1. Delta is the ‘most transmissible variant’ so far
The World Health Organization is warning the Delta variant is the “most transmissible variant identified so far” as medical experts say it also bypasses any immunity from a previous infection.
Globally, the pandemic is still slowing down, with the World Health Organization (WHO) reporting the lowest number of new cases worldwide since February and decreasing deaths attributed to the coronavirus. But concerns are growing about the variant, prompting new restrictions in countries that had previously managed to control their epidemics.
“Globally there is currently a lot of concern about the Delta variant – and WHO is concerned about it too,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference on Friday.
2. The UK: highest covid cases in months
The U.K. on last Saturday recorded its most new coronavirus infections since early February as the National Health Service ran a “grab a jab” initiative to further drive up vaccination rates.
Government figures showed that another 18,270 people tested positive for the virus across the U.K, the highest daily number since February 5. Over the past week, nearly 100,000 have tested positive, around 50% increase up on the week before. That has raised questions over whether lockdown restrictions will end as planned.
Daily cases have risen fairly sharply over the past few weeks as a result of the delta variant, which was first identified in India and is considered by government scientists to be between 40% to 80% more transmissible than the previous dominant strain. It accounts for nearly all the new cases in the U.K.
3. First Delta Plus case investigated in Russia
Russia is investigating reports of the first Delta Plus coronavirus variant infections within its borders. Some 200 cases of Delta Plus — itself a slight variant of the highly contagious Delta variant first detected in India — have been confirmed in 11 countries including the U.S. and Britain. Experts are currently studying whether the new mutation is more resistant to vaccines or more dangerous than the original Covid-19 strain.
Meanwhile, two patients infected with the Delta Plus variant in India have died as of Friday, the Russian state-run TASS news agency reported. The Delta Plus variant contains an additional mutation called K417N on the coronavirus spike which some global experts fear might make it more resistant to antibodies.
Russia’s regions are currently following Moscow and St. Petersburg in tightening Covid restrictions and ordering compulsory vaccination as Covid-19 cases continue to surge. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said that the Delta variant accounted for nearly 90% of the city’s new cases.
4. J&J shot needed a booster as Delta variant spread
Infectious disease experts are weighing the need for booster shots of the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna mRNA-based vaccines for Americans who received Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose vaccine due to the increasing prevalence of the more contagious Delta coronavirus variant.
A few say they have already done so themselves, even without published data on whether combining two different vaccines is safe and effective or backing from US health regulators. Canada and some European countries are already allowing people to get two different COVID-19 shots.
The debate centers on concerns over how protective the J&J shot is against the Delta variant first detected in India and now circulating widely in many countries. Delta, which has also been associated with more severe disease, could quickly become the dominant version of the virus in the United States, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director Rochelle Walensky has warned.
5. Indonesia’s doctors becoming patients
Facing increased COVID-19 infections and a deadly variant, Indonesia’s doctors are at the centre of the crisis as many have died after being vaccinated by the Chinese COVID-19 vaccine – Sinovac.
Last Thursday, the country recorded more than 20,000 cases of COVID-19, the highest number since the pandemic began. Oxygen is again running out at hospitals in Jakarta, the country’s capital, and the national percentage of positive COVID tests reached 14.6 per cent this past week, reported the New York Times (NYT)
Since the pandemic began, 401 doctors in Indonesia have died, the risk mitigation team of the Indonesian Medical Association said on Friday. At least 20 doctors were fully vaccinated with Sinovac.
For Indonesian health workers struggling with overwhelmed emergency wards and worried about their own immunity, vaccine skepticism is another headache at a time when they thought the country might be finally emerging from the pandemic.
6. Vaccination progress in India
Last Monday India vaccinated a record 8.6 million people as it began offering free shots to all adults, but experts doubt it can maintain that pace.
The effort has so far covered about 5.5 per cent of the 950 million people eligible, even though India is the world’s largest vaccine producer. A devastating second wave during April and May overwhelmed health services, killing hundreds of thousands of people. Images of funeral pyres blazing in car parks raised questions over the chaotic vaccine rollout.
Since May, vaccinations have averaged fewer than 3 million doses a day, far less than the 10 million daily target health officials say is crucial to protect the population from new surges.