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Eastern Cape Pupil Could Lose Arm After Taking COVID Vaccine
A 14-year-old pupil from the Eastern Cape might have to have her arm amputated after allegedly receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. According to SABC News, Yamkela Seplan, who attends Tina Falls Primary School in Qumbu, got an infection and developed a huge lump on the upper arm.
The public broadcaster reports that Seplan’s arm has been swelling up since last year and was even forced to drop out of school due to her condition. She claims her parents had refused to give the nod for her to receive the vaccine, but she ended up getting the jab anyway as the school had threatened to not allow pupils entry.
“On the vaccination day, we were instructed to go and bring our parents. I went out and called my mother but she refused to come and sign so that I could be vaccinated. After we were threatened that those who had not been vaccinated would not go to the school, I then vaccinated. After vaccination, I developed a small lump in February last year and in December it became worse. I had to quit schooling,” Yamkela said.
Yamkela’s mother says she was taken to Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital and later to BedFord Orthopedic hospital in the Eastern Cape to treat her arm, but blames the former for negligence.
Too Little, Too Late: Disband the CDC Now
Dissolve the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Last week, the CDC released updated COVID-19 guidance. The agency now believes we should be taking an individual approach to mitigating our COVID risk. In layman’s terms, we are all Florida 2020 now.
The new guidance suggests ending “test to stay” so kids exposed to someone with COVID-19 can remain in school. Of course, this was only related to known exposure. People are exposed to COVID all the time, but only children who were aware of that exposure were punished. Kids lost so much throughout the pandemic because of terrible, irrational CDC guidance like this.
The fresh guidance also says people without symptoms no longer need to be routinely tested.
But most importantly, the agency has finally faced some truths about the vaccine that it should have long ago. “CDC’s COVID-19 prevention recommendations no longer differentiate based on a person’s vaccination status because breakthrough infections occur.” And it’s admitted that “persons who have had COVID-19 but are not vaccinated have some degree of protection against severe illness from their previous infection.”
Kroger Claims Immunity in COVID Vaccine Suit
The Parkersburg News and Sentinel reported:
The Kroger company asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by parents who say their teenage child received an undiluted COVID-19 vaccine dose at a Parkersburg store, saying federal and state laws make it immune from liability. Court documents also revealed the plaintiffs sought a $150,000 settlement before filing the suit.
According to the complaint, the child of John and Maria Louden of Davisville received the second dose of the Pfizer COVID vaccine in June 2021. Later that day, Maria Louden was contacted by a pharmacist who said the student-employee who administered the vaccine had done so without diluting it. The result was a dosage more than five times the recommended amount, the complaint says.
Over the next two days, the teen suffered from high fever, severe nausea, headaches, body aches and dizziness, the complaint says, and has continued to experience fatigue, frequent headaches and difficulty focusing on tasks.
British Columbia Man Frustrated Over Wait After Being Approved for COVID Vaccine Injury Compensation
A B.C. man, who was among the first Canadians approved for Canada’s Vaccine Injury Support Program, says he is frustrated with the length of time it is taking to receive compensation.
Ross Wightman of Lake Country, B.C., was left partially paralyzed after receiving a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine in April 2021. Within the first few days of receiving the shot, he had developed severe pain in his lower back and hamstrings.
“And then 10 days after my shot, I ended up in the ER four times,” he told CTV’s Your Morning on Tuesday. “(It was) a bit of a mystery diagnosis originally, but the fourth time, I started presenting with facial paralysis and that’s when my life really got flipped upside down.”
Wightman’s application for the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program was approved in May. But since then, he still hasn’t received any compensation. He said Health Canada still needs to approve his income replacement paperwork and expenses.
First Lady Dr. Jill Biden Tests Positive for COVID
First lady Dr. Jill Biden has tested positive for COVID-19 and is experiencing mild symptoms, her spokesperson said Tuesday.
“After testing negative for COVID-19 on Monday during her regular testing cadence, the First Lady began to develop cold-like symptoms late in the evening. She tested negative again on a rapid antigen test, but a PCR test came back positive,” said Elizabeth Alexander, her communications director.
The first lady, who is double vaccinated and twice boosted, is taking Paxlovid, Pfizer‘s antiviral drug, according to Alexander, who told CNN that Biden received her second booster shot in April.
Defense Secretary Austin Positive for COVID for Second Time
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Monday he has tested positive for COVID-19, is experiencing mild symptoms and will quarantine at home. It’s the second time Austin has gotten the coronavirus.
In a statement, Austin, 69, said he is fully vaccinated and has received two boosters. He said he’ll quarantine for the next five days in accordance with CDC guidelines and “will retain all authorities and plan to maintain my normal work schedule virtually from home.”
In January, Austin also contracted COVID and had received a booster in October.
Gates Eyes Partnership With South Korea Over Global Health
Bill Gates on Tuesday called for South Korea to become more involved in international efforts to prevent infectious diseases like COVID-19 as he stressed the need for the world to be better prepared for the next pandemic.
Representing the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Gates signed a memorandum of understanding with South Korea’s foreign and health ministries pledging further partnerships in projects aimed at improving public health tools in the developing world and advancing vaccines and treatments for infectious diseases.
Speaking to South Korean lawmakers in Seoul, Gates called for stronger international cooperation, including efforts to develop vaccines that would be effective for a broader range of coronaviruses, to navigate what he described as a “crisis moment” in global health.
Why Some Communities Are Distrustful of Doctors and Public Health Efforts
As the latest updates on COVID-19, the monkeypox virus, polio and other health concerns and issues continue to circulate, one doctor pointed out that healthcare is very much like a product.
Dr. Alexander Salerno, an internist in New Jersey, told Fox News Digital, “If you don’t trust the seller or the product, why would you buy it?” He told Fox News Digital that trust is the “glue” between doctors and patients — especially in underserved communities.
Some doctors and medical professionals also believe that knowledge of the infamous Tuskegee experiment ever since 1972 continues to have an impact today. This year 2022 is the 50th anniversary of when the public first learned that the federal government denied a group of Black men with active syphilis the proper treatment for the disease.
Axios-Ipsos Poll: Vacations Trump COVID Worries
Americans aren’t taking steps to avoid COVID-19 before going on vacation and have no bandwidth for another health crisis like monkeypox, according to the latest installment of the Axios/Ipsos Coronavirus Index.
Our perception of personal risk has fallen to a point where travelers’ most common precaution is just to wash or sanitize their hands more frequently — and fewer than half even do that.
The poll findings nonetheless suggest a third of Americans are very or somewhat familiar with “rebound” cases of COVID in people who’ve taken Pfizer‘s antiviral treatment Paxlovid.
Less than half said they were concerned about the monkeypox outbreak, and 64% said they’re unlikely to get the monkeypox vaccine.
U.S. Offers More Monkeypox Vaccines to States and Cities
U.S. officials said they are able to ship out more monkeypox vaccine doses than previously planned — because of a strategy shift that allows more shots to be drawn from each vial.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had previously anticipated allowing 221,000 doses to be ordered starting Monday. But officials said they would release 442,000 doses for order by state, local and territorial health departments.
Dog Contracts Monkeypox From Owners, Prompting Change to CDC Guidance
U.S. News & World Report reported:
Adding yet another wrinkle to the monkeypox outbreak, a new case study suggests that people can pass the virus on to their pet dogs.
Therefore, people who are infected with the virus should avoid close contact with their pets, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control now advises in updated guidance.
The change reflects the first documented cases of a pet getting the virus from its owner, according to CBS News. That case happened in France, according to a new paper published in The Lancet.
In this case, a 4-year-old Italian greyhound developed lesions and tested positive for monkeypox 12 days after its owners first showed symptoms. The owners are two male partners who live together but were not sexually exclusive. They routinely allowed their pooch to snooze in their bed.
