Category Archives: Infectious Diseases

Australia Covid live update: national cabinet mandates vaccinations for aged care and quarantine staff; AstraZeneca to be available for under-60s

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An $11m grant announced to pay for leave for aged care staff to be vaccinated; Darwin in lockdown after four cases; restrictions for WA and SA; Queensland makes masks mandatory in hotspots. Follow live

Well that was a press conference and a half.

Here’s a brief summary of the key things Scott Morrison announced:

Another decision out of national cabinet is an agreement to make it mandatory for all quarantine workers, including those working in transport, to be vaccinated. However, this will be the responsibility of the states and territories, not the commonwealth.

This announcement follows the case of a Sydney limousine driver transporting international air crews contracting Covid-19 while being unvaccinated, NSW police admitting this breached no public health orders.

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Vaccine inequality: how rich countries cut Covid deaths as poorer fall behind

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Developed countries are seeing the benefits of quickly vaccinating their populations, but concerns remain about the unequal share of global vaccine supplies

New analysis by the Guardian has confirmed that a speedy Covid vaccination campaign pays off when it comes to escaping the worst of the pandemic.

As the chart below shows, countries such as Israel, the UK and the US have all seen deaths decline as vaccination coverage extended to the most vulnerable in their societies.

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India’s Covid gender gap: women left behind in vaccination drive

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Misinformation and access issues combined with patriarchal social norms fuelling disparity in distribution across most states

Deep-rooted structural inequalities and patriarchal values are to blame for India’s worrying Covid vaccine gender gap, campaigners and academics have warned.

As of 25 June, of the 309m Covid vaccine doses delivered since January 2021, 143m were administered to women compared with nearly 167m to men, according to CoWin, India’s national statistics site – a ratio of 856 doses given to women for every 1,000 given to men. The difference is not accounted for by India’s gender imbalance of 924 women to 1,000 men.

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Sufferers of chronic pain have long been told it’s all in their head. We now know that’s wrong

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In the first of a series looking at chronic pain and long Covid, Linda Geddes explores the growing realisation that pain can be a disease in and of itself – and the pandemic could be making it worse

It started with headaches and neck pain, but no sooner had Tricia Kalinowski’s physiotherapist come up with a strategy to tackle these problems, then another area of her body would start to hurt: her lower back, her hip or her jaw.

“The physio was chasing the pain up and down my body,” says Kalinowski, 60, from Minneapolis, US. Eventually, she was referred to an oral surgeon, who believed the root cause of these issues was a problem with one of the joints in her jaw, so she underwent surgery to replace a thumbnail-sized disc.

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‘Health systems should be prepared’: doctors brace for tsunami of long Covid

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As the debilitating post-viral condition affects millions around the world, medical experts are scrambling to nail down what causes it – and how to treat it

When his throat first started hurting, John Brown didn’t think much of it.

It was March 2020 and the 48-year-old was onboard the Voyager of the Seas, a cruise travelling through the Pacific Islands.

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Covid live news: Luxembourg PM ‘tests positive for Covid’; UK records 14,876 new cases

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Xavier Bettel in isolation after self-test result, according to reports; UK’s daily cases figure falls slightly from Saturday

France reported 1,345 coronavirus patients in intensive care today - four less than yesterday - and updated its overall death toll to 84,512, reports Reuters.

UK opposition leader Keir Starmer says there are “huge questions still to answer” following the resignation of health minister Matt Hancock.

Asked if Sajid Javid is a good replacement for Hancock, who resigned after footage emerged of him kissing an aide, PA reports that the Labour leader said:

We need a strong Health Secretary as we come through the pandemic.

But obviously there’s huge questions still to answer. If anybody thinks that the resignation of Matt Hancock is the end of the issue, I think they’re wrong and I think the incoming Health Secretary and the Prime Minister now have serious questions to answer about the CCTV, about the access, the passes, the contracts, etc.

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Global report: rise in Delta variant cases forces tougher restrictions

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Moscow has reported the highest death toll of any Russian city, while the Delta variant is forcing tighter restrictions in the Asia-Pacific region

Moscow has recorded the highest Covid-19 daily death toll of any Russian city so far, as the highly contagious Delta variant forced tougher restrictions on countries across the Asia-Pacific region and fuelled mounting concern over holiday travel in Europe.

Vaccinations have brought infection numbers down in many wealthy countries, and curbs on daily life continue to ease in much of the EU and US, but experts warn the fast-spreading strain means the pandemic – while slowing globally – is far from over.

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Sydney Covid lockdown restrictions: NSW update to coronavirus rules

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New Covid restrictions for the greater Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains and Wollongong have been introduced. Can you have visitors? Is mask-wearing compulsory? Is travelling permitted? Here’s the full list of what you can and can’t do in NSW

The NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, has announced a two-week lockdown for greater Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains and Wollongong that came into effect from 6pm on Saturday 26 June until midnight on Friday 9 July.

This supersedes the lockdown already in effect for those who live in or whose usual place of work is in Woollahra, Waverley, Randwick and City of Sydney councils.

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Australia Covid update: outbreaks sweep nation as NSW reports 30 new infections, and Perth, NT and Qld record local cases

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Sydney’s Bondi cluster grows to 110, Virgin Australia flight attendant tests positive, Darwin locks down, WA imposes restrictions and Queensland reports outbreak of Alpha variant

New South Wales reported 30 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday as a string of new outbreaks across Australia forced states and territories to introduce sweeping new restrictions, and prompted urgent calls for vaccine eligibility to be widened.

On the first full day of lockdown for the entire greater Sydney region since May 2020, NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian warned the city to prepare for a further increase in cases over the coming days as the Bondi cluster which sparked the new outbreak grew to 110.

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NSW and ACT Covid exposure sites: list and map of Sydney hotspots and coronavirus case locations

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Here are the current coronavirus hotspots and Covid-19 public exposure sites in Sydney, regional New South Wales and Canberra, and what to do if you’ve visited them. Our analysis and map shows where Covid cases are increasing, and a live data update tracks the daily case numbers in NSW

Authorities have released a list of public exposure sites in Sydney, regional NSW, and Canberra ACT visited by a confirmed case of Covid-19.

Here are the current coronavirus hotspots, Covid exposure sites, venues and case location alerts and what to do if you’ve visited them. See the full list and map below.

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Commonwealth declares Sydney a hotspot to trigger disaster support – as it happened

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Gladys Berejiklian flags help and says ‘nobody should feel stressed about their financial situation’. This blog is now closed

We’ll leave it there for today.

Before I go, here are the main developments of the day:

Three people have been arrested at a karaoke bar in Coober Pedy after they allegedly flew into South Australia from New South Wales on a private plane.

Read more here:

Related: Three people arrested after allegedly flying private plane from NSW to South Australia

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The Oxford vaccine: the trials and tribulations of a world-saving jab

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Amid bemusement from scientists at the deluge of often undeserved criticism, the Guardian pieces together the story behind the vaccine’s successes and failures

In January 2020, when most of the world slept soundly in ignorance of the pandemic coming its way, a group of scientists at Oxford University got to work on a vaccine to save the planet. They wanted it to be highly effective, cheap, and easy to use in even the poorest countries.

Prof Sarah Gilbert, Prof Andrew Pollard and others pulled it off. With speed crucial, they designed it and launched into trials before bringing in a business partner. The giant Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca would manufacture it, license it around the world – and not make a profit until the pandemic was over.

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NSW Covid outbreaks: Gladys Berejiklian locks down Sydney, Central Coast, Blue Mountains and Wollongong

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New South Wales premier says lockdown will last two weeks and new restrictions will be in place for rest of state

All of greater Sydney, the Central Coast, the Blue Mountains and Wollongong regions will enter a two-week coronavirus lockdown until 9 July and new restrictions will be in place for the remainder of New South Wales.

The NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, announced the expanded lockdown – the first lockdown of greater Sydney since last year – would commence at 6pm Saturday, following crisis talks due to the growing number of exposure sites associated with the Sydney outbreak of the Delta Covid-19 variant.

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‘I don’t have a choice’: Russians scramble to get Covid vaccine amid new restrictions

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With infections at highest since January, country is introducing curbs for non-vaccinated

Russia has finally admitted it has a vaccination problem – but with an “explosion” of new cases driving the country’s daily toll to its highest since January, the question is whether that public realisation has come too late.

Just 11% of Russia’s 146 million population is fully vaccinated – whether due to vaccine skepticism, doubts about Sputnik or other Russian-made vaccines, or “nihilism”, as a Kremlin spokesperson has suggested.

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‘We were never a priority’: Zimbabwe Covid ‘hotspots’ face strict lockdown

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Tighter restrictions in 12 mostly rural areas come as health service struggles to cope with third wave of infections

Zimbabwe’s government has designated 11 rural areas across three provinces Covid-19 hotspots this week after a sharp rise in cases. The measures come as the country battles to contain a third wave of coronavirus.

Mashonaland West, Masvingo and Bulawayo provinces have been put into strict localised lockdowns to contain the spread of the virus. The government had already declared hotspots in three other regions, the first in May and two others in early June.

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Covid news: UK removes quarantine requirement for arrivals from Balearics, Malta and some Caribbean islands

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Latest updates: territories are added to UK’s green list or green watchlist, while more countries added to red list

Rory Boland, travel editor for consumer group Which?, said travellers still needed to be “extremely cautious” about booking trips abroad.
He said: “Countries can be downgraded quickly and with little warning, as we saw with Portugal, while several European countries have introduced quarantine requirements for UK residents. “Restrictions around international travel are changing regularly and when they do, the cost to holidaymakers is significant. “Most providers will not pay refunds if a country is moved from green to amber, and ‘free’ amendments are often anything but, with many companies requiring significant notice of any changes and bookings for new dates usually costing hundreds of pounds. Travel insurance is also unlikely to pay out in these circumstances. “It is only advisable to book if you are able to do 14 days’ quarantine, can be flexible about destination and dates, and book with a provider that guarantees refunds in the event of traffic light changes or quarantine requirements.”

Eluned Morgan MS, minister for health and social services in Wales, said: “International travel is resuming but the pandemic is not over and protecting people’s health remains our main priority.

“Our strong advice continues to be not to travel overseas unless it is essential because of the risk of contracting coronavirus, especially new and emerging variants of concern.

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Coronavirus live: Macron joins Merkel in call for EU to coordinate quarantine for non-EU countries such as UK

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French president’s remarks come after German chancellor says all EU members should quarantine UK visitors

Mexico’s health ministry on Thursday reported 5,340 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the country and 221 more fatalities, Reuters reports.

It brings the total figures to 2,493,087 infections and 232,068 deaths.

Italy reported 28 coronavirus-related deaths on Thursday compared to 30 the day before, Reuters reports.

The health ministry said the daily tally of new infections fell to 927 from 951 on Wednesday.

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Covid vaccine map: how are countries around the world doing?

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More than 2bn Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered worldwide. Find out which countries are vaccinating the most

Since the first Pfizer vaccine against Covid-19 was injected into the arm of a British woman in December 2020, hundreds of millions of vaccine doses have been administered worldwide.

Dozens of countries now have advanced vaccination campaigns as they rush to protect their people and get their economies back up and running. Many are in a position where the most vulnerable people are fully vaccinated, raising hopes that the pandemic’s worst effects may be over.

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Indonesia tightens restrictions as it confirms record new coronavirus infections

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The country’s infections, the worst in south-east Asia, have passed two million

Indonesian health authorities are battling a new surge in coronavirus infections, as the National Agency for Disaster Management (BNPB) reported the highest one-day total, with 14,535 cases confirmed in the 24 hours to Monday.

Daily case totals are reaching levels last seen in January, the peak of Indonesia’s fight against the virus.

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Australia’s vaccine rollout ‘constrained’ by Pfizer supply shortages until August

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States and territories say more GPs will be needed to dispense Pfizer when supplies increase later in the year

Shortages of the Pfizer Covid vaccine are expected to slow Australia’s rollout through June and July, as states and territories call on the commonwealth to sign up more GPs to dispense doses when supplies increase in August.

The national cabinet met on Monday to discuss Australia’s coronavirus vaccine rollout in the wake of updated health advice that AstraZeneca is not the preferred vaccine for those aged 50 to 59 due to the risk of rare blood clots.

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