[ad_1]
The Astra-Zeneca vaccine is also said to protect against the spread
In addition to fear of long-term negative consequences and interference with limb, vaccination skeptics among caregivers also repeatedly hear another argument: the corona vaccine has not been shown to prevent the virus from spreading to others.
But it is precisely at this point that there is hopeful news from the vaccine manufacturer Astra-Zeneca and the University of Oxford. Your product is likely to actually reduce the likelihood of transmission to third parties. This is the conclusion of a new study.
More than 60,000 dead in Spain
In Spain, which was heavily affected by the pandemic, the death toll has exceeded 60,000. The Ministry of Health announced this Wednesday in Madrid that 565 people died with Covid-19 in 24 hours, raising the total number of victims to 60,370. According to official information, the number of detected infections increased by more than 31,000 to just under 2.9 million.
But there was also good news for the 47 million inhabitants: the number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants in seven days has been steadily declining for a week due to sometimes very strict restrictions on freedom of movement and assembly. On Wednesday it fell to 329.
Czech Republic: more than a million cases of corona
In the Czech Republic, the number of corona infections detected since the beginning of the pandemic has exceeded the threshold of one million. That corresponds to almost one in ten inhabitants. In 24 hours, 9057 new cases were added, according to data from the Ministry of Health in Prague. A total of 16,683 people who were verifiably infected with the Sars-CoV-2 virus have died so far. The EU member state has around 10.7 million inhabitants.
The situation in the western administrative region around Karlsbad (Karlovy Vary) is particularly tense. There was not a single intensive care bed left for Covid 19 patients. Interior Minister Jan Hamacek announced that police helicopters will now also be used to transfer patients to other parts of the country. The health system is busy, easing or ending the emergency is not yet possible, said the Social Democrat.
Secretary of the Treasury of the United States for aid of one trillion crown
US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen is campaigning for the full implementation of the aid package planned to overcome the $ 1.9 trillion crown crisis. The project is absolutely necessary, Yellen said after a conference call with mayors from both Republicans and President Joe Biden’s Democrats.
He proposed the package, but Republicans want to spend $ 618 billion less. “The benefits of acting now and comprehensively will far outweigh the long-term costs,” explains Yellen, according to his ministry.
The soul of Basel carnival is boiling
After local broadcaster Telebasel made it public Tuesday that no banks of schnitzel would be recorded or shown on television this year, the air is bad, also on social media.
The Basel health department informed the broadcaster in writing that such appearances, even if they take place without a hearing, are not allowed. Due to the pandemic, there is currently a ban on singing in the non-professional sector in Switzerland.
EU Video Summit at the end of February
Council President Charles Michel has scheduled another EU video summit on the corona pandemic and foreign policy issues for the end of February. On February 25, the EU heads of state and government will initially discuss the coordination of measures against Covid-19 online, and then on February 26 in an additional video conference on foreign policy. Michel’s spokesman announced this Wednesday night on Twitter.
EMA is testing Novavax’s corona vaccine
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has started a trial procedure for another corona vaccine. Based on the first results of laboratory tests and clinical studies of the American manufacturer Novavax, the so-called continuous review process has been initiated, as announced by the EMA. According to the procedure, the data and the results of the studies are already evaluated before a formal application for approval has been made. This significantly shortens the process.
“Pandemic within the pandemic”
According to Health Minister Alain Berset, Switzerland is in a situation similar to that of early October, when the number of cases doubled every week: “From five to six weeks ago, cases of mutated variants have doubled every week, “said the Minister of Health at today’s press conference. If you missed this in the afternoon, you can read the most important statements from the Federal Council and the BAG in our article.
Massive tests in Baselland reveal four new corona cases
As part of a mass test of elementary school students and teachers in Niederdorf BL, four other people tested positive for the coronavirus, three of them with a mutated variant of the virus. A teacher and three children from two kindergartens are affected.
The focus of contagion may be limited to the two kindergarten classes, as the cantonal crisis team announced on Wednesday. These two classes have been in quarantine since January 27.
Swiss Post is feeling the online boom and wants to invest in IT
In the ‘crown year’ 2020, Swiss Post experienced an increase in digitization and wants to expand IT even further. The Neuchâtel and Bellinzona locations should also benefit from this. As a result of pandemic-related restrictions such as store and home office closings, the Swiss Post experienced a package boom last year, online access quadrupled, and many more video conferencing.
With around 1,700 IT employees, Swiss Post has one of the largest IT departments of its kind in Switzerland. Now he wants to consciously focus on quality, security and trust, as Wolfgang Eger, Swiss Post’s Director of IT / Technology since 2019, explained in a video press conference on Wednesday. He wanted to get him out of his shadowy existence, he had previously been underestimated.
Hundreds of people at the Australian Open in isolation
After a crown case at a player’s hotel for the Australian Open in Melbourne, participants, officials and employees must go into home isolation. There are a total of 500 to 600 affected people who had to isolate themselves on Wednesday. Victoria authorities announced. The names of those affected were not mentioned.
Then the organizers canceled all the games of the 6 preparatory tournaments on Thursday. Friday’s schedule will be posted at a later date. The implementation of the Australian Open is apparently not at risk.
WEF in Singapore only in August
The 2021 World Economic Forum in Singapore will take place August 17-20, according to organizers. Actually, the WEF was scheduled for May 25 and 28. Although the World Economic Forum and the Singapore government remain confident that steps have been taken to ensure a safe and efficient meeting and that local transmission of COVID-19 in Singapore remains negligible, the change in date of the meeting reflects international challenges. to contain the pandemic, write to those responsible.
Current global travel restrictions would have made it difficult to plan a face-to-face meeting in the first half of the year. Additionally, different quarantine and air transport regulations have increased the wait time required to ensure that participants from around the world can make arrangements to participate, according to a press release.
Lower threshold for hardship cases in the canton of Bern
The Berne Governing Council makes it easy for companies with accounting branches to access financial distress assistance: they are companies with several companies. They can file a hardship claim for part of their business (“division”). The novelty is that the affected division no longer has to contribute 50% of the company’s sales, but only 25%. Thanks to this reduction, according to the government, companies that have not previously met the necessary criteria can now also be supported. This amendment to the regulation is helping to ensure the survival of these companies and the jobs that accompany them.
As of noon on Wednesday, February 3, 2021, 371 applications for financial hardship had been submitted in the canton of Bern, all of which were registered and included in the assessment. Of these, 113 applications could be decided; 100 applications were positively evaluated. The guaranteed contributions for these positively evaluated applications amount to 5.91 million francs.
The press conference ended
With the words of Nora Kronig, the press conference comes to an end. Thanks for your attention. In srf.ch, in the news app and here in the live ticker, you will stay informed about the coronavirus situation.
Nora Kronig (BAG): up to 800 million Swiss francs possible for vaccines
“We started with 309 million francs,” explains Nora Kronig (BAG) when asked how much has been spent on vaccination doses so far. You now have the opportunity to receive vaccinations worth up to 800 million Swiss francs. That is a dimension that was made together with the DDPS.
Mathys: “Switzerland does not want to get into situations like in Portugal”
In some countries, the number of cases due to the mutated virus is already higher than in Switzerland. Is the federal government considering these situations to potentially learn? «Of course, we look at countries like Portugal. The situation there is dramatic, ”said Mathys. In Ireland and Great Britain, tough measures have caused a drop in the number of cases. “Switzerland doesn’t want to get into situations like Portugal’s.”
Berset doesn’t want to promise anything
A journalist wants to know what happens to the restaurants and the event organizers. Berset refers to the situation in October, which did not work out. Now you know more, but you can’t promise anything. Due to the most contagious mutation of the virus, no action can be taken for March.
Schools closed during the holidays as a reason for the stagnation of the number of cases?
During the holidays, the students were at home and not at school. Is that part of the reason why the number of cases did not skyrocket during the holidays? A journalist wants to know. “A lot of people were careful about contact with the elderly during the holiday season,” says Mathys. One suspects the cause here.
Berset seeks a path on the razor’s edge
Is there hope for summer ?, a journalist wants to know. If the vaccination goes well, “then we could have vaccinated everyone who wanted to vaccinate at the end of June / July,” says Berset. As for other aspects, he could not make any predictions. There can always be new factors influencing development. The way must be found on the edge of the knife. Berset assumes, however, that the situation will improve in summer.
Is Sputnik also an option for Switzerland?
A journalist wants to know if the Sputnik vaccine would also be an option for Switzerland. “We had followed a diversified strategy from the beginning.” Relations with Russia are pragmatic, Kronig said. But she doesn’t want to say more about this.
