Global vaccine developments

India to continue export of medicines, including vaccines - PM Modi

NEW DELHI, Jan 9, (Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the nation would continue to export medicines including vaccines. India is developing two indigenous COVID-19 vaccines.

Russia's Gamaleya applies for emergency vaccine use in Philippines

MANILA, Jan 9, (Reuters) - Russia's Gamaleya Research Institute has applied to the Philippine health regulator for emergency use authorisation of its COVID-19 vaccine but needs to file further documentation, the regulator said late Friday.

Gamaleya's emergency use application is the third the Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received after Pfizer and AstraZeneca both made similar applications.

China to provide COVID-19 vaccines free of charge - government official

BEIJING, Jan 9, (Reuters) - China will provide COVID-19 vaccines free of charge once they become available to general public, government authorities said on Saturday.

National Health Commission official Zheng Zhongwei said that while manufacturing and transport of vaccines have costs, the government can provide vaccines for free to individuals.

US World War Two veterans roll up sleeves for vaccination in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES, Jan 9, (Reuters) - Harry Corre, a US Army veteran of WWII who survived the Bataan Death March and a Japanese slave labour camp, rolled up his sleeve on Friday for his second coronavirus vaccine shot at a VA hospital in Los Angeles to help promote immunizations.

Corre, 97, was one of three WWII vets, all former prisoners of war, receiving vaccinations. As a volunteer at the hospital, and someone considered at higher risk because of his advanced age, Corre said he wanted to make sure he and his fellow vets were well protected against the potentially fatal respiratory virus. “I got my first shot, and it was fine, no problems. And I'm going to get my second shot today. Come and get your vaccination. It's extremely important,” he added. We all need it and we want to keep everybody else from getting COVID.”

NHS England plans to vaccinate all frontline staff against COVID-19 in next few weeks

LONDON, Jan 9, (Reuters) - NHS England said on Friday it had made plans to vaccinate all frontline staff against COVID-19 in the next few weeks following the rollout of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.

Sinovac, AstraZeneca seek vaccine approval in Brazil

SAO PAULO, Jan 9, (AFP) - The manufacturers of two Covid-19 vaccines developed by Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinovac and Oxford-AstraZeneca filed the first applications Friday for regulatory approval in hard-hit Brazil, officials said.

Federal health regulator Anvisa now has 10 days to respond to the applications, though it said that could include asking the sponsors for more information. One application was submitted by the Butantan Institute, a public health center in Sao Paulo that is working with Sinovac to test and produce its CoronaVac vaccine. The other was from the Fiocruz Foundation, which is based in Rio de Janeiro and is working with the University of Oxford and its partner, the British-Swedish pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca, in a similar partnership.