Pfizer, Biontech, Moderna and AstraZeneca has Started a COVID-19 Vaccine

Posted: 21 Nov 2020 04:52 AM PST

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - American drug-maker Pfizer said Friday it has requested emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (or FDA) for its COVID-19 vaccine.

Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech noted they have also started a similar process with regulatory agencies in Europe. They are also doing so in other countries, including Japan, Canada and Australia.

The action came just two days after the drug-makers announced final results of their large vaccine study.

Dr. Albert Bourla is Pfizer Chairman and chief executive. He said in a statement, "Our work to deliver a safe and effective vaccine has never been more urgent." He noted that the company is looking "to secure authorization of our vaccine candidate as quickly as possible."

The emergency use request comes as reported coronavirus infections have sharply increased around the world.

In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged Americans to carefully consider any travel plans for the Thanksgiving holiday. It noted that travel increases the chance of getting or spreading COVID-19. About 200,000 new cases of COVID-19 infections are being reported each day. The country also recorded more than 250,000 deaths from the virus this year.

This week, India reported that it now has 9 million infections. Mexico became the fourth country to report 100,000 deaths, joining Brazil, India and the United States.

Dr. Hans Henri Kluge of the World Health Organization said Thursday that Europe now has more than 15.7 million confirmed coronavirus infections, with over 4 million new cases recorded in November. He added, "Right now, an average of 4,500 lives are lost to COVID-19 in Europe every day."

The Japanese government placed Tokyo on its highest coronavirus warning level on Thursday. And South Korea announced new restrictions including a ban on public gatherings of more than 100 people.

Race to deliver a vaccine

Pfizer and BioNTech said final results from the large Phase 3 study show their vaccine to be 95 percent effective against COVID-19.

The results will be considered by a group of independent scientists known as the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC).

Dr. Paul Offit of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is an FDA advisor. He told the Associated Press that scientists will advise the FDA on the experimental vaccine's safety and its effectiveness.

The FDA has the final decision on whether or not to approve or authorize emergency use of the vaccine. It requires that a vaccine be at least 50 percent effective to be considered for emergency use. The FDA says that it may approve medical products "when there are no adequate, approved, and available alternatives."

Two other vaccine makers, Moderna and AstraZeneca, are not far behind with their own candidates to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

American drug-maker Moderna said early results showed its vaccine to be 94.5 percent effective in preventing COVID-19. And scientists at the University of Oxford, working with AstraZeneca, reported that their experimental vaccine could protect older people from getting severely ill from the new coronavirus.

Drug-makers Pfizer and BioNTech said they could produce 50 million vaccine treatments this year and up to 1.3 billion treatments by the end of 2021.

The companies have developed temperature-controlled containers to transport the vaccine at minus-70 degrees Celsius. These containers can be used for storage for 15 days by refilling with frozen carbon dioxide. They also come with sensors to track location and temperature during transportation around the world.

On Thursday, General Gustave Perna, chief operations officer for the U.S. Operation Warp Speed program said that a COVID-19 vaccine would begin to be sent out within 24 hours of FDA approval.

Dr. Anthony Fauci is the country's top infectious diseases expert. He praised the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine candidates from Pfizer and Moderna.

Fauci said, "Help is on the way!" But, he warned that people should not forget public health measures like social distancing and wearing face coverings while waiting for the vaccine. (VOA)

Zimbabwe School Shuts Down As 118 Students Test Positive for COVID-19

Posted: 21 Nov 2020 04:46 AM PST

HARARE,LELEMUKU.COM - Zimbabwean authorities have shutdown a school in the western part of the country where 118 students have contracted COVID-19.

In an interview, Matabeleland North provincial medical director, Dr. Munekayi Padingani, said students and teachers have been quarantined at the school, which is almost 43 kilometers north east of Bulawayo.

Dr. Padingani dismissed reports that a student has died at the school, saying the Ministry of Health could have been informed by school authorities if there were any deaths.

"That's not true. All our cases from that school are stable and we set up a satellite clinic there. So, our staff are there. They are monitoring them. If there was death, we were going to report using our normal channels to tell the head office and you were going to see it in our daily reports. So, today, we did not record any deaths."

He said the school the relevant authorities have sealed off the school in order to stop more COVID-19 infections.

"If you want to assist you can use the Ministry of Education channels or Ministry of Health, depending on the type of assistance you want to give to the school because the school has been closed. They (children and teachers) are quarantined, no one in, on one out. It's only medical stuff and the support team that can go there. If the Ministry of Education want to give them food, they leave it by the gate and the staff collects it from there."

School authorities were unreachable for comment as calls to the headmaster and other staff members were not being answered.

Evidence Dube, a parent with one of the quarantined students, said some students were released from the school under unclear circumstances.

"My child is quarantined with other students but I understand that some of them were sent home. I'm not sure how they did that because the information I have is that they may have tested positive for COVID-19. According to what I have gathered from the relevant authorities, those that are quarantined cannot physically have access to the outside world. They will be kept at the school until the disease is under control. There is no timeline for this.

"The most disturbing thing about COVID-19 is that one can have the disease but without showing any symptoms. It's devastating to parents because you may think that your child has not contracted COVID-19 yet she has the virus. There is need to do some thorough screening so that students, teachers and parents do not contract the disease."

Several organizations, including the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance (ZCA), are currently assisting the school by providing an assortment of goods, including sanitizers.

ZCA executive director, Reverend Useni Sibanda, said they visited the school on Friday and donated snap sack packs and other items, which were dropped outside the school.

"We donated all-purpose cleaners containing hydrogen peroxide used for cleaning and disinfecting classrooms, soap, toothpaste, sanitary pads and washing buckets."

Sibanda said ministers of religion are also expected to counsel students "as there is a lot that happens when they are in such a situation. Everyone is in our prayers."

As at November 19, 2020, Zimbabwe had 9,046 confirmed cases, 6,195 recoveries and 265 deaths. (VOA)