26 February,2021 06:39 AM IST | New York | Agencies
Kosovo medics look at the American flag at the Bill Clinton boulevard in Pristina, in honour of the COVID-19 deaths in the country. Pic/AFP
The US is on the cusp of getting a third vaccine against COVID-19. The US Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday delivered a strong endorsement of Johnson & Johnson's single-dose vaccine and set the stage for a final decision on February 26.
Two vaccines - from Pfizer and Moderna - have already received emergency use approval in the US. The US FDA scientists confirmed that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is safe and is about 66 per cent effective at preventing moderate to severe COVID-19, and about 85 per cent effective against serious illness.
On February 26, a special team of independent US FDA advisors will debate if the shots can be recommended for population level use - following the same greenlighting process for the two earlier vaccines. The COVID-19 death toll in the US has topped 500,000 but the country's infection curve is slowly bending downwards. More than 44.5 million Americans have received at least one dose of vaccine made by Pfizer or Moderna, and nearly 20 million of them have received the second dose.
The J&J tested its single-dose option in about 44,000 adults in the US, Latin America and South Africa with a two-month median follow-up. "The analysis supported a favourable safety profile with no specific safety concerns identified that would preclude issuance of an EUA," the US FDA said of the J&J vaccine.
Canada detected 868 COVID-19 variant cases as of Tuesday, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. Out of the 868 cases, 827 were B.1.1.7 variants, 40 B.1.351 variants and one P.1. All provinces in the country have detected cases of variants of concern, the Xinhua news agency reported.
France on Wednesday confirmed 31,519 new COVID-19 cases, the biggest one-day jump since mid-November last year, as very worrying situation in some departments forced the authorities to impose partial lockdown to fight the virus resurgence. A higher single-day tally, at 45,522, was registered on November 17, according to official data.
Cambodia has said that all the foreign nationals living or working in the country will be given free COVID-19 vaccine in due course. "All the foreigners who are currently residing and working in Cambodia will be vaccinated free of cost once the nation launches its inoculation drive," said a Foreign Ministry's letter sent to Diplomatic Missions and the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Phnom Penh.
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