A diversified funding strategy was created to ensure that the ember states of the bloc would receive loans under the package known as the NextGenerationEU …reports Asian Lite News
The European Commission announced that it would borrow 800 billion euros from the capital market in current prices until 2026 to fund the European Union’s (EU) massive plan to bail out its Covid-stricken economy.
A diversified funding strategy was created to ensure that the ember states of the bloc would receive loans under the package known as the NextGenerationEU at an advantageous rate, reports Xinhua news agency.
The EU has set December 2058 as a deadline for itself to fulfil all the repayment, and plans to generate new own resources to strengthen the repayment capability.
Making the announcement at a press conference on Wednesday, European Commissioner for Budget and Administration Johannes Hahn also urged EU member states which have not ratified the Own Resources Decision to do so as soon as possible.
EU’s ‘Green Certificate’ for safe travel
“The message is clear: as soon as the Commission has been legally enabled to borrow, we are ready to get going,” said Hahn.
So far, Germany, Estonia, Poland, Hungary, Austria, Finland, Romania, the Netherlands, Ireland and Lithuania have not ratified the Decision.
All other 17 have ratified it, according to Hahn.
The EU has decided to release a historic stimulus package worth 1.8 trillion euros in 2018 prices, or over two trillion euros in current prices, to help the bloc tackle the economic fallout of the pandemic and achieve a greener and more digital recovery.
Nikai, said that cancelling the games may be an option if coronavirus infections rise…reports Asian Lite News
Secretary-General of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Toshihiro Nikai said Thursday that cancelling this year’s Tokyo Olympics could be an option if the Covid-19 situation continues to worsen.
Nikai, the No. 2 leader of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s ruling party, said in a TV show yet to be aired that cancelling the games may be an option if the spread of coronavirus infections forces organizers to think it would be difficult to hold the event.
His remarks came as the capital on Wednesday began a 100-day countdown until the beginning of the already postponed quadrennial event, with concerns rife that Covid-19 cases in and outside of Tokyo could be set to worsen.
Such is the severity of Japan’s rebounding Covid-19 infections that the head of the government’s Covid panel warned that Japan has entered a “fourth wave” of infections.
Shigeru Omi, an expert in infectious diseases who heads the government’s Covid-19 subcommittee, told a parliamentary session the previous day that the central government should broaden the areas currently subjected to stricter antiviral measures under a revised law.
Omi said the expansion should be undertaken by the government “in an extremely swift and nimble manner.”
On Monday, Tokyo, Kyoto and Okinawa prefectures were added to a list of regions where tougher virus measures have come into effect under a new law that falls short but is on the brink of declaring a state of emergency.
WHO urged populations to continue practicing the infection control measures as vaccines represent just one approach to dealing with Covid-19…reports Asian Lite News
Close to 40 million Covid-19 vaccine doses have already been distributed through the COVAX Facility, half of them in Africa, but vaccine supplies are still stalled due to “tremendous demand” especially in India, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.
COVAX, a WHO-led program to secure equitable access to vaccines for low and middle-income countries, “has, as of today, distributed just over 38.7 million doses and we expect to get past 40 million doses later this week,” Bruce Aylward, the WHO’s senior advisor to the director general on organisational change, said at a press conference on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.
“Over 40 countries on the African continent will have received doses by the end of this week, and they will receive nearly half of the doses from COVAX,” he added.
However, the COVAX Facility has experienced major difficulties in accessing vaccines, especially since the Serum Institute of India, “one of the main producers that supply the COVAX Facility” according to Aylward, cut back on AstraZeneca vaccine deliveries due to the “tremendous demand” created by the “escalating outbreak in India.”
One solution suggested by the WHO to ensure proper immunization is to administer the second AstraZeneca dose after “12 weeks” or even a bit later, Aylward said.
At the same time, the WHO urged populations to continue practicing the infection control measures as vaccines represent just one approach to dealing with Covid-19.
“There was a nine per cent increase in transmissions last week, the seventh consecutive week when we’ve seen an increase in transmission, and a five percent increase in the number of deaths,” said Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s technical lead on Covid-19.
“We are at a critical point of the pandemic right now,” she stressed.
Country records as many as 168,912 fresh cases of infections, making it the second most affected country globally, reports Asian Lite News
Several staff members of the Supreme Court have tested positive for the coronavirus disease. As of Saturday, at least 44 members from judges’ offices and in the court registry are found to be infected with the viral disease.
Following this, sanitisation work is underway at the top court’s premises including courtrooms and the proceedings will begin an hour late than their scheduled time. The Supreme Court has a staff strength of 3,400.
The latest outbreak comes as India is facing a spiralling Covid-19 crisis. On Monday, the country recorded as many as 168,912 fresh cases of infections which pushed the tally to over 13.52 million. Active cases in the country have gone up by 92,922 and the total number currently stands at 1,201,009. The death toll has also increased to 170,179 after 904 fresh fatalities, according to the numbers published on the Union health ministry’s website.
After the latest spike, the country has overtaken Brazil to become the second-most affected country globally by the pandemic. As per John Hopkins tally, Brazil has a caseload of 13.48 million cases. The Unites States is at the top of the list with 31.19 million cases, according to John Hopkins.
Meanwhile, the national capital registered 10,732 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the single-day highest spike since the pandemic broke out early last year, while there were 48 more deaths, as per the Delhi health bulletin.
The previous highest single-day spike, 8,593 cases, was reported on November 11, 2020 during the third wave. Delhi had reported 7,897 new cases on Saturday, and 8,521 on Friday. However, the number of samples tested on Saturday was also less.
As per the bulletin, the daily positivity rate was reported at 9.43 per cent, while the number of recoveries stood at 5,158.
With the new cases, Delhi’s Covid tally reached 7,25,197, including 6,79,573 patients who have recovered so far, while the cumulative positivity rate was reported at 4.66 per cent.
The number of active cases stands at 34,341, out of which 17,093 are in home isolation, while the toll has risen to 11,283.
In the last 24 hours, 1,14,288 samples were tested — 76,954 by RT-PCR and 37,334 by Rapid Antigen Tests.
Addressing a press conference on Sunday, Chief Minister Arvid Kejriwal said that the fourth wave “is more critical” and appealed to the people to stay at home as much as possible.
The government is taking all possible steps to break the chain of coronavirus, but it cannot do this alone, he added.
“People of Delhi have fought against three waves of Covid-19 in the last one year, but this fourth one is more critical. I would request people to come out from their homes only if there is urgency, otherwise stay at home for a few days. It will help us to break its chain,” he said.
Gujarat heading towards health emergency, warns HC
Taking a serious note of the worsening coronavirus situation, especially on the healthcare system and infrastructure, the Gujarat High Court on Sunday observed that the state was heading towards a health emergency.
Taking suo moto cognizance, it filed a fresh PIL regarding the situation, with the state and Central governments made respondents, and will hold a hearing on Monday.
The high court had recently advised the Gujarat government to impose a three-four day lockdown, and take appropriate measures to check Covid-19 cases.
“But it has been five days since. Newspapers and channels are flooded with harrowing tales, unfortunate and unimaginable difficulties, unmanageable conditions of infrastructure, the shortfall and deficit of not only testing facilities, but availability of beds, ICUs, supply of oxygen and basic medicines like remdesivir,” Chief Justice Vikram Nath said in his order on Sunday.
“A perusal of some news would indicate that the state is heading towards a health emergency of sorts. Accordingly, I direct the HC registry to register this as a suo moto fresh PIL titled ‘Uncontrolled upsurge and serious management issues in Covid control’ by impleading the Gujarat government through the Chief Secretary, the Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Department, and the Central Government through the Department of Home and the Health Ministry,” he ordered.
The Chief Justice said a bench comprising of him and Justice Bhargav D. Karia should be constituted to hear this PIL at 11 a.m. on Monday.
The scientists made their remarks as Britain is poised to partly ease the current lockdown restrictions, the third of its kind since the start of the pandemic in the country…reports Asian Lite News
British scientists have warned that the British government is risking a third wave of Covid-19 by easing the lockdown too soon, local media reported.
“There are areas in West Yorkshire, the Black Country and other regions that still have high infection rates. However, many people there cannot afford to self-isolate. We need to tackle that issue urgently or the virus will come back again,” Leeds University medical school Associate Professor Stephen Griffin told the Observer on Sunday.
“It’s worrying. There are far too many virus hotspots and not enough attention being paid to controlling infections that might spread from them,” said Griffin, Xinhua news agency reported.
Professor Lawrence Young of Warwick medical school said: “The test, trace and isolate system that is supposed to contain outbreaks has not worked well, and even when people test positive, they are not isolating. We need a properly funded system for quarantining infected people. We don’t have that and that raises the risk we could head back into trouble again quite quickly.”
The scientists made their remarks as Britain is poised to partly ease the current lockdown restrictions, the third of its kind since the start of the pandemic in the country, on Monday.
From Monday, non-essential shops will reopen and pubs and restaurants will reopen outdoors at a time when Britain moves to step two of the roadmap out of the Covid-19 lockdown.
Meanwhile, hairdressers and barbers as well as gyms can reopen, along with zoos, theme parks, libraries and community centres.
Experts have warned that despite progress in vaccine rollout, Britain is “still not out of the woods” amid concerns over new variants and the third wave of pandemic on the European continent.
More than 32 million people have been given the first coronavirus vaccine jab, according to the official figures.
UK
The estimated coronavirus reproduction number, also known as the R number, in England is unchanged at between 0.8 and one, according to the latest official data.
It means that, on average, every 10 people who have coronavirus will infect between eight and 10 others.
Government advisory scientists said the situation is too variable in some regions to produce a Britain-wide R rate, but the number is believed to be above one in some parts of the country, which means the outbreak could grow exponentially.
To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Russia, the United States as well as the European Union have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.
The information came when daily deaths continue to show an upward trend with 794 fatalities due to the viral disease in the last 24 hours across the country…reports Asian Lite News
Amid a resurgence of the Covid-19 pandemic, ten states in the country account for 86.78 per cent of the new deaths with Maharashtra recording maximum 301 casualties followed by 91 daily deaths in Chhattisgarh.
The information came when daily deaths continue to show an upward trend with 794 fatalities due to the viral disease in the last 24 hours across the country. A total of 1,68,436 people have so far died due to the pandemic.
Data for the last 24 hours shared by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHF) shows Punjab at the third rank with 56 deaths followed by Karnataka (46), Gujarat (42), Delhi (39), Uttar Pradesh (36), Rajasthan (32) and both Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh reported 23 each.
Health worker collect swab sample testing for Covid-19 at CP in new Delhi on Monday March 22, 2021.(Photo:Wasim Sarvar/IANS)
However, 12 states and Union Territories (UTs) have not reported any Covid-19 deaths in the last 24 hours. These are Puducherry, Ladakh, D&D & D&N, Nagaland, Tripura, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Mizoram, Manipur, Lakshadweep, Andoman and Nicobar Islands and Arunachal Pradesh.
Ten states including Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan have shown a rise in the Covid daily new cases and account for 82.82 per cent of to the total new cases reported in the country.
With a record 1,45,384 fresh cases, India’s Covid-19 tally has climbed to 1,32,05,926,
Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 58,993. It is followed by Chhattisgarh with 11,447 while Uttar Pradesh reported 9,587 new cases, Karnataka (7,955), Tamil Nadu (5,441), Kerala (5,063), Madhya Pradeesh (4,882), Gujarat (4,541) and Rajasthan (3,970).
With an alarming rise in cases, India’s total active caseload has reached 10,46,631 that comprises 7.93 per cent of the country’s total positive cases — noted after around six-and-a-half months. A net incline of 67,023 cases recorded from the total active caseload in the last 24 hours.
Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Kerala cumulatively account for 72.23 per cent of India’s total active cases. Maharashtra alone accounts for 51.23 per cent of the total active caseload of the country.
Ten districts account for 45.65 per cent of the total active cases in the country with Pune reporting 9.56 per cent, Mumbai (8.41 per cent), Thane (6.45 per cent), Nagpur (6.02 per cent), Bengaluru Urban (4.06 per cent), Nasik (3.44 per cent), Delhi (2.54 per cent), Raipur (1.78 per cent), Durg (1.76 per cent) and Aurangabad (1.62 per cent).
Meanwhile, India’s cumulative recoveries stand at 1,19,90,859 on Saturday. The national recovery rate is 90.80 per cent. A total of 77,567 recoveries were registered in the last 24 hours.
As of Saturday afternoon, Canada reported 5,986 new cases of Covid-19, bringing the cumulative total to 1,051,246, including 23,282 deaths…reports Asian Lite News
The rapid spread of more contagious Covid-19 variants is believed to have driven a devastating third wave in Canada.
As of Saturday afternoon, a total of 30,108 variant of concern cases have been reported across Canada, including 28,624 B.1.1.7 variants, 1,133 P.1 variants and 351 B.1.351 variants, according to CTV.
As of Saturday afternoon, Canada reported 5,986 new cases of Covid-19, bringing the cumulative total to 1,051,246, including 23,282 deaths, according to CTV.
“Although B.1.1.7, which is now confirmed in all provinces and two territories, continues to account for the majority of variants of concern in Canada and has likely replaced the original virus in some areas, there has been a concerning rise in P.1 cases in recent weeks,” Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, said in a statement on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.
“Early evidence suggests that the P.1 variant may reduce the effectiveness of vaccines, making it even more important to control its spread,” Tam added in the statement.
The number of confirmed variant cases in Canada has skyrocketed in recent weeks, rising from about 2,000 a month ago to over 30,000 as of Saturday afternoon and counting, with more than 90 per cent of those being the B.1.1.7 variant first identified in Britain.
The P1 variant first discovered in Brazil is also on the rise in Canada, with cases increasing to more than 1,100 as of Saturday afternoon, mostly in the populous provinces of British Columbia, Ontario and Alberta.
Meanwhile, the B.1.351 variant first found in South Africa is also picking up steam, with more than 350 cases identified in the country.
“The race between the vaccine and the variants is at a critical point,” Tam said. “It is clear that we need stronger control to combat variants of concern that are driving rapid epidemic growth in many areas of the country.”
Younger Canadians are being impacted harder in the third wave, Tam said, with infection rates highest among those aged 20 to 39 and a rise in the number of hospitalizations and ICU admissions in those under 60.
The fact is Canada’s third wave of Covid-19 is showing no signs of slowing down as the vaccine rollout gradually ramps up, meaning Canadians need to buckle down until more of us get a shot, Canadian experts said.
They added that Canada’s slower vaccine rollout means our third wave could last into June.
Altogether, 7,569,321 vaccine doses have been administered as of Friday, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada.
A pedestrian walks by a pub, The Hope, shuttered in London due to coronavirus regulations. Thousands of British pubs have not survived the pandemic, according to an industry association, and the ones that have will need financial support "for years if they are to recover." Photo: Yui Mok/PA
Copenhagen-based World Health Organisation (WHO) Europe Office announced that the European region has recorded more than 1 million Covid-19-related deaths, reports Asian Lite News
For Danica Angela Marcos, the weirdest yet saddest scenario was to watch her grandfather’s funeral live on Zoom, seeing her cousins crying on the screen but not able to give them a hug because of the lockdown.
“It’s not like we can do (it) all over again when the pandemic is over … I cannot re-attend my grandpa’s funeral,” mumbled the black-hair Londoner in her 20s, rolling eyes to hold back tears, whose grandfather passed away in California, the United States, towards the end of last year.
Many Europeans, like Marcos, have undergone similar human sorrows and pains, as the nightmare of Covid-19, which has shrouded the continent since more than one year ago, is still hovering around, Xinhua news agecy reported on Friday.
On Friday, the Copenhagen-based World Health Organisation (WHO) Europe Office announced that the European region has recorded more than 1 million Covid-19-related deaths.
Since breaking out in late 2019, Covid-19 has been causing infections and deaths at an accelerated pace across Europe. One after another, governments of different countries were woken up to the danger, announcing partial or full lockdowns, and even night curfews, moves rarely seen since the end of World War II.
Schools closed, flights grounded, hairdressers and restaurants shutdown, only grocery and shops selling essential goods, in most countries, were among the few that were allowed to open, while the customers were required to wear masks and keep social distance of more than one meter.
Before the reopening of schools, online courses were offered to students who were forced to stay home during the pandemic in many European countries. Many schools sent assignments to parents via e-mail or other digital tools, or shared free online resources.
However, not all students are self-disciplined. In France, about 5 to 8 per cent of students were “lost,” or unreachable by their teachers, estimated the French Ministry of Education in April 2020.
“This virus has imposed limitations on all of us. I have practically no social life and can’t hug the people I love. My personal life has turned completely around. Few things remain from my previous life. And as a person, I feel exhausted, restless, and uncertain,” Abigail Mora Sanz, a psychotherapist in Spain, told Xinhua.
Besides the continent’s aging population and the overwhelmed healthcare systems, some experts attributed the bleakness in Europe to frequent policy changes, which have swung between lockdowns and relaxations for several rounds.
One of the major challenges for European countries is “the temptation of too fast reopening, which is politically popular but can cause another wave of epidemics before proper vaccination,” said Miklos Hargitai, an editorialist of Hungary’s daily Nepszava.
“In addition, Europe has not adopted the practice of the most successful countries in curbing the virus,” Hargitai told Xinhua.
A woman wearing a face mask walks at Covent Garden in London, Britain. (Xinhua/Han Yan/IANS)
Another factor behind Europe’s current COVID-19 resurgence is the alarming and explosive spread of the highly contagious virus variants, which increases the risk of hospitalization.
The slow rollout of vaccination may also prolong the pandemic. According to WHO Europe Office, only 10 percent of the region’s total population has received at least one vaccine dose and 4 percent has received both, as of April 1.
“Vaccines present our best way out of this pandemic… However, the rollout of these vaccines is unacceptably slow,” said Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, the WHO’s regional director for Europe.
On April 1, Kluge called upon governments in the region to “scale up both vaccine production and vaccination.”
German photographer Ulrich Hufnagel was diagnosed with COVID-19 last September, with so-called mild case symptoms and was quarantined for more than 20 days.
People wearing face masks walk past sale advertisement on Oxford Street in London, Britain
“It is very annoying that some people in Germany and Europe do not take the virus seriously. My hope now rests on quick vaccination. I think this is the only possibility to get our normal life back,” Hufnagel said.
Due to what appears to be an acute shortage of vaccine doses earlier this year, tensions once remained high between the European Union, Britain, and some central-eastern European countries like the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Austria.
The connection between blood clots and the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, which has been purchased and administrated in large amounts by many European countries, also raised concern among people.
The European Medicines Agency confirmed on Wednesday that the occurrence of blood clots with low blood platelets are strongly associated with the AstraZeneca vaccine.
A woman receives a COVID-19 vaccine during a vaccination campaign for healthcare professionals in Nice
Faced with such dire challenges, some governments in the region have started to look for the alternatives. Serbia and Hungary have granted permission for the use of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by China. Some other countries, like Poland and the Czech Republic, also voiced interest in Chinese-made vaccines.
“We fully support the Chinese idea of establishing a global anti-pandemic community of cooperation and help,” said Sylwester Szafarz, former consul general of Poland in the Chinese city of Shanghai.
However, vaccines themselves are not a panacea for the pandemic, until people are inoculated in huge numbers, WHO Europe Office warned, noting that it can give a false sense of security, inducing the public to stop wearing masks and taking other precautions.
Besides measures to accelerate the vaccination, several governments and health care experts deem social restrictions a key tool for containing the disease and reducing deaths.
“Now is not the time to relax measures. We can’t afford not to heed the danger. We have all made sacrifices, but we cannot let exhaustion win. We must keep reining in the virus,” Kluge said.
With their life being changed amid the pandemic, many people in Europe have been eventually getting used to wearing face masks outside, working and studying from home.
To some people, the future seems less gloomy and confidence is growing.
Once worried that the lockdowns could totally ruin his business, Remi Boute, director of a bookstore in southeast France’s Saint-Etienne, feels relieved as his shop reopens.
“When the stores reopened, we had the satisfaction of seeing people tell us they were happy to see our stores open. They returned in large numbers,” he said.
“We faced something that we’d never seen and so what we tried to do was to understand it, to better treat our patients and save or try to solve the problem in the most cases we could,” said Pere Domingo, senior infectious disease consultant and coordinator of COVID-19 at Barcelona’s Sant Pau Hospital.
“This intellectual component … has been something that has stimulated us, and helped us overcome all these negative feelings that at one time or another we have all had,” said the Spanish professor, who has been devoted to the research of infectious diseases since 1989.
India has reported 1,45,384 new Covid-19 cases and 794 deaths in the last 24 hours, the Health Ministry said on Saturday.
India is now the fourth-worst Covid-hit country worldwide after the number of active cases rose to 10,46,631. The death toll stood at 1,68,436 the Health Ministry said.
A total of 77,567 patients recovered in the last 24 hours, taking the number of recoveries to 1,19,90,859 with a recovery rate of 90.80 per cent.
Health worker collect swab sample testing for Covid-19 at CP in New Delhi. (Photo:Wasim Sarvar/IANS)
The Health Ministry said that a total of 11,73,219 samples were tested in the last 24 hours. So far, 25,52,14,803 samples have been tested.
A total of 34,15,055 people were vaccinated in the last 24 hours taking the total vaccination count to 9,80,75,160.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat has tested Covid-19 positive and is undergoing treatment in a private hospital here.
According to an RSS functionary, he was suffering from some minor cough and cold issues and underwent an RT-PCR test.
RSS Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat
After the report came Covid-19 positive, he was admitted to the Kingsway Hospital on Friday.
Incidentally, the 70-year-old Bhagwat – who had taken his first dose of Covid-19 vaccine on March 7 – is responding well to the treatment and his condition is described as stable.
Currently, Nagpur – the state’s second capital is amongst the worst-hit Corona hotspots in the state besides Mumbai and Pune in the ongoing ferocious second wave of the pandemic.
Amid the spike in the number of Covid-19 cases across the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emphasised on the ‘test track & treat’ mantra, besides stressing on following Covid appropriate behaviour and effective Covid management measures to check the spread of the virus.
The Prime Minister held a virtual meeting with all the Chief Ministers to review the Covid situation in the country on Thursday, his second interaction with the CMs within a month.
The Prime Minister pointed out that to contain the spread of the virus, testing and tracking play an effective role.
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi interacting with the Chief Ministers on COVID-19 and vaccination programme through video conferencing, in New Delhi on April 08, 2021.
Observing that every single positive case has the potential to spread the virus to others in the absence of adequate preventive measures, the Prime Minister said that at least 30 contacts of a positive case must be traced, tested and quarantined, preferably within the first 72 hours.
“There should not be any relaxation in our efforts due to Covid fatigue,” Modi said.
He also asked for adherence to the SoPs issued by the Health Ministry, especially in the containment zones.
The Prime Minister emphasised on the need to have comprehensive data on Covid deaths with detailed analysis.
He also asked the states to join the webinars on Covid-19 organised by AIIMs every Tuesday and Friday, besides appealing to the states to ensure 100 per cent vaccination of 45-plus population in the high focus districts.
The Prime Minister called for a ‘Teeka Utsav’ (vaccination festival) between April 11, the birth anniversary of Jyotirao Govindrao Phule, and April 14, the birth anniversary of B.R. Ambedkar.
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi interacting with the Chief Ministers on COVID-19 and vaccination programme through video conferencing, in New Delhi on April 08, 2021.
“Effort should be made to vaccinate the maximum number of people during the vaccination festival,” he said.
Modi also called upon the youth to help in getting everyone above 45 years of age vaccinated.
Cautioning against carelessness, Modi said, “We have to keep in mind that despite vaccination, there should not be lowering of guard and proper precautions should be continued to be taken.”
During the meeting, Union Home Minister Amit Shah outlined the efforts undertaken by the government in the battle against Covid-19.
The study, published in the journal JAMA, analysed reports collected via a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) programme called v-safe that tracks side effects in vaccine recipients….reports Asian Lite News
In a first, a new study has pointed out that those taking the Moderna vaccine have reported more side effects than people who get the Pfizer/BioNTech jabs.
The study, published in the journal JAMA, analysed reports collected via a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) programme called v-safe that tracks side effects in vaccine recipients.
A total of 3,643,918 people were enrolled in v-safe and completed at least one health survey within seven days following their first vaccine dose before February 21, and 1,920,872 v-safe participants reported receiving a second vaccine dose and completed at least one daily health survey within seven days following the second dose.
Nearly 70 per cent of those said they had some kind of injection site reaction, like pain or swelling, and half had generalised reaction like fatigue or chills.
“A greater percentage of participants who received the Moderna vaccine, compared with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, reported reactogenicity; this pattern was more pronounced after the second dose,” the researchers noted.
Reactogenicity refers to a subset of reactions that occur soon after vaccination.
People who got a Moderna shot were more likely to have a side effect — 73 per cent had an injection site reaction, compared with 65 per cent of people who had a Pfizer/BioNTech dose.
Nearly 51 per cent of Moderna recipients had full-body symptoms, compared with 48 per cent of people who got the Pfizer/BioNTech shot.
The gap widened after the second dose.
Almost 82 per cent of people getting their second Moderna shot had injection site pain versus just under 69 per cent of people with Pfizer/BioNTech, reports The Verge.
“Overall, 74 per cent of people said they had general reactions after their Moderna shot, compared with 64 per cent of people getting Pfizer/BioNTech,” the report said on Tuesday.
Zulema Riquelme, a 46-year-old nursing technician, receives a shot of the COVID-19 vaccine at the Metropolitan Hospital in Santiago, Chile
People over 65 were also less likely to have side effects than people under 65, regardless of which vaccine they received.
“Data from millions of v-safe participants indicate that injection site pain is common after both the first and second doses of either mRNA-based vaccine,” the study noted.
Systemic reactions, including fatigue, headache, myalgia, chills, fever, and joint pain, occurred in participants after the first dose, although they were more frequently reported after the second dose among both Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccine recipients.
