COVID-19 WRAP | Nearly 850 new Covid-19 cases, 68 deaths recorded in 24 hours: Mkhize

April 13 2021 - 22:36

Nearly 850 new Covid-19 cases, 68 deaths recorded in 24 hours: Mkhize

About two hours after announcing that SA had halted its rollout of the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine, health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize confirmed that 847 new infections and 67 deaths had been recorded in 24 hours.

This means that 1,559,960 cases have been confirmed, as well as 53,423 fatalities.

The new cases came from 26,165 tests at a positivity rate of 3.23%.

April 13 2021 - 19:22

SA to halt J&J vaccines over blood clot fears

SA will suspend the rollout of the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine over blood clot fears, health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize said on Tuesday.

Mkhize was speaking at a media briefing on Tuesday night after the US Food and Drug Administration advised a temporarily suspension of its rollout of the J&J vaccine after six women developed “unusual blood clots” within two weeks of receiving the shot.

“We cannot take the decision of the FDA lightly. We've voluntarily suspend the rollout until the causal relationship between the blood clot and the vaccine is sufficiently interrogated,” he said.

April 13 2021 - 18:24

No decision yet on J&J Covid-19 vaccine, top SA adviser says

South Africa has not yet taken a decision on how to proceed with Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine, a top government adviser said, after US health agencies recommended pausing use of the vaccine because of rare cases of blood clots.

April 13 2021 - 18:23

EXPLAINER: How worried should we be about blood clots linked to AstraZeneca and J&J vaccines?

US regulators have recommended pausing the use of Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine as they investigate rare blood clotting in six women, including one who died.

J&J also said it was delaying the rollout of its vaccine in Europe. US officials said the temporary halt is expected only to last a few days.

The move comes after Europe's drug regulator said it had found a possible link between AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine and very rare blood clots in some adults who had received the shot.

April 13 2021 - 17:13

'Covid is a wake-up call': Black entrepreneurs aim to level playing field

Unable to get a bank loan when she moved from Nigeria to the United States, Abbey Wemimo's mother was forced to borrow money at a 400% interest rate and pawn her wedding ring to pay his college fees.

Today, 12 years on, Wemimo runs a fintech company which aims to tackle the yawning racial wealth gap in the United States - a divide exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We set up our company because we believe that where you come from, the colour of your skin and your financial identity, or credit score, should not determine where you end up in life in the wealthiest nation on earth," Wemimo said.

April 13 2021 - 17:12

France suspends all flights to and from Brazil due to Covid variant

France will suspend all flights to and from Brazil in a bid to prevent the spread of the coronavirus variant first detected there, French Prime Minister Jean Castex said in parliament.

"We take note that the situation is getting worse and we have decided to suspend all flights between France and Brazil until further notice," Castex said.

Several leading French doctors have been calling on the government for days to stop all air traffic with Brazil.

April 13 2021 - 14:34

US calls for pause to J&J Covid-19 vaccine over rare blood clots

US federal health agencies on Tuesday recommended pausing the use of Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine after six recipients developed a rare disorder involving blood clots, in a fresh setback to global efforts to tackle the pandemic.

The move comes a week after European regulators said they had found a possible link between AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine and a rare blood clotting problem that had led to a small number of deaths.

April 13 2021 - 14:06

'Extremely low' number of Covid-19 patients in Netcare hospitals

The number of Covid-19 patients at what was Durban's busiest private hospital since the start of the pandemic is “extremely low”.

A source told TimesLIVE that the last Covid-19 patient at St Augustine's Hospital was discharged on Thursday.

Netcare hospital division MD Jacques du Plessis said Covid-19 admissions at all the group's hospitals were low.

April 13 2021 - 11:00

Russia reports 8,173 new COVID-19 cases, 338 deaths

Russia reported 8,173 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, including 1,782 in Moscow, taking the official national tally to 4,657,883.

The government coronavirus task force said 338 people had died in the past 24 hours, pushing its death toll to 103,601.

The federal statistics agency, which keeps a separate count has reported a much higher toll of more than 225,000 from April 2020 to February. 

-REUTERS

April 13 2021 - 08:52

No blood clots seen in SA vaccinations

No cases of very rare blood clots have been detected in SA health-care workers who have received the J&J Covid-19 vaccine under the Sisonke implementation study, the co-principal investigator Prof Glenda Gray said on Monday night.

By April 12, 289,787 health-care workers had been vaccinated in the first phase of SA’s Covid-19 vaccination programme, according to health minister Zweli Mkhize.

The European Medicines Agency’s safety committee is reviewing four cases of extraordinary and serious blood blots — out of nearly five million vaccinations — which have been seen after the J&J jab in the US.

April 13 2021 - 08:47

Regeneron drug proves effective in preventing Covid-19

Regeneron is pursuing US approval for its Covid-19 monoclonal antibody cocktail as a preventive treatment after it helped cut the risk of symptomatic infections in households where someone else is ill, the US drugmaker said on Monday.

REGEN-COV, a combination of casirivimab and imdevimab, protected household contacts from exposure to SARS-CoV-2, with 72% protection against symptomatic infections in the first week, and 93% after that, according to trial data released by the company.

April 13 2021 - 07:50

Africa must expand vaccine production, leaders say

Continental leaders and health officials call for expanding vaccine production as Africa struggles to acquire coronavirus vaccines, depending majorly on imports for medicines and medical equipment.

April 13 2021 - 07:45

Planes, sleds bring vaccines to Alaska natives

Despite its sprawling geography and often-inhospitable climate, Alaska ranks among the top U.S. states for getting Covid-19 vaccines into the arms of its residents, and its indigenous population has played a major role in that achievement.

April 13 2021 - 06:30

Regeneron is pursuing US approval for its Covid-19 monoclonal antibody cocktail as a preventative treatment.

April 13 2021 - 06:00

Infections rise while fees must fall: varsities dealt another blow

Universities are forced to change tack as Covid-19 infections surge among students and staff

April 13 2021 - 06:00

No hot air: nothing stops the spread of Covid-19 quite like fresh air

Relax when outdoors, say experts, with Irish analysis revealing that only one in 1,000 infections is acquired outside