1st & 2nd waves.

This is what I feared several months ago.

[Saint]

In many US states there is an oversupply because of reluctance. It’s disturbing. Even walk-up vaccinations aren’t helping much.

Also a large number of people skipping jab 2 apparently