Tag Archives: caribbean

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Vax Creator: ‘Next Pandemic Could Be More Lethal than Covid’

BBC News

Future pandemics could be more lethal than the current Covid crisis, one of the creators of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine has warned.

Prof Dame Sarah Gilbert, delivering the 44th Richard Dimbleby Lecture, said there needed to be more funding for pandemic preparedness to prevent the advances made from being lost.

She also warned vaccines could be less effective against the Omicron variant.

Dame Sarah added that people should be cautious until more was known about it.

She said: “This will not be the last time a virus threatens our lives and our livelihoods. The truth is, the next one could be worse. It could be more contagious, or more lethal, or both.

“We cannot allow a situation where we have gone through all we have gone through, and then find that the enormous economic losses we have sustained mean that there is still no funding for pandemic preparedness,” she added.

“The advances we have made, and the knowledge we have gained, must not be lost.”

Speaking about the Omicron variant, she said its spike protein contained mutations known to increase the transmissibility of the virus.

“But there are additional changes that may mean antibodies induced by the vaccines, or by infection with other variants, may be less effective at preventing infection with Omicron.

“Until we know more, we should be cautious, and take steps to slow down the spread of this new variant.”

However, Dame Sarah said reduced protection against infection and mild disease would not necessarily mean reduced protection against severe illness and death.

She also called for the rapid progress seen in delivering vaccines and medicines during the pandemic to become the norm.

There was no reason why a universal flu jab could not be developed in order to wipe out the threat from influenza, she said.

Is Omicron more harmful than other Covid variants?

Covid variants: Do we need new vaccines yet?

On Saturday, the government announced that travellers heading to the UK will now have to take a Covid test before their departure in an effort to limit spread of the Omicron.

From 04:00 GMT on Tuesday travellers aged 12 and over will be required to show proof of a negative PCR or lateral flow test taken no earlier than 48 hours before departure.

And Nigeria has now been added to the travel red list after a growing number of Omicron cases were linked to the country.

But a scientist advising the government said the travel rule changes were “a case of shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted”.

Prof Mark Woolhouse said the new rules had come too late to make a “material difference” to a potential wave of the Omicron variant in the UK.

Prof Woolhouse, a member of the government’s Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling (Spi-M), told the BBC’s Andrew Marr show that Omicron was “spreading pretty rapidly” in the UK, and if current trends here and in South Africa continued in the coming weeks and months, it could replace Delta as the world’s dominant strain.

The UK recorded 86 new cases of the Omicron variant on Sunday, taking the total so far to 246. In total, 43,992 cases and 54 deaths within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test were recorded on Sunday.

Daily summary graphic

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Brazil: Bolsonaro Under Investigation for Covid-AIDS Claim

(CNN) Brazil’s Supreme Court has ordered an investigation into President Jair Bolsonaro’s false claim that people who have been vaccinated against Covid-19 may have a higher risk of contracting AIDS.

Bolsonaro made the untruthful claims in a live video broadcast on multiple social media platforms in October. He was temporarily suspended from both Facebook and YouTube following the comments.

Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes launched the inquiry in response to a request by the country’s parliamentary commission which has been investigating Bolsonaro’s government’s response to the devastating Covid-19 pandemic, according to a statement posted from the court’s official Twitter account Friday.

Bolsonaro has been widely criticized at home and abroad for playing down the severity of the virus, including discouraging people to get vaccinated, despite Brazil battling one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the world.

The parliamentary commission has had access to documents that show the government ignored at least 81 vaccine offers from Pfizer in 2020.

Brazilian senators recommend Bolsonaro be charged with crimes against humanity over pandemic

According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS, Covid-19 vaccines approved by health regulators are safe for most people, including those living with HIV, the virus that causes the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome known as AIDS.

Bolsonaro is the only G20 President who claims not to have been vaccinated. Despite that, and Brazil’s delay in starting a vaccination program, 60% of the country’s population has been completely vaccinated, according to Brazil’s Ministry of Health.

Brazil registered 221 Covid-19 related deaths on Friday, according to the Ministry of Health. The country has recorded 615,400 Covid deaths since the start of the pandemic.

 

 

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Big Guns into Soca Monarch Finals

Now that the Elimination process is over, the stage has been cleared for what undoubtedly will be one of the most competitive Soca Monarch Competitions ever to be staged for the Sugar Mas carnival in St. Kitts & Nevis.

Given the high quality of music being offered by the artistes, many fans are already predicting that the Soca Monarch bacchanal will be one for the record books.

The final rosters, for the Groovy and Power categories, include some of the country’s top guns who have reserved their places in the grand final show, scheduled for Carnival Village on Thursday, 23rd December.

Former Groovy Soca Monarch, Nicha B, delivered a credible performance to close off the night on 295 points, taking an early lead, with his song, We Inna That.

Joining Nicha B in the Groovy Finals will be Ny Ny, (Big Batty Party-290 points); Jazbo & Tobap, (Want Back De Sugar-289 pts); KO, (Home Drum-284 pts); Blade, (Night & Day-271 pts); Mr. Hype, (Marry You-270 pts); Dejour, (Miss De Fete-260 pts).

The reigning Monarch is Rucas H.E.

The battle for supremacy in the Power Category will also see the clash of these top names. However, due to a tie for seventh place at the Eliminations, the Carnival Committee has decided to include both artistes. This means that the Power segment will have nine (9) finalists.

These include Tbone who picked up the most points on Saturday night, (296), to take bragging rights in the category, heading into the finals. His song was titled Task Force.

The finalists are:

  1. Tbone, (Task Force-296 pts)
  2. Hype, (Bubble-293 pts)
  3. Takeover & Infamus, (Golden Memories-289 pts)
  4. Pino & Blade, (Freedom Jungle-283 pts)
  5. KO (Mash Up-277 pts)
  6. Dejour (Alpha-265 pts)
  7. Barry C (Pushing On-261 pts)
  8. Stadics (Touch Down-261)
  9. Nicha B (254-Pts)

The reigning Power Soca King, Mr. Bagnal, who is currently overseas, will not be competing this year.

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Price of Being a Good Samaritan: COVAX Orders St. Vincent to Pay for Vaccines Donated to Trinidad

CMC – The worldwide initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines has ordered St. Vincent and the Grenadines to pay US$70,000 for COVID-19 vaccines that it donated to Trinidad and Tobago in May

Kingstown donated 5,000 doses of AstraZeneca to Port of Spain amidst a spike in cases there and the vaccines were at risk of expiring because of low uptake here.

However, Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves said on NBC Radio on Wednesday, that the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) said his government should have returned the vaccines instead of giving them away.

“COVAX said to us what we gave to Trinidad, we should not have done so, we should have given them back and they would give whoever they want. I think they had somewhere else they wanted to give them – not in the Caribbean. We gave them to Trinidad so we will have to pay for those. It’s about US$70,000,” he disclosed.

Gonsalves said that when his Trinidad counterpart, Dr Keith Rowley, heard about the development, the government offered to pay for the vaccines.

“I said, ‘No. No. No. No. No. We gave you.’ So we have to organise — I believe the payment has been made already, the US$70,000 to COVAX because if we are getting now through the US, I don’t want to have any indebtedness to COVAX…,” Gonsalves said.

“We are a people of solidarity; that’s how we function. Social solidarity, regionally, globally and nationally. Love thy neighbour as you love yourself. Trinidad has been very generous to us in many, many ways. I can’t give you that and ask you to pay for it. Absolutely not. That ain’t how we stop. We nah stop so,” the Prime Minister insisted.

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Wake up and smell the Chow Mein

By Sir Ronald Sanders 

(The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the U.S. and the OAS.  He is also a senior fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and at Massey College in the University of Toronto.   The view expressed are entirely his own) 

A television interviewer asked me if I thought Caribbean countries, and other developing territories, would benefit from the ‘war for influence’ that the European Union (EU) has launched against the People’s Republic of China.

He was referring to the announcement by the EU Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, that the EU will launch “Global Gateway”, a scheme to compete with China’s “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI) that has been in place since the end of 2013.

The Commission President did not try to hide that the EU’s Global Gateway is aimed at trying to stop China’s spread around the world, and its growing influence as the major creditor to more than 60 developing countries on every continent.

“We want to create links and not dependence”, she said – an allusion to the claim by the G7 countries (the rich nations of the West), that China is indebting developing countries so as to control them.

What is striking about this new rivalry to lend money to developing countries is that it has arisen not in response to the needs of these countries for economic advancement and social improvement, but from big power rivalry for influence in their own interest.

Nonetheless, should the contest, between richer countries, result in the availability of more money to fund growth and prosperity in developing nations, it should be welcomed. Not only would it produce a larger global pot of money, but it will allow developing nations to accept loans from the rival providers that offer the best terms.

The EU has started late in this race, and the sums that it is suggesting are less than half of the $1.2 trillion that China has already put on the table for 13,000 projects in 63 countries.  The EU Commission said it will “seek” to mobilize $340 billion by 2027 (six years from now) and from a combination of public investment and, as yet unsecured, private investment.  What the EU appears to be sure of is $40 billion in export guarantees to European private investors and around $18 billion in grants.

The EU has pointed out that it has been providing “grants” while China has been providing “loans”.  But in truth the repayment terms of the Chinese loans are concessionary and affordable.  Further, they are used mostly for infrastructure projects that developing countries need, whereas EU grants are highly conditional and take very long to disburse.

Added to all this, while the EU’s “Global Gateway” was launched with much fanfare, its draft plan does not contain a list of projects it will undertake immediately.  Nor does it say to which countries.

Significantly, absent also, is any indication of if the EU will drop its criterion of low per capita income as a qualifier for access to the “Global Gateway”.  So-called middle-income and high-income countries have long been disqualified for access to grants and concessionary loans from the EU, except in disastrous situations.  The development of many Caribbean countries is measured by this flawed criterion.

Perhaps at some point that EU will actually have a serious discussion with regional groups of developing countries about their real needs and how best the EU can help – particularly as several of its members have a sad legacy of underdevelopment across every continent.   Among the EU members are France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Belgium and Germany.  The UK is omitted from this list since “Global Gateway” is a EU project and the UK is no longer a EU member.

The bottom line is that, if this EU-China rivalry, coupled with the G7’s “Build Back Better World” – also an effort to compete with China and halt what is seen as its global influence – produces more money for developing nations, including the Caribbean, it would signal the start of a new world.   That would be especially so, if developing countries can choose the options best suited to them, and not to the lenders.   In this way, they could retain their autonomy from all lenders, spreading their exposure and seeking the best terms possible.

However, right now – especially as the global financial institutions such as the IMF and World Bank – still reflect the policies of G7 countries, China remains the lender of choice.

The G7 and leading members of the EU who built their economies on the backs of developing countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean should wake up and smell the Chow Mein.  It is everywhere.

Response and previous commentaries: www.sirronaldsanders.com

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WORLD VIEW: W.H.O.-Treat Omicron like Delta, Racism at West Point, Macron’s UAE Deal, Baldwin Shooting, More

Dec 03, 2021

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Good morning. Here is today’s selection of top stories from The Associated Press at this hour to begin the U.S. day.

 

The Rundown

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MANILA, Philippines (AP) — World Health Organization officials in the Western Pacific say border closures adopted by some countries may buy time to deal with the omicron coronavirus variant, but measures put in place and experience gained in dealing…Read More

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Eight years after he graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Geoffrey Easterling remains astonished by the Confederate history still memorialized on the storied academy’s campus – the six-foot-tall painting of Confederate Gen. …Read More

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WASHINGTON (AP) — During his confirmation to the Supreme Court, Brett Kavanaugh convinced Sen. Susan Collins that he thought a woman’s right to an abortion was “settled law,” calling the court cases affirming it “precedent on precedent” that could …Read More

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NICE, France (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting the energy-rich Persian Gulf Friday, hoping to seal a major arms contract after this fall’s Australian submarine deal debacle and to strengthen France’s role in the region. …Read More

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While all eyes are on the new and little-understood omicron variant, the delta form of the coronavirus isn’t finished wreaking havoc in the U.S., sending record numbers of patients to the hospital in the Midwest and New England….Read More

OTHER TOP STORIES

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Alec Baldwin said he feels incredible sadness and regret over the shooting that killed a cinematographer on a New Mexico film set, but not guilt….Read More

BEIJING (AP) — China and the United States are tussling over President Joe Biden’s upcoming democracy summit, which the ruling Communist Party sees as a challenge to its…Read More

PORTSMOUTH, R.I. (AP) — A Rhode Island man involved in a legal tussle with the town of Portsmouth earlier this year over signs on his property critical of town officials…Read More

OXFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — A teenager accused of killing four students at a Michigan high school was called to the office before the shooting but “no discipline was w…Read More

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Omicron: SKN Won’t Place Travel Ban on African Countries- Yet

BASSETERRE – The St Kitts-Nevis government says it will not follow other Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries and impose a travel ban on several African countries following the discovery of a new variant of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in South Africa over the past few days.Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris told Parliament on Wednesday that his administration would follow the advice given by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to not impose any travel restrictions on South Africa where the new variant of the COVID-19 virus, now called Omicron, was first reported.

Prime Minister Harris said that while some countries have imposed travel bans on South Africa and other southern African countries to keep the Omicron variant out, the new strain has already been confirmed in other countries.

“The WHO does not support travel bans at this particular time and it has advised that the travel bans that are in place are unlikely to stop the spread of the variant. Of course, we see that although it was reported in South Africa, it has now found itself elsewhere and it has been reported in at least 22 other countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom.”

With Omicron being designated a variant of concern, the WHO has issued a number of recommendations to the global community, which includes enhancing surveillance.

Several CARICOM countries, including Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and the Bahamas, have joined the United Kingdom, the United States and others in imposing a travel ban on passengers coming from several African countries including South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

But Prime Minister Harris told legislators, “our health team has advised that it is not necessary at this time to impose a travel ban on South Africa or on the South African countries.

“We will follow what the WHO prescribed in place of travel bans. The WHO has recommended that countries continue to implement the effective public health measures to reduce COVID-19 circulation overall, using a risk analysis and science-based approach. Further, countries should increase their public health and medical capacities to manage an increase in the cases,” Harris told Parliament.

He said local authorities would continue the necessary public health measures that have kept citizens and residents safe and will continue to promote the country’s vaccination programme.

“We want to encourage everyone who is able to, to get himself or herself vaccinated. We want to repeat our appeal to those who are on the frontline, our nurses, our doctors, our police officers, those in the Defence Force, in fact, anyone whether in public or private sector engaged in frontline activity, however defined, they are at the risk being in the frontline and therefore we advise that they protect themselves as much as possible, and the best tool in this fight against a virus that killed millions of people is the vaccine,” said Prime Minister Harris.

St Kitts-Nevis has recorded 28 deaths and 2 786 infections from COVID-19 since the first case was detected here in March last year. (CMC)

 

 

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Colombia Seizes Hundreds of Arachnids Being Illegally Smuggled to Europe

 

BOGOTA, Dec 2 (Reuters) – Colombian authorities seized hundreds of creepy crawlies as they were being taken illegally to Europe via the airport in capital city Bogota, officials said on Thursday.

Two Germans were found with 210 plastic containers they were using to carry the arachnids, which included 232 tarantula spiders, nine spider eggs and a scorpion with seven of its young, as well as 67 roaches.

Colombia, which is one of the world’s 17 mega-diverse countries and boasts tens of thousands of different species, is a target for wildlife traffickers drawn by its biodiversity.

More than 11,000 specimens have been seized during 2021 so far, officials said.

“We haven’t had a shipment of tarantulas this size since 2018 (and) the largest we have had this year was shark fins,” Bogota’s environment secretary, Carolina Urrutia, said in a statement.

In September Colombian authorities confiscated a shipment of 3,493 shark fins – equivalent to between 900 and 1,000 sharks – which were to be illegally trafficked to Hong Kong.

The would-be German traffickers argued that they were shipping the spiders, scorpions and cockroaches for academic reasons but authorities said they did not have the permits to do so.

The animals are being examined by professionals, officials said, who will later decide whether to free or relocate them.

Reporting by Herbert Villarraga and Oliver Griffin; Editing by Mark Porter

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‘A Dark Day’-Trump’s Remain in Mexico Policy Restored by Court Order

US human rights groups have criticised the reinstatement of a Trump-era policy requiring asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while claims are processed.

The American Immigration Council said it was a dark day for the US and the rule of law.

US President Joe Biden had suspended the policy, calling it “inhumane”, but was ordered by courts to resume it.

Under the policy, thousands of migrants were forced to stay in dangerous conditions on the Mexican border.

But Republicans have welcomed the decision as a way to restore order in the border regions.

Mexico has now agreed to accept the policy, known as Remain in Mexico, in exchange for concessions such as a shorter turnaround time for asylum decisions and a US-Mexico development programme for Central America.

Mr Biden’s administration has kept up one other major Trump-era border policy: Title 42, which allows for the quick expulsion of migrants on public health grounds.

Why is Remain in Mexico back?

Former US President Donald Trump introduced the programme, then known as the Migrant Protection Protocols, to send more than 60,000 asylum applicants back to Mexico.

Migrants were often left waiting in Mexico for months, where they sometimes fell prey to criminal gangs.

According to charity Human Rights First, there have been more than 1,500 publicly reported cases of kidnapping, rape, torture and other abuses against migrants returned to Mexico.

Mr Biden suspended the programme almost immediately after taking office, as part of a campaign pledge to reverse hardline immigration policies enacted by his predecessor.

In June, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas terminated the policy.

But in August, a federal court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a Trump appointee, ruled that the policy had been improperly cancelled.

The Biden administration is appealing against the decision.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Thursday that the president stood by past remarks about the “unjustified human costs” of the programme.

“But we also believe in following the law,” she said.

The policy has been revamped to address Mexico’s concerns, including to limit time spent for each asylum application to six months.

Implementation is expected to begin next week at ports of entry in Texas and California.

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What does Mexico have to gain?

Analysis box by Will Grant, Mexico and Central America correspondent

Immigration has again proven to be the main prism through which Washington views its relationship with Mexico.

It seems the numbers of people arriving at the US southern border – and the effect that is having on President Biden’s standing in the polls – has meant the administration is happy enough to reinstate the law – albeit having been ordered to do so by the courts.

Yet one might well as ask what Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has to gain by agreeing to carry out his side of the policy, namely accepting thousands of asylum-seekers into Mexican border towns to await their day in a US court. On the surface, he has added a more humanitarian veneer to the policy, tying down a timeline of 180 days in which asylum cases should be heard and development funds for Central America under the name “Planting Opportunities”. But in reality, this is a political risk he can afford to take.

With asylum seekers likely to be living again in precarious conditions in dangerous border towns, the Mexican president may be considering that migrants will have less incentive to travel north. And in the meantime, he has undoubtedly created some useful leverage with President Biden in other areas.

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‘A dark day’

The move was condemned by pro-immigration groups and lawmakers from Mr Biden’s own Democratic party.

In a statement, American Immigration Council policy director Jorge Loweree rejected the Biden team’s “claims that it can administer the Remain in Mexico program in a more humane manner”, adding: “Today is a dark day for the United States and for the rule of law.”

By expanding the programme to include any migrants from the western hemisphere – including non-Spanish speaking groups such as Haitians – Mr Biden had “made the programme even broader than under Trump”, the group said.

The UNHCR, the United Nations refugee agency, also condemned the move and refused to help implement the policy.

But Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy welcomed the programme’s reinstatement.

“It is unfortunate that it took litigation to force the Biden administration’s hand to apply this common-sense measure,” he said.

US-Mexico border crossing graphic

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said the resumption would lead to “horrific abuse, including torture, rape, and death”.

Texas Democratic Congresswoman Veronica Escobar told The Hill newspaper that the policy “erodes our values as a country” and is “a violation of asylum processing”.

She called for the White House to aggressively fight the order in court, and criticised Mr Biden for not having fixed the system after nearly a year in office.

Democratic Senator Bob Menendez urged Mr Biden to “make every effort” to overturn “this xenophobic and anti-immigrant policy for good”.

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Boosters Work, Biden’s COVID-19 Game Plan, Summary, World Stats

Covid booster shots significantly strengthen immunity, trial finds

Jabs offer far higher protection than that needed to prevent hospitalisation and death, Cov-Boost trial lead saysThe findings show that both Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines are highly effective boosters.

The findings show that both Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines are highly effective boosters. Photograph: Leon Neal/Getty Images

Covid booster shots can d

ramatically strengthen the body’s immune defences, according to a study that raises hopes of preventing another wave of severe disease driven by the Omicron variant.

In a study published in the Lancet, researchers on the UK-based Cov-Boost trial measured immune responses in nearly 3,000 people who received one of seven Covid-19 boosters or a control jab two to three months after their second dose of either AstraZeneca or Pfizer vaccine.

Those boosted with Pfizer after two doses of AstraZeneca had antibody levels a month later nearly 25 times higher than controls. When the Pfizer booster was given following two Pfizer shots, antibody levels rose more than eightfold.

The most potent booster in the study was a full dose of the Moderna vaccine, which raised antibody levels 32-fold in the AstraZeneca group and 11-fold in the Pfizer group. When Moderna is used in the UK booster programme, it is given at a half-dose.

While the findings show that both Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines are highly effective boosters, scientists cautioned about comparing their performance as people started with different antibody levels. For example, antibody levels tend to remain high a few months after a Pfizer vaccination, so a booster would not be able to drive them much higher.

“These are remarkably effective immunological boosters, way above what is needed to prevent hospitalisation and death,” said Prof Saul Faust, the trial lead and director of the NIHR clinical research facility at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust. While side-effects varied, most people who reported them had fatigue, headache or arm pain and the study found no safety concerns.

Beyond antibodies, the scientists looked at the impact of boosters on T-cells – another crucial component of the immune system linked with the prevention of severe disease. Most of the boosters, including Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca, increased T-cell levels regardless of the vaccine people had for their first two doses.

One result that has caught scientists’ attention is that the T-cell response was as good against the Beta and Delta variants of concern as against the original virus that emerged from Wuhan. Asked if the finding might be relevant to the Omicron variant, Faust said: “Our hope as scientists is that protection against hospitalisation and death will remain intact.”

Jonathan Ball, professor of molecular virology at the University of Nottingham, who was not involved in the study, shared Faust’s optimism.

“Whilst variants, such as the Delta variant, reduced the overall virus-killing effect of antibodies, the T-cell responses were pretty much unaffected,” he said. “The fact that the mRNA vaccine boosts gave a marked increase in both antibodies and T-cells is great news, especially now, when our attention has been grabbed by the emergence of the Omicron variant.

Boris Johnson switches on Christmas lights at No 10
Covid: Javid says snog who you like under mistletoe, contradicting Coffey

“We still don’t know how this increase in immunity translates into protection, especially against serious disease, but I am still convinced that our vaccines will continue to provide the protection that we need.”

Early results from the Cov-Boost study underpinned the decision by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to shorten the time people had to wait for a booster from six to three months. The study found AstraZeneca to be an effective booster too, raising antibody levels three and five times after primary vaccination with AstraZeneca and Pfizer respectively.

Further results from the study suggest that booster programmes could switch to half-doses of the Pfizer vaccine without losing much protection. The data shows that half-doses of Pfizer boosted antibody levels in the AstraZeneca group nearly 17 times and more than six times in those who had Pfizer for their first two shots.

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Biden Lays Out Winter Covid Game Plan

President Biden has laid out a multi-pronged plan to confront the delta and emerging omicron variants of the coronavirus that includes an expansion of at-home diagnostic tests, stricter testing rules for international travelers and new efforts to encourage vaccines and boosters.

During a speech at the National Institutes of Health, the president also sought to brace the public for a rise in COVID-19 cases this winter, urging those eligible to get their vaccine booster shots even as he showed optimism about the country’s continued efforts against the virus.

“My plan I am announcing today pulls no punches in the fight against COVID-19 and it’s a plan that I think should unite us,” Biden said. “I know COVID-19 has been very divisive in this country. It’s become a political issue, which is a sad, sad, commentary. It shouldn’t be.”

Biden reiterated that the new variant is “cause for concern but not panic” and pledged to fight it “with science and speed, not chaos and confusion.”

The Biden administration early next week will put in motion a new policy for international travelers to test negative for COVID-19 within 24 hours of boarding flights to the U.S., rather than the current policy of within three days.

The administration has held off on implementing vaccine or testing requirements for domestic flights, though officials maintain that it and other steps are not “off the table.”

The Transportation Security Administration is also extending its mask mandate for flights, trains and public transit until March 18.

As part of Biden’s plan, the administration will also move to allow Americans with private health insurance to seek reimbursement for at-home COVID-19 diagnostic tests. The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and the Treasury will issue guidance by Jan. 15 on the new rule.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that additional details would be available in January that will shed light on when Americans can expect to get reimbursed for the tests and whether the costs would ultimately be covered by the government or the insurers.

The White House is also launching hundreds of family vaccination clinics and rolling out a new public education campaign to reach seniors who haven’t gotten their booster shots, as part of an effort to increase the uptake of vaccinations and booster shots.

In his Thursday speech, Biden called on private companies to offer workers paid time off so they can get their booster dose.

The new measures come as Biden’s vaccine mandates for private companies and healthcare workers have been stalled amid legal challenges.

“While my existing federal vaccination requirements are being reviewed by the courts, this plan does not expand or add to those mandates,” Biden said, calling it “a plan that all Americans can hopefully rally around.”

Despite his plea for unity, neither the emergence of the omicron variant nor the new White House steps to address it have shown signs of unifying the country. There are partisan divides on masks and vaccinations and Republicans have attacked Biden over his vaccine mandate for businesses.

Two cases of omicron had been detected in the U.S. — one in California and the other in Minnesota — at the time of Biden’s speech. A third was disclosed in Colorado shortly thereafter. While little is known about the new variant, first identified in southern Africa, health experts believe it has the potential to be more transmissible and that the vaccines could offer less protection against it.

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US confirms at least three omicron cases

© (Associated Press photo/David Zalubowski)

Minnesota and Colorado confirmed the country’s second and third COVID-19 cases involving the omicron strain, one day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified the first in California.

The second was detected in someone from Minnesota, whose only recent travel had been to a convention in New York City. He developed symptoms on Nov. 22, a full week before the travel ban took effect, an indicator that the strain was already circulating in the U.S.

The third was found in Colorado, in a person who traveled throughout Africa and returned to the U.S. late last week.

All three individuals were fully vaccinated and endured only mild symptoms.

“While this is clearly something to take seriously … it is not a reason to panic,” Minnesota Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said during a press conference.

Though no cases of omicron have been confirmed in New York, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) said on Thursday that people should assume the variant is already present in the city.

Important to note: Since omicron’s emergence, health experts have stated that it is still unclear how well the strain evades immunity offered by currently available COVID-19 vaccines. Numerous vaccine developers have hypothesized that oral COVID-19 treatments and booster shots should be effective against the variant.

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What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

A person exits a train at Westminster Underground station during morning rush hour, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in London, Britain, December 1, 2021. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/file photo
People pull shopping carts as they walk past an information board, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Bolton, Britain, June 16, 2021. REUTERS/Phil Noble
People wearing protective masks walk on a street, following new cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Shanghai, China, November 24, 2021. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo

People pull shopping carts as they walk past an information board, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Bolton, Britain, June 16, 2021. REUTERS/Phil Noble

Omicron marches on as Biden prepares U.S. for grim winter

Australia, despite restrictions on international visitors, became the latest country on Friday to report community transmission of Omicron, a day after the coronavirus variant was found locally in five U.S. states.

U.S. President Joe Biden warned on Thursday that infections will rise during the northern-hemisphere winter and the European Union’s public health agency said Omicron could account for more than half of all infections in Europe within months. read more

New U.S. international travel testing rules take effect Monday

New rules requiring international air travellers arriving in the United States to obtain a negative COVID-19 test within one day of travel will take effect Monday at 12:01 a.m. ET (0501 GMT), according to an order issued late Thursday.

The administration is considering whether to grant temporary exemptions for about two dozen countries where access to same-day testing is limited, but the details are still being finalized, the sources added. Those exemptions could last for only about a week and are expected to be detailed on Friday. read more

Novavax says it could start making Omicron-specific vaccine in January

Novavax Inc said on Thursday it could begin commercial manufacturing of a COVID-19 vaccine tailored for the Omicron coronavirus variant in January next year, while it tests whether or not its current vaccine works against the variant.

Laboratory data expected in the coming weeks will show whether antibodies from individuals who have previously received Novavax’s COVID-19 shot can neutralize the variant, according to the company. Novavax also said it has started developing an Omicron-specific spike protein antigen and will begin laboratory tests of a new vaccine to target the variant in a few weeks. read more

China easing rules for US business travellers, approvals in 10 days

China will cut to no more than 10 days the time required for approval of travel by U.S. business executives, its ambassador to the United States said on Thursday, promising to turn “an attentive ear” to concerns raised by businesses.

Qin Gang, who arrived in the United States in July, told a dinner hosted by the US-China Business Council that Beijing would also work to make COVID-19 testing more convenient and allow executives to work during quarantine. Qin said Beijing would share its specific workplan “very soon” with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. read more

Nightclubs, cafes and casinos reopen in Auckland

Aucklanders returned to nightclubs, cinemas and cafes on Friday as New Zealand’s biggest city exited pandemic lockdown after more than 100 days. Retailers threw open their doors to vaccinated customers as the country ended lockdowns and moved into a new ‘traffic light system’ that rates regions as red, orange or green depending on their level of exposure to COVID-19 and vaccination rates.

Auckland, the epicentre of the country’s Delta outbreak, will start at red, making face masks mandatory and putting limits on gatherings in public places. Bars, nightclubs and restaurants can open to guests with vaccine certificates but with a limit of 100 people and 1 metre social distancing. Outdoor events are allowed. read more

UK study finds mRNA vaccines provide biggest booster impact

COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna that use mRNA technology provide the biggest boost to antibody levels when given 10-12 weeks after the second dose, a British study published on Thursday has found.

When AstraZeneca, Novavax, Johnson & Johnson and Curevac were given as boosters, they increased antibody levels for either initial vaccine, albeit to a smaller degree. However, while Valneva boosted antibodies in people initially vaccinated with AstraZeneca, it did not provide a boost for Pfizer. The study found that booster shots also helped to generate a broad T-cell response against the Beta and Delta variants, which may play a key role in longer-term protection. read more

Compiled by Karishma Singh; Editing by Kim Coghill
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WORLD STATS

Coronavirus Cases:

264,609,618

Deaths:

5,253,114

Recovered:

238,626,255
Highlighted in green
= all cases have recovered from the infection
Highlighted in grey
= all cases have had an outcome (there are no active cases)

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Latest News

December 3 (GMT)

Updates

  • 26,965 new cases and 470 new deaths in Poland [source]
  • 541 new cases and 4 new deaths in Libya [source]
  • 32,930 new cases and 1,217 new deaths in Russia [source]
  • 3,146 new cases and 287 new deaths in Mexico [source]

The post Boosters Work, Biden’s COVID-19 Game Plan, Summary, World Stats appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.