Health & Science

• Monday, February 1st 2021 - 08:22 UTC

  World medics call for cooperation in fighting Covid-19, and an end to egotism and nationalism

  

  The World Medical Association called for cooperation to fight egotisms and nationalism in the fight against Covid-19. Speaking at a ceremony this Sunday in Vienna, where the WMA was presented with an award honoring physicians around the world for their fight against the pandemic, Dr. Otmar Kloiber, Secretary-General of the WMA, stressed the need for international co-operation.

• Saturday, January 30th 2021 - 09:14 UTC

  EU will monitor (and block) coronavirus vaccine exports out of the continent

  

  The European Commission will monitor and in some cases block coronavirus vaccine exports out of the bloc since it installed a new mechanism on Friday. The move comes amid a row with the British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca over vaccine deliveries.

• Saturday, January 30th 2021 - 09:09 UTC

  Novartis to help Pfizer with manufacturing capacity to boost production

  

  The Swiss drugmaker Novartis has signed an initial agreement to provide manufacturing capacity for Pfizer and Biontech's COVID-19 vaccine, a move aimed at helping boost production as supplies fall shy of demand.

• Saturday, January 30th 2021 - 09:05 UTC

  Large companies sign “Neptune Declaration” to help crews trapped in ships because of Covid-19

  

  More than 300 large companies pledged this week to work together to help hundreds of thousands of merchant sailors trapped on ships for many months due to Covid-19. About 90% of world trade is transported by sea, and coronavirus restrictions in many countries are affecting global supply chains.

• Friday, January 29th 2021 - 08:47 UTC

  Falklands: MPC access limited to essential travel because of Covid-19 positive case

  

  The Falkland Islands Government confirmed on Thursday that a military medic involved in quarantine surveillance swabbing has tested positive for Covid-19 as a result of displaying symptoms.

• Thursday, January 28th 2021 - 09:51 UTC

  Over a million people have died from Covid-19 in the Americas

  

  More than one million people have died from COVID-19 in North and South America, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) reported. Last week two million more cases were reported in the Americas, with the United States the main driver of the outbreak.

• Thursday, January 28th 2021 - 09:15 UTC

  Johnson off to Scotland to confront growing support of independence referendum

  

  Prime Minister Boris Johnson is traveling on Thursday to Scotland to confront growing support for another independence referendum. Ahead of his visit, Johnson said that Scotland, as a part of the UK, gained access to a coronavirus vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, and they are being administered by their shared armed forces, who are creating 80 new vaccine centers in Scotland.

• Thursday, January 28th 2021 - 09:11 UTC

  Colombian defense minister and respected politician dies of Covid-19

  

  Colombia's defense minister has died in hospital after contracting coronavirus, the government announced. Carlos Holmes Trujillo, 69, was taken to hospital with Covid-19 earlier this month and had developed viral pneumonia.

• Thursday, January 28th 2021 - 08:55 UTC

  China has begun using anal swabs for high risk population

  

  AFP – Anal swabs are being used in China to test those it considers at high risk of contracting Covid-19, state TV reported. According to doctors, the invasive procedure is said to be more effective in detecting the virus.

• Wednesday, January 27th 2021 - 20:39 UTC

  Director of Sinovac's intermediary institute said it did not close a deal with Uruguay for vaccine

  

  The Director of the Butantan Institute on Tuesday contradicted the words of Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou, assuring that there is not yet a closed agreement between the Uruguayan government and the Chinese laboratory Sinovac for the purchase of the vaccine against Covid-19. However, the institute affirmed that there is a pre-agreement and talks are still ongoing. Lacalle Pou announced on Saturday at a press conference the purchase of 1.75 million doses from this laboratory.