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More than 231 million people have tested positive for the virus worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University. More than 4.7 million infected people have died. More than 6 billion vaccine doses have been administered worldwide.
The launch of the Corona Passport in the Netherlands to prove vaccination, recovery or a negative test has been hampered by hacker attacks. This made it difficult or delayed at times to download the required QR code on Saturday evening. This was announced by the Ministry of Health in The Hague on Sunday (Sept. 26). However, the attacks blocking server capacity had been repelled, it said. The Corona Pass has had to be shown in the Netherlands since Saturday by people aged 13 and older before visiting restaurants, culture or sports. In return, the safety distance of 1.5 meters was abolished. It is controversial; on Saturday there were several demonstrations against the introduction of the pass.
The end of the Corona rules leads to parties and violations of the law in Norway. People in Norway have celebrated the end of the Corona rules with numerous festivities. Nightclubs and pubs were full, in many places there was an exuberant mood. In the city of Trondheim, several people had to be treated after fainting in the long queues. However, brawls, injuries and arrests were also reported from several cities, as the public broadcaster NRK reported on Sunday (Sept. 26). There were numerous disorderly conduct incidents, outbreaks of violence and fights with several people seriously injured, a police spokesman in Oslo said. A mass brawl broke out in the town of Tønsberg south of the capital, and a total of 12 people were arrested for rioting in the southwestern region of Agder.
Rioting broke out at a demonstration against the Corona measures in Milan on Saturday (Sept. 26). Of the several thousand protesters who took to the streets against vaccinations and against the extensively prescribed “green passport”, several clashed with police officers and carabinieri. The forces of order managed – by using batons – to keep the participants of the unofficially registered demonstration away from Piazza Duomo, until an election rally of the Fratelli d’Italia party, with top candidate Giorgia Meloni, broke up there. According to media reports, some demonstrators were slightly injured.
A British health expert believes that most children will contract the virus during the winter or have already been infected. Since the end of the school vacations, the number of cases among 5- to 14-year-olds has risen enormously. The incidence is more than twice as high as in other age groups. The U.K. only recently started vaccinating 12- to 15-year-olds. “It would have been better to start earlier,” public health expert Azeem Majeed of Imperial College London told DPA on Saturday (Sept. 25). There are no approved Corona vaccines yet for children under 12, though they are also less likely to contract the disease severely. The risk is rather that children pass the virus on to adults who are not protected or less effectively protected by vaccines, the physician said.
Booster Vaccinations in the USA – Following the approval of Corona booster vaccinations for certain populations in the U.S., President Joe Biden has urged people to take advantage of the offer. Speaking at the White House on Friday (Sept. 24), Biden appealed to eligible people to get a third vaccination when it was their turn. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration had approved Corona booster vaccinations with Biontech/Pfizer’s drug for the elderly and at-risk groups a few days earlier.
In Norway, restrictions to combat the pandemic end Saturday. It is time to return to normal everyday life, Prime Minister Erna Solberg said at a media conference Friday (Sept. 24), according to Reuters news agency. Attendance at cultural and sporting events should no longer be limited, and restaurants should also be allowed to operate at full capacity. Nightclubs will be allowed to reopen. 67 percent of Norwegians are fully vaccinated.
For the first time, the WHO recommends a drug as a preventive measure against severe covid-19 disease in infected high-risk patients. It points to studies showing that the antibody combination of casirivimab and imdevimab from U.S. company Regeneron and Swiss company Roche can improve survival. The WHO published its new recommendation Friday (Sept. 23) in the British Medical Journal. In Germany, this antibody combination is already used in special cases for corona patients. The challenge is the high cost and scarce production, the WHO said.
Pfizer and Biontech for a third dose of vaccine against the coronavirus – The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is currently reviewing an application from vaccine manufacturers Pfizer and Biontech for a third dose of vaccine against the coronavirus. The agency made the announcement Thursday (Sept. 23). This so-called booster to protect against Corona infection could be injected into fully vaccinated individuals 16 years of age and older and no earlier than six months after the second vaccine dose. After evaluating the data submitted by the manufacturer, the EMA plans to decide on the application in early October. Meanwhile, in the U.S., an advisory panel to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has voted to recommend Biontech/Pfizer booster vaccinations starting at age 65. It also recommends booster shots at least six months after the first two vaccinations for people between the ages of 50 and 64 who belong to high-risk groups. The FDA has approved a third Biontech/Pfizer vaccination for all Americans over age 65 and those at special risk over age 18.
- source: nzz.ch/picture:pixabay.com
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