COVID-19 WRAP | EVDS enhanced to allow public to schedule own appointments: Khumbudzo Ntshavheni

July 23 2021 - 19:40

SA's recorded deaths related to Covid-19 edge closer to 70,000

SA's total number of laboratory-confirmed cases of Covid-19 has risen to 2,356,049 with an additional 13,719 reported on Friday.

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said in an update that the increase represented a 26.1% positivity rate in the country.

A further 450 Covid-19 related deaths were reported, bringing total fatalities to date in SA to 69,075.

July 23 2021 - 19:16

EVDS enhanced to allow public to schedule own appointments: Khumbudzo Ntshavheni

Acting minister in the presidency Nkumbudzo Ntshavheni has announced that the Electronic Vaccination Data System (EVDS) has been improved to allow the public to schedule their own appointments for Covid-19 vaccinations.

“The EVDS system has been enhanced to allow self-scheduling for people to schedule their own appointments instead of waiting for SMS appointments,” Ntshavheni said on Friday.

She said the elderly would be assisted with their scheduled appointments and get preference in cases of walk-ins at vaccination sites. Preference would also be given to those with disabilities.

July 23 2021 - 18:54

Denosa student movement rejects 'directive to deploy student nurses' to vaccination sites

The Democratic Nursing Organisation of SA (Denosa) national student movement has rejected a directive by the health department to send third and fourth-year student nurses to work at Covid-19 vaccination sites as vaccinators on weekends.

The students said they did not enjoy protection in the form of personal protective equipment (PPE), medical cover, indemnity cover and support with transport to the sites.

“Student nurses are not workers and they must not be made circumstantial workers now at the convenience of this very short-sighted government,” the student movement said in a statement.

July 23 2021 - 13:42

Bharat Biotech terminates Covaxin deal with Brazil's Precisa

Bharat Biotech has terminated a memorandum of understanding to sell its Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin to Brazil's Precisa Medicamentos, the Indian company said on Friday without disclosing the reason.

Bharat's statement said it will continue to work with Brazilian healthcare regulator Anvisa to obtain all required approvals for the use of Covaxin in the country.

There have been allegations in Brazil of irregularities in the government's efforts to buy 20 million doses of the vaccine using Precisa as an intermediary.

Reuters

July 23 2021 - 13:05

Pfizer says US govt buying 200m more doses of Covid-19 vaccine

Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech said on Friday the U.S. government had purchased an additional 200 million doses of their COVID-19 vaccine, bringing the total number of doses to be supplied to the country to 500 million.

The government has an option to buy an updated version of the vaccine to address potential variants as well as new formulations of the vaccine, if available and authorized, the companies said.

They said 110 million new doses are expected to be delivered by the end of the year, and the remaining by April 30, 2022.

Roughly 86 million people have been fully vaccinated with the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine in the United States as of Thursday, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Reuters 

July 23 2021 - 12:00

As Americans navigate conflicting Covid-19 mask advice, 'everyone is confused'

A Covid-19 surge ignited in parts of the United States by the highly contagious Delta variant and vaccine hesitancy has led to new mask mandates and deep confusion among some people about which guidance to follow.

In Los Angeles County, leaders have reinstated an indoor mask mandate, even for the fully vaccinated. Officials in Houston and New Orleans also raised coronavirus alert levels this week and told people to mask up.

In Florida, however, Governor Ron DeSantis said on Thursday children will not be required to wear masks in school there this fall, arguing that "we need our kids to breathe." Hours later, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters: "If I were a parent in Florida, that would be greatly concerning to me."

"Everyone is confused about what they should be doing," said Daniel Blacksheare, a 20-year-old in Santa Monica, California, who said he was infected twice last year. "I don't understand why we have to suddenly wear a mask again.

"The county sheriff in Los Angeles County said his department will not enforce the measure.

The conflicting advice from officials at city, county, state and federal levels of government comes as hospital officials in the harder-hit states with lower vaccination rates are sounding the alarm about their systems being overwhelmed.

The seven-day average of new Covid-19 cases in the United States is up 53% over the previous week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday. The Delta variant makes up more than 80% of the new cases across the country.

Much of the guidance falls along the same political lines as earlier in the pandemic. Leaders in heavily Republican states generally eschew masks, and Democrats insist upon them.

Schools are a particular tension point nationwide. Children under age 12 are still not eligible for coronavirus vaccines, and many parents consider masks as the best remaining defense.

Yet as some areas return to the classroom in just a few weeks, there are wide divisions over whether children should be wearing masks in schools.

The American Academy of Pediatrics this week released updated recommendations for schools that included mask wearing for everyone over the age of 2, regardless of vaccination status. President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that unvaccinated children should wear masks in schools.

But the CDC on Thursday said it is not changing its mask guidance for schools, including that masks are only required for those over age 2 who have not been vaccinated. The CDC in May relaxed its guidance so that fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks in most public spaces.

In Princeton, New Jersey, Ximena Skovron said she finds the dust-ups over masks and what the guidance actually is to be perplexing.

"I'm vaccinated, and the rules seem to change," she said. "But it's also inconsistent. You've got two grocery stores in town: one requires masks, one doesn't.

"Skovron said she does not think states should reimpose mask mandates.

"Vaccines are readily available. The ability to protect yourself is there," she said. "If you refuse, you should assume the risk instead of imposing on the rest of society."

Her 6-year-old daughter will enter first grade this fall, and Skovron said she hopes the school does not require masks, citing the extremely low rate of serious Covid-19 incidence among small children.

"It just seems like such overkill for children to wear masks," she said.

But Melissa Riccobono, 44, of Lawrenceville, New Jersey, said she is pro-mask and thinks there should be mandates when and where necessary.

"If you're choosing not to vaccinate, that's your choice, and I'm fine with that – but it's not your choice whether to wear a mask," she said. 

Reuters 

July 23 2021 — 11:45

WHO urges collaboration on virus origin after China rejects plan for probe

All countries must work together to investigate the origin of the coronavirus that sparked the pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday, a day after China rejected the proposed scope of a second phase.

WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic, asked about China's rejection, told a U.N. briefing in Geneva: "This is not about politics, it's not about a blame game.

"It is about basically a requirement we all have to try to understand how the pathogen came into the human population. In this sense, countries really have the responsibility to work together and to work with WHO in a spirit of partnership."

Reuters

July 23 2021 — 11:10

Vaccinations slowing spread of Covid-19 cases in Spain - minister

Spain's vaccine rollout has begun to slow the spread of Covid-19 infections and the country is getting ready for a booster third dose, Health Minister Carolina Darias said on Friday.

"We are starting to see a slowdown of the rise (in cases)," Darias said in an interview with radio station Onda Cero.

Spain had registered a major growth in the number of diagnosed cases per 100,000 people over the past few weeks. The number jumped five-fold between mid-June and mid-July.

The vaccination rollout has gathered speed and Spain now has the third-highest Covid-19 vaccination rate in the world, with 64% of its population having had one or two doses, setting it behind only Canada and the United Kingdom.

Darias reaffirmed that the target was for 70% of the population to be vaccinated by late August. "We'll need to keep vaccinating until we reach 100% or be close to it," she said.

A third dose will then be offered to Spaniards, she said. "What we still have to determine is when."

Reuters

July 23 2021 — 11:00

Russia promises to resolve delays in supplies of vaccine to Argentina

The Kremlin said on Friday that Russia would resolve delays in deliveries of the Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine to Argentina, but that its priority was to satisfy demand at home.

Argentina, one of the first countries to use Sputnik V widely, has complained that delays in the arrival of second doses are holding back its vaccination campaign. 

Reuters

July 23 2021 — 09:37

Vaccination teams are on their way into communities, says health boss

Roving teams of Covid-19 vaccinators will soon be operating at community halls around the country. 

And once they have registered for a vaccination, people with internet access will soon be able to choose their vaccination site, date and time.

These developments emerged on Friday at a health department briefing on the pandemic chaired by acting health minister Mmamoloko Kubayi.

Health department director-general Sandile Buthelezi said the roving teams would aim to do mass vaccinations at the rate of up to 1,000 a day to inoculate a community, then move to a new area.

July 23 2021 — 09:30

Australia's Lorna Jane activewear fined $4m for misleading Covid-19 claims

Athleisure clothing chain Lorna Jane Pty Ltd was fined A$5 million ($3.7 million) by an Australian court on Friday after claiming its garments could prevent Covid-19, which a judge labelled as “exploitive, predatory and potentially dangerous”.

The company with 134 stores across Australia, New Zealand, the US and Singapore was sued by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) last year after saying its LJ Shield Activewear range “eliminated”, “stopped the spread” and “protected wearers” against the coronavirus.

The misleading claims, which centred on the “groundbreaking technology” of the company's garments, were made on in-store signs, on its website, on social media website Instagram, in emails to customers and in media releases, the consumer watchdog said.

July 23 2021 — 09:20

Looters with Covid-19 symptoms must get tested, says Kubayi

Acting health minister Mmamoloko Kubayi has urged those involved in the unrest in Gauteng and KZN to get tested if they experience Covid-19 symptoms. 

She said the correctional services department had told her “quite a number of people who were arrested have tested positive”. 

At a briefing early on Friday, she said: “In contact tracing, [people] will have to say where they have been and perhaps some are staying away for fear of saying so.

“But community members must appeal to those people, to protect their own families and communities.”

July 23 2021 — 08:00

China reports more local Covid-19 cases in eastern province of Jiangsu

China's eastern province of Jiangsu found 12 new domestically-transmitted Covid-19 patients on Thursday, taking to 23 its total since July 20, in its first local outbreak since the pandemic began last year.

All 23 cases were in Nanjing, the capital of the province, its latest tally showed on Friday. A statement published by city governments showed 20 patients were workers at Nanjing's Lukou airport.

Nanjing has started mass Covid-19 testing of its 9.3 million population, suspended a subway line linking the airport to a train station, and sealed off some residential compounds.

China reported 48 new Covid-19 cases in the mainland on July 22, down from 50 cases a day earlier, the country's national health authority said on Friday. That included 36 inbound travellers, and 12 local patients, all in Jiangsu province.

The number of new asymptomatic cases, which China does not classify as confirmed cases, rose to 35 from 18 cases a day earlier.

Among the symptomless cases, 10 were local infections — seven in Jiangsu, one in northeastern Shenyang city, one in southern Zhongshan city, and one in He county of eastern Anhui province.

Zhongshan city said late on Thursday that residents should avoid unnecessary trips outside the city and that the city had started mass Covid-19 testing.

Those leaving the city to go outside Guangdong province, where Zhongshan is based, via train stations, highway stations, ports and shuttle bus stations must provide proof of a negative coronavirus test within 48 days before departing, excluding those travellers arriving for transfer.

The infections in Zhongshan and Shenyang had visited Nanjing before being detected, and the case in He county is a husband of a confirmed patient in Nanjing city, according to reports by local authorities and state media.

The total accumulated number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in mainland China now stands at 92,462, while the death toll remained unchanged at 4,636. 

Reuters

July 23 2021 — 07:00

If I've been vaccinated do I still need to self-isolate?

You have just got the Covid-19 jab! But if you now come into contact with someone suspected of having Covid-19 do you still need to self-isolate for 10 days?

The ministerial advisory committee on Covid-19 vaccines advises that those who come into contact with anyone suspected to have Covid-19 should self-isolate, whether they have had the vaccine or not.

“Non-healthcare workers need to quarantine, even if they have been vaccinated, especially if they have received only one dose of the Pfizer vaccine or within four weeks of being vaccinated.”

According to the SA National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), the body's immune system takes up to 14 days to develop strong immune responses after the first dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

July 23 2021 — 07:00

Philippines to bar travel from Malaysia, Thailand to curb Delta's spread

The Philippines will ban the entry of travellers coming from Malaysia and Thailand in a bid to prevent the spread of the highly transmissible Delta Covid-19 variant, the presidential spokesperson said on Friday.

The travel restriction will take effect on July 25 and run to July 31, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a national address.

The Philippines has previously banned travellers from eight countries including Indonesia and India.

Reuters

July 23 2021 — 06:30

White House disappointed by China rejecting Covid-19 origin probe plan

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Thursday the Biden administration is “deeply disappointed” in China's decision to reject a World Health Organisation (WHO) plan for a second phase of an investigation into the origin of the coronavirus.

July 23 2021 — 06:20

India reports 35,342 new Covid-19 cases in last 24 hours

India reported on Friday 35,342 new Covid-19 cases, the federal health ministry said.

The country's tally of infections now stands at 31.26 million, health ministry data showed.

Reuters

July 23 2021 — 06:15

ECB pledges low rates for longer as virus casts shadow over growth

The European Central Bank pledged on Thursday to keep interest rates at record lows for even longer to boost sluggish inflation and warned that the rapidly spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus poses a risk to the eurozone's recovery.

July 23 2021 — 06:10

'We follow the science:' Biden on mask guidance

President Joe Biden said that the CDC is ‘investigating every aspect’ and studying any necessary changes to its masking guidance as the more contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus sweeps the US.

July 23 2021 — 06:00

Australian states squabble as NSW seeks vaccine priority amid Covid-19 'emergency'

Australia's largest state of New South Wales on Friday urged the federal government to divert vaccine doses to Sydney, the epicentre of a flaring COVID-19 outbreak, raising objections from other states desperate for protection from the virus.

Australia is battling a supply shortfall of the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine as its COVID-19 inoculation strategy had focused on AstraZeneca which was subsequently deemed unsafe for those under 60 years by the country's drug regulator.

That health order resulted in a glut of AstraZeneca vaccines, which many Australians are uncomfortable to take, and sparked a scramble for Pfizer which was in short supply as the government had only ordered 10 million doses for the country of 26 million.

As a result, only 15% of Australia's adult population is fully vaccinated, lagging the COVID-19 inoculation rate in other rich nations.

Now, with Sydney ailing from a relentless surge in the Delta variant of coronavirus despite weeks of lockdown, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Friday branded the situation a “national emergency”, signalling vaccination as the only solution to “our freedoms.

“The Sydney outbreak has ballooned to nearly 1,800 cases since mid-June.

“We know that in some places around Australia there are very few cases or zero cases,” Berejiklian said in a televised news briefing.

“We need to get at least the first jab for as many people as we can in those affected communities as possible, and that's why we are asking for a refocus of the national vaccination strategy.

“The comment did not go down very well with other states who are unwilling to spare Pfizer doses.

“We need to be very careful when having a discussion about who we prioritise,” Victoria Premier Dan Andrews said.

Victoria, which is in a lockdown until next Tuesday, reported 14 cases on Friday, mostly in Melbourne.

“The fact of the matter is, we don’t have enough vaccine for everyone and the virus will go to the unvaccinated. This is how it works,” Andrews said.

Reuters