The National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has proposed the death penalty for drug peddlers. According to the DG of the agency Mojisola Adeyeye, only stiff penalities will deter peddlers especially when it leads to the death of the children.
The Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN) has established a fully equipped Lassa fever testing laboratory at the Infectious Disease Hospital in Akure, the capital of Ondo State. Previously, suspected Lassa fever cases in the state were sent to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Owo for testing and confirmation. However, with the new facility, testing can now be done within Akure, improving response time. Since the recent outbreak, Ondo State has recorded 400 suspected cases, with over 100 confirmed infections and several fatalities.
To address the nationwide strike by the health workers in their demand for implementation of CONMESS and CONHESS for Doctors and health workers, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved an extension in the retirement age for medical doctors and other allied healthcare workers from 60 to 65 years.
The Plateau State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Cletus Shurkuk, confirmed over the weekend in Jos that the state has recorded three cases of Lassa fever, resulting in two fatalities. According to Dr. Shurkuk, the cases were identified in Kanam and Shendam Local Government Areas (LGAs). One patient passed away in Shendam, while the other succumbed at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital in Bauchi. The third patient is currently receiving treatment.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has intensified alertness at the country’s points of entry, including airports, subsequent to the confirmation of an Ebola Virus Disease outbreak in Uganda.
The US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has issued an emergency humanitarian waiver allowing the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to continue providing life-saving HIV treatment in low-income countries. PEPFAR supports over 20 million people living with HIV, making up two-thirds of all people receiving treatment globally. However, its funding was temporarily halted for at least 90 days following President Donald Trump’s Executive Order on Foreign Aid, leaving millions uncertain about their treatment.
