A mutated variant of the novel coronavirus first detected in South Africa emerged Thursday in the United States, The Wall Street Journal said in a report.
Two adults — neither of which knew each other nor have travelled to South Africa — tested positive for the variant.
The South African variant, which has been detected in more than 30 countries, is the third to be detected in the US following the mutated virus strains from the United Kingdom and Brazil.
Pfizer vaccine not linked to deaths
The Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab has no link to reported post-vaccination deaths and no new side effects, the EU’s medicines regulator said Friday based on the first data from the vaccine’s rollout.
The update by the Amsterdam-based European Medicines Agency followed reports that dozens of mainly elderly people had died in Norway and other European countries after receiving a first shot of the vaccine.
The EMA said it had looked at the deaths and “concluded that the data did not show a link to vaccination with Comirnaty (the vaccine) and the cases do not raise a safety concern.”
In its first safety update since the EU started its vaccination campaign in December, the watchdog said that overall, data “is consistent with the known safety profile of the vaccine, and no new side effects were identified.”
Reports of occasional severe allergic reactions did not go beyond what had already been found about this “known side effect,” it added.
“The benefits of Comirnaty in preventing COVID-19 continue to outweigh any risks, and there are no recommended changes regarding the use of the vaccine,” the EMA said.
Hungary approves Sinopharm jab
Hungary on Friday became the first EU member to approve the Chinese-made Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine, a week after it also broke ranks with Brussels by issuing a provisional permit for Russia’s Sputnik V jab.
“Today the National Institute of Pharmacy and Nutrition (OGYEI) gave its approval for the Sinopharm vaccine,” Chief Medical Officer Cecilia Muller told a briefing.
Earlier on Friday Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that Hungary plans to sign a procurement deal with the Chinese firm “today or tomorrow” for a first delivery, adding he would choose it for his own inoculation.
“The Chinese have known this virus for the longest time, hence probably they know most about it, so I will wait for my turn, and when I choose I will want the Chinese vaccine,” Orban said.
5 COVID patients killed in fire
A fire broke out early Friday in Romania’s main hospital for coronavirus patients, killing five of them in the second such incident in three months.
Emergency responders found three dead patients at the Matei Bals hospital in the capital Bucharest, and could not resuscitate a fourth, Raed Arafat, secretary at the interior ministry told reporters.
The body of a fifth victim was later found in one of the bathrooms, Interior Minister Lucian added in an update.
The fire broke out on the ground floor, affecting four wards and leading to the evacuation and transfer of 102 patients, said Orlando Schiopu, head of the inspectorate for emergency situations.
In November, a fire in an intensive care unit of a hospital in the northeastern town of Piatra Neamt killed 15 people being treated for COVID-19.
