FDA Delayed Pfizer Shot for Children Because it Didn't Work Well Against Omicron

The Wall Street Journal Friday, citing sources close to the decision, reported the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week delayed its review of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for under-5-year-olds because initial testing showed its two-dose series was not working well against the omicron variant.

The sources told the Journal early data showed the vaccine to be effective against the delta variant during testing, while that was the dominant strain, but some vaccinated children developed COVID-19 after omicron emerged.

The report quotes the sources as saying so few study subjects, whether vaccinated or unvaccinated, developed the disease during testing so far, that the sample size of omicron cases made the vaccine appear less effective in an early statistical analysis.

The Journal sources said FDA officials think the Pfizer-BioNTech shot might wind up providing stronger protection against omicron once more cases emerge, if the bulk of infections are in unvaccinated subjects. So both the FDA and Pfizer agreed it would be better to wait for additional cases, with the extra time allowing the agency to assess the vaccine’s effectiveness as either a two-dose or three-dose regimen.

The FDA was going to make its decision by looking at whether the shot generated immune responses comparable to those seen in older people. The agency was originally scheduled to assess the shot for children 6 months through 4 years of age on February 15.

In Hong Kong

Meanwhile, in Hong Kong Friday, the city’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, announced elections for its next leader will be postponed for six weeks, as the city grapples with a worsening coronavirus outbreak with thousands of daily infections.

At a news conference, Lam said the vote, scheduled for March 27, would be moved to May 8, because holding the elections sooner could pose “public health risks,” even if a committee of only 1,462 voters were involved. She said the city “is currently facing the most serious pandemic situation since the past two years. The situation is critical.”

Patients lie on hospital beds Feb. 18, 2022, as they wait at a temporary makeshift treatment area outside Caritas Medical Centre in Hong Kong, where hospitals reached 90% capacity and COVID-19 quarantine facilities were at their limit, authorities said.

Lam also said the city is considering mandatory testing of “everyone in Hong Kong” but added that did not necessarily mean that the city would be put under strict lockdown.

She pointed to cities like Macao, which has tested its entire population twice for the coronavirus.

Health authorities said Thursday that the city’s hospitals were at 90% capacity and that its isolation facilities were full.

In Africa

Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia are the first African countries to receive technology needed to produce mRNA vaccines from the World Health Organization. Two of the vaccines used in the fight against COVID-19 are mRNA vaccines.

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the award Friday in Brussels at the European Union-African Union summit.

“No other event like the COVID-19 pandemic has shown that reliance on a few companies to supply global public goods is limiting, and dangerous,” Tedros said. “In the mid- to long-term, the best way to address health emergencies and reach universal health coverage is to significantly increase the capacity of all regions to manufacture the health products they need, with equitable access as their primary endpoint.”

More than 80% of the population of the African continent has yet to receive a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. “Much of this inequity has been driven by the fact that globally, vaccine production is concentrated in a few mostly high-income countries,” Tedros said.

Meanwhile, The Washington Post reports that it has received a document that says the Biden administration will “surge” more than $250 million to 11 African countries for coronavirus vaccine campaigns. The countries slated to receive the “intensive support” are Angola, Ivory Coast, Eswatini – formerly known as Swaziland – Ghana, Lesotho, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

The Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center reported early Friday that it has recorded more than 420 million global COVID-19 cases and 5.8 million deaths. The center said 10.3 billion vaccine doses have been administered.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters.

Medellín: cases of omicron - Medellín - Colombia

In Medellin and Antioquia, occupation in the ICU, hospitalization, and positive cases of covid-19.

This was reported by the Government, which monitors the matter daily.

(You may be interested: This is what the inhabitants of Medellín think about how the city is doing)

According to Luis Fernando Suárez, Secretary of Human Security, in recent days, the occupancy of ICU beds in Antioquia has been stable, with an average of 91.5 percent. “A little over a week ago we reached 94%,” he said.
Suárez explained that the department is ready for, if necessary, an expansion of ICU beds.

“Today we have the option with several hospital institutions to open about 40 beds,” he explained.

The official added that the department is going through a plateau with a downward trend in the current peak of covid-19 infections.

The Secretary of Health, Lina Bustamante, corroborated this information because according to current information, It is estimated that by February 15 ICU occupancy, hospitalization and deaths from covid-19 will already be decreasing.
​
“In positivity we are already at 19%, before we were at 38%; in hospitalizations we were at 850 last week and now they are 700; and in ICU patients with covid we went from 287 and down to 249. It is decreasing, ”Bustamante said.

(You can also read: Why do they call Antioquians ‘paisas’?)

ICU care for Covid patients at the CES Clinic in Medellín.

Photo:

Jaiver Nieto Alvarez / ETCE

These statements have contrasted with what was recently said by the mayor of Medellín, Daniel Quintero, who stated that the city exceeded the peak of infections by omicron, the predominant variant of covid-19 both in the capital of Antioquia and in the rest of the country.

“Medellín has exceeded the peak of covid-19 by omicron that occurred in the last month, it is great news, in the last two weeks we have seen a drop in half in the number of infections,” said the president.

However, this statement has been controversial, at least that was the case with the Antioquia Medical Association (Asmedes), which in a statement expressed that this is not entirely true.

“It must be mentioned that the new covid diagnosis figures are far below reality; there is an underdiagnosis of approximately 90% if we take into account that only the population over 60 years of age who has symptoms, those under 3 years of age, people with comorbidities and health officials are tested” Asmedas explained.

For this association, in Medellín and Antioquia, the death toll is around 40 – 50 per day, “a figure that we consider is still very high.”

“On the other hand, we consider the mayor’s message to consider this fourth peak to have been overcome unfortunate, since this can lead to a relaxation in all self-care measures by the community in general, such as putting aside the use of face masks, attending massive shows. or to high attendance activities such as parties or concerts”, detailed this association.

(We suggest you read: ‘Protocols failed’: Metro manager on death of two workers)

What the Personería says

On the other hand, the Personería of Medellin lHe called attention so that the guard is not lowered so that the health services do not collapse.

The entity revealed that according to the Medical Emergency System -SEM-, at the ICU service of the Medellín Hospital Network, between January 1 and 29, 2022, 404 patients were admitted to the ICU for Covid-19, of which 270, they are not vaccinated. In addition, during this period, an average of 14 people were admitted to the ICU per day; Of these, 9 have not started their vaccination schedule against the disease.

Currently, Medellín has 717 active beds in the ICU and has an occupancy rate of 95.3%, of which 24.3% corresponds to covid patients. As of February 3, 2022, the occupation in the hospital network of the different services with covid-19 patients is: CSU: 13 (2.34%), hospitalization: 347 (64%) and emergencies 16 (2.95 %).

MEDELLIN

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US Economy Defies Omicron and Adds 467,000 Jobs in January

WASHINGTON — 

In a surprising burst of hiring, America’s employers added a robust 467,000 jobs last month, a sign of the economy’s resilience in the face of a wave of omicron infections.

The government’s report Friday also drastically revised up its estimate of job gains for November and December by a combined 709,000. It also said the unemployment rate ticked up from 3.9% to a still-low 4%, mainly because more people began looking for work and not all of them found jobs right away.

The strong hiring growth for January, which defied expectations for only a slight gain, demonstrated the eagerness of many employers to hire even as the pandemic raged. Businesses appear to have regarded the omicron wave as having, at most, a temporary impact on the economy and remain confident about their longer-term prospects.

“Employers have assumed that omicron would be painful but short term, so they haven’t changed their hiring plans,” said Mathieu Stevenson, the CEO of Snagajob, a job listings site focused on hourly workers. “Demand from employers is as strong as ever.”

January’s hiring gain and sharp upward revisions to previous months mean that the United States has 1.1 million more jobs than government data had indicated only a month ago. The solid hiring, along with steady wage gains, are boosting consumer spending, which has collided with snarled supply chains to accelerate inflation to a four-decade high.

Adjusted for price increases, Americans’ paychecks on average don’t go as far as they did a year ago, even though many workers have received raises. Many households, especially lower-income families, are struggling to afford necessities like gas, food, rent and child care.

FILE – The Federal Reserve building is seen before the Federal Reserve board is expected to signal plans to raise interest rates as it focuses on fighting inflation in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022.

Those trends will give the Federal Reserve more leeway to raise interest rates, perhaps even faster than it had planned, to cool inflation. The Fed has indicated that it will begin raising rates in March, and it could do so again at its next meeting in May. Faster rate hikes could reduce borrowing and spending and possibly weaken the economy.

Stocks initially fell on the expectation that the Fed will tighten credit more quickly, before share prices recovered in early afternoon. But the yield on the 10-year Treasury jumped nearly one-tenth of a percentage point, to 1.91%, a sign that investors anticipate higher borrowing costs.

Across the economy, most industries hired workers last month, including retailers, which added more than 61,000 jobs, and restaurants and hotels, which gained 131,000. Shipping and warehousing firms added 54,000. Many companies in those industries likely held onto some of the workers they had hired over the winter holidays, economists said, rather than laying them all off.

Omicron did leave some fingerprints on the report: The percentage of Americans who were working from home rose to more than 15%, up from 11% in December. And the number of people out sick last month soared to 3.6 million, up from fewer than 2 million in the previous January and about triple the pre-pandemic level. This forced many companies, from restaurants to retailers to manufacturers, to reduce their hours or even close because of staff shortages.

Among the workers who were out sick was Perla Hernandez, whose entire family of eight contracted COVID last month. Hernandez and her husband and 20-year old daughter all missed work, a major blow to the family’s finances.

Hernandez, 42, who lives in the San Jose, California, area, missed six days from her job as a Burger King cook and janitor. Because she has no paid sick leave, the paycheck she receives every two weeks amounted to just $230.

About one-fifth of U.S. workers receive no sick pay, and the proportion is far higher among lower-paid service workers. Only 33% of workers who are at the bottom 10% of the pay scale receive paid sick leave, compared with 95% of employees in the top 10%.

“Thank God that we already had paid the rent for January,” she said through an interpreter. “We had to go to a food bank.”

Hernandez said she earns $15.45 an hour, after having received a 45-cent raise six months ago. But she and her colleagues, including managers, have been working especially long hours because the restaurant has had difficulty hiring.

Daniel Zhao, senior economist at the employment website Glassdoor, said the healthy hiring — not only for January but also for November and December — is a sign that last month’s gains weren’t merely a blip.

“This is an actual trend, and job growth was faster than we realized,” Zhao said.

A greater proportion of Americans are also now working or looking for work, the report showed, a trend that makes it easier for companies to find workers. It suggests that concerns about long-term labor shortages may have been overblown, at least in some industries.

“There are workers out there — it’s just taking time to integrate them back into the labor force,” Zhao said.

Grady Cope, the CEO of Reata Engineering and Machine Works, said nine of his 43 staffers were out sick last month — the most he can remember in nearly 30 years of running the company.

But Cope’s company, which makes parts for airplane and medical device manufacturers, also has the biggest order backlog it’s ever had. He wants to add at least eight employees, including machinists, assemblers and engineers. Last month, he raised pay 18%, far more than the usual 3%-4% increases. His company is based near Denver, where rents and other costs are rising fast.

“People have to have wages so they can support themselves and raise families,” he said.

Still, Cope has been increasing his own prices to offset his workers’ higher pay. The competition for workers, he said, is the toughest he’s ever seen. In October, four of his workers quit. Only one gave notice.

“That’s never happened in 28 years,” he said.

The overall outlook for the job market remains bright, with openings near a record high, the pace of layoffs down and the unemployment rate having already reached a healthy level. The nation gained more jobs last year, adjusted for the size of the workforce, than in any year since 1978. Much of that improvement represented a rebound from record job losses in 2020 that were driven by the pandemic recession.

Ómicron: myths are one thing and facts are another

Since omicron was first detected just nine weeks ago, more than 80 million cases have been reported worldwide. Its speed of spread runs parallel to the spread of speculation about this variant of the Covid 19 virus. But compared to the myths, there are the facts

Test to detect the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 at the Bangalore train station (India). EFE/EPA/IDREES MOHAMMED

To remove them, who has tracked the most common media, social networks and internet searches and has confronted them with what is really known, and this is the result published by the United Nations newsletter:

Myth: All cases of omicron are mild
Fact: Omicron appears to be less severe than delta, but should not be considered mild

Several countries have shown that the severity of omicron infection in their populations has been less compared to delta. However, these studies have taken place, above all, in countries with high rates of vaccination.

It is too early to know what impact omicron will have in countries with the lowest vaccination rates and in the most vulnerable groups.

Myth: Because omicron is less severe, there will be fewer hospitalizations
Fact: Ómicron poses a high risk to health systems

Current data indicates that omicron spreads more easily than delta. Although it causes milder cases of COVID-19, and a lower percentage of patients end up in the hospital.

However, given the very high number of infections, this lower percentage represents a large number of hospitalizations.

This makes it more difficult for health systems to treat patients with both COVID-19 and other types of diseases.

Myth: Omicron is the same as a common cold
Fact: Omicron is much more dangerous than a common cold

Omicron is not like a common cold and is more likely to land you in the hospital. People infected with the omicron variant are being hospitalized and have died as a result.

In addition, people who get omicron and recover are also at risk of developing persistent Covid.

Myth: Vaccines don’t work against omicron
Fact: Vaccines offer the best available protection against omicron

LVaccines continue to protect against severe illness and death in cases of Covid caused by omicron, just as they do with the other variants in circulation.

So far, the comparatively lower rate of hospitalizations and deaths is due in large part to the fact that many people are already vaccinated.

Vaccination stimulates the body’s immune response against the virus, which not only protects us from currently circulating variants, but is also likely to protect us from becoming seriously ill from future mutations.

Myth: Unvaccinated people will not get seriously ill from omicron
Fact: Unvaccinated people are most at risk of contracting omicron

The vast majority of those hospitalized in countries where omicron has become the dominant variant are unvaccinated.

If steps are not taken to interrupt transmission, the omicron variant will spread with unprecedented speed and, as in the delta wave, unvaccinated people will be the most affected.

The main WHO recommendation is still to get vaccinated when it’s your turn, including a booster dose if offered.

Vials of vaccines against covid. EFE/EPA/NARENDRA SHRESTHA

Myth: If I have already had Covid, I have immunity against omicron
Fact: Ómicron can reinfect people who have previously had Covid-19

If you have had Covid before, you should still be vaccinated, as reinfection by omicron is still possible, with the risk of becoming seriously ill, transmitting the virus to other people, or developing persistent Covid.

Getting vaccinated, whether you’ve had it or not, is the best way to protect yourself and others from getting seriously ill and dying.

Myth: Booster doses are not effective in preventing serious illness with omicron
Fact: Booster doses are effective in increasing protection

The effectiveness of vaccines, like that of many other vaccines, such as the flu, declines over time, so it is important to get the booster dose.

This way you are more protected from developing a serious case of Covid.

This advice is especially important for groups at risk, such as those over 60 years of age and people with pre-existing health problems.

Health workers should also receive a booster vaccination due to their high risk of exposure to the virus and the danger of contagion to the vulnerable people they care for.

Myth: Being less severe omicron, we are approaching the end of the pandemic
Fact: The end of the pandemic is not yet in sight

It is important to recognize that we still have a long way to go to end the pandemic.

With the millions of infections that are taking place in the world, it is almost a fact that new variants will emerge.

In order to get out of the acute phase of the pandemic, it is essential to meet the objective set by the World Health Organization to vaccinate 70% of the population in all countries by the middle of this year and continue to take steps to reduce transmission.

Elecciones: Portugal desafía la ómicron y vota más que en 2019 | Internacional

El coronavirus ya no intimida a los portugueses. En las terceras votaciones celebradas en el país desde que se declaró la pandemia, la participación hasta el mediodía había crecido respecto a esas dos citas anteriores y también a las legislativas de 2009, 2011, 2015 y 2019, organizadas antes de la covid. Se constató con los datos del Ministerio del Interior: hasta el mediodía había votado el 23% frente al 18,8% de hace dos años y el 21,3% de 2009, que hasta ahora era la participación más alta de los últimos años. Pero también era la sensación entre las personas que trabajan en los colegios electorales, como Filipa Mesquita, una funcionaria de la junta de distrito de Campo de Ourique, en Lisboa, que supervisa el desarrollo de la votación ―a la que acuden empatados el primer ministro luso, el socialista António Costa, y el conservador Riu Rio― en el centro de educación secundaria Pedro Nunes, uno de los cuatro puntos del distrito donde se puede votar. “Hay más participación que en las presidenciales de 2021, que fueron las primeras con covid”, observa.

Los votantes son separados en filas para distribuirlos hacia cada una de las ocho secciones del instituto. Hay circuitos de entrada y salida. Además, no se permite el acceso al recinto sin mascarilla quirúrgica o FPP2. “Si la persona no tiene quirúrgica o FPP2, le facilitamos una quirúrgica”, explica Mesquita. Hasta las dos de la tarde todo se había desarrollado con normalidad. “Yo he votado siempre, también en las otras elecciones que ha habido durante la pandemia. Tomando las medidas de precaución no me ha dado miedo”, sostiene la jurista Joana Colhaço, de 36 años, a las puertas del colegio. No cree que las elecciones de este domingo vayan a transformar mucho el Parlamento, algo que ella desearía que ocurriera: “Dudo que haya mucho movimiento, pero mi generación, los que estamos entre los 30 y 40 años, estamos comprometidos con que se produzca un cambio necesario en el país”.

La polarización de la campaña, que ha trasladado el mensaje de que cada voto es crucial, ha movilizado más a la sociedad que el temor a un posible contagio a pesar del masivo impacto de la ómicron. Más de 1,2 millones de personas se encuentran en aislamiento (597.879 de ellos son infectados y los restantes, contactos de alto riesgo), muy por encima de las expectativas barajadas hace un mes (se esperaban unos 400.000). Los electores confinados por el virus han recibido una autorización oficial para salir a votar y se les ha recomendado que preferentemente lo hagan en la última hora de votación (a partir de las seis de la tarde, las siete hora española). En esa franja, el personal de las mesas electorales, explica Filipa Mesquita, podrá utilizar medidas de protección adicionales como batas y viseras.

En Portugal viven 10,34 millones de personas, pero este domingo pueden votar 10,89. La disparidad tiene una explicación histórica: más de millón y medio de portugueses residen en algún país extranjero. En total pueden participar en las elecciones legislativas de este domingo 1,55 millones de portugueses emigrados, lo que da idea del peso electoral que tiene la colonia del exterior en la composición de la Asamblea de la República. El país también concede el derecho de sufragio a los brasileños que residan en Portugal, en virtud del tratado entre ambos países, que otorga una recíproca igualdad de derechos políticos a sus ciudadanos.

La diáspora lusa por Europa equivale al 9% de la población que vive dentro del país, muy diezmado por emigraciones en el siglo XX y que en el XXI asiste a un nuevo éxodo demográfico, caracterizado esta vez por jóvenes formados que encuentran fuera mejores condiciones laborales. En Europa los emigrantes lusos se concentran sobre todo en Francia (414.000), Suiza (146.000) y el Reino Unido (141.000). En España, el censo electoral solo computa a 42.000. El país americano con más colonia portuguesa es Brasil, con 250.000.

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COVID Cases Surge Among US Children as Omicron Sweeps America

In mid-January the average number of daily new COVID cases in the U.S. fluctuated between 750,000 and 800,000, according to the CDC COVID Data Tracker. Children under five remain one of the most vulnerable groups since they cannot be vaccinated yet. In the first week of January, over half a million young children were diagnosed with COVID-19, an 80% increase compared to late December 2021. Mariia Prus has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. Video editor – Kim Weeks.

OMS recomienda dar prioridad a investigar la versión BA.2 de ómicron

La Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) ha recomendado poner el acento en investigar la versión BA.2 de la variante ómicron, que se está propagando rápidamente en el mundo y de la que se desconoce el impacto que podría tener en la evolución de la pandemia de covid-19.

Imagen del coronavirus SARS-COV-2. Foto cedida

La OMS recomienda dar prioridad a investigar la versión BA.2 de ómicron

Las evidencias científicas reunidas en torno a ómicron se basan principalmente en el sublinaje BA.1, pero se ha observado en los últimos días la presencia cada vez más importante de la versión BA.2, «que difiere del primero en algunas mutaciones, incluida la proteína espiga» o espícula.

Así se reconoce en una actualización que ha realizado la OMS de la sección de su sitio web dedicada a informar del seguimiento de las distintas variantes del coronavirus.

De acuerdo a la organización, la comunidad científica debería priorizar las investigaciones sobre las características del BA.2 para determinar su capacidad de escapar a las defensas inmunológicas y su virulencia, y esto de forma independiente al sublinaje BA.1 para poder compararlos.

La variante ómicron original, que ha demostrado ser altamente contagiosa y se ha convertido en la dominante en el mundo, es responsable en las últimas semanas del aumento vertiginoso de casos de covid-19 en el mundo, aunque la mortalidad se mantiene estable.

La alarma en torno al BA.2 se encendió tras detectarse que su presencia aumentaba rápidamente en el Reino Unido, la India y Dinamarca.

Hasta descubrirse este cambio, hasta el 97 % de covid causados por ómicron correspondían al sublinaje BA.1.

Ciertas fuentes científicas han indicado que en una minoría de casos los test de diagnóstico, incluidos los de PCR, no detectarían la secuenciación genética de ómicron, incluido el caso de su versión BA.2, por lo que algunos la llaman la «variante furtiva».

Según la OMS, «las condiciones son óptimas para que emerjan nuevas variantes», debido a las cifras récord de contagios, que el pasado día 20 de enero fueron las más altas en más de dos años de pandemia, con casi cuatro millones de positivos globales en una sola jornada.

Casi dos años después de declararse la pandemia, el 30 de enero de 2020, se han reportado casi 350 millones de casos y más de 5,5 millones de muertes. La OMS asegura que actualmente en el mundo se confirman 100 casos cada tres segundos y cinco muertes por minuto.

Atención: en Putumayo se confirmó la presencia del primer caso de Omicrón

Hay preocupación por la presencia de la variante Omicrón. Autoridades en Putumayo hicieron el llamado a redoblar las medidas.

Hay preocupación por la presencia de la variante Omicrón. Autoridades en Putumayo hicieron el llamado a redoblar las medidas.

Noticias Putumayo.

A través de un comunicado, autoridades de salud confirmaron la presencia de Omicrón en en Putumayo.

Indicaron que la información fue confirmada por el Instituto Nacional de Salud tras señalar mediante el programa nacional de caracterización genómica, se ha detectado la circulación de la variante.

“La variante Omicron representa la mayor proporción de variantes circulando en el territorio colombiano; sin embargo, es necesario continuar con la selección de muestras de hisopado nasofaríngeo con diagnóstico de SARS-CoV-2”, indicaron.

Explicaron que el objetivo es realizar la detección de variantes en tiempo real.

“Es importante recordar que la vigilancia genómica es poblacional, pues su objetivo es identificar la circulación de las variantes”, sostuvieron, y en Putumayo piden a los ciudadanos mantener las medidas de autocuidado.

Recordaron que hasta la fecha, la OMS ha catalogado de preocupantes cinco de sus variantes, alfa, beta, gamma, delta y omicron, atendiendo a su impacto en la transmisión.

“Es de prever que el SARS-CoV-2 siga evolucionando, por lo que es improbable que Omicron sea la última variante preocupante”, añadieron.

Por lo anterior, invitaron a los putumayenses a continuar usando las medidas de bioseguridad como distanciamiento social, use de tapabocas, lavado de manos y continuar asistiendo a los puntos de vacunación.

En Putumayo, en varios municipios se mantuvieron restricciones para fiestas con el fin de evitar aglomeraciones y que se disparara el contagio.

¿Dónde está la gente de Villagarzón?, un pueblo desolado reportan

La zona de frontera en el departamento preocupa, también, por el impacto que pueda generar en el Suroccidente del país.

Esta variante del coronavirus es de más rápido contagio.

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Covid-19: EE UU inicia el reparto de millones de mascarillas y pruebas rápidas ante el avance de ómicron | La crisis del coronavirus

El presidente de EE UU, Joe Biden, observa su reloj durante la conferencia de prensa de este miércoles 19 de febrero.Oliver Contreras / POOL (EFE)

El Gobierno de Joe Biden ha redoblado sus esfuerzos esta semana para tratar de atajar la crisis del coronavirus. La Casa Blanca ha puesto en marcha el reparto de millones de pruebas de antígenos y mascarillas N95, que comenzarán a ser entregados gratis en todo el país a partir de la próxima semana. El ambicioso despliegue coincide con el primer año del mandatario al frente del país y se suma a una serie de medidas con las que el demócrata quiere revertir las críticas a la gestión de la pandemia. El coronavirus se ha cobrado la vida de casi 860.000 estadounidenses y el avance de la variante ómicron ha incrementado los ingresos hospitalarios en las últimas semanas. Hay 159.000 personas en hospitales actualmente, un nuevo récord.

Washington ha anunciado este miércoles que pondrá a disposición del público 400 millones de mascarillas N95, que comúnmente cuestan entre uno o dos dólares. Estas serán distribuidas a 19.000 farmacias de las cadenas CVS y Walgreens, además de centros de salud comunitarios, para que sean recogidas desde la próxima semana con un límite de tres máscaras por persona. El incremento de los casos ha traído también un agudo aumento en la demanda de este tipo de mascarillas, una de las más eficientes para frenar el ritmo de los contagios, de acuerdo al Centro de Control y Prevención de Enfermedades (CDC).

Las autoridades han intentado trasladar la calma y esfumar temores por la falta de abasto en un país con 329 millones de habitantes. Hasta mediados de diciembre pasado, el país tenía en sus manos 747 millones de mascarillas, un número 59 veces superior a la reserva que se tenía antes de los tiempos pandémicos. La empresa 3M, el principal fabricante de este tipo de accesorios, ha dicho que tiene capacidad de hacer 2.000 millones cada año en sus plantas en Dakota del sur, Nebraska y en otras partes del mundo. Una portavoz ha asegurado recientemente que tanto los gobiernos federal como los locales “tienen en sus manos cientos de millones de máscaras” y que estas pueden ser reabastecidas cuando se necesite.

El Gobierno demócrata también habilitó recientemente un sitio web, covidtests.gov, para que millones de estadounidenses soliciten y reciban en sus casas una de las 500 millones de pruebas rápidas para detectar el virus. “Este histórico plan aumenta las acciones, significativas y agresivas, que ha tomado la Administración desde su inicio para expandir la capacidad de hacer pruebas”, explicó hace unos días un portavoz de la Casa Blanca.

Lograr ese número de pruebas disponibles requirió a la FDA, la oficina encargada de validar los alimentos y medicinas, aumentar el número de pruebas autorizadas para su uso en el país. También necesitó una inversión de 3.000 millones de dólares para fabricar 420 millones de pruebas. Estas, junto a las “decenas de millones” que tiene el Ejecutivo en su poder, forman parte de la reserva.

El programa, explicó la Casa Blanca, limita a cuatro el número de pruebas que puede recibir cada domicilio. “Estas llegarán entre 7 y 12 días después de haber sido ordenadas”, añadió, explicando que los paquetes serán timbrados como correo prioritario. Quienes deseen recibirlas solo deben ingresar en la página citada su nombre, dirección postal y correo electrónico. La iniciativa pretende quitar presión sobre los 20.000 sitios de pruebas gratuitas que hay en todo el país. Muchos se han visto saturados en las últimas semanas ante el incremento de los casos positivos.

Además, el Gobierno estadounidense exige desde mediados de enero a las aseguradoras cubrir el costo de hasta ocho pruebas mensuales compradas a domicilio por los usuarios que ya tienen síntomas o que no quieren esperar siete días para poder realizarse el primer raspado nasal.

“Ha sido demasiado para soportar”, ha dicho Biden este miércoles sobre el desgaste que la pandemia en los estadounidenses. En una conferencia de prensa que coincidió con su primer aniversario en la Casa Blanca, el mandatario ha dicho que su lucha contra el virus “es un trabajo incompleto”. Esto a pesar de que el propio Biden decretó la independencia del coronavirus el 4 de julio pasado.

“La situación mejorará”, ha prometido esta tarde el presidente. Estados Unidos registra casi 21.000 ingresos diarios a los hospitales, un incremento de casi 25% comparado con la semana pasada. La mayoría de los nuevos pacientes no están vacunados, pero el panorama puede complicarse gracias a la nueva variante, más contagiosa, quien ya es señalada como la culpable de que la nación reporte cada día en promedio más de 700.000 nuevos positivos. El doctor Anthony Fauci ha dicho este miércoles que es probable que este nuevo pico pase para mediados de febrero.

Biden, quien tiene una aprobación de 40%, considera que corregir el rumbo de la pandemia es vital para la batalla de los comicios de medio mandato de noviembre. Los republicanos usarán la crisis del coronavirus como uno de los argumentos para recuperar el control del Congreso. Los sondeos han arrojado que los votantes que hicieron triunfar a Biden frente a Trump —blancos, de los suburbios y con estudios universitarios— están entre los desencantados. Aún hay tiempo para la reconquista. Esta parece empezar con cientos de millones de mascarillas y pruebas.

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The third dose of the covid vaccine neutralizes ómicron

The third dose of the vaccine against covid neutralizes the omicron variant, according to the ENECovid study, presented by the director of the Carlos III Health Institute, Cristóbal Belda

Araceli, a 96-year-old woman, resident at the Los Olmos center for the elderly in Guadalajara, the first to be vaccinated in Spain against the coronavirus on December 27, 2020/EFE/Pepe Zamora POOL

The third dose of the covid vaccine neutralizes the omicron variant

Belda presented the first results of this study by the Carlos III Institute, at a press conference, at the Palacio de la Moncloa, together with the Minister of Health, Carolina Darias, after the meeting of the Interterritorial Health Council.

“Clearly there are new antibodies after the third dose, both in people who have had the covid infection and those who have not”, according to research carried out in a study with 1,200 people over 65 years of age who have received this reinforcement of the vaccination schedule, Belda said.

“And these antibodies – he continued – are ten times more effective against omicron than in people who do not receive the third dose. Cellular immunity remains stable with the third dose.”

“The antibodies work, in the delta variant 17 times more, and in omicron, 10”, added the director of the Carlos III Health Institute.

Cristóbal Belda has concluded: “The third dose neutralizes the omicron variant. These are first results and more will come, but the efficacy of the third dose is relevant compared to ómicron».

Evolution of vaccination

The minister has recalled the basic data on the evolution of vaccination against covid.

The number of people over 12 years of age with a complete immunization schedule is 90.6 percent.

People over 60 years of age who have already received the third dose are 88.9 percent.

The children between 5 and 11 years who have received the first dose are 46 percent.

“Must continue reinforcing vaccination at all ages”, said Darias, who recalled that since last week those over 18 years of age can inject the third dose against SARS-CoV-2, and has called for the acceleration of vaccination, especially between 40 and 59 years old.

“Vaccines save lives; They protect us against serious illness from the virus, hospitalization, admission to the ICU and death,” he added.

Between 60 and 79 years of age, in vaccinated people there are six times fewer hospitalizations, 29 times fewer admissions to intensive care units and 20 times fewer deaths from covid, the minister has completed.

The director of the Carlos III Health Institute, Cristóbal Belda. EFE/

Stop covid infections in the world, 72% by omicron

The world registered 18.7 million cases of COVID in the week from January 10 to 16, an increase of 20% compared to the previous seven days, but a brake on the curve compared to the previous week, where the rise it was 55%, and the first of the year (more than 70%). 72% of cases are due to the omicron variant

Stop covid infections in the world by slowing down the growth rate. EFE/EPA/FRANCK ROBICHON

Stop covid infections in the world, 72% by omicron

Contrary to this brake on infections, according to the weekly epidemiological report of the World Health Organization (WHO), the confirmed deaths in the period studied were more than 45,000, 4% more than in the previous week, although the curve since October in this indicator remains relatively stable.

By regions, Africa was the only one that last week saw the cases decrease (190,000, 27% less), while in Europe rose by 10% and amounted to 8.2 million, in America 17% (7.1 million) and in Asia Oriental 38% (one million new positives).

The greatest increase occurred in South and Southeast Asia, where infections grew by 145% (1.7 million), although also in that region, one of the last to suffer the wave of cases associated with omicron, a slowdown is noted , since in the previous week the positives had increased by 418%.

In the Middle East, another region where the current wave arrived later than in Europe or America, cases are still growing at a very high rate, 68% in the past week (345,000).

In practically all regions, there is a slowdown in contagion, although the peak of new cases has not yet been reached with certainty.

In death statistics, it was Europe that recorded the most deaths (21,000, 3% more), followed by America (15,000, an increase of 7%) and South Asia (2,500, 12% more), while Africa it was the only area where there was a decrease in deaths (2,000, a decrease of 4%).

The countries with the most cases last week were the United States (4.6 million, a figure similar to the previous seven days), followed by France (two million infections, 26% more), India (1.5 million, 150% more), Italy (1.2 million, 25% more) and the United Kingdom (813,000 cases, a drop of 33%).

In addition to curbing infections, the global vaccination campaign against COVID-19 continues, with more than 60% of human beings having received at least one dose.

9,730 doses of anticovid vaccines have been administered on the planet, at a current rate of more than 30 million a day, although in low-income countries, many of them on the African continent, the percentage of people with at least one inoculation is remains low, at 9.6%.

Ómicron gains ground among the positives

The omicron variant of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, discovered in early November, is already present in 71.9% of the cases analyzed in the last 30 days by the global network of GISAID laboratories, according to the weekly epidemiological report of The OMS.

Of the 405,000 samples collected, the omicron variant was detected in 291,000 cases, while the delta variant, which dominated much of the pandemic in 2021, was only present in 28% of the analyzes of the last 30 days (113,000), stressed the report.

Other variants that the WHO designated as “worrying”, such as gamma and alpha, represent less than 0.1% of the samples taken.

The WHO maintains its warnings and recommendations to avoid contracting the disease, since the exponential increase in infections in most regions has added pressure to health networks, although this time more to primary care centers than to hospitals. hospitals.

Por la Cepa Ómicron en Cali, estas son las medidas preventivas en el Distrito

La verbena popular hizo parte de la programación oficial de la feria y ha sido un evento aplaudido. Foto: Alcaldía de Cali.
Foto de referencia eventos masivos.

La cepa variante Ómicron en Cali es de más rápido contagio, y nuevamente freno a las actividades masivas.

Noticias Cali.

«Durante las tres primeras semanas de enero», no se permitirán eventos como conciertos ni eventos masivos, aunque hasta ahora no hay ninguno programado si surge, no se autorizará.

Los establecimientos nocturnos volverán hasta las 3 de la madrugada, con aforo del 50%.

Con esta última decisión, se cae el plan que se había concretado en diciembre para que las discotecas, gastrobares y bares pudieran ir más allá de las 3 de la madrugada.

Lo que si aclaró Jorge Iván Ospina, alcalde de Cali, no hay cierre de ciudad, cuarentena «ni restricción de movilización para los ciudadanos».

La cuarentena obligó al cierre de miles de restaurantes y bares en Cali en 2020. Hay temor por esta nueva ola del virus y las medidas que se tome n

En el caso de los colegios privados, que aplacen las clases dos semanas más. Empezaban el 12 de enero.

Que acudan a las jornadas de vacunación, tomarse las pruebas y si tiene los síntomas, «asumase como ser de luz, rompiendo la cadena de contagio aislandose».

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Confirman los 3 primeros casos de Ómicron en Barranquilla

Imagen de referencia: Unisimon

Son pacientes hombres.

Noticias Barranquilla.

En la ciudad de Barranquilla se han identificado los primeros tres casos de Ómicron, variante del Covid-19.

Estos tres pacientes con sintomatología leve en estos momentos, fueron reportados por el Laboratorio de Virología de la Universidad del Norte, miembro de la red de laboratorios del país para vigilancia del COVID.

#ReporteCOVID Jefe de Salud Pública de @SecSaludBAQ Ligia Oviedo confirma los tres primeros casos de contagiados por variante Ómicron en #Barranquilla. pic.twitter.com/z5XlAr83WQ

— RadNalCaribe (@RadNalCaribe) January 2, 2022

Los tres contagiados son de sexo masculino, dos de ellos, residentes de la capital de Atlántico y el otro, un ciudadano extranjero.

«Todos están en franca recuperación en sus viviendas sin ninguna complicación», informó la Alcaldía de Barranquilla.

La Secretaría Distrital de Salud explicó que Barranquilla presenta indicadores de control de pandemia estables con una variación en los últimos 7 días en la positividad, que actualmente está en el 15%. Los usos hospitalarios en pacientes con COVID-19 están en 0,4%, las unidades de cuidados intensivos con pacientes con COVID-19 están en 3,4%.

En lo corrido del mes de diciembre del 2021 se presentaron nueve días con cero fallecimientos a causa del virus. Indicadores muy estables y estimados que muestran la real protección de las vacunas y las coberturas poblacionales útiles que destacan la ciudad como la de mayor aplicación de dosis.

Vea:

«El abrazo de Macta», el cuadro viral disparado en Barranquilla

La Secretaría hace un llamado a no bajar los brazos ante la nueva ola de contagios.

«El riesgo ante ómicron o cualquier variante del virus COVID-19 es no estar vacunado y no cumplir autocuidado», indicó la jefe de Salud Pública de Barranquilla, Ligia Oviedo.

La funcionaria insistió en el cumplimiento con la vacunación contra el COVID-19 con esquemas completos y dosis de refuerzo.

A su vez, hizo hincapié en la práctica de medidas de prevención y autocuidado: «son clave para compartir el virus», dijo.

Entre estas medidas están: Usar tapabocas adecuadamente cubriendo nariz y boca, lavarse las manos y preferir espacios ventilados. La invitación especial para los mayores de 50 años y pacientes con comorbilidades es a que acudan por sus segundas y dosis de refuerzo.

#LoÚltimo | Las autoridades sanitarias de Barranquilla confirmaron tres casos de ómicron. Se trata de tres jóvenes que reciben atención en sus hogares https://t.co/NQ6c7zdvsI pic.twitter.com/JrFBppI9hI

— Noticias Caracol (@NoticiasCaracol) January 2, 2022

Sobrela vacunación contra el Covid-19, en Barranquilla a corte del 31 de diciembre se han aplicado: 2.135.832 dosis en total.

1.122.513 primeras dosis, incluidas 111.838 dosis en menores de 3 a 11 años. 760.099 segundas dosis. 146.445 dosis únicas. 106.775 dosis refuerzos.
Se registran 906.544 personas mayores de 12 años con esquemas completos.

*Con información de la alcaldía de Barranquilla.

Foto de portada: @unisimon

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