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The Astra Zeneca corona vaccine manufactured in the EU is not expected to leave Europe at this time. “We have the tools and we will ensure that everything stays in Europe until the company fulfills its commitments again,” EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton announced on Friday.
The British-Swedish group is accused of breaching supply agreements with the EU. The company has drastically reduced its deliveries due to production delays. “I just remind you that we expected 120 million cans in the first quarter and we ended up getting 30 million,” said Breton, referring to the first quarter of 2021. “So we had a problem with this company.”
On Wednesday, the EU strengthened its surveillance of coronavirus vaccine exports and gained more opportunities to block deliveries to countries that have higher vaccination rates, such as the United Kingdom, or that do not leave the vaccine doses produced out of the country. in each country.
Breton commented on a visit to the pharmaceutical company Reig Jofre in Barcelona, which is due to fill the Johnson & Johnson vaccine from mid-June. Europe should be the world leader in the production of coronavirus vaccines by the end of the year, Breton said. 52 production plants are involved in the process across the continent. In the summer, possibly mid-July, the EU could have vaccinated enough people to achieve “global immunity”.
Norway continues to suspend vaccines with Astra Zeneca
Norway does not want to reuse the vaccine from the Swedish-British manufacturer Astra Zeneca at the moment. “There is still great uncertainty about possible serious side effects,” he said in a message from health authority Folkehelseinstitutt FHI on Friday. “The FHI believes that more time should be spent gaining more knowledge about these serious incidents.” The FHI emphasized that the decision was based on incidents in Norway.
Like many other countries, Norway had stopped taking the drug two weeks ago because some people who had been vaccinated had developed blood clots. Four people have now died in Norway after being vaccinated. A direct connection has not been tested yet. A national group of experts is now investigating the cases, he said. They also work closely with neighboring countries.
Denmark extended the suspension of vaccines with the Astra-Zeneca preparation for three weeks on Thursday. In Iceland, Finland, and Sweden, the vaccine is only given to the elderly because there have been no serious side effects in this age group.
In Norway, the number of infected people has increased rapidly in recent weeks and the incidence is higher than in Germany. The capital city of Oslo is the most affected with almost 600 infected per 100,000 inhabitants in 14 days.
Biontech / Pfizer review vaccine in younger children
Biontech and Pfizer have begun studies on the effectiveness and safety of their corona vaccine in children up to and including eleven years old. So far, the vaccine that the Mainz-based company developed together with the American manufacturer has been conditionally approved for young people aged 16 and over. Studies are already underway for the age group 12 to 16 years. Now, children from the age of six months are also included in the studies, as reported by a Biontech spokeswoman from the German Press Agency.
“Younger children, who make up a large portion of the world’s population, play a crucial role in our fight against Covid-19,” the company said. If the studies are successful and regulatory authorities approve the product, the companies estimate that the vaccine could be available to younger children by early 2022.
Other vaccine manufacturers have also started studies in children. According to the Research Medicines Manufacturers Association (vfa), this is one of the requirements of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which are linked to conditional approvals for adults. Manufacturers generally work their way down to smaller and smaller children by age group.
The first subjects under the age of eleven were vaccinated Thursday, Pfizer and Biontech reported Friday. This is part of ongoing phase one, two, and three trials to review the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of the Pfizer / Biontech BNT162b2 vaccine.
Healthy children between six months and eleven years of age would be included. According to the information, two thirds of the subjects will receive the real vaccine, one third a placebo. About 4,500 children between the ages of eleven and six months from the United States and Europe are expected to participate.
Phase one is all about the correct dosage. To do this, children are divided into three age groups: five to ten years, two to five years and under two years. The older group starts, initially with 144 participants, then the younger groups must follow step by step. In phases two and three, the safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of the dose of vaccine determined for the individual age groups is checked.
The vaccine has been tested in children between the ages of twelve and 15 as part of phase three since fall 2020. 2,259 children in this age group are reported to be participating. The data is promising and should be released soon.
According to the Paul Ehrlich Institute, vaccines can only be approved for those age groups for which efficacy and safety data are available from clinical trials. In this case, the existing approval would be extended to the youngest through a so-called change notification.
Brazil reports more than 100,000 new infections
Brazil reports more than 100,000 new infections, more than ever. The number of deaths increased by 2,777, the Health Ministry announced on Thursday. The record number comes a day after Brazil surpassed 300,000 deaths from the pandemic. This makes the country the second highest death toll in the world after the United States.
Given the growing number of infections in Brazil, Mexico and Chile, Argentina is stopping flights from these countries. Starting Saturday, air connections with the three states would be cut until further notice, state news agency Telam reported, citing government circles on Thursday.
The Argentine government recently asked the citizens of the South American country to refrain from traveling abroad. Returnees must be quarantined for at least ten days. Those who test positive for Corona upon entry must move into a hotel at their own expense during the period of isolation.
In Argentina, around 2.3 million people have been shown to have been infected with the coronavirus and around 55,000 patients have died in relation to Covid-19. With autumn approaching in the southern hemisphere, authorities are currently preparing for the second crown wave.
Austria decides on a tough Easter blockade for Vienna and other regions
In Vienna and other eastern regions of Austria, crown measures tighten around the Easter holidays. A short “Easter break” is necessary to avoid an imminent overload of clinics in the capital and in Lower Austria and Burgenland, said Health Minister Rudolf Anschober (Greens).
The seven-day incidence in the eastern federal states is nearly 300, well above the Austrian average of around 247. That has to do with the strong spread of the British variant of the virus, which also leads to serious Covid illnesses. more quickly, Shooting in told reporters.
That is why a “breakwater” against the pandemic is now necessary. “We really want to massively exhaust operations in this phase of Easter,” said the minister. Merchants, hairdressers and masseurs are closed from Holy Thursday until the Tuesday after Easter. Businesses for daily needs are excluded, Anschober announced after lengthy negotiations with the heads of government of the three federal states. Unlike in Germany, shops and businesses in Austria usually open on Good Friday. Also, people should only go out for walks, sports and urgent trips during the holidays.
Schools will switch to online teaching for a week after Easter. In addition, the mask requirement is reinforced in businesses and in crowded outdoor places. Travelers from neighboring countries to the east, such as the Czech Republic and Hungary, have to submit two instead of one negative test per week.
The Austrian government closely followed the withdrawal of the German Crown’s Easter break by Chancellor Angela Merkel, the German press agency learned from informed circles. However, it was finally decided to tighten the rules. The situation in intensive care units was an important argument. In Vienna and Lower Austria, more than half of the beds intended for Covid 19 patients are already occupied in intensive care units. Burgenland is approaching the two-thirds mark.
Before the decision, Austria’s trade association criticized the leaked plans. Closed days cost jobs, but they don’t prevent infections, association chief Rainer Will said. “The only company that would benefit greatly from this and that can look forward to an early Easter present is Amazon.”
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