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Mass immunization seen in mid-2021
GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) said it does not expect widespread immunization against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) until mid-2021, despite growing expectations in the United States, the most affected country, that a vaccine could be released in a few weeks.
The Geneva-based WHO also insisted it would never endorse a vaccine that has not been proven safe and effective, amid concerns over the rush to develop a vaccine for Covid-19.
The disease has killed nearly 870,000 people and infected more than 26 million people worldwide, as well as disrupting hundreds of millions of lives and wreaking havoc on the global economy.
The United Nations health agency welcomed the fact that a “considerable number” of candidate vaccines had entered end-stage trials, typically involving tens of thousands of people.
But “in terms of realistic schedules, we really don’t expect to see widespread vaccination until the middle of next year,” said WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris.
Russia has already approved a vaccine, and research published in the medical journal The Lancet on Friday said that patients involved in the first tests developed antibodies without “serious adverse events.”
But the scientists cautioned that the trials were too small (only 76 participants) to test safety and efficacy.
Washington also urged US states to prepare for a possible vaccine launch before November 1, raising concerns that President Donald Trump’s administration will rush to begin distributing a vaccine ahead of the US elections. November 3.
The United States has suffered the highest number of deaths and infections of any country in the world.
Under normal procedures, test administrators must wait months or years to verify that candidate vaccines are safe and effective. But there has been massive pressure to launch a vaccine quickly as the pandemic continues to take its toll.
Celebrities and public figures have not been spared, with the flamboyant former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi taken to hospital with the disease. The list also includes three Paris Saint-Germain footballers, including Brazilian star Neymar.
Also on the list are movie stars Tom Hanks and, more recently, Robert Pattinson, whom Hollywood trade publications said contracted the disease while filming the latest Batman movie in Britain.
Berlusconi spent the night in a Milan hospital where he is being treated for a lung infection, but where his condition is said to be “encouraging.”
The 83-year-old billionaire tested positive earlier this week after returning from a vacation on Sardinia’s luxurious Costa Smeralda. Around the world, businesses and individuals are counting the cost of the pandemic as outbreaks continue to force governments to impose restrictions.
France registered 8,975 new cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours, its highest daily number since the pandemic swept the country last March.
The spike comes as Paris and other cities have started requiring face masks in all public areas, including for children over 11 who returned to school this week.
The 46th Deauville American Film Festival in Normandy opened on Friday night with people wearing masks and physical distancing. But there were few, if any, American movie stars this year.
Even in areas where sidewalks have been eased, those who can work from home prefer to continue to do so rather than return to the office.
In normally bustling central London, restaurants that were once full of customers are suffering.
The government of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is trying to encourage people to return to office, but that is easier said than done.
Oil giant BP, which is cutting 10,000 jobs after the pandemic crushed energy demand and prices, actively encourages non-front-line personnel to work from home.
