Covid-19 has infected more than 278M people and killed over 5.4M worldwide. Here are some of the latest coronavirus-related developments:
Friday, December 24, 2021
Japan health panel approves Merck’s oral Covid-19 treatment
A Japanese health ministry panel has recommended approval of the Covid-19 antiviral pill developed by Merck & Co Inc, part of plans by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to roll out new treatments by yearend as concerns rise about the Omicron variant.
The panel decision sets the stage for shipments of 200,000 doses across the country from this weekend, based on preparations announced earlier by Kishida.
Japan is betting heavily on oral treatments to keep serious infections and deaths at bay should a feared sixth wave of the pandemic emerge.
Bhutan starts giving booster doses
Bhutan has started giving booster shots of the Covid-19 vaccine to senior citizens and priority groups as the Himalayan kingdom counters the spread of the Omicron variant of coronavirus.
Those aged 65 and older, overseas travellers, health workers, sufferers from chronic medical woes, and all adults living in “high risk” areas were eligible, health ministry officials said.
“Bhutan becomes the first country in the South Asian region to administer booster doses,” public service broadcaster BBS said in a report.
The Kuensel newspaper said Bhutan, with a vaccine stock exceeding 250,000 doses, planned to inoculate more than 228,000 people in a week.
France recommends booster jab 3 months after initial vaccines
France has recommended that adults receive a Covid-19 booster vaccination three months after their initial jabs, reducing the guideline of five months to better fight the Omicron variant.
The recommendation was published by the country’s HAS health authority, which advises the government in the fight against amid surging cases in France during the Christmas period.
The HAS also recommended that the booster rollout be expanded to now include teenagers who are deemed to be at risk, days after France opened up the vaccination rollout to children aged five and over.
South Africa to roll out boosters immediately
South Africa will start offering booster shots of Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) Covid-19 vaccine from Friday.
The health department’s announcement came a day after its approval for use as a booster by the health regulator.
Both J&J and Pfizer Covid-19 shots have been authorised as boosters by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA), but the move opens up boosters to the general public for the first time.
So far, only J&J booster shots have been available for health workers.
Italy reports highest daily Covid cases since pandemic
Italy has reported 44,595 new Covid-19 infections Thursday, the highest daily figure since the start of the pandemic.
The Italian news agency ANSA reported that the previous record was 40,902 on November 13, 2020.
With the latest daily figures, the number of overall infections in the country has reached over 5.51 million, according to the Health Ministry.
In the past 24 hours, 168 people in Italy lost their lives due to Covid-19, taking the country’s overall death toll to 136,245.
US sets shorter Covid isolation rules for health workers
Worried that a new Covid-19 wave could overwhelm understaffed US hospitals, federal officials have loosened rules that call on health care workers to stay out of work for 10 days if they test positive.
Those workers now will be allowed to come back to work after seven days if they test negative and don’t have symptoms. Isolation time can be cut to five days, or even fewer, if there are severe staffing shortages, according to the new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance.
CDC officials have advised that in calculating the 10-day isolation period, the first day should be the first full day after symptoms first developed or after a positive test.
Australia to shorten booster intervals
Australia would further shorten the wait time for people to receive their Covid-19 booster shots, Health Minister Greg Hunt said, as the country grapples with record infections fuelled by the Omicron variant.
Booster shots will be offered from Jan. 4 to everyone over 18 who had their second shot four months earlier and the interval will be again reduced to three months by the end of January.
Australia has been looking to ramp up the rollout of boosters after becoming one of the world’s most-vaccinated countries against Covid-19, with more than 90 percent of people over the age of 16 having received two doses.
New York to limit New Year’s celebration scale
New York will sharply limit the number of people it allows in Times Square for its New Year’s Eve celebration, Mayor Bill de Blasio has said, in response to a surge of new coronavirus cases fueled by the highly contagious Omicron variant.
For the second year in a row, the virus that causes Covid-19 is casting a shadow over the festivities, which typically draws huge crowds to the famed intersection in midtown Manhattan.
After hours of live entertainment, the evening culminates with the dropping of a giant crystal ball at midnight, signaling the start of the new year.
Last year, when Covid-19 vaccines were in the early stages of rolling out, the celebration was open to only a handful of invited guests, including essential workers and their families.
Source: TRTWorld and agencies
Japan approves Merck’s oral Covid-19 treatment – latest updates
Source: Pinay Pop Showbiz
