FDA gives full approval to Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine– latest updates

Monday, August 23, 2021

FDA gives full approval to Pfizer vaccine

The US gave full approval to Pfizer's vaccine, a milestone that could lift public confidence in the shots and spur more companies, universities and local governments to make vaccinations mandatory.

The formula made by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech now carries the strongest endorsement from the Food and Drug Administration, which has never before had so much evidence to judge a shot’s safety.

More than 200 million Pfizer doses have been administered in the US - and hundreds of millions more worldwide - since December. But up to now, they were dispensed in this country under what is known as emergency use authorisation from the FDA.

France's hospitalisations above 11,000 for first time since early June

French health authorities said the number of people hospitalised for rose by 356 over 24 hours to 11,007, the first time the figure exceeded 11,000 in more than two months.

Patients treated in intensive care units for the disease increased by 87 to 2,215, the highest since June 10. 

Italy reports 44 deaths on Monday, 4,168 new cases

 Italy reported 44 coronavirus-related deaths compared with 23 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections fell to 4,168 from 5,923.

Italy has registered 128,795 deaths since its outbreak emerged in February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the eighth-highest in the world. The country has reported 4.49 million cases to date.

Patients in hospital - not including those in intensive care - stood at 3,928 on Monday up from 3,767 a day earlier.

There were 45 new admissions to intensive care units, up from 33 on Sunday. The total number of intensive care patients increased to 485 from a previous 472.

Some 101,341 tests were carried out in the past day, compared with a previous 175,539, the health ministry said. 

UK reports 31,914 new cases, 40 deaths

Britain reported 31,914 new cases while a further 40 people were recorded as having died within 28 days of a positive test.

The data compared with 32,253 cases reported on Sunday and 49 deaths. 

Egypt to intensify vaccination ahead of a fourth wave

Egypt will vaccinate all 4.5 million of its state employees in August and September as it seeks to accelerate vaccinations ahead of a likely fourth wave of infections, the health minister said on Monday.

The country's infection rate is still low but started to increase last week and the upward curve is expected to continue for a while, Hala Zayed told a briefing, adding that a significant increase is expected in late September.

"It is important for the Egyptian government and the political leadership that we work to intensify vaccinations in the coming period," Zayed said.

As part of the programme, all workers in pre-university education, university employees and university students - a total of more than 5 million people - will be vaccinated before the start of the academic year in October, she said.

So far, about 10 million people out of Egypt's population of just over 100 million have registered online to get vaccinated and nearly 7.5 million have received at least one dose, Zayed said.

Indonesia to allow restaurants, shops to reopen in Jakarta, Bali

Indonesia will from Tuesday start to allow the partial reopening of restaurants, shopping malls and places of worship in some areas, including in the capital Jakarta and the holiday island of Bali, President Joko Widodo said on Monday.

Places of worship and restaurants will be allowed to operate at 25 percent capacity while shopping malls will be allowed to operate at 50 percent capacity in those areas, the president said during a virtual press conference.

Since a peak of new infections in Indonesia on July 15, new cases have fallen 78 percent, he added.

Oman to allow entry to vaccine certificate holders

Oman will allow anyone holding a vaccine certificate to travel to the country from Sept. 1, the civil aviation authority said.

The authority said it had dropped a list of countries from which arrivals were banned due to the pandemic. 

UK orders 35 million more Pfizer/BioNTech Covid vaccines

Britain has agreed to buy 35 million more doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, to be delivered from the second half of next year, as part of its preparations for booster shots and any new variants that could emerge.

"While we continue to build this wall of defence from Covid-19, it's also vital we do everything we can to protect the country for the future too – whether that's from the virus as we know it or new variants," health minister Sajid Javid said. 

Booster covid-19 shots should be delayed: WHO

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that booster shots should be delayed as priority should be given to raising vaccination rates in countries where only 1 percent or 2 percent of the population has been inoculated.

If vaccination rates are not raised globally, stronger variants of the coronavirus could develop and vaccines intended as booster shots should be donated to countries where people have not received their first or second doses, he said during visit to Budapest.

Japan asks Tokyo hospitals to accept more patients

The Japanese government and the Tokyo Metropolitan government appealed to hospitals in the capital to accept more patients as increasing infections has made it increasingly difficult to get access to care.

Fewer than one in 10 coronavirus patients is hospitalised in Tokyo, fuelling public frustration with the government's response and undermining voter support for Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

"The Delta variant's strong infectiousness just isn't comparable to previous ones," said Health Minister Norihisa Tamura, as he stood with Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike.

"We would like to have further support from the medical community to secure hospital beds for coronavirus patients."

Philippines reports record virus cases 

The Philippines health ministry reported a record 18,332 infections and for the first time acknowledged community transmission of the highly contagious Delta variant of the virus in its capital region.

The region, an urban sprawl containing the capital, Manila, and 16 cities home to more than 13 million people, had been subject to strict lockdown measures which were relaxed for 10 days from August 21 to allow more businesses to operate.

“Widespread lockdown or restrictions are no longer effective in the country,” health ministry spokesperson Maria Rosario Vergeire told a regular news conference on Monday. “It would be more effective if restrictions were loosened a bit and if lockdowns were more targeted”.

Russia's daily cases below 20,000 for first time since June 23

Russia reported 19,454 new cases, the first time the daily tally has dipped below 20,000 since June 23 as authorities blamed a case surge on the infectious Delta variant.

The government coronavirus task force also reported 776 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours nationwide.

India reports 25,072 new cases

India reported 25,072 new infections in the last 24 hours, the lowest in 160 days, the government said in a statement. 

New Zealand lockdown to be extended 

New Zealand is set to stay in  lockdown until at least midnight Friday, New Zealand Herald reported without giving the source of the information.

Auckland, which is the epicentre of the latest Delta variant outbreak, may be in lockdown for longer, the report said.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is expected to announce a decision shortly on whether she will extend or end the lockdown.

Currently, the country of 5.1 million is under lockdown until midnight on Tuesday. 

Israel to offer Covid jabs in schools to avoid closures

Israel said it would offer vaccinations to students on school grounds as it announced the school year would open on time next week, despite surging coronavirus cases.

"Pupils... will be vaccinated on school grounds during school hours, subject to parental approval," a government statement said, confirming classes would begin on September 1.

Israeli leaders say they are trying to avoid repeating disruptive school closures amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The country has seen a steep rise in coronavirus infections after months when its world-beating vaccine ca mpaign drove down cases.

The health ministry said that 6,467 new Covid cases were recorded in Israel a day prior, with 1,142 people hospitalised.

About 30 percent of children aged 12-15 have received two vaccine doses in Israel, far less than any other age group.

Vietnam imposes strict lockdown in southern city

Vietnam’s largest metropolis, Ho Chi Minh City, began a strict lockdown in an attempt to curb its worst outbreak, a day before US Vice President Kamala Harris arrives in the country on a state visit.

People in high-risk districts are not allowed to leave home under the tight restrictions, which will remain in effect for at least two weeks. The city said it has mobilised police and army troops to monitor the lockdown and to deliver food as other necessities to each household.

Officials hope to flatten the surge and ease the pressure on the overloaded health care system by asking people to “stay put” and "stay in.” Since the wave of infections began at the end of April, Vietnam has reported 344,000 cases, with Ho Chi Minh City and neighbouring Binh Duong accounting for most of them.

Taiwan to start contested roll-out of first domestic Covid shot

Taiwan will begin administering its first domestically-developed Covid-19 vaccine, with President Tsai Ing-wen leading the way in getting the shot as the government casts aside objections that they have rushed the approval process.

The government last month approved the emergency use of Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp's Covid-19 vaccine, part of a broader plan for inoculation self-sufficiency as delays in vaccine deliveries from global drug companies have affected Taiwan and many other countries.

More than 700,000 people have signed up so far to receive the Medigen vaccine. 

To demonstrate her confidence in the shot and prove it is safe, Tsai has held off on using vaccines from Moderna  or AstraZeneca, the current mainstay of Taiwan's vaccination programme.

Medigen, whose Chinese name literally means "high-end", rejects claims its vaccine is either unsafe or that it has been sent to market with undue haste, saying it is effective and well tested.

Mexico reports 7,658 new cases, 228 more deaths

Mexico's health ministry reported 7,658 new cases of Covid-19 and 228 more deaths, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country since the pandemic began to 3,225,073 and the death toll to 253,155.

Israel launches Covid antibody tests for children as young as 3

Israel launched antibody testing for children aged as young as three, seeking information on the number of unvaccinated youths who have developed protection against coronavirus ahead of the new school year.

Despite surging daily infections caused by the highly transmissible Delta variant, Israel's government insists it wants to avoid the hardships and developmental setbacks caused by school closures.

Israel has already begun vaccinating children aged 12 and above.

Brazil reports 14,404 new infections, 318 deaths

Brazil recorded 14,404 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, along with 318 deaths from Covid-19, the health ministry said.

Brazil has registered more than 20 million cases since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 574,527, according to ministry data.

Italy reports 5,923 new cases, 23 more deaths

Italy reported 23 coronavirus-related deaths, compared with 45 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections fell to 5,923 from 7,470.

Italy has registered 128,751 deaths linked to Covid-19 since its outbreak emerged in February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the eighth-highest in the world. 

The country has reported 4.48 million cases to date.

Titans coach Mike Vrabel tests positive for Covid-19

Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel announced that he has tested positive for Covid-19.

Vrabel, 46, said he is quarantining away from the team following getting tested after developing a sore throat. 

He said he will lean on Titans assistants Jim Haslett and Jim Schwartz, both former NFL head coaches, in his absence.

US administers 362.7 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine

The United States has administered 362,657,771 doses of Covid-19 vaccines in the country and distributed 428,531,345 doses, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

The agency said 201,425,785 people had received at least one dose, while 170,821,621 people are fully vaccinated.