Pandemic Watch News Brief: The news you need to know

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AVAC's weekly Pandemic Watch is a curated news digest on the latest pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response (PPPR) news and resources.
"Neglecting to invest in multisectoral pandemic preparedness left the door open to COVID-19, which now accounts for an estimated 24 million excess deaths and enduring social and economic consequences."
-- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Helen Clark in The Independent Panel ([link removed])


** Table of Contents
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* If You Are in a Hurry (#If You Are in a Hurry)
* More on Pandemic Preparedness (#More on Pandemic Preparedness)
* Call for Investment in Childhood Vaccines (#Call for Investment in Childhood Vaccines)
* Animals and Pandemics (#Animals and Pandemics)
* COVID-19 and Kids (#COVID-19 and Kids)
* COVID-19 in Deer (#COVID-19 in Deer)
* COVID-19’s Lingering Effects on the World’s Poorest (#COVID-19’s Lingering Effects on the World’s Poorest)
* Genetic Risk Factors for Long COVID (#Genetic Risk Factors for Long COVID)
* Long COVID’s Devastating Impact (#Long COVID’s Devastating Impact)
* COVID-19 and Politics (#COVID-19 and Politics)
* Mpox Still a Concern (#Mpox Still a Concern)
* Let’s Talk about Mpox (#Let’s Talk about Mpox)
* Dengue Vaccine Application Withdrawn from US FDA (#Dengue Vaccine Application Withdrawn from US FDA)

As world leaders prepare to come together for the UNGA High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response in September, consultations on the political declaration to be agreed to during the meeting are being held in New York City this week. Ahead of the consultations, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Helen Clark released an open letter ([link removed]) to leaders and decision-makers responsible for the Political Declaration. They argue the current draft “does not express the commitments required of Heads of State and Government to transform the international system of pandemic preparedness and response. Instead, it reads as a health resolution…. Neglecting to invest in multisectoral pandemic preparedness left the door open to COVID-19, which now accounts for an
estimated 24 million excess deaths and enduring social and economic consequences…. We recognize the importance of the ongoing processes in Geneva. Yet, much as we all want the pandemic accord to succeed, this is not guaranteed. The UNGA High-Level Meeting’s Political Declaration offers a one-time and historic opportunity to commit to lasting and transformative change to pandemic preparedness and response. We call on leaders and decision-makers to make this moment count.”



** If You Are in a Hurry
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* Listen to a World Economic Forum podcast ([link removed]) on the need for research and vaccine development to prepare for the next pandemic.
* Read The Economist ([link removed]) on an analysis of the Global Health Security Index and COVID-19 responses.
* Read Etleva Kadilli and Seth Berkley in a World Economic Forum blog ([link removed]) on the need to invest in childhood vaccines.
* Read The Conversation ([link removed]) on a study that showed COVID-19’s disproportionate impact on the young children and those from deprived areas in the UK.
* Read John Vidal, former Guardian environment editor on what’s needed to halt the disturbances in nature that may bring the next pandemic in The Guardian ([link removed]) .
* Read The New York Times ([link removed]) on US congressional hearings on the origins of COVID-19.
* Read National News ([link removed]) on a new report that found the impact of the pandemic may affect the world’s poorest for ten more years. And then read the report ([link removed]) .




** More on Pandemic Preparedness
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In a World Economic Forum podcast ([link removed]) (Switzerland), Kate Kelland of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations argues, “carrying out research and vaccine development for known viral ‘families’ that could impact humans – of which there are 25 – would give humanity a decided advantage over the next Disease X. ‘We're not talking about 25 viral threats. We're talking about 250 to 300 viral threats. It is a big number, but it is finite. So, it's not this kind of unfathomable amount of work. It is a vast amount of work, but it does have an endpoint, and it is doable…. When all of that homework has been done, we will possibly be quite a few steps ahead of any new virus before it emerges. And if we get that done across all of those families, then we're kind of almost ready for anything that these viral families can throw at us.’”

Indian Express ([link removed]) (India) quotes Dr Soumya Swaminathan, former chief scientist at World Health Organisation; during a round table discussion on pandemic preparedness. “Swaminathan cautioned that while the search is on for disease X, it is also crucial to monitor the endemic ones. ‘One cannot predict when the next pandemic happens. While equity is at the heart of negotiations of a pandemic treaty (planned by WHO’s member states on pandemic preparedness and response), we know science has provided solutions, but the solidarity part is missing,’ she said. ‘A pandemic begins and ends in communities and apart from building resilient health systems, providing good health care at the primary level is extremely important. Surveillance systems are not yet where they should be. We need to look at gaps in disease surveillance in humans, in animals and in the
environment and see how they can be integrated and collaborated,’ said Swaminathan.”

The Economist ([link removed]) (UK) reports on a new analysis that “looked at the relationship between the effectiveness of a country’s response to COVID-19 and the country’s performance on the Global Health Security Index, which assesses and benchmarks capacities in 195 countries using 171 indicators…. The authors found that countries that scored higher on the Global Health Security Index experienced fewer excess deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic. While previous studies showed the opposite finding using reported deaths due to COVID-19, this new analysis accounted for age and the potential underreporting of COVID-19 deaths in country-level data, producing a robust analysis…. This analysis highlights the importance of having capacities in place to respond to outbreaks effectively and suggests that countries can use the Global Health Security Index assessment to
help inform preparedness planning, resource allocation, and other activities which are critical to ongoing preparedness. This finding is important given two major pressures today that could impact future pandemic preparedness - the end of the global health emergency and the economic woes being felt in many parts of the world.” Read the study in BMJ ([link removed]) .



** Call for Investment in Childhood Vaccines
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UNICEF’s Etleva Kadilli and GAVI’s Seth Berkley write in a World Economic Forum blog ([link removed]) (Switzerland), “[T]oday, decades after safe and effective vaccines have been introduced and made publicly available, hundreds of thousands of deaths continue to occur from what should now be universally preventable diseases. Why? Because vaccine technology alone does not save lives; for that, they also must be manufactured, procured, safely delivered along the supply chain and administered to individuals…. With the acute phase [COVID-19] pandemic now behind us, the learnings and know-how will help us prepare stronger and better for the future. But this is only possible if we maintain the momentum, reverse the backsliding, and aspire to do more. We know this is possible as some countries, already, have restored immunization to pre-pandemic levels or beyond…. We must also invest in the human capital behind these
systems – including health workers, supply chain experts and logisticians. And we must continue to invest in risk communication and community engagement to maintain trust.”



** Animals and Pandemics
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John Vidal, former Guardian environment editor, writes in The Guardian ([link removed]) (UK) argues, “Pandemics kill far more people and cost economies more than war, but no government or global body at present plans to address the underlying cause of COVID-19 or the question of why outbreaks of major new infectious diseases like HIV/Aids, Ebola, Marburg, avian flu, Sars, Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers), mpox and Nipah have all emerged in the past 50 years. The priority of government and industry is to find better ways to treat symptoms with better vaccines and technology, rather than address the causes of disease…. Eliminating the risk of infectious disease is as impossible now as it was 20 years ago, but if we only try to treat the symptoms of disease with vaccines and technology, we are in danger of not preventing them occurring in the first place. The only way to ensure good long-term human and planetary
health is to minimise the disturbance of nature – and avoid interactions between ourselves and the pathogens of other species.”

This Day ([link removed]) (Nigeria) reports, “As the world marks World Zoonoses Day, the Wild Africa Fund has called for urgent actions to curb illegal wildlife trade, deforestation and climate change to reduce the risk of future disease transmissions from animals. The Fund said Africa faces a growing risk as it grapples with population growth, rapid urbanisation, deforestation and the commercial ‘bush meat’ trade…. The recent outbreaks of anthrax, monkey pox (now known as Mpox) and Marburg virus in some parts of Africa as well as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic serve as a reminder that zoonotic diseases continue to pose a significant threat to our health, economies and global security.”



** COVID-19 and Kids
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Katherine Brown and Christina Pagel write in The Conversation ([link removed]) (Australia) about their study, “in which we looked at all children and adolescents hospitalised with a first recorded COVID infection in England between July 2020 and February 2022…. We found that over 70 percent of these children needed hospital care, in whole or in part, because of COVID-19. Our study also showed increased vulnerability in the youngest children (particularly those under a year old), children from more deprived areas and minority ethnic children. Read the study in BMJ ([link removed]) (UK).

Japan Times ([link removed]) (Japan) reports, “The development of 5-year-old children was delayed by 4.39 months on average due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, a Japanese research group has found…. the group said that the developmental delay may have been caused by reduced interaction with others due chiefly to nursery closures during the COVID-19 crisis.” Read the study in JAMA Pediatrics ([link removed]) .



** COVID-19 in Deer
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The New York Times ([link removed]) (US) reports, “Humans transmitted the coronavirus to white-tailed deer more than 100 times in late 2021 and early 2022, according to new research led by the US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. The research also suggests that the virus probably spread widely among deer, that it mutated in the animals and that they may have passed these altered versions of the virus back to people at least three times…. There is no evidence that deer play a major role in spreading the virus to humans, but the transmission of the virus from people to animals raises several public health concerns.”



** COVID-19’s Lingering Effects on the World’s Poorest
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National News ([link removed]) (UK) reports, “The effects of COVID-19 could affect the world's poorest for more than 10 years due to the global response which hit jobs, health care and education, a report has found. Lockdowns in poorer nations let to an increase in domestic violence and deprived children of education and school meals, while food insecurity increased, the Chronic Poverty Advisory Network (CPAN) said…. Researchers highlighted how lockdowns caused some schools in India and Uganda to close for nearly two years, making it more difficult for under-privileged children to escape from poverty…. ‘While acknowledging that authorities had to act quickly to save lives at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the research shows that subsequent lockdowns significantly impacted people living in poverty,’ the report said…. The report said future pandemic responses needed to be better
balanced to allow people to earn a living, while also attempting to stop infections. Policy responses should include long-term investment in hospital and community-based health services and stronger social protection measures.” Read the report ([link removed]) .



** Genetic Risk Factors for Long COVID
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Nature ([link removed]) (UK) reports, “The first genome-wide hunt to find genetic risk factors for long COVID has yielded a hit: a DNA sequence near a gene called FOXP4, which is active in the lungs and in some immune cells. The study, which was released as a preprint on 1 July, used data collected from 6,450 people with long COVID across 16 countries. Researchers hope that this analysis will be just the beginning: a vast amount of data are required to unpick a disorder as complex as long COVID, which has been associated with more than 200 symptoms, including severe fatigue, nerve pain and difficulties with concentration and memory…. ‘It won’t just be a single answer, there will be a whole variety of people’s vulnerabilities contributing to why they haven’t recovered from COVID,’ says Ponting.” Read the preprint study ([link removed]) .



** Long COVID’s Devastating Impact
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Medscape ([link removed]) (US) reports, “A survey in Spain of the progress of individuals with long COVID reveals the tremendous toll that the condition has taken on their employment, quality of life, and social support network. The survey revealed that 46 percent of patients experience slight to significant difficulty performing their work, and that approximately 10 percent have lost their jobs.”

A study in Nature Scientific Reports ([link removed]) (UK) looked at long COVID in South Korea. “Among the 132 participants, 94 (71.2 percent) experienced symptoms of long COVID. The most frequently reported symptoms were fatigue (34.8 percent), amnesia (30.3 percent), concentration difficulties (24.2 percent), insomnia (20.5 percent), and depression (19.7 percent). Notably, no significant differences were noted in the incidence of long COVID at 24 months in terms of the number of vaccinations received. Although the neuropsychiatric quality of life improved over time, it continued to affect 32.7 percent of participants. Symptoms of long COVID, particularly neuropsychiatric symptoms, tend to persist over time, and COVID-19 vaccination or the number of vaccinations received may not significantly affect the incidence of long COVID.”



** COVID-19 and Politics
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The New York Times ([link removed]) (US) reports, “Two world-renowned virologists appeared on Capitol Hill on Tuesday and delivered a pointed defense of their findings that the coronavirus pandemic was natural in origin, and told skeptical Republicans that Dr. Anthony S. Fauci did not exert influence over a scientific paper they wrote to that effect. The paper is at the heart of Republicans’ unproven assertions that Dr. Fauci and Dr. Francis S. Collins, then the director of the National Institutes of Health, tried to tamp down the idea that a lab leak caused the pandemic…. At times, the hearing took on the air of competing science lessons. Dr. Andersen frequently began his answers with the phrase, “I think it’s important to understand …” Republican members of the panel tried in vain to lecture the virologists, sometimes making outright incorrect claims. ‘I’m making a scientific point here,’ the subcommittee’s chairman, Representa
tive Brad Wenstrup, Republican of Ohio and a podiatrist, said at one point.”



** Mpox Still a Concern
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NPR ([link removed]) (US) reports that as mpox cases have declined in the US and Europe, “Experts say mpox has not gone away, but how much of a threat to human health it poses remains an open question.” The decline in the US and Europe can be attributed to vaccines, treatment and community information. “But that success story in the US does not explain why cases also declined in the Global South, where vaccines have been scarce…. Even though case counts are down in Nigeria and other African countries, Ogoina believes that many cases are simply going unreported. ‘I think this is a false decline. I believe that in Nigeria and many other African countries we have continuous transmission. We're just seeing the tip of the iceberg.’… In Nigeria and much of the Global South, vaccination and education are critically important, but Ogoina thinks that surveillance remains a
big issue. ‘We will need to step up and be more deliberate about surveillance in order to know the true picture of mpox. I've always said that we're walking blindly in Nigeria and most parts of Africa.’"



** Let’s Talk about Mpox
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A series of informational videos on mpox have been posted on HIV.gov ([link removed]) (US). “KFF’s Greater Than MpoxExit Disclaimer and CDC have launched a series of direct and plain language mpox FAQ videos featuring White House National Mpox Response Deputy Coordinator Demetre Daskalakis, MD, MPH. In these short videos, Dr. Daskalakis provides the latest on mpox (formerly known as monkeypox), including the importance of getting vaccinated, common symptoms, testing and treatment options, and more.”



** Dengue Vaccine Application Withdrawn from US FDA
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STAT ([link removed]) (US) reports, “T akeda announced Tuesday that it has voluntarily withdrawn its application to the Food and Drug Administration for its dengue vaccine, making it unclear when or if the vaccine will be licensed in this country. The company said in a press release that it will review whether to proceed with trying to bring the vaccine to the US market. The vaccine has already been approved in the European Union, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Argentina, Indonesia, and Thailand…. The Takeda press release stated that the company’s decision was based on the fact that the FDA asked for additional data that were not captured by the clinical trial for the vaccine. It further said that the agency had
previously reviewed and accepted the trial protocol.”
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