The latest developments
Full vaccination with two doses of the Biontech/Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccine prevents hospitalization to a high degree of infection with the delta variant, which first appeared in India. According to an analysis by Public Health England on Monday (6/14), efficacy is 96 percent for the Biontech/Pfizer vaccine and 92 percent for the AstraZeneca and Oxford University vaccine. The results are comparable to the protective efficacy regarding the alpha variant, which first circulated in the United Kingdom.
Because of the rapid spread of the delta variant, people in the U.K. will have to wait longer for more Corona lozenges. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday (June 14) extended the Corona measures still in place until July 19, he told a news conference in London. The vaccination program is now to be accelerated once again.
Global weekly covid case count has fallen
The global weekly covid case count has fallen for seven weeks in a row – the longest decline since the pandemic began. However, that trend masks a worrying increase in cases of the disease and deaths in many individual countries, World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned Monday (6/14) in Geneva. The increase in Africa is particularly alarming because that region has the fewest vaccine doses, tests and oxygen available to patients worldwide, Tedros said.
Travel restrictions
EU countries have agreed to ease travel restrictions in a coordinated and gradual manner. “With the start of summer, travel will be made easier for citizens – with only limited and proportionate travel restrictions, if any,” EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders announced Monday (6/14). For example, he said, it is foreseen that fully vaccinated and recovered people will not be subject to travel restrictions. In addition, it is planned that people from regions with few infections can also travel without restrictions.
According to initial studies, the vaccine from U.S. manufacturer Novavax, which has not yet been approved, offers a high level of protection against Covid-19, with an efficacy of 90.4 percent, the company announced Monday (June 14). Unlike previously approved vaccines, it is neither an mRNA nor a vector vaccine: the vaccine contains particles consisting of a laboratory-produced version of the virus’ spike protein.
Denmark – no more mask obligation from 1 September 2021
Danes have hardly had to wear mouth-nose protection since Monday. The requirement to wear a mask or visor, which has been in place for months in the fight against the corona virus, has been lifted as of Monday (6/14) for almost all areas of public life. Such Corona protection must now be worn in Denmark only in public transport, if you are not sitting there. The mask is then to disappear completely by September 1. In the latest comparative figures from the EU health authority ECDC, Denmark had a 14-day incidence of around 215, the highest in the European Economic Area.
Patent protection for vaccines
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has reiterated that he opposes the lifting of patents for the production of Corona vaccines. Central to this is building production facilities around the world, especially in Africa, Johnson said at the conclusion of the G-7 summit in Cornwall, southwest England, on Sunday (June 13). Know-how also needs to be shared, he said. But at the same time, incentives for innovation must be protected, Johnson cautioned. The right way, he said, is to distribute vaccines at cost, as the British-Swedish company AstraZeneca does. The head of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, had urged participants at the G-7 summit the previous day at a virtual press conference to temporarily lift patent protection for vaccines. This is essential to protect large parts of the world’s population from the coronavirus by next year, the WHO Director-General said.
- source: nzz.ch/picture: pixabay.com
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