Vaccine

Turkey is closely following developments in the wake of the emergence of the new COVID-19 strain, Omicron, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said, adding that the current situation does not necessitate taking additional measures.

He recalled that Turkey immediately acted after the new variant was detected in the world and imposed travel bans on certain countries.

The World Health Organization has no data that there is a reduction in effectiveness of existing coronavirus vaccines following the emergence of the Omicron variant.

The EU Could Approve a Vaccine against Omicron in 3-4 Months

The European drug regulator announced on Tuesday that it would approve vaccines adapted to Covid's new version, Omicron, within three to four months if necessary, but existing drugs would continue to provide protection, Reuters reported.

The head of drugmaker Moderna said Covid-19 vaccines were unlikely to be as effective against the coronavirus Omicron variant as before, raising new concerns in financial markets about the trajectory of the pandemic, Reuters reported.

As stated, this strain is likely to spread around the world, and a larger increase in the number of infected could have severe consequences in some areas.
Although it is not yet known to what extent omicron is contagious for those who have been vaccinated and recovered from COVID-19, the WHO recommends accelerated vaccination of risk groups.

"Words that can express so much in a certain period are rare," Merriam-Webster said in a statement.

BioNTech has begun work on a vaccine specifically for the new variant of the coronavirus Omicron, which was first identified in South Africa.

The development of an adapted vaccine is part of the standard procedure.

The first steps for a possible new vaccine are carried out in parallel with the assessment of whether one will be needed after the advent of Omicron.

The countries of the World Health Organization are discussing in Geneva, at a special session, the preparations for the pandemic after the appearance of the new variant - Omicron.

Existing coronavirus vaccines are unlikely to not work at all with the new variant Omicron. But they may work less.

This was stated by Prof. Todor Kantardzhiev on bTV. He reminded that the EC has signed an agreement with Pfizer that if a dangerous mutation of the virus occurs, the manufacturer is ready to provide an adapted vaccine in 100 days.

There is no data on the difference in the course of the new version of COVID-19 - Omicron. This was explained in the studio of "Hello, Bulgaria" by the epidemiologist and lecturer at the London School of Tropical Medicine Dr. Petar Markov.