Coronavirus Updates

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

Covid vaccinations will begin next week, says Boris Johnson

PM announces start of mass immunisation amid row over claim Brexit helped speed up approval

www.theguardian.com

There are big logistical problems, though, getting the vaccine to high-risk patients in residential care of one sort or another, so I'm not sure how rapid the deployment will be.

They'll almost certainly have approved the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine (assuming it does get approved, of course) by the time my cohort features in the vaccination planning, so I expect that's what I will be offered when the time comes.

Also, it's Johnson* who made the announcement, so, who really knows.

*not as unreliable as Trump, but really.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Also, it's Johnson* who made the announcement, so, who really knows.

*not as unreliable as Trump, but really.

I don't think Professor Van-Tam would have let him say that if it wasn't certain, though. And given Johnson's problems with his restive MPs right now, he wouldn't risk raising their hopes like that if he thought he might have to dash them next week

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

I don't think Professor Van-Tam would have let him say that if it wasn't certain, though. And given Johnson's problems with his restive MPs right now, he wouldn't risk raising their hopes like that if he thought he might have to dash them next week

In a sane and reasonable world, absolutely. I’ll be over here not holding my breath.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

NHS staff no longer at front of queue for Covid vaccine after rethink

Change to priority list for next few weeks likely to worry and disappoint health workers

www.theguardian.com

The Royal College of Nursing warned the change in the priority groups was leaving NHS staff confused. “We understand why care home staff and residents are being given top priority given the level of risk they are facing. But mixed messages around when health and care staff will receive the vaccine is creating a significant amount of confusion on the frontline,” said Mike Adams, its director for England.

 

[Sid]

European and US experts question UK's fast-track of Covid vaccine

Some criticise jingoistic tone of announcement and say longer process may prove preferable

www.theguardian.com

Politicians, health professionals and commentators in Europe and the US have questioned Britain’s decision to fast-track approval of a coronavirus vaccine and criticised what some saw as the jingoistic tone of its announcement.
The UK on Wednesday became the first country in the world to approve a Covid-19 vaccine when the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) granted the Pfizer/BioNTech shot emergency authorisation for clinical use.
But several countries have suggested a longer and more thorough regulatory process may prove preferable, arguing that more time scrutinising trial data fully will minimise risk and increase public confidence in the vaccine’s safety.

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

European and US experts question UK's fast-track of Covid vaccine

Some criticise jingoistic tone of announcement and say longer process may prove preferable

www.theguardian.com

Ordinarily you have to toss the party halfling into the next chamber of the dungeon to see what happens. If this one wants to jump in first, well, if the last decade taught me anything, if someone screams DON'T TELL ME WHAT I CAN OR CANNOT DO, BRO, just let them smack themself in the face with that shovel.

 

[Luisa Land]

European and US experts question UK's fast-track of Covid vaccine

Some criticise jingoistic tone of announcement and say longer process may prove preferable

www.theguardian.com

"Fauci apologises for casting doubt over rigour of British vaccine regulators
Dr Fauci went on to apologise for casting doubt over the rigour of UK regulators who approved the Pfizer vaccine against Covid-19.
"There really has been a misunderstanding, and for that I'm sorry, and I apologise for that," he said in an interview with BBC News, after his earlier comments on CBS received prominent coverage in the UK.
"I do have great faith in both the scientific community and the regulatory community in the UK," Fauci said.
"I did not mean to apply any sloppiness (to the UK regulatory process) even though it came out that way," he said.
"So if it did, I just want to set the record straight. I have a great deal of confidence in what the UK does both scientifically and from a regulatory standpoint."

Fauci apologises for ‘misunderstanding’ after suggesting UK rushed Covid vaccine approval

Top infectious diseases expert claims FDA is doing it the ‘correct way’

www.independent.co.uk

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

 

[Free]

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

Who will get the vaccine first in the land of free and brave? Bankers, of course!

Bank workers could get COVID vaccines before most Americans

Bank workers could receive a COVID-19 vaccine before those over 65 and other adults with medical issues.

www.marketwatch.com

 

[Free]

Who will get the vaccine first in the land of free and brave? Bankers, of course!

Hey, we need to get to our money, man!

 

[Aribeth Zelin]

Sure, not teachers, or people who don't get to work behind plexiglass shields.... but bankers.... >.<

 

[danielravennest]

Sure, not teachers, or people who don't get to work behind plexiglass shields.... but bankers.... >.<

My local bank doesn't even let people inside for regular transactions. By appointment only, for big stuff like loans. Everything else is drive-through or ATM.

 

[bubblesort]

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth to get Covid-19 vaccine ‘in weeks’: Reports

The first vaccine jab is expected to be given on Tuesday. Read more at straitstimes.com.

www.straitstimes.com

I really hope this works. If it doesn't, we won't have the kind of vaccination rates we need for a decade. If the queen dies from some manufacturing screw up, that will destroy confidence in all future covid vaccines, even if they make a better one.

 

[Sovereignty]

 

[bubblesort]

A whistleblower data scientist just got raided by police, with guns drawn, for being accused if hacking the Florida government's computer systems.

Florida police raid COVID data whistleblower’s house with guns drawn

State police raided the home of a former Department of Health data scientist who is accusing Florida officials of wrongfully firing her for refusing to manipulate COVID-19 statistics. The Florida D…

www.sun-sentinel.com

 

[Innula Zenovka]

UK trial to mix and match Covid vaccines to try to improve potency

Pilot planned for January will give subjects a shot of both Oxford/AstraZeneca and Pfizer/BioNTech versions

www.theguardian.com

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Who will get the vaccine first in the land of free and brave? Bankers, of course!

Bank workers could get COVID vaccines before most Americans

Bank workers could receive a COVID-19 vaccine before those over 65 and other adults with medical issues.

www.marketwatch.com

In the UK,

The priority list for the first phase is as follows:
1 - Residents in a care home for older adults and their carers
2 - All those aged 80 and over. Frontline health and social care workers
3 - All those aged 75 and over
4 - All those aged 70 and over. Clinically extremely vulnerable individuals
5 - All those aged 65 and over
6 - All individuals aged 16-64 with underlying health conditions which put them at higher risk of serious disease and mortality
7 - All those aged 60 and over
8 - All those aged 55 and over
9 - All those aged 50 and over

Two groups will not receive the vaccine:
1 - Pregnant women
2 - Most children under 16

COVID-19: Who is being vaccinated first and who can't yet be immunised?

Age was the single most important factor, and everyone older than 50 will be vaccinated by the end of phase one.

news.sky.com

 

[Free]

The graph is part of the vaccine efficacy data submitted by Pfizer to the FDA. The blue line is number of COVID-19 cases over time for people who received the vaccine. The red line is the number of COVID cases over time for people who received a placebo (control). It looks like somewhere around day 10-14 the vaccine fully takes effect. After that, only a handful of infections occur to those vaccinated over the remainder of the test period.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Two suffer allergic reaction to Pfizer-Biontech Covid vaccine

People with a history of “significant” allergic reactions should not be given the new coronavirus vaccine, regulators have warned, after two NHS staff who received jabs yesterday became unwell.Both are recovering “after appropriate treatment”, health officials said, but the Medicines and Healthcare

www.thetimes.co.uk

People with a history of “significant” allergic reactions should not be given the new coronavirus vaccine, regulators have warned, after two NHS staff who received jabs yesterday became unwell.
Both are recovering “after appropriate treatment”, health officials confirmed, but the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said the Pfizer-Biontech jab should not be used for anyone with “a history of a significant allergic reaction to a vaccine, medicine or food” as a precaution while it investigates.
That will include anyone advised to carry an adrenaline autoinjector, such as an EpiPen.

Evernote link because paywall