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.


Ultimately it is the politicians of G7 countries who must put aside vested industry interests and finally understand that in a pandemic it is not possible to protect only your own citizens: the health of one depends on the health of all." - The Editorial Team in The Lancet ([link removed](24)00410-0/fulltext#articleInformation)
Table of Contents
• If You Are in a Hurry (#If You Are in a Hurry)
• Addressing WTO’s Failures (#Addressing WTO’s Failures)
• Framework for Safer Pathogen Research (#Framework for Safer Pathogen Research)
• South African Court Rejects Anti-Vaxxers’ Request (#South African Court Rejects Anti-Vaxxers’ Request)
• Dengue Continues to Surge in Latin America (and Elsewhere) (#Dengue Continues to Surge in Latin America (and Elsewhere))
• Concerns Over Lack of Information in Florida Measles Outbreak (#Concerns Over Lack of Information in Florida Measles Outbreak)
• Gay Men Helped Curb Mpox (#Gay Men Helped Curb Mpox)
• Early Stage Promise for Dual Action COVID/Mpox Vaccine (#Early Stage Promise for Dual Action COVID/Mpox Vaccine)
• US CDC “Sunsets” COVID Isolation Guidance (#US CDC “Sunsets” COVID Isolation Guidance)
• COVID Increases Chances of Developing Autoimmune Diseases (#COVID Increases Chances of Developing Autoimmune Diseases)
• COVID Can Impact IQ (#COVID Can Impact IQ)
• Ethical Research in the COVID Era (#Ethical Research in the COVID Era)
• Misleading Headlines and COVID Vaccine Safety (#Misleading Headlines and COVID Vaccine Safety)

As negotiations continue for the WHO’s pandemic treaty and amending the International Health Regulations, there is increasing concern that neither of these international frameworks will be equitable.

KM Gopakumar writes in Geneva Health Files (Switzerland) via Daily Maverick ([link removed]) : “Despite the loud and clear mandate to address equity within the international health emergency regime, the negotiations around a pandemic instrument and amending the International Health Regulations [IHR] are moving towards the opposite direction that legitimises inequity…. One of the glaring gaps in the international health emergency regime is the legal vacuum in providing predictable financial assistance for effective response during outbreaks of diseases. The IHR are the only legally binding instrument setting out the obligations for countries ‘to prevent, protect against, control and provide a public health response to the international spread of disease.’ However, there is no explicit legally binding provision in the IHR to facilitate availability and access to required health products to
contain the international spread of diseases. Thus, the IHR effectively operate as an instrument only to provide information about potential PHEICs without any corresponding obligations on state parties or the WHO to guarantee assistance in the public health response.”

SciDevNet ([link removed]) (UK) reports, “A group of African scientists is urging their governments to demand a review of the role of global North-based international health organisations in shaping the new global pandemic preparedness and response treaty before its finalisation at the World Health Assembly in May. The group – known as the Pan-African Epidemic and Pandemic Working Group – says international health policies should prioritise low-income countries with high disease burdens, criticising the current draft as ‘colonialist’.”

A Lancet ([link removed](24)00410-0/fulltext) (UK) editorial argues, “It is hard to remember sometimes, among the highly diplomatic and technical negotiations, but that is what this treaty is trying to do: to protect all people, in all countries, no matter how rich or poor, from harm.… Ultimately it is the politicians of G7 countries who must put aside vested industry interests and finally understand that in a pandemic it is not possible to protect only your own citizens: the health of one depends on the health of all. Millions of lives that could have been saved during the COVID-19 pandemic were not. Far from making amends, a handful of powerful countries are sabotaging the best chance to translate the lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic into legally binding commitments that will protect us all. The treaty is an opportunity that must not be squandered.”

If You Are in a Hurry

* Read a call to address WTO’s Failures from Matthew Kavanagh in Foreign Policy ([link removed]) .
* Read GroundUp ([link removed]) on a South African court’s rejection of anti-vaxxers’ call to pull COVID vaccines.
* Read The Guardian ([link removed]) on politicization of measles in Florida.
* Read The New York Times ([link removed]) on a study that shows behavioral change helped curb mpox ahead of vaccines.
* Read STAT ([link removed]) on COVID and the risk of autoimmune diseases and CIDRAP ([link removed]) and NEJM ([link removed]) on COVID and cognitive impairment.
* Read MedPage Today ([link removed]) on the danger of misleading headlines about vaccine side effects.


Addressing WTO’s Failures

Matthew Kavanagh writes in Foreign Policy ([link removed]) (US), “After more than three years of debate, the WTO declared on Feb. 13 that it was unable to reach agreement on waiving global patent rules for COVID-19 treatment to ease the way for expanded production. Those confused about why the WTO is even still debating COVID-19 nearly a year after the public health emergency was declared over by the World Health Organization can be forgiven. Not only is this slow speed not what the world needs in a pandemic, it is also not how the World Trade Organization is supposed to work, and begs questions on WTO’s relevance in a multi-crisis world. It also makes clear that responsibility for the global governance of pandemic-related technology and intellectual property cannot remain with the WTO.” He concludes, “Given the WTO’s repeated failure, the new agreement should shift authority to waive patent rules to
the World Health Assembly. And it should include a binding agreement to share publicly funded technologies for global production. States delegated authority to the WTO, which has proved a barrier rather than an asset in pandemics. Taking it back is just good governance.”

Framework for Safer Pathogen Research

Science ([link removed]) (US) reports on a call from an international panel for tighter oversight of some pathogen studies. “Research on dangerous human pathogens is essential to protect people from epidemics and pandemics, but safety rules for such work need to be tighter and more consistent around the world, according to a report released today by a broad international task force launched in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. ‘All countries must look carefully at pathogen security, and we hope our report provides a universal framework,’ says co-chair Ravindra Gupta, a virologist at the University of Cambridge…. The Pathogens Project was launched in the fall of 2022 by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a group best known for its Doomsday Clock ([link removed]) assessing nuclear and other threats. Organizers were concerned about the growing number
([link removed]) of high-containment labs around the world that work with deadly pathogens, and the risk that an accident or a deliberate release of a virus or bacterium could spark a health catastrophe.” Read the report ([link removed]) .

South African Court Rejects Anti-Vaxxers’ Request

GroundUp ([link removed]) (South Africa) reports, “Three non-profit companies have failed in their court bid to stop the government from making available COVID-19 vaccinations. They claimed ‘strange and unusual medical conditions’ were experienced by some people who received the vaccine…. But Pretoria High Court Judge Norman Davis dismissed the application, with costs. He said the applicants did not have the right to prevent others who do not share their beliefs or opinions from being vaccinated. ‘It has not been established that the harm which the applicants aspire to prevent, actually exists, and even if it may exist in rare or exceptional cases, the benefit of vaccination far outweighs that harm,’ he said.”

Dengue Continues to Surge in Latin America (and Elsewhere)

Dengue is surging in Latin America and other countries around the world. A dengue vaccine, manufactured by a Japanese company has the potential to blunt these outbreaks, but is expensive and hard to get.

NPR’s Goats and Soda Blog ([link removed]) (US) reports, “At least six Brazilian states in addition to the Federal District are facing dengue epidemics and 17 cities have declared a state of emergency as the country has already registered 1 million cases of dengue in the first two months of 2024, more than half the 1.6 million cases confirmed last year — which was already almost 18% higher than in 2022. The fatality count in those same two months was 214…. Brazil's not the only place where dengue is running rampant. Nearby Peru is in the throes of an epidemic. Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Vietnam have also seen dengue spike dramatically. Niger, a subtropical country, reported its first case of the disease in 2022. And in the last year, high-heat states like Texas, Florida and California have seen a smattering of unexpected cases of dengue.”

The Guardian ([link removed]) (UK) reports in Argentina, “74,555 cases of dengue have been registered in the country since the beginning of the year, a whopping 2,153% higher than the same period in 2023. Forty-seven people have died of it in 2024, and health officials expect cases to continuing surging over the coming weeks…. In April last year, Argentina’s health authorities approved a dengue vaccine produced by the Japanese Takeda laboratory that protects against all four dengue serotypes, but its price means it is far from accessible for most people in the country. The government currently has no plans to make the vaccine generally available because it believes more trials are needed, according to a spokesperson for the health ministry.”

Nature ([link removed]) (UK) reports, “In response to the crisis, Brazil has become the first country to roll out a public vaccination campaign against dengue. The campaign is an important addition to the fight against dengue, scientists say. But they warn that the effort is too modest to solve the immediate crisis. ‘Very few people are being vaccinated. To have an impact on the rates, we would need to have mass vaccination,’ says Ana Lúcia de Oliveira, an infectious-disease specialist at the Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul in Campo Grande, Brazil. And even widespread vaccination won’t defeat the disease unless basic sanitation problems are addressed, researchers note.”

Concerns Over Lack of Information in Florida Measles Outbreak

STAT ([link removed]) (US) reports, “in Florida, where 10 residents and at least four non-residents have been diagnosed with measles in the past month or so, the Department of Health has released scant information about those cases. The seeming reticence to speak openly about measles leaves in the dark anyone in the public who might be concerned about whether they may have had an exposure. Likewise, people considering vacations to Florida who want to avoid measles exposures have almost no information on which to plan their trips…. Michael Mina, an infectious diseases epidemiologist who has studied measles extensively, said the state’s approach defies common sense.

The Guardian ([link removed]) (UK) reports, “with an entirely preventable outbreak of measles spreading across Florida, medical experts are questioning if quackery really has become official health policy in the nation’s third most-populous state.” Dr Robert Speth is quoted: “His statements are more political than medical and that’s a horrible disservice to the citizens of Florida. He’s somebody whose job is to protect public health, and he’s doing the exact opposite…. “Republicans are at war with medical science, and that’s a horrible tragedy. But I feel like Cassandra, talking about the public health threat. We’re going to start seeing a lot more children die of infectious diseases that could be prevented if they were vaccinated.”

Gay Men Helped Curb Mpox

Queerty ([link removed]) (US) reports, “A new study into mpox has suggested that beyond gay and bi men getting the vaccine, people cutting back on their sexual partners played a major role in curbing the spread of the virus.” While many men answered the call to be vaccinated, “this new study found that viral spread began to decline before the vaccine roll-out had a big impact. Even before 10% of gay guys were vaccinated, mpox showed signs of peaking in the US. They conclude that gay men temporarily reducing their number of sexual partners played a big role. It could be the main reason the mpox epidemic subsided as quickly as it did.”

The New York Times ([link removed]) (US) reports, “The new analysis suggests an alternative. Alerting high-risk communities allowed individuals to alter their behavior, such as reducing the number of partners, and led to a sharp decrease in transmission, Mr. Paredes said. In North America, the outbreak began petering out in August 2022, when less than 8 percent of high-risk individuals had been vaccinated. Public health messaging can ‘be really powerful to control epidemics, even as we’re waiting for things like vaccines to come,’ he said.” Read the study ([link removed]) in Cell.

Early Stage Promise for Dual Action COVID/Mpox Vaccine

BNN ([link removed]) (Hong Kong) reports on early-stage research promise for a vaccine targeting the virsues that cause COVID and mpox. “Scientists at City of Hope have made a groundbreaking discovery with their novel COVID-19 vaccine, COH04S1, which also shows robust protection against mpox…. The research team is now focusing on further development and clinical trials to compare COH04S1 directly with JYNNEOS, aiming to expand its application and availability. Their work symbolizes a promising advancement in the fight against infectious diseases, potentially serving as a cornerstone for future dual-action vaccines.” Read the study ([link removed]) .

US CDC “Sunsets” COVID Isolation Guidance

STAT ([link removed]) (US) reports, “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is ‘sunsetting’ its advice that people sick with Covid-19 isolate themselves for five days. The agency published new guidance Friday for Covid and other respiratory illnesses, suggesting people who are sick should stay at home until they are fever-free for 24 hours and their symptoms have been improving for the same period of time. The new guidance recommends that in the five days that follow, recovering people should take measures such as masking and keeping a physical distance from others to try to reduce the risk that they will spread their illness.”

COVID Increases Chances of Developing Autoimmune Diseases

STAT ([link removed]) (US) reports, “Having COVID-19 increases a person’s risk of developing an autoimmune disease in the year after infection, a large study out of South Korea and Japan reports, but vaccination helps decrease that risk…. The findings provide ‘rigorous evidence’ to further our understanding of COVID’s long-term consequences, said Alison Cohen, a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco who was not involved in the study. It also ‘adds to the evidence base that COVID-19 is worse than the flu,’ she said…”

COVID Can Impact IQ

CIDRAP ([link removed]) (US) reports on a NEJM study, “by Imperial College London researchers showing that COVID-19 patients recovering from short-term symptoms experienced similar small deficits in memory, thinking, or concentrating (‘brain fog’) as those who had longer-term symptoms…. ‘Objective data on cognitive performance are largely lacking, and how long such deficits may persist and which cognitive functions are most vulnerable are unclear,’ the study authors wrote.” Read the study ([link removed]) .

In a NEJM ([link removed]) (US) editorial, Ziyad Al-Aly and Clifford J. Rosen argue, “The results of the study by Hampshire and colleagues are of concern, and the broader implications require evaluation. For example, what are the functional implications of a 3-point loss in IQ? Whether one group of persons is affected more severely than others is not clear. Whether these cognitive deficits persist or resolve along with predictors and trajectory of recovery should be investigated. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic produced in its wake millions of persons affected with long COVID, some of whom have had or are currently having cognitive challenges. A deeper understanding of the biology of cognitive dysfunction after SARS-CoV-2 infection and how best to prevent and treat it are critical for addressing the needs of affected persons and preserving the cognitive health of populations.”

Ethical Research in the COVID Era

A review article in Frontiers in Public Health ([link removed]) (US) looks at the impact of COVID on clinical research and suggests a framework for ethical research. The authors conclude, “The COVID-19 pandemic presented unique challenges and raised ethical questions concerning the conduct of clinical research, yet it remains vital to ensure new therapies are being evaluated both for patients with COVID-19 and without COVID-19. During the course of this ongoing pandemic, ethical issues emerged for clinical trials of all types and in various therapy areas, as well as vaccines and treatments specifically to combat COVID-19. The need for continuous evaluation of whether the principles of respect for persons (informed consent), beneficence, and justice were being adhered to during a time of unprecedented global disruption to healthcare and society was, and still is, critical.”

Misleading Headlines and COVID Vaccine Safety

In an opinion piece in MedPage Today ([link removed]) , Katrine Wallace writes about sensational headlines following the publication of “the largest COVID-19 safety study to date.” She notes, “At first glance, these stories appear to be reporting something new and different about the COVID vaccines. But when we step back, we realize this information is not new at all. The study is simply confirming what we've known for years now: there is a small risk of adverse events from the COVID vaccines but the benefits still far outweigh any risks…. The bottom line is that no medication or vaccine is 100% effective or 100% safe, and everything has risks and benefits. But any risks from medications and vaccines need to be balanced against the risks of the disease you are trying to prevent. For example, the risk of myocarditis/pericarditis from COVID-19 is six to 11 times higher and is associated with a more severe clinical presentation than the risk from
the COVID-19 vaccine. COVID-19 has killed over a million people in the U.S. and has led to permanent disability in many others. The vaccines are very safe overall, and the benefit of the vaccine still definitely outweighs the risks. Fear mongering headlines serve only to harm, not help, public health.”
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