Over a quarter of EU adults are unlikely to take a vaccine, survey says May 13, 2021 More than a quarter of adults in the European Union are unlikely to take the Covid-19 vaccine when offered the jab, a survey has shown today. The results suggested a meaningful link between vaccine hesitancy and the use of social media, particularly where social media is the main source of information, according to Eurofound, also [...]
UK’s 12-week vaccine delay could have saved lives, study says May 13, 2021 The UK’s 12-week delay between first and second vaccine doses could have saved more lives, according to a US study published in the British Medical Journal, suggesting other countries strapped for jabs could adopt the strategy. The second shots of the Pfizer, Moderna and Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines are designed to be given three to four weeks [...]
UK engages in Covid vaccine waiver discussions with the US and WTO May 11, 2021 The UK has begun seeking constructive engagement with the US and other World Trade Organisation (WTO) members on the conflicting issue of vaccine waivers, a government spokesman has said. Following pressure from charities to back the proposal, the UK government is yet to confirm whether it will back the US’ waiver. The waiver, proposed by [...]
Half of British workers expect bosses to enforce mandatory jabs, survey shows May 11, 2021 Half of Britain’s workers expect their bosses to demand a vaccine passport before they can return to the workplace, according to a new study. The research, conducted by BrightHR, studied 5,000 British workers across various sectors. It found that just 17 per cent of employees have had a conversation about their companies’ policy on vaccines, [...]
Inovio confirms its Covid vaccine is safe in mid-stage trials May 10, 2021 Inovio Pharmaceuticals has confirmed its Covid-19 vaccine candidate is safe in a mid-stage clinical trial, as it produces immune responses against the virus in all tested age groups. The trial, which included around 400 participants aged 18 years and older at 16 US sites, used a 2mg dose for the phase three segment of the trial. The [...]
South Africa warns of ‘vaccine apartheid’ if rich countries hog jabs May 10, 2021 South African President Cyril Ramaphosa today warned of “vaccine apartheid” if wealthy nations hogged Covid shots while millions in poor countries died waiting for them. South Africa and India have been pushing for a waiver on some intellectual property rights for vaccines and medicines at the World Trade Organization. US President Joe Biden backed the [...]
EU looking into reports of rare nerve disorder after Astrazeneca vaccine May 8, 2021 The EU’s medicines regulator is investigating reports of a rare nerve-degenerating disorder in people who have received Astrazeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine, it announced this afternoon. The watchdog has requested more detailed data on the cases from the company. As part of a regular review of safety reports for the vaccine, Vaxzevria, the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) safety [...]
Indian Covid mutation declared ‘variant of concern’ over fears of rapid spread May 7, 2021 A coronavirus strain first detected in India has been declared a “variant of concern” over fears that it may be spreading more quickly than the dominant Kent strain. Public Health England (PHE) said it had “moderate confidence” that the Indian mutation, known officially as B16172, spreads at least as quickly as the strain first found in Kent last [...]
Covid prevalence drops across England with 1 in 1,180 infected May 7, 2021 The prevalence of Covid-19 infections in England has fallen for the fourth week in a row, although the decline has slowed alongside widespread easing of lockdown restrictions across the country. Data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that 1 in 1,180 people in England were estimated to have been infected with coronavirus [...]
Germany hits back at US patent waiver proposal for Covid-19 vaccines May 7, 2021 Germany has rejected the Covid-19 vaccine patent proposal today, urging that production capacity is key to boosting vaccine output. The country’s health minister said the primary challenge to increasing production volumes of vaccines is quickly and effectively transferring technology. “The main issue is not patent protection but production capacity,” Jens Spahn, said at a news [...]