COVID-19 WRAP | R350 social relief of distress grant has cost taxpayers R45bn since start of Covid-19

February 17 2022 - 18:00

3,056 new Covid-19 cases identified in SA in past day

Ninety-two people were admitted to hospital with Covid-19 in the past 24 hours.

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said in an update on Thursday that there had also been 3,056 new Covid-19 cases identified in SA.

This brings the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases to 3,652,024 — an increase representing an 8.8% positivity rate.

February 17 2022 - 18:00

R350 social relief of distress grant has cost taxpayers R45bn since start of Covid-19

It has cost taxpayers R45bn to pay the R350 social relief of distress grant to about 10.5-million South Africans affected by the Covid-19 pandemic since April 2020.

“We will not be able to indicate how much it will cost for the additional 12 months as the process is still in its infancy,” said South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi on Thursday.

Letsatsi was referring to President Cyril Ramaphosa's announcement that the government would be extending the grant until the end of March 2023.

February 17 2022 - 16:00

Covid drug molnupiravir gets interim approval as regulator continues testing

The medicine regulator has given the go-ahead for emergency use of Merck’s Covid-19 drug, molnupiravir.

The SA arm of the US pharmaceutical giant has been given permission to import a limited quantity of 200mg capsules of the oral antiviral for six months for “compassionate use”, the SA Health Products Regulatory Authority (Sahpra) said on Thursday.

The medication, under the brand name Lagevrio, is for use in adults only and will be available on prescription to patients with mild to moderate Covid-19 who do not require supplemental oxygen but are at risk of their disease becoming severe.

February 17 2022 - 12:00

Moderna eyes Covid booster by August, not clear yet if Omicron-specific needed

An Omicron-specific booster could be ready by August, the CEO of US biotech firm Moderna told Reuters, but the firm is still gathering clinical data to determine whether that vaccine would offer better protection than a new dose of the existing jab.

Last month Moderna began clinical trials for a booster dose specifically designed to target Omicron but initial results from studies in monkeys show the Omicron-specific shot may not offer stronger protection than a new dose of the existing vaccine.

Moderna chief executive Stephane Bancel said in an interview the company aimed to have a booster ready by August 2022, before next autumn when he said more vulnerable people may need it.

Moderna's vaccines use mRNA technology to provoke an immune response, similar to the shot developed by Pfizer/BioNTech."We believe a booster will be needed. I don't know yet if it is going to be the existing vaccine, Omicron-only, or bivalent: Omicron and existing vaccine, two mRNA in one dose."

He said a decision would be made in the coming months when clinical data becomes available.

Bancel also confirmed that under the best-case scenario Moderna would have ready by August 2023 a so-called pan-vaccine which would protect simultaneously against COVID-19, flu and other respiratory diseases.

He added that pricing for this vaccine under development would be "very similar" to that applied to the current high-dose flu vaccine.

Separately, Moderna announced plans to expand its commercial network in Europe in a bid to increase sales on the continent."

Moderna plans to establish a commercial presence in Belgium, Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden to support the delivery of mRNA vaccines and therapeutics locally," the company said in a statement.

These new European subsidiaries will be added to commercial offices in Italy, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Britain.

Moderna is also boosting its commercial presence in Asia.In Europe, Moderna produces its vaccines through manufacturing partnerships which include Lonza in Switzerland and the Netherlands, ROVI in Spain and Recipharm in France.

The company shipped last year more than 800 million Covid-19 shots globally and has deals with EU countries for the supply of up to 460 million doses.

Besides vaccines, Moderna is also developing mRNA drugs against a range of conditions including cancer, cardiovascular and rare genetic diseases.

Reuters

February 17 2022 - 11:07

SA’s excess death rate during Covid-19 pandemic reaches 1 in 200 people

Excess deaths during the Covid-19 pandemic account for one in 200 South Africans overall and one in 25 over-60s.

The milestones were reached with the addition of 681 excess deaths in the week ending February 12, according to researchers at the SA Medical Research Council (MRC).

The team produces weekly reports on the number of deaths in excess of the total predicted based on historical trends and estimates between 85% and 95% are due to Covid-19.

Since May 2020, when the number of deaths reached abnormal levels, excess deaths in SA’s population of about 59.6-million have totalled 297,847, the MRC team said in its latest report on Wednesday.

February 17 2022 - 11:05

WHO must be bolstered to strengthen global health security, says Tedros

Any initiatives to strengthen global health security in a future global health crisis will only succeed if such measures bolster the role of the World Health Organization, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Thursday.

Speaking via a video link at a G20 meeting of finance leaders in the Indonesian capital, Tedros was responding to proposals to establish a separate global health fund tasked with delivering emergency funds, vaccines and other medical needs. 

Reuters

February 17 2022 - 10:55

Hong Kong reports more than 16,600 cases since January

Hong Kong health authorities said on Thursday they have recorded more than 16,600 cases since January as the city battles to contain the spread of the disease, with hospitals and testing facilities overwhelmed. 

Reuters

February 17 2022 - 08:11

CDC wants to give people a break from mask-wearing

US health officials said they are preparing for the next phase of the Covid-19 pandemic as Omicron-related cases decline, including updating CDC guidance on mask-wearing

February 17 2022 - 08:00

US officials prepare for pandemic's next phase as Omicron wanes

US health officials said on Wednesday they are preparing for the next phase of the Covid-19 pandemic as Omicron-related cases decline, including updating CDC guidance on mask-wearing and shoring up US testing capacity.

February 17 2022 - 07:30

Will stadiums be open in March? Health minister Joe Phaahla hints at gradual relaxation

Health minister Joe Phaahla has hinted that the government is considering a gradual relaxation of lockdown regulations and opening of stadiums now that the state of disaster is drawing to a close. 

This week, co-operative governance and traditional affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma extended the state of disaster for another month. 

Her department said it decided on a “final” extension after a cabinet meeting in which it determined the extent to which the management of the Covid-19 pandemic required the implementation of the national state of disaster. 

“After noting that some of the key departments dealing with Covid-19 had not yet concluded their analysis, cabinet approved the final extension of the national state of disaster on March 15,” it said.

February 17 2022 - 07:05

I want to get vaccinated but scared of developing myocarditis, should I still get the jab?

Young males who are vaccinated against Covid-19 have a significantly reduced risk of falling ill from myocarditis and pericarditis compared to unvaccinated individuals, according to the Department of Health and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The department describes myocarditis as a rare inflammation of the heart muscle, usually caused by a viral or bacterial infection. Pericarditis is inflammation of the thin membrane that surrounds the heart. 

“Acute myocarditis usually resolves on its own in a few days and can be treated with medications, supportive therapy and rest.

February 17 2022 - 06:00

Girls on top as Covid stress overturns newborn boys’ dominance

A researcher who revealed a boom in the birth of boys nine months after SA hosted the Soccer World Cup in 2010 has done it again ... but this time the backdrop of his finding is less uplifting.

Three months after the start of the Covid epidemic in SA, and for the only time in 100 months analysed, more girls than boys were born, according to Gwinyai Masukume, formerly of the Wits University school of public health.

The statistically significant shift in the “sex ratio at birth” for June 2020 suggests the onset of the pandemic engendered population stress with notable effects on pregnancy and public health, said Gwinyai Masukume, from the academic paediatrics department at the Mater Dei Hospital medical school in Malta.