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Walmart partners with Commons Project, Clear to launch digital COVID-19 vaccine records

by Heather Landi | Mar 18, 2021 10:35am


Customers at Walmart and Sam's Clubs may soon be able to verify that they have received a COVID-19 vaccine by showing an app on their smartphones.

The retail giant announced Wednesday that it will provide access to digital health records, including vaccination information, to people who receive their shots at Walmart and Sam's Clubs.

Walmart is working with The Commons Project and Clear, an identity management platform, to make the digital health records available. The records will be available via the organizations' app called the Health Pass by Clear, as well as the CommonHealth and CommonPass apps.

Currently, most patients who have been vaccinated against the virus only get a small piece of paper as proof. Those papers are easy to lose and highly vulnerable to fraud and counterfeiting, industry stakeholders say. So public and private organizations have turned to the idea of developing digital health passports to help restart global travel.

Walmart will use the open and interoperable SMART Health Cards standard being developed under the Vaccination Credential Initiative, which is co-chaired by the Commons Project Foundation. The Vaccination Credential Initiative is a cross-industry coalition that includes health IT heavy hitters Epic, Cerner and Change Healthcare along with tech giants and healthcare companies Mayo Clinic, Microsoft, Cigna's Evernorth, Salesforce, and the Carin Alliance.

John Furner, CEO and president of Walmart U.S said the company is the first retailer to strategically partner with both The Commons Project Foundation and Clear to provide access to digital vaccine records.

"Our goal is to give customers vaccinated at Walmart free and secure digital access to their vaccine record and enable them to share that information with third parties seeking to confirm their vaccination status,” Furner said.

Enabling fair and equitable access to health records, so people control their own health data, is a key element of empowering individuals, Walmart officials said.

The Clear and Commons Project platforms are free to users who choose to use them in order to verify their vaccine status to safely return to travel, work, school, sports events, entertainment and other venues while protecting their health data privacy, according to a Walmart press release.

To enable this technology, Walmart and Sam’s Club have created systems that will allow vaccine status to be stored within the company’s proprietary apps and also interface with secure third-party apps.

Health Pass by Clear is a free mobile experience within the Clear app, which securely connects a person's verified identity to multiple layers of COVID-19 related health information. More than 50 organizations are currently using Health Pass to create safer and more frictionless environments. With Walmart, Health Pass users will soon be able to link to and use their vaccination results in a frictionless way.

There are various efforts are currently underway to develop digital health credentials systems—both vaccination and test certificates. The CommonPass mobile app, created by the Commons Project Foundation and the World Economic Forum is being used by United Airlines and other airlines on some international flights. The app enables consumers to demonstrate their current health status so they can safely return to travel, work, school and life, while protecting their data privacy, according to The Commons Project.

The World Health Organization is also working on a digital vaccine certificate for international travel, and Health Pass by Clear is in use at Los Angeles International Airport.

“We applaud Walmart’s strong commitment to empowering customers with access to their health information using open standards,” said Paul Meyer, CEO of The Commons Project Foundation in a statement. “Not only can this help facilitate the safer return to normal life during COVID, empowering people with their health data can help improve the quality of the health services they receive in the future.”

Through a free digital account at Walmart and Sam’s Club, customers will have access to their prescription history and other health care information from Walmart.

1140-commonpass-vaccination-app.imgcache.rev921cb2d9ee2d3d4dbe4dcbb5f9ab8671.jpg
 

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Walmart partners with Commons Project, Clear to launch digital COVID-19 vaccine records

by Heather Landi | Mar 18, 2021 10:35am


Customers at Walmart and Sam's Clubs may soon be able to verify that they have received a COVID-19 vaccine by showing an app on their smartphones.

The retail giant announced Wednesday that it will provide access to digital health records, including vaccination information, to people who receive their shots at Walmart and Sam's Clubs.

Walmart is working with The Commons Project and Clear, an identity management platform, to make the digital health records available. The records will be available via the organizations' app called the Health Pass by Clear, as well as the CommonHealth and CommonPass apps.

Currently, most patients who have been vaccinated against the virus only get a small piece of paper as proof. Those papers are easy to lose and highly vulnerable to fraud and counterfeiting, industry stakeholders say. So public and private organizations have turned to the idea of developing digital health passports to help restart global travel.

Walmart will use the open and interoperable SMART Health Cards standard being developed under the Vaccination Credential Initiative, which is co-chaired by the Commons Project Foundation. The Vaccination Credential Initiative is a cross-industry coalition that includes health IT heavy hitters Epic, Cerner and Change Healthcare along with tech giants and healthcare companies Mayo Clinic, Microsoft, Cigna's Evernorth, Salesforce, and the Carin Alliance.

John Furner, CEO and president of Walmart U.S said the company is the first retailer to strategically partner with both The Commons Project Foundation and Clear to provide access to digital vaccine records.

"Our goal is to give customers vaccinated at Walmart free and secure digital access to their vaccine record and enable them to share that information with third parties seeking to confirm their vaccination status,” Furner said.

Enabling fair and equitable access to health records, so people control their own health data, is a key element of empowering individuals, Walmart officials said.

The Clear and Commons Project platforms are free to users who choose to use them in order to verify their vaccine status to safely return to travel, work, school, sports events, entertainment and other venues while protecting their health data privacy, according to a Walmart press release.

To enable this technology, Walmart and Sam’s Club have created systems that will allow vaccine status to be stored within the company’s proprietary apps and also interface with secure third-party apps.

Health Pass by Clear is a free mobile experience within the Clear app, which securely connects a person's verified identity to multiple layers of COVID-19 related health information. More than 50 organizations are currently using Health Pass to create safer and more frictionless environments. With Walmart, Health Pass users will soon be able to link to and use their vaccination results in a frictionless way.

There are various efforts are currently underway to develop digital health credentials systems—both vaccination and test certificates. The CommonPass mobile app, created by the Commons Project Foundation and the World Economic Forum is being used by United Airlines and other airlines on some international flights. The app enables consumers to demonstrate their current health status so they can safely return to travel, work, school and life, while protecting their data privacy, according to The Commons Project.

The World Health Organization is also working on a digital vaccine certificate for international travel, and Health Pass by Clear is in use at Los Angeles International Airport.

“We applaud Walmart’s strong commitment to empowering customers with access to their health information using open standards,” said Paul Meyer, CEO of The Commons Project Foundation in a statement. “Not only can this help facilitate the safer return to normal life during COVID, empowering people with their health data can help improve the quality of the health services they receive in the future.”

Through a free digital account at Walmart and Sam’s Club, customers will have access to their prescription history and other health care information from Walmart.

1140-commonpass-vaccination-app.imgcache.rev921cb2d9ee2d3d4dbe4dcbb5f9ab8671.jpg

People brought all of this shit on themselves. If folks did da right thing, we wouldn't have arrived here.
 

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Pfizer starts early stage trial for oral COVID-19 drug

Pfizer on Tuesday said it has begun early stage U.S. clinical trials of an investigational, oral antiviral drug for COVID-19.

According to the company, the candidate "has demonstrated potent in vitro antiviral activity" against the virus that causes COVID-19, as well as activity against other coronaviruses, suggesting the potential for use to address future threats.

The candidate is a class of drug known as a protease inhibitor, which has been long used used to treat HIV and hepatitis C. The drugs work by blocking a critical enzyme, a protease, that the virus needs to replicate.


“Tackling the COVID-19 pandemic requires both prevention via vaccine and targeted treatment for those who contract the virus. Given the way that SARS-CoV-2 is mutating and the continued global impact of COVID-19, it appears likely that it will be critical to have access to therapeutic options both now and beyond the pandemic,” Mikael Dolsten, Pfizer's chief scientific officer, said in a statement.

Dolsten said the drug candidate could be prescribed at the first sign of infection, without requiring that patients are hospitalized or in critical care.

Pfizer is also testing an intravenously administered investigational protease inhibitor for patients who are hospitalized with COVID-19.



Pfizer starts early stage trial for oral COVID-19 drug | TheHill
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DoorDash will let you order at-home COVID-19 testing kits delivered to your door

DoorDash has partnered with two US-based digital health companies, Vault Health and Everlywell, to help distribute at-home COVID-19 test kits across the country, the company announced on Monday. The partnerships will allow DoorDash customers to order the testing kits directly from the company’s app in 12 markets or, conversely, to order the kits from Vault Health’s website in 20 markets with same-day delivery from DoorDash.

Both kits contain polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, which is a molecular test and considered the most accurate of the testing varieties on the market. Both kits have also received emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration for at-home testing. The Everlywell testing kit ($109) is a self-administered nasal swab that can be done unsupervised, while the Vault Health kit ($119) is a saliva test that involves supervision from a staffer over Zoom. Both companies promise to return results within 24 to 48 hours.

The markets supported by the DoorDash app include Baltimore, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis, and Phoenix, with more cities to be added soon, the company says. Vault Health’s direct online order option will be supported in Baltimore, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and San Diego, among other markets.

The initiative is part of DoorDash’s DashMart convenience store platform, a new type of virtual marketplace the company launched last summer as the pandemic was in full swing. DashMarts act similar to a CVS or 7-Eleven but they’re available at all hours of the day from the DoorDash app for ordering convenience store items, light food and groceries, and other products you’d typically find at a corner store or pharmacy. The stores also source from a variety of different vendors, so there’s just not one list of limited inventory to choose from. In some cases, DoorDash even sources local restaurants’ products to give DashMart the feel of a boutique store.

Now, in addition to buying supplies, food, and other items, you’ll also be able to start buying COVID-19 testing kits in what DoorDash is positioning as a push into health products. “Amidst the pandemic, one of our priorities has been to make health and wellness essentials more accessible for customers, with the goal of helping businesses leverage our last-mile logistics infrastructure to provide more convenient and timely access to their health supplies,” Anna Katherine Barnett-Hart, director of new verticals at DoorDash, said in a statement.



DoorDash will let you order at-home COVID-19 testing kits delivered to your door - The Verge
 

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Israeli company claims oral COVID-19 vaccine on its way
An oral vaccine could potentially allow for people to self vaccinate at home.




Israeli company claims oral COVID-19 vaccine on its way - The Jerusalem Post (jpost.com)


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My first thought about taking a vaccine at home was the risk of anaphylactic shock. Who'd be there to respond to an adverse reaction?

The advantages of an oral vaccine go beyond safety and efficacy, Kidron said. Oral medications tend to have fewer side effects.
In addition, the vaccine can be shipped at refrigerator temperatures and even stored at room temperature, “making it logistically easier to get it anywhere around the world,” Kidron said.

Finally, an oral vaccine would not require professional administration.
 

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Hong Kong and Macao suspend BioNTech coronavirus vaccine rollout due to packaging defect


Hong Kong (CNN)Authorities in Hong Kong and Macao have suspended the rollout of BioNTech's Covid-19 vaccine citing a packaging defect found in their first batch of doses.
Both governments said in statements Wednesday they had received a letter from BioNTech and its Chinese partner, Fosun Pharma, indicating an issue with the seal on individual vials in batch number 210102.
According to government figures, as of Tuesday, 150,200 people in Hong Kong had received their first dose of the BioNTech vaccine, which outside of China is partnered with US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer.
Although both Fosun and BioNTech "have not found any reason to believe that product safety is at risk," the Hong Kong government said it was suspending vaccinations involving batch 210102, and halting plans to administer a second batch pending an investigation.


"These are preventive measures to continuously ensure the safety of the vaccination program," the statement read.
Prior to halting the BioNTech rollout, Hong Kong offered residents a choice of two vaccines, BioNTech, and Chinese produced Sinovac. Now those who wish to get vaccinated must either wait until the issue with the BioNTech doses is resolved or go with Sinovac.
Hong Kong is expected to receive doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine at a later date.
Slow rollout linked to vaccine hesitancy
The BioNTech suspension will likely blunt Hong Kong's mass vaccination drive, which is already moving at a slower-than-expected pace.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam said Tuesday that 6% of the population had taken their first shot, which she described as "not bad," though admitted the city could "do better."
"Hong Kong is actually very fortunate, as far as vaccination is concerned," said Lam. "When many places all over the world are scrambling for vaccines, we have a pretty assured supply of vaccines for the people of Hong Kong."

CONTINUED:
Hong Kong and Macao suspend BioNTech coronavirus vaccine rollout due to packaging defect - CNN


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Brazil records its highest daily Covid-19 deaths, 3,251 fatalities registered

Brazil on Tuesday recorded 3,251 new deaths due to Covid-19, its highest daily death toll since the pandemic began and the first time it has posted more than 3,000 coronavirus-related deaths in a day, according to the country's health ministry.

According to CNN, Brazil's Covid-19 death toll now stands at 298,676, with the previous record for daily deaths coming only last week.

Additionally, 82,493 new coronavirus cases were also reported across the country, bringing the total c ..

CONTINUED:

Brazil records its highest daily Covid-19 deaths, 3,251 fatalities registered - The Economic Times (indiatimes.com)




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Far-Right Extremists Move From ‘Stop the Steal’ to Stop the Vaccine
Extremist organizations are now bashing the safety and efficacy of coronavirus vaccines in an effort to try to undermine the government.

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Supporters of former President Donald J. Trump and the so-called Stop the Steal movement are among those joining the anti-vaccination movement.Credit...

Adherents of far-right groups who cluster online have turned repeatedly to one particular website in recent weeks — the federal database showing deaths and adverse reactions nationwide among people who have received Covid-19 vaccinations.
Although negative reactions have been relatively rare, the numbers are used by many extremist groups to try to bolster a rash of false and alarmist disinformation in articles and videos with titles like “Covid-19 Vaccines Are Weapons of Mass Destruction — and Could Wipe out the Human Race” or “Doctors and Nurses Giving the Covid-19 Vaccine Will be Tried as War Criminals.”
If the so-called Stop the Steal movement appeared to be chasing a lost cause once President Biden was inaugurated, its supporters among extremist organizations are now adopting a new agenda from the anti-vaccination campaign to try to undermine the government.
Bashing of the safety and efficacy of vaccines is occurring in chatrooms frequented by all manner of right-wing groups including the Proud Boys; the Boogaloo movement, a loose affiliation known for wanting to spark a second Civil War; and various paramilitary organizations.

These groups tend to portray vaccines as a symbol of excessive government control. “If less people get vaccinated then the system will have to use more aggressive force on the rest of us to make us get the shot,” read a recent post on the Telegram social media platform, in a channel linked to members of the Proud Boys charged in storming the Capitol.

The marked focus on vaccines is particularly striking on discussion channels populated by followers of QAnon, who had falsely prophesied that Donald J. Trump would continue as president while his political opponents were marched off to jail.
“They rode the shift in the national conversation away from Trump to what was happening with the massive ramp up in vaccines,” said Devin Burghart, the head of the Seattle-based Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights, which monitors far-right movements, referring to followers of QAnon. “It allowed them to pivot away from the failure of their previous prophecy to focus on something else.”
Apocalyptic warnings about the vaccine feed into the far-right narrative that the government cannot be trusted, the sentiment also at the root of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. The more vaccine opponents succeed in preventing or at least delaying herd immunity, experts noted, the longer it will take for life to return to normal and that will further undermine faith in the government and its institutions.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/19/...on=CompanionColumn&contentCollection=Trending
Last spring, a common purpose among far-right activists and the anti-vaccination movement first emerged during armed protests in numerous state capitols against coronavirus lockdown measures. That cross-pollination expanded over time.
On Jan. 6, while rioters advanced on the Capitol, numerous leading figures in the anti-vaccination movement were onstage nearby, holding their own rally to attack both the election results and Covid-19 vaccinations.
Events overshadowed their protest, but at least one outspoken activist, Dr. Simone Gold of Beverly Hills, Calif., was charged with breaching the Capitol. She called her arrest an attack on free speech. She was one of several doctors who appeared in a video last year spreading misleading claims about the coronavirus. Mr. Trump shared a version of the video, which Facebook, YouTube and Twitter removed after millions of viewers watched it.

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Dr. Simone Gold in a video for America’s Frontline Doctors, an organization accused of spreading misleading information about the coronavirus and possible treatments. She was later charged with breaching the Capitol.

In the months since inoculations started in December, the alliance grouping extremist organizations with the anti-vaccination movement has grown larger and more vocal, as conspiracy theories about vaccines proliferated while those about the presidential vote count receded.
With their protests continuing, far-right groups deployed many of the same talking points as the vaccination opponents. Prominent voices in both the “Stop the Steal” and the anti-vaccination movements helped to organize scattered rallies on March 20 against vaccines, masks and social distancing in American cities including Portland, Ore., and Raleigh, N.C., as well as in Australia, Canada and other countries around the world.
In April, a conference with the tagline “Learn How to Fight Back for Your Health and Freedom,” is set to bring together Trump allies like Michael Flynn and Sidney Powell along with high-profile members of the anti-vaccination effort.

Maligning the coronavirus vaccines is obviously not limited to extremist groups tied to the Capitol riot. There is deep partisanship over the vaccines generally.
One third of Republicans surveyed in a CBS News poll said that they would avoid getting vaccinated — compared with 10 percent of Democrats — and another 20 percent of Republicans said they were unsure. Other polls found similar trends.
About 100 members of the House of Representatives, roughly one-quarter, had not been vaccinated as of mid-March, according to Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, the House minority leader.
It is unclear where Mr. Trump will fit into the vaccine battle. The former president, who has been vaccinated, endorsed getting the shot recently, provoking some disbelief in QAnon and other chatrooms. “I would recommend it, and I would recommend it to a lot of people that don’t want to get it, and a lot of those people voted for me frankly,” he said in an interview with Fox News.

merlin_184997499_133f4fbb-75b2-45c4-8aa7-63260ce5f6c0-superJumbo.jpg
Protesters at anti-vaccination demonstrations are using similar imagery as those at “Stop the Steal” rallies.

Across right-wing channels online, certain constant memes have emerged attacking the vaccine, like a cartoon suggesting that what started with mask mandates will end with concentration camps run by FEMA for those who refuse vaccinations.
Numerous channels link to the government website called VAERS, for Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, to energize followers. It had reported 2,216 deaths among people vaccinated for the three months before March 22, with 126 million doses administered. The Covid-19 vaccines in use, like most vaccinations, are considered overwhelmingly safe, but inevitably a small percentage of recipients suffer adverse reactions, some of them severe. The deaths have not been directly linked to the vaccinations.

The raw, incomplete VAERS statistics are meant for scientists and medical professionals, but are widely used among extremist groups to try to undermine confidence in the vaccine. One video consisted of a person reading the details from the chart aloud barking “Murder” where the chart said “Death.”
On Telegram, channels frequented by tens of thousands of QAnon followers are full of videos warning of the dire consequences of taking the vaccine. For example, David Icke, a British serial conspiracy theorist, posted a video called “Murder by Vaccine” saying that it transformed the nature of the human body. (The claims that the vaccines change human DNA are false.)
Mr. Icke was previously best known for pushing the idea that the world was controlled by shape-shifting alien lizards who inhabited a global network of underground tunnels.
The general proliferation of conspiracy theories by QAnon followers for years has helped to create a shared vocabulary among far-right organizations, experts said, which smoothed the way for spreading false information about the vaccines. “The last year with Covid has just been a perfect storm that whatever your crazy conspiracy belief is, there is someone who has a Covid conspiracy to match it,” said Melissa Ryan, chief executive of Card Strategies, a consulting firm that researches disinformation.



CONTINUED:
Far-Right Extremists Move From ‘Stop the Steal’ to Stop the Vaccine - The New York Times (nytimes.com)


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A Media Journalist dies of Covid-19, weeks after vaccination
A 53-year-old journalist named Tofazzal Hossain has died of Covid-19 in Narsingdi, some 25 days after he was vaccinated. He was the news editor of the local weekly newspaper called “Narsingdi Khabar” and a member of the local press club.

According to journalists’ platform “Our Media, Our Rights”, he is the 45th newman to die of the fatal virus.

A diabetic for years, Tofazzal breathed his last while on his way to a Dhaka hospital around Wednesday early hours.

Earlier on February 25, he was administered the first jab of the Covid-19 vaccine at the Narsingdi District Hospital, his family members said.

Later on, his samples were tested on March 16, after the journalist suspected he had a fever.

Tofazzal tested positive for the viral disease and immediately afterwards, he went in isolation.

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Family members said he was not hospitalised as he did not have any respiratory complications since contracting Covid-19.

Narsingdi Press Club President Makhan Das seconded them, saying that Tofazzal did not show any signs or symptoms of the virus despite being infected by it.

However, on Monday night, Tofazzal started to have breathing difficulties, which caused them to rush him to Dhaka. But he died on the way.

The journalist was buried at Narsingdi town after his funeral prayers on Wednesday morning.



Another Covid19 Vaccination Coincidental Death
 
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