Journal of Public Health Management & Practice
March/April 2020 – Volume 26 – Issue 2
https://journals.lww.com/jphmp/pages/currenttoc.aspx

Local Health Department Interest in Implementation of a Jail-Based Human Papillomavirus Vaccination Program in Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, and Nebraska
Local health departments (LHDs) play a vital role in community vaccination programs for human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, but little research has been done to assess LHD interest in cross-sectoral partnerships to vaccinate high-risk groups, specifically incarcerated persons… Nearly half of LHDs in the region expressed interest in partnering with local entities to meet HPV vaccination needs of high-risk groups. Research on cross-sectoral partnerships and what these collaborations look like in practice is needed for public health impact.
Ramaswamy, Megha; Allison, Molly; Musser, Brynne; More
Journal of Public Health Management and Practice. 26(2):168-175, March/April 2020.

Journal of the Royal Society – Interface
01 March 2020 Volume 17 Issue 164
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/toc/rsif/current

Report
Population implications of the deployment of novel universal vaccines against epidemic and pandemic influenza
N. Arinaminpathy, S. Riley, W. S. Barclay, C. Saad-Roy and B. Grenfell
Published: 04 March 2020 Article ID:20190879
There is increasing interest in the development of new, ‘universal’ influenza vaccines (UIVs) that––unlike current vaccines––are effective against a broad range of seasonal influenza strains, as well as against novel pandemic viruses.

The Lancet
Mar 07, 2020 Volume 395 Number 10226 p755-838, e42-e45
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/issue/current

Editorial
COVID-19: too little, too late?
The Lancet
Although WHO has yet to call the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 infection a pandemic, it has confirmed that the virus is likely to spread to most, if not all, countries. Regardless of terminology, this latest coronavirus epidemic is now seeing larger increases in cases outside China. As of March 3, more than 90 000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported in 73 countries. The outbreak in northern Italy, which has seen 11 towns officially locked down and residents threatened with imprisonment if they try to leave, shocked European political leaders. Their shock turned to horror as they saw Italy become the epicentre for further spread across the continent. As the window for global containment closes, health ministers are scrambling to implement appropriate measures to delay spread of the virus. But their actions have been slow and insufficient. There is now a real danger that countries have done too little, too late to contain the epidemic.

By striking contrast, the WHO-China joint mission report calls China’s vigorous public health measures toward this new coronavirus probably the most “ambitious, agile and aggressive disease containment effort in history”. China seems to have avoided a substantial number of cases and fatalities, although there have been severe effects on the nation’s economy. In its report on the joint mission, WHO recommends that countries activate the highest level of national response management protocols to ensure the all-of-government and all-of-society approaches needed to contain viral spread. China’s success rests largely with a strong administrative system that it can mobilise in times of threat, combined with the ready agreement of the Chinese people to obey stringent public health procedures. Although other nations lack China’s command-and-control political economy, there are important lessons that presidents and prime ministers can learn from China’s experience. The signs are that those lessons have not been learned.

SARS-CoV-2 presents different challenges to high-income and low-income or middle-income countries (LMICs). A major fear over global spread is how weak health systems will cope. Some countries, such as Nigeria, have so far successfully dealt with individual cases. But large outbreaks could easily overwhelm LMIC health services. The difficult truth is that countries in most of sub-Saharan Africa, for example, are not prepared for an epidemic of coronavirus. And nor are many nations across Latin America and the Middle East. Public health measures, such as surveillance, exhaustive contact tracing, social distancing, travel restrictions, educating the public on hand hygiene, ensuring flu vaccinations for the frail and immunocompromised, and postponing non-essential operations and services will all play their part in delaying the spread of infection and dispersing pressure on hospitals. Individual governments will need to decide where they draw the line on implementing these measures. They will have to weigh the ethical, social, and economic risks versus proven health benefits.

The evidence surely indicates that political leaders should be moving faster and more aggressively. As Xiaobo Yang and colleagues have shown, the mortality of critically ill patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia is substantial. As they wrote recently in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, “The severity of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia poses great strain on critical care resources in hospitals, especially if they are not adequately staffed or resourced.” This coronavirus is not benign. It kills. The political response to the epidemic should therefore reflect the national security threat that SARS-CoV-2 represents.

National governments have all released guidance for health-care professionals, but published advice alone is insufficient. Guidance on how to manage patients with COVID-19 must be delivered urgently to health-care workers in the form of workshops, online teaching, smart phone engagement, and peer-to-peer education. Equipment such as personal protective equipment, ventilators, oxygen, and testing kits must be made available and supply chains strengthened. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control recommends that hospitals set up a core team including hospital management, an infection control team member, an infectious disease expert, and specialists representing the intensive care unit and accident and emergency departments.

So far, evidence suggests that the colossal public health efforts of the Chinese Government have saved thousands of lives. High-income countries, now facing their own outbreaks, must take reasoned risks and act more decisively. They must abandon their fears of the negative short-term public and economic consequences that may follow from restricting public freedoms as part of more assertive infection control measures.

The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health
Feb 2020 Volume 4 Number 2 p91-166, e5
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanchi/issue/current

Comment
Children on the move—a call for active screening in migrants
Ulrich von Both
Paediatricians, general practitioners, and family doctors are increasingly confronted with medical symptoms previously not on their radar, because of a rise in migration. In the past 5 years, an estimated 1 million displaced children and adolescents have entered the EU and European Economic Area (EEA), many of them unaccompanied. This vulnerable group faces great challenges and health risks. Societies should welcome migrant families, and medical professionals should help integrate migrant children into health-care systems to ensure high quality care is delivered sustainably. Besides obvious benefits for the individual, it is in the interest of societies to prevent increased incidence of infectious diseases that are currently well controlled, such as tuberculosis. Three infectious diseases—tuberculosis, schistosomiasis, and strongyloidiasis—are particularly relevant and should be seen as priorities for screening and treatment in migrant children.

Lancet Digital Health
Feb 2020 Volume 2 Number 2 e49-e101
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/landig/issue/current

Editorial
Child and adolescent health in the digital age
The Lancet Digital Health
On 18 February, 2020, The Lancet published the report of the WHO-UNICEF-Lancet Commission, calling for a refocus of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) around child and adolescent health. All sectors are responsible for children’s wellbeing, with digital platforms and artificial intelligence (AI) playing an increasing role in child and adolescent health.

The Commission argues that open dialogue across generations is essential to understand the needs of children and adolescents, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where 90% of the global youth population currently live. Digital technologies, such as social media and AI-based chatbots, have much to offer in this regard. The Commission highlights that adolescents are enthusiastic users of technology, with those aged 11–16 years posting on social media on average 26 times a day. With a predicted 40 times increase of their global volume of data, adolescents who might seldom access traditional health services, could more easily be reached through digital health platforms. For example, the Commission describes U-Report, a mobile-based online poll for real-time data collection, which collates opinions from approximately 1 million youths from over 50 LMICs to better communicate with government officials to strengthen public health campaigns, such as immunisation awareness.

Despite the development of promising digital interventions, the Commission calls for further research to understand ways to positively engage with adolescents about health issues using digital technology. A paper in The Lancet Digital Health, by Maree Teesson and colleagues, reported a cluster-randomised controlled trial in 71 schools in Australia, which showed efficacy of an online digital intervention for prevention of substance use, depression, and anxiety in adolescents. This digital intervention allows scaling up of prevention programmes, which could reduce costs and increase accessibility to lower resource settings. However, further trials are necessary to determine whether this intervention is cost effective and if the benefits are sustained beyond the trial phase.

The Commission cites several digital interventions that have shown potential in engaging adolescents about health issues; however, the report does not mention augmented reality, a burgeoning area of research in child and adolescent health. In The Lancet Digital Health, Kollins and colleagues describe a randomised controlled trial to test the efficacy of a video game-like interface designed to support children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The results of the trial show that this digital intervention can increase attentional functioning of children with the disorder, but future trials are necessary to examine the durability and time course of the intervention.

The prevalent use of digital platforms, such as social media, has encouraged speculation that their regular use might negatively effect child and adolescent health, a concern echoed within the Commission. However, current evidence supporting this idea is controversial due to the nature of the large-scale social datasets used in many studies which could be prone to potential false positives and conflicting results. A study attempted to address these challenges using three large-scale social datasets and found no significant correlational evidence for detrimental effects of digital technology on adolescent health.

The Commission ends with the quote “what gets measured, gets done”, which highlights a well known barrier to achieving the SDGs: inability to collect the necessary quality and volume of data to monitor progress. Open data is needed to overcome the barriers to collect and share data for SDG progress, and the Commission authors rightly demand better use of data from publicly available sources. However, there are concerns regarding the few safeguards to protect children’s data, especially against data manipulation through black box and biased algorithms. The Commission also highlights the shortcomings of current data privacy regulations, emphasising that public sector bodies and commercial organisations have failed to ensure privacy, transparency, security, and redress when handling children’s data. The assurance of privacy and security of data is key to the success of digital innovation and transformation of health care.

Digital platforms and AI are necessary tools to enable children and adolescents to be agents of change, encouraging open dialogue between children, international agencies, and governments to achieve the SDGs for a better future.

Lancet Infectious Diseases
Mar 2020 Volume 20 Number 3 p261-382, e27-e49
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/issue/current

Editorial
Challenges of coronavirus disease 2019
The Lancet Infectious Diseases
Yet again, the world is experiencing a global viral epidemic of zoonotic origin. As of Feb 12, 45 204 confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and 1116 deaths had been reported in 25 countries. The majority of cases and, at the time of writing, all but one death have been in China, despite efforts in the country to halt transmission through shutting down transport, quarantining entire cities, and enforcing the use of face masks. International flights have been cancelled and affected cruise ships quarantined. At this stage, it is unclear whether the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV)-2 outbreak will run its course, as SARS-CoV did in 2003, or will become an endemic cause of viral pneumonia.

In our January issue we announced the formation of The Lancet Infectious Diseases Commission on Preparedness for Emerging Epidemic Threats. The Commission will revisit global preparedness planning and assumptions underlying agreements such as the International Health Regulations. It aims to account for new challenges in preparing for and responding to infectious disease outbreaks. These challenges, which are political and institutional, social, environmental, technological, and pathogen-related, are being brought to the foreground by the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak.

Lancet Infectious Diseases
Mar 2020 Volume 20 Number 3 p261-382, e27-e49
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/issue/current

Challenges of coronavirus disease 2019
One issue is how prepared the world’s health systems are to respond to an outbreak of this scale. It’s clear the large number of cases of COVID-19 is testing the health system in China. Yet, China was able to build a hospital for affected patients in a matter of days. No other country could mobilise resources and manpower at such speed. While health systems in high-income countries would be stretched by the outbreak, the most devastating effects would be in countries with weak health systems, ongoing conflicts, or existing infectious disease epidemics.
In these countries, it is imperative to rapidly detect and contain the virus at points of entry to prevent community transmission and health systems from being overwhelmed. Health authorities in Africa are on high alert for the virus, given the continent’s extensive trade and transport links with Asia. The capacity in Africa to screen, isolate, and treat patients and perform contact tracing is being built under the leadership of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and WHO.

As in all outbreaks, there is an urgent need to develop effective diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines. Several experimental diagnostic platforms are already in use in China and elsewhere. The whole-genome sequence of SARS-CoV-2 had been obtained and shared widely by mid-January, a feat not possible at such speed in previous infectious disease outbreaks. This sequence will allow fine-tuning of existing technologies and development of better diagnostics and targeted therapeutics. Several potential treatments have been proposed, including a Janus kinase inibitor known as baricitinib. However, no antiviral treatment has been approved for coronaviruses, and despite two outbreaks of novel coronaviruses in the past two decades, vaccine development is still in its infancy. WHO has announced that a vaccine for SARS-CoV-2 should be available in 18 months, but achieving this will require funding and public interest to be maintained even if the threat level falls.

Social media and sensationalist reporting are challenging outbreak response efforts. Misinformation and conspiracy theories spread on social media have generated panic and mistrust among the general public, diverted attention away from the outbreak response, and impeded the activities of health-care workers. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said WHO is tackling the spread of false information with a “four-pronged approach”, including using its WHO Information Network for Epidemics platform to track misinformation in multiple languages and collaborating with social and digital companies such as Facebook, Weibo, and Twitter to filter out false information.

How prepared the world was for the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak will surely be discussed in its aftermath. The initial response in China to contain the virus was applauded by WHO and considered much improved compared with its response to the 2003 SARS-CoV epidemic. Internationally, we have seen rapid generation and sharing of knowledge to the benefit of the outbreak response, but also counterproductive actions by some countries, including limiting trade and shutting of borders, to its detriment. With the increasing frequency of zoonotic spillovers leading to human infections and transmission, it’s apparent that pandemic preparedness has become a priority for the global health agenda.

Lancet Infectious Diseases
Mar 2020 Volume 20 Number 3 p261-382, e27-e49
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/issue/current

Review
The status of tuberculosis vaccine development
Lewis K Schrager, Johan Vekemens, Nick Drager, David M Lewinsohn, Ole F Olesen
Summary
Tuberculosis represents the leading global cause of death from an infectious agent. Controlling the tuberculosis epidemic thus represents an urgent global public health priority. Epidemiological modelling suggests that, although drug treatments for tuberculosis continue to improve, WHO timelines to control the spread of the disease require a new vaccine capable of preventing tuberculosis, particularly in adolescents and adults. The spread of strains resistant to multiple drugs adds additional urgency to the vaccine development effort yet attempts to develop new vaccines with wider applicability and better, longer-lasting efficacy than BCG—the only tuberculosis vaccine licensed for use globally—have proven challenging. Results from clinical efficacy trials, particularly a completed, phase 2b trial for preventing tuberculosis disease in people infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis using the adjuvanted protein subunit vaccine M72/AS01E give hope. We review the current status of tuberculosis vaccine candidates and outline the diversified vaccine development that are underway.

Nature
Volume 579 Issue 7797, 5 March 2020
http://www.nature.com/nature/current_issue.html

Editorial | 03 March 2020
Coronavirus response: a focus on containment is still apt
Despite COVID-19’s spread to new countries, the evidence suggests it is yet possible to curb the virus.

Nature Genetics
Volume 52 Issue 3, March 2020
https://www.nature.com/ng/volumes/52/issues/3

Editorial | 05 March 2020
Whole tumor genomes across cancers
The Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes (PCAWG) Consortium project, led by the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), coordinated the sequencing and analysis of 2,583 tumor whole genomes across 38 cancer types. This impressively large project, comprising many working groups focusing on various molecular or genetic features of cancer, has generated valuable data for the cancer research community that will continue to be mined for many years to come.

Nature Genetics
Volume 52 Issue 3, March 2020
https://www.nature.com/ng/volumes/52/issues/3

Article | 05 February 2020 | Open Access
The landscape of viral associations in human cancers
Viral pathogen load in cancer genomes is estimated through analysis of sequencing data from 2,656 tumors across 35 cancer types using multiple pathogen-detection pipelines, identifying viruses in 382 genomic and 68 transcriptome datasets.
Marc Zapatka, Ivan Borozan[…] & Marc Zapatka

Nature Genetics
Volume 52 Issue 3, March 2020
https://www.nature.com/ng/volumes/52/issues/3

Analysis | 05 February 2020 | Open Access
Comprehensive analysis of chromothripsis in 2,658 human cancers using whole-genome sequencing
Analysis of whole-genome sequencing data across 2,658 tumors spanning 38 cancer types shows that chromothripsis is pervasive, with a frequency of more than 50% in several cancer types, contributing to oncogene amplification, gene inactivation and cancer genome evolution.
Isidro Cortés-Ciriano, Jake June-Koo Lee[…] & Peter J. Park
Special: Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes

Nature Medicine
Volume 26 Issue 2, February 2020
https://www.nature.com/nm/volumes/26/issues/2

Editorial | 03 February 2020
Communication, collaboration and cooperation can stop the 2019 coronavirus
As the outbreak of a deadly new coronavirus in China and its rapid spread is rattling countries, only the collective international experience and advances derived from past outbreaks can accelerate its control.

Nature Medicine
Volume 26 Issue 2, February 2020
https://www.nature.com/nm/volumes/26/issues/2

Perspective | 03 February 2020
Single-cell genomic approaches for developing the next generation of immunotherapies
Amit and colleagues discuss where single-cell genomic technologies can be applied both in trial design and in the clinical trial stage to improve the development of immunotherapies.
Ido Yofe, Rony Dahan & Ido Amit

New England Journal of Medicine
March 5, 2020 Vol. 382 No. 10
http://www.nejm.org/toc/nejm/medical-journal

Perspective
Social Spending to Improve Population Health — Does the United States Spend as Wisely as Other Countries?
Roosa S. Tikkanen, M.P.H., M.Res., and Eric C. Schneider, M.D.

PNAS – Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/
[Accessed 7 Mar 2020]

Chromosome-free bacterial cells are safe and programmable platforms for synthetic biology
Catherine Fan, Paul A. Davison, Robert Habgood, Hong Zeng, Christoph M. Decker, Manuela Gesell Salazar, Khemmathin Lueangwattanapong, Helen E. Townley, Aidong Yang, Ian P. Thompson, Hua Ye, Zhanfeng Cui, Frank Schmidt, C. Neil Hunter, and Wei E. Huang
PNAS first published March 6, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1918859117

Science
06 March 2020 Vol 367, Issue 6482
http://www.sciencemag.org/current.dtl

In Depth
Can China’s COVID-19 strategy work elsewhere?
By Kai Kupferschmidt, Jon Cohen
Science06 Mar 2020 : 1061-1062 Full Access
Rapid decline in cases is real, expert mission concludes—but it came at a high cost.

Systematic Reviews
https://systematicreviewsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles
[Accessed 7 Mar 2020]

Benefits and harms of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines: systematic review with meta-analyses of trial data from clinical study reports
To assess the benefits and harms of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines.
Authors: Lars Jørgensen, Peter C. Gøtzsche and Tom Jefferson
Citation: Systematic Reviews 2020 9:43
Content type: Research
Published on: 28 February 2020

Systematic Reviews
https://systematicreviewsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles
[Accessed 7 Mar 2020]

Benefits and harms of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines: systematic review with meta-analyses of trial data from clinical study reports
To assess the benefits and harms of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines.
Authors: Lars Jørgensen, Peter C. Gøtzsche and Tom Jefferson
Citation: Systematic Reviews 2020 9:43
Content type: Research
Published on: 28 February 2020

Systematic Reviews
https://systematicreviewsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles
[Accessed 7 Mar 2020]

What the systematic review of HPV vaccine clinical study reports does, and does not, reveal: commentary on Jørgensen et al.
Authors: Hilda Bastian
Citation: Systematic Reviews 2020 9:41
Content type: Commentary
Published on: 28 February 2020

Systematic Reviews
https://systematicreviewsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles
[Accessed 7 Mar 2020]

What the systematic review of HPV vaccine clinical study reports does, and does not, reveal: commentary on Jørgensen et al.
Authors: Hilda Bastian
Citation: Systematic Reviews 2020 9:41
Content type: Commentary
Published on: 28 February 2020

Tropical Medicine & International Health
Volume 25, Issue 3 Pages: i-iv, 277-386 March 2020
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/13653156/current

Editorial Free Access
The COVID‐19 epidemic
Thirumalaisamy P. Velavan, Christian G. Meyer
Pages: 278-280
First Published: 12 February 2020

Vaccine
Volume 38, Issue 10 Pages 2273-2432 (28 February 2020)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/vaccine/vol/38/issue/10

Editorial Full text access
Another coronavirus, another epidemic, another warning
Gregory A. Poland
[Excerpt]
Many questions must yet be answered as coronavirus vaccines are developed. Research questions whose answers have immediate and practical application include these issues:
:: Further resolution of case-fatality rates, viral reproductive number, and serosurveys that allow us to better appreciate the epidemiology of this infection
:: The identification and role of possible super-spreaders
:: Propensities for differential infection and transmission rates, as well as disease severity and fatality by age and ethnicity
:: Development of suitable animal models that closely mimic human pathophysiology and immunology must be identified and better optimized
:: Regulatory pathways for vaccine clinical trials and licensure in the absence of continuing outbreaks must be determined, as history demonstrates the intermittent and sudden appearance of outbreaks with these novel viruses—how might such regulatory pathways be altered in the event of a pandemic or more lethal mutations?
:: How shall issues of immunosensecence in the elderly and immunoimmaturity in infants and children be accounted for?
:: Why have we not seen widespread or lethal infections in children compared to adults?
:: What about special populations such as health care providers, pregnant women, immunocompromised individuals, and those with and without prior experience with various types of coronavirus infection?
:: How will such vaccines be equitably distributed—particularly in low income countries?
:: Better data on viral pathogenesis and human immune responses

As the world waits and watches, it is apparent that Chinese authorities in particular, and all countries, must take more seriously the threat of these emerging coronavirus human pathogens. Specific steps should include the following:
:: Regulate so-called wet markets with bans on the unregulated sale and trade in exotic animals.
:: Improve sanitation in such markets with food protection and hygienic standards appropriate to 21st century practices.
:: Significantly expand public health infrastructure. Among such tasks must be the regular surveillance of these markets for emerging viruses of concern.
:: Transparently, quickly, and in accordance with international health regulations, share information with global health authorities. The current outbreak is highly likely to have started in November or earlier, but it was not until late December that Chinese authorities reported to the WHO what was happening.
:: Allow, from the very beginning, health authorities from across the globe to assist in outbreak investigation and scientific investigation. It is surprising that CDC has not yet been invited to China to assist in this global issue. It is surprising to see papers from Chinese scientists that place barriers on sharing information—such as requiring “detailed study protocols and statistical and reporting plans” submitted for approval before data is shared. This is counter to the essence of professionalism and moral imperatives to openly share science for the protection of the health of the global public.

Vaccine
Volume 38, Issue 10 Pages 2273-2432 (28 February 2020)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/vaccine/vol/38/issue/10

Discussion No access
Improving vaccine policy making: A dose of reality
Dorit R. Reiss, Paul A. Offit

Vaccine
Volume 38, Issue 10 Pages 2273-2432 (28 February 2020)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/vaccine/vol/38/issue/10

Research article Open access
An assessment of parents’ childhood immunization beliefs, intentions, and behaviors using a smartphone panel
John Boyle, Lew Berman, Glen J. Nowak, Ronaldo Iachan, … Yangyang Deng
Pages 2416-2423

Vaccine
Volume 38, Issue 10 Pages 2273-2432 (28 February 2020)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/vaccine/vol/38/issue/10

Research article Open access
Understanding the role of peace of mind in childhood vaccination: A qualitative study with members of the general public
G. Lasseter, H. Al-Janabi, C.L. Trotter, F.E. Carroll, H. Christensen
Pages 2424-2432

Vaccines — Open Access Journal
http://www.mdpi.com/journal/vaccines
(Accessed 7 Mar 2020)

Open Access Article
Influenza Vaccination in Italian Healthcare Workers (2018–2019 Season): Strengths and Weaknesses. Results of a Cohort Study in Two Large Italian Hospitals
by Donatella Panatto , Piero Luigi Lai , Stefano Mosca , Elvina Lecini , Andrea Orsi , Alessio Signori , Silvana Castaldi , Elena Pariani , Laura Pellegrinelli , Cristina Galli , Giovanni Anselmi , Giancarlo Icardi and CIRI-IT Team
Vaccines 2020, 8(1), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines8010119 – 05 Mar 2020
Abstract
Background: Annual vaccination is the most effective way to combat influenza. As influenza viruses evolve, seasonal vaccines are updated annually. Within the European project Development of Robust and Innovative Vaccine Effectiveness (DRIVE), a cohort study involving Italian healthcare workers (HCWs) was carried out during the 2018-2019 season. Two aims were defined: to measure influenza vaccine effectiveness (IVE) against laboratory-confirmed influenza cases and to conduct an awareness-raising campaign to increase vaccination coverage. Methods: Each subject enrolled was followed up from enrollment to the end of the study. Each HCW who developed ILI was swabbed for laboratory confirmation of influenza. Influenza viruses were identified by molecular assays. A Cox regression analysis, crude and adjusted for confounding variables, was performed to estimate the IVE. Results: Among the 4483 HCWs enrolled, vaccination coverage was 32.5%, and 308 ILI cases were collected: 23.4% were positive for influenza (54.2% A(H1N1) pdm09; 45.8% A(H3N2)). No influenza B viruses were detected. No overall IVE was observed. Analyzing the subtypes of influenza A viruses, the IVE was estimated as 45% (95% CI: -59 to 81) for A(H1N1) pdm09. Conclusions: Vaccination coverage among HCWs increased. Study difficulties and the circulation of drifted variants of A(H3N2) could partly explain the observed IVE.

Vaccines — Open Access Journal
http://www.mdpi.com/journal/vaccines
(Accessed 7 Mar 2020)

Open Access Article
Influenza Vaccination in Italian Healthcare Workers (2018–2019 Season): Strengths and Weaknesses. Results of a Cohort Study in Two Large Italian Hospitals
by Donatella Panatto , Piero Luigi Lai , Stefano Mosca , Elvina Lecini , Andrea Orsi , Alessio Signori , Silvana Castaldi , Elena Pariani , Laura Pellegrinelli , Cristina Galli , Giovanni Anselmi , Giancarlo Icardi and CIRI-IT Team
Vaccines 2020, 8(1), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines8010119 – 05 Mar 2020
Abstract
Background: Annual vaccination is the most effective way to combat influenza. As influenza viruses evolve, seasonal vaccines are updated annually. Within the European project Development of Robust and Innovative Vaccine Effectiveness (DRIVE), a cohort study involving Italian healthcare workers (HCWs) was carried out during the 2018-2019 season. Two aims were defined: to measure influenza vaccine effectiveness (IVE) against laboratory-confirmed influenza cases and to conduct an awareness-raising campaign to increase vaccination coverage. Methods: Each subject enrolled was followed up from enrollment to the end of the study. Each HCW who developed ILI was swabbed for laboratory confirmation of influenza. Influenza viruses were identified by molecular assays. A Cox regression analysis, crude and adjusted for confounding variables, was performed to estimate the IVE. Results: Among the 4483 HCWs enrolled, vaccination coverage was 32.5%, and 308 ILI cases were collected: 23.4% were positive for influenza (54.2% A(H1N1) pdm09; 45.8% A(H3N2)). No influenza B viruses were detected. No overall IVE was observed. Analyzing the subtypes of influenza A viruses, the IVE was estimated as 45% (95% CI: -59 to 81) for A(H1N1) pdm09. Conclusions: Vaccination coverage among HCWs increased. Study difficulties and the circulation of drifted variants of A(H3N2) could partly explain the observed IVE.

Vaccines — Open Access Journal
http://www.mdpi.com/journal/vaccines
(Accessed 7 Mar 2020)

Open Access Article
Effect of Influenza Vaccination on Mortality and Risk of Hospitalization in Elderly Individuals with and without Disabilities: A Nationwide, Population-Based Cohort Study
by Yu-Chia Chang , Ho-Jui Tung , Yu-Tung Huang , Chin-Te Lu , Ernawaty Ernawaty and Szu-Yuan Wu
Vaccines 2020, 8(1), 112; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines8010112 – 02 Mar 2020
Viewed by 158
Abstract
Purpose: The effects of influenza vaccines are unclear for elderly individuals with disabilities. We use a population-based cohort study to estimate the effects of influenza vaccines in elderly individuals with and without disabilities.
Methods: Data were taken from the National Health Insurance Research Database and Disabled Population Profile of Taiwan. A total of 2,741,403 adults aged 65 or older were identified and 394,490 were people with a disability. These two groups were further divided into those who had or had not received an influenza vaccine. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) were used to compare the relative risks (RRs) of death and hospitalization across the four groups.
Results: 30.78% elderly individuals without a disability and 34.59% elderly individuals with a disability had vaccinated for influenza. Compared to the unvaccinated elderly without a disability, the vaccinated elderly without a disability had significantly lower risks in all-cause mortality (RR = 0.64) and hospitalization for any of the influenza-related diseases (RR = 0.91). Both the unvaccinated and vaccinated elderly with a disability had significantly higher risks in all-cause mortality (RR = 1.81 and 1.18, respectively) and hospitalization for any of the influenza-related diseases (RR = 1.73 and 1.59, respectively).
Conclusions: The elderly with a disability had higher risks in mortality and hospitalization than those without a disability; however, receiving influenza vaccinations could still generate more protection to the disabled elderly.

From Google Scholar & other sources: Selected Journal Articles, Newsletters, Dissertations, Theses, Commentary

No new digest content identified.

Media/Policy Watch
This watch section is intended to alert readers to substantive news, analysis and opinion from the general media and selected think tanks and similar organizations on vaccines, immunization, global public health and related themes. Media Watch is not intended to be exhaustive, but indicative of themes and issues CVEP is actively tracking. This section will grow from an initial base of newspapers, magazines and blog sources, and is segregated from Journal Watch above which scans the peer-reviewed journal ecology.
We acknowledge the Western/Northern bias in this initial selection of titles and invite suggestions for expanded coverage. We are conservative in our outlook in adding news sources which largely report on primary content we are already covering above. Many electronic media sources have tiered, fee-based subscription models for access. We will provide full-text where content is published without restriction, but most publications require registration and some subscription level.

The Atlantic
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
Ideas
The Geopolitics of the Coronavirus
Expertise matters. Institutions matter. There is such a thing as the global community. The system must be made to work again.
March 4, 2020
Thomas Wright, Senior fellow at the Brookings Institution
Kurt M. Campbell, Former Assistant Secretary of State for Asia and the Pacific

BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
[No new, unique, relevant content]

The Economist
http://www.economist.com/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
[No new, unique, relevant content]

Financial Times
http://www.ft.com/home/uk
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
[No new, unique, relevant content]

Forbes
http://www.forbes.com/
Mar 5, 2020
How AI May Prevent The Next Coronavirus Outbreak
Various startups producing AI-powered diagnostic and detection systems aim to combat the spread of contagious viruses.
By Simon Chandler Contributor

Foreign Affairs
http://www.foreignaffairs.com/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
Security   Mar 3, 2020
Pandemic Disease Is a Threat to National Security
As the United States now grapples with the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic, the time is long past to make pandemic disease a national security priority…
Lisa Monaco

Foreign Policy
http://foreignpolicy.com/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
China Goes on Diplomatic Offensive Over Coronavirus Response
Beijing seeks to deflect criticism that its carelessness caused a global crisis.
Document | March 6, 2020, 12:39 PM
Colum Lynch

The Guardian
http://www.guardiannews.com/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
[No new, unique, relevant content]

New Yorker
http://www.newyorker.com/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
Annals of a Warming Planet
What Can the Coronavirus Teach Us?
A certain kind of environmentalist has long hoped that we’ll learn to substitute human contact for endless consumption; maybe this is the kind of shock that might open a few eyes.
By Bill McKibben
March 5, 2020

New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
Sunday Review
Beware the Deadly Contagion Spread by Blowhards
Ideology is getting in the way of science.
By Nicholas Kristof
March 8

Politics
Inside Trump Administration, Debate Raged Over What to Tell Public
The administration’s response to the coronavirus has repeatedly matched public health experts against a hesitant White House, where worry of panic dominates.
By Michael D. Shear, Sheri Fink and Noah Weiland
March 8

Politics
Trump Signs $8.3 Billion Spending Bill to Boost Coronavirus Response
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed an emergency spending bill for $8.3 billion to ramp up the nation’s response to the coronavirus, providing funds for state and local officials to combat the spread of infections as the number of cases grows in the United States.
By Reuters
March 6

Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
[No new, unique, relevant content]

Think Tanks et al

Brookings
http://www.brookings.edu/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
Order from Chaos
The coronavirus is exposing the limits of populism
Thomas Wright and Kurt Campbell
Thursday, March 5, 2020

Center for Global Development [to 7 Mar 2020]
http://www.cgdev.org/page/press-center
Selected Publications, News and Events
March 5, 2020
What COVID-19 Should Teach Us About Smart Health Spending in Developing Countries
With a number of African countries confirming their first cases of COVID-19 and the continent bracing for major outbreaks, health system resilience and basic functionality emerge once again as the determining factor for a successful response.
Kalipso Chalkidou and Carleigh Krubiner

March 4, 2020
World Bank and COVID-19: Five Unanswered Questions on Funding Sources and Uses
Yesterday the World Bank announced $12 billion in financing available to member countries to respond to the health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak. There is not much information yet in the public domain on the sources and planned uses for this money, but five questions – each with additional corresponding questions – come to mind when reading the press release:
Amanda Glassman and Scott Morris

CSIS
https://www.csis.org/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
Transcript Event
The Global Impacts of the Coronavirus Outbreak
March 5, 2020

Council on Foreign Relations
http://www.cfr.org/
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
[No new relevant content]

 
Kaiser Family Foundation
https://www.kff.org/search/?post_type=press-release
Accessed 7 Mar 2020
[No new relevant content]

Milestones :: Perspectives :: Research

Global institutions must act urgently and decisively to tackle COVID-19
Opinion | 27 February 2020
Jeremy Farrar, Director, Wellcome Trust
The COVID-19 outbreak is not just a public health crisis, it’s rapidly becoming a global crisis – of health, economics and politics.

A queue of Italian shoppers outside a supermarket with empty trolleys. It’s not an image we automatically associate with a global public health crisis. But when this picture, from the quarantined Lombardy town of Casalpusterlengo, led news reports earlier this week, it captured something infectious disease researchers, like me, have been struggling to express clearly. It is that epidemics like COVID-19 are so much more than just a public health crisis. Like the worst financial crashes, they are global events, which can impact every sector of society all at once.

For the people of Lombardy and Veneto – and those of Daegu in South Korea, and Wuhan and many more towns and cities in China – fear of falling ill is just the start. With quarantine, or even containment tactics that do much less to infringe civil liberties, the social disruption is everywhere. The supermarket with empty shelves. The trains that don’t run. The shuttered workplace. The children sent home from school. The features of normal life we take for granted turned upside down.

These social impacts feed economic ones and have sent most of the world’s major stock exchanges sharply downwards in the past few days. Cruise ships, prisons, hotels and villages in one part of the world could just as easily be care homes, schools, work places or refugee camps in another. Even with scientists’ best estimates, it is near-impossible to predict whether this virus will stay with us long-term, or, like the SARS outbreak in 2003, will burn out.
But what can we do to curb this wider societal contagion?

In the past month, governments around the world have stepped up public health responses, from airport screenings and quarantining potential cases on the return from affected areas, to finding extra capacity for national health services. These actions have been crucial to reducing and delaying the spread of this virus – because, as yet, we have no vaccine or proven treatment. Communities, particularly in China, have paid a heavy price, but have bought the rest of the world critical time.

What more, then? I believe our greatest weapon against uncertainty and panic is trust, which in much of the world is at a historic low. To regain it, our global powers, including the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), and leaders of the G7 and G20, must make decisions that demonstrate they see this as a global crisis, and continue the current containment approach while also preparing for the worst. Three key pieces of insight should help kickstart action.

First, agreement that the chances of this becoming something that we can’t contain are uncomfortably high and acting as if this is a certainty is now our best bet. Second, decisions must keep pace with this epidemic, which means coordinated action should be adapted as needed on an almost daily basis. Third, and as the residents of northern Italy and South Korea already know, recognising that the possible impact of coronavirus is far beyond a health emergency – it’s a global crisis with the potential to reach the scale of the global financial crisis of 2008.

Then, global financial institutions such as the IMF and World Bank were admirably swift to act. They did what the world needed – and while negative consequences couldn’t be avoided, the immediate impact was to some extent mitigated. These same institutions can no longer stand by in the face of a crisis that is no less threatening. They are designed to be the world’s insurance policy and they must release the significant funds they hold without hesitation.

Anything less than an urgent initial commitment of $10 billion from the World Bank leaves us at risk of much greater costs later and long-term catastrophe. The sums are considerable. The decision to release funds should not be taken lightly, but the stakes could not be higher. Economists have previously warned that even a moderately severe pandemic could knock 4-5% off global output.

The investment should be used to bolster the public health response in the most vulnerable countries, coordinated through the World Health Organization, and to develop diagnostics, treatments and vaccines. If COVID-19 burns out, then the hours and money spent on our response will not have been wasted but will represent a crucial investment in global health.

Likewise, the IMF needs to ensure it allocates appropriate capital to support central banks across the world. The economic impact of an epidemic can be devastating, particularly on low- and middle-income countries and small businesses. When SARS spread through Asia in 2003, it cost the world economy $60 billion in less than a year. The Ebola epidemic of 2014-15 more than halved Liberia’s GDP growth that year. Maintaining access to credit while we weather the storm is vital.

Those with wealth and power must ensure that no country is left behind, particularly those with vulnerable health care systems and fragile economies. This is not just a public health crisis, it’s rapidly becoming a global crisis – of health, economics and politics. The best of the world’s multilateral financial and political institutions need to ask themselves what they can do to help avert it, and how they can build trust in themselves in the process. The world needs these institutions to act urgently and decisively.

Related content
Wellcome has launched a COVID-19 funding call to support researchers who want to investigate new approaches for preventing and controlling the epidemic, with a focus on low- and middle-income countries.

EMERGENCIES

Editor’s Note:
While we have concentrated the most current key reports just below, COVID-19 announcements, analysis and commentary will be found throughout this issue, in all sections.
Beyond the considerable continuing coverage in the global general media:
Daily WHO situation reports here: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situation-reports
WHO Coronavirus disease (COVID-2019) daily press briefings here: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/media-resources/press-briefings

Coronavirus [COVID-19]
Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC)
Situation report – 39 [WHO]

Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)
28 February 2020
[Excerpts]
SITUATION IN NUMBERS
Globally :: 83,652 laboratory-confirmed [1358 new]
[Week ago: 77,794 laboratory-confirmed [599 new]]
China :: 78,961 laboratory-confirmed [331 new]
:: 2,791 deaths [109 new]
Outside of China
:: 4,691 laboratory-confirmed [1027 new]
:: 52 countries [28 countries last week]
:: 67 deaths [10 new]

WHO RISK ASSESSMENT
China – Very High
Regional Level – Very High
Global Level – Very High

HIGHLIGHTS
:: Five new Member States (Belarus, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, and Nigeria) reported cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.
:: WHO has increased the assessment of the risk of spread and risk of impact ofCOVID-19 to very high at the global level. More information can be found here.
:: The WHO-China Joint Mission, which was conducted from 16 through 24February, has published its findings. The full report can be found here.
:: WHO has updated the guidance on Global Surveillance for human infection with coronavirus disease (COVID-19). This document includes revised surveillance case definitions for COVID-19.
:: As of 27 February, there are 36 117 (26 403 in Hubei and 15 826 in Wuhan) cases who have recovered from COVID-19 in China.
:: Under the International Health Regulations (2005), States Parties implementing additional health measures that significantly interfere with international traffics hall notify WHO of the public health rationale of those measures within 48 hours of their implementation. As of 27 February, 41 States Parties are officially reporting additional health measures.

::::::

Here is the report of the WHO-China Joint Mission on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), published as received from the mission, unabridged by WHO
16-24 February 2020 :: 40 pages
Excerpt
IV. Major Recommendations
For China
1. Maintain an appropriate level of emergency management protocols, depending
on the assessed risk in each area and recognizing the real risk of new cases and
clusters of COVID-19 as economic activity resumes, movement restrictions are
lifted, and schools reopen;
2. Carefully monitor the phased lifting of the current restrictions on movement and
public gatherings, beginning with the return of workers and migrant labor,
followed by the eventual reopening of schools and lifting other measures;
3. Further strengthen the readiness of emergency management mechanisms, public
health institutions (e.g. CDCs), medical facilities, and community engagement
mechanisms to ensure sustained capacity to immediately launch containment
activities in response to any resurgence in cases;
4. Prioritize research that rapidly informs response and risk management decisions,
particularly household and health care facility studies, age-stratified seroepidemiologic
surveys and rigorous investigation of the animal-human interface;
establish a centralized research program to fast-track the most promising rapid
diagnostics and serologic assays, the testing of potential antivirals and vaccine
candidates, and Chinese engagement in selected multi-country trials; and
5. As the country with the greatest knowledge on COVID-19, further enhance the
systematic and real-time sharing of epidemiologic data, clinical results and
experience to inform the global response.

For countries with imported cases and/or outbreaks of COVID-19
1. Immediately activate the highest level of national Response Management
protocols to ensure the all-of-government and all-of-society approach needed to
contain COVID-19 with non-pharmaceutical public health measures;
2. Prioritize active, exhaustive case finding and immediate testing and isolation,
painstaking contact tracing and rigorous quarantine of close contacts;
3. Fully educate the general public on the seriousness of COVID-19 and their role in
preventing its spread;
4. Immediately expand surveillance to detect COVID-19 transmission chains, by
testing all patients with atypical pneumonias, conducting screening in some
patients with upper respiratory illnesses and/or recent COVID-19 exposure, and
adding testing for the COVID-19 virus to existing surveillance systems (e.g.
systems for influenza-like-illness and SARI); and
22
5. Conduct multi-sector scenario planning and simulations for the deployment of
even more stringent measures to interrupt transmission chains as needed (e.g.
the suspension of large-scale gatherings and the closure of schools and
workplaces).

For uninfected countries
1. Prepare to immediately activate the highest level of emergency response
mechanisms to trigger the all-of-government and all-of society approach that is
essential for early containment of a COVID-19 outbreak;
2. Rapidly test national preparedness plans in light of new knowledge on the
effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical measures against COVID-19; incorporate
rapid detection, largescale case isolation and respiratory support capacities, and
rigorous contact tracing and management in national COVID-19 readiness and
response plans and capacities;
3. Immediately enhance surveillance for COVID-19 as rapid detection is crucial to
containing spread; consider testing all patients with atypical pneumonia for the
COVID-19 virus, and adding testing for the virus to existing influenza surveillance
systems;
4. Begin now to enforce rigorous application of infection prevention and control
measures in all healthcare facilities, especially in emergency departments and
outpatient clinics, as this is where COVID-19 will enter the health system; and
5. Rapidly assess the general population’s understanding of COVID-19, adjust
national health promotion materials and activities accordingly, and engage
clinical champions to communicate with the media.

For the public
1. Recognize that COVID-19 is a new and concerning disease, but that outbreaks
can managed with the right response and that the vast majority of infected
people will recover;
2. Begin now to adopt and rigorously practice the most important preventive
measures for COVID-19 by frequent hand washing and always covering your
mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing;
3. Continually update yourself on COVID-19 and its signs and symptoms (i.e. fever
and dry cough), because the strategies and response activities will constantly
improve as new information on this disease is accumulating every day; and
4. Be prepared to actively support a response to COVID-19 in a variety of ways,
including the adoption of more stringent ‘social distancing’ practices and helping
the high-risk elderly population.
23

For the international community
1. Recognize that true solidarity and collaboration is essential between nations to
tackle the common threat that COVID-19 represents and operationalize this
principle;
2. Rapidly share information as required under the International Health Regulations
(IHR) including detailed information about imported cases to facilitate contact
tracing and inform containment measures that span countries;
3. Recognize the rapidly changing risk profile of COVID-19 affected countries and
continually monitor outbreak trends and control capacities to reassess any
‘additional health measures’ that significantly interfere with international travel
and trade.

WHO Director-General’s opening remarks at media briefing on COVID-19 (28 February 2020)

27 February 2020 Statement
A Joint Statement on Tourism and COVID-19 – UNWTO and WHO Call for Responsibility and Coordination
As the current outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) continues to develop, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) are committed to working together in guiding the travel and tourism sectors’ response to COVID-19.

On 30 January 2020, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of COVID-19 to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern and issued a set of Temporary Recommendations. WHO did not recommend any travel or trade restriction based on the current information available. WHO is working closely with global experts, governments and partners to rapidly expand scientific knowledge on this new virus, to track the spread and virulence of the virus, and to provide advice to countries and the global community on measures to protect health and prevent the spread of this outbreak.

Cooperation is key
The tourism sector is fully committed to putting people and their well-being first. International cooperation is vital for ensuring the sector can effectively contribute to the containment of COVID-19. UNWTO and WHO are working in close consultation and with other partners to assist States in ensuring that health measures be implemented in ways that minimize unnecessary interference with international traffic and trade.

Tourism’s response needs to be measured and consistent, proportionate to the public health threat and based on local risk assessment, involving every part of the tourism value chain – public bodies, private companies and tourists, in line with WHO’s overall guidance and recommendations.

UNWTO and WHO stand ready to work closely with all those communities and countries affected by the current health emergency, to build for a better and more resilient future. Travel restrictions going beyond these may cause unnecessary interference with international traffic, including negative repercussions on the tourism sector.

At this challenging time, UNWTO and WHO join the international community in standing in solidarity with affected countries.

::::::

Moderna Ships mRNA Vaccine Against Novel Coronavirus (mRNA-1273) for Phase 1 Study
February 24, 2020

Clover and GSK Announce Research Collaboration to Evaluate Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vaccine Candidate with Pandemic Adjuvant System
February 24, 2020

::::::
::::::

Emergencies

Ebola – DRC+
Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC)

Ebola Outbreak in DRC 81: 23 February 2020
[Excerpts]
Situation Update
This week, the incidence of new confirmed Ebola virus disease (EVD) cases remained low (Figure 1). From 17 to 23 February 2020, one new confirmed case was reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The case was reported in Beni Health Zone, North Kivu Province on 17 February 2020. The person is a contact of a confirmed case, was under surveillance at the time of illness onset, and is now receiving care at an Ebola Treatment Centre.

In the past 21 days (3 to 23 February 2020), the outbreak has been confined to a relatively small geographic area. During this period, five new confirmed cases were reported from two health areas in North Kivu Province; both areas are within Beni Health Zone (Figure 2, Table 1). It has been more than 21 days since new cases were confirmed from Mabalako Health Zone, and over 42 days since new cases were detected in Musienene Health Zone.

While we are cautiously optimistic about the overall trend and reduced geographic spread of the outbreak, the risk of resurgence within the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighbouring countries remains high, and the continued containment of the outbreak is contingent on maintaining access and security in affected communities…

…Conclusion
For the third consecutive week, new confirmed cases have only been reported from Beni Health Zone. While there is room for cautious optimism regarding the low number of new confirmed cases reported recently, continued access and heightened vigilance is required to mitigate risks of potential re-emergence of the outbreak.

::::::
::::::

Emergencies

POLIO
Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC)
http://polioeradication.org/polio-today/polio-now/this-week/

Polio this week as of 26 February 2020
:: Do you wish to become a member of the Polio Transition Independent Monitoring Board? If so, you are invited to send in your application by 11 March 2020. Details of role requirements can be found here.
:: To know more about the state of poliovirus surveillance and the opportunities explored to enhance surveillance in priority areas, take a look at the newly released 2019 Global Polio Surveillance Status Report.

Summary of new viruses this week (AFP cases and ES positives):
:: Afghanistan: one WPV1 positive environmental sample
:: Pakistan: two WPV1 cases and 14 WPV1 positive environmental samples
:: Central African Republic: one cVDPV2 positive environmental sample
:: Benin: one cVDPV2 case
:: Ghana: six cVDPV2 cases and two cVDPV2 positive environmental samples
:: Togo: two cVDPV2 cases

::::::
::::::

WHO Grade 3 Emergencies [to 29 Feb 2020]

Democratic Republic of the Congo
:: Ebola Outbreak in DRC 81: 23 February 2020
[See Emergencies above for detail]

Nigeria
:: WHO reaffirms commitment to support Nigeria in response to COVID19
28 February 2020

Mozambique floods – No new digest announcements identified
Somalia – No new digest announcements identified
South Sudan – No new digest announcements identified
Syrian Arab Republic – No new digest announcements identified
Yemen – No new digest announcements identified

::::::

WHO Grade 2 Emergencies [to 29 Feb 2020]
Measles in Europe
:: Supporting Serbia to strengthen health systems and improve health 28-02-2020

Iraq
:: WHO delivers ambulances to strengthen referral pathways in Kurdistan region of Iraq
Erbil, 17 February 2020 – The World Health Organization (WHO) today handed over a new batch of fully equipped ambulances to the Ministry of Health in Kurdistan Region of Iraq to support the needs of internally displaced persons (IDP) and the host community.

Afghanistan – No new digest announcements identified
Angola – No new digest announcements identified
Burkina Faso [in French] – No new digest announcements identified
Burundi – No new digest announcements identified
Cameroon – No new digest announcements identified
Central African Republic – No new digest announcements identified
Ethiopia – No new digest announcements identified
HIV in Pakistan – No new digest announcements identified
Iran floods 2019 – No new digest announcements identified
Libya – No new digest announcements identified
Malawi floods – No new digest announcements identified
MERS-CoV – No new digest announcements identified
Myanmar – No new digest announcements identified
Niger – No new digest announcements identified
occupied Palestinian territory – No new digest announcements identified
Sudan – No new digest announcements identified
Ukraine – No new digest announcements identified
Zimbabwe – No new digest announcements identified

::::::

WHO Grade 1 Emergencies [to 29 Feb 2020]

Chad – No new digest announcements identified
Djibouti – No new digest announcements identified
Kenya – No new digest announcements identified
Mali – No new digest announcements identified
Namibia – viral hepatitis – No new digest announcements identified
Tanzania – No new digest announcements identified

::::::
::::::

UN OCHA – L3 Emergencies
The UN and its humanitarian partners are currently responding to three ‘L3’ emergencies. This is the global humanitarian system’s classification for the response to the most severe, large-scale humanitarian crises. 
Syrian Arab Republic
:: Recent Developments in Northwest Syria – Situation Report No. 9 – As of 26 February 2020
HIGHLIGHTS
More than 948,000 people have been displaced in northwest Syria since 1 December 2019. Some 569,000 of them are children and over 195,000 of them are women, together comprising 81 percent of the newly displaced population.
The current crisis is the worst that northwest Syria has experienced since the beginning of the conflict. More people have been displaced into a smaller area in a shorter period of time than ever before, with nowhere else to flee. Lives are increasingly at risk as increasing numbers of people are concentrated in smaller areas. Many are moving to unsafe areas as they have no other options. Their vulnerability and desperation is increasing, with reports of exploitation of women and girls, the separation of children from their families, and increasing rates of malnutrition.
The humanitarian community has revised its readiness and response plan to reflect the needs of the newly displaced people, host communities and people who had previously been displaced. Increased funding, reprogramming flexibility and other support is needed to enable humanitarian partners to suitably scale up the emergency response. Most importantly, an immediate cessation of violence is critical to save lives and alleviate suffering of hundreds of thousands of people.

Yemen – No new digest announcements identified

::::::

UN OCHA – Corporate Emergencies
When the USG/ERC declares a Corporate Emergency Response, all OCHA offices, branches and sections provide their full support to response activities both at HQ and in the field.
CYCLONE IDAI and Kenneth – No new digest announcements identified
EBOLA OUTBREAK IN THE DRC – No new digest announcements identified

::::::
::::::

WHO & Regional Offices [to 29 Feb 2020]
27 February 2020 Statement
A Joint Statement on Tourism and COVID-19 – UNWTO and WHO Call for Responsibility and Coordination
[See COVID-19 above for detail]

24 February 2020 News release
France pledges US$100 million (€90 million) for WHO Academy

::::::

Weekly Epidemiological Record, 21 February 2020, vol. 95, 08 (pp. 69–76)
:: Progress towards measles elimination – China, January 2013–June 2019
:: COVID-19 update
::::::

WHO Regional Offices
Selected Press Releases, Announcements
WHO African Region AFRO
:: Nigeria targets nearly 12 million in Yellow fever vaccination across two high risk S…
28 February 2020

WHO Region of the Americas PAHO
:: Face masks during outbreaks: Who, when, where and how to use them (02/28/2020)
:: PAHO Director calls on countries of the Americas to intensify COVID-19 preparedness and response activities (02/26/2020)

WHO South-East Asia Region SEARO
:: 27 January 2020 News release
Readiness is the key to detect, combat spread of the new coronavirus
:: 26 December 2019 News release
15 years of Indian Ocean tsunami – WHO South-East Asia Region continues to prioritize preparedness to respond to public health emergencies

WHO European Region EURO
:: Supporting Serbia to strengthen health systems and improve health 28-02-2020
:: Smartphone app aids midwives in Kyrgyzstan 28-02-2020
:: Statement for the joint press conference on COVID-19 26-02-2020
:: Joint WHO and ECDC mission in Italy to support COVID-19 control and prevention efforts 24-02-2020

WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region EMRO
No new digest content identified.

WHO Western Pacific Region
No new digest content identified.

CDC/ACIP [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.cdc.gov/media/index.html
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/acip/index.html
Latest News Releases
CDC Announces Additional COVID-19 Presumptive Positive Cases Friday, February 28, 2020

Transcript for the CDC Telebriefing Update on COVID-19 Friday, February 28, 2020

CDC Confirms Possible Instance of Community Spread of COVID-19 in U.S. Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Transcript for the CDC Telebriefing Update on COVID-19 Wednesday, February 26, 2020

MMWR News Synopsis Friday, February 28, 2020
Update: Public Health Response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Outbreak — United States, February 24, 2020

Africa CDC [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.africacdc.org/
News
African Union Mobilizes Continent-Wide Response to COVID-19 Outbreak
ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA, 24 FEBRUARY 2020. The Chairperson, African Union Commission, H.E. Mr Moussa Faki Mahamat, said that the Commission will strengthen partnerships and coordination across Africa to to respond to the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak…

China CDC
http://www.chinacdc.cn/en/
No new digest content identified.

National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China
http://en.nhc.gov.cn/
News
Feb 29: Daily briefing on novel coronavirus cases in China
On Feb 28, 31 provincial-level regions on the Chinese mainland as well as the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps reported 427 new cases of confirmed infections, 248 new cases of suspected infections, and 47 deaths.

Li urges more R&D in outbreak fight
2020-02-29
Premier calls for developing enhanced test kits, pharmaceuticals, vaccines
Premier Li Keqiang urged greater breakthroughs in the research and development of more efficient test kits, pharmaceuticals and vaccines to help the country better battle the novel coronavirus epidemic.
Li’s remark on Friday came as he visited a national emergency response platform in Beijing coping with the COVID-19 outbreak…

Epidemic easing at its epicenter
2020-02-29

Health official calls for caution as work resumes
2020-02-29

Announcements

 
Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group    [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://alleninstitute.org/what-we-do/frontiers-group/news-press/
News
No new digest content identified.
 
 
BMGF – Gates Foundation  [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Media-Center/Press-Releases
FEBRUARY 24, 2020
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Commits $10 Million to Support Global Response on East Africa Locust Invasion
SEATTLE February 24, 2020 – The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced today that it is contributing $10 million to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to support its work with governments in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia, to combat a locust infestation in East Africa that is posing a significant threat to food production and livelihoods in the region. The foundation is joining several other donors in responding to FAO’s urgent appeal to contain the crisis.
 
 
Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute    [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.gatesmri.org/
The Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute is a non-profit biotech organization. Our mission is to develop products to fight malaria, tuberculosis, and diarrheal diseases—three major causes of mortality, poverty, and inequality in developing countries. The world has unprecedented scientific tools at its disposal; now is the time to use them to save the lives of the world’s poorest people
No new digest content identified.
 
 
CARB-X   [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://carb-x.org/
CARB-X is a non-profit public-private partnership dedicated to accelerating antibacterial research to tackle the global rising threat of drug-resistant bacteria.
02.25.2020  |
CARB-X funds Peptilogics to develop a new class of antibiotics to treat serious superbug infections associated with implants
CARB-X is awarding Peptilogics, headquartered in Pittsburgh, USA, up to US$2.56 million in non-dilutive funding to develop a new class of peptide antibiotics with broad activity against drug-resistant bacteria.  The company could receive up to $9.61 million more in additional funding if the project achieves certain development milestones, for a potential total of up to $12.17 million.
 
 
CEPI – Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations  [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://cepi.net/
News
No new digest content identified.
 
 
Clinton Health Access Initiative, Inc. (CHAI)  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://clintonhealthaccess.org/
News & Press Releases
No new digest content identified.
 
 
EDCTP    [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.edctp.org/
The European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) aims to accelerate the development of new or improved drugs, vaccines, microbicides and diagnostics against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as well as other poverty-related and neglected infectious diseases in sub-Saharan Africa, with a focus on phase II and III clinical trials
Latest news
No new digest content identified.
 
 
 
Emory Vaccine Center    [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.vaccines.emory.edu/
No new digest content identified.
 
 
European Medicines Agency  [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.ema.europa.eu/ema/
News & Press Releases
News: Meeting highlights from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) 24-27 February 2020
CHMP, Last updated: 28/02/2020
 
 
European Vaccine Initiative  [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.euvaccine.eu/news-events
No new digest content identified.

FDA [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/default.htm
Press Announcements
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: FDA Issues New Policy to Help Expedite Availability of Diagnostics
Feb 29, 2020, 10:33 ET
…The new policy is for certain laboratories that develop and begin to use validated COVID-19 diagnostics before the FDA has completed review of their Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) requests. The FDA can issue an EUA to permit the use, based on scientific data, of certain medical products that may be effective in diagnosing, treating or preventing a disease or condition when there is a determination, by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), that there is a public health emergency or a significant potential for a public health emergency that has a significant potential to affect national security or the health and security of U.S. citizens, and a declaration that circumstances exist justifying the medical products’ emergency use.
On Feb. 4, 2020, the Secretary of HHS determined that there is a public health emergency and that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of emergency use of in vitro diagnostics for detection and/or diagnosis of the COVID-19 outbreak. Rapid detection of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. requires wide availability of diagnostic testing to control the emergence of a rapidly spreading, severe illness. The FDA has authorized one EUA for COVID-19 that is in use by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and some public health labs    across the country.
The guidance issued today describes a policy enabling laboratories to immediately use tests they developed and validated in order to achieve more rapid testing capacity in the U.S…
 
 
February 27, 2020 – Coronavirus (COVID-19) Supply Chain Update
…Since January 24, the FDA has been in touch with more than 180 manufacturers of human drugs, not only to remind them of applicable legal requirements for notifying the FDA of any anticipated supply disruptions, but also asking them to evaluate their entire supply chain, including active pharmaceutical ingredients (the main ingredient in the drug and part that produces the intended effects, e.g., acetaminophen) and other components manufactured in China.
Also, as part of our efforts, the FDA has identified about 20 other drugs, which solely source their active pharmaceutical ingredients or finished drug products from China. We have been in contact with those firms to assess whether they face any drug shortage risks due to the outbreak. None of these firms have reported any shortage to date. Also, these drugs are considered non-critical drugs.
We will remain in contact with manufacturers so that we can continue to assist them with any potential issues in the fastest way…
 
 
February 24, 2020 – Coronavirus Update: FDA steps to ensure quality of foreign products
 
 
Fondation Merieux  [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.fondation-merieux.org/
News, Events
Mérieux Foundation co-organized event
5th Meeting of the GTFCC Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Working Group
March 3 – 4, 2020 –   Dar es Salam (Tanzania)
 
 
Gavi [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.gavi.org/
25 February 2020
DRC: vaccination sessions increase by 50% in vulnerable provinces since 2018
:: In the nine provinces where half of all the DRC’s under-immunised children live, there are now 24,000 routine vaccination sessions per month
:: New technology enabling health workers to monitor key indicators in real time has contributed to the dramatic increase
:: Progress comes at a time when the country is battling outbreaks of Ebola, measles and cholera, among other diseases
 
 
GHIT Fund   [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.ghitfund.org/newsroom/press
GHIT was set up in 2012 with the aim of developing new tools to tackle infectious diseases that No new digest content identified.
 
 
Global Fund  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.theglobalfund.org/en/news/
News & Stories
Updates
Search for Independent Board Committee Members
26 February 2020
The Global Fund Board is looking for three independent experts to serve as non-voting members of Global Fund Board standing committees for 2020-2022. Financial audit, forensics investigations and ethics experts are invited to submit applications to serve on the Audit and Finance Committee and the Ethics and Governance Committee. The application deadline is 27 March 2020.
 
 
Updates
Search for Chief Financial Officer and Head of Health Finance
25 February 2020
 
 
Hilleman Laboratories   [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.hillemanlabs.org/
No new digest content identified.
 
 
Human Vaccines Project   [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.humanvaccinesproject.org/media/press-releases/
Press Releases
No new digest content identified.
 
 
IAVI  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.iavi.org/newsroom
No new digest content identified.
 
 
International Coalition of Medicines Regulatory Authorities [ICMRA]
http://www.icmra.info/drupal/en/news
Selected Statements, Press Releases, Research
No new digest content identified.
 
 
International Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association [IGBA]
https://www.igbamedicines.org/
News
No new digest content identified.
 
 
IFFIm
http://www.iffim.org/
06 Feb 2020
IFFIm Vaccine Bond issuance named 2019 “Deal of the Year” by mtn-i
London, 6 February 2020 — IFFIm, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken (SEB) and the Toronto-Dominion Bank have been awarded SRI “Deal of the Year” by news, data and analytics publisher mtn-i for a July 2019 Vaccine Bond issuance that raised funding to research and develop new vaccines.
The award was given in the SRI: Green/Social category for IFFIm’s July 2019 issuance that raised 600 million Norwegian krone (US$ 65 million) for CEPI, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations. CEPI is a public private initiative that accelerates development of vaccines against emerging infectious diseases and enables equitable access to these vaccines during outbreaks. These bonds provided immediate funding to combat diseases like MERS, Nipah virus and Lassa fever.
The transaction allowed Norway to accelerate its multi-year pledge to CEPI by leveraging IFFIm’s access to the capital markets. Norway is a donor to IFFIm, Gavi and CEPI…
 
 
IFRC   [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://media.ifrc.org/ifrc/news/press-releases/
Selected Press Releases, Announcements
DPRK
Red Cross granted exemption from UN sanctions to provide humanitarian aid in DPRK
Pyongyang/Kuala Lumpur/Geneva, 24 February 2020 – The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Socieities (IFRC) has been granted an exemption to United Nations sanctions, imposed on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1718 (2006) and subsequent resolutions, allowing for the provision of life-saving support to protect people from the spread of the new coronavirus, COVID-19.
The potential for an outbreak of COVID-19 in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea poses a threat to millions of people who are already in need of humanitarian assistance.
Xavier Castellanos, IFRC’s Asia Pacific Regional Director said: “We know that there is urgent need of personal protective gear and testing kits, items vital to prepare for a possible outbreak. This exemption is a life-saving intervention and an important measure to ensure that sanctions do not bear a negative impact on the people of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”
 
 
IVAC  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.jhsph.edu/research/centers-and-institutes/ivac/index.html
Updates
No new digest content identified.
 
 
IVI   [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.ivi.int/
Selected IVI News & Announcements
Korea should join efforts in vaccine development to prevent pandemics
by Jerome H. Kim, Director General of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI)
Feb 26,2020
Originally published in the JoongAng Ilbo (Korean language) and Korea JoongAng Daily (English language)
 
 
JEE Alliance  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.jeealliance.org/
Selected News and Events
No new digest content identified.
 
 
MSF/Médecins Sans Frontières  [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.msf.org/
Latest [Selected Announcements]
Syria
MSF to scale up response in Idlib, Syria as tensions reach a new peak
Statement 28 Feb 2020

Mediterranean migration
Ocean Viking arbitrarily quarantined by Italian authorities over COVID…
Project Update 28 Feb 2020
As Italy was hit by the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak late last week, the Ocean Viking, the search and rescue ship operated by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and SOS MEDITERRANEE, was put under quarantine following the disembarkation of 276 people rescued at sea in the prior days.
The Ocean Viking has complied with all measures and has now been anchored off Sicily for five days. It is increasingly clear that quarantine restrictions are being discriminatorily applied only to search and rescue vessels.
“Quarantining the Ocean Viking is equivalent to stopping an ambulance in the middle of an emergency,” said Michael Fark, MSF head of mission for Search and Rescue. “This is a discriminatory action – the only vessels that have been put into quarantine are those conducting rescues.”
In the past 48 hours we have had reports of boats in distress in the central Mediterranean. We are deeply worried about the fate of people travelling in them…
 
 
National Vaccine Program Office – U.S. HHS  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.hhs.gov/vaccines/about/index.html
NVAC 2020 Meetings
June 9-10, 2020 NVAC Meeting
September 23-24, 2020 Meeting (Virtual)
 
 
NIH  [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases
Selected News Releases
COVID-19 a Reminder of the Challenge of Emerging Infectious Diseases
February 28, 2020 — The respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus poses complex challenges to the global public health, research and medical communities.

NIH announces $1 million prize competition to target global disease diagnostics
February 26, 2020 — Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to offer supplementary support for designs that can be developed into products on a rapid timeframe.

NIH clinical trial of remdesivir to treat COVID-19 begins
February 25, 2020 — Study enrolling hospitalized adults with COVID-19 in Nebraska.

A randomized, controlled clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the investigational antiviral remdesivir in hospitalized adults diagnosed with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has begun at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in Omaha. The trial regulatory sponsor is the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. This is the first clinical trial in the United States to evaluate an experimental treatment for COVID-19, the respiratory disease first detected in December 2019 in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China…
 
 
PATH  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.path.org/media-center/
Selected Announcements
No new digest content identified.

Sabin Vaccine Institute  [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.sabin.org/updates/pressreleases
Statements and Press Releases
Sabin Vaccine Institute Launches Vaccine Acceptance and Demand Program — Now recruiting for a number of positions: 
Senior Manager, Vaccine Acceptance
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand  Location: Washington, DC
Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand
Reports to: President, Global Immunization   Location: Washington, DC
Senior Manager, Social Media Research
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand   Location: Washington, DC
Senior Manager, Immunization Advocates
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand   Location: Washington, DC
 
 
UNAIDS [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.unaids.org/en
Selected Press Releases/Reports/Statements
March 1, 2020
ZERO DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS
On Zero Discrimination Day this year, UNAIDS is challenging the discrimination faced by women and girls in all their diversity and raising awareness and mobilizing action to promote equality and empowerment for women and girls.

24 February 2020
Investing in HIV really does pay off

UNICEF  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.unicef.org/media/press-releases
Press release
Statement
UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore: Briefing to the Security Council on the situation for children in Syria
This is a summary of what was said by Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today’s Security Council briefing at United Nations in New York
27/02/2020

Statement
Remarks by Afshan Khan, UNICEF Regional Director, On behalf of Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director
Human Rights Council Panel Geneva, Switzerland February 24, 2020  [Children’s rights are human rights]
25/02/2020
 
 
Vaccination Acceptance Research Network (VARN)  [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://vaccineacceptance.org/news.html#header1-2r
Announcements
Sabin Vaccine Institute Launches Vaccine Acceptance and Demand Program — Now recruiting for a number of positions: 
Senior Manager, Vaccine Acceptance
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand  Location: Washington, DC
Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand
Reports to: President, Global Immunization   Location: Washington, DC
Senior Manager, Social Media Research
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand   Location: Washington, DC
Senior Manager, Immunization Advocates
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand   Location: Washington, DC
Sabin Vaccine Institute Launches Vaccine Acceptance and Demand Program — Now recruiting for a number of positions: 
Senior Manager, Vaccine Acceptance
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand Location: Washington, DC
Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand
Reports to: President, Global Immunization Location: Washington, DC
Senior Manager, Social Media Research
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand Location: Washington, DC
Senior Manager, Immunization Advocates
Reports to: Vice President, Vaccine Acceptance and Demand Location: Washington, DC
 
 
Vaccine Confidence Project [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.vaccineconfidence.org/
Latest News & Archive
No new digest content identified.
 
 
Vaccine Education Center – Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.chop.edu/centers-programs/vaccine-education-center
Newsletter February 2020
Announcements: Updated Q&A sheets, new videos, and Dr. Offit interview
 
 
Wellcome Trust [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://wellcome.ac.uk/news
Opinion | 27 February 2020
Global institutions must act urgently and decisively to tackle COVID-19
Jeremy Farrar, Director Wellcome Trust
The COVID-19 outbreak is not just a public health crisis, it’s rapidly becoming a global crisis – of health, economics and politics.
[See Emergencies above]
 
 
The Wistar Institute [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.wistar.org/news/press-releases
Press Releases
No new digest content identified.
 
 
World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.oie.int/en/for-the-media/press-releases/2020/
Press Releases
No new digest content identified.

::::::

ARM [Alliance for Regenerative Medicine] [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://alliancerm.org/press-releases/
Press Releases
No new digest content identified.
 
 
BIO [to 29 Feb 2020]
https://www.bio.org/press-releases
Press Releases
BIO Asia Conference in Tokyo Cancelled Amid
COVID-19 Outbreak
Washington, DC – February 21, 2020 – The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) announced today, it is canceling the annual BIO Asia conference in Tokyo scheduled for March 10-11. The decision was based on the global impact of COVID-19 and Japanese government recommendations.
“Our attendees’ health and safety are our utmost priority,” said Jim Greenwood, BIO President & CEO. “We offer our support and sympathy to all of those who’ve been impacted by the virus around the world.”…
 
 
DCVMN – Developing Country Vaccine Manufacturers Network [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.dcvmn.org/
News
Mini E-workshop on Vaccine Safety monitoring and Pharmacovigilance tools
16 March 2020 to 18 March 2020 / International (Webex)
 
 
IFPMA [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.ifpma.org/resources/news-releases/
Selected Press Releases, Statements, Publications
No new digest content identified.
 
 
PhRMA [to 29 Feb 2020]
http://www.phrma.org/
Selected Press Releases, Statements
Rare Disease Day 2020: Progress toward cures
Richard Moscicki, M.D.   |     February 24, 2020
Stephen J. Ubl   |     February 20, 2020
Today kicks off Rare Disease Week, an annual opportunity to celebrate the incredible progress that has been made to treat rare diseases and reflect on the need for continued research and development (R&D) to address unmet medical needs. While categorized as rare, 30 million Americans, or 10% of the population, are still impacted by one of 7,000 rare diseases.
Conquering rare diseases presents a unique scientific challenge for researchers and requires collaboration among stakeholders across the public and private sectors. Although advances in pediatric research have improved the lives of infants, children, adolescents and society at large, tremendous unmet needs remain. Currently just 5% of rare diseases, including those that impact children, have an available treatment option. America’s biopharmaceutical companies have more than 560 medicines in development for rare diseases and more that 770 medicines have been approved to treat rare diseases over the past 35 years. Last year, America’s biopharmaceutical companies made significant progress toward this commitment with 21 novel medicines approved to treat rare diseases…

Journal Watch
Vaccines and Global Health: The Week in Review continues its weekly scanning of key peer-reviewed journals to identify and cite articles, commentary and editorials, books reviews and other content supporting our focu-s on vaccine ethics and policy. Journal Watch is not intended to be exhaustive, but indicative of themes and issues the Center is actively tracking. We selectively provide full text of some editorial and comment articles that are specifically relevant to our work. Successful access to some of the links provided may require subscription or other access arrangement unique to the publisher.
If you would like to suggest other journal titles to include in this service, please contact David Curry at: david.r.curry@centerforvaccineethicsandpolicy.org

Artificial Intelligence – An International Journal
Volume 281 April 2020
https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/artificial-intelligence/vol/281/suppl/C

Research article Abstract only
Ethical approaches and autonomous systems
T.J.M. Bench-Capon
Article 103239
Abstract
In this paper we consider how the three main approaches to ethics – deontology, consequentialism and virtue ethics – relate to the implementation of ethical agents. We provide a description of each approach and how agents might be implemented by designers following the different approaches. Although there are numerous examples of agents implemented within the consequentialist and deontological approaches, this is not so for virtue ethics. We therefore propose a novel means of implementing agents within the virtue ethics approach. It is seen that each approach has its own particular strengths and weaknesses when considered as the basis for implementing ethical agents, and that the different approaches are appropriate to different kinds of system.

BMC Public Health
http://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles
(Accessed 29 Feb 2020)

Can the prophylactic quadrivalent HPV vaccine be used as a therapeutic agent in women with CIN? A randomized trial
Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most significant risk factors for cervical cancer. The HPV vaccine has a very significant impact on the incidence of cervical cancer. The present study aimed to investi…
Authors: Mojgan Karimi-Zarchi, Leila Allahqoli, Ameneh Nehmati, Abolfazl Mehdizadeh Kashi, Shokouh Taghipour-Zahir and Ibrahim Alkatout
Citation: BMC Public Health 2020 20:274
Content type: Research article
Published on: 27 February 2020

BMC Public Health
http://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles
(Accessed 29 Feb 2020)

Impact of mother’s education on full immunization of children aged 12–23 months in Eritrea: population and health survey 2010 data analysis
Although vaccination coverage in Eritrea has improved in recent years, some children are still missing out, and it’s important to identify risk factors for lower coverage in order to target campaigns and inter…

Authors: Fitsum Kibreab, Sonia Lewycka and Andebrhan Tewelde
Citation: BMC Public Health 2020 20:267
Content type: Research article
Published on: 22 February 2020

The CRISPR Journal
Volume 3, Issue 1 / February 2020
https://www.liebertpub.com/toc/crispr/3/1

Editorial
Ushering in the Next CRISPR Decade
Rodolphe Barrangou
Page:2
Published Online:17 February 2020

The CRISPR Journal
Volume 3, Issue 1 / February 2020
https://www.liebertpub.com/toc/crispr/3/1

Perspectives
Ethical Considerations in Therapeutic Clinical Trials Involving Novel Human Germline-Editing Technology
Carolyn Brokowski and Mazhar Adli
Pages:18–26
Published Online:17 February 2020
https://doi.org/10.1089/crispr.2019.0051
Abstract
Much of the international community opposes editing the human germline. Yet, given enough experience to become better acquainted with strengths and limitations, prominent international figures are cautiously optimistic about using CRISPR-like novel technologies for clinical applications. Not only might such applications be morally (ethically) permissible, but clinical trials for therapeutic aims could be necessary. Here, we assess critical dimensions of early-phase trials deploying germline-editing technologies for “bench-to-bedside” translation. While assuming no overarching position favoring or opposing such research, our discussion primarily focuses on normative considerations. First, we evaluate the imperative of conducting trials to produce reliable, reproducible knowledge and advancement, if possible, for human diseases that are incurable and/or whose treatments are deficient. Second, we address complexities in assessing risk and potential-benefit profiles. Third, we review the moral foundations of trial participation through well-established and accepted bioethical principles: autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and distributive justice. Finally, we raise critical questions about the scope of regulatory authority and investigator and funder accountability for these applications that could have everlasting impacts.

The CRISPR Journal
Volume 3, Issue 1 / February 2020
https://www.liebertpub.com/toc/crispr/3/1

Open Access
Procreative Non-Maleficence: A South African Human Rights Perspective on Heritable Human Genome Editing
Donrich Thaldar and Bonginkosi Shozi
Pages:32–36
Published Online:17 February 2020
https://doi.org/10.1089/crispr.2019.0036

The CRISPR Journal
Volume 3, Issue 1 / February 2020
https://www.liebertpub.com/toc/crispr/3/1

Ordo-Responsibility for Germline Gene Editing
Robert Ranisch, Tina Rudolph, Hans-Joachim Cremer, and Nikolaus Knoepffler
Pages:37–43
Published Online:17 February 2020
https://doi.org/10.1089/crispr.2019.0040