Unprecedented efforts to accelerate vaccine development have resulted in the emergency or expedited approval of several COVID19 vaccines [1]. The Australian Government has secured access to both the Pfizer and the University of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines and plans to commence a national COVID-19 ...
COVID-19 vaccination development and delivery has been "quite extraordinary," says the World Health Organization's public health physician Margaret Harris, who pointed to the big strides made in understanding the virus in such a short amount of time. The numbers are gr...
Dr. Hans Kluge said at a media briefing that there is a “singular opportunity” for countries across Europe to take control of COVID-19 transmission due to three factors: high levels of immunization due to vaccination and natural infection, the virus’ tendency to spread less in warmer...
"Export bans and vaccine hoarding have a chokehold on vaccine supplies to Africa. As long as rich countries lock COVAX out of the market, Africa will miss its vaccination goals," said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa. The num...
"It's too soon to know whether these new sub-variants can cause more severe disease than other Omicron sub-variants, but early data suggests vaccination remains protective against severe disease and death," he added. According to Maria van Kerkhove from the WHO's Health Emergencies Program, BA...
John was a staunch supporter of vaccination, eager to get his COVID jab to protect elderly relatives and help end the pandemic. But two weeks later, he suffered rapidly progressive paralysis that swept up his body. He was admitted to intensive care where he was given a tracheostomy, ...
“These vaccines have been found to be safe and highly effective in reducing severe COVID-19, hospitalizations and mortality; however, despite available evidence on effectiveness reported COVID-19 vaccination coverage among older adults has not yet come close to the...
Meanwhile, the WHO Emergency Committee also recommended that proof of vaccination not be required as a condition of international travel, maintaining its stance on the issue under growing debate. The independent experts cited limited evidence on whether vaccination against COVID-19 redu...
People line up to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination site in Kigali, Rwanda, on Aug. 23, 2021. (Xinhua/Cyril Ndegeya) Last week, the government of Rwanda imposed restrictions for unvaccinated people in the country, excluding them from indoor restaurants, worship places, public tra...
It also more easily infects those who have been vaccinated or had previously been infected by prior versions of the virus. However, early studies show omicron is less likely to cause severe illness than the previous delta variant, and vaccination and a booster still offer strong protection ...