Page 35 - Who

Recommending Covid-19 booster shot will be premature: WHO scientist

More-transmissible strains are prompting vaccine makers to test whether tweaked versions of their existing shots will provide broader immunity.

30 to 40 countries unable to give second Covid-19 shots: WHO official

Between 30 to 40 countries are unable to provide second doses of a Covid-19 vaccine, especially those expecting jabs from AstraZeneca, officials of the World Health Organization (WHO) said.

WHO working with AstraZeneca, SII, Indian govt to restart vax shipment

The WHO is urgently trying to work with AstraZeneca, Serum Institute of India (SII) as well as the Indian government to restart shipments of Covid-19 vaccines to countries

Covid-19 claims 4 million lives amid rising Delta variant risk: Report

Delta variant becoming globally dominant, says Swaminathan

Covid: WHO urges countries to bridge $16 bn funding gap for ACT Accelerator

Access to Covid-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator project aims to accelerate the development, production, and equitable access to Covid-19 tests, treatments and vaccines left unanswered

Harsh Vardhan addresses WHO high level coalition on health, energy

The Covid pandemic has reiterated a massive interdependence among various sectors and the need to ensure inter-connectedness is reflected in policies for effective and service delivery he said.

Setbacks to Serum Institute of India leave world short of Covid shots

The world's largest vaccine maker has been dogged by problems, from a ban on exports to a factory fire, that have hampered its ability to fill orders

Eradicating coronavirus globally not a reasonable target, says WHO

Eradicating Covid-19 from the world is not currently a "reasonable target", David Nabarro, a special envoy to the World Health Organization said on Sunday.

Must find ways to ensure affordable access to key drugs amid Covid: Vardhan

Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said that there is no scope for industries to stick to IPR and that organizations must find ways to ensure affordable access to key drugs.

Only one strain of Covid-19 variant found in India of concern, says WHO

Variants no longer classified as Variants of Concerns or Variants Of Interests will continue to be monitored as part of overall evolution of SARS-CoV-2

End stigma, aid science: WHO hopes Greek names for Covid strains will do so

A country may be more willing to report it has found a new variant if it knows nomenclature won't cause trouble, say experts.

WHO names Covid-19 variants found in India as 'Kappa' and 'Delta'

The B.1.617.1 and B.1.617.2 variants of the COVID-19, first identified in India, has been named as 'Kappa' and 'Delta' respectively, the World Health Organisation (WHO) announced on Monday as it named various variants of the coronavirus using Greek alphabets. "Today, @WHO announces new, easy-to-say labels for #SARSCoV2 Variants of Concern (VOCs) & Interest (VOIs). They will not replace existing scientific names, but are aimed to help in public discussion of VOI/VOC," Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO's technical Covid-19 lead, tweeted on Monday. An expert group convened by WHO has recommended labeling using letters of the Greek Alphabet, i.e., Alpha, Beta, Gamma, which will be easier and more practical to discuss by non-scientific audiences, the UN health agency said in a statement. "The established nomenclature systems for naming and tracking SARS-CoV-2 genetic lineages by GISAID, Nextstrain and Pango are currently and will remain in use by scientists and in scientific research, it ...

WHO names Covid-19 variants first found in India as 'Kappa' and 'Delta'

The B.1.617.1 and B.1.617.2 variants of the COVID-19, first identified in India, has been named as 'Kappa' and 'Delta' respectively, the World Health Organisation (WHO) announced on Monday as it named various variants of the coronavirus using Greek alphabets. "Today, @WHO announces new, easy-to-say labels for #SARSCoV2 Variants of Concern (VOCs) & Interest (VOIs). They will not replace existing scientific names, but are aimed to help in public discussion of VOI/VOC," Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO's technical Covid-19 lead, tweeted on Monday. The UN health agency named the B.1.617.1 variant of the COVID 19 as 'Kappa' while the B1.617.2 variant was dubbed 'Delta.' Both the variants were first found in India. The WHO's move came nearly three weeks after India objected to the B.1.617 mutant of the novel coronavirus being termed an "Indian Variant" in media reports with the Union Health Ministry pointing out that the UN's top health organ has not used the word "Indian" for this strain in .

Covid LIVE: Preparing for third wave, says Uddhav as cases hit 2-month low

Coronavirus live updates: India's Covid fatality count remains above the 3000-mark. Stay tuned for corona-related news

B.1.617 Covid variant, first found in India, now in 53 countries: WHO

WHO noted that India recorded a 23 per cent decrease in the number of new cases in the last seven days but they were still the highest in the world

US renews call for 'transparent' second investigation into origins of Covid

In March, the WHO issued a report written jointly with Chinese scientists on the origins of Covid-19

Bharat Biotech expects EUL from WHO for Covaxin by Jul-Sept period

Emergency Use Listing (EUL) is a procedure to streamline the process by which new or unlicensed products can be used during public health emergencies, according to WHO guidelines

Countries must vaccinate 10% of their population by Sept, says WHO

French President Emmanuel Macron called for the WHO to be empowered to visit countries rapidly in case of outbreaks with potential to spark a pandemic

Wuhan lab staff took hospital care before Covid outbreak disclosed: Report

WSJ report may add weight to calls for a broader probe of whether the Covid-19 virus could have escaped from the laboratory.

Covid LIVE: India third nation after US, Brazil to record 300,000 deaths

Coronavirus LIVE updates: India has set a record of conducting the highest Covid-19 testing in a single day with more than 2.12 mn fresh tests. Stay tuned for corona-related news