The Evening Report - April 20th
Johnson & Johnson vaccine doses begin to flow to Europe again
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The European Medicines Association’s review of the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine has resulted in almost identical findings as AstraZeneca. The EMA concludes there is a possible link between the vaccine and rare post-vaccination instances of unusual blood clots and low platelets. It recommends a warning be placed on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine’s product information just as it did with AstraZeneca.
Its review was based on eight cases, one of them fatal, of the rare side effects in the United States where over seven million doses of the vaccine have been administered.
“All cases occurred in people under 60 years of age within three weeks after vaccination, the majority in women.”
“The blood clots occurred mostly at unusual sites such as in veins in the brain (cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, CVST), the abdomen (splanchnic vein thrombosis), and in arteries. There were also low levels of blood platelets and sometimes bleeding. The cases reviewed were very similar to the cases that occurred with the COVID vaccine developed by AstraZeneca.”
That said, the EMA finds that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is effective and its benefits in combating COVID outweigh any risks.
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Johnson & Johnson says it will include the side effect warning with the its one-shot vaccine following the EMA’s review. The company says it will now resume vaccine shipments to Europe.
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Denmark’s Health Minister Magnus Heunicke says the COVID contact number (reinfection rate or R0) has crept up to 1.1, a slight increase from two weeks of being at 1.
The R0 measures virus spread. Anything over one indicates a growing outbreak.
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Denmark is reporting 691 COVID infections and four more coronavirus deaths in the last day.
Yesterday 360,131 total corona tests were done, 150,669 PCR and 209,462 rapid, for a (PCR only) positivity percentage of 0.46%.
COVID hospitalizations (194) have declined (-5), while the number of people in an ICU (38) crept up (+2). The number of people on a ventilator (23) remains unchanged.
On the vaccination front to date, 1,097,436 1st dose vaccinations (18.8% of the population) have been administered while 519,119 people (8.9%) are now fully vaccinated.
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The Southern Denmark Health Region received 51,990 vaccine doses this week, 43,290 from Pfizer, and 8,700 doses from Moderna. In its weekly vaccination update the health authority says those doses will go to vaccinations of the nine target groups currently being called in for vaccinations.
221,536 people living in the health region, or about 18%, have had a first shot while 109,084 people are fully vaccinated.
For healthcare staff working with seniors, in hospitals, in the community, or as ambulance paramedics, 61% have one vaccine dose and 30% are fully vaccinated.
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It was a year ago today COVID testing began with five white tents, one for each health region, administering the first PCR tests in the pandemic. Today Denmark is testing hundreds of thousands of people every day in its 160 plus testing locations.
TestCenter Denmark's director Anne-Marie Vangsted:
“It has been a fantastic journey. Of course, there have been bumps along the way, but solutions were found. TestCenter Denmark is a very good example of what we can achieve if we all work together.”
Along with the dramatic ramping up of testing capacity has been a similar building out of laboratory infrastructure to analyze each test to determine a result. It started with a single temporary lab at the Staten Serum Institut a year ago and has grown to two huge laboratories, one in Copenhagen and one in Aarhus, that work 24 hours a day, seven days a week. To date, over 25-million PCR tests have been administered and checked.
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Denmark’s shopping malls have stocked up on hand sanitizer, counting machines, and laid out one way routes in preparation for tomorrow’s re-opening. EjendomDanmark, representing Danish shopping centers, says they are ready to open their doors tomorrow.
EjendomDanmark Retail Committee Chair Finn Sture Madsen:
“We have introduced a lot of safety initiatives and have really good control of the customer traffic through the the shopping centers. Most of all, we and our stores look forward to being allowed to do what we most want to do: namely, serve our customers. Now I just hope that the restaurants will soon have more flexible terms.”
The reopening comes amid a gloomy fiscal situation with the Danish retail sector suffering losses of around DKK 2.2 billion due to forced closures during the pandemic.
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Denmark is cutting some big cheques to help developing countries combat the COVID pandemic, tackle other health initiatives, and to protect democracy.
DKK 234 million is going to a number of health programs including the World Health Organization’s COVID efforts, purchasing vaccines for poorer countries through COVAX program, and the UNICEF’s vaccine distribution efforts.
DKK 150 million is also going to help the world’s most vulnerable. Among recipients of the aid are the UN High Commissioner for Refugees for operations in Syria and neighboring countries and other NGOs.
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Sweden has added 16,692 infections and another 37 corona deaths since Friday’s update. State Epidemiologist Anders Tegnell warned today that there is no indication yet that the infection spread or the number of people being admitted to ICU will ease anytime soon. He is urging people to follow the rules and abide by existing restrictions.
To date, 1,895,912 1st doses (23.1% of the population) and 687,609 2nd vaccination doses (8.4%) have been administered.
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The Swedish Public Health Agency is continuing to restrict use of the AstraZeneca vaccine to those 65 years of age and older.
State Epidemiologist Anders Tegnell says seniors will continue to be inoculated with AstraZeneca with two doses nine to 12 weeks apart.
“AstraZeneca's vaccine has a high protective effect and greatly reduces the risk of serious illness and death, especially among the elderly and weak. The reported cases of serious side effects are rare and in most cases affect people under the age of 60.”
Almost 180,000 people under the age of 65 in Sweden (mostly healthcare workers) have had one dose of AstraZeneca. The health agency says they will now get either Pfizer or Moderna as their second dose. The second dose of either Pfizer or Moderna will be administered 12 to 15 weeks after they received the first AstraZeneca shot.
Several studies are being conducted to better understand the immune response to having two different vaccines as a first and second dose. Depending on the outcome of the studies, the recommendations above could change.
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State Epidemiologist Anders Tegnell said today there is no easing coming anytime soon for infection spread or on the number of people being admitted to intensive care units. He is urging people in Sweden to follow public health guidelines and existing restrictions to help combat the variant driven outbreak.
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Finland has registered 214 infections and two more virus deaths since yesterday’s update.
COVID hospitalizations (163) are down (-3) and ICU numbers (36) are up (+2). To date, 1,346,684 1st dose (24.1% of the population) and 124,852 2nd dose vaccinations (2.2%) administered.
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Norway has added 261 infections and had no new coronavirus deaths since yesterday’s update.
COVID hospitalizations (217) are down (-5), ventilator numbers (47) are up (+1), and ICU numbers (73) are unchanged.
So far, 19.82% of Norwegians have had a first vaccination dose and 5.58% have had both doses.
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The mayors of the five Nordic capital cities met virtually today with the pandemic being the lead item on the agenda. Mayors Jan Vapaavuori (Helsinki), Anna König Jerlmyr (Stockholm), Lars Weiss (Copenhagen), Raymond Johansen (Oslo), and Dagur B. Eggertsson (Reykjavik) compared best practices on how to recover from the pandemic with a focus on culture, events, education, societal impacts, and how to help businesses.
Also on the agenda was climate change, development, digitization, and smart traffic.
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Germany’s Health Minister Jens Spahn says the pace of COVID vaccinations is increasing. Spahn says in the first quarter of the year just 10% of Germans received a first dose due to vaccine supply chain issues. He says the next 10% took just three weeks. Spahn says by the beginning of May every fourth person in the country will have had a first vaccination dose.
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Reuters is reporting that the U.S. will update its “Do Not Travel” guidelines to include about 80% of countries around the world due to “unprecedented” COVID risk. Currently, 34 countries have a ‘do not travel to’ designation because of the pandemic. The U.S. State Department would have to add about 130 more to reach 80%.
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Canada has extended all non-essential travel restrictions to the United States until at least May 21st.
Canada reported 8,317 infections and 45 more coronavirus deaths yesterday. If you include the weekend catch up numbers from B.C., the total number of infections reached 10,275.
On the vaccination front to date, 9,317,557 1st dose vaccinations (24.52% of the population) have been administered while 925,861 people are now fully vaccinated.
Today Ontario’s Health Minister Christine Elliott tweeted, “Ontario is reporting 3,469 cases of COVID19 and nearly 40,600 tests completed. Locally, there are 1,074 new cases in Toronto, 775 in Peel, 406 in York Region, 256 in Durham and 197 in Ottawa. As of 8:00 p.m. yesterday, 3,995,187 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.“ There were 22 more deaths.
Beginning on April 21st, Ontario will partner with Shoppers Drug Mart to offer COVID vaccinations 24 hours a day seven days a week for those 40 years old and older. A majority of the vaccination locations will be located in hot spot areas.
The Ontario Hospital Association says the system continues to be under growing strain. As of today, there are 768 patients with COVID related critical illness in Ontario adult and paediatric ICUs. There were 68 new admissions.
Quebec is reporting 1,136 infections and another 17 deaths today.
In Atlantic Canada, Nova Scotia is tightening border controls and restricting entry into the province after reporting another nine infections. Newfoundland and Labrador had two new cases. New Brunswick registered nine infections yesterday.
Manitoba had 108 infections yesterday and no new deaths. Gatherings have been further restricted in the province with only two people indoors and ten outdoors allowed. Provincial health officials say this is one last effort to curb a third infection wave. If it doesn’t work then a lockdown may be unavoidable.
There were 243 infections and no new deaths in Saskatchewan yesterday. The province has lowered the age of vaccination eligibility to 48.
Alberta recorded 1,391 infections and three more corona deaths yesterday. There are 460 people in hospital and 104 in an ICU.
B.C. has reported 2,960 new infections since Friday, or 1,027 infections Friday to Saturday, 933 Saturday to Sunday, and 1,000 new cases Sunday to Monday. There were eight more deaths over the weekend. A child under the age of two with underlying health conditions has died from COVID in the province. A record 441 people are in hospital.
Both Alberta and B.C. are targeting AstraZeneca doses at people 40 years of age and older.
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The COVID situation remains bleak in India as infections and deaths continue to mount. Yesterday it recorded 271,798 new cases and 1,781 new deaths, one of its deadliest days yet.
New Dheli has declared a six day lockdown in an effort to curb soaring infection rates.
India is throwing away a shocking number of vaccine doses even as it is being rocked by a tidal wave of infections and deaths. According to a freedom of information request filed by Vivek Pandey, a social activist, and reported by DPA news agency, more than 4.4 million vaccine doses have been thrown in the garbage since January.
Pandey says there is no excuse for throwing away life saving vaccines in the middle of a COVID catastrophe.
“Hundreds of thousands of people could have been vaccinated with doses that were wasted, helping control the second COVID wave that is sweeping the country,”