Coronavirus pandemic 2019-20 #4

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/omicron-five-times-more-likely-reinfect-than-delta-study-says-2021-12-17/

Omicron more likely to reinfect than Delta, no milder -study

Covid-19: Stop tracing and quarantining of contacts, says Ministerial Advisory Committee

MAC says the tracing and quarantining of contacts of Covid-19 cases is no longer necessary.
In a memo to Health Minister Joe Phaahla, it said the proportion of people with immunity to Covid-19 had risen substantially.
It added that quarantining of contacts was no longer viable in the current social and economic climate.

The Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC) on Covid-19 has written to Health Minister Joe Phaahla, recommending that the quarantining of contacts be stopped as it is no longer viable in the current social and economic climate.

Furthermore, the committee said contact tracing was no longer necessary and should also be halted with immediate effect.

The MAC is co-chaired by Professors Koleka Mlisana and Marian Jacobs.

In a memo to Phaahla on Thursday examining contact tracing and quarantining, the committee said several changes to the Covid-19 situation had occurred since 2020, necessitating the re-evaluation of the management of the disease.

More people had developed an immunity to Covid-19, MAC said.

It said:
The proportion of people with immunity to Covid-19 (from infection and/or vaccination) has risen substantially, exceeding 60-80% in several serosurveys [measuring of antibody levels against infectious diseases]. [South Africa has one of the lowest fully vaccinated rates of around 25%]

"We have learned more about the manner in which Covid-19 is spread, and also now have to contend with variants of concern whose epidemiology differs from that of the ancestral strains of SARS-CoV-2.

It stands to reason that if the vast majority of cases are not diagnosed, then the vast majority of case contacts are also not diagnosed. This means that quarantining and contact tracing are of negligible public health benefit in the South African setting.

Mir wrote:

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/omicron-five-times-more-likely-reinfect-than-delta-study-says-2021-12-17/

Omicron more likely to reinfect than Delta, no milder -study

Fear porn.

As the leading "exporter" of the Omicron variant I can tell you that according to official statements over here the infection rate is higher than the Delta variant but hospitalization is significantly less. Symptoms are much milder as well.

George1 wrote: ]

We do have initial reports that suggest that Omicron is less severe compared to Delta. However, if again, if we have more cases, more cases mean more hospitalizations, and if a health care system is overburdened, people will die because they won't get the appropriate care that they need. So, it's early to tell whether or not Omicron is more or less severe, but we do have some initial reports that it is less severe. Now, don't be fooled. Even if we have a virus that causes less severe disease, this virus can affect vulnerable populations. And we know people with underlying conditions, people of advanced age, if they are infected with any variant of SARS-CoV-2, including Omicron, they are at an increased risk of developing severe disease. So, it is really critical that even if we do see more mild disease, we still do everything that we can to reduce transmission in all populations, people who are vaccinated, as well as people who are not vaccinated.

So, it is really critical that even if we do see more mild disease, we still do everything that we can to reduce transmission in all populations, people who are vaccinated, as well as people who are not vaccinated.

higurashihougi wrote:https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/media-resources/science-in-5/episode-63---omicron-variant

OPINION | Shenilla Mohamed, Mark Dummett: New Covid variants owe existence partly to big Pharma

As Amnesty International, we do not support blanket mandatory vaccine policies and believe that in line with WHO recommendations, governments should focus on voluntary uptake and that public awareness campaigns must be at the forefront of these efforts.

But the news of the emergence of a new variant was good for some. It resulted in a bonanza for western vaccine manufacturers, as it seemed to confirm that they will be providing booster jabs for years to come to combat future variants.

Moderna's share price soared by 34 percent in just five days. Its CEO, Stéphane Bancel, was quick to benefit, selling 10,000 shares on 26 November, making him a windfall of $3.19 million. Over this period, Mr Bancel's overall shareholding in the company jumped in value by more than eight hundred million dollars, the campaigning group Global Justice Now reported.

Moderna's main rivals fared similarly. US pharma giant Pfizer's share price rose by 7.4 percent and its German partner, BioNTech, which originally developed its vaccine, saw an increase of 18.9 percent between 24 November and 29 November.

Rising share prices

These rising share prices reflected the fact that since the start of the pandemic the three companies have chased profits, prioritising sales to higher income countries.

Pfizer has claimed that its "vaccine would be available to every patient, country and community that seeks access." But this rhetoric has not been matched by actions. It continues to make misleading statements and reserve the bulk of its vaccines for wealthier countries, is still refusing to participate in technology sharing initiatives, such as the South African-based WHO mRNA technology hub, and has lobbied vigorously against efforts to lift intellectual property restrictions which would allow other manufacturers to ramp up production.

As a result, Pfizer has forecast that its vaccine sales will hit $36bn this year, making it the single best-selling pharmaceutical of 2021, according to the Financial Times.

Moderna's vaccine was only made possible with the help of US government scientists and a massive input of financial aid. Yet, even more than Pfizer, it has overwhelmingly distributed its vaccines to upper and upper-middle income countries. Moderna has forecast sales of its vaccines of up to $18 billion for 2021. It did not have to be this way. There was nothing inevitable about this. Both Pfizer and Moderna made clear business decisions.

By contrast, the Anglo-Swedish company AstraZeneca has pursued a not-for-profit approach for its sales of the Oxford University-developed vaccine and pushed to distribute doses more fairly around the globe.

kvs wrote:

No approved vax, no food.

No microchip, no food or concentration camp.

This is where it is going.   If you think not, then your have inadequate awareness or other deficiencies.
The west is showing its true colours.  

First of all .... OPINION... glad that is in all caps...

GarryB wrote:Except statistics are statistics...

If the virus kills you then the chance of it killing you is 100%, and if it does not then its chance of killing you is 0%.

1% of 9 billion is an enormous number of people to sacrifice...

Shocking scale of Covid relief fraud revealed

Nearly $100 billion in Covid-19 relief payments has been stolen by criminals since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the Secret Service, which has launched a campaign to recover the money.

Almost $100 billion of the $3.5 trillion given out by the US government in programs such as the Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program has been fraudulently taken, with just over $2.3 billion recovered so far.

The Secret Service – which has more than 900 active investigations into the stolen funds – appointed Special Agent Roy Dotson as its National Pandemic Fraud Recovery Coordinator on Tuesday and the US government is now working with private companies, including PayPal, to recover the money.

Dotson told CNBC that it was “shameful to think that individuals would take advantage of these programs” and “target them for their own personal advantage.”
Man spent millions in Covid relief payments on luxury cars & private jets READ MORE: Man spent millions in Covid relief payments on luxury cars & private jets

“I have been in law enforcement for over 29 years and worked some complex fraud investigations for 20+ years and I’ve never seen something at this scale,” Dotson insisted, noting that the loss is so high “because the pot was so big.”

“There’s no doubt that the programs were easily accessible online. And so, with that, comes the opportunity for bad actors to get into that mix,” he explained.

The bad actors allegedly include organized-crime groups, but also individuals who saw the relief programs as a get-rich-quick scheme.

One Texas man was arrested last week after he scammed the government out of $3.3 million in relief payments, which he spent on real estate, luxury vehicles, and private jets.

Another Texas man was sentenced to over nine years in prison in November for spending more than $1.6 million in relief payments on a life of luxury, including a $14,000 Rolex watch, a Lamborghini, and strippers.

Mir wrote:In 20 years time the virus will kill off 0.6% of today's population but the bad news is that this year we've had nearly 137 million births already!
From my perspective the virus is not going to make much of a dent, but all those jabs and endless booster shots may just do the trick?