Epidemics Tracker

Washington, US | Xinhua |  Rates of gun violence in the United States surged by almost a third during last year’s COVID-19 pandemic, according to a study published Thursday in Scientific Reports. Researchers identified around 51,000 incidents of gun violence across the United States during the 13-month period of the …

Windhoek, Namibia | Xinhua |  Namibia’s Health Ministry said Saturday it has discontinued the use of Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine in national vaccination program with immediate effect following safety concerns by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA). According to Ben Nangombe, the executive director of the Namibian Ministry …

Entebbe, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has  launched the commencement of $30 per person mandatory testing by government for COVID-19 for all incoming passengers at Entebbe International Airport. Since May, private laboratories have been testing un-vaccinated passengers from ten high risk countries such as Kenya, South …

London, UK | Xinhua | The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed Friday that the Delta variant sub-lineage (Delta AY.4.2) was designated a Variant Under Investigation (VUI) on Oct. 20, 2021, and has been given the official name VUI-21OCT-01. The UKHSA said the designation was made on the basis that …

  Washington, US | XINHUA | The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday officially endorsed booster shots for both the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines in certain populations, and allowed “mix and match” dosing for booster shots. The decision came a day after the U.S. …

Berlin, Germany | Xinhua | A booster vaccination with the COVID-19 vaccine of BioNTech and Pfizer increased protection to up to 95.6 percent, the companies announced on Thursday. A randomized, controlled phase III study of more than 10,000 people aged 16 years and older found that booster vaccinations with the Comirnaty …

Lira, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Lira city Covid-19 taskforce has given a three days ultimatum to public places to adhere to standard operating procedures or risk being closed. The places include the Lira produce lane, the main market, bus and taxi parks, other small markets, among others. Although the …

Washington, U.S. | Xinhua | Some social-media influencers and high-profile doctors have been spreading misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines recently as the pandemic continues to wreak havoc in the United States, CNN reported on Thursday. Dr. Rashid Buttar, a famous physician who has 88,000 followers on Twitter, shared all manner of misleading …

Geneva, Switzerland | Xinhua | The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged countries to prioritize vaccination for health workers in the light of its new paper estimating that 115,000 died of coronavirus between January 2020 and May 2021. Although data from 119 countries suggests that on average two in five health …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Health workers have been asked to embrace Covid-19 vaccination to protect themselves against Covid-19 infections. The call was made by health officials during the 19th Dr Matthew Lukwiya Memorial Lecture, held on Thursday at the Guide University Project in Kampala. Dr Lukyiwa was the former …