8th Sep 2021 https://nfind.uk/lockdown_exit/index.php/newsletter=484 lockdown_exit

Lockdown Exit

Bloomberg News stories tend to freak people out by focusing on breakthrough cases in which people get Covid despite vaccines. Most official data cover the whole period since vaccinations began so they obscure the more recent effect of delta. Just looking at the share of vaccinated among the hospitalized and dead isnt great either If everyone were vaccinated it would be 100. In the absence of good data the message about vaccines keeps getting foggier. The information that filters through often ends up providing fodder for antivaxxers. What people hear is dont bother getting vaccinated because you can still get Covid and even die. https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-09-07/getting-a-covid-vaccine-can-still-save-your-life 7th Sep 2021

Lockdown Exit

The Wall Street Journal British Prime Minister Boris Johnson Tuesday announced tax increases to support the countrys statefunded National Health Service as it struggles to manage a backlog of millions of patients in the wake of the Covid19 pandemic. With the announcement Mr. Johnson is renouncing an election pledge not to raise payroll taxes a move that sparked criticism from within his own Conservative Party and underscored the pressure the pandemic has put on governments to find funding for social services stretched by Covid19 and aging populations. https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-k-is-among-first-western-nations-to-increase-taxes-to-cover-covid-19costs-11631033953 7th Sep 2021

Lockdown Exit

Bloomberg Theres emerging evidence that getting sick provides better protection than at least one brand of shots. Thats scientifically significant. But its not an excuse to avoid the jab. https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-09-07/vaccines-versus-covid-19-the-great-immunity-debate 7th Sep 2021

Lockdown Exit

Bloomberg Epidemiologists say cases among the over 30s are already declining thanks to the boosters and restrictions on bars and restaurants to the fully vaccinated. The highest rate of new cases in recent weeks is among children under the age of 12 according to Ran Balicer chair of the expert advisory panel to the government. Theres also a record level of testing. Waning immunity is a real challenge that every country needs to prepare a contingency plan to tackle said Balicer who is also chief innovation officer for Israeli health maintenance organization Clalit. The data coming from Israel in the coming weeks will allow the world to assess the efficacy of the booster shot program he said. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-09-07/israel-s-covid-surge-shows-the-world-what-s-coming-next 7th Sep 2021

Lockdown Exit

Financial Times The Biden administrations plans to widely administer Covid19 vaccine booster shots later this month have become mired in confusion over regulatory approvals eligibility and logistics in the latest blow to its efforts to curb the pandemic. US health officials announced last month that they planned to start offering Americans another round of Covid jabs from September 20 following evidence that the effectiveness of some vaccines starts to wane after a few months. https://www.ft.com/content/37fdfcbf-27cb-42cd-a037-bf3952969c8c 7th Sep 2021

Lockdown Exit

Financial Times The pandemic is far from over. The UK is in the throes of a wave that could overwhelm the NHS if hospitalisations rise too rapidly. Newly reported Covid cases are running above 35000 a day with daily patient admissions close to 1000 every 24 hours. The optimists hope that the wave is peaking and will eventually fizzle out. The pessimists fear worse is to come. Discussions in Whitehall focus on how to get through the winter under the combined pressure of coronavirus flu and long NHS waiting lists. The mooted idea of an October firebreak lockdown to ease the pressure has almost zero chance says one minister. If the situation worsens Johnson would first try everything else starting with mandatory masks then social distancing then restrictions on indoor gatherings. https://www.ft.com/content/f829295e-8e7f-415b-8318-b4e740e8a617 7th Sep 2021

Lockdown Exit

RTE.ie Sweden will push ahead with easing Covid19 restrictions at the end of this month removing most curbs and limits on public venues such as restaurants theatres and stadiums the government said. With most adults vaccinated Sweden has gradually eased some restrictions during a summer lull in the pandemic. While it has seen infections mount in recent weeks amid the rapid spread of the more contagious Delta variant deaths from the disease have remained low. https://www.rte.ie/news/coronavirus/2021/0907/1245083-coronavirus-world/ 7th Sep 2021

Lockdown Exit

CNBC Malaysia will start treating Covid19 as an endemic disease around the end of October said International Trade and Industry Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali. More than 75 of Malaysias adult population is expected to be fully vaccinated by then said Azmin. Malaysias Southeast Asian neighbors including Indonesia Thailand Vietnam and the Philippines have also experienced a resurgence in Covid cases caused by the more transmissible delta variant. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/07/malaysia-to-treat-covid-as-endemic-starting-end-october-trade-minister.html 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

Reuters White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters traveling with Biden aboard Air Force One that he will lay out the sixpronged strategy working across the public and private sectors to help continue to get the pandemic under control. Asked about possible new mandates Psaki said the White House would offer more details later about the plan and acknowledged that the federal government cannot broadly mandate that Americans get vaccinated. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/biden-discuss-plan-curb-delta-variant-thursday-official-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

Financial Times Some of Australias biggest companies are under pressure to repay billions of dollars of Covid19 support provided under a scheme after it emerged that they had made money during the pandemic. The A98bn US73bn JobKeeper programme was introduced to help companies retain staff during the countrys coronavirusinduced lockdowns. But Australias Parliamentary Budget Office in July released data showing that in its first three months of operation about A12.5bn went to businesses that were largely unaffected by the pandemic. https://www.ft.com/content/b26ae089-18a0-4860-9a5a-8e4b198b1a17 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

Bloomberg Venezuela received the first shipment of vaccines against Covid19 purchased through the World Health Organizationsponsored Covax program after months of delays and payment issues hindered the countrys inoculation plan. The shipment of 693600 Sinovac Biotech Ltd. shots arrived early Tuesday the Pan American Health Organization said in statement on its website. The country is due to receive a total of 12 million doses through Covax PAHO said. The first shipment was expected to arrive by the end of July but was delayed for reasons not publicly disclosed. In June some government payments to Covax were temporarily blocked by banks the government said at the time. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-09-07/south-america-s-least-vaccinated-country-gets-first-covax-shots 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

New York Times Matthew Boedy an associate professor of rhetoric and composition sent out a raw emotional appeal to his students at the University of North Georgia just before classes began The Covid19 Delta variant was rampaging through the state filling up hospital beds. He would teach class in the equivalent of full body armor vaccinated and masked. So he was stunned in late August when more than twothirds of the firstyear students in his writing class did not take the hint and showed up unmasked. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/07/us/professor-unmasked-students-delta.html 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

Financial Times Hong Kong will allow people from mainland China to visit without having to face its quarantine procedures in the citys first serious relaxation of its strict Covid19 entry requirements for tourists. But critics of the Hong Kong governments quarantine policies which will begin on September 15 said it was another sign the Asian financial centre was prioritising a travel bubble with mainland China over the international links important to executives living in the city. https://www.ft.com/content/c02c8cac-1f93-4903-b90e-1ef50c7ca323 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

BBC News BBC News NI is given access to Belfast City Hospitals intensive care unit where a consultant warns the system is one step from chaos. Seven patients had Covid19 six of the men and women in their 20s 40s and early 60s were unvaccinated. One of them was doublejabbed. Without the vaccine we would have been on our knees weeks ago Dr Gardiner said https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-northern-ireland-58475238 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

NEWS.com.au Eligible people in NSW who havent yet received their coronavirus vaccine are being warned not to be left behind as the state races towards reopening. The Premier hinted that pubs and other hospitality venues could reopen by midOctober to those who are fully vaccinated. Nearly three quarters of eligible people in NSW have had their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine Gladys Berejiklian said on Tuesday. The state has reached 74 per cent firstdose vaccinations with some areas of Sydney recording an even higher rate https://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/news/nearly-threequarters-of-nsw-residents-have-received-first-coronavirus-vaccination/news-story/f13a8c58acfe6726440ce5294fa1b6e7 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

ABC.Net.au NSW residents have been warned police will be checking the vaccination records of anyone enjoying new freedoms next week as the state records 1220 new COVID19 cases. A small number of new freedoms around outdoor recreation for the fully vaccinated come into effect next week and Deputy Premier John Barilaro said police would monitor peoples vaccination status from Monday. From September 13 those who live in the 12 local government areas of concern will be able to leave home for an hour of recreation which includes picnics with their household members. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-07/nsw-records-1220-covid19-cases-eight-deaths/100439846 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

CNN Dr. Anthony Fauci says theres an important step adults can take to protect children who are too young to be vaccinated against Covid19. The way you protect children who because of their age cannot get vaccinated yet is to surround the children be it friends family school teachers personnel in the school surround the children with vaccinated people the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases told CNN on Sunday. https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/06/health/us-coronavirus-monday/index.html 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

STAT News The world still needs more and better Covid19 vaccines. But a major hurdle stands in the way of the development of new vaccines as well as the critical studies needed to determine the best way to use these important tools the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations CEPI warned in a letter published Tuesday in the journal Nature. https://www.statnews.com/2021/09/07/cepi-warns-of-major-hurdle-to-developing-new-covid-19-vaccines-boosters/ 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

Reuters Government workers in Zimbabwe who do not want to be vaccinated against COVID19 should resign its justice minister said on Tuesday. The southern African nation has so far vaccinated 2.7 million people against a target of inoculating twothirds of its 15 million population by the end of the year. President Emmerson Mnangagwas government says it has paid for 12 million COVID19 doses from China. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/get-covid-19-vaccine-or-please-quit-zimbabwe-tells-government-workers-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021

Exit Strategies

AlJazeera Caught between a struggling economy and a health emergency the Philippines is expected to ease COVID19 restrictions from Wednesday to allow more business activities to resume even as the country posts record numbers of daily cases and a test positivity rate of almost 30 percent. The Philippines reported a record 22415 COVID19 cases on Monday with a positivity rate of 28.8 percent. At least 103 more deaths were reported lifting the countrys official death toll to more than 35000. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/9/7/philippines-to-relax-covid-19-limits-as-it-logs-record-cases 7th Sep 2021

Partisan Exits

Financial Times Vaccine scepticism is helping to keep Romania and Bulgarias Covid19 vaccination rates the lowest in the EU exposing the unions poorest nations to higher risks amid a fourth wave of the pandemic fuelled by the contagious Delta coronavirus variant. Fraud is adding to official frustration in Romania over takeup rates with instances of doctors allowing people to go without jabs while still issuing them with certificates that help to make it easier to work and travel. https://www.ft.com/content/9be0faed-35a3-4ed3-8600-95c69c66b276 7th Sep 2021

Partisan Exits

Daily Mail Jim Sells 71 urged people not to take the COVID19 vaccine before he was hit with a bout of the virus that left hospitalized for more than two weeks. Sells is now pushing for others in his community to get vaccinated to ease pressure on the states hospital system. More than 96 of Georgia ICU beds are currently occupied as the state sees a surge of virus cases. Only 35 of residents of Sells county are fully vaccinated against COVID19 and 60 are totally unvaccinated https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-9963317/Anti-vaxx-Georgia-councilman-urges-hard-headed-conservatives-jabbed-COVID-19-bout.html 7th Sep 2021

Partisan Exits

Daily Mail New Zealand supermarket workers been praised for dealing with antimasker. Woman films and posts herself ranting about mandatory masks in shops. States that wearing a mask is a breach of her human rights. Workers calmly offer the woman to wear a mask or leave the store. In level 4 lockdown masks are mandatory for NZ residents accessing essential services unless they have a medical exemption https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9964037/New-Zealand-Covid-19-Anti-masker-clashes-New-World-supermarket-worker.html 7th Sep 2021

Partisan Exits

The Guardian Scott Morrison has defended a trip to see his family on Fathers Day arguing he went home to Sydney then returned to Canberra under an essential work exemption. In an interview with Sky News on Tuesday the prime minister said he understood peoples frustration given many Australians are unable to travel but claimed he had been the victim of misinformation about the issue. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/sep/07/cheap-shot-scott-morrison-defends-fathers-day-trip-to-sydney-during-lockdown 7th Sep 2021

Partisan Exits

Daily Mail Significant Covid breaches occurred at a gathering in Ripponlea Melbourne Gathering dispersed by Victorian police after fiery confrontations. People in two buildings understood to have gathered for Jewish New Year. Police blocked roads surrounding buildings on Glen Eira Avenue Ripponlea. Victoria recorded 246 Covid19 cases on Tuesday and remains in lockdown https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9965233/Covid-19-Australia-Cops-swarm-Melbourne-synagogue-100-worshippers-celebrate-Jewish-New-Year.html 7th Sep 2021

Continued Lockdown

Reuters The Philippines capital region will remain under the second strictest coronavirus containment measures a senior official said on Tuesday despite a day earlier announcing a relaxation of curbs to spur business activity. Imposition of the more relaxed general community quarantine in Metro Manila has been deferred presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said without giving a reason. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/philippines-defers-new-covid-19-plan-maintains-capital-curbs-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

BBC News A woman who was vaccinated in England and Scotland says she cannot get an accurate vaccination certificate because of issues with datasharing across health services. Maura McGoldrick 21 received her first dose in London and her second in Glasgow where she lives. However her vaccination record only shows her having received one dose. The fourthyear student at the University of Edinburgh is concerned others may be similarly affected. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-58475922 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters New vaccine trials need established shots for control groupCEPI. Warns against development standstill amid lack of vaccines. Companies countries need to spare 10s of thousands of doses https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/vaccine-makers-should-supply-shots-trials-help-spur-sector-cepi-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

The Guardian A third man has died in Japan after receiving an injection from one of three batches of Moderna vaccines since identified as contaminated though authorities say no causal link has yet been found. The 49yearold man had his second shot on 11 August and died the following day. His only known health issue was an allergy to buckwheat the health ministry said on Monday. As with the previous two deaths the ministry said it had yet to establish if the latest fatality was linked to the vaccine. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/07/third-person-dies-in-japan-after-taking-contaminated-moderna-coronavirus-vaccine 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

Pharmaceutical Technology The European Medicines Agency EMA has commenced evaluation of an application submitted by Pfizer and BioNTech seeking an update to conditional marketing authorization CMA for the use of a booster shot of their Covid19 vaccine Comirnaty. A messenger ribonucleic acid mRNA vaccine Comirnaty was granted a CMA by the European Commission in December last year. The third or booster shot is intended to be administered six months after the second dose in individuals aged 16 years or above Pfizer noted. https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/news/ema-booster-pfizer-biontech/ 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters Japan has selected three candidates for COVID19 treatments to receive subsidies for clinical trials the health ministry said on Tuesday. The drugs are AstraZeneca Plcs antibody treatment AZD7442 Shionogi Cos protease inhibitor S217622 and Fujifilm Holding Corps antiviral favipiravir known commercially as Avigan. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/japan-picks-three-covid-19-drug-candidates-get-research-funds-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

Reuters Indonesia has approved the singledose COVID19 vaccines produced by Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies part of Johnson Johnson and Chinas CanSino Biological Inc for emergency use the countrys food and drug agency said in a statement on Tuesday. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/indonesia-approves-jj-cansino-covid-19-vaccines-emergency-use-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

NPR Some scientists have called it superhuman immunity or bulletproof. But immunologist Shane Crotty prefers hybrid immunity. Overall hybrid immunity to SARSCoV2 appears to be impressively potent Crotty wrote in commentary in Science back in June. No matter what you call it this type of immunity offers muchneeded good news in what seems like an endless array of bad news regarding COVID19. Over the past several months a series of studies has found that some people mount an extraordinarily powerful immune response against SARSCoV2 the coronavirus that causes the disease COVID19. https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2021/09/07/1033677208/new-studies-find-evidence-of-superhuman-immunity-to-covid-19-in-some-individuals 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

Nature.com Scientists must develop the next generation of COVID19 vaccines now if the world is to meet the challenge of SARSCoV2 variants and reduce vaccine inequity by increasing global supply. This can be done only if comparator COVID19 vaccines those that have already been approved are available to support clinical trials. Such comparator vaccines are almost impossible to secure governments developers and manufacturers must find a solution to unlock supplies. So far COVID19 vaccines have received approval on the basis of data from unvaccinated participants in placebocontrolled efficacy trials. These trials become increasingly difficult to carry out as the number of people who are immunized rises. Comparator vaccines essentially replacing placebos are therefore needed for trials that assess whether new candidate vaccines provide comparable levels of protection including against emerging variants. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02398-6 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

STAT News Additional doses of Covid19 vaccines are likely rolling out in the United States later this year. It raises the question What will the side effects from a booster shot look like Is there a higher or lower risk of an adverse event compared to the earlier regimens Overall the Covid19 vaccines are overwhelmingly safe and remarkably effective. But as the shots went into millions of arms starting late last year researchers uncovered a handful of sometimes serious side effects which were so exceedingly rare that the clinical trials that led to the shots authorizations even with tens of thousands of participants couldnt capture them. https://www.statnews.com/2021/09/07/how-risk-side-effects-could-change-covid-19-vaccine-boosters/ 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

AlJazeera While much of the worlds focus has been on the Delta variant of coronavirus a new variant has been identified in South Africa. Currently referred to as the C.1.2 variant it is yet to be called a variant of interest or concern by the World Health Organization WHO but is drawing the attention of scientists due to the number and types of mutations it contains and the speed at which the mutations have occurred. https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2021/9/7/what-we-know-about-the-new-c-1-2-covid-variant 7th Sep 2021

Scientific Viewpoint

FiercePharma As Moderna faces questions about contaminants found in its COVID19 vaccines in Japan the companys distribution partner in the country Takeda is moving forward on its plans with another COVID vaccine developer. On Monday Takeda said the Japanese government has agreed to purchase 150 million doses of the Novavax shot that it will produce. Takeda and Novavax previously struck a licensing and production deal covering the country. The Novavax shot remains in development and the partners aim to start the rollout in Japan early next year. The governments purchasing agreement is subject to regulatory approvals. https://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/confidence-waning-moderna-vaccine-japan-takeda-reveals-plans-vaccine-partnership-novavax 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

The Wall Street Journal Some schools are trying a new plan to keep students safely in the classroom Rather than quarantining children who have an inschool contact with a positive case they are testing them. A lot. The method keeps children in school after exposure to a classmate or teacher who tested positive for Covid19 if they test negative at least every other day. Known as testtostay the approach is a higher transmission risk than keeping exposed students at home but some publichealth experts and educators say the tradeoff is worth it to avoid missed days in class. https://www.wsj.com/articles/schools-use-covid-19-tests-to-keep-students-out-of-quarantine-11631016000 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

Reuters UK Britain on Tuesday reported 209 deaths within 28 days of a positive COVID19 test on Tuesday the highest daily total since March 9 government statistics showed. Cases have been rising steadily since the start of August although death totals are impacted by irregular reporting patterns from hospitals over the weekend. Only 45 deaths were reported on Monday. There were 37489 new cases reported on Tuesday compared to 41192 reported on Monday. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/britain-reports-209-daily-deaths-covid-highest-since-march-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

ABC.Net.au Queensland has recorded zero new cases of COVID19 as Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk stepped up the state governments push to get people vaccinated as quickly as possible. Ms Palaszczuk said 53.33 per cent of eligible Queenslanders have had their first dose of the COVID vaccine and 34.75 per cent of eligible Queenslanders are fully vaccinated both rates below the national average. The Premier said the government would be sending Queenslanders text messages with important vaccine information https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-07/queensland-records-no-new-locally-acquired-covid-19-cases/100439528 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

Daily Mail Victoria recorded 246 new Covid19 cases on Tuesday one more than Mondays figure as the state rushes to vaccinate its Year 12 students before their endofyear exams begin. The states Department of Health on Tuesday morning said only 90 of the 246 cases were linked to known cases and outbreaks and 156 are still under investigation. Victoria is aiming to get all students in their final year of high school injected with at least one vaccination dose before their final exams as part of a 10day priority access scheme beginning on Tuesday https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9964189/Victorias-Covid-crisis-worsens-246-new-cases-recorded.html 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

CNN The U.S.s Covid19 case rates have generally soared since the start of the summer as the highly contagious Delta variant spread and the current average is more than three times higher than it was a year ago. The United States sevenday average of new cases Monday 137270 daily dwarfs the average seen on Labor Day of last year 39355 daily according to Johns Hopkins University data. Hospitalizations and daily Covid19 deaths also have risen lately and where these counts go from here is up to us Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/07/health/us-coronavirus-tuesday/index.html 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

Reuters As COVID19 cases and deaths exploded in India in April and May New Delhis premier Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and several others ran so short of oxygen that many patients in the capital suffocated. When Reuters visited the hospital on Friday its last coronavirus patient was readying to leave after recovery a remarkable turnaround health experts attribute to growing levels of immunity from natural infection and vaccinations. But hospitals have learned from bitter experience during the second COVID wave when funeral pyres burned nonstop and bodies littered the banks of the holy Ganges river as India braces for another possible surge in infections around its SeptemberNovember festival season. https://www.reuters.com/world/the-great-reboot/india-prepares-worst-ahead-possible-covid-19-third-wave-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

Evening Standard The number of deaths involving Covid registered each week in England and Wales has climbed to its highest level for five months. A total of 668 deaths registered in the week ending August 27 mentioned Covid19 on the death certificate according to the Office for National Statistics. This is up 17 per cent on the previous week and is the highest number since 719 deaths were registered in the week to March 26. Deaths had dipped as low as 84 in the week to June 11. https://standard.co.uk/news/uk/covid-deaths-england-wales-five-month-high-b954058.html 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

BBC News More than seven million confirmed cases of coronavirus have been recorded in the UK since the pandemic began official figures show. It comes as another 41192 positive tests were reported on Monday along with 45 Covidrelated deaths. But the real number of people infected during the pandemic is likely to be much higher partly due to the lack of testing in the early stages. Covid19 has been named on the death certificate of 156119 people. The most recent figures show that there are 7606 Covid19 patients in hospital with 1034 on ventilators. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58468557 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

BBC News Bodies would start piling up if more people do not get vaccinated a senior doctor in Northern Ireland has warned. Dr George Gardiner said they would have been piling up already without the vaccine. We are now facing winter pressures Respiratory Syncytial Virus for children the next wave of flu and Covid. We cannot do all he added. BBC News NI was given exclusive access inside Belfast City Hospitals Intensive Care Unit. Seven Covid patients were battling the virus six of the men and women in their 20s 40s and early 60s were unvaccinated. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-58465147 7th Sep 2021

Coronavirus Resurgence

AlJazeera Home to nine million people Ho Chi Minh City has been under a total lockdown since August 23 with residents forbidden from leaving their homes even to shop for food. With the restrictions set to last until September 15 newly elected Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has ordered mass testing for the citys residents and deployed soldiers to enforce the stay at home orders and help with the delivery of food. But despite the strict measures the number of infections continue to rise in Ho Chi Minh City and more than 200 people are dying every day. On Monday the city reported more than 7000 new cases and 233 deaths rising from a caseload of 5889 a week ago. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/9/7/in-vietnams-covid-epicenter-everyone-is-struggling-to-survive 7th Sep 2021

New Lockdown

Reuters The governor of Rivers State in Nigerias oilproducing Delta region said he may be forced to reimpose COVID19 lockdown measures if residents did not comply with prevention protocols amid a rise in cases. Governor Nyesom Wike implored residents to get vaccinated and comply with safety and social distancing rules amid a consistent rise in COVID19 infections over the past two weeks. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/nigerias-delta-region-oil-hub-may-need-new-covid-lockdown-governor-says-2021-09-07/ 7th Sep 2021