UNITED STATES: CDC Makes Major Announcement
On April 27, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced updated guidance on mask wearing in the United States.
Among the new rules regarding fully vaccinated people is that the CDC has suggested that they no longer have to wear masks / face coverings while outdoors. It is recommended that they still wear masks in certain situations.
Per the CDC: The following recommendations apply to non-healthcare settings. For related information for healthcare settings, visit the CDC’s website section on Updated Healthcare Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations in Response to COVID-19 Vaccination.
Fully vaccinated people can:
· Visit with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing
· Visit with unvaccinated people (including children) from a single household who are at low risk for severe COVID-19 disease indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing
· Participate in outdoor activities and recreation without a mask, except in certain crowded settings and venues
· Resume domestic travel and refrain from testing before or after travel or self-quarantine after travel.
· Refrain from testing before leaving the United States for international travel (unless required by the destination) and refrain from self-quarantine after arriving back in the United States.
· Refrain from testing following a known exposure, if asymptomatic, with some exceptions for specific settings
· Refrain from quarantine following a known exposure if asymptomatic
· Refrain from routine screening testing if asymptomatic and feasible
For now, fully vaccinated people should continue to:
· Take precautions in indoor public settings like wearing a well-fitted mask
· Wear masks that fit snuggly when visiting indoors with unvaccinated people who are at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease or who have an unvaccinated household member who is at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease
· Wear well-fitted masks when visiting indoors with unvaccinated people from multiple households
· Avoid indoor large-sized in-person gatherings
· Get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms
· Follow guidance issued by individual employers
· Follow CDC and health department travel requirements and recommendations
A person is considered “fully vaccinated” two weeks after receiving the 2nd dose of a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or a single dose of the recently cleared Johnson and Johnson (Janssen) vaccine.
INDIA: Help Coming as COVID-19 Situation Worsens
After multiple consecutive days of more than 300,000 new COVID-19 cases, India is getting some much needed help.
On April 25, United States National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke by phone with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, expressing deep sympathy for the people of India following the recent spike in COVID-19 cases. Mr. Sullivan affirmed America’s solidarity with India, the two countries with the greatest number of COVID-19 cases in the world.
Building on the seven-decade health partnership between the United States and India – including battles against smallpox, polio, and HIV – they resolved that India and the United States will continue to fight the global COVID-19 pandemic together. Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, the United States is determined to help India in its time of need.
To this end, the United States is working around the clock to deploy available resources and supplies. The United States has identified sources of specific raw material urgently required for Indian manufacture of the Covishield vaccine that will immediately be made available for India. To help treat COVID-19 patients and protect front-line health workers in India, the United States has identified supplies of therapeutics, rapid diagnostic test kits, ventilators, and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that will immediately be made available for India. The United States also is pursuing options to provide oxygen generation and related supplies on an urgent basis.
The U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is funding a substantial expansion of manufacturing capability for BioE, the vaccine manufacturer in India, enabling BioE to ramp up to produce at least 1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines by the end of 2022. Additionally, the United States is deploying an expert team of public health advisors from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and USAID to work in close collaboration with the U.S. Embassy, India’s health ministries, and India’s Epidemic Intelligence Service staff. USAID will also quickly work with CDC to support and fast-track the mobilization of emergency resources available to India through the Global Fund.
The two National Security Advisors agreed that the U.S. and India would stay in close touch in coming days.
On April 26, U.S. President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. spoke with Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, committing that the United States and India will work closely together in the fight against COVID-19. Biden pledged America’s steadfast support for the people of India who have been impacted by the recent surge in COVID-19 cases. Prime Minister Modi expressed appreciation for the strong cooperation between both countries.
The two leaders resolved that the United States and India will continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder in the effort to protect the health of their citizens and communities.
EUROPE: EU vs. AstraZeneca
Citing a shortfall in what it was promised, the Commission representing dozens of nations is taking a vaccine supplier to court.
On April 26, the European Commission on behalf of the European Union announced that it was taking legal action against AstraZeneca because it failed to meet certain conditions in delivering doses to the EU.
“What matters to us in this case is that we want to make sure there is a speedy delivery of a sufficient number of doses that European citizens are entitled to,” said Stefan De Keersmaecker, EU spokesperson for health, food safety and transport during a press conference.
In their defense, AstraZencea issued the following statement: “AstraZeneca regrets the European Commission’s decision to take legal action over the supply of COVID-19 vaccines.
“Following an unprecedented year of scientific discovery, very complex negotiations, and manufacturing challenges, our company is about to deliver almost 50m doses to European countries by the end of April, in line with our forecast. AstraZeneca has fully complied with the Advance Purchase Agreement with the European Commission and will strongly defend itself in court. We believe any litigation is without merit and we welcome this opportunity to resolve this dispute as soon as possible.
“We appreciate the work done by political leaders and healthcare professionals across the Member States that has made the rollout of vaccination campaigns in Europe possible, and we are committed to helping as much as we can. Vaccines are difficult to manufacture, as evidenced by the supply challenges several companies are facing in Europe and around the world. We are making progress addressing the technical challenges and our output is improving, but the production cycle of a vaccine is very long which means these improvements take time to result in increased finished vaccine doses.
“Much work is ahead of us in the EU and elsewhere, as we continue to deal with the terrible pandemic and the roll out of vaccination programs. AstraZeneca has an important role to play, and our intent remains to do that fairly and equitably at no profit during the pandemic in the EU and around the world.
“The EU has supported the COVAX facility for equitable distribution of vaccines to low-and middle-income countries. AstraZeneca is currently the leading supplier to more than 100 countries through COVAX providing 97% of its supply to date. Each dose has been made with vaccine serum originating from outside the EU.
“We look forward to working constructively with the EU Commission to vaccinate as many people as possible. Many thousands of our employees working around the clock have been driven by a passion to help the world at no profit; they remain firmly committed to delivering our vaccine to the people of Europe and around the world.”
AFRICA: Somalian Violence Condemned
The UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) issued a statement, alongside international partners, strongly condemning an outbreak of violence in the capital Mogadishu and urging all sides to “exercise maximum restraint, resume dialogue, and avoid unilateral actions that may lead to a further escalation.”
According to media reports, fighting began April 25 between pro-Government forces and opposition military units after President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed moved to extend his term last week, which had officially ended in February, for another two years.
Reports from Mogadishu said that localized skirmishes have spread to other parts of the country, with fears growing that extremist group al Shabaab could exploit the divisions.
“We have repeatedly warned that the extension of mandates would lead to a political crisis and undermine peace, stability and security in Somalia,” the statement read.
Signatories to the statement expressed particular alarm over an emerging fragmentation along clan lines of the Somali National Army, saying that it detracts from the primary task of combating Al Shabab and protecting the Somali population.
“Use of security forces for pursuit of political objectives is unacceptable,” they spelled out.
The co-signers reiterated that the Sept. 17 agreement, whereby the leaders of the Federal Government and all five Federal Member States approved an indirect electoral model for the country’s upcoming polls, “remains the only agreed model for elections” and on that basis, urged those signatories to “return immediately to talks.”
UNSOM and its international partners welcomed the decision of the African Union Peace and Security Council to appoint a Special Envoy and recommended that this high-level representative arrive in Mogadishu to begin work, as soon as possible.
“We stand ready as partners to extend our support to this envoy, and meanwhile we continue efforts to bring the parties together,” they said, reaffirming their “respect for Somali sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity, and independence.”
