Coronavirus Global Updates. Jan 22: Europe Vaccine Delay; WHO Says Pfizer Shot Is Safe

Fri Jan 22 15:28:24 CAT 2021

Zimbabwe COVID19 Update

COVID-19 update: As at 21 January 2021, Zimbabwe had 30 047 confirmed cases, including 19 569 recoveries and 917 deaths. 

Europe Vaccine Delay; WHO Says Pfizer Shot Is Safe: Virus Update

Spain to Reach Herd Immunity by Summer, Premier Says 

Spain is looking to vaccinate 20 million citizens by the end of June, which will allow the population of 47 million to achieve herd immunity by the summer, according to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.

Speaking at a news conference in Zaragoza, Sanchez said current lockdown measures are sufficient to tame the latest wave of Covid-19 infections. “Very soon we will have more people who have been inoculated than those infected,” he said. “The vaccine will be the motor of an economic revival in 2021.”

U.K. Considers Paying People to Isolate Amid Rule Breaches 

U.K. government officials have suggested paying people to stay home if they test positive for coronavirus, amid concerns too many are failing to get tested or comply with the lockdown rules.

While the plan has not been given final approval, a draft government policy paper proposed payments of 500 pounds ($685). Currently only those on the lowest incomes receive support at this level if they’re told to quarantine.

Hungary Becomes First in EU to Buy Russia’s Covid-19 Vaccine 

Hungary became the first nation in the European Union to purchase Russia’s Covid-19 vaccine, buying 2 million doses as the country seeks to ramp-up inoculations that are slowing because of the slow delivery of western versions.

The Russian Sputnik V vaccines will arrive in three tranches, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Friday before meeting Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The first will include enough doses to vaccinate 300,000 people, the second 500,000 and the third 200,000 people, Szijjarto said. Each person needs two shots.

Pro-China H.K. Politicians to Be Vaccinated Before Residents: FT

More than 200 pro-China politicians in Hong Kong will receive Covid-19 vaccinations before other residents so they are able to attend the Chinese Communist party’s premier political event, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

A majority of the group would be traveling from Hong Kong to Shenzhen on Friday for the vaccine shot. The FT said the group represents Hong Kong on some of mainland China’s legislative bodies including the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and the National People’s Congress.

Swiss Administered Vaccinations Reach 169,783 

Switzerland has administered 169,783 vaccine doses as of Jan. 21, according to the health ministry. It’s the first time the nation publishes official data on inoculations, after giving the first shot on Dec. 23. That’s a rate of 1.97 administered doses per 100 people.

The government has been criticized for its delayed publication of the numbers, amid a perceived slow roll-out of inoculations in the country of 8.5 million.

Biden Seeks Immediate Help for Millions as Big Stimulus at Risk 

U.S. President Biden will mark his third day in office with executive actions to boost food assistance for impoverished Americans and use federal contracts as a step toward his proposed nationwide minimum-wage hike, seeking immediate help for an economy struggling to cope with Covid-19.

While consequential for those affected, the measures offer a shadow of the relief included in Biden’s $1.9 trillion Covid-19 aid plan. That package faces challenges in Congress after moderate Republicans this week said they saw no need to rush on another big spending bill after last month’s $900 billion effort.

Hong Kong to Set First Lockdown in Kowloon Area, Media Says 

The lockdown is expected to begin this weekend, and involves 150 residential buildings in Yau Tsim Mong, the core urban district of Kowloon, the South China Morning Post said. It will affect between 4,000 and 9,000 residents, covering a mandatory testing area where aging buildings and subdivided flats populated by lower-income families are common.

While reports first emerged early on Friday that the lockdown was coming, by 5 p.m. the government was still declining to comment, leading to confusion as media outlets revised their reporting. A spokeswoman for Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s office referred queries to the city’s food and health bureau. A representative for the bureau declined to comment, while Chuang Shuk-Kwan, a Hong Kong health official, also declined to comment on lockdown speculation during a daily briefing.

Agreement Boosts Rapid Test Availability in Poor Countries 

Unitaid and the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics announced an agreement to boost capacity of rapid antigen tests for Covid-19 in low- and middle-income countries and cut the price to $2.50 a test from $5. The agreement will provide 264 million kits over the coming year, half of the antigen tests that such countries are estimated to need.

Low and middle-income countries are testing people at a rate of 24 per 100,000
people compared to 252 in high-income countries, Unitaid said. The group is
funded by donors including France, the U.K., Norway and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Pfizer Vaccine Safe for Elderly Despite Norway Scare, WHO Says 

The World Health Organization said it sees no evidence that Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE’s Covid-19 vaccine contributed to the deaths of elderly people and urged that the shot still be used.

Reports of deaths “are in line with the expected, all-cause mortality rates and causes of death in the sub-population of frail, elderly individuals, and the available information does not confirm a contributory role for the vaccine in the reported fatal events,” the WHO Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety said in a statement on Friday. The risk-benefit balance of the vaccine “remains favorable in the elderly.”

Germany Sees Another Six to Eight Weeks of Vaccine Shortages 

Chancellor Angela’s Merkel’s chief of staff said Germany’s shortage of Covid-19 vaccine will last for the next six to eight weeks until more shots receive approval and companies can ramp up production.

“It was clear to us that we wouldn’t have so much vaccine available at the start,” Helge Braun, who runs Merkel’s office, said late Thursday on ARD television. Vaccines from AstraZeneca Plc and Johnson & Johnson are expected to be approved soon and that will help speed up the vaccination program, he added.

Shanghai Says 840,000 Vaccinated as New Covid Cases Emerge 

The city has vaccinated about 840,000 of its 24 million residents as of Friday, local health official Wu Jinglei said at a briefing.

Local authorities are currently prioritizing key categories such as medical staff and port workers in vaccination. A hotel in Shanghai’s Huangpu district has been classified as a medium-risk area because of a link to the country’s latest local Covid cases.

Johnson Signals Third U.K. Lockdown Could Last Into Summer 

The U.K.’s third coronavirus lockdown looks set to endure as the government warned it’s too early to contemplate easing restrictions.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Home Secretary Priti Patel did not repeat previous assurances that the U.K. will be getting back to normal by April, even as the mass vaccination program continued to expand to reach five million people.

Instead, the government focus shifted to reinforcing compliance with the current restrictions, amid concerns that too many people are still flouting the rules, making it harder to control the spread of the disease.

Italy Blames Pfizer Delays as Vaccinations Slow to a Crawl 

Italy’s coronavirus vaccination campaign could come to a near standstill next week amid rising anger across Europe over a slowdown in vaccine deliveries.

“We received 29% fewer doses this week, and there will be a further 20% decline next week” from Pfizer Inc. and its partner BioNTech SE, the country’s virus emergency czar Domenico Arcuri said in a press conference on Thursday. Since Saturday the pace of vaccinations has slowed to 28,000 a day from about 80,000, with shots halted altogether in some areas like Rome and the surrounding Lazio region.

Italy, which aims to vaccinate the whole population by this fall, is already delaying the next step in its campaign, which involves giving shots to those over 80. So far, the nation has vaccinated 1.3 million people, or 2.1% of the population.

Chinese Vaccine Maker to Offer Pakistan 20 Million Doses 

CanSino Biologics Inc. has offered 20 million shots to Pakistan as it gets ready to release efficacy results from phase III trials there, according to its local partner.

The Chinese maker of the single-shot vaccine will give Pakistan preferential access and pricing, said Hasan Abbas Zaheer, technical adviser at AJM Pharma Pvt., the local partner. It has already applied for approval from Pakistan’s drug regulator. The company also plans to cut the cost of procuring the vaccines by 25% by filling the vials locally.

India to Begin Vaccine Shipments to Brazil, Morocco 

India will begin commercial shipments of Covid-19 vaccines to Brazil and Morocco on Friday, followed by Saudi Arabia and South Africa. “There’s huge international demand for our vaccines,” Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla told Bloomberg TV.

Residents of Shanghai Area Banned from Leaving City 

Residents of an area of Shanghai have been banned from leaving the city after six Covid cases were found in the finance hub, the first cases there in almost two months. The National Health Commission also reported 47 cases in Heilongjiang province on Friday, as well as three in Beijing.

Beijing is expanding testing in two central districts that are home to almost 2 million residents. Schools in Beijing will be suspended from Saturday, and one Beijing district and multiple cities in neighboring Hebei province have been put under lockdown.

Mexico Reports Record Daily Death Toll 

Mexico saw 1,803 deaths from Covid, the country’s Health Ministry said Thursday evening, the second single-day record this week.

France to Require PCR Tests for All Travelers: Reuters 

French President Emmanuel Macron told European Union counterparts France would make PCR tests compulsory for all travelers into France from Sunday, including from fellow EU countries, his office said Thursday, according to a Reuters report. The test will have to be carried out no later than 72 hours before departure, according to the report.

Indonesia Sees Record Death Count 

Indonesia recorded its highest Covid death toll since the outbreak began as movement restrictions were extended for two more weeks in Java and Bali. The authorities confirmed 346 deaths in the 24 hours through midday Thursday, taking the total to more than 27,000.

After the restrictions were extended, Resorts World Genting, the hilltop casino, said it will close for two weeks.

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