Australia's medicines regulator will investigate two deaths for possible links to the COVID-19 vaccine, raising fresh concerns as the country seeks to accelerate an immunisation programme that has widely missed its initial vaccination targets.

"All reports ... of death following vaccination are reviewed to assess the likelihood that the vaccine contributed to the event or medical condition that led to a fatal outcome," the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) said on Thursday.

Two men died in the country's most populous state of New South Wales (NSW) days after getting their coronavirus vaccine shots, Australian media reported.

A 71-year-old man with several underlying health conditions died days after getting AstraZeneca's vaccine, Seven News reported. A 55-year-old man died eight days after getting his vaccine, a regional newspaper in NSW's northwest town of Tamworth said in a report, citing his family.

The reporting of an adverse event after vaccination does not mean it was caused by the doses, TGA said in an emailed reply. It did not specify when the deaths happened, citing patient confidentiality reasons, or the type of shots they received.

Australia's immunisation drive includes AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines but earlier this month authorities abandoned a goal to vaccinate its near 26 million population by the end of 2021 after finding possible links between the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots.

Australia, which had banked on the AstraZeneca vaccine for the majority of its shots, recommended the doses should only be given to people above 50 years, throwing its vaccination programme into disarray.

Two weeks ago, the country reported its first death from blood clots linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine after the medicines regulator said a 48-year-old woman's fatality was "likely" linked to the shot.

Australia has largely avoided the high COVID-19 numbers seen in other developed countries, with just over 29,700 cases and 910 deaths since the pandemic began, but its vaccination rollout has hit several roadblocks.

More than 2 million total vaccine doses have been administered as of Tuesday, far short of the 4 million pledged by the end of March.

(With inputs from agencies)

Australia's medicines regulator will investigate two deaths for possible links to the COVID-19 vaccine, raising fresh concerns as the country seeks to accelerate an immunisation programme that has widely missed its initial vaccination targets.

Australia's medicines regulator will investigate two deaths for possible links to the COVID-19 vaccine, raising fresh concerns as the country seeks to accelerate an immunisation programme that has widely missed its initial vaccination targets. "All reports ... of death following vaccination are reviewed to assess the likelihood that the vaccine contributed to the event or medical condition that led to a fatal outcome," the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) said on Thursday. Two men died in the country's most populous state of New South Wales (NSW) days after getting their coronavirus vaccine shots, Australian media reported. A 71-year-old man with several underlying health conditions died days after getting AstraZeneca's vaccine, Seven News reported. A 55-year-old man died eight days after getting his vaccine, a regional newspaper in NSW's northwest town of Tamworth said in a report, citing his family. The reporting of an adverse event after vaccination does not mean it was caused by the doses, TGA said in an emailed reply. It did not specify when the deaths happened, citing patient confidentiality reasons, or the type of shots they received. Australia's immunisation drive includes AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines but earlier this month authorities abandoned a goal to vaccinate its near 26 million population by the end of 2021 after finding possible links between the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots. Australia, which had banked on the AstraZeneca vaccine for the majority of its shots, recommended the doses should only be given to people above 50 years, throwing its vaccination programme into disarray. Two weeks ago, the country reported its first death from blood clots linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine after the medicines regulator said a 48-year-old woman's fatality was "likely" linked to the shot. Australia has largely avoided the high COVID-19 numbers seen in other developed countries, with just over 29,700 cases and 910 deaths since the pandemic began, but its vaccination rollout has hit several roadblocks. More than 2 million total vaccine doses have been administered as of Tuesday, far short of the 4 million pledged by the end of March. (With inputs from agencies)

Australia's medicines regulator to investigate two deaths for possible links to COVID-19 vaccine

The co-founder of BionNTech&nbsp;on Wednesday said that testing of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus">coronavirus </a>variant first found in India is underway and expressed confidence its <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">vaccine </a>will work against the strain.&nbsp;

"We are still testing the Indian variant, but the Indian variant has mutations that we have already tested for and which our vaccine works against, so I am confident," Ugur Sahin, was quoted as saying by news agency AFP.&nbsp;

Watch |&nbsp;

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-indians-asked-to-mask-up-at-home-380631/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The remarks came as the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday said that the variant found in India could be a factor in the huge rise of infections in the country and has been found in more than a dozen nations.&nbsp;

It said the B.1.617 strain, first detected in India had as of Tuesday been found in more than 1,200 sequences added in the GISAID open-access database "from at least 17 countries".&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/world-has-failed-india-amid-record-surge-in-covid-19-cases-says-top-us-disease-expert-fauci-381019">World has failed India amid record surge in COVID-19 cases, says top US disease expert Fauci</a>

"Most sequences were uploaded from India, the United Kingdom, USA and Singapore," the WHO said.

The global health agency recently declared B.1.617 as a "variant of interest," but still did not include it in the list of "variant of concern".

The "variant of concern" means that the virus could be more transmissible, deadly or can kill the effects of the vaccine.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, the new wave of COVID-19 continues to bring a massive surge in infections and death toll in India as the fatality toll went pass 200,000 on Wednesday.&nbsp;

India for the last many days is seeing the maximum number of daily cases than any other nation with hospitals reaching their capacity and patients struggling to get emergency care, oxygen and essential drugs.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

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The co-founder of BionNTech on Wednesday said that testing of the coronavirus variant first found in India is underway and expressed confidence its vaccine will work against the strain.

The co-founder of BionNTech on Wednesday said that testing of the coronavirus variant first found in India is underway and expressed confidence its vaccine will work against the strain. "We are still testing the Indian variant, but the Indian variant has mutations that we have already tested for and which our vaccine works against, so I am confident," Ugur Sahin, was quoted as saying by news agency AFP. Watch | The remarks came as the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday said that the variant found in India could be a factor in the huge rise of infections in the country and has been found in more than a dozen nations. It said the B.1.617 strain, first detected in India had as of Tuesday been found in more than 1,200 sequences added in the GISAID open-access database "from at least 17 countries". Also read | World has failed India amid record surge in COVID-19 cases, says top US disease expert Fauci "Most sequences were uploaded from India, the United Kingdom, USA and Singapore," the WHO said. The global health agency recently declared B.1.617 as a "variant of interest," but still did not include it in the list of "variant of concern". The "variant of concern" means that the virus could be more transmissible, deadly or can kill the effects of the vaccine. Meanwhile, the new wave of COVID-19 continues to bring a massive surge in infections and death toll in India as the fatality toll went pass 200,000 on Wednesday. India for the last many days is seeing the maximum number of daily cases than any other nation with hospitals reaching their capacity and patients struggling to get emergency care, oxygen and essential drugs. (With inputs from agencies)

BioNTech founder 'confident' its Covid vaccine willl work against strain first found in India

Pfizer, the US pharma giant, is planning to make a new version of its Covid vaccine that can be stored in standard freezer and comes ready for use. Currently, the Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius.

The very low-temperature requirement has been found to be limiting the vaccine's distribution.&nbsp;

But Pfizer's chief executive Albert Bourla told AFP in an interview that a new version is in the pipeline and that he was optimistic the vaccine will also prove effective against new virus variants.

Indian variant

Bourla said Pfizer has large amounts of real-world data from some of the variant outbreaks.

"We have already data for the UK one -- I hate using the countries, but people know them like that -- which is very prominent in Israel... efficiency was 97 percent," he said.&nbsp;

"We have data from South Africa, with the South African variant, and overall the efficacy was 100 percent. And also have data from Brazil. And it looks also this is very well controlled."

Pfizer has not yet compiled sufficient data on the efficiency of its vaccine against the so-called Indian variant, the latest to raise concerns that a new wave of infections could overcome the immunisation drive.

But he said he was "optimistic" the vaccine would prove effective, and that the firm's mRNA technology can be adapted to counter new strains.

"The thing that makes me feel more comfortable is that we have developed a process that once a variant becomes a variant of concern, we should be able to have a new vaccine within 100 days," he said.&nbsp;

"It's a tough target, but I am very comfortable that we should be able to do it.&nbsp;

"And because of the effectiveness of this mRNA technology, I believe that variants will not become an issue, we'll be able to control them."

(With inputs from agencies)

Pfizer, the US pharma giant, is planning to make a new version of its Covid vaccine that can be stored in standard freezer and comes ready for use. Currently, the Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius.

Pfizer, the US pharma giant, is planning to make a new version of its Covid vaccine that can be stored in standard freezer and comes ready for use. Currently, the Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius. The very low-temperature requirement has been found to be limiting the vaccine's distribution. But Pfizer's chief executive Albert Bourla told AFP in an interview that a new version is in the pipeline and that he was optimistic the vaccine will also prove effective against new virus variants. Indian variant Bourla said Pfizer has large amounts of real-world data from some of the variant outbreaks. "We have already data for the UK one -- I hate using the countries, but people know them like that -- which is very prominent in Israel... efficiency was 97 percent," he said. "We have data from South Africa, with the South African variant, and overall the efficacy was 100 percent. And also have data from Brazil. And it looks also this is very well controlled." Pfizer has not yet compiled sufficient data on the efficiency of its vaccine against the so-called Indian variant, the latest to raise concerns that a new wave of infections could overcome the immunisation drive. But he said he was "optimistic" the vaccine would prove effective, and that the firm's mRNA technology can be adapted to counter new strains. "The thing that makes me feel more comfortable is that we have developed a process that once a variant becomes a variant of concern, we should be able to have a new vaccine within 100 days," he said. "It's a tough target, but I am very comfortable that we should be able to do it. "And because of the effectiveness of this mRNA technology, I believe that variants will not become an issue, we'll be able to control them." (With inputs from agencies)

New version of Pfizer Covid vaccine won't need ultra-low temperature for storage

One shot of the Oxford/AstraZeneca or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine reduces coronavirus infections by nearly two-thirds and protects older and more vulnerable people as much as younger, healthy individuals, a study has found.

The results from Oxford University and the Office for National Statistics are a welcome boost to the vaccination programme and the first to show the impact on new infections and immune responses in a large group of adults in the general population.

By driving down rates of infection the vaccines will not only prevent hospitalisations and deaths but help break chains of transmission and so reduce the risk of a damaging resurgence of disease as the UK reopens.

The researchers analysed Covid test results from more than 350,000 people in the UK between December and April. They found that 21 days after a first jab – the time it takes the immune system to mount a decent response – new Covid infections dropped by 65 per cent.

The vaccines were more effective against symptomatic than asymptomatic infections, reducing rates by 72&nbsp;per cent&nbsp;and 57&nbsp;per cent&nbsp;respectively, compared with those seen in the unvaccinated population.

A second shot of the&nbsp;Pfizer&nbsp;vaccine boosted protection further, causing symptomatic infections to fall by 90&nbsp;per cent&nbsp;and asymptomatic infections by 70 per cent. Because the Oxford vaccine was approved and rolled out later, it is too early to assess the impact of those second doses.

Scientists on the team said the findings supported the UK’s decision to prioritise giving first shots to elderly and more vulnerable people by delaying second doses. “There was no evidence that the vaccines were less effective among older adults or those with long-term health conditions,” said Dr Koen Pouwels, a researcher on the team.

The results, released in a preprint on Friday, are particularly important because they demonstrate the protective effect of the vaccines in the real world against the highly infectious and more lethal Kent variant, which was not around during the original clinical trials.

Further work by the team, reported in a second preprint, analysed antibody responses to the vaccines. Antibodies rose faster and to a higher level with one shot of Pfizer vaccine, but then dropped back down, particularly in older people, to a similar level reached with the Oxford shot. Although the immune responses differed, Dr David Eyre at Oxford’s Big Data Institute said a strong antibody response was achieved in 95&nbsp;per cent&nbsp;of people.

In younger people, one shot of vaccine raised antibodies to levels seen after infection with Covid, while in older people this took two doses. “Our findings highlight the importance of individuals getting the second vaccine for increased protection,” Eyre said.

The results build on other positive findings from the vaccine rollout, which began in December. In February&nbsp;Public Health Scotland revealed&nbsp;that a month after receiving a shot of Pfizer or Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, the risk of hospitalisation from Covid-19 fell by up to 85% and 94% respectively.

In a&nbsp;separate report&nbsp;released on Thursday, the ONS said that in recent weeks the percentage of people testing positive for coronavirus appeared to have levelled off, both in those who deal with patients and those who don’t. Adults and school-age children were having more contact with people outside their households as schools reopened and some restrictions eased, it added.

Sarah Crofts, a senior statistician at the ONS, said: “It’s good news that infection rates in both patient-facing and non-patient-facing job roles have remained low since decreasing from the start of the year, but it’s critical that we continue to monitor Covid-19 infection levels in these roles as more restrictions ease.”

One shot of the Oxford/AstraZeneca or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine reduces coronavirus infections by nearly two-thirds and protects older and more vulnerable people as much as younger, healthy individuals, a study has found.

One shot of the Oxford/AstraZeneca or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine reduces coronavirus infections by nearly two-thirds and protects older and more vulnerable people as much as younger, healthy individuals, a study has found. The results from Oxford University and the Office for National Statistics are a welcome boost to the vaccination programme and the first to show the impact on new infections and immune responses in a large group of adults in the general population. By driving down rates of infection the vaccines will not only prevent hospitalisations and deaths but help break chains of transmission and so reduce the risk of a damaging resurgence of disease as the UK reopens. The researchers analysed Covid test results from more than 350,000 people in the UK between December and April. They found that 21 days after a first jab – the time it takes the immune system to mount a decent response – new Covid infections dropped by 65 per cent. The vaccines were more effective against symptomatic than asymptomatic infections, reducing rates by 72 per cent and 57 per cent respectively, compared with those seen in the unvaccinated population. A second shot of the Pfizer vaccine boosted protection further, causing symptomatic infections to fall by 90 per cent and asymptomatic infections by 70 per cent. Because the Oxford vaccine was approved and rolled out later, it is too early to assess the impact of those second doses. Scientists on the team said the findings supported the UK’s decision to prioritise giving first shots to elderly and more vulnerable people by delaying second doses. “There was no evidence that the vaccines were less effective among older adults or those with long-term health conditions,” said Dr Koen Pouwels, a researcher on the team. The results, released in a preprint on Friday, are particularly important because they demonstrate the protective effect of the vaccines in the real world against the highly infectious and more lethal Kent variant, which was not around during the original clinical trials. Further work by the team, reported in a second preprint, analysed antibody responses to the vaccines. Antibodies rose faster and to a higher level with one shot of Pfizer vaccine, but then dropped back down, particularly in older people, to a similar level reached with the Oxford shot. Although the immune responses differed, Dr David Eyre at Oxford’s Big Data Institute said a strong antibody response was achieved in 95 per cent of people. In younger people, one shot of vaccine raised antibodies to levels seen after infection with Covid, while in older people this took two doses. “Our findings highlight the importance of individuals getting the second vaccine for increased protection,” Eyre said. The results build on other positive findings from the vaccine rollout, which began in December. In February Public Health Scotland revealed that a month after receiving a shot of Pfizer or Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, the risk of hospitalisation from Covid-19 fell by up to 85% and 94% respectively. In a separate report released on Thursday, the ONS said that in recent weeks the percentage of people testing positive for coronavirus appeared to have levelled off, both in those who deal with patients and those who don’t. Adults and school-age children were having more contact with people outside their households as schools reopened and some restrictions eased, it added. Sarah Crofts, a senior statistician at the ONS, said: “It’s good news that infection rates in both patient-facing and non-patient-facing job roles have remained low since decreasing from the start of the year, but it’s critical that we continue to monitor Covid-19 infection levels in these roles as more restrictions ease.”

One dose of Pfizer or Oxford jab reduces coronavirus infection rate by 65%, says study

US drugmaker Pfizer on Wednesday confirmed that suspect doses of its coronavirus vaccine that were seized in Mexico and Poland were indeed fake, with doses going for as much as $1,000 a shot, according to US media.

At a clinic in Mexico some 80 people received bogus doses of the drug, which appeared to have been physically harmless, though offering no protection against the potentially deadly disease ravaging the country, a report in the Wall Street Journal said.

The vials were found in beer coolers and were initially identified by fabricated lot numbers and expiration dates, Mexican officials said.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/over-200-million-covid-19-shots-administered-in-us-joe-biden-379154/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Mexican Deputy Health Secretary Hugo Lopez Gatell confirms the discovery of fake Covid vaccines on sale in Mexico. "This clinic was found, selling what were supposed to be Pfizer vaccines, at exorbitant prices of up to 40,000-50,000 pesos", he said.

The liquid in the confiscated vials in Poland was a cosmetic substance, thought to be anti-wrinkle cream, the company said.

"We are cognizant that in this type of environment,&nbsp;fueled by the ease and convenience of e-commerce and anonymity afforded by the internet -- there will be an increase in the prevalence of fraud, counterfeit and other illicit activity as it relates to&nbsp;vaccines&nbsp;and treatments for Covid-19," a Pfizer spokesperson told ABC News.

In February, health authorities in the northern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon warned about "clandestine" sales of "alleged Covid vaccines" and urged people not to take them.&nbsp;

In March, the World Health Organization also warned of "falsified" Pfizer vaccines found in Mexico and warned that the shots "may still be in circulation in the region."

Pfizer tested the bogus vials and found they did not contain the two-shot vaccine it developed with BioNTech.

Lev Kubiak, Pfizer's head of global security, said the desperate need and the shortfall in vaccines had led to the scams.

"We have a very limited supply, a supply that will increase as we ramp up and other companies enter the vaccine space. In the interim, there is a perfect opportunity for criminals," he told the Wall Street Journal.

Mexico is also examining a shipment of 6,000 doses of what is claimed to be the Russian vaccine Sputnik that were seized on a private plane headed for Honduras last month, the newspaper said.

(With inputs from agencies)

US drugmaker Pfizer on Wednesday confirmed that suspect doses of its coronavirus vaccine that were seized in Mexico and Poland were indeed fake, with doses going for as much as $1,000 a shot, according to US media.

US drugmaker Pfizer on Wednesday confirmed that suspect doses of its coronavirus vaccine that were seized in Mexico and Poland were indeed fake, with doses going for as much as $1,000 a shot, according to US media. At a clinic in Mexico some 80 people received bogus doses of the drug, which appeared to have been physically harmless, though offering no protection against the potentially deadly disease ravaging the country, a report in the Wall Street Journal said. The vials were found in beer coolers and were initially identified by fabricated lot numbers and expiration dates, Mexican officials said. Mexican Deputy Health Secretary Hugo Lopez Gatell confirms the discovery of fake Covid vaccines on sale in Mexico. "This clinic was found, selling what were supposed to be Pfizer vaccines, at exorbitant prices of up to 40,000-50,000 pesos", he said. The liquid in the confiscated vials in Poland was a cosmetic substance, thought to be anti-wrinkle cream, the company said. "We are cognizant that in this type of environment, fueled by the ease and convenience of e-commerce and anonymity afforded by the internet -- there will be an increase in the prevalence of fraud, counterfeit and other illicit activity as it relates to vaccines and treatments for Covid-19," a Pfizer spokesperson told ABC News. In February, health authorities in the northern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon warned about "clandestine" sales of "alleged Covid vaccines" and urged people not to take them. In March, the World Health Organization also warned of "falsified" Pfizer vaccines found in Mexico and warned that the shots "may still be in circulation in the region." Pfizer tested the bogus vials and found they did not contain the two-shot vaccine it developed with BioNTech. Lev Kubiak, Pfizer's head of global security, said the desperate need and the shortfall in vaccines had led to the scams. "We have a very limited supply, a supply that will increase as we ramp up and other companies enter the vaccine space. In the interim, there is a perfect opportunity for criminals," he told the Wall Street Journal. Mexico is also examining a shipment of 6,000 doses of what is claimed to be the Russian vaccine Sputnik that were seized on a private plane headed for Honduras last month, the newspaper said. (With inputs from agencies)

Pfizer identifies fake COVID-19 shots abroad as criminals exploit vaccine demand

The CEO of Pfizer Albert Bourla says that there is likely a need for a third dose of booster shot somewhere between 6 and 12 months and then form there will be annual revaccination but all of that needs to be confirmed. Health official says the emergence of the new variant is the primary reason.

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla raises possibility of 'annual revaccination '

Hong Kong will resume administering the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab on Monday after the pharma giant said&nbsp;a packaging flaw that temporarily halted its use did not affect its safety, officials said.

The financial hub suspended use of the German-made vaccine last month when Fosun, its China distributor, informed authorities that some vial caps were defective.&nbsp;

It was a blow to the roll-out of mass vaccination programmes against a deadly virus that has killed more than 2.7 million people around the world and hammered the global economy.

"BioNTech told us that the batch of vaccines concerned did not have quality and safety problem," Hong Kong's civil service chief Patrick Nip, who has been leading the government's cross-department anti-virus initiative, said Thursday.&nbsp;

"Administration of the BioNTech vaccines will resume on Monday," he said, adding that a new batch of 300,000 doses would arrive in the city on Friday.

Health authorities in Hong Kong had previously stressed that any defective bottles were discarded before being given out, and that they paused the programme temporarily out of an abundance of caution.&nbsp;

More than 180,000 residents who reserved Pfizer/BioNTech vaccinations were affected by the 12-day suspension, including some 30,000 people who were due to receive their second jab within the recommended 21-day window.

Citing BioNTech's own analysis, Hong Kong's health director Constance Chan said the problem in some vials had been traced to how caps reacted to the minus 70 degrees Celsius temperatures the vaccine must be kept in for storage.&nbsp;

When the vials were defrosted to be prepared for administering, she said, air sometimes leaked in.

Officials said the new batch of vaccines arriving in Hong Kong on Friday had been manufactured in another factory in Germany where over 15,000 vials were tested and no defects were found.&nbsp;

More than 460,000 residents of Hong Kong have received their first jab of coronavirus vaccines since the campaign kicked off over one month ago, accounting for about seven percent of the city's population aged 16 and above.

"It's still far from our immunity target," Nip said. "We appeal to all eligible members of the public to get vaccinated."

Authorities currently offer China's Sinovac and the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.

Sinovac received fast-track approval despite not publishing peer-reviewed clinical data.

The data available points to an efficacy rate of between 50-80 percent, depending on the studies.

Pfizer says its efficacy rate is 94-95 percent.

Hong Kong will resume administering the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab on Monday after the pharma giant said a packaging flaw that temporarily halted its use did not affect its safety, officials said.

Hong Kong will resume administering the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab on Monday after the pharma giant said a packaging flaw that temporarily halted its use did not affect its safety, officials said. The financial hub suspended use of the German-made vaccine last month when Fosun, its China distributor, informed authorities that some vial caps were defective. It was a blow to the roll-out of mass vaccination programmes against a deadly virus that has killed more than 2.7 million people around the world and hammered the global economy. "BioNTech told us that the batch of vaccines concerned did not have quality and safety problem," Hong Kong's civil service chief Patrick Nip, who has been leading the government's cross-department anti-virus initiative, said Thursday. "Administration of the BioNTech vaccines will resume on Monday," he said, adding that a new batch of 300,000 doses would arrive in the city on Friday. Health authorities in Hong Kong had previously stressed that any defective bottles were discarded before being given out, and that they paused the programme temporarily out of an abundance of caution. More than 180,000 residents who reserved Pfizer/BioNTech vaccinations were affected by the 12-day suspension, including some 30,000 people who were due to receive their second jab within the recommended 21-day window. Citing BioNTech's own analysis, Hong Kong's health director Constance Chan said the problem in some vials had been traced to how caps reacted to the minus 70 degrees Celsius temperatures the vaccine must be kept in for storage. When the vials were defrosted to be prepared for administering, she said, air sometimes leaked in. Officials said the new batch of vaccines arriving in Hong Kong on Friday had been manufactured in another factory in Germany where over 15,000 vials were tested and no defects were found. More than 460,000 residents of Hong Kong have received their first jab of coronavirus vaccines since the campaign kicked off over one month ago, accounting for about seven percent of the city's population aged 16 and above. "It's still far from our immunity target," Nip said. "We appeal to all eligible members of the public to get vaccinated." Authorities currently offer China's Sinovac and the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. Sinovac received fast-track approval despite not publishing peer-reviewed clinical data. The data available points to an efficacy rate of between 50-80 percent, depending on the studies. Pfizer says its efficacy rate is 94-95 percent.

Hong Kong to resume Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine roll-out on Monday

Hong Kong's government said an initial investigation by Germany's BioNTech and Fosun Industrial into its coronavirus vaccine did not show any "obvious systemic factors" during packaging after use of the vaccine was suspended in the city and neighbouring Macau this week.

Authorities on Wednesday halted the use of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by BioNTech citing defective packaging, triggering confusion in inoculation centres across the city.

The suspension came as the Asian financial hub has faced a sluggish take-up of vaccines due to dwindling confidence in China's Sinovac vaccine and fears of adverse reactions.

In a statement published late on Saturday, the city's government said the investigation results did not rule out that the situation was "caused by environmental conditions during the long-haul transport process."

It was not related to the cold-chain and logistical management of the vaccine and random testing of intact vials delivered to Hong Kong did not uncover any issue of leakage.

Both Fosun and BioNTech considered the vaccines to have no safety risks and people who have received them "do not need to worry", the government said.

The remaining part of the investigation will focus on "ascertaining the integrity of the intrinsic properties of the relevant batches of vaccine, and that the batches are safe for use."

The government said it was following up with Fosun and BioNTech to complete the investigation within a week to allow for a resumption of supplying the vaccines to the public.

The city started vaccinating residents with doses from Sinovac in February and began offering the one developed by BioNTech in March. 
&nbsp;

Hong Kong's government said an initial investigation by Germany's BioNTech and Fosun Industrial into its coronavirus vaccine did not show any "obvious systemic factors" during packaging after use of the vaccine was suspended in the city and neighbouring Macau this week.

Hong Kong's government said an initial investigation by Germany's BioNTech and Fosun Industrial into its coronavirus vaccine did not show any "obvious systemic factors" during packaging after use of the vaccine was suspended in the city and neighbouring Macau this week. Authorities on Wednesday halted the use of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by BioNTech citing defective packaging, triggering confusion in inoculation centres across the city. The suspension came as the Asian financial hub has faced a sluggish take-up of vaccines due to dwindling confidence in China's Sinovac vaccine and fears of adverse reactions. In a statement published late on Saturday, the city's government said the investigation results did not rule out that the situation was "caused by environmental conditions during the long-haul transport process." It was not related to the cold-chain and logistical management of the vaccine and random testing of intact vials delivered to Hong Kong did not uncover any issue of leakage. Both Fosun and BioNTech considered the vaccines to have no safety risks and people who have received them "do not need to worry", the government said. The remaining part of the investigation will focus on "ascertaining the integrity of the intrinsic properties of the relevant batches of vaccine, and that the batches are safe for use." The government said it was following up with Fosun and BioNTech to complete the investigation within a week to allow for a resumption of supplying the vaccines to the public. The city started vaccinating residents with doses from Sinovac in February and began offering the one developed by BioNTech in March.

Initial investigation of Pfizer vaccines shows no 'obvious systemic factors', Hong Kong says

Pfizer-BioNTech's <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">coronavirus vaccine</a>&nbsp;has an efficacy of 97 per cent in preventing symptomatic disease, a study based on real-world evidence published on Thursday said.&nbsp;

The study, conducted by the two pharma giants, also found that the vaccine's prevention against asymptomatic disease also stands at 94 per cent.

For the study, data from January 17 to March 6 from Israel's national vaccination campaign, has been taken.&nbsp;

Watch |&nbsp;

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/study-finds-uk-covid-19-variant-has-higher-mortality-rate-369630/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

It also showed the vaccine is effective against a highly transmissible Covid-19 strain first found in the UK, known as B.1.1.7. Over 80 per cent of the specimens that were part of the study were of this variant.&nbsp;

However, since only a few people in Israel have been infected with the South African variant B.1.351, the vaccine's efficacy against this strain could not be found.&nbsp;

"This comprehensive real-world evidence ... can be of importance to countries around the world as they advance their own vaccination campaigns one year after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic," Pfizer and BioNTech said in a statement as quoted by news agency AFP.

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/pfizer-coronavirus-vaccine-may-be-less-effective-in-obesity-study-367008">Pfizer coronavirus vaccine may be less effective in obesity: Study</a>

Earlier, a similar study which was based on data from between December 20, 2020 and February 1, 2021 had shown the efficacy of 94 per cent in preventing symptomatic cases and 92 per cent in avoiding asymptomatic disease.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, the UK said on Thursday that Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine is "safe and effective "after Denmark suspended the jab's use.&nbsp;

"We've been clear that it's both safe and effective... and when people are asked to come forward and take it, they should do so in confidence," Prime Minister Boris Johnson's official spokesman said.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine has an efficacy of 97 per cent in preventing symptomatic disease, a study based on real-world evidence published on Thursday said.

Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine has an efficacy of 97 per cent in preventing symptomatic disease, a study based on real-world evidence published on Thursday said. The study, conducted by the two pharma giants, also found that the vaccine's prevention against asymptomatic disease also stands at 94 per cent. For the study, data from January 17 to March 6 from Israel's national vaccination campaign, has been taken. Watch | It also showed the vaccine is effective against a highly transmissible Covid-19 strain first found in the UK, known as B.1.1.7. Over 80 per cent of the specimens that were part of the study were of this variant. However, since only a few people in Israel have been infected with the South African variant B.1.351, the vaccine's efficacy against this strain could not be found. "This comprehensive real-world evidence ... can be of importance to countries around the world as they advance their own vaccination campaigns one year after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic," Pfizer and BioNTech said in a statement as quoted by news agency AFP. Also read | Pfizer coronavirus vaccine may be less effective in obesity: Study Earlier, a similar study which was based on data from between December 20, 2020 and February 1, 2021 had shown the efficacy of 94 per cent in preventing symptomatic cases and 92 per cent in avoiding asymptomatic disease. Meanwhile, the UK said on Thursday that Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine is "safe and effective "after Denmark suspended the jab's use. "We've been clear that it's both safe and effective... and when people are asked to come forward and take it, they should do so in confidence," Prime Minister Boris Johnson's official spokesman said.

Pfizer vaccine 97% effective in preventing symptomatic Covid-19 disease: Study

The new guidelines issued by the US Centres for Disease Control(CDS) and prevention say that people who have been fully <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/russian-intelligence-used-fake-news-websites-to-spread-misinformation-about-vaccines-report-368747">vaccinated</a> can safely meet other vaccinated people without wearing masks.

Watch:

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/us-senate-19-trillion-dollars-covid-19-relief-bill-368523/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The CDC directives also said that fully <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/eu-regulator-urges-caution-on-sputnik-v-russias-coronavirus-vaccine-368720">vaccinated</a> people can also visit unvaccinated, low-risk people from other households without masks but it cautioned fully vaccinated people that they should continue avoiding large crowds and continue to wear masks when interacting with people from multiple households.

"CDC recommends that fully vaccinated people can visit with other fully vaccinated people in small gatherings indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing. Remember, here we are talking about private settings where everyone is vaccinated. So what does this mean? If you and a friend or you and a family member are both vaccinated, you can have dinner together wearing masks without distancing. You can visit your grandparents if you have been vaccinated and they have been too," Rochelle Walensky, CDC director said.

The guidelines addressed how vaccinated people can safely resume some normal activities and contact with those outside their own households.

"CDC recommends that fully vaccinated people can visit unvaccinated people from one other household indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing as long as the unvaccinated people and any unvaccinated members of their household are not at high risk for severe <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/covid-free-new-caledonia-record-first-cases-of-coronavirus-368639">COVID-19 </a>disease," Walensky added.

The guidelines addressed how vaccinated people can safely resume some normal activities and contact with those outside their own households.

The recommendations come as about 31 million people or 9.4 per cent of the US population have been fully inoculated with <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/new-zealands-auckland-emerges-from-weeklong-coronavirus-lockdown-368547">COVID-19 </a>vaccines made by Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson &amp; Johnson.

According to reports, nearly 18 per cent of the US population, or 58.9 million adults have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

Currently authorized COVID-19 vaccines prevent people from becoming ill but not necessarily from being infected.

Data on whether vaccinated people can still spread the virus to unprotected people is sparse. The CDC also maintained that there have been no changes made to its travel guidelines and that it recommended that people delay travel and stay at home.

However, some cities and states have already begun lifting pandemic restrictions against the advice of public health experts.

The new guidelines issued by the US Centres for Disease Control(CDS) and prevention say that people who have been fully vaccinated can safely meet other vaccinated people without wearing masks.

The new guidelines issued by the US Centres for Disease Control(CDS) and prevention say that people who have been fully vaccinated can safely meet other vaccinated people without wearing masks. Watch: The CDC directives also said that fully vaccinated people can also visit unvaccinated, low-risk people from other households without masks but it cautioned fully vaccinated people that they should continue avoiding large crowds and continue to wear masks when interacting with people from multiple households. "CDC recommends that fully vaccinated people can visit with other fully vaccinated people in small gatherings indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing. Remember, here we are talking about private settings where everyone is vaccinated. So what does this mean? If you and a friend or you and a family member are both vaccinated, you can have dinner together wearing masks without distancing. You can visit your grandparents if you have been vaccinated and they have been too," Rochelle Walensky, CDC director said. The guidelines addressed how vaccinated people can safely resume some normal activities and contact with those outside their own households. "CDC recommends that fully vaccinated people can visit unvaccinated people from one other household indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing as long as the unvaccinated people and any unvaccinated members of their household are not at high risk for severe COVID-19 disease," Walensky added. The guidelines addressed how vaccinated people can safely resume some normal activities and contact with those outside their own households. The recommendations come as about 31 million people or 9.4 per cent of the US population have been fully inoculated with COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. According to reports, nearly 18 per cent of the US population, or 58.9 million adults have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine. Currently authorized COVID-19 vaccines prevent people from becoming ill but not necessarily from being infected. Data on whether vaccinated people can still spread the virus to unprotected people is sparse. The CDC also maintained that there have been no changes made to its travel guidelines and that it recommended that people delay travel and stay at home. However, some cities and states have already begun lifting pandemic restrictions against the advice of public health experts.

People who have been vaccinated can meet other vaccinated people without masks: CDC

Australia has finally started its much-awaited vaccine rollout program. Top officials among a small group of people receiving the very first jab in the country. Prime Minister Scott Morrison was one of the first recipients of Pfizer.

Australia begins inoculation with Pfizer jab

Kenya received over a million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, while Rwanda said it was the first in Africa to secure shots from Pfizer, as efforts to inoculate the world's poorest nations accelerated.

With fewer resources and tougher logistics than other regions, African nations are racing to secure the doses needed to protect their roughly 1.3 billion people and allow the safe reopening of economies.

Africa has been relatively lightly hit by the coronavirus relative to other regions, recording 104,000 deaths, according to a Reuters tally, That is lower than national tallies in the United States, India, Brazil, Russia and Britain.

Kenya's batch, which arrived on a Qatar Airways passenger flight, is the first of an initial allocation of 3.56 million doses by the global COVAX facility.

"We have received ... machine guns, bazookas, and tanks to fight this war against COVID-19," Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe exulted as the doses arrived at Nairobi's main airport.

COVAX, which is led by the GAVI vaccines alliance along with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other partners, aims to deliver over 1.3 billion doses to 92 lower- and middle-income countries, covering up to 20% of their populations.

Backers of the initiative hope to level a playing field that has seen wealthier nations quickly vaccinate millions, ahead of poorer regions. Only a few African nations have started inoculating citizens with vaccines acquired outside of COVAX.

First shots under COVAX are arriving at several African nations this week, including Nigeria, Senegal and Uganda.

COLD STORAGE

In Kigali, officials said Rwanda will get the first doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 shots to be dispatched to Africa under the vaccine-sharing scheme. The Pfizer vaccine presents an extra logistical challenge because it requires ultra-cold storage.

The batch of 102,960 doses were due in Kigali on Wednesday, hours after a flight landed carrying 240,000 AstraZeneca doses from the Serum Institute of India, the health ministry said. The government has installed special infrastructure to keep the vaccine at -70 degrees.

"Rwanda is one of the first countries among the low income countries to have ultra-cold chain," said Fode Ndiaye, the United Nations' resident coordinator.

Rwanda plans to start its vaccination drive on Friday, prioritising frontline health workers and others at high risk. It hopes to vaccinate 30% of its roughly 12 million people before the end of this year.

Africa has reported relatively few COVID-19 deaths compared with other continents, but economies across the continent are also reeling from lockdown measures.

Kenya, which has so far recorded 106,470 infections and 1,863 deaths from the virus, has taken a major economic hit from the virus, which cut the flow of tourists, a crucial source of foreign exchange and jobs.

Nairobi plans to prioritise 400,000 health workers nationwide in a vaccination campaign starting on Friday, the health ministry said.

It will join Ivory Coast, Ghana and South Africa among the nations in sub-Saharan Africa to start vaccination drives.

Kenya received over a million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, while Rwanda said it was the first in Africa to secure shots from Pfizer, as efforts to inoculate the world's poorest nations accelerated.

Kenya received over a million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, while Rwanda said it was the first in Africa to secure shots from Pfizer, as efforts to inoculate the world's poorest nations accelerated. With fewer resources and tougher logistics than other regions, African nations are racing to secure the doses needed to protect their roughly 1.3 billion people and allow the safe reopening of economies. Africa has been relatively lightly hit by the coronavirus relative to other regions, recording 104,000 deaths, according to a Reuters tally, That is lower than national tallies in the United States, India, Brazil, Russia and Britain. Kenya's batch, which arrived on a Qatar Airways passenger flight, is the first of an initial allocation of 3.56 million doses by the global COVAX facility. "We have received ... machine guns, bazookas, and tanks to fight this war against COVID-19," Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe exulted as the doses arrived at Nairobi's main airport. COVAX, which is led by the GAVI vaccines alliance along with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other partners, aims to deliver over 1.3 billion doses to 92 lower- and middle-income countries, covering up to 20% of their populations. Backers of the initiative hope to level a playing field that has seen wealthier nations quickly vaccinate millions, ahead of poorer regions. Only a few African nations have started inoculating citizens with vaccines acquired outside of COVAX. First shots under COVAX are arriving at several African nations this week, including Nigeria, Senegal and Uganda. COLD STORAGE In Kigali, officials said Rwanda will get the first doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 shots to be dispatched to Africa under the vaccine-sharing scheme. The Pfizer vaccine presents an extra logistical challenge because it requires ultra-cold storage. The batch of 102,960 doses were due in Kigali on Wednesday, hours after a flight landed carrying 240,000 AstraZeneca doses from the Serum Institute of India, the health ministry said. The government has installed special infrastructure to keep the vaccine at -70 degrees. "Rwanda is one of the first countries among the low income countries to have ultra-cold chain," said Fode Ndiaye, the United Nations' resident coordinator. Rwanda plans to start its vaccination drive on Friday, prioritising frontline health workers and others at high risk. It hopes to vaccinate 30% of its roughly 12 million people before the end of this year. Africa has reported relatively few COVID-19 deaths compared with other continents, but economies across the continent are also reeling from lockdown measures. Kenya, which has so far recorded 106,470 infections and 1,863 deaths from the virus, has taken a major economic hit from the virus, which cut the flow of tourists, a crucial source of foreign exchange and jobs. Nairobi plans to prioritise 400,000 health workers nationwide in a vaccination campaign starting on Friday, the health ministry said. It will join Ivory Coast, Ghana and South Africa among the nations in sub-Saharan Africa to start vaccination drives.

Kenya calls first vaccines 'bazookas', Rwanda secures Pfizer shots

A single dose of Pfizer-BioNTech's <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">coronavirus vaccine</a>&nbsp;is enough to provide strong protection to those people who have had the deadly virus, two studies from the UK claim.&nbsp;

The studies, published late on Thursday in The Lancet, bring strong evidence to conclude that people who have had coronavirus can get robust protection from Pfizer's vaccine, but only one dose.&nbsp;

Watch |&nbsp;

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/coronavirus-vaccine-real-world-study-confirms-pfizer-covid-19-vaccine-94-effective-366229/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

"This could potentially accelerate vaccine rollout," suggest one of the study's authors from the University College London and Public Health England, as reported by The New York Times.&nbsp;

They further added that by following this strategy, dangerous mutations of the virus can be negated.&nbsp;

"Wider coverage without compromising vaccine-induced immunity could help reduce variant emergence," the study said.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/a-third-dose-pfizer-to-test-tweaked-vaccine-to-target-s-african-strain-of-coronavirus-366240">A third dose? Pfizer to test tweaked vaccine to target S African strain of coronavirus</a>

The study led by University College London and Public Health England analysed data of 51 healthcare professionals in London.&nbsp;

Amongst these participants, 24 people have previously had Covid-19.&nbsp;

These healthcare workers received a single dose of Pfizer's shot and then were tested for antibodies 19 to 29 days later.

The research noted that those who have previously had coronavirus, vaccination increased their antibody levels more than 140 times. &nbsp;

"This increase appears to be at least one order of magnitude greater than reported after a conventional prime-boost vaccine strategy in previously uninfected individuals," their paper said.&nbsp;

The second paper of researchers from Imperial College London and other UK institutions included data of 72 healthcare workers who were inoculated late in December.&nbsp;

Amongst the participants, 21 have had coronavirus infection in the past.&nbsp;

These participants blood samples were taken after receiving the first dose and then 21-25 days post-inoculation.&nbsp;

The study concluded that people with previous Covid-19 infection appeared to generate better immune responses to one dose of Pfizer's drug as compared to those who had not been infected with the virus ever.

A single dose of Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine is enough to provide strong protection to those people who have had the deadly virus, two studies from the UK claim.

A single dose of Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine is enough to provide strong protection to those people who have had the deadly virus, two studies from the UK claim. The studies, published late on Thursday in The Lancet, bring strong evidence to conclude that people who have had coronavirus can get robust protection from Pfizer's vaccine, but only one dose. Watch | "This could potentially accelerate vaccine rollout," suggest one of the study's authors from the University College London and Public Health England, as reported by The New York Times. They further added that by following this strategy, dangerous mutations of the virus can be negated. "Wider coverage without compromising vaccine-induced immunity could help reduce variant emergence," the study said. Also read | A third dose? Pfizer to test tweaked vaccine to target S African strain of coronavirus The study led by University College London and Public Health England analysed data of 51 healthcare professionals in London. Amongst these participants, 24 people have previously had Covid-19. These healthcare workers received a single dose of Pfizer's shot and then were tested for antibodies 19 to 29 days later. The research noted that those who have previously had coronavirus, vaccination increased their antibody levels more than 140 times. "This increase appears to be at least one order of magnitude greater than reported after a conventional prime-boost vaccine strategy in previously uninfected individuals," their paper said. The second paper of researchers from Imperial College London and other UK institutions included data of 72 healthcare workers who were inoculated late in December. Amongst the participants, 21 have had coronavirus infection in the past. These participants blood samples were taken after receiving the first dose and then 21-25 days post-inoculation. The study concluded that people with previous Covid-19 infection appeared to generate better immune responses to one dose of Pfizer's drug as compared to those who had not been infected with the virus ever.

Pfizer vaccine's single dose provides strong immunity to those who have had Covid-19: Study

The Australian Parliament on Thursday approved the new law that will make it compulsory for Google and Facebook to pay media companies for news content published on their platforms. Meanwhile, a big study of 1.2 million people found that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine is 94 per cent effective.&nbsp;

Click on headlines to read more

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-tussle-with-facebook-australia-passes-law-requiring-tech-firms-to-pay-for-news-366055">Amid tussle with Facebook, Australia passes law requiring tech firms to pay for news</a>

<img src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2021/02/20/183628-untitled-design-1.jpg?itok=aq70xnSB" />

The Australian Parliament on Thursday passed the news media and digital platforms mandatory bargaining code that will make it compulsory for Alphabet's Google and Facebook to pay media companies for news content.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/our-patience-is-not-unlimited-us-on-nuclear-deal-with-iran-366054">Our patience is not unlimited, US on nuclear deal with Iran</a>

<img src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2021/02/19/183419-1.jpg?itok=ISLASABO" />

As Iran and the US tussle over the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal, the Biden administration said that its "patience is not unlimited".

&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/large-study-shows-pfizers-coronavirus-vaccine-94-effective-366057">Large study shows Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine 94% effective</a>

<img src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2020/12/12/173751-pfizer-vaccine.jpg?itok=oAwIKRa2" />

A massive study involving 1.2 million people published on Wednesday showed that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine is 94 per cent effective.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-condemns-rights-groups-report-on-xinjiang-and-uighur-muslims-366040">China condemns rights group's report on Xinjiang and Uighur Muslims</a>

<img src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2020/12/09/173155-a-chinese-police-officer-outside-a-vocational-education-centre-in-xinjiang-uighur-autonomous-region.jpg?itok=qoxyQFmU" />

Beijing has harshly reacted against the Human Rights Watch (HRW) that slammed China for the inhuman treatment it metes out to the Uighur Muslims.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-condemns-rights-groups-report-on-xinjiang-and-uighur-muslims-366040">Imran Khan pushes anti-India agenda on two-day Sri Lanka visit</a>

<img src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/styles/story_page/public/2021/02/24/184184-pjimage-1.jpg?itok=2vVyDZYd" />

Imran Khan is on a two-day visit to Sri Lanka. His first visit to the island nation since becoming prime minister. On day one, they focused on boosting bilateral relations, expanding trade ties and attracting more investments but as the day ended, it became amply clear that Khan only wanted a new platform to push his anti-India agenda. Alongside, he also did some good PR for Pakistan's iron-brother China.

Watch |&nbsp;Gravitas: Exclusive: Ranil Wickremesinghe on WION

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-exclusive-ranil-wickremesinghe-on-wion-366049/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

 
&nbsp;

The Australian Parliament on Thursday approved the new law that will make it compulsory for Google and Facebook to pay media companies for news content published on their platforms.

The Australian Parliament on Thursday approved the new law that will make it compulsory for Google and Facebook to pay media companies for news content published on their platforms. Meanwhile, a big study of 1.2 million people found that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine is 94 per cent effective. Click on headlines to read more Amid tussle with Facebook, Australia passes law requiring tech firms to pay for news The Australian Parliament on Thursday passed the news media and digital platforms mandatory bargaining code that will make it compulsory for Alphabet's Google and Facebook to pay media companies for news content. Our patience is not unlimited, US on nuclear deal with Iran As Iran and the US tussle over the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal, the Biden administration said that its "patience is not unlimited". Large study shows Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine 94% effective A massive study involving 1.2 million people published on Wednesday showed that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine is 94 per cent effective. China condemns rights group's report on Xinjiang and Uighur Muslims Beijing has harshly reacted against the Human Rights Watch (HRW) that slammed China for the inhuman treatment it metes out to the Uighur Muslims. Imran Khan pushes anti-India agenda on two-day Sri Lanka visit Imran Khan is on a two-day visit to Sri Lanka. His first visit to the island nation since becoming prime minister. On day one, they focused on boosting bilateral relations, expanding trade ties and attracting more investments but as the day ended, it became amply clear that Khan only wanted a new platform to push his anti-India agenda. Alongside, he also did some good PR for Pakistan's iron-brother China. Watch | Gravitas: Exclusive: Ranil Wickremesinghe on WION

Morning news brief: Facebook-Australia row, Pfizer's vaccine, and more

A massive study involving 1.2 million people published on Wednesday showed that Pfizer-BioNTech's <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">coronavirus vaccine </a>is 94 per cent effective.&nbsp;

For the Israeli study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, nearly 600,000 people received Pfizer's drug and an equal number of people did not receive the shots.

Watch |&nbsp;

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-pfizers-abusive-vaccine-deals-366048/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The people involved in both groups had similar characteristics, like age, sex, medical condition, among others.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/how-pfizer-tried-to-bully-argentina-and-brazil-in-exchange-for-vaccines-366037">How Pfizer tried to bully Argentina and Brazil in exchange for vaccines</a>

Pfizer's vaccine, the study found, was 94 per cent effective against symptomatic Covid-19 seven or more days after the second dose was administered.

However, the efficacy for symptomatic patients reduced to 57 per cent between 14-20 days after the first dose.&nbsp;

The results of this Israeli study is close to the 95 per cent efficacy that Pfizer achieved during Phase 3 clinical trials.

It also found people who received the second shot had a 92 per cent lower chance of getting any form of infection at all compared to those who were not vaccinated.&nbsp;

"This is the first peer-reviewed large scale evidence for the effectiveness of a vaccine in real world conditions," Ben Reis, a researcher at Harvard Medical School and one of the study's authors, told news agency AFP.

The study was conducted between December 20, 2020 and February 1, 2021, a period when a newer variant first confirmed in the UK was rampant in Israel, suggesting that the vaccine works well against the variant that has alarmed experts across the world.&nbsp;

 
&nbsp;

A massive study involving 1.2 million people published on Wednesday showed that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine is 94 per cent effective. For the Israeli study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, nearly 600,000 people received Pfizer's drug and an equal number of people did not receive the shots.

A massive study involving 1.2 million people published on Wednesday showed that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine is 94 per cent effective. For the Israeli study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, nearly 600,000 people received Pfizer's drug and an equal number of people did not receive the shots. Watch | The people involved in both groups had similar characteristics, like age, sex, medical condition, among others. Also read | How Pfizer tried to bully Argentina and Brazil in exchange for vaccines Pfizer's vaccine, the study found, was 94 per cent effective against symptomatic Covid-19 seven or more days after the second dose was administered. However, the efficacy for symptomatic patients reduced to 57 per cent between 14-20 days after the first dose. The results of this Israeli study is close to the 95 per cent efficacy that Pfizer achieved during Phase 3 clinical trials. It also found people who received the second shot had a 92 per cent lower chance of getting any form of infection at all compared to those who were not vaccinated. "This is the first peer-reviewed large scale evidence for the effectiveness of a vaccine in real world conditions," Ben Reis, a researcher at Harvard Medical School and one of the study's authors, told news agency AFP. The study was conducted between December 20, 2020 and February 1, 2021, a period when a newer variant first confirmed in the UK was rampant in Israel, suggesting that the vaccine works well against the variant that has alarmed experts across the world.

Large study shows Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine 94% effective

While countries like India are sending free vaccines to poorer nations, there are companies like Pfizer which are bullying governments. The US-based company Pfizer is holding governments to ransom, interfering with their legislation, and even demanding military bases as guarantee.

Pfizer has vaccine deals with 9 latin American and Caribbean countries - Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, and Yurug-waae. Two major latin American nations are missing from this list are Argentina and Brazil.

What happened in Argentina?

Talks between Argentina and Pfizer began in June 2020. In July, President Alberto Fernandez held a meeting with Pfizer's Argentina CEO.

Then, Pfizer asked to be compensated for the cost of any future civil lawsuits. If someone files a civil lawsuit against Pfizer in Argentina and wins that case, the government of Argentina and not Pfizer would pay the compensation. So, Argentina's parliament passed a new law in October 2020, but Pfizer was unhappy with its phrasing. The law said Pfizer needs to at least pay for negligence, for its own mistakes if it happens to make any in the future.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/pfizer-first-dose-85-effective-after-2-4-weeks-study-says-364816" hreflang="en">Pfizer first dose 85% effective after 2-4 weeks, study says</a>

Pfizer rejected this, after which Argentina offered to amend the law to define negligence more clearly - to include only vaccine distribution and delivery under negligence.

Pfizer was still not happy and demanded the law be amended through a new decree, which Argentina refused. Pfizer then asked Argentina to buy an international insurance to pay for potential future cases against Pfizer, to which the country agreed.

In December 2020, Pfizer came back with more demands, and demanded sovereign assets as collateral. Pfizer wanted Argentina to put its bank reserves, military bases and embassy buildings at stake. Vaccine manufacturers have always enjoyed a certain amount of liability waiver. Say you receive a vaccine from Pfizer and then you have adverse effects because of the jab.

You can always go ahead and file a lawsuit against Pfizer. If you win that lawsuit - instead of Pfizer, the government will compensate you. This is normal. In the United States for example, the PREP Act (Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness act) gives total immunity to companies like Pfizer and Moderna.

But only if something goes wrong unintentionally, and this does not apply to negligence. But Pfizer wanted more - Not just sovereign assets but a fraud insurance, something with which Argentina did not agree with.

What happened in Brazil?

Pfizer went a step ahead and asked Brazil to create a guarantee fund, and deposit money in a foreign bank account.

On January 23, 2021 - Brazil’s Health Ministry put out a statement citing excerpts from Pfizer’s pre-contract clauses.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/brazil-approves-pfizer-biontech-coronavirus-vaccine-despite-unavailability-in-country-365705" hreflang="en">Brazil approves Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine despite unavailability&nbsp;in country</a>

Here’s a list of Pfizer's demands - Brazil waives the sovereignty of its assets abroad in favour of Pfizer, that the rules of the land - be not applied on Pfizer, that Brazil take into consideration a delay in delivery, that Pfizer is not penalised for a delayed delivery, and that in case of any side effects, Pfizer be exempted from all civil liability.

The government of Brazil calls these clauses abusive. The Pfizer deal with Brazil failed too.

What's Pfizer's game?

Another report by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism spoke about another country whose deal with Pfizer was reportedly pushed back by three months because the company made similar, bizarre demands.

The company has just 2 billion doses to deliver this year on a first come, first serve basis. A delay of 3 months could cost a whole year, and could cost lives. Pfizer is playing with life-saving drugs and abusing its position after having developed a vaccine with the help of government funding.

Pfizer's German partner - BioNTech was given $445 million by the government of Germany. The US paid Pfizer 2 billion dollars as early as July 2020 for pre-orders. Pfizer is looking at making 15 billion dollars from vaccine sales this year, and is in talks with 100 countries and organisations. On January 22, Pfizer signed an agreement with Covax and committed 40 million doses to poor countries this year.

Here’s what an excerpt from a press release by the company said. “At Pfizer, we believe that every person deserves to be seen, heard and cared for. That's why from the very beginning of our vaccine development program, Pfizer and BioNTech have been firmly committed to working toward equitable and affordable access of COVID-19 vaccines for people around the world”, it read.

While countries like India are sending free vaccines to poorer nations, there are companies like Pfizer which are bullying governments. The US-based company Pfizer is holding governments to ransom, interfering with their legislation, and even demanding military bases as guarantee.

While countries like India are sending free vaccines to poorer nations, there are companies like Pfizer which are bullying governments. The US-based company Pfizer is holding governments to ransom, interfering with their legislation, and even demanding military bases as guarantee. Pfizer has vaccine deals with 9 latin American and Caribbean countries - Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, and Yurug-waae. Two major latin American nations are missing from this list are Argentina and Brazil. What happened in Argentina? Talks between Argentina and Pfizer began in June 2020. In July, President Alberto Fernandez held a meeting with Pfizer's Argentina CEO. Then, Pfizer asked to be compensated for the cost of any future civil lawsuits. If someone files a civil lawsuit against Pfizer in Argentina and wins that case, the government of Argentina and not Pfizer would pay the compensation. So, Argentina's parliament passed a new law in October 2020, but Pfizer was unhappy with its phrasing. The law said Pfizer needs to at least pay for negligence, for its own mistakes if it happens to make any in the future. Also read: Pfizer first dose 85% effective after 2-4 weeks, study says Pfizer rejected this, after which Argentina offered to amend the law to define negligence more clearly - to include only vaccine distribution and delivery under negligence. Pfizer was still not happy and demanded the law be amended through a new decree, which Argentina refused. Pfizer then asked Argentina to buy an international insurance to pay for potential future cases against Pfizer, to which the country agreed. In December 2020, Pfizer came back with more demands, and demanded sovereign assets as collateral. Pfizer wanted Argentina to put its bank reserves, military bases and embassy buildings at stake. Vaccine manufacturers have always enjoyed a certain amount of liability waiver. Say you receive a vaccine from Pfizer and then you have adverse effects because of the jab. You can always go ahead and file a lawsuit against Pfizer. If you win that lawsuit - instead of Pfizer, the government will compensate you. This is normal. In the United States for example, the PREP Act (Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness act) gives total immunity to companies like Pfizer and Moderna. But only if something goes wrong unintentionally, and this does not apply to negligence. But Pfizer wanted more - Not just sovereign assets but a fraud insurance, something with which Argentina did not agree with. What happened in Brazil? Pfizer went a step ahead and asked Brazil to create a guarantee fund, and deposit money in a foreign bank account. On January 23, 2021 - Brazil’s Health Ministry put out a statement citing excerpts from Pfizer’s pre-contract clauses. Also read: Brazil approves Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine despite unavailability in country Here’s a list of Pfizer's demands - Brazil waives the sovereignty of its assets abroad in favour of Pfizer, that the rules of the land - be not applied on Pfizer, that Brazil take into consideration a delay in delivery, that Pfizer is not penalised for a delayed delivery, and that in case of any side effects, Pfizer be exempted from all civil liability. The government of Brazil calls these clauses abusive. The Pfizer deal with Brazil failed too. What's Pfizer's game? Another report by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism spoke about another country whose deal with Pfizer was reportedly pushed back by three months because the company made similar, bizarre demands. The company has just 2 billion doses to deliver this year on a first come, first serve basis. A delay of 3 months could cost a whole year, and could cost lives. Pfizer is playing with life-saving drugs and abusing its position after having developed a vaccine with the help of government funding. Pfizer's German partner - BioNTech was given $445 million by the government of Germany. The US paid Pfizer 2 billion dollars as early as July 2020 for pre-orders. Pfizer is looking at making 15 billion dollars from vaccine sales this year, and is in talks with 100 countries and organisations. On January 22, Pfizer signed an agreement with Covax and committed 40 million doses to poor countries this year. Here’s what an excerpt from a press release by the company said. “At Pfizer, we believe that every person deserves to be seen, heard and cared for. That's why from the very beginning of our vaccine development program, Pfizer and BioNTech have been firmly committed to working toward equitable and affordable access of COVID-19 vaccines for people around the world”, it read.

How Pfizer tried to bully Argentina and Brazil in exchange for vaccines

A laboratory study suggests that the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/oxfordastrazeneca-jab-fails-to-prevent-coronavirus-from-south-african-strain-study-361874">South African</a> variant of the coronavirus may reduce antibody protection from the Pfizer Inc-BioNTech SE vaccine by two-thirds, and it is not clear if the shot will be effective against the mutation, the companies said on Wednesday.

The study found the vaccine was still able to neutralise the virus and there is not yet evidence from trials in people that the variant reduces vaccine protection, the companies said.

Still, they are making investments and talking to regulators about developing an updated version of their mRNA vaccine or a booster shot, if needed.

For the study, scientists from the companies and the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) developed an engineered virus that contained the same mutations carried on the spike portion of the highly contagious coronavirus variant first discovered in South Africa, known as B.1.351. The spike, used by the virus to enter human cells, is the primary target of many COVID-19 vaccines.

Researchers tested the engineered virus against blood taken from people who had been given the vaccine, and found a two- thirds reduction in the level of neutralizing antibodies compared with its effect on the most common version of the virus prevalent in US&nbsp;trials.

Their findings were published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

Because there is no established benchmark yet to determine what level of antibodies are needed to protect against the virus, it is unclear whether that two-thirds reduction will render the vaccine ineffective against the variant spreading around the world.

However, UTMB professor and study co-author Pei-Yong Shi said he believes the Pfizer vaccine will likely be protective against the variant.

“We don’t know what the minimum neutralizing number is. We don’t have that cutoff line,” he said, adding that he suspects the immune response observed is likely to be significantly above where it needs to be to provide protection.

That is because in clinical trials, both the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/north-korea-tried-to-hack-pfizer-to-obtain-vaccine-technology-report-364009">Pfizer-BioNTech </a>vaccine and a similar shot from Moderna Inc conferred some protection after a single dose with an antibody response lower than the reduced levels caused by the South African variant in the laboratory study.

Even if the concerning variant significantly reduces effectiveness, the vaccine should still help protect against severe disease and death, he noted. Health experts have said that is the most important factor in keeping stretched healthcare systems from becoming overwhelmed.

More work is needed to understand whether the vaccine works against the South African variant, Shi said, including clinical trials and the development of correlates of protection - the benchmarks to determine what antibody levels are protective.

Pfizer and BioNTech said they were doing similar lab work to understand whether their vaccine is effective against another variant first found in Brazil.

Moderna published a correspondence in NEJM on Wednesday with similar data previously disclosed elsewhere that showed a sixfold drop antibody levels versus the South African variant.

Moderna also said the actual efficacy of its vaccine against the South African variant is yet to be determined. The company has previously said it believes the vaccine will work against the variant.

A laboratory study suggests that the South African variant of the coronavirus may reduce antibody protection from the Pfizer Inc-BioNTech SE vaccine by two-thirds, and it is not clear if the shot will be effective against the mutation, the companies said on Wednesday.

A laboratory study suggests that the South African variant of the coronavirus may reduce antibody protection from the Pfizer Inc-BioNTech SE vaccine by two-thirds, and it is not clear if the shot will be effective against the mutation, the companies said on Wednesday. The study found the vaccine was still able to neutralise the virus and there is not yet evidence from trials in people that the variant reduces vaccine protection, the companies said. Still, they are making investments and talking to regulators about developing an updated version of their mRNA vaccine or a booster shot, if needed. For the study, scientists from the companies and the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) developed an engineered virus that contained the same mutations carried on the spike portion of the highly contagious coronavirus variant first discovered in South Africa, known as B.1.351. The spike, used by the virus to enter human cells, is the primary target of many COVID-19 vaccines. Researchers tested the engineered virus against blood taken from people who had been given the vaccine, and found a two- thirds reduction in the level of neutralizing antibodies compared with its effect on the most common version of the virus prevalent in US trials. Their findings were published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). Because there is no established benchmark yet to determine what level of antibodies are needed to protect against the virus, it is unclear whether that two-thirds reduction will render the vaccine ineffective against the variant spreading around the world. However, UTMB professor and study co-author Pei-Yong Shi said he believes the Pfizer vaccine will likely be protective against the variant. “We don’t know what the minimum neutralizing number is. We don’t have that cutoff line,” he said, adding that he suspects the immune response observed is likely to be significantly above where it needs to be to provide protection. That is because in clinical trials, both the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and a similar shot from Moderna Inc conferred some protection after a single dose with an antibody response lower than the reduced levels caused by the South African variant in the laboratory study. Even if the concerning variant significantly reduces effectiveness, the vaccine should still help protect against severe disease and death, he noted. Health experts have said that is the most important factor in keeping stretched healthcare systems from becoming overwhelmed. More work is needed to understand whether the vaccine works against the South African variant, Shi said, including clinical trials and the development of correlates of protection - the benchmarks to determine what antibody levels are protective. Pfizer and BioNTech said they were doing similar lab work to understand whether their vaccine is effective against another variant first found in Brazil. Moderna published a correspondence in NEJM on Wednesday with similar data previously disclosed elsewhere that showed a sixfold drop antibody levels versus the South African variant. Moderna also said the actual efficacy of its vaccine against the South African variant is yet to be determined. The company has previously said it believes the vaccine will work against the variant.

South African variant could reduce vaccine protection: Pfizer

The first batch of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine has arrived in New Zealand as the country looks forward to inoculate its population.

COVID-19: First batch of Pfizer Coronavirus vaccine arrives in New Zealand

Millions of people in Japan will not able to receive Pfizer- BioNTech's <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">vaccine </a>to treat coronavirus as planned as special syringes used to give the dose remains short of supply.&nbsp;

Japan has ordered 144 million shots of Pfizer vaccine to immune 72 million doses, considering that each vial contained six doses.&nbsp;

Watch |&nbsp;

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/who-briefing-on-covid-19-origin-laboratory-related-hypothesis-is-highly-unlikely-362535/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Norihisa Tamura, country's health minister said the normal syringes that are used will unable to extract the final dose from a vial, implying about 60 million people will be vaccinated.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/south-africa-to-proceed-with-planned-phase-1-vaccination-using-jj-362635">South Africa to proceed with planned phase 1 vaccination using J&amp;J</a>

"The syringes used in Japan can only draw five doses," Tamura was quoted as saying by news agency Kyodo.&nbsp;

"We will use all the syringes we have that can draw six doses, but it will, of course, not be enough as more shots are administered."

The government is urging manufacturers to scale up the production of special "dead space" syringe so that full capacity of the vial can be exploited.&nbsp;

Despite the setback, Japan will be beginning its vaccination drive next week, Japanese prime minister has said.&nbsp;

"When we have confirmed the vaccine's efficacy and safety, we will start vaccination by the middle of next week," Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said.

The problem of special syringe shortage is encountered not just by Japan, but European Union nations and the US are also facing a similar issue.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Millions of people in Japan will not able to receive Pfizer- BioNTech's vaccine to treat coronavirus as planned as special syringes used to give the dose remains short of supply.

Millions of people in Japan will not able to receive Pfizer- BioNTech's vaccine to treat coronavirus as planned as special syringes used to give the dose remains short of supply. Japan has ordered 144 million shots of Pfizer vaccine to immune 72 million doses, considering that each vial contained six doses. Watch | Norihisa Tamura, country's health minister said the normal syringes that are used will unable to extract the final dose from a vial, implying about 60 million people will be vaccinated. Also read | South Africa to proceed with planned phase 1 vaccination using J&J "The syringes used in Japan can only draw five doses," Tamura was quoted as saying by news agency Kyodo. "We will use all the syringes we have that can draw six doses, but it will, of course, not be enough as more shots are administered." The government is urging manufacturers to scale up the production of special "dead space" syringe so that full capacity of the vial can be exploited. Despite the setback, Japan will be beginning its vaccination drive next week, Japanese prime minister has said. "When we have confirmed the vaccine's efficacy and safety, we will start vaccination by the middle of next week," Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said. The problem of special syringe shortage is encountered not just by Japan, but European Union nations and the US are also facing a similar issue.

Shortage of special syringe for Pfizer will affect millions of vaccinations in Japan

The Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab has no link to reported post-vaccination deaths and no new side effects, the EU's medicines regulator said Friday based on the first data from the vaccine's rollout.

The update by the Amsterdam-based European Medicines Agency followed reports that dozens of mainly elderly people had died in Norway and other European countries after receiving a first shot of the vaccine.

The EMA said it had looked at the deaths and "concluded that the data did not show a link to vaccination with Comirnaty (the vaccine) and the cases do not raise a safety concern."

In its first safety update since the EU started its vaccination campaign in December, the watchdog said that overall, data "is consistent with the known safety profile of the vaccine, and no new side effects were identified."

Reports of occasional severe allergic reactions did not go beyond what had already been found about this "known side effect".

"The benefits of Comirnaty in preventing Covid-19 continue to outweigh any risks, and there are no recommended changes regarding the use of the vaccine," the EMA said.

The EU watchdog has so far approved two vaccines, by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna.

It is set to give its verdict on a third, by AstraZeneca, later Friday. Germany recommended on Thursday that the AstraZeneca vaccine should only be given to under-65s.

The frail and the elderly are first in line for vaccinations in many countries.

Norway in particular registered 33 deaths among some 20,000 retirement home residents who had received their first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

Concern grew as a number of countries, including France and also Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Sweden, gave similar reports.

Oslo said earlier this month it had not established a link but recommended doctors consider the overall health of the most frail before giving them the jab.

The EMA said that "given concerns which arose from Norway" it had reviewed reports of deaths of people of any age after receiving the jab.

"In many cases concerning individuals above 65 years of age, progression of (multiple) pre-existing diseases seemed to be a plausible explanation for death," it said.

Some had already received palliative care, it said.

The EMA noted that clinical trials of the Pfizer vaccine had included people aged 75 and older.&nbsp;But the watchdog said it had asked the company to keep "reviewing all reports of suspected side effects with fatal outcome thoroughly."

The Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab has no link to reported post-vaccination deaths and no new side effects, the EU's medicines regulator said Friday based on the first data from the vaccine's rollout.

The Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab has no link to reported post-vaccination deaths and no new side effects, the EU's medicines regulator said Friday based on the first data from the vaccine's rollout. The update by the Amsterdam-based European Medicines Agency followed reports that dozens of mainly elderly people had died in Norway and other European countries after receiving a first shot of the vaccine. The EMA said it had looked at the deaths and "concluded that the data did not show a link to vaccination with Comirnaty (the vaccine) and the cases do not raise a safety concern." In its first safety update since the EU started its vaccination campaign in December, the watchdog said that overall, data "is consistent with the known safety profile of the vaccine, and no new side effects were identified." Reports of occasional severe allergic reactions did not go beyond what had already been found about this "known side effect". "The benefits of Comirnaty in preventing Covid-19 continue to outweigh any risks, and there are no recommended changes regarding the use of the vaccine," the EMA said. The EU watchdog has so far approved two vaccines, by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna. It is set to give its verdict on a third, by AstraZeneca, later Friday. Germany recommended on Thursday that the AstraZeneca vaccine should only be given to under-65s. The frail and the elderly are first in line for vaccinations in many countries. Norway in particular registered 33 deaths among some 20,000 retirement home residents who had received their first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Concern grew as a number of countries, including France and also Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Sweden, gave similar reports. Oslo said earlier this month it had not established a link but recommended doctors consider the overall health of the most frail before giving them the jab. The EMA said that "given concerns which arose from Norway" it had reviewed reports of deaths of people of any age after receiving the jab. "In many cases concerning individuals above 65 years of age, progression of (multiple) pre-existing diseases seemed to be a plausible explanation for death," it said. Some had already received palliative care, it said. The EMA noted that clinical trials of the Pfizer vaccine had included people aged 75 and older. But the watchdog said it had asked the company to keep "reviewing all reports of suspected side effects with fatal outcome thoroughly."

Pfizer vaccine not linked to post-jab deaths, EU regulator assures

China’s silence in the earliest days of the coronavirus crisis had made it worse for the whole world. And still, China is making it harder for the world to solve the mystery around the origins of the Wuhan virus. 
 
<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/now-china-makes-absurd-claims-on-coronavirus-origin-359518">Also read | Now, China makes absurd claims on coronavirus origin</a>

According to news reports, Audio recordings of internal WHO meetings show that even while the WHO praised China's response in public, officials were complaining privately over not getting the information they needed to fight the spread of the deadly virus.

The recordings obtained suggest that the WHO officials were lauding China in public because they wanted to coax more information out of the government. 
 
Xi Jinping Government also held off on releasing the genome of the virus for more than a week after three different government labs had fully decoded the information, slowing recognition that the virus was spreading.

"General, 'there's been no evidence of human-to-human transmission' is not good enough," WHO executive director Michael Ryan said in one of the recordings. 
 
"We need to see the data, we need to be able to determine for ourselves the geographic distribution, the timeline, the epi curve and all of that."

US Department of Homeland Security report dated May 1, 2020, had also stated that Chinese leaders "intentionally concealed the severity" of the pandemic from the world in early January last year.

Other reports also state that, while downplaying the severity of the coronavirus, China increased imports and decreased exports of medical supplies. 
 
Meanwhile, an international team of WHO-led scientists arrived in Wuhan last week to research the animal origins of the pandemic after months of political wrangling to secure China’s approval for the probe.

(With inputs from agencies)

China’s silence in the earliest days of the coronavirus crisis had made it worse for the whole world. And still, China is making it harder for the world to solve the mystery around the origins of the Wuhan virus.

China’s silence in the earliest days of the coronavirus crisis had made it worse for the whole world. And still, China is making it harder for the world to solve the mystery around the origins of the Wuhan virus. Also read | Now, China makes absurd claims on coronavirus origin According to news reports, Audio recordings of internal WHO meetings show that even while the WHO praised China's response in public, officials were complaining privately over not getting the information they needed to fight the spread of the deadly virus. The recordings obtained suggest that the WHO officials were lauding China in public because they wanted to coax more information out of the government. Xi Jinping Government also held off on releasing the genome of the virus for more than a week after three different government labs had fully decoded the information, slowing recognition that the virus was spreading. "General, 'there's been no evidence of human-to-human transmission' is not good enough," WHO executive director Michael Ryan said in one of the recordings. "We need to see the data, we need to be able to determine for ourselves the geographic distribution, the timeline, the epi curve and all of that." US Department of Homeland Security report dated May 1, 2020, had also stated that Chinese leaders "intentionally concealed the severity" of the pandemic from the world in early January last year. Other reports also state that, while downplaying the severity of the coronavirus, China increased imports and decreased exports of medical supplies. Meanwhile, an international team of WHO-led scientists arrived in Wuhan last week to research the animal origins of the pandemic after months of political wrangling to secure China’s approval for the probe. (With inputs from agencies)

WHO recordings show China delayed releasing coronavirus information

The US will be purchasing 200 million more doses of Coronavirus vaccines as it tries to boost its inoculation drive. President Joe Biden has said that Americans can beat the pandemic if enough people are vaccinated.

US to purchase more Pfizer and Moderna doses

The World Health Organization (WHO) said that there is no evidence to substantiate that Pfizer-BioNTech's <a href="wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">coronavirus vaccine </a>has contributed to the deaths of the elderly and called for the use of the jab.&nbsp;

The deaths after receiving the vaccine "are in line with the expected, all-cause mortality rates and causes of death in the sub-population of frail, elderly individuals, and the available information does not confirm a contributory role for the vaccine in the reported fatal events," the statement by the WHO Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety said on Friday.&nbsp;

Watch |&nbsp;

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It also said that the risk-benefit balance of the Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine "remains favourable in the elderly".

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/texas-doctor-steals-vial-of-coronavirus-vaccine-may-face-jail-time-358464">Texas doctor steals vial of coronavirus vaccine; may face jail time</a>

The statement comes at a time after 33 elderly died in Norway after receiving the first shot of the vaccine.

On Monday, the Norwegian government had said that there is no relation between those who receive Covid-19 vaccine and the deaths, adding that "they are people of advanced age, are frail and have serious illnesses".&nbsp;

Norway has also urged doctors to decide whether patients who are frail or terminally ill should receive the jab or not as is done in some other nations.&nbsp;

In a bid to curb the panic, Norwegian Medicines Agency on Monday said that contracting Covid-19 is more dangerous than getting vaccinated.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

The World Health Organization (WHO) said that there is no evidence to substantiate that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine has contributed to the deaths of the elderly and called for the use of the jab.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said that there is no evidence to substantiate that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine has contributed to the deaths of the elderly and called for the use of the jab. The deaths after receiving the vaccine "are in line with the expected, all-cause mortality rates and causes of death in the sub-population of frail, elderly individuals, and the available information does not confirm a contributory role for the vaccine in the reported fatal events," the statement by the WHO Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety said on Friday. Watch | It also said that the risk-benefit balance of the Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine "remains favourable in the elderly". Also read | Texas doctor steals vial of coronavirus vaccine; may face jail time The statement comes at a time after 33 elderly died in Norway after receiving the first shot of the vaccine. On Monday, the Norwegian government had said that there is no relation between those who receive Covid-19 vaccine and the deaths, adding that "they are people of advanced age, are frail and have serious illnesses". Norway has also urged doctors to decide whether patients who are frail or terminally ill should receive the jab or not as is done in some other nations. In a bid to curb the panic, Norwegian Medicines Agency on Monday said that contracting Covid-19 is more dangerous than getting vaccinated.

WHO says Pfizer's vaccine safe to use as concerns rise post-Norway deaths

Most medical experts agree that vaccines are not silver bullets and the events in recent days further corroborate this theory.

In Israel, more than 12,000 people tested positive despite receiving the shot.&nbsp;

As many as 69 people had taken the second dose as well.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/who-says-pfizers-vaccine-safe-to-use-as-concerns-rise-post-norway-deaths-358575">WHO says Pfizer's vaccine safe to use as concerns rise post Norway deaths</a>

In Norway, 23 people died after getting vaccinated.&nbsp;

In both cases, the jab in question was Pfizer-BioNTech.&nbsp;

And now in addition to all these questions about efficacy, the company is facing a new challenge: shortages.

Pfizer is not being able to deliver the bulk orders placed by various governments across the world.

This delay could have a major impact on the global vaccination drive and this report will attempt to decode this.&nbsp;

The global vaccination campaign has hit a predictable snag with shipments arriving late and order volumes declining by half.

Pfizer's vaccine delivery has fallen 15 per cent this week and is expected to drop by 30 per cent in February.

The European Union bet big on Pfizer, ordering nearly 300 million doses and the shortage threatens to derail their immunisation drive.

This is prompting some member states like Hungary using fast-tracking alternatives, including vaccines by Russia's Sputnik V and AstraZeneca-Oxford.&nbsp;

While Romania and Poland are only getting half the doses they ordered, Italy has been told to expect a 20 per cent cut in the supply.&nbsp;

Europe's vaccination drive which was off to a rapid start has now slowed to a crawl.

<h2>What's stalling the production chain?</h2>

Pfizer claims the stall is a part of a new plan to increase output.

It is renovating a factory in Brussels to produce more doses.

Meanwhile, output was expected to fall, but the disruption is lasting longer than expected.

<h2>No time to wait</h2>

Countries simply can't afford to wait especially with the emergence of potent virus mutations.&nbsp;

Also, Pfizer's vaccine is delivered in two doses and the second one is key to developing complete immunity.

The delay means there is a risk of people not getting their second dose on time.

Elsewhere, Canada will not get even a single dose of Pfizer's vaccine from next week.

It's another blow to the country's already dismal roll-out.

However, Pfizer estimates that the deficit will be covered by next week.

The pace of the vaccination drive is crucial to taming the pandemic and momentum is key in the race to develop herd immunity.

Delays, even temporary ones, can set the vaccination programme back by weeks. 
&nbsp;

Most medical experts agree that vaccines are not silver bullets and the events in recent days further corroborate this theory. In Israel, more than 12,000 people tested positive despite receiving the shot.

Most medical experts agree that vaccines are not silver bullets and the events in recent days further corroborate this theory. In Israel, more than 12,000 people tested positive despite receiving the shot. As many as 69 people had taken the second dose as well. Also read | WHO says Pfizer's vaccine safe to use as concerns rise post Norway deaths In Norway, 23 people died after getting vaccinated. In both cases, the jab in question was Pfizer-BioNTech. And now in addition to all these questions about efficacy, the company is facing a new challenge: shortages. Pfizer is not being able to deliver the bulk orders placed by various governments across the world. This delay could have a major impact on the global vaccination drive and this report will attempt to decode this. The global vaccination campaign has hit a predictable snag with shipments arriving late and order volumes declining by half. Pfizer's vaccine delivery has fallen 15 per cent this week and is expected to drop by 30 per cent in February. The European Union bet big on Pfizer, ordering nearly 300 million doses and the shortage threatens to derail their immunisation drive. This is prompting some member states like Hungary using fast-tracking alternatives, including vaccines by Russia's Sputnik V and AstraZeneca-Oxford. While Romania and Poland are only getting half the doses they ordered, Italy has been told to expect a 20 per cent cut in the supply. Europe's vaccination drive which was off to a rapid start has now slowed to a crawl. What's stalling the production chain? Pfizer claims the stall is a part of a new plan to increase output. It is renovating a factory in Brussels to produce more doses. Meanwhile, output was expected to fall, but the disruption is lasting longer than expected. No time to wait Countries simply can't afford to wait especially with the emergence of potent virus mutations. Also, Pfizer's vaccine is delivered in two doses and the second one is key to developing complete immunity. The delay means there is a risk of people not getting their second dose on time. Elsewhere, Canada will not get even a single dose of Pfizer's vaccine from next week. It's another blow to the country's already dismal roll-out. However, Pfizer estimates that the deficit will be covered by next week. The pace of the vaccination drive is crucial to taming the pandemic and momentum is key in the race to develop herd immunity. Delays, even temporary ones, can set the vaccination programme back by weeks.

Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine raised hopes, but supply, efficacy concerns are hurting

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An enormous trench being dug by Wagner, the Russian-backed mercenaries in war-torn Libya is threatening to derail UN-brokered peace deal | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/libya-huge-trench-by-russian-proxies-may-derail-peace-process-says-report-358600">READ MORE</a>

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/eu-chief-has-urged-putin-to-release-navalny-but-kremlin-wont-budge-358602">EU chief has urged Putin to release Navalny. But Kremlin won't budge</a>

The Kremlin has dismissed Western demands to release Russia's most prominent opposition leader Alexei Navalny, saying his calls for mass protests over his arrest were "troubling" | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/eu-chief-has-urged-putin-to-release-navalny-but-kremlin-wont-budge-358602">READ MORE</a>

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/egypt-4200-year-old-funerary-temple-for-a-queen-discovered-358625">Egypt: 4,200-year-old funerary temple for a queen discovered</a>

In another significant discovery, a funerary temple that dates back 4,200 years has been found along with 54 coffins in Egypt | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/egypt-4200-year-old-funerary-temple-for-a-queen-discovered-358625">READ MORE</a>

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The Biden administration believes that the WHO is vital to controlling the spread of COVID-19 and building back better global health and pandemic preparedness, Vice President Kamala Harris has told WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/biden-administration-believes-who-is-vital-to-contain-covid-pandemic-kamala-harris-tells-who-chief-358605">READ MORE</a>

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China on Friday slammed an EU resolution condemning its crackdown on Hong Kong democracy activists, accusing the lawmakers of "gross interference" in its governance of the city | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-slams-interference-by-eu-lawmakers-on-hong-kong-358574">READ MORE</a>

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The local authority that runs London's historic financial district is planning to remove statues of two British colonial-era politicians over their links to slave trade | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/two-statues-in-london-to-be-removed-because-of-links-to-slavery-358578">READ MORE</a>

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US President Joe Biden has hired a group of national security veterans with deep cyber expertise, drawing praise from former defence officials and investigators | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/with-more-solarwinds-fallout-biden-enlists-his-cybersecurity-team-358590">READ MORE</a>

&nbsp;

Russia welcomes US President Joe Biden's proposal to extend nuclear treaty The Kremlin on Friday welcomed the stated intention of US President Joe Biden to extend the New START arms control treaty with Russia, but said that Moscow wanted to see concrete proposals from Washington | READ MORE WHO says Pfizer's vaccine safe to use as concerns rise post Norway deaths The World Health Organization (WHO) said that there is no evidence to substantiate that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine has contributed to the deaths of the elderly and called for the use of the jab | READ MORE Pension and classified intel: Here are the perks Trump will get as former US president Here are the perks that Trump stands to get once he re-enters life as a "regular" US citizen | READ MORE Libya: Huge trench by Russian proxies may derail peace process, says report An enormous trench being dug by Wagner, the Russian-backed mercenaries in war-torn Libya is threatening to derail UN-brokered peace deal | READ MORE EU chief has urged Putin to release Navalny.

Russia welcomes US President Joe Biden's proposal to extend nuclear treaty The Kremlin on Friday welcomed the stated intention of US President Joe Biden to extend the New START arms control treaty with Russia, but said that Moscow wanted to see concrete proposals from Washington | READ MORE WHO says Pfizer's vaccine safe to use as concerns rise post Norway deaths The World Health Organization (WHO) said that there is no evidence to substantiate that Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine has contributed to the deaths of the elderly and called for the use of the jab | READ MORE Pension and classified intel: Here are the perks Trump will get as former US president Here are the perks that Trump stands to get once he re-enters life as a "regular" US citizen | READ MORE Libya: Huge trench by Russian proxies may derail peace process, says report An enormous trench being dug by Wagner, the Russian-backed mercenaries in war-torn Libya is threatening to derail UN-brokered peace deal | READ MORE EU chief has urged Putin to release Navalny. But Kremlin won't budge The Kremlin has dismissed Western demands to release Russia's most prominent opposition leader Alexei Navalny, saying his calls for mass protests over his arrest were "troubling" | READ MORE Egypt: 4,200-year-old funerary temple for a queen discovered In another significant discovery, a funerary temple that dates back 4,200 years has been found along with 54 coffins in Egypt | READ MORE Biden administration believes WHO is vital to contain Covid pandemic: Kamala Harris tells WHO chief The Biden administration believes that the WHO is vital to controlling the spread of COVID-19 and building back better global health and pandemic preparedness, Vice President Kamala Harris has told WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus | READ MORE China slams interference by EU lawmakers on Hong Kong China on Friday slammed an EU resolution condemning its crackdown on Hong Kong democracy activists, accusing the lawmakers of "gross interference" in its governance of the city | READ MORE Two statues in London to be removed because of links to slavery The local authority that runs London's historic financial district is planning to remove statues of two British colonial-era politicians over their links to slave trade | READ MORE With more SolarWinds fallout, Biden enlists his cybersecurity team US President Joe Biden has hired a group of national security veterans with deep cyber expertise, drawing praise from former defence officials and investigators | READ MORE

Top ten world news: WHO endorses Pfizer vaccine, Kremlin doesn't budge on Navalny, and more

More than 12,400 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Israel after getting inoculated by the Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine, including 69 people who had taken their second jab.

Israel: Over 12,000 people test positive for COVID-19 after receiving Pfizer vaccine

More than 12,400 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Israel after getting inoculated by the Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine, including 69 people who had taken their second jab.

Israel's health ministry tested 189,000 people after they vaccinated by Pfizer's vaccine and 6.6 per cent of the people still tested positive for COVID-19.

Earlier,&nbsp;Nachman&nbsp;Ash, national coordinator on the pandemic had said that Pfizer's vaccine was "less effective than we had thought".

Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/portuguese-nurse-dies-two-days-after-getting-the-pfizer-covid-vaccine-354526">Portuguese nurse dies two days after getting the Pfizer Covid vaccine</a>

Israel&nbsp;launched a vaccination drive on December&nbsp;19 with a focus on the elderly, those with risky medical conditions and some emergency workers. More than a quarter of its citizens have now received the Pfizer Inc. vaccine, health officials say.

About a quarter of&nbsp;Israelis have received their first vaccine shot and 3.5 per cent&nbsp;already got their second dose.

Since the rollout of vaccinations one month ago, the Jewish state had inoculated more than 2.2 million of its nine million inhabitants, Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said Tuesday.

Still, the country is in its third lockdown with infection rates remaining high. More than half a million cases have been reported and 4,005 people have died in&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;since the pandemic began.

The rise in infections, despite the lockdown and vaccinations, has been attributed to virus mutations and disregard by some people of restrictions on assembly.

&nbsp;In return for rapid delivery of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine,&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;has committed to sharing with the US-German manufacturer its data on the effects of the mass immunisation.

More than 12,400 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Israel after getting inoculated by the Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine, including 69 people who had taken their second jab. Israel's health ministry tested 189,000 people after they vaccinated by Pfizer's vaccine and 6.6 per cent of the people still tested positive for COVID-19. Earlier, Nachman Ash, national coordinator on the pandemic had said that Pfizer's vaccine was "less effective than we had thought". Also read: Portuguese nurse dies two days after getting the Pfizer Covid vaccine Israel launched a vaccination drive on December 19 with a focus on the elderly, those with risky medical conditions and some emergency workers. More than a quarter of its citizens have now received the Pfizer Inc. vaccine, health officials say. About a quarter of Israelis have received their first vaccine shot and 3.5 per cent already got their second dose. Since the rollout of vaccinations one month ago, the Jewish state had inoculated more than 2.2 million of its nine million inhabitants, Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said Tuesday. Still, the country is in its third lockdown with infection rates remaining high. More than half a million cases have been reported and 4,005 people have died in Israel since the pandemic began. The rise in infections, despite the lockdown and vaccinations, has been attributed to virus mutations and disregard by some people of restrictions on assembly. In return for rapid delivery of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, Israel has committed to sharing with the US-German manufacturer its data on the effects of the mass immunisation.

Joe Biden receives his second and final dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a hospital in Delaware. When asked about security concerns on his inauguration day, Biden responded by saying that he is not afraid of taking the oath outside.

Capitol riots raises security concerns for inauguration

After weeks of administering the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, the UK has become the first country to give the first shot of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine on Monday.

UK begins rollout of AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Thursday granted emergency validation to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, paving the way for countries worldwide to quickly approve its import and distribution.&nbsp;

Britain launched its inoculation drive with the US-German vaccine on December 8, with the United States, Canada and EU countries following suit.

WHO said the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was the first to receive its "emergency validation" since the novel coronavirus first broke out in China a year ago.

WHO said its emergency use listing opens the way for regulators in different countries to approve the import and distribution of the vaccine.

It said it also enables UNICEF, which plays a key logistical role in distributing anti-Covid vaccines, and the Pan-American Health Organisation to procure the vaccine for countries that need it.

WHO convened its own experts and those from around the world to review the data on the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine’s "safety, efficacy and quality," weighing the benefits against the risks.

"The review found that the vaccine met the must-have criteria for safety and efficacy set out by WHO, and that the benefits of using the vaccine to address COVID-19 offset potential risks," it said.

(with inputs from AFP)

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Thursday granted emergency validation to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, paving the way for countries worldwide to quickly approve its import and distribution.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Thursday granted emergency validation to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, paving the way for countries worldwide to quickly approve its import and distribution. Britain launched its inoculation drive with the US-German vaccine on December 8, with the United States, Canada and EU countries following suit. WHO said the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was the first to receive its "emergency validation" since the novel coronavirus first broke out in China a year ago. WHO said its emergency use listing opens the way for regulators in different countries to approve the import and distribution of the vaccine. It said it also enables UNICEF, which plays a key logistical role in distributing anti-Covid vaccines, and the Pan-American Health Organisation to procure the vaccine for countries that need it. WHO convened its own experts and those from around the world to review the data on the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine’s "safety, efficacy and quality," weighing the benefits against the risks. "The review found that the vaccine met the must-have criteria for safety and efficacy set out by WHO, and that the benefits of using the vaccine to address COVID-19 offset potential risks," it said. (with inputs from AFP)

WHO grants 'emergency validation' to Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine

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