Thread by @kakape

The #covid19 pandemic has set back immunization efforts around the world leaving children "more vulnerable to killer diseases like polio, measles and pneumonia”, says @drtedros at @WHO presser. “Now we’re starting to see outbreaks of these diseases."

@DrTedros @WHO WHO and @UNICEF are launching an emergency appeal to rapidly boost measles and polio vaccination, says @drtedros. "This is a global call to action for all donors to stay the course and not to turn their backs on the poorest and most marginalized children in their hour of need."

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF An estimated $655 million are needed to address immunization gaps in countries not eligible for @gavi funds, says @drtedros. "We need to turn the tide quickly and ensure no child is left behind."

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF @gavi “Evidence-based response is important to ensure that science leads everything”, says South Africa’s minister of health @DrZweliMkhize in an overview of the country’s intra-action review on #covid19 response.

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF @gavi @DrZweliMkhize "The concerns that you have to take into account at this point ... pandemic fatigue in the population with low adherence to public health measures, exhaustion and fatigue in the frontline workers …”, says @DrZweliMkhize.

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF @gavi @DrZweliMkhize Also talks about plan for resurgence: “#COVID19 is still within us, and therefore we need to remain vigilant, to continue to fight together. We are quite, quite clear that it needs an all-community, all-government and everybody's participation to fight”

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF @gavi @DrZweliMkhize Q about possibility of reducing quarantine from 14 days to 10 days
.
“Our guidance for incubation period is 14 days and that's based on the amount of time in which most individuals, 95% of individuals, will develop symptoms after exposure”, says @mvankerkhove.

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF @gavi @DrZweliMkhize @mvankerkhove "What we understand from a number of countries is that if they do reduce that 14 day period, they're considering adding testing as part of that”, says @mvankerkhove. Reducing quarantine comes with risk of missing some cases, she says.

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF @gavi @DrZweliMkhize @mvankerkhove Q: should countries close mink farms, cull the herds? What about other animals?
"different countries have different farming traditions and in some countries the farms are easier to protect in terms of biosecurity measures and so on than in other countries”, says @Peterfoodsafety.

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF @gavi @DrZweliMkhize @mvankerkhove @Peterfoodsafety Much less risk in food animals for two reasons, says @Peterfoodsafety:
1. Pigs, chicken, cattle seem less susceptible to the virus
2. "the way we produce pigs and chickens in particular in modern farming systems allow us to keep these environments totally isolated and secured"

@DrTedros @WHO @UNICEF @gavi @DrZweliMkhize @mvankerkhove @Peterfoodsafety Thailand does plan to reduce quarantine from 14 days to 10 days, says Tanarak Plipat from Department of Disease Control. But will be done for low-risk areas first and only limited travel will be allowed after the ten days, large gatherings and travel to some places prohibited.