Covid-19 News and Discussions

[Yommie]

Think you have a summer cold? There's a good chance it's COVID: experts

The circulation of respiratory viruses is normally highest in the fall and winter but COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have been increasing over the spring and as we approach the summer.

calgary.ctvnews.ca

Think you have a summer cold? There's a good chance it's COVID: experts​

A vaccine is shown in the hands of a health care professional. (Getty Images)

Teri Fikowski
CTV News Calgary Video Journalist
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Published June 19, 2024 6:13 p.m. EDT
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The circulation of respiratory viruses is normally highest in the fall and winter but COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have been increasing over the spring and as we approach the summer.
According to the government's respiratory virus dashboard(opens in a new tab), cases of COVID-19 have been on the rise since around April, prompting caution from health and science experts.

"We have to remember COVID is not gone. So, this is a little different than things like influenza where we see it nearly disappear in the summer. The last two summers, COVID has really hung around and as a result, we continue to see waves and upticks of virus throughout the year," said Craig Jenne with the University of Calgary's department of microbiology, immunology, and infectious diseases.
"There's a good chance, as we see the numbers rise in the community, that summer cold might be a COVID infection."

RELATED STORIES​

• New COVID-19 subvariants become the dominant strains in Canada
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While case numbers are expected to continue to trend upward, particularly around summer gatherings like the Calgary Stampede, Jenne doesn't expect anything alarming.
"I don't think we're going to see a risk of filling hospitals or straining the systems but virus in the community does mean those of us that have family members may be at risk, there's that increased chance that they contract it," Jenne said.
"One of the things this virus does like is large gatherings and in a couple weeks, we're going to see one of the largest gatherings in Calgary."
There are several reasons for the recent rise, including the emergence of new variants in Alberta, with KP.2 and KP.3 making up more than half of the cases across the province(opens in a new tab).
"This is a virus that keeps changing and it will for the next several years," Jenne said.
"But we're also seeing cycles in peoples' immunizations. So people who for example were getting shots for early fall to prepare for the winter, we're now six or seven months out and unfortunately, immunity wains with regard to coronavirus – both vaccine-induced immunity but also immunity you will receive if you're infected and have recovered."
According to the provincial dashboard, just shy of 17 per cent of Albertans have received a COVID-19 vaccine since last summer.
Abdul Kanji, pharmacist at Corner Drugstore in East Village, says people aren't coming through the doors looking for a vaccine in the summer but he encourages people to check in with their pharmacist to make sure they're up to date.
"We had a full family down (who) ended up in the hospital. Luckily, nothing serious. They got some medication and stayed home and quarantined. COVID is still around but right now, people are not too keen to get the shots," he said.
"We'll look up your records and see how many shots you've had."
Kanji says it's important people still test when they have symptoms because those infected also have immunity for six months and that can impact when to get a booster shot.

"A lot of allergies right now as well, so it's kind of confusing if it's an allergy, if it's a common cold, a viral infection or COVID-19 but talk to your pharmacist, right? We'll run through the checklist," he said.
Rapid at-home test kits are still available in Alberta(opens in a new tab) but are no longer free at all pharmacies.
According to provincial data, there were 422 new COVID cases in Alberta last week, 178 people were in hospital from the virus and eight were in the ICU.
Two more Albertans died from COVID last week, for a total of 605 since August 2023.

 

[Yommie]

There may be an increase in COVID cases this summer. Experts say this is why many shouldn't be concerned

Early indicators show COVID-19 cases may be increasing across the U.S. this summer. Experts say this is why you shouldn't be concerned.

abcnews.go.com

There may be an increase in COVID cases this summer. Experts say this is why many shouldn't be concerned​

Wastewater data indicates the western U.S. is seeing a rise in COVID cases.
ByMary Kekatos
June 19, 2024, 5:04 AM

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Early indicators show US could see a COVID-19 uptick this summer
Early indicators show US could see a COVID-19 uptick this summer
Wastewater data from the western U.S. showed an increase in viral activity in the past month.


As the United States heads into the summer season, early indicators show the country is likely to experience an increase in COVID-19 infections.
For the week ending June 8, the latest date for which data is available, COVID test positivity was 5.4% across the U.S., an increase of 0.8% from the previous week, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In the Western region -- which is comprised of Arizona, California, Hawaii and Nevada -- COVID test positivity was 12.8%, higher than any other region of the U.S. The New England region -- made up of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont -- had the next highest test positivity rate at 5.4%, matching the national rate.

MORE: Moderna's combo COVID and flu shot offers strong immunity in older adults during late stage trial​

Wastewater data from the CDC shows that although viral activity levels are still low nationally, levels have more than doubled in the western U.S. over the last month.
Additionally, COVID emergency department visits for the week ending June 8 rose 12.6% from the week prior, according to CDC data.

COVID viral activity levels in wastewater
ABC News, CDC
Traditionally, the U.S. has seen increases in COVID every summer, typically after the Fourth of July, but public health experts said Americans will likely see a "drift upwards" rather than a surge. They added that the average person will be able to safely navigate a rise in cases but that high-risk individuals who could develop serious illness need to be remain on alert and be careful.
"To put it proportionally to like where we were in many winters, we are at a very, very low rate of COVID, compared to some of our peaks," Dr. Cameron Wolfe, a professor of medicine in the infectious diseases division at Duke University, told ABC News. "Like compared to early 2022, for example, when omicron first emerged, this is night and day different. But … there's just this little drift upwards, perhaps in the last few weeks."
Increases have been seen in several states, most notably on the West Coast. In Los Angeles, the county's Department of Public Health reported an average of 121 cases on June 13, up from a daily average of 106 instances one week prior.
However, experts said a combination of us learning how to better manage the virus and having high levels of immunity means COVID will not be a major threat to the average person.
"Our bodies have learned how to manage the virus over the last four years, meaning that many people have had successive waves of infection, many people have had initial vaccinations," Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, a professor of medicine and infectious disease specialist at the University of California, San Francisco, told ABC News. "So that combined immunity gives a big force field that can help protect us during the summer. … Although most people will be fine, there are still some people that are going to get very sick."

MORE: 4 years later, experts are just beginning to 'scratch the surface' of understanding long COVID​

As of Tuesday, hospitalizations and deaths in the U.S. remain stable. For the week ending May 18, the last week of complete data, there were 311 deaths due to COVID, which is the lowest death figure recorded in the U.S. since the beginning of the pandemic.
Chin-Hong said most hospitalizations and deaths are occurring among high-risk groups, including elderly individuals aged 75 and older and people who are immunocompromised, such as those who have undergone organ transplants or are on medications that suppress the immune system.
He recommends the average person track COVID wastewater data from the CDC to see if it's trending upwards in their area and to keep masks and COVID rapid tests handy in case they need them, but he added that an increase in COVID should not be cause for fear.
"I think there's a fine balance between ignoring everything and being scared by everything," Chin-Hong said. "It's like when you're crossing the street. You never just run across a busy road; you always look both ways, but it doesn't mean you don't go to the next destination. So, I think in the new… phase of COVID, that's the way we should think about it."

A covid test is seen in Williamsburg, Va., March 18, 2024.
Newsbase/AP, FILE
Similarly, Wolfe said people should assess their individual risk and take more precautions if they will be around high-risk individuals such as senior citizens or sick patients. He also recommended getting the newest updated COVID vaccine that will likely be rolled out in late September.
"Very much in the same way that flu vaccines are tailored each year to adapt to the strains that we see, the same is occurring with COVID," Wolfe said. "And I think for someone who might be themselves or someone in their family or close contact known to be high risk I'm going to be still actively encouraging those people to get vaccinated."

 

[Yommie]

We finally know why some people seem immune to catching covid-19

Unique cell responses mean some people may be immune to catching the coronavirus, even if they are unvaccinated

www.newscientist.com

We finally know why some people seem immune to catching covid-19​

Unique cell responses mean some people may be immune to catching the coronavirus, even if they are unvaccinated
By Sonali Roy
19 June 2024

Volunteers have been exposed to the coronavirus that causes covid-19 as part of a scientific study
koto_feja/GETTY


Deliberately exposing people to the coronavirus behind covid-19 in a so-called challenge study has helped us understand why some people seem to be immune to catching the infection.

As part of the first such covid-19 study, carried out in 2021, a group of international researchers looked at 16 people with no known health conditions who had neither tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus nor been vaccinated against it.

The original variant of SARS-CoV-2 was sprayed up their noses. Nasal and blood samples were taken before this exposure and then six to seven times over the 28 days after. They also had SARS-CoV-2 tests twice a day.

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The participants fell into three groups, says team member Sarah Teichmann at Cambridge Stem Cell Institute in the UK. In one group, six people tested positive in both of their daily tests for more than two days, while also having symptoms. In another, three participants tested positive in one of their twice-a-day-tests, but not the other, for no more than two days, without symptoms. In the final group, seven people consistently tested negative for the coronavirus.

In total, the researchers looked at more than 600,000 blood and nasal cells across all the individuals.

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They found that in the second and third groups, the participants produced interferon – a substance that helps the immune system fight infections – in their blood before it was produced in their nasopharynx, the upper part of the nose behind the throat where the nasal samples were taken from. The interferon response, when it did occur in the nasopharynx, was actually higher in the noses of those in the second group than the third, says Teichmann.

These groups also didn’t have active infections within their T-cells and macrophages, which are both types of immune cell, says team member Marko Nikolic at University College London.

The results suggest that high levels of activity of an immune system gene called HLA-DQA2 before SARS-CoV-2 exposure helped prevent a sustained infection.

Nikolic hopes the findings will improve understanding around the cell responses associated with covid-19 protection, which could assist vaccine and treatment development.



Read more
We're closing in on the causes of long covid and possible treatments


“This study serves as a unique resource of previously uninfected SARS-CoV-2 participants due to its carefully controlled design and real understanding of ‘time zero’ for when the infection took place in order to measure the immune responses that follow,” says José Ordovas-Montanes at Harvard Stem Cell Institute in Massachusetts.

However, most people have now been exposed to “a veritable mosaic of SARS-CoV-2 variants”, rather than just the ancestral variant used in this study. The results may therefore not reflect cell responses outside of a trial setting, he says.

 

[Yommie]

'Doesn't Sound To Me Like Open-Mindedness': Rand Paul Rips Opposition To COVID-19 Lab Leak Theory​

 

[Yommie]

'Is This In Fact A Bioweapon?': Roger Marshall Grills Doctor About COVID-19 Origins​

 

[Yommie]

Fauci finally admits controversial COVID decision was 'not a good idea'​

 

[Yommie]

Scientist Explains Why Lab Leak Is MOST LIKELY Explanation for Covid: Watch​

 

[Yommie]

'Our immunity is suppressed': Doctor on post-COVID sickness | Cuomo​

 

[Yommie]

Taiwan Faces New Round of COVID-19 as Cases Double | TaiwanPlus News​

 

[Yommie]

Definitions of SAEs were altered during COVID-19 shot roll-out in Canada

They also knew about reported excessive harms to women.

jessicar.substack.com

Definitions of SAEs were altered during COVID-19 shot roll-out in Canada​

They also knew about reported excessive harms to women.​

JESSICA ROSE
JUN 19, 2024
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I am posting this as a separate Substack article because it speaks to my article from yesterday about spike protein binding estrogen receptors. It is exceedingly important to understand what is being said here: the classification of an SAE was pigeon-holed to exclude everything but hospitalization, disability/incapacity or death. I imagine they did this to try to mimic the VAERS definition of an SAE, but left out birth defect, life-threatening illness and emergency room visits.
Having said this, um, what about all the other things that are excluded as SAEs that perhaps involved hospitalization, but that didn’t get the hospital box checked? What about all the other AEFIs/AEs that are certainly serious but that don’t click any boxes?
The part of this report from Odessa Orlewicz that I want to focus on, however, are the comments she reports on that refer to the disparity between AEFIs reported for males and women.
Here is a reiteration of my hypothesis from yesterday’s article entitled: “Spike binds estrogen receptor and could alter collagenase gene expression”.

Since targeted delivery of the modified-spike-mRNA-LNP complex results in massive amounts of (intracellular) spike protein production, and spike protein binds to estrogen receptors, is it possible that this binding event prevents dimerization of ERs to subsequently down-regulate specific gene activity? And if so, is one of these genes collagenase? And if so, is this why we are seeing strange de novo connective tissue disorders and fibrosis in individuals post COVID-19 injection?

I will add another question to my list.

And if so, does this explain why females were/are sustaining more injuries (and reporting more) than males in the context of the COVID-19 shots?

Apparently, according to FOI-requested information from individuals and organizations in Canada now implicated in contracting SAE definitions to give the AEFI data the appearance of being innocuous (aka: you’ll only feel a slight pinch), there were 8.2 times more women sustaining injury from the COVID-19 shots than men. This is also mirrored in VAERS.
This is screenshot from an email sent to Odessa Orlewicz from Lex Acker.


Source:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1802421506561179839

.
You can find more information on this here.


Could it be that this skewed reported damage/injury is enhanced due to estrogen receptor binding by spike?
Since males and females both have estrogen receptors, but differing distributions and expressions (lower in males), perhaps this explains (at least partly) why females are suffering more? Estrogen receptor alpha is the predominant ER in males, particularly in the brain, while Estrogen receptor beta is more abundant in females, particularly in the uterus.
I will update as this story develops.
Currently, as of the VAERS update for June, the female:male ratio of reports is 64:34. The other 2% percent of reports applies to individuals whose sex is not reported. I do realize that there might be female-skewed reporting bias, and there certainly is a bit of that, but this doesn’t explain why so many females were/are experiencing menstrual defects and pregnancy/birthing/term issues.
To be continued…

 

[Yommie]

COVID-19 epidemiological update – 17 June 2024

Edition 168

www.who.int

COVID-19 epidemiological update – 17 June 2024​

Edition 168

17 June 2024
| Emergency Situational Updates

Overview​

SARS-CoV-2 PCR percent positivity, as detected in integrated sentinel surveillance as part of the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS) and reported to FluNet was 6.3% from 80 countries during the week ending 26 May 2024 compared 7.1% from 87 countries from the previous week.

KP.2 and KP.3, both descendent lineages of JN.1 and variants under monitoring (VUMs) continue to show increasing prevalence globally. They accounted for 22.7% and 22.4% of sequences in week 21 compared to 14.6% and 13.0% in week 18, respectively. Globally, JN.1 is the most reported variant of interest (VOI) (now reported by 132 countries), accounting for 47.1% of sequences in week 21 and having declined from a prevalence of 56.0% in week 18.

Globally, the number of new cases decreased by 11% during the past 28-day period of 29 April to 26 May 2024 compared to the previous 28-day period (1 to 28 April 2024), with over one hundred and twenty-nine thousand new cases reported. The number of new deaths decreased by 36% as compared to the previous 28-day period, with over 1800 new fatalities reported. As of 26 May 2024, over 775 million confirmed cases and more than seven million deaths have been reported globally.

During the period from 29 April to 26 May 2024, COVID-19 new hospitalizations and admissions to an intensive care unit (ICU) both recorded an overall decrease of 57% and 38% with over 14 000 and more than 400 admissions, respectively, from countries consistently reporting.

WHO published the latest COVID-19 Vaccination Insights Report for quarter one (Jan-Mar) 2024. Globally, 9.8 million individuals received a dose of COVID-19 vaccine across 73 reporting Member States (MS). containing 22% of the global population. Among older adults, 4.9 million individuals received a dose across the 60 MS reporting on uptake in this group, corresponding to an uptake rate of 0.42% so far this year.

In this edition, we include:

• The COVID-19 epidemiological update at the global and regional levels.
• An update on hospitalizations and ICU admissions.
• An update on the SARS-CoV-2 variants of interest (VOI) and variants under monitoring (VUM).

 

[Yommie]

https://www.sfchronicle.com/health/article/summer-covid-19-swell-drive-rising-reinfections-19520320.php

California’s COVID swell shows ‘clockwork’ pattern in rising reinfections​

By Aidin Vaziri, Staff Writer June 18, 2024

A crowd gathers at the BottleRock Napa Valley festival in May. The summer coronavirus swell is here, and many people are seeing reinfections, which have become increasingly common with the new FLiRT omicron variants.
Rachel Bujalski/Special to the Chronicle
As the COVID-19 summer swell intensifies, many people who have previously recovered from the virus are falling ill again due to new variants known as FLiRT.
UCSF infectious disease specialist Dr. Peter Chin-Hong noted that this trend is becoming more common with omicron offshoots, as the coronavirus falls into a predictable pattern of surging approximately every six months and evolving to evade protections developed against previous versions.
“Infections in the summer are now like clockwork, and so are reinfections,” he said, emphasizing that immunity gained via prior infection or vaccination wanes over time.


Immunity levels vary individually based on past exposure, vaccination history and underlying health conditions. Middle-aged adults are more prone to mild reinfections, while those aged 65 and older, the immunocompromised, and those with preexisting conditions face higher risks of severe disease.
“The risk of long COVID increases cumulatively with reinfections because there are more chances for the immune response to go awry,” Chin-Hong said.

Last week, COVID-19 emergency room visits in California rose by 8.5% from the prior week. Meanwhile, the state’s coronavirus test positivity rate rose to 6.4% — three times the level at the start of May. Although few people now obtain laboratory COVID tests, the trend line of results among those who do remains a powerful indicator of community spread.
COVID-19 accounted for 1.3% of weekly California deaths in the most recent tally, based on the latest California Department of Public Health data, doubling from just 0.4% in mid-May. Wastewater data from around the Bay Area show medium or high levels of SARS-CoV-2 at nearly all monitored sites, including in San Francisco, Marin, Solano, Contra Costa, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.


The FLiRT variants, named after the location of their spike protein mutations — KP.3, KP.2, and KP.1.1 — now account for more than 50% of infections in the United States, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
This shift prompted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to advise vaccine manufacturers to reformulate their fall vaccines to focus on the KP.2 lineage, switching from a recommendation just a week earlier to target the previously dominant JN.1 variant.
California is among 34 states and territories seeing a rise in overall COVID-19 indicators, with the CDC’s COVID Data Tracker showing national test positivity at 5.4% and a 12.6% increase in COVID-19-related emergency department visits compared with the previous week. Nationally, hospitalization and death rates remain stable.
Here is what to know about COVID-19 reinfections.

What is COVID-19 reinfection and how does it happen?​

Reinfection with COVID-19 occurs when you get infected, recover and then get infected again. While many reinfections are mild, severe illness can still occur and it’s possible to spread the virus to others with each infection.

Why and how do people get reinfections?​

The coronavirus evolves, creating new variants that can evade previous immunity. Getting reinfected with the same strain is less likely than infection from different variants. Additionally, the protection obtained from vaccines and past infections decreases over time, making reinfections more likely.

What are the health risks associated with COVID-19 reinfections?​

Every infection, including reinfections, carries the risk of serious outcomes such as hospitalization, blood clots or long COVID. There is some evidence that multiple infections can increase the chances of experiencing short- and long-term health issues, including heart, lung and brain problems. And even a mild case of COVID does not guarantee that a recurrence will be similarly mild.

What steps can be taken to prevent reinfections and minimize risks?​

Stay current with vaccinations, use high-quality masks in crowded or high-risk areas and follow basic preventive measures.

 

[Yommie]

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· eSsopdnrot30g39m1371ghmh86g5c9g02c204a852hu48umu8at6um9755ia ·

Weekly Ontario Update for Friday, June 14, 2024:​

Public Health Ontario has further reduced the amount of data available to the public. In addition, Health Canada has stopped reporting hospitalization data as some provinces are no longer tracking COVID hospitalizations. Unless indicated otherwise, information in this update includes data from Sunday, June 2 to Saturday, June 8, so data is delayed.

Data relating to deaths is even further delayed as cause of death is taking MONTHS to be determined. So recent deaths are far WORSE that are being reported.

• Recent cases: not reported (unknown compared to last week)
  
  
  
  Estimates suggest that the actual number of new cases could be more than 10 times higher than what is being reported due to limited eligibility for testing!
• Weekly positivity rate: 8.3% (- 0.1% since last week)
• Recent deaths: 3 (- 9 compared to last week)
  Recent deaths are a lagging indicator of the current level of new cases. Deaths are underreported because they are based on date of death and by the time the cause of death is reported, it is no longer considered recent!
• Average daily hospital bed occupancy: 329* (- 17 since last week week)
  *Please interpret the COVID-19 hospitalization data with caution as not all centers are reporting..

 

[Yommie]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-real-covid-failure-fauci-ef8487a3

The Real Covid Failure​

Its superfast spread told us early the virus was unstoppable and likely lab-modified.​

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Holman W. Jenkins, Jr.
June 18, 2024 12:48 pm ET

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Wonder Land: Covid-19 disrupted people’s private lives. Biden addressed concerns with a $6 trillion spending spree that's had little effect on them. Images: SMG/Zuma Press/AFP/Getty Images Composite: Mark Kelly
You didn’t think any question related to Covid would be settled in the recent congressional grilling of Anthony Fauci and you were right. That’s why the episode came and went from your news feed with barely a ripple.
Here’s the story that needs to be fleshed out. Covid was a superfast spreader compared with the ordinary flu or even the novel pandemic flu that afflicts mankind once or twice a century.
Its superfast spread had a particular outcome in Wuhan, Northern Italy and New York City, where the virus spread unrecognized for weeks and severe cases, though a small percentage of the total, reached a critical mass that overwhelmed hospitals.
Where communities anticipated the virus and people made small adjustments, these catastrophes weren’t repeated. A vast fog of recrimination since has obscured this part of the story.
Our efforts did nothing to stop Covid and yet all but extinguished the flu during the two years in question. One variety, the so-called Yamagata B strain, appears to have been rendered extinct altogether by social-distancing efforts that had zero effect on Covid itself.
That’s how fast-spreading Covid was, and how uncontainable.
Stop here: If Covid’s uniquely rapid spread was due to a lab modification, as accumulating circumstantial evidence suggests, that’s extremely important to know.
Back to the story: Most people’s experience of Covid wasn’t going to be bad enough to justify lockdowns. They wouldn’t voluntarily stop normal living; the spread wasn’t going to be curtailed.
On the same day President Trump received a report saying the virus had potential to be a trillion-dollar calamity, I wrote that it was already certainly spreading undetected in New York City and was less deadly than reported thanks to unobserved mild or symptomless cases. I was channeling what epidemiologists were thinking at the time. Scientists, it’s true, would end up surrendering to the politicians, but the real story is that the politicians surrendered to the public, which wanted to be told an unrealistic story about the virus being stamped out.
The turning point came when the Trump administration extended its 15-day stay-at-home guidance after polling showed the public didn’t want “flatten the curve,” it wanted to be spared Covid altogether, though all knew this was impossible.
If you wonder why the Covid experience is playing no role in the election or slightly favors Mr. Trump, this is why. Americans by now have experienced the disease and realize it was far from unendurable. The lockdowns were needless destruction. Vaccine mandates were not going to stop the spread (though the vaccine itself reduced the risk of severe outcomes in vulnerable patients).

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Mr. Biden is now more associated with the failed medical establishment and post-Covid inflation than Mr. Trump is. Test, trace and quarantine was absurd and worthless when 90% of infections went unreported. Mask mandates undoubtedly caused some vulnerable people to die because they believed a mask would protect them.
These steps were a political show as the virus made its inevitable way through the population, while politicians competed to suggest how valiantly they were trying to stop it.
It was a hand-waving show, unbelievably expensive and wasteful. And lacking was corrective reporting from our press. The essence of our folly was a fetishizing by the news media of a pathologically stupid “confirmed case count,” which made the virus seem more deadly, rare and stoppable than it was, justifying a tone of media blame against any politician who seemed insufficiently committed to stopping it.
I noted at the time another large democratic country with an English-language press, India, where cognitive realism led reporters to relegate “confirmed case” reports to the bottom of news accounts. Their reporting focused on antibody studies showing the real spread to be 20 or 30 times greater.
I choose the phrase cognitive realism to contrast with the U.S. press, which picks sides among political leaders and filters reality through a need to valorize its favorites and vilify the baddies. The culmination was Joe Biden’s absurdly unscientific vaccine mandates, designed for a political end, to focus blame for Covid on the media stereotype of a GOP loyalist and Trump supporter.
In a democracy, voters get the government they ask for. If so, the most important Covid lesson is the one least mentioned. Read between the lines of today’s newsroom furors at the Washington Post, New York Times and other outlets. The mission of the press still seems dangerously up in the air. The job should be helping the public understand what disciplined factual reasoning can tell us about the world. It’s hard to believe our socio-political Covid outcomes wouldn’t have been a lot better if the media had done so.

 

[Yommie]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/winnipeg-vaccine-manufacture-lawsuit-1.7240077

Winnipeg lawsuit seeks billions of dollars for failed plan to manufacture COVID-19 vaccine in Manitoba​

Providence Therapeutics suing Emergent Biosolutions after plan to make vaccine in Winnipeg didn't go ahead​

Vera-Lynn Kubinec · CBC News · Posted: Jun 20, 2024 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: June 20

A Manitoban receives a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in a 2021 file photo. In February 2021, then Manitoba premier Brian Pallister announced the province would buy two million doses of COVID-19 vaccine from the Alberta company Providence Therapeutics, on the condition it would be approved for use in Canada. At the time, Pallister said the poor availability of vaccines from the federal government was a limiting factor in getting Manitoba's population immunized. (Travis Golby/CBC)

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An American company that manufactures vaccines is being sued in Winnipeg for billions of dollars following a failed plan to produce a COVID-19 vaccine supply in Manitoba during the pandemic.
Alberta vaccine company Providence Therapeutics Holdings contacted U.S.-based Emergent BioSolutions in January 2021 about producing tens of millions of doses of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Providence.
The vaccine was to be made at a facility in Winnipeg operated by Emergent's affiliated Canadian company, Emergent BioSolutions (Canada).
In a lawsuit filed at Manitoba Court of King's Bench in Winnipeg on June 13, Providence alleges Emergent made numerous misrepresentations to secure the work of developing and manufacturing the COVID-19 vaccine.
Providence is seeking damages in the billions of dollars from Emergent: $1.012 billion US for misrepresentation, the same amount for negligence, and again that amount for breach of an agreement.
The statement of claim also seeks $12 million US from Emergent in restitution for unjust enrichment from payments made by Providence to Emergent for work that was not properly concluded.
The lawsuit alleges Providence would have received "substantial financial benefit" from commercial development of its vaccine, had the plan gone ahead.

A sign outside the Emergent BioSolutions site in Winnipeg is pictured on Feb. 11, 2021. Emergent is being sued by Providence Therapeutics Holdings after a plan for commercial production of COVID-19 vaccine in Winnipeg didn't proceed. (Gary Solilak/CBC)
In February 2021, then Manitoba premier Brian Pallister announced the province would buy two million doses of COVID-19 vaccine from Providence Therapeutics, on the condition it would be approved for use in Canada.
At the time, Pallister said the poor availability of vaccines from the federal government was a limiting factor in getting Manitoba's population immunized.

• Manitoba makes deal to buy Canadian-made COVID-19 vaccine that just started human clinical trials
• ANALYSIS
  Divining Providence: The multiple aims behind Brian Pallister's vaccine gambit

In the lawsuit, Providence now alleges Emergent Canada's existing facility in Winnipeg could not accommodate "the work required to produce the commercial volumes of the PTX COVID-19 Vaccine."
It says Emergent was not "highly competent" in commercial development of mRNA vaccines, that it did not have reliable manufacturing capabilities for the vaccines, and it lacked capacity and equipment in the Winnipeg facility.
Employees of Emergent were not properly trained to do the work needed for commercial development of the vaccine, and there were not enough employees to carry out the work for 24 hours a day, the lawsuit alleges.
"Emergent Canada and Emergent, whether negligently, deliberately or as a result of gross negligence or otherwise, were never able to produce a manufacturing process and were never able to deliver commercial batches during the entire term" of the agreement with Providence, the court document alleges.
"Emergent's failure to develop the manufacturing process and reasonably and efficiently progress the work of manufacturing the commercial volumes was at all times negligent and a breach of the standard of care expected," the claim says.
It also says Providence provided the Emergent companies with "extensive proprietary information" for its processes used in developing clinical batches of its COVID-19 vaccine.
"Emergent has previously made and continues to make use of the Providence know-how to advance its own business interests including to develop mRNA products for customers other than Providence," the lawsuit alleges.
The result was "profits improperly gained by Emergent," the claim alleges.

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CBC contacted Emergent, which is based in Maryland, and a spokesperson said the company had not yet been served with the statement of claim.
The Calgary lawyer for the plaintiff, Providence Therapeutic Holdings, declined to comment on the lawsuit.
The court document says Providence, throughout its involvement with Emergent, was involved in "ongoing efforts to seek final regulatory approval" of its COVID-19 vaccine.
Providence lost the ability to achieve a "streamlined regulatory approval" that was available only until the end of 2022, the claim alleges, which meant Providence "lost the highly valuable opportunity" to deliver its vaccine to market in 2021 or 2022.
The lawsuit alleges Emergent was negligent in not being able to do accurate inspections of PTX COVID-19 vaccine vials, and in an inability to identify solutions when there were deviations in test batches of the vaccine.
It alleges Emergent failed to "conduct a reasonable number of test batches" in order to develop the manufacturing process.