"Connecting Communities for COVID19 News" 10th Jul 2020
Isolation Tips
Will We All Have PTSD from Dealing with COVID-19?
Anxiety is skyrocketing during the COVID-19 pandemic, with 30 percent of Americans saying the crisis is having a “serious impact” on their mental health, and most saying it is affecting their daily lives, according to the American Psychiatric Association. Local trauma therapist Shari Botwin, LCSW and author of Thriving After Trauma: Stories of Living and Healing explains that the social upheaval and anxiety from the virus may have long-term effects on our mental health, including causing post-traumatic stress disorder.
Hygiene Helpers
Lessons in contact tracing from Germany
Germany built on existing local infrastructure to get ahead of the covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic situation in Germany is often compared favourably with that in other European countries, particularly the UK. According to the World Health Organization, the rate of infection reported in Germany by 23 June was almost half the rate reported in the UK (230 cases/100 000 population v 451/100 000), and the reported mortality from covid-19 was a sixth of that in the UK (10.7/100 000 v 63.2/100 000). Care must be taken when comparing data from different countries,1 and various reasons may explain the observed differences.2 But from a public health perspective, experience with SARS3 suggests that Germany’s intensive system of testing, contact tracing, and quarantine were critical to successful control of the outbreak, especially given the role of super spreading events that seem to shape the current epidemic in Germany, with the most recent ones in meat plants.
South Korea finds just one case of coronavirus antibodies out of 3,000 tested
Just one person in a South Korean survey of more than 3,000 people showed neutralizing antibodies to the novel coronavirus, health authorities said on Thursday, indicating the virus has not spread widely in the community. While the sample size is small it is believed to be a reliable indicator of a low infection rate among the 51 million people of a country held up as a coronavirus mitigation success story. “The results indicate that each citizen has taken an active participation in tough social distancing,” Kwon Jun-wook, the deputy director of the Korea Centers for Disease and Prevention (KCDC), told a briefing.
How does Melbourne's coronavirus lockdown compare with overseas responses to community transmission?
The hard lockdowns placed on Melbourne's public housing towers may be a first in Australia, but similar scenes have played out in countries around the world. Acting Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said earlier this week the tower block lockdown was a "major escalation" and something we had not seen in the country before. But he said it was a similar decision to those made by officials in other parts of the world, such as "New York, China and in Europe". "The way [the increase in cases in Victoria] will come under control is very clear, we know how to do that, it is led by the data," Professor Kelly said. "Testing, trace and isolate [are] crucial and fundamental public health responses."
Coronavirus: Filling middle plane seats may DOUBLE transmission
A new statistical model shows COVID-19 infections rising on commercial flights
The MIT produced model shows nearly double the transmissions with middle seats filled, and more than 80 additional deaths from COVID-19 a year. Without federal guidelines, airline policy on middle seat sales is inconsistent
Can HVAC systems help prevent transmission of COVID-19?
One step that technicians could take involves configuring ducted HVAC systems to increase the rate of exchange with fresh fresh air from outside the building to reduce recirculation. Adjusting the settings may also help. Instead of shutting down overnight or on weekends, for instance, the HVAC system could run without interruption to increase the replacement of air and minimize airflow speeds. In buildings with old or inflexible systems, technicians might consider upgrading HVAC hardware. Some of the most important might include these:
Safety for students, staff and teachers key to reopen schools
Now President Donald Trump and U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos are threatening to cut funding unless we fully reopen with in-person instruction, without regard for safety. The Washington state Office of the Superintendent for Public Instruction, Department of Health, and Labor & Industries have provided scientifically based guidance for safely reopening schools. Districts across the state are making decisions about which model to offer in accordance with that guidance. Very few districts are finding that five days a week of in-person instruction is safe or appropriate given the increasing number of COVID-19 cases. No matter the model, Washington Education Association and our local associations are advocating that school administrators guide their decisions based on what is best and safest for students and educators. Health and safety must remain the priority. Science and guidance from health experts must direct and inform reopening decisions. Schools must employ effective screening and cleaning protocols and provide protective equipment to keep students, staff, families and communities safe. We’ll need more school nurses to provide health checks and monitoring, and custodial staff to clean and sanitize buildings.
My Husband and I Knew the Dangers of the Coronavirus. How Could We Still Put Our Neighbor at Risk?
He brought over his fish and plants and borrowed our ladder. He was masked, because of the movers. We were not, because we were just lolling about; it was pure luck that we were even dressed. It was a quick handover. We didn’t touch. Two days later, we came down with COVID-19 symptoms. It was bad, especially for my spouse. Two weeks later, our neighbor texted to say he thought he had it too. He has a baby, a wife and an elderly mother who was living nearby. When I read on her social-media page a week or so later that he was in the hospital with pneumonia, my stomach began to churn. We were not sure we were the ones who gave it to him–neither was he, for the record–but the possibility was horrifying.
Community Activities
Harvard and MIT have sued the Trump administration over the rule barring international students from online-on
Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology sued the Trump administration Wednesday over an order that would require foreign students to take classes in person this fall, despite rising coronavirus caseloads that are complicating efforts by colleges and universities to offer in-person learning.
The lawsuit represented a swift response to an unexpected order issued this week by the federal government as universities rush to protect the status of thousands of foreign students. It also marks a new rift between Trump and education leaders over how to safely reopen schools in the midst of his reelection bid.
Here's how to sign up to test the first potential coronavirus vaccines in clinical trials
-The leading coronavirus vaccine candidates are weeks away from entering the pivotal phase of testing. To determine if a vaccine actually prevents infection or disease, researchers will soon start recruiting tens of thousands of volunteers into clinical trials. The US National Institutes of Health is coordinating most of this research, launching this week the COVID Prevention Trials Network.
Up to one third of people in UK may refuse coronavirus vaccine, new poll finds
Almost a third of people in the UK may refuse a coronavirus vaccine if one is developed, according to a new poll. Nearly one in five British adults say they would either probably or definitely turn down a vaccine, according to the YouGov poll of 1,663 adults, and another 15 per cent say they don't know yet how they feel about it. A coronavirus vaccine is seen by many as the only way out of the pandemic, and hundreds are at various stages of development across the globe. However, scientists say that between 70 and 90 per cent of the population will have to get the new vaccine for it to be effective in stopping the spread of Covid-19, which has killed half a million people since erupting in China six months ago. It is hard to put an exact figure on how many will need to get the vaccine, because it depends on how effective it turns out to be - if one can be developed at all. For measles, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that 95 per cent of the population get the jab.
As Vaccine Skepticism In U.S. Grows, Experts Recommend Strategies For Covid-19 Vaccination Campaign
Experts blamed the influence of "anti-vaxxer" groups, which have capitalised on the fear and uncertainty around the pandemic
A Coronavirus Vaccine Won’t Work if People Don’t Take It
If a vaccine for the coronavirus is developed tomorrow, will you take it? Many people won’t. According to recent polls, half to three-quarters of Americans intend to get the vaccine if one becomes available — woefully short of what we’ll need to protect our communities. As a pediatrician, I meet with all kinds of parents who have concerns about vaccines generally; many have told me they won’t trust a coronavirus vaccine, and that they and their children won’t take it, at least in the short term. They question the safety of a vaccine developed on an accelerated timeline, and in the shadows of political pressure — a concern that has also been raised by staunchly pro-science, pro-vaccine experts. A few families even buy into the conspiracy theory that microchips will be implanted into the vaccine.
Working Remotely
The psychology of remote working
On September 13 2001, Penny Pullan was booked on a flight into New York City. A member of the new change team at Mars-Inc-owned ISI, she was supposed to be launching a global programme of business change. Of course, her plane never took off. Two days before, four hijacked commercial airliners crashed into the World Trade Centre, the Pentagon building in Washington DC and a strip of Pennsylvania farmland. With the 9/11 terror attacks, the world changed in an instant, flights were grounded and Pullan found herself needing to adapt rapidly to an entirely new way of working in order to see her project through.
Coronavirus in Ireland – Leo Varadkar shares snap of home office and says remote working has huge benefits if
Leo Varadkar has called on businesses to make remote working the "new normal" after sharing a snap of his home office. The Fine Gael boss said if working from home was rolled out properly it would have huge benefits and would allow parents to manage their personal and professional lives better.
The office isn’t dead yet, even if remote work keeps rising, says Moody’s
Building owners often also have 10-year fixed-rate mortgages, which over the past decade have been set at historically low rates, giving property owners more wiggle room to sort through the shocks of COVID-19. Those are key takeaways of a new report from credit-rating firm Moody’s Investors Service on the future of U.S. office space as a result of the pandemic, which sparked an abrupt need by many companies to set up their employees for remote work. In short: The modern office isn’t “dead” yet. But Moody’s does see “heightened risks more in major urban markets,” and in the unlikely event of “sea changes” in behavior by companies looking to eventually shed office space, “a meaningful credit impact” could occur, wrote a team led by senior credit officer Kevin Fagan, in a report released late Thursday.
Nearly half of German firms to allow working from home after coronavirus crisis
Spurred by the coronavirus crisis, an increasingly large number of German companies are open to - and allowing - working from home, according to a new study. A total of 42 percent of German companies said they will allow employees to work from home following the coronavirus crisis, with an equally large percentage still undecided. Researchers from the Stuttgart-based Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering (IAO) and the German Association for Personnel Management surveyed around 500 German companies from May 5th to 22nd to obtain an overview of the situation, which they published on Thursday.
As the weather gets hotter, Spain’s remote workers move to the beach
The coronavirus crisis has normalized teleworking in Spain. Now, as the temperature begins to rise, many workers have begun looking for a place to take refuge from the July heat, where they can continue to work remotely. Almost all, regardless of the sector, have become used to virtual meetings, to organizing their work and personal life in the same space, and to reporting over the telephone. When bosses and employees were sent home due to the coronavirus pandemic, many began to look for a new home office with views of the beach or the mountain.
“We are seeing a huge demand in portable Wi-Fi devices these last few weeks, coinciding with trips to holiday homes,” says Miguel Moral, the managing director and co-founder of WifiAway, a company that has been providing portable internet services since 2016.
Public consultation on guidelines for remote working
The Government will today launch a public consultation process on guidelines for remote working, which has increased significantly due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The guidelines are intended to address issues arising from remote working, including health and safety, employment rights and data protection. Since the pandemic struck earlier this year, the world of work has changed dramatically, with thousands of workers now operating from home.
Coronavirus: One in five Brits would take a 7% pay cut to keep working from home
One in five Brits are now willing to take a pay cut to continue working from home as COVID-19 lockdown restrictions are eased, research shows. In a survey of 6,961 UK workers by Totaljobs, 20% said they would agree to take a 7% pay deduction to avoid returning to the workplace — about £2,031 less, based on UK national average salary. Men are more likely to consider this proposal than women, at 27%, compared with 13%. The offer also appeals more to the younger working population, with 28% of 18- to 34-year-olds wanting to continue remote working, compared with 19% of 35 to 54-year-old workers. This drops to just 10% of people over 55.
How will our experiences of the Covid-19 pandemic shape the future of remote learning?
Over the next few months, universities and business schools will be consulting with staff about what comes next as individual safely is of paramount concern. However, many have already recognised that the challenges presented during lockdown are similar to those facing educational bodies in the near future: a need for more remote interaction to accommodate both the impact of Covid-19 and the rising number of international students and mid-career professionals pursuing distance learning courses. Teaching organisations are also acknowledging that quickly advancing technologies, with the power to create compelling virtual teaching environments, now have the ability to deliver targeted learning opportunities to far wider audiences around the world where specialist tutors may have ordinarily been inaccessible or in short supply, creating valuable new revenue streams.
Virtual Classrooms
Metro Schools to begin school year remotely as COVID-19 cases surge
Director of Schools Dr. Adrienne Battle said earlier this month that they'd hoped students would be able to return to class on August 4th. However, she said they had also been preparing for the possibility that it wouldn't happen. “This decision was not made lightly, but the risks to the health and safety of students and staff are too great at this moment for us to begin the school year with in-classroom instruction,” said Dr. Battle. “I am confident that our teachers and support staff will be up to the challenge of providing a great education that meets the academic and social-emotional needs of our students in a virtual learning environment.”
Clayton Schools look to virtual classroom as COVID-19 rates soar
Clayton County Schools will likely offer virtual-only classes in the new school year if Georgia’s coronavirus infection rates continue on their current trajectory, the district’s superintendent says.
What are the CDC school guidelines Trump wants changed amid COVID-19? These are the highlights.
Separated desks, staggered schedules and isolation rooms for sick students. Trump tweeted Wednesday that he disagrees with the CDC's "very tough & expensive guidelines for opening schools" as the coronavirus pandemic continues, and Vice President Mike Pence said the agency would be issuing new guidelines next week. However, Dr. Robert Redfield, the head of the CDC, said Thursday no change was coming but that instead "additional reference documents" would be issued. To better understand any possible update, USA TODAY reviewed several documents and guidelines on the CDC's website of the guidance already issued to K-12 schools.
Parents in Williamson County will have choice of virtual or classroom learning this year
Williamson County Schools has announced parents will have the choice to send their kids back to the classroom or virtual learning as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to surge. In a statement to parents, WCS says the decision came after 23,000 parents were surveyed along with feedback from staff and medical professionals. The statement adds "While many families look forward to an on-campus return to school, others prefer to keep their children home during this pandemic due to the risk that will accompany any on-campus program. Recognizing those concerns, we plan to provide instruction on our school campuses, and we will be offering the WCS Online Program as an option for families this school year."
Beauregard School Board releases virtual education options
Beauregard Parish schools, like many across the Lake Area and nation, transitioned to an online classroom when the pandemic hit. With less than a month away, Beauregard Parish Superintendent Timothy Cooley said they are trying to make the best determination for the upcoming school year. “We would love to come back face-to-face and have our students in the classroom and have them with teachers on the campuses,” Cooley said. “In the event, we are in a phase where we can’t do that with all of our students, we have been discussing a hybrid model.”
Cooley said they are creating a plan that would allow their elementary school students to come back to campus for in-person classes.
Public Policies
Coronavirus: The inside story of how UK's 'chaotic' testing regime 'broke all the rules'
As Britain sought to assemble its coronavirus testing programme, all the usual rules were broken. In their effort to release rapid data to show the increase in testing capacity, officials from Public Health England (PHE) and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) "hand-cranked" the numbers to ensure a constant stream of rising test numbers were available for each day's press conference, Sky News has been told. An internal audit later confirmed that some of those figures simply didn't add up
UK has opted out of EU coronavirus vaccine programme, sources say
The UK government has rejected the chance to join the European Union’s coronavirus vaccine programme due to concerns over “costly delays”, according to sources. The EU is planning to spend around €2bn (£1.8bn) on the advance purchase of vaccines that are undergoing testing on behalf of the 27 member states. Negotiations with Brussels have been ongoing but Alok Sharma, the business secretary, is believed to have opted out of the opportunity, according to The Daily Telegraph. The European commission is expected to be notified of on Friday. The decision not to participate is expected to provoke a backlash among opposition MPs, who believe that ministers are reluctant to collaborate with the EU on projects after Brexit. Government sources told the newspaper that officials fear signing up to the scheme could delay the rollout of a vaccine by up to six months while talks on distribution took place.
China's new strategy to tame second-wave virus outbreaks
A recent coronavirus outbreak in Beijing sowed fears of a second wave of infections in China, but officials appear to have beat back the disease with a new targeted strategy. Authorities did not repeat the drastic nationwide shutdown seen when the virus first spread from Wuhan earlier this year. Instead, they sealed off a limited number of residences and focused on mass testing, eventually screening more than half of the capital's 21 million people
Behind New Covid-19 Outbreaks: America’s Patchwork of Policies
The rising tide of coronavirus cases in the U.S. South and West, coming four months into the outbreak, emerged amid a patchwork of often confusing or conflicting rules across government that have proved inconsistent and often difficult to enforce, making the pandemic harder to halt. With the federal government handing off many decisions over reopening, the states have been the primary drivers behind moves with the most impact on the coronavirus’s spread. States, in turn, have often given responsibility for many of those decisions to counties, cities and businesses. The result is a dizzying mix of rules and guidelines that can differ widely from one region to the next. It is a reflection of the American system of governance that limits federal power and distributes power across states and localities, but to health officials it is an ineffective way to manage a pandemic.
Can big countries realistically eliminate COVID-19 without a vaccine? Four experts discuss
The UK should change its COVID-19 strategy to try to eliminate COVID-19 even without a vaccine rather than simply managing the disease, according to Independent SAGE, a group of scientists set up as an alternative to the government’s advisory body. New Zealand has effectively managed to eliminate the virus, but can states with much larger, denser populations that have experienced much bigger outbreaks hope to do the same? Or is it more realistic to accept that the disease is likely to continue to circulate at some level and plan for that? We asked four experts for their views.
Warning of possible virus resurgence, France rules out another 'total lockdown'
The French government on Wednesday warned that a surge in coronavirus cases in coming months remained a distinct possibility, though it ruled out another nationwide lockdown that would further cripple the country's economy. "My aim is to prepare France for a possible second wave while preserving our daily life, our economic and social life," Jean Castex, the newly appointed prime minister, said in an interview on RTL television. "But we're not going to impose a lockdown like the one we did last March, because we've learned... that the economic and human consequences from a total lockdown are disastrous," he said. Instead business closures or stay-at-home orders would be "targeted" to specific areas, Castex added.
Sweden's coronavirus death rate is now falling FASTER than the UK's despite never having a lockdown
Sweden's death rate is falling despite the country avoiding lockdown altogether
On June 9 the country had the highest deaths per million figure in Europe, at 4.11 and since then it has come down to 1.6, a change of 2.51. In the same time the UK's death rate fell by just 1.88, and is now at 1.4 per million. Britain's death rate has largely stalled since lockdown started being lifted.
COVID-19 cases surge higher in Americas and African regions
At a Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) media briefing yesterday, director Carissa Etienne, MBBS, MSc, said cases increased 20% last week compared to the previous week, and about 100,000 cases a day are reported from the region. However, she noted that new patterns are emerging. Two months ago, the United States made up 75% of cases in the region, but this past week it reported under half of the cases, with cases in Latin America and the Caribbean area accounting for about 50% of cases.
Maintaining Services
Morocco to Start Reopening Borders After Strict Lockdown
Morocco will start gradually reopening its air and maritime borders next week after one of the world’s strictest border lockdowns, which trapped tourists inside the country and left thousands of Moroccans stranded abroad and unable to come home. Only Moroccan citizens and expatriates living in Morocco will be allowed to travel in the first stage of the reopening starting July 14, according to a government statement Thursday. National airlines will schedule as many flights as necessary to return Moroccans living abroad as well as foreigners living in Morocco. Passengers are required to present both a PCR virus test taken within fewer than 48 hours of the flight, as well as an antibody test, before boarding planes heading for Morocco.
Ferries from the French port Sete and Italian port Genoa will be allowed to resume serving Moroccan ports. All other ports will be excluded from this operation for now.
Coronavirus UK: FCO tells ALL tourists to avoid cruises
Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) urges against travel on cruise ships
Government previously urged over-70s to avoid cruise ships due to coronavirus
The FCO says new position comes following advice from Public Health England
Consumer groups has warned decision will lead companies to cancel sailings
125 new Covid-19 cases in Singapore, including 21 in the community and 1 imported
There are 125 new coronavirus patients confirmed as of Thursday noon (July 9), taking Singapore's total to 45,422. They include 21 community cases, comprising four Singaporeans or permanent residents and 17 work pass holders, said the Ministry of Health (MOH). Of these 21 cases, five were close contacts of earlier cases and had already been placed on quarantine, MOH said. Epidemiological investigations are being done for the other cases.
Scotland is entering phase 3 in the route map out of lockdown, but when will hairdressers reopen again?
Hairdressers are now allowing customers to book appointments, but there may be a waiting list and not all salons will be reopening on the same date, so its worth getting in touch with your hairdresser to make an appointment in advance.
Coronavirus: Pools, gyms, team sport and outdoor gigs to return
Dowden said normal life was "slowly returning" and that this was an important milestone for the country's performers and artists, who had been "waiting in the wings since March". "I'm really urging people to get out there and to play their part," he said. "Buy the tickets for outdoor plays and musical recitals, get to your local gallery and support your local businesses." But the culture secretary warned the measures were conditional and reversible, adding that the government would impose local lockdowns if cases started to spike.
UK universities receive record number of applications in lockdown
A record 40.5% of all 18-year-olds in the UK have applied to go to university, with numbers rising significantly during lockdown, according to the university admissions service Ucas. It is the first time that more than four out of 10 students (40.5%) had applied by 30 June to go to university and the figures will offer some comfort to universities bracing themselves for the Covid-19 aftershock. At the same point in the admissions cycle last year, the figure was 38.9%, and Ucas points out that between mid-March and the end of June, when the pandemic was at its height in the UK, applications rose by 17%.
Traffic fell more in Britain than in any other European country during lockdown
They compared traffic data for February with records for March to June. UK came out bottom for post pandemic recovery out of 19 European countries. Recovery in major cities London, Belfast and Manchester also proved anaemic
Coronavirus Cases Show No Sign of Slowing in Worst-Hit U.S., Brazil and India
India on Thursday reported nearly 25,000 new coronavirus infections, as the disease continued its ominous spread through the nation of nearly 1.4 billion people. The virus is showing no signs of slowing in the worst-affected countries: the United States, Brazil and India. The three nations are accounting for more than 60% of new cases, according to recent tallies from Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. reported nearly 59,000 new daily cases, just short of the record 60,000 cases set a day earlier, as President Donald Trump insisted that schools reopen in the fall. Brazil reported nearly 45,000 new cases. The virus has also been spreading rapidly in South Africa, which reported nearly 9,000 new cases in its latest daily update. A provincial health official said 1.5 million grave sites are being prepared and it’s the public’s responsibility “to make sure that we don’t get there.”
Asia Today: India’s cases jump, transmission rate increases
India reported nearly 25,000 new coronavirus infections Thursday and its transmission rate is increasing for the first time since March. The new cases bring the total in the world’s third worst-affected country to 767,296. India’s health ministry said the COVID-19 death toll had risen to 21,129. Research by the Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Chennai shows that India’s virus reproduction rate ticked up in the first week of July to 1.19 after steadily falling from peak transmission of 1.83 in March. The rate needs to be below one for new cases to start falling.
Melbourne shop owners fear the worst as second lockdown begins
Locals accept the decision to reimpose Covid-19 restrictions but say they need help to get through it
Healthcare Innovations
Coronavirus is revolutionizing scientific practices and communication. Here's how
Just as everyday life has been affected by COVID-19, science itself has changed. Scientists have had to learn how to produce meaningful information for a world clamoring for speedy results. This speed and openness is not typical of scientific research and required fundamental changes in the work scientists do. "Science immediately reorganized itself in a purposeful way to address a global threat," James Bradner, president of the Institutes for BioMedical Research at Novartis, said in a webinar hosted by Chemical & Engineering News. In most cases, scientists welcome the changes and are proud of what has been accomplished in such a short time.
Scots wanted for coronavirus vaccine trial as more than 10,000 volunteers needed
Scots are being urged to volunteer for vaccine tests as health officials continue in their quest to find a cure for coronavirus. The study, which is run by the University of Oxford, is looking to recruit more than 10,000 volunteers to take part in the 12-month long trial.
Osivax receives funding for universal flu vaccine
Osivax receives public funding to apply its vaccine technology to protect against COVID-19 and future coronavirus strains.
'It's going to happen again,' says former New Zealand PM Clark tasked with WHO COVID-19 review
New Zealand’s former prime minister Helen Clark warned if the world remained “flat-footed” in its response to pandemics it faces future economic, social and political crisis, after she was appointed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to lead a review of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic. WHO announced late on Thursday that Clark and Liberia’s former president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf will lead a panel scrutinising the global response. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called both women “strong-minded, independent leaders”, aiming to underscore their freedom in assessing his agency’s and governments’ COVID-19 responses.
Scientists hail 'stunning' results that show areas of New York may have reached 68 percent immunity
Areas of New York have recorded a nearly 70 per cent rate of immunity to Covid-19, in what scientists have described as “stunning” findings that suggest they could be protected from any second wave. Some 68 per cent of people who took antibody tests at a clinic in the Corona neighbourhood of Queens received positive results, while at another clinic in Jackson Heights, 56 per cent tested positive. The results, shared by healthcare company CityMD with the New York Times, appear to show a higher antibody rate than anywhere in the world, based on publicly released data. The next closest is the Italian province of Bergamo, which recorded 57 per cent, followed by Alpine ski resort Ischgl, the site of Austria's biggest coronavirus outbreak, which reported 47 per cent....
In race to bring vaccine to market, big pharma struggles to protect its intellectual property rights
The pharmaceutical industry is being careful to not set any dangerous precedent that may weaken their future intellectual property rights, Milena Izmirlieva from IHS Markit said. The World Health Organization said 21 candidate vaccines are in clinical trials at the moment, meaning they are being tested on human volunteers. Three of them are said to be in the third phase of those trials, according to the WHO.
COVID-19 trial progresses, as 'cautious optimism' grows for RNA vaccine | Imperial News
More than 300 participants have been screened for Imperial's COVID-19 vaccine trial as its lead speaks of "cautious optimism". Professor Robin Shattock and his team, including chief investigator Dr Katrina Pollock and senior clinician Dr David Owen, have successfully administered first doses to 15 trial volunteers. The group's self-amplifying RNA vaccine technology is cheap, highly scalable and has the potential to deliver many effective doses next year, should the trials succeed.
Imperial is continuing to recruit participants for the trial, which will deliver two doses to 300 people in the current phase, with plans for a further efficacy trial involving 6,000 people to start in October. Imperial and Professor Robin Shattock have partnered with Morningside Ventures to launch a social enterprise, VacEquity Global Health, to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine as cheaply and as widely as possible.
Coronavirus Vaccine Race: Moderna or Vaxart?
Let's talk about two companies developing COVID-19 vaccines that are much different from the ones we're generally used to. These two aren't going the traditional route of injecting a weakened version of the pathogen into the body. They have new ways of addressing the problem. You've probably heard of Moderna by now. Moderna has taken center stage over the past few months as it became the first company to bring a COVID-19 vaccine into human trials. The biotech company is developing a vaccine that harnesses the power of messenger RNA to instruct the body to make proteins to defend itself.
