Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
U.S. administers 367.9 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines – CDC
The United States has administered 367,911,870 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Saturday morning and distributed 439,428,235 doses, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Those figures are up from the 366,838,484 vaccine doses the CDC said had gone into arms by Aug. 27 out of 437,567,285 doses delivered.
Thailand to allow local flights to resume in COVID-risk areas
Thailand will allow some domestic flights to and from Bangkok and other high-risk areas for COVID-19 to resume from Sept. 1, the country’s aviation authority said Sunday, to help boost economic activity. The announcement follows the easing of tough restrictions in 29 high-risk provinces from next month, including allowing more provincial travel and the reopening of shopping malls, as the government tries to revive a struggling economy hit by the outbreak.
Australia’s COVID-19 cases hit new record as ‘reopening’ debate heats up
Australia logged a record 1,323 local COVID-19 cases on Sunday as debate rages on whether the country should start living with the virus in the community, after initially being successful with suppressing coronavirus. Australia’s most populous state New South Wales (NSW), the epicenter of the nation’s Delta-fuelled outbreak, reported 1,218 cases as authorities there are set to slightly ease restrictions after nine weeks in lockdown. The lockdown is scheduled to last until the end of September.
Yemen gets first batch of J&J COVID-19 vaccines
Yemen received its first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines made by Johnson & Johnson on Sunday, roughly 151,000 doses, the health ministry said. The desperately poor country, where health infrastructure has been devastated by six years of war, received 360,000 doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine in March through COVAX.
India’s new COVID-19 cases rise by 45,083
India reported 45,083 new coronavirus infections on Sunday, according to data from the health ministry, driven by surging cases in the southern state of Kerala. The country’s COVID-19 cases stood at about 32.7 million, with deaths rising by 460 to 437,830 in the last 24 hours, data showed.
German region plans tougher restrictions for unvaccinated
At least one region in Germany is planning to impose tougher restrictions on people who are not vaccinated against COVID-19 as the country faces a fourth wave of the pandemic, a state official was quoted as saying on Sunday. The German government currently requires people to be vaccinated, test negative or have a recovery certificate to enter indoor restaurants, visit hospitals and nursing homes and attend events, parties or do sports inside
New Zealand reports 83 local COVID-19 cases as Delta outbreak grows
New Zealand reported 83 locally acquired cases on Sunday of the highly infectious Delta coronavirus variant, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saying that some changes on how the outbreak is managed could be announced on Monday. Ardern on Friday extended the lockdown for the country of 5.1 million until midnight on Tuesday, after which the restrictions were to ease slightly. Auckland, however, which is the epicenter of the outbreak was to remain locked down for longer
Japan eyes mixed use of COVID-19 shots to speed vaccine rollout
Japan is looking into the possibility of mixing shots of AstraZeneca Plc’s COVID-19 vaccine with those developed by other drugmakers in a bid to speed up its vaccine rollout, the minister in charge of vaccinations said on Sunday. Japan, which has previously relied on the Pfizer Inc/BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc vaccines, approved AstraZeneca’s vaccine in July and has secured two million doses.
China reports 33 COVID-19 cases for Aug 28, none local
China reported 33 confirmed coronavirus cases in the mainland for Aug. 28, up from 21 a day earlier, according to the National Health Commission on Saturday. All the cases were imported, the health authority said, compared with one local infection the previous day.
Singapore fully vaccinates 80% of population against COVID-19
Singapore has fully inoculated 80% of its 5.7 million people against COVID-19, the health minister said on Sunday, becoming the world’s most vaccinated country and setting the stage for further easing of curbs. “We have crossed another milestone, where 80% of our population has received their full regimen of two doses,” Ong Ye Kung said in a Facebook post.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
