Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Novavax Seeking Approval To Vaccinate Low-Income Countries First
AP: Novavax Seeks OK For COVID Vaccine In Needy Countries First
Vaccine maker Novavax announced Thursday it has asked regulators in India, Indonesia and the Philippines to allow emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine -- offering its shot to some low-income countries before rich ones with ample supplies. U.S.-based Novavax partnered with the Serum Institute of India to apply in the three countries, and plans later this month to also seek the World Health Organization review needed to be part of the COVAX global vaccine program. (Neergaard, 8/4)
Bloomberg: China Matches G-7 Vaccine Push With 2-Billion-Shot Pledge
President Xi Jinping pledged to dramatically expand Covid-19 vaccine exports to two billion doses this year, matching commitments by Group of Seven nations amid warnings about inoculation shortages in the developing world. Xi announced the goal in a written address to a forum on international vaccine cooperation hosted Thursday by Foreign Minister Wang Yi, state media including China Central Television said. The country also planned to donate $100 million to Covax, the international program backed by the World Health Organization that provides developing countries with vaccines, Xi said. (8/6)
CNBC: Covid: Charts Show How Far Delta Variant Has Spread Around The World
More than one year into the Covid-19 pandemic, the world is grappling with a highly transmissible delta variant that has caused a renewed surge in infections in countries from the U.K. and the U.S., to those in Africa and Asia. The delta variant, which was first detected in India last October, has been found in more than 130 countries globally, according to the World Health Organization. Delta is the most transmissible variant of the coronavirus that first emerged in China in late 2019, said Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, an epidemiologist and technical lead for Covid-19 at the WHO. (Lee, 8/5)
Bloomberg: Sydney’s Delta Outbreak Not Slowing Down Despite 6-Week Lockdown
Sydney’s daily delta outbreak caseload has risen to another record, with 291 new infections detected and authorities warning the situation in Australia’s largest city could worsen. “I do want to foreshadow that given this high number of cases, we are likely to see this trend continue for the next few days,” New South Wales state Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Friday told reporters in the city, which has failed to bend the curve of new infections lower despite being in lockdown for almost six weeks. The new cases surpass the previous record number of new infections of 262 on Thursday; one more person died. (McKay, 8/6)
In updates on the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games —
The Washington Post: Tokyo Sets New Record On Coronavirus Cases, With Increasing Apathy Among Japanese Public Toward Government Response
Japan’s capital logged a record number of coronavirus cases this week, burdening the hospital system amid a slow vaccine rollout, an increasingly apathetic public and the government’s unsuccessful efforts to restrict the rapid spread of the delta variant. On Thursday, Tokyo reported 5,042 new coronavirus cases, its highest daily count and nearly double the record set nine days prior. The virus is spreading quickly beyond the Olympic host city: Japan’s positive daily cases exceeded 15,000 for the first time on Thursday. (Lee and Denyer, 8/6)
The Washington Examiner: New COVID-19 Outbreaks In China Raise Doubts About 2022 Winter Olympics In Beijing
Outbreaks of the delta variant in China have caused the governing party to revert back to strict lockdown measures that will imperil the 2022 Winter Olympic Games that are set to begin next February in Beijing. The highly contagious COVID-19 variant has spurred new outbreaks across a country that, until recently, had been relatively successful at suppressing clusters of new cases thanks to strict quarantine measures and border control policies. The country’s gravitation toward the more extreme shutdowns and restrictions on travel is not sustainable, though, given the toll it would take on the country’s economy, as well as foreign spectators’ ability to see the games in person. (Morrison, 8/5)
In other global developments —
Stat: Provisional Ruling From U.K. Watchdog Finds Pfizer Engaged In Price Gouging
After being forced to reassess its original findings, a U.K. antitrust watchdog has issued a provisional ruling that Pfizer (PFE) and a small generic company engaged in price gouging for an epilepsy pill, causing the National Health Service to unnecessarily overpay for a “vital” medicine. The decision is the latest in an eight-year odyssey in which the Competition and Markets Authority has sought to prove that the companies unfairly dominated the market for the drug. But its effort has been beset by fines, appeals, and court rulings, which required the agency to go back to the proverbial drawing board in one of its highest-profile attempts to police the pharmaceutical industry. (Silverman, 8/5)
