Health
Prime Minister Keir Starmer will warn Thursday that Britain’s state-run National Health Service must “reform or die” after an independent report said the venerated institution was in a “critical condition.” Starmer, whose Labour party was elected by a landslide in July, will promise “the biggest reimagining” of the NHS
Health
A person in the state of Missouri has become the first in the United States to test positive for bird flu without a known exposure to infected animals, authorities said on Friday. The adult patient, who has underlying conditions, was admitted to hospital on August 22, received antiviral medications against
Health
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has issued an emergency tender to secure mpox vaccines for crisis-hit countries in collaboration with the Gavi vaccine alliance, Africa CDC and the World Health Organization, the organizations said in a joint statement on Saturday. Depending on the production capacity of manufacturers, agreements
Health
Authorities in Bangladesh are bracing for the spread of waterborne diseases and racing to get drinking water to people after devastating floods last week that left at least 54 people dead and millions stranded. As floodwaters recede slowly, many people remain stranded and in urgent need of food, clean water,
Health
Mpox is nothing new to Africa yet there is no vaccine available on the continent, exposing rank inequity in global distribution as tens of richer nations inoculate people facing far less risk. Experts say that inequality — alongside competing health problems and slow regulation — is putting millions of Africans in jeopardy,
Health
Vietnam will send 150,000 doses of its African swine fever vaccine to the Philippines on Thursday, state media said, although it has not yet been approved internationally. The illness — which does not affect humans — is highly contagious and fatal for pigs, and an outbreak is potentially devastating for the
Health
Scientists studying the new mpox strain that has spread out of Democratic Republic of Congo say the virus is changing faster than expected and often in areas where experts lack the funding and equipment to properly track it. That means there are multiple unknowns about the virus itself, its severity
Health
Uganda has confirmed two more mpox virus infections, bringing the number of cases in the east African country to four, according to the health ministry. The two new patients were infected with the clade 1b strain of the virus, health ministry director general of health services Henry Mwebesa told Reuters,
Health
Thailand on Thursday confirmed Asia’s first known case of a new, deadlier strain of mpox in a patient who had traveled to the kingdom from Africa. The patient landed in Bangkok on August 14 and was sent to hospital with mpox symptoms. The Department of Disease Control said laboratory
Health
The first mpox case reported by the Philippines this year is a mild variant and not the deadly strain sparking global alarm, Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said Wednesday. The highly transmissible Clade 1b strain of the virus has killed hundreds of people in the Democratic Republic of Congo and has
Health
A World Health Organization official stressed on Tuesday that mpox, regardless of whether it is the new or old strain, is not the new COVID, as authorities know how to control its spread. “We can and must tackle mpox together,” said Hans Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, in a
Health
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has requested Japan for supplies of mpox vaccines and syringes amid the worst outbreaks of the disease in the central African country. Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is preparing to provide the supplies to the DRC, in cooperation with
Health
Danish biotech firm Bavarian Nordic said on Saturday it plans to ramp up production of its mpox vaccine and work with international health organisations to ensure fair access as the disease has been declared a global public health emergency. The company, one of the few drug firms that have an
Health
Nigeria has recorded 39 cases of mpox since the beginning of the year, a health official said as concern mounts over the global spread of the disease. The cases were across the country and have not been fatal, according to Jide Idris, the director-general of the Nigeria Center for Disease
Health
The head of the World Health Organization on Thursday called for increased production of cholera vaccines, highlighting what he called a “critical shortage” around the globe. The UN health agency said 307,433 cases of cholera and 2,326 deaths have been reported in 26 countries up to July 28.
Health
Sweden on Thursday announced the first case outside Africa of the more dangerous variant of mpox, which the WHO has declared a global public health emergency. The country’s public health agency confirmed to AFP that it was the same strain of the virus that has surged in the Democratic