Roll-out of J&J vaccine should be fast-tracked, says Prof Gray
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Johannesburg - South Africa Medical Research Council chief executive Professor Glenda Gray says the roll-out of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should be fast-tracked as research evidence had proved the vaccine’s effectiveness in protecting against the severe effects of the coronavirus.
The government has halted the use of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine which was initially expected to be rolled out to thousands of health-care workers this week. The country received its ordered 1 million doses of the vaccine last week from the Serum Institute of India.
Since then research released by Wits University has shown disappointing results about the vaccine s ability to provide protection against the coronavirus variant first identified in the country in November.
Social media pressure blamed for court ruling on the use of Ivermectin to treat Covid-19
By Manyane Manyane
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Johannesburg - The Pharmaceutical Society of SA (PSSA) believes the Gauteng High Court ruling to allow doctors to use ivermectin to treat Covid-19 patients was influenced by social media.
The organisation’s manager Ivan Kotze said the court verdict showed the power of social media because people used the platform to call on SA Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) to approve the drug.
On Tuesday, the high court issued an order by agreement with the SAHPRA, to allow doctors to start ivermectin treatment.
PHOTO: Gallo Images/Ziyaad Douglas
Dr George Coetzee took the SA Health Products Regulatory Authority
(SAHPRA) to court in a bid to approve and allow the use of ivermectin in the
treatment on Covid-19.
Coetzee says patients who are gravely ill with Covid-19 have nothing
left to lose and should be able to decide themselves if they want to try
ivermectin.
National health department spokesperson Popo Maja maintained that while
some studies suggested ivermectin may be of benefit in managing Covid-19, the
evidence available is preliminary and of low quality .
The doctor who went to court over the use of ivermectin to treat
President Cyril Ramaphosa and Deputy President David Mabuza, who chairs the inter-ministerial committee on vaccines, receive South Africa’s first consignment of the Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine from the Serum Institute of India at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Monday. Picture: Elmond Jiyane/GCIS
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde warned that the arrival of vaccines against Covid-19 does not mean the threat is over.
Cases of Covid-19 have dropped markedly in the province, while focus turns to preparations for the arrival of the Covishield vaccine.
The provincial cabinet has also approved a framework for contingency vaccine acquisition if it is needed.
“Outstanding local researchers and global researchers are working very hard to look at what is the impact of the variant in terms of the effectiveness of that vaccine.
“At its worst, it can really make some of these vaccines ineffective… at its worst. We are hoping that will not be the case,” she said.
Rees said vaccine manufacturers were looking at variants found recently in the UK, US and Brazil.
“They are looking at how quickly they can change their vaccine if this variant is shown to not be as responsive to the original vaccines that were developed. That data comes in all the time. Regulators have to think about this data all the time,” Rees said.