U.S. OKAYS J&J’S SINGLE-SHOT VACCINE

J&J vaccine can prevent severe Covid-19, including against variants

THE Covid-19-battered United States authorised Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine for emergency use on Saturday, offering a glimmer of hope as Britain said farewell to fundraising war veteran Captain Tom Moore who died of the virus earlier this month.

United States President Joe Biden hailed his country’s announcement of its third available vaccine but said the nation’s battle was far from over.

“This is exciting news for all Americans, and an encouraging development in our efforts to bring an end to the crisis,” Biden said in a statement, but warned Americans “cannot let our guard down now or assume that victory is inevitable”.

The single-shot J&J vaccine is highly effective at preventing severe Covid-19, including against newer variants, the US Food and Drug Administration said before giving it a green light.

Meanwhile, Europeans continued to live under some of the world’s strictest restrictions, and in France they just got tougher.

Two cities, northern Dunkirk and southern Nice, locked down over the weekends to halt the spread.

“We have to do something as Covid-19 is getting worse in the region,” Charlie Kentish, a British resident taking a walk in Nice, said.

In Britain, war veteran Tom Moore, 100, helped lift the Covidinduced gloom last year by staging fundraising events, including completing 100 lengths of his back garden using a walking frame.

After his campaign went viral, he raised nearly £33 million for healthcare charities, and was knighted for his efforts.

His funeral, a small family ceremony, was shown live on national television and he was honoured with a flypast of a World War 2 plane.

The rollout of vaccines had improved the prospects greatly for many older people, with Britain excelling in its distribution to vulnerable groups.

With the pandemic now having killed more than 2.5 million people worldwide, restrictions were being reimposed and tightened in countries ranging from Brazil to the Czech Republic.

But globally there was growing concern about cases of long Covid, where people suffer symptoms for months after the initial illness.

Areli Torres, 31, an engineer from Mexico, said she fell ill for a few days last June, but months later she was still suffering symptoms including numbness in parts of her body.

“Everything’s uncertain. Everything’s been an ordeal. I’ve seen four doctors,” she said, adding that it had taken seven months to get the correct diagnosis.

The World Health Organisation last week urged governments to prioritise understanding the longterm effects of infections.