Good News Thread - part 2

[KitKatastrophe]

Thank you to those who have contributed to the good news thread over the past few weeks. We are at 40 pages so here is a new one to continue sharing good news stories :)

15 minute saliva tests could be in use by Christmas

This is a game changer. I think people are underestimating the impact they could have.

I think people are also a bit ‘I’ll believe it when I see it’ about tests because it’s the sort of thing the government always seems to be promising and not delivering!

Oh definitely @TheCountessofFitzdotterel! I’m pretty sure I posted a similar article back in June But I’ll continue to hope that they’ll be right at some point!!

Just watching Press Preview on Sky and the Fail headline for tomorrow is that they’ve seen a memo saying NHS staff could start getting the vaccine within weeks....

Also Telegraph headline says the 2 week isolation period could be halved which makes so much sense to me. Last figures I saw were that only 18% were complying with 2 week isolation - personally I feel that eg a 60-80% compliance with 7 days isolation would be much more effective. Yes some people could/will still be infectious after that but surely you are catching more people this way than with a very ineffective 2 week isolation.

This about the Oxford Vaccine restarting trials in U S A (and Johnson & Johnson trial which was also paused recently) from The Guardian:-

www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/24/coronavirus-vaccine-final-stage-testing-to-restart-in-us

No one in the US has been "dissing" the Oxford vaccine or wants to see it delayed. The US government spent a billion USD to pre purchase 300 million doses of it.

<a class="break-all" href="https://www.google.com/url?q=www.cnbc.com/2020/05/21/coronavirus-us-gives-astrazenena-1-billion-for-oxford-vaccine.html&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwja8P_GsM7sAhWQg-AKHbeKAV8QFjABegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw2XYXpM_C_3Z9XBSujuzFcy" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.google.com/url?q=www.cnbc.com/2020/05/21/coronavirus-us-gives-astrazenena-1-billion-for-oxford-vaccine.html&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwja8P_GsM7sAhWQg-AKHbeKAV8QFjABegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw2XYXpM_C_3Z9XBSujuzFcy

I'm sure not everyone in the US has. But definitely some US publications are saying that Oxford have been overly confident from the start. Nancy Pelosi has also said that a vaccine approved by Boris Johnson would not come up to the high standards of US approval. I don't know if she was making some political statement, but is she honestly trying to say Boris Johnson gets to say whether the Oxford Vaccine is safe and effective? I am a supporter of the democrats (as much as a Brit can be) and not a supporter of Boris Johnson.

Here's the piece I read in The Guardian; I was pretty shocked and dismayed:-

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/society/2020/oct/09/us-wont-rely-on-uk-for-covid-vaccine-safety-tests-says-nancy-pelosi

I assume boris doesn’t really get much say on the approval? Surely it goes before a scientific committee and has to meet all uk safety standards

It is concerning

@tobee Pelosi is smart enough to know that BJ doesn't approve any new medications and that you have a regulatory body that does that. She's pointing out, to Trump, that any drug or vaccine prescribed in the US has to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It would be the same if there was new cancer or migrane treatment developed in the UK. Or France or India or Germany for that matter.

Her concern is that if BJ says that "we won" then Trump will try to say the same if it happens before the election.

@Chickenandrice

I assume boris doesn’t really get much say on the approval? Surely it goes before a scientific committee and has to meet all uk safety standards

100% no - BJ has nothing to do with it. I work in pharma. If a vaccine is approved then I am having it. There’s no way it would be licensed without a strong safety and efficacy profile.

Actually think there needs to be some sort of education campaign for the general public about vaccines and the regulatory process. I hear a lot (on here) of people saying they wouldn’t have something that is rushed through and that there might be side effects that take years to be found. This simply isn’t true and I am concerned that uptake will be compromised because no one has reassured the public.

Sorry, to clarify, I want suggesting that you need educating! I just meant that most people don’t know much about how vaccines are trialled and approved, which is understandable.

Boris does NOT approve vaccines.

There are VERY strict rules in place and UK are one of the most respected pharma industries in the world.

I would take a vaccine out of uk over US or Europe in a heartbeat.

I used to work for GSK and we stopped doing certain work long before Europe did.

I suppose boris signs off on the plan to buy and distribute the vaccine which is maybe what she means

Nancy Pelosi has also said that a vaccine approved by Boris Johnson would not come up to the high standards of US approval.

Nancy Pelosi has no medical expertise whatsoever so who cares what she says? Especially as she seems unaware that the PM has no say in whether or not a vaccine is approved.

@MissConductUS and @IcedPurple Absolutely! She's doing it for political purposes! Much as Russia has been putting out propaganda that if people take the Oxford Vaccine they'll turn into monkeys! I'm sure Pelosi and Russia are doing it for somewhat different purposes, but they're both undermining the Oxford Vaccine in doing so. Politicising the development of the vaccine, when we're supposed to be coming together, is not great when there are enough people sceptical about taking a vaccine. We need the best uptake possible to protect the elderly and vulnerable for whom vaccines might not work so well.

Whichever firm/country produces the first effective vaccine is going to delight in point scoring over all the others, and I can't really blame them for that. The competition to reach the finish line is intense, and perhaps that's a good thing, as it has really got everybody to focus on the one thing that can end this pandemic before millions more die. I have faith that our safety standards in the UK are good, and am crossing fingers for the first vaccine to roll out for vulnerable people and medics/carers by the New Year. That would be a great start to next year.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8878451/Oxford-vaccine-ready-Christmas-says-professor-leading-hunt-coronavirus-jab.html

Positive article and quotes

Melbourne! 0 cases today! Thankyou Vic MNetters for putting up with this shit lock down - love the rest of Australia!!!!

*i hope this is the right space to put this - im just so happy for fellow Aussies.

amp.ft.com/content/b15446e5-66f7-4e6a-947a-1b638769ff79?

Article stating that the Oxford Vaccine produces an immune response in the elderly. Previously they’d shown that it produced an immune response in 18-55 age group.

@TheHoneyFactory - Fantastic news! All good news welcomed here!

Was about the post the same from Reuters @blametheparents this is brilliant news

This article states that the vaccine is being delivered to UK hospitals from next week to be administered to front line workers. The comments are a bit worrying though, shows how many conspiracy theorists there are.

Covid-19 vaccine deliveries set to begin at British hospitals 'from next week' www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/coronavirus-vaccine-deliveries-set-begin-22905212

The Sun says from next week too- presumably they're setting up the distribution chains ahead of approval so that there's one less thing to hold things up.