Samrc
Govt urged to tighten regulations on alcohol sales amid COVID-19 second wave
With hospitals groaning under the weight of COVID-19 cases, health authorities are stressing avoidable alcohol-related trauma is putting undue strain on the...
Saapa, which is comprised of about 20 civil rights groups, held a press briefing on Wednesday calling for tighter measures around alcohol consumption to be put in place.
On Wednesday evening, President Cyril Ramaphosa said the country now had better capacity to increase testing for the coronavirus.
That is one of the findings of a local population cohort study probing risk factors for COVID-19 deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The research was conducted by the RTMC in collaboration with the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC), and the University of South Africa (Unisa).
How deadly has COVID-19 been in South Africa? Is the country’s death rate really the world’s lowest? Africa Check takes a look.
Two council experts have analysed data, which shows the anticipated pressure on hospital resources due to a surge in COVID-19 infections hasn't materialised at least for now.
The sector has welcomed suggestions from the council that the prohibition should be stopped because there is no severe pressure on hospital beds set aside to treat COVID-19 patients.
The South African Medical Research Council is advocating raising the legal drinking age from 18 years to 19 or 21, as well as higher prices and taxes on alcohol.
The institution said 2,000 people between the ages of 18 and 65 would be enrolled for the trial, which was expected to be run at multiple sites in South Africa.
The council has received around thirty applications from innovators for the development of local diagnostics and reagents.
On Tuesday, the council released a statement apologising to the department, following a public row between the SAMRC's Glenda Gray and Health Minister Zweli Mkhize.
In another potential breakthrough in the search for treatment, an antibody from a patient who recovered from the severe acute respiratory syndrome or Sars has been shown to block COVID-19 infection in a laboratory setting.
Construction at the African Genomics Centre is underway and is expected to be completed in June.
The SAMRC aims to create an HIV vaccine that caters for the South African conditions and environment.