At a press conference on Tuesday, State Department spokesman Ned Price said repeatedly that the United States would welcome the findings of the World Health Organization (WHO) team in a conclusive report, but, ultimately, they would rely on their intelligence agencies and allied information to come to their own conclusions.
In response to Price’s comments, Peter Daszak, a member of the WHO investigation team, tweeted on Wednesday: “Well, now this. @JoeBiden has to look tough on China. Please don’t rely too much on US information. : increasingly away from Trump & downright wrong in many ways. “He added that he was happy to assist the White House in verifying the information,” but don’t forget that it is ‘TRUST’ and then ‘VERIFY’
The barbaric trade signals a difficult start to the renewed relationship between Washington and WHO, just weeks after Biden retracted the Trump administration’s withdrawal from the international organization, which is leading the global response against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, Beijing takes a victory lap over the findings of the WHO team, writes James Griffiths. The team, which has just closed its local investigation, said it is “extremely unlikely” that the virus started in a Chinese laboratory, a conspiracy theory that the Trump administration promoted but which has gained little traction. He also said he could not dismiss China’s claims that the virus was possibly transmitted to humans through frozen food from another country.
The WHO team made it clear before the visit, however, that their findings would be limited, given the time since the outbreak in the Huanan market in Wuhan in December 2019, and subsequent efforts to disinfect and sterilize the area. Daszak told CNN that it could take weeks, months or even “a few years” to fully understand how the virus came about.
YOU ASKED. WE ANSWER.
P: Are Covid-19 vaccines safe for cancer patients?
A: It was an issue that was on the minds of researchers and oncologists long before the launch of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines began. While there is a consensus that vaccines are safe for most cancer patients, according to the American Cancer Society and others in the medical community, research into whether they will be effective for cancer patients is still a no-data zone.
“As far as vaccine safety is concerned, each situation for each cancer patient is a little different. And there is a spectrum of where any patient can be on their cancer journey,” Makaroff told CNN. “The Covid-19 vaccine is definitely safe for people with cancer, but it is important that patients talk to their doctor and their cancer care team to determine when the time is right to receive the vaccine.” Read here for more information.
Submit your questions here. Are you a healthcare professional battling Covid-19? Send us a message on WhatsApp about the challenges you are facing: +1 347-322-0415.
WHAT’S IMPORTANT TODAY
‘I wasn’t scared’: 116-year-old French nun survives Covid-19
A nun who lives in an asylum in the French city of Toulon is preparing to celebrate her 117th birthday on Thursday, after surviving Covid-19.
Sister André, who was born Lucile Randon, is considered the oldest person in Europe and the second oldest in the world. She had no symptoms of coronavirus, but tested positive in mid-January, when she was isolated from her fellow residents.
When asked by the affiliate of CNN BFM TV if she was afraid, she said: “No, I was not afraid because I was not afraid to die … I am happy to be with you, but I would like to be somewhere else – join my older brother, my grandfather and my grandmother. “
About 1 in 10 Americans got their first chance at Covid-19
About 10% of the population in the United States – almost 32.9 million people – has already received at least the first of a two-dose Covid-19 vaccine, and about 9.8 million people have been fully vaccinated, data from the Centers Disease Control and Prevention shows.
The United States and state leaders are optimistic that vaccinations will increase even more in the coming months, but the challenges of shortages of supplies and equitable access remain. Public health experts say the United States, like many severely affected countries, is in a race against time as new variants of the Covid-19 spread rapidly across the country.
Global cases drop 17% and hit a 15-week low
The number of Covid-19 infections last week fell 17% compared to the previous seven days, the WHO reported, marking the fourth consecutive week of cases of falls and a minimum of 15 weeks. Deaths also fell for the second week in a row, falling 10%.
The numbers are welcome news, as many countries launch vaccination programs in the hope that widespread vaccination is the key to ending the pandemic and the painful economic blocks and restrictions that came with it.
WHO said there were about 3.1 million new cases of Covid-19 last week. The United States confirmed most new infections weekly, but its cases still fell 19% from the previous week. The sharpest decline by region was in Africa (22%) and the lowest was in the Eastern Mediterranean region (2%).
ON OUR RADAR
- British musician Elton John and actor Michael Caine released a comic video encouraging the British to get vaccinated.
- The risk perceived by Americans in Covid-19 is less than at any time since October, a survey concluded, suggesting that some groups still feel invincible.
- Native Americans have been disproportionately hit by Covid-19, but when it comes to vaccine administration, tribal health care providers are often overtaking counties and states. Here’s why.
- Johnson & Johnson’s CEO says he believes people will need an annual Covid-19 vaccine for many years.
- Ghana is closing its parliament for three weeks after at least 17 members of parliament and 151 workers have been infected with the virus.
TIPS
Let’s face it: even if more people are vaccinated against Covid-19, everyone except small children in much of the world will still need to wear a face mask in the near future. Of course, everyone is tired of using them. But, as studies have shown, and as Dr. Anthony Fauci has often pointed out, masks are the most effective way to protect you and others from the coronavirus infection that causes Covid-19, the disease. This is true even if you have been vaccinated, as new variants of the virus may emerge.
“It is absolutely essential that we continue to take steps beyond vaccination to keep this under control,” said Dr. Richard Besser, former acting director of the CDC. Read more about masks here.
TODAY’S PODCAST
“When we talk about the vaccine, there are a lot of scams out there … where criminals are trying to make us, as victims, pay money to do certain things related to the vaccine.” – Steven Merrill, head of the financial crimes section of the FBI
Authorities are warning of new scams related to the Covid-19 vaccine. CNN police and national security correspondent Josh Campbell shows us the types of scams that exist and how we can protect ourselves. Listen now.
