COVID-19 WRAP | SA records 12,771 new Covid-19 cases, 357 deaths in 24 hours

August 26 2021 - 19:02

SA records 12,771 new Covid-19 cases, 357 deaths in 24 hours

KwaZulu-Natal continues to be SA's Covid-19 epicentre, with 3,610 of the country's 12,771 new cases recorded in the province in the past 24 hours.

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said on Thursday that the newly identified cases took the total number of infections to 2,734,973 since the outbreak of the virus in March last year.

There were also, the NICD said, 357 new Covid-19 related deaths reported in the past 24 hours, bringing total fatalities to 80,826 to date.

August 26 2021 - 13:00

'Don't touch my booze': Mzansi gives 'vaccine passport' proposal thumbs down

The possible implementation of a “vaccine passport” as a requirement to buy booze has been given a big no by many TimesLIVE readers.

Booze lovers were up in arms on Wednesday after reports that a proposal was due to be presented on Thursday to the National Health Council, an advisory body made up of leaders from the lower spheres of government that reports to health minister Joe Phaahla.

BusinessDay reported that the SA Liquor Brand owners Association (Salba) was discussing the proposal as part of a broader initiative to increase Covid-19 vaccinations in the country.

August 26 2021 - 11:00

Russia reports record 820 Covid-19 deaths, 19,630 new cases

Russia on Thursday reported a record 820 coronavirus-related deaths amid a surge of cases blamed on the Delta variant and the slow rate of vaccinations.

The government's coronavirus task force also reported 19,630 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours.

Reuters

August 26 2021 - 11:00

Pop-up vaccinations a 'win' for Gauteng, as province reaches 70,000 daily jabs

Gauteng premier David Makhura says taking vaccines to the unvaccinated is proving effective after the province administered 70,000 vaccines a day last Friday and on Tuesday.

He commended the over-18 cohort for giving the vaccine rollout much-needed momentum. The date of the vaccination of this group was pushed forward to last Friday. The government initially said over-18s would be eligible to register for the jab on September 1.

Makhura said the province will now aim for a new ambitious target of 100,000 vaccines daily to further drive up the vaccination figures.

August 26 2021 - 09:43

'Mjolo slaps better when protected': Limpopo health department's vaccine advice gets tongues wagging

Limpopo department of health's latest campaign slogan to ramp up vaccination among citizens 18 and older has the internet in a mess.

The department on Thursday unveiled the campaign on social media, including the catchy phrase “mjolo (dating) slaps better when protected”.

“No condom, no sex. No vaccine certificate, no dating,” read the post.

August 26 2021 - 09:30

Moderna withholds 1.63m Covid-19 vaccine doses in Japan due to contamination

Moderna Inc said on Wednesday it has withheld supply of about 1.63 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine in Japan after a report of contamination of vials with particulate matter, which it suspects involves a production line in Spain.

Though Moderna said no safety or efficacy issues had been identified, the suspension is a fresh setback for the firm, whose partners had production delays last month that disrupted supplies to countries, including South Korea.

August 26 2021 - 09:30

Over 50? The health department is offering you free transport to vaccination sites

In an effort to ramp up vaccinations, the health department is offering free transport to vaccination sites for people aged 50 years and older.

The initiative, in collaboration with civil society partners, was announced this week and is offered to people in certain parts of the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng until the first week of September.

This comes after an announcement by health minister Joe Phaahla last week during a media briefing that the government has joined hands with various sectors of society to make every possible effort to increase access to vaccines, which

August 26 2021 - 08:00

Malema won't say whether he has been vaccinated, but urges the youth to get the jab

EFF leader Julius Malema won't disclose whether he and the party's senior leadership have been vaccinated against Covid-19, saying it is a personal choice.

However, he urged the youth to get the jab and help contain the spread of the virus.

Speaking at a media briefing on Wednesday, Malema said the party leadership did not want to be labelled as “influencers of the Western vaccine.”

August 26 2021 - 07:00

Could I get more sick from Covid-19 if I smoke cigarettes?

Cigarette smoking increases the risk of more severe illness from Covid-19, which could result in hospitalisation, the need for intensive care, or even death.  

This is according to a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recent update, comparing smokers and those who've never smoked.

“Smoking cigarettes can cause inflammation and cell damage throughout the body, and can weaken your immune system, making it less able to fight off disease,” said the FDA. 

August 26 2021 - 06:40

‘Anti-vaxxers who push rubbish theories are like Aids denialists’

Retired Constitutional Court justice Edwin Cameron, revered for his gay rights and antiretroviral activism, says “hard-core anti-vaxxers in South Africa are similar to the Aids denialists”.

Speaking at an online event on Covid-19 and human rights organised by Daily Maverick, he said just like Aids denialists, anti-vaxxers push theories that there is “no virus”, or that it is “not significant”, or that life-saving drugs are “toxic”.

“That is, of course, all rubbish,” said Cameron, endorsing the views of fellow panellist Prof Salim Abdool Karim, head of Aids research centre Caprisa at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), who said mandatory vaccination should go ahead in many sectors.

August 26 2021 - 06:20

Lockdown blues batter parents – especially dads new to childcare

When hard lockdown hit last March, a 35-year-old Cape Town mother and her husband found themselves in the same boat as millions of families — working from home and caring for their three children, aged between five and 15.

Two months later, the Durbanville woman was widowed when her husband succumbed to Covid-19. As she looked back on the past 17 months she told Sunday Times Daily: “I still wonder how I’ve managed to stay sane.”

She’s not alone. A new Human Sciences Research Council study says the pressures of caring for children during the pandemic have fuelled a tidal wave of depression among parents — and especially in fathers.

August 26 2021 - 06:10

Data from test results shows the effectiveness of some vaccines begins to wane after four to five months

Protection against Covid-19 offered by two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccines begins to fade within six months, underscoring the need for booster shots, according to researchers in Britain.

After five to six months, the effectiveness of the Pfizer jab at preventing infection in the month after the second dose fell from 88% to 74%, an analysis of data collected in Britain’s ZOE Covid study showed.

For the AstraZeneca vaccine, effectiveness fell from 77% to 67% after four to five months.

August 26 2021 - 06:00

Not enough is being done to accelerate vaccinations, the spin-off from which will bring some of the unvaxxed on board

“There is no virus,” read one of the placards at a recent anti-vax protest held, of all places, near Cape Town’s Groote Schuur Hospital, as doctors and nurses inside this famous health facility battled to save lives ravaged by coronavirus infections. More than 79,421 dead, but there is no virus. “I am not a lab rat,” read another. Trust me, the fact that the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week fully approved Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine will do nothing to change made-up minds.