Pandemic Watch News Brief: The News You Need To Know ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

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[link removed] February 7, 2024
AVAC's weekly Pandemic Watch is a curated news digest on the latest pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response (PPPR) news and resources.


“America has not lost its unique ability to drive scientific discovery and new technologies, through public-private partnerships and bipartisan support. That model gave us antiretroviral therapies in the mid-1990s to make HIV/AIDS a manageable chronic disease, saving tens of millions of lives." - J Stephen Morrison and Helene D Gayle in BMJ ([link removed])
Table of Contents
• If You Are in a Hurry (#If You Are in a Hurry)
• Manufacturing Vaccines in Africa (#Manufacturing Vaccines in Africa)
• African Cholera Outbreak Continues; Some Relief in Zimbabwe (#African Cholera Outbreak Continues; Some Relief in Zimbabwe)
• Making the Case for Optimism about US Leadership in Global Health (#Making the Case for Optimism about US Leadership in Global Health)
• Single Dose Dengue Vaccine 80% Effective (#Single Dose Dengue Vaccine 80% Effective)
• Dengue and Carnival in Brazil (#Dengue and Carnival in Brazil)
• Politics and Pandemics (#Politics and Pandemics)
• Maternal COVID Vaccination Beneficial for Newborns (#Maternal COVID Vaccination Beneficial for Newborns)
•
• Concern about Animal to Human Crossover of Chronic Wasting Disease (#Concern about Animal to Human Crossover of Chronic Wasting Disease)
• Measles and Misinformation Continue to Surge (#Measles and Misinformation Continue to Surge)
Misinformation about science and health was a thing long before the COVID pandemic, but the pandemic brought mis- and dis-information to new heights. Now the US Supreme Court is set to determine if COVID misinformation is protected speech. STAT ([link removed]) (US) reports, “As social media sites were flooded with misleading posts about vaccine safety, mask effectiveness, COVID-19’s origins and federal shutdowns at the height of the pandemic, Biden officials urged platforms to pull down posts, delete accounts, and amplify correct information. Now the Supreme Court could decide whether the government violated Americans’ First Amendment rights with those actions — and dictate a new era for what role, if any, officials can play in combating misinformation on social media…. The overarching question before the court is whether these actions count as government coercion of a private company, which would be an
overstep of its authority. Justice Department lawyers argue that while officials ‘frequently suggested’ removal or downgrade of posts, they didn’t force companies — nor did companies always oblige.

The case before the US Supreme Court is not the only court case looking at science and speech. In another case in a lower court, “One of the world's most prominent climate scientists is suing a right-wing author and a policy analyst for defamation,” according to NPR ([link removed]) (US). “’The case comes at a time when attacks on scientists are proliferating, says Peter Hotez, professor of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology at Baylor College of Medicine. Even as misinformation about scientists and their work keeps growing, Hotez says scientists haven't yet found a good way to respond. ‘The reason we're sort of fumbling at this is it's unprecedented. And there is no roadmap,’ he says.”

While courts can make rulings, the real fight against misinformation will come from scientists and advocates and others pushing back. NPR reports, “Imran Ahmed, chief executive at the Center for Countering Digital Hate, says any response has to include social media companies, as that's where attacks on scientists happen every day. Research finds that social media platforms can encourage the spread of scientific and medical misinformation.”

If You Are in a Hurry

* Read CIDRAP ([link removed]) on new efficacy data (80%) for a single dose dengue vaccine.
* Read Medpage Today ([link removed]) on more evidence that maternal COVID vaccination protects newborns.
* Then read Latin Post ([link removed]) on a dengue emergency in Rio amid ongoing carnival celebrations.
* Read Roll Call ([link removed]) on unfounded US republican claims that the WHO pandemic treaty threatens US sovereignty.
* Then read KFF Health News ([link removed]) on growing vaccine mistrust among republicans in the US and NBC News ([link removed]) on misinformation around measles outbreaks by social media influencers.
* Read J Stephen Morrison and Helene D Gayle in BMJ ([link removed]) on why reasons for optimism around US global health leadership.


Manufacturing Vaccines in Africa

Business Day ([link removed]) (Nigeria) reports, “The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) have set a target to locally manufacture 60 percent of the continent’s vaccines by 2040…. Africa CDC identified a range of roadblocks for urgent interventions to support local vaccine manufacturers in establishing strong and resilient supply chains to enable the African vaccine manufacturing industry to develop, produce, and supply around 60 percent of the total vaccine doses required by 2040. Africa CDC’s framework for action on local manufacturing aims to develop a robust and reliable continent-wide reach vaccine manufacturing ecosystem aimed at localising the supply of critical input materials and harmonising trade regulations.”

African Cholera Outbreak Continues; Some Relief in Zimbabwe

UN News ([link removed]) reports WHO said this week that cholera cases are surging globally, with an unprecedented spike in Africa. “In just the first four weeks of the year, 10 African countries reported more than 26,000 cases and 700 deaths, which is nearly double the number reported last year over the same period. Zambia and Zimbabwe have been worst hit, but Mozambique, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia and Nigeria are also in the grip of ‘active outbreaks’, with a high risk of further spread.”

The Herald ([link removed]) (Zimbabwe) reports, “The country has achieved 90 percent coverage of the cholera vaccine in hotspot areas as Zimbabwe is poised to remove cholera as a public health threat in the next few months on the back of a decline in new cases. Since the launch of the vaccination campaign on January 29, a total of 697 550 vaccine doses have been administered…. These are part of the 2.3 million doses allocated to the country by the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision.”

However, Newsday ([link removed]) (Zimbabwe) reports, “Health and Child Care minister Douglas Mombeshora has expressed concern over the inadequate cholera vaccine in Zimbabwe…. ‘We have one problem, that there is a cholera outbreak in a lot of countries and the problem is that the vaccines are not adequate to give enough to each and every needy country,’ Mombeshora said.”

Making the Case for Optimism about US Leadership in Global Health

J Stephen Morrison and Helene D Gayle argue in BMJ ([link removed]) (UK) that there is reason for optimism around US leadership in global health. “America has not lost its unique ability to drive scientific discovery and new technologies, through public-private partnerships and bipartisan support. That model gave us antiretroviral therapies in the mid-1990s to make HIV/AIDS a manageable chronic disease, saving tens of millions of lives. It also gave us Operation Warp Speed, under President Trump, which in record time generated the mRNA vaccines and led to the current US effort, backed by $5 billion, to create the next generation of tools to battle future coronavirus threats. On another front, the eradication of wild polio is close, after a 35 year campaign, that rests on a partnership among the private sector, the US, WHO, philanthropies, and national governments. Americans who care about global health should steel themselves for a difficult 2024. But while this
election season is sure to bring turbulent political waters and rancor, advocates, researchers, and health leaders should be resolute and committed to campaign for visible and sustained US leadership in global health. The COVID-19 pandemic produced enormous challenges but it has opened opportunities and reminded us of the full range of global health work that remains to be done.”

Single Dose Dengue Vaccine 80% Effective

CIDRAP ([link removed]) (US) reports, “Results of a phase 3 trial in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) show 80% protection for the single-dose tetravalent (four-strain) Butantan-Dengue Vaccine (Butantan D-V) among participants with no evidence of previous dengue exposure and 89% protection in those with a history of exposure. The vaccine is the culmination of years of research from Brazil's Butantan Institute, and the study included results from 16 Brazilian centers located in all five regions of the country…. ‘In June, we'll complete the five-year follow-up period. Once the data has been consolidated, we'll know how long the protection induced by the vaccine will last," said first study author Esper Kallas, PhD in a press release ([link removed]) . ‘If all goes well, we'll win definitive approval for the vaccine in 2025.’” Read the study
([link removed]) .

Dengue and Carnival in Brazil

Latin Post ([link removed]) (US) reports carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil is complicated by a dengue outbreak. “It got so bad that a state of emergency has been declared. Over 10,000 cases of dengue fever have been registered since the year began, sparking a healthcare crisis in the city that is currently bracing for an influx of visitors as Carnival approaches.” Carnival will proceed as planned with emergency measures, including, “opening at least ten healthcare centers, as well as an emergency operations center. The city has also added more hospital beds allocated for dengue patients, as well as employed ‘smoke cars’ to diffuse insecticide in the regions that have been affected by the dengue outbreak the most in an effort to contain the mosquitoes spreading the virus.”

VOA ([link removed]) (US) reports, “In Brazil, officials plan to start a new dengue vaccine campaign. The program, which could begin within days, will make Brazil the first country in the world to offer dengue vaccine. In January, Brazil also started spraying insecticide from trucks as the disease spread to earlier unaffected areas…. Scientists say the spread of dengue, in South America and other areas, is worsened by rising temperatures and the El Nino weather pattern in the Pacific. Both events also add to a longer dengue season.”

Politics and Pandemics

Roll Call ([link removed]) (US) reports, “The World Health Organization is rushing to finalize a treaty to prevent and combat future pandemics, but some House Republicans say the US should not be a part of the global accord, arguing that the health group is infringing on the rights of American taxpayers. They’re concerned that the treaty will result in US taxpayer dollars going toward abortion. They’re also concerned about threats to US intellectual property rights…. Proponents of the treaty say banding together to prepare for the next pandemic is essential, but a group of conservative lawmakers and advocates that gathered Monday on Capitol Hill said the accord is a ‘global power grab’ that uses public health as a method of spreading progressive values.”

In a related story, KFF Health News ([link removed]) (US) reports rates of childhood vaccinations in the US are the lowest they have been in a decade. “It’s a dangerous shift driven by a critical mass of people who now reject decades of science backing the safety and effectiveness of childhood vaccines. State by state, they’ve persuaded legislators and courts to more easily allow children to enter kindergarten without vaccines, citing religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs. Growing vaccine hesitancy is just a small part of a broader rejection of scientific expertise that could have consequences ranging from disease outbreaks to reduced funding for research that leads to new treatments…. An anti-science movement picked up pace as Republican and Democratic perspectives on science diverged during the pandemic. Whereas 70% of Republicans said that science has a mostly positive impact on
society in 2019, less than half felt that way in a November poll from Pew ([link removed]) . With presidential candidates lending airtime to anti-vaccine messages and members of Congress maligning scientists and pandemic-era public health policies, the partisan rift will likely widen in the run-up to November’s elections.”

Maternal COVID Vaccination Beneficial for Newborns

Medpage Today ([link removed]) (US) reports, “Newborns whose mothers received at least one mRNA COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy had no worse outcomes than those whose mothers didn't get the vaccine during pregnancy, a large cohort study from Sweden and Norway found. In fact, the unadjusted mortality rates for vaccine-exposed neonates in the two nations were about half of those for unexposed neonates.” MedPage Today reports there were “lower mortality rate, and fewer brain lesions in vaccine-exposed neonates.” Read the study in JAMA. ([link removed])

WHO Expert: COVID is Still in a Pandemic

In an interview with Scientific American ([link removed]) (US), Maria Van Kerkhove, nterim director of the WHO’s Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention, who has led the agency’s COVID response for the last four years says, “COVID’s not in the news every day, but it’s still a global health risk. If we look at wastewater estimates, the actual circulation [of SARS-CoV-2] is somewhere between two and 20 times higher than what’s actually being reported by countries. The virus is rampant. We’re still in a pandemic. There’s a lot of complacency at the individual level, and more concerning to me is that at the government level…. Lack of access to lifesaving tools such as diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines is still a problem. Demand for vaccination is very low around the world. The misinformation and disinformation that’s out there is hampering the ability to mount an effe
ctive response. So we feel there’s a lot more work to do, in the context of everything else—[we no longer have a] COVID lens only, of course, but using masks for respiratory pathogens that transmit through the air is a no-brainer—plus vaccination, plus distancing, plus improving ventilation. People are living their life; we’re not trying to stop anyone from doing anything, but we’re trying to work with governments to make sure they do that as safely as possible.”

Measles and Misinformation Continue to Surge

CBC ([link removed]) (Canada) reports, “After an explosion of measles cases in Europe, medical experts say it's just a ‘question of time’ before outbreaks happen in Canada, thanks to high rates of global travel and low rates of vaccinations. There were 42,200 measles cases across more than 40 European countries last year…Globally, the situation is even grimmer, with a spike in infections in 2022 that included nine million known cases and 136,000 reported deaths, mostly among children.”

NBC News ([link removed]) (US) reports, ”As outbreaks of measles spread throughout the world, anti-vaccine activists aren’t just urging people not to get vaccinated — they’re taking a page from a well-worn playbook, falsely downplaying the dangers from the highly contagious respiratory disease….It’s a campaign fueled by selective memory, and one with senseless consequences, said Dr. Paul Offit, the director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and a frequent target of the anti-vaccine movement….Offit mentioned the 1991 measles outbreak in Philadelphia that started in a church community. By the time health officials had it contained, 1,400 people, mostly unvaccinated preschoolers, had been infected. Nine children died…. Elimination [of measles] would rely on vaccines, which are widely available, safe, effective, and under constant threat by a growing anti-vaccine
movement.”

Concern about Animal to Human Crossover of Chronic Wasting Disease

KFF Health News ([link removed]) (US) reports some infectious disease experts are concerned about “a serious threat to public health: chronic wasting disease {CWD]” among North American deer. “Animal disease scientists are alarmed about the rapid spread of CWD in deer. Recent research shows that the barrier to a spillover into humans is less formidable than previously believed and that the prions causing the disease may be evolving to become more able to infect humans. A response to the threat is ramping up. In 2023, a coalition of researchers began ‘working on a major initiative, bringing together 68 different global experts on various aspects of CWD to really look at what are the challenges ahead should we see a spillover into humans and food production,’ said Michael Osterholm, an expert in infectious disease at the University of Minnesota and a leading authority on CWD.”
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