Indian Variant: Next Steps Considered Amid India Variant Concern
Source: BBC News
4 hrs ago. Local and regional restrictions to tackle the Indian Covid variant cannot be ruled out, the government has said, as it expressed concern over the speed of the variant's spread in England. It said "economic and social" restrictions could be reimposed in parts of England if necessary.
Measures could also include bringing forward second vaccines for some people in the worst affected areas. Public Health England has recorded 1,313 UK cases of the Indian variant. The figures released on Thursday are more than double the 520 cases recorded by PHE up to 5 May.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said there was "no firm evidence yet to show this variant has any greater impact on severity of disease or evades the vaccine". But it also said ministers "cannot rule out reimposing economic and social restrictions at a local or regional level if evidence suggests they are necessary to contain or suppress a variant which escapes the vaccine".
Covid in Bolton: What's causing the spike? Postcode check: How are the rules changing for you? Why is the India variant causing concern in the UK?
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the government was supporting areas where cases were rising and urged people to "continue to be vigilant"...
Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-57109660
- The NHS is sending a mobile vaccine bus into parts of Bolton with high infections.
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- Also: 'COVID: India is 'at a critical juncture,' says WHO chief scientist,' DW, Asia 5/13
Soumya Swaminathan, chief scientist at the World Health Organization, tells DW that India is at a very fragile and difficult stage in the pandemic. The WHO is concerned as the number of cases is rising significantly.
India recorded 362,727 new COVID-19 infections and 4,120 deaths in the past 24 hours, marking the second straight day in which the country's virus-related deaths exceeded the 4,000 mark. The surge in cases has overwhelmed the nation's underinvested and dilapidated public health infrastructure, with many states suffering from acute shortages of medical oxygen, essential drugs, beds, health workers and vaccines, among other vital supplies...
More, https://www.dw.com/en/india-coronavirus-crisis/a-57518948
-'The pandemic has shown that when health is at risk, everything is at risk,' said Swaminathan.
