WHO granted emergency approval for AstraZeneca

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Following Biontech/Pfizer’s vaccine, the World Health Organization (WHO) is now recommending AstraZeneca’s vaccine for use. The WHO granted emergency approval today, as reported in Geneva. It did so following the recommendation of its Independent Vaccination Council (SAGE). In addition to efficacy and safety, WHO also reviews the quality of the factories where the serum is manufactured for such approval. The WHO Emergency Use Listing (EUL) is a prerequisite for UN agencies to purchase and distribute the vaccine. Similarly, countries that do not have their own capacity for scientific testing can…

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Corona study: high infection risk can be in offices, supermarkets, fitness centers, etc.

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Researchers at the Technical University of Berlin have published calculations of the risk of infection for various indoor scenarios: from hairdressers and supermarkets to movie theaters and gyms. “The point is that we are now entering the loosening phases,” said study leader Martin Kriegel. Multiple influencing factors taken into accountIn the calculations, which were not peer-reviewed by independent experts and have not been published in a journal, Kriegel and his TU colleague Anne Hartmann focus on common places such as theaters, restaurants and schools. Influencing factors taken into account are…

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Federal government: further openings not before Easter

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After a meeting with Corona experts (including virologists Elisabeth Puchhammer-Stöckl and Monika Redlberger-Fritz, mutation expert Andreas Bergthaler, the chairwoman of the National Vaccination Panel, Ursula Wiedermann-Schmidt, and Federal Rescue Commander Gerry Foitik) took place at the Federal Chancellery from 10:30 a.m. on Monday, representatives of the parliamentary parties joined the government and experts at noon, and from 1 p.m. the heads of the provinces also joined them. The federal government informed about the outcome of the talks on Monday afternoon. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) spoke of a currently “stable infection…

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1,225 new corona infections in Austria

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From Sunday to Monday, there are 1,225 new Corona infections in Austria. This is an increase of 168 cases compared to Monday of the previous week. Thus, the 7-day average also increases. In addition, it is the highest Monday value since January 11. Monday, in particular, provides a good template for infection activity over the course of the week. The number of recovered cases is 1,258, bringing the number of active cases down slightly to 14,034. There are also 10 new deaths related to Covid 19 infection. There is an…

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UK: “Red list” entrants must go into hotel quarantine

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Anyone entering the UK from 33 countries on a “red list” must immediately be quarantined in a hotel for ten days. The measure is intended to protect the country from the spread of CoV variants and has been in force since today. From Europe, only Portugal is affected, plus all South American countries as well as states in southern Africa and the United Arab Emirates. Test before entry, two tests afterwardsAll other entrants, including those from Austria, must continue to isolate themselves for ten days after arrival. What is new…

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Free self-tests to be distributed in pharmacies starting 1 March 2021

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From March 1, free CoV self-tests for home use – the so-called living room tests – will be available in pharmacies. One week after the lockdown was relaxed, record numbers of testing have been achieved, not least because of the now partly mandatory “entrance tests”: in the past seven days alone, 1,522,739 antigen and PCR tests have been carried out, plus schools, APA reports. Up to five of the “living room tests” will be available per person per month starting in March. However, they will not serve as “entry tests”,…

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Great Britain has vaccinated 15 million people

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The British government has reached its self-imposed goal of vaccinating at least 15 million residents against Corona by mid-February. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday called it a “milestone.” “This country has achieved an extraordinary feat,” the head of government tweeted Sunday. Nadhim Zahawi, the secretary of state in charge, tweeted, “15,000,000! Great team.” Johnson had issued this figure at the beginning of the year as a stage goal for Feb. 15. Officials say – as of Friday – more than 14.56 million people have received a first dose. But…

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Czech Republic again imposes state of emergency for 14 days

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Due to the dramatically high number of coronavirus infections, the Czech Republic has once again declared a state of emergency. It will be in effect for 14 days starting tomorrow, the minority government under Prime Minister Andrej Babis announced today. This is in response to a request from the representatives of all 14 administrative regions, including the capital Prague. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been more than one million confirmed CoV infections and 18,143 deaths in the country of just over ten million people. According to the…

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Health Minister Anschober expects rising infection figures

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The situation is stable, but from next week the effect of the lockdown relaxed last Monday will gradually diminish, while at the same time the growing number of mutations will show consequences, analyzed Health Minister Rudolf Anschober (Greens). “Starting next week, we have to assume that this consequential effect will gradually decrease and that the strongly increasing proportion of mutations with a higher risk of infection will lead to a gradual increase in the number of infections in the coming weeks.” This is also indicated by the now slowly rising…

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