Batman filming halted after 'Pattinson Covid test'
"The pause in filming, confirmed by Warner Bros, is because lead actor Robert Pattinson has tested positive for the virus, according to US media.
Warner Bros said a member of the production team was self-isolating but it did not say who.
Filming began in Glasgow earlier this year but was halted due to the pandemic."
"
Vanity Fair said British actor Pattinson, 34, caught the virus days after shooting resumed near London, after a six-month delay to filming."
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Distributing vaccines and treatments for COVID-19 and flu
UK government have put out this consultation document. They are considering using an unlicensed vaccine by the look of the chapters.
Summary
We want your views on proposed changes to the Human Medicine Regulations to help with the safe and efficient distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine and expanded flu vaccine programme in the UK, along with treatments for COVID-19 and any other diseases that become pandemic.
This consultation closes at
11:59pm on 18 September 2020
Consultation description
The UK government, with the Minister of Health in Northern Ireland, is seeking views on proposed changes to the
Human Medicine Regulations 2012.
The consultation covers:
- authorising temporary supply of an unlicensed product
- civil liability and immunity
- expanding the workforce eligible to administer vaccinations
- promoting vaccines
- making provisions for wholesale dealing of vaccines
Documents
Consultation document: changes to Human Medicine Regulations to support the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines
HTML
Draft statutory instrument: the Human Medicines (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020
PDF, 147KB, 12 pages
6
Extract from the relevant section re authorization.
"The preferred route to enable deployment of a new vaccine for COVID-19 is through the usual marketing authorisation (product licensing) process. If a suitable COVID-19 vaccine candidate, with strong supporting evidence of safety, quality and efficacy, becomes available, we will seek to license that vaccine through the usual route. Until the end of December 2020, EU legislation requires biotechnological medicines (which would include candidate COVID-19 vaccines) to be authorised via the European Medicines Agency, and a marketing authorisation granted by them would automatically be valid in the UK. From January 2021, the UK’s licensing authority will have new powers to license all medicines, including vaccines. However, if there is a compelling case, on public health grounds, for using a vaccine before it is given a product licence, given the nature of the threat we face, the JCVI may take the very unusual step of advising the UK government to use a tested, unlicensed vaccine against COVID-19, and we need to make sure that the right legislative measures are in place to deal with that scenario.
A temporary authorisation of the supply of an unlicensed vaccine could be given by the UK’s licensing authority under regulation 174 of the Human Medicines Regulations (see below). A COVID-19 vaccine would only be authorised in this way if the UK’s licensing authority was satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to demonstrate the safety, quality and efficacy of the vaccine. ‘Unlicensed’ does not mean ‘untested’: this temporary authorisation process exists to address the possibility that, in certain situations of public health need, the licensing authority may consider that the balance of risk and benefit to patients justifies the temporary supply of the relevant vaccine pending the issue of a product licence. Regulation 345 of the Human Medicine Regulations transposes into UK law a requirement of EU law that key actors in the medicines supply chain cannot generally be sued in the civil courts for the consequences resulting from the use of an unlicensed product, or a new use of a licensed product, that a national licensing authority is recommending in order to deal with certain specific health threats.
The UK government is seeking views on proposals to make changes, in conjunction with the Minister of Health in Northern Ireland, to the Human Medicine Regulations 2012. These changes will support the effective rollout of a COVID-19 vaccine and the upscaling of influenza (flu) vaccination programme in the UK. It is important to emphasise, however, that although some of the measures specifically reference COVID-19 and flu vaccines, the proposed changes will also facilitate the efficient mass distribution of treatments for COVID-19, or for any other disease that poses a serious risk to public health."
So 4 countries now China, Russia, USA and UK are using or considering using an unlicensed vaccine.
It will be interesting to see what the EU countries and ROW are going to do.
It is not unusual to use an unlicensed vaccine. WHO used an Ebola vaccine in Africa for 18 months.
With European backing, the world nears first approved Ebola vaccine
