Coronavirus News (176)

Masks offer much more protection against coronavirus than many think

The Specter of Caste in Silicon Valley Indian immigrants from Dalit backgrounds are rising up against caste discrimination at their workplaces in the United States.

"Lord Ram Was Nepali, Not Indian": Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli Speaking at a cultural programme at his residence, Mr Oli also accused India of cultural oppression and encroachment

U.S. CDC head says mask-wearing could get COVID-19 under control within 4-8 weeks

Merck CEO Frazier says COVID-19 vaccine hype a 'grave disservice' to the public  Politicians, government officials and pharma executives alike have been predicting a COVID-19 vaccine debut by year's end, but Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier doubts that's possible—and Merck has enough vaccine experience to know the obstacles ahead. .........  those who are promising vaccines later this year could be hurting the overall fight against the pandemic, Frazier figures. ..........  There are massive scientific and logistical obstacles to achieving such a feat ............ “Ultimately, if you are going to use a vaccine in billions of people, you’d better know what that vaccine does.” ......... Merck won approval for its mumps vaccine after four years of research and development, a record, and it took five and a half years to score an approval for Merck’s Ebola vaccine. ..........  In the last 25 years, pharma companies worldwide have developed seven “truly new” vaccines, Frazier said, and Merck was responsible for four of them. Scientists have been working on an HIV vaccine for decades to no avail ...............   By talking up near-term vaccines, Frazier argues officials are enabling the public to ignore common-sense measures to slow the spread of COVID-19, such as wearing a mask. ............  aside from the scientific obstacles, manufacturing and distribution remain an even bigger challenge ..........  “no matter where you are in the world, you should have access to this vaccine.” He cited an era of "ultra nationalism" as one obstacle to a launch, saying countries are more interested in securing supplies for their own populations than in prioritizing vaccines for people around the world who need them most. .............. Moderna, Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson are among the current COVID-19 vaccine front-runners.