Published17 hours agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, Austrian Criminal Intelligence ServiceBy Bethany BellBBC News, ViennaSeveral Austrians have been treated in hospital after using what was believed to be fake weight-loss drug, Ozempic.Austria’s Federal Office for Safety in Health Care, the BASG, said they had reported “serious side effects” including low blood sugar and seizures.This indicated that the drugs “falsely contained insulin” instead of Ozempic’s active ingredient, semaglutide, the BASG said.The drug has become popular as a weight-loss treatment.An investigation is under way.The Austrian Criminal Intelligence Service, the BK, said those affected had received the syringes from a doctor based in Austria.It warned that stocks of the fake drug may still be in circulation. The counterfeit injection pens were coloured a darker blue than the genuine items, it added.Austria’s Federal Office for Safety in Health Care has called on doctors and patients to check their supplies. “Ozempic has been increasingly used as a “weight-loss” medication, for which the medicinal product is not approved,” it saidBoth the Austrian police and the Ministry of Health have warned the public against using so-called weight-loss injections from “dubious sources”.Weight-loss drug semaglutide approved for NHS useDiabetes drug shortage after weight loss useWeight-loss drug approved for use by NHS ScotlandThe European Medicines Agency, the EMA, recently warned that the increase in demand for Ozempic had led to “a shortage situation” for diabetic patients. Last week, the EMA and the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) warned that counterfeit Ozempic injection pens, from suppliers in Austria and Germany, had been identified at wholesalers in the UK and the EU. The MHRA said: “All affected pens have been recalled and accounted for, and none of the pens have been supplied to UK patients.”It was working closely with its regulatory partners internationally “to continue to maintain the security of the wider supply chain, both at home and abroad”, it said.

SharecloseShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingA new law comes into force in Austria this week that makes vaccination against Covid-19 compulsory for anyone over-18. Several countries have introduced mandates for the elderly or medical staff, but this is the first nation in Europe to adopt such sweeping measures. LOu Moser, a ceramic artist who lives south of Vienna, is not vaccinated against Covid-19 and neither is her husband, Gus. They strongly disagree with Austria’s new vaccine mandate.Vaccination, she says, should be a personal choice. “I’ve had Covid-19. And so I actually don’t see the point of being jabbed when I’ve got sufficient antibodies,” LOu tells me. “And so I chose not to get vaccinated. And it’s not for any authority to tell me what to put into my body.””It has shown that the vaccines haven’t really stopped the pandemic yet,” LOu says.BBCPeople keep being vaccinated, and they’re still getting ill from Covid-19. Maybe not as badly, but they’re still getting ill.LOu MoserAustrian ceramic artistAustria’s government says vaccinations are effective at combating severe disease, and that the law is needed to prevent future lockdowns. Karoline Edtstadler, minister for the EU and Constitution, says the government is “very aware that it is really a strong step and really hard measure”.But, she says, it is necessary. BBCWe as politicians have the responsibility to be sure that the healthcare system is still working, that society, as a whole, can live normallyKaroline EdtstadlerMinister for EU and ConstitutionShe says, though, that mandatory vaccination is an “interference with human rights”. “But in this case, this interference can be justified,” she adds. “We have the need to get out of the pandemic and we know that vaccination is the only way to get out of it and to get back to a normal life.”Image source, Getty ImagesThe vaccine mandate, she says, will expire in January 2024, and could be ended earlier if the pandemic allows. The law comes into force on 3 February, but the authorities will not start checking people’s vaccination status until mid-March. Those who refuse to get the shot will face fines ranging from €600 (£500; $670) to €3,600. Exceptions apply for those who cannot get vaccinated for medical reasons or who are pregnant. About 72% of Austrians are fully vaccinated. At a vaccination centre at Vienna’s St Stephan’s cathedral, Carlos is having a booster shot. It was an easy decision, he says. “I wanted to get vaccinated because I want to protect my family and the people I know,” he tells me. “I want to travel and it’s for me easier when I’ve been vaccinated for the third time.”Dr Klaus Markstaller, head of Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care at the Medical University of Vienna and the city’s biggest hospital, says the vaccine saves lives.”It’s clearly shown that the vaccination impedes severe courses of the disease, and therefore it reduces ICU admissions significantly,” he says. “So if you want to reduce your personal risk significantly, and the risk for your loved ones, get vaccinated.”Image source, Getty ImagesSome Austrians are wondering how strictly the law will be enforced. Thomas Hofer, a political analyst, says it all depends on how Covid-19 spreads in the future. “I think a lot of people hope that this won’t be as strict as the government proposed in the first place. I think there’s some kind of Austrian solution, which means, you’re never carrying it the whole way through,” he says.”Even the government might think, okay, maybe in March or April, it’s not necessary anymore. But it depends on how the pandemic develops, if it comes back in the autumn and winter.”But strong resistance to the vaccine mandate remains. The far-right, anti-vaccine Freedom Party says it will fight the measure in court. Its leader, Herbert Kickl, has said the law “paves the way to totalitarianism in Austria”.Many opponents of the law are taking to the streets. Demonstrators from many different parts of society have protested, week after week, against mandatory vaccinations and Covid-related restrictions. CONTEXT: Mandatory jabs: Three reasons for and againstIN CHARTS: Tracking the pandemicAt a protest in Vienna on Saturday, one woman told me she was pleased to be vaccinated but opposed compulsory jabs. On a podium behind her, an anti-vaxxer told a cheering crowd the Covid-19 vaccine was “the biggest genocide” in history.Austria has gone farther than any of its neighbours with this vaccine mandate. Other European countries will be watching closely.

SharecloseShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, ReutersCarina, a yoga teacher in Vienna, is not vaccinated against Covid-19 and wants to remain that way. So she is now under lockdown, like around two million other unvaccinated Austrians.She is only allowed to leave her home for essential reasons like work or shopping for food, and is barred from cafés and restaurants. So I met her in a Vienna park, where she is allowed to take exercise. Carina says she doesn’t understand the rationale behind the lockdown and that it makes her feel sad.”I was walking by some cafes this morning,” she told me. “It’s a bit strange to look inside and to know that I couldn’t go in. It makes you feel really excluded, and ostracised.” “I’m one of these people that is made into the enemy,” she said. “And that doesn’t sit well.””I don’t want people to get sick. I am careful. I get tested. I’m not at very great risk [from Covid-19] and I feel like it’s a very personal decision. I understand people who do get vaccinated and when people don’t want to get vaccinated.”There have been demonstrations in several parts of the country in protest against the lockdown. Police say they’ll carry out random spot checks on people in public places and fine anyone who can’t show a certification of vaccination or recovery. Austria introduces lockdown for unvaccinatedCovid passes set to stay as Europe heads for winterHow fast is vaccine progress around the world?Around 65% of Austria’s population is fully vaccinated, one of the lowest rates in western Europe.The country is currently seeing the highest rate of daily infections for Covid-19 since the pandemic began.Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg says the government was forced to act because of the surge in new infections.He said the vaccination rate was “shamefully low” and would “keep us trapped in a vicious circle, from one lockdown to the next”.Since the measures tightened, more Austrians have been getting jabbed. Long lines have formed outside one Vienna vaccination centre. Some were coming for booster shots, others for their first injections. Image source, ReutersDr Thomas Szekeres, head of the Austrian Medical Chamber, says he is hoping the vaccination rate will rise to 80% or more. “We know that vaccination is the only way to decrease the number of infections,” he says. “We know this from other countries. We hope that the lockdown for unvaccinated Austrians will be enough to decrease the number of infections. But the experts are not sure about that. Maybe we will need additional measures to reach the goal to decrease the number.”Many Austrians have welcomed the increase in vaccinations, but some are concerned the lockdown for the unvaccinated isn’t constitutional.Karl Weller, a Viennese businessman, told me he is very much in favour of the jab. “It is necessary for our health and our economy,” he said. “But I think it’s a catastrophe, to divide between the vaccinated and not vaccinated. People start to become more and more angry and they are afraid.” Shopping for clothes and other non-essentials is now only possible for the vaccinated. Doris, who was out in central Vienna, said she was losing patience with those who refuse to get jabbed. “The only solution is that we all have to be vaccinated. That’s the only solution. Otherwise, we have the problem for quite a long time. And we really want to get rid of it.”