Coronavirus Case and Fatality Rate in India, Coronavirus Third Wave Updates, Covid August 19 Latest News: From Wednesday’s 35,178, India saw a jump of nearly 4 per cent in daily caseload to 36,401 today. The number of Covid fatalities also breached the 500-mark with 530 new corona deaths registered across the country in the last 24 hours, the health bulletin said. The good news is that the R-factor value has gone down below 1. This means that the rate of virus transmission has declined. In terms of recovery rate, the latest government data says that India’s current recovery rate stands at 97.53 per cent, which is the highest since March last year. The Covid recoveries outnumbered the new corona infections. The health bulletin says that 39,157 people were cured of Covid-19 in the last 24 hours.
Another significant number is the ICMR’s new milestone. The latest updates say that the ICMR has achieved a new figure in terms of total tests conducted in the country. The ICMR has conducted 50 crore Covid tests since the pandemic began, the bulletin says. In terms of daily vaccination, the CoWin data says that 56,36,336 people were vaccinated against the novel coronavirus in the last 24 hours. This is the second consecutive day when the daily Covid jabs have crossed the 50 lakh mark.
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West Bengal’s COVID-19 tally increased to 15,40,989 on Thursday as 731 more people tested positive for the infection, while 12 fresh fatalities pushed the state’s coronavirus death toll to 18,337, a health bulletin said.
The highest number of 89 new cases were reported from the metropolis.
As many as 781 people were cured of the disease in the last 24 hours, taking the recovery rate to 98.18 per cent.
The state now has 9,653 active cases, while 15,12,999 people have recovered thus far, it said.
West Bengal has tested 1,65,39,192 samples for COVID-19, including 45,115 in the last 24 hours. (PTI)
The national capital’s stock of anti-coronavirus vaccine will only last for three days, according to a vaccination bulletin issued by the Delhi government on Thursday.
As of Thursday morning, the balance stock of the vaccines — Covaxin and Covishield — was 2,36,330 and 3,05,990 doses, respectively, it said.
The bulletin stated that 30,160 doses of Covaxin were added to the stock on Wednesday.
In all, the Delhi government has received 1,11,53,350 doses of vaccine to date, out of which, 27,58,660 doses were of Covaxin, and the remaining Covishield.
The city has administered 1,19,71,576 doses of vaccine, including those given at private facilities, out of which, 85,79,961 were first doses and 33,91,615 second jabs, as per the bulletin.
On Wednesday, 1,37,938 vaccine doses were administered. Of these, 1,01,704 were first doses and 36,234 second doses, it said.
Delhi’s current vaccination capacity is 1,77,496 doses per day, it added. (PTI)
Madhya Pradesh on Thursday recorded 18 fresh cases of coronavirus that took its tally of infections to 7,92,081, an official from the health department said.
The count of recoveries rose to 7,81,471, while the toll remained unchanged at 10,515, the official said, adding that the central state is left with 95 active cases.
With the addition of 77,676 swab samples tested during the day, the total number of tests conducted in the state rose to 1,58,04,131, the official said.
As per an official release, a total of 3,95,80,879 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered so far in the state, of which 4,27,870 jabs were given on Thursday.
Coronavirus figures in MP are as follows: Total cases 7,92,081, new cases 18, death toll 10,515, recovered 7,81,471, active cases 95, number of tests so far 1,58,04,131. (PTI)
Section 144 CrPC imposed in Dholpur district, Rajasthan in wake of #COVID19 situation. Organisation of public, social, political, entertainment, educational, cultural & religious gatherings/processions/festivals will not be allowed. This will come into effect from 20th August. (ANI)
Haryana on Thursday reported two Covid-related fatalities taking the cumulative toll to 9,664 while 25 new infections pushed the total case count to 7,70,291, a health bulletin said.
According to the health department’s daily bulletin, the latest deaths were reported from Hisar and Fatehabad districts, it said.
Of the news cases, five were reported from Gurgaon, while four cases were from Yamunanagar district among others.
There are 671 active Covid cases in the state, while the total recoveries so far are 7,59,956.
The state’s recovery rate is 98.66 percent, the bulletin said. (PTI)
Delhi government directs schools in national capital to ensure that students who have become orphans or lost a parent after March last year, either due to COVID-19 or otherwise, be adjusted in same school and offered free education (PTI)
Maharashtra reported 5,225 new coronavirus cases and 154 deaths on Thursday, while 5,557 more patients recovered from the infection, a health department official said. With the new additions, the state’s COVID-19 caseload rose to 64,11,570, while the death toll increased to 1,35,567, he said.
Nandurbar district in north Maharashtra remained without a single active COVID-19 case for the fourth day in a row. The official said 5,557 patients were discharged from hospitals during the day, taking the cumulative recovery count to 62,14,921. There are 57,579 active cases in the state at present.
Maharashtra’s COVID-19 recovery rate stands at 96.93 per cent, while the fatality rate is 2.11 per cent, he said.
As many as 2,25,870 coronavirus tests were conducted across the state in the last 24 hours, pushing the overall test count to 5,17,14,950, the official said. He said Ahmednagar district reported the highest number of 762 new infections, followed by Satara at 707 infections. Satara district topped the list of fatalities with 37 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Among the eight regions of Maharashtra, Pune reported the highest number of 2,427 new COVID-19 cases, followed by 880 cases from the Kolhapur region. The Nashik region reported 870 new cases, Mumbai 736, Latur 243, Aurangabad 28, Akola 30 and the Nagpur region 11, the official said.
According to the official, of the 154 deaths reported during the day, the highest number of 67 fatalities were reported from the Pune region, followed by 39 from Kolhapur and 18 from the Nashik region. Mumbai and Latur regions reported 23 and four deaths, respectively. Aurangabad and Nagpur regions reported two and one death, respectively, while the Akola region did not report any fresh fatality, he said.
The official said Mumbai witnessed 282 new cases and five deaths, while Pune city reported 270 infections and seven fresh fatalities. Among 57,579 patients currently under treatment in the state, Pune district accounts for the highest at 12,904, he said.
Out of the 62,14,921 patients who have recovered from coronavirus in Maharashtra so far, the highest count – 10,75,596 – was from Pune district, the official said.
The coronavirus figures of Maharashtra are as follows: Total cases 64,11,570, new cases 5,225, death toll 1,35,567, recoveries 62,14,921, active cases 57,579, total number of tests 5,17,14,950. (PTI)
Tamil Nadu continued to record a decline in fresh infections with 1,702 new COVID-19 cases recorded on Thursday, pushing the caseload to 25,95,935, the health department said. The death toll rose to 34,639, with 29 people succumbing to the virus.
Recoveries outnumbered new infections with 1,892 people getting discharged in the last 24 hours, aggregating to 25,41,432, leaving 19,864 active infections, a bulletin said.
Active infections dropped below the 30,000 mark in Tamil Nadu on July 15.
A total of 1,62,173 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, pushing the cumulative number of specimens examined to 4,04,28,400 till date.
Four districts recorded the highest number of new cases with Coimbatore adding 198 infections, Chennai 193, Erode 147 and Thanjavur 112. Ramanathapuram recorded the least number of new infections with three cases.
Twenty-nine districts reported new cases in double digits, while there were no fresh deaths in 23 districts.
Seven of the deceased were without comorbidity or pre-existing illness which include a 34-year-old man from Tiruppur who died in May.
The man, who tested COVID-19 positive on May 15, died at the Government hospital, Udumalpet, Tiruppur on May 16 due to COVID-19 pneumonia, the bulletin said. (PTI)
At least 94 more people tested positive for COVID-19 in Sikkim in the last 24 hours, taking the tally in the state to 29,075, a health department bulletin said on Thursday.
The death toll rose to 364 as one more fatality due to the infection was reported during the period, it said.
Of the fresh cases, 37 were reported from East Sikkim, 31 from West Sikkim, 21 from South Sikkim and five from North Sikkim.
The Himalayan state now has 1,806 active cases, while 26,626 people have recovered from the disease.
The recovery rate among coronavirus patients in the state stands at 92.5 per cent.
At least 279 COVID patients have migrated to other states, the bulletin said.
The state has so far conducted 2,22,251 sample tests for COVID-19, including 819 since Wednesday. (PTI)
Jammu and Kashmir recorded 110 fresh cases of coronavirus on Thursday, taking the number of infections to 3,23,792 while the death toll stood at 4,400 as no new death was reported in the last 24 hours, officials said.
Of the fresh cases, 33 were from the Jammu division and 77 from the Kashmir division of the union territory, they said.
Kulgam district recorded the highest number of cases at 20, followed by 17 in Srinagar district, they added.
The number of active cases was 1,109 in the union territory, while 3,18,283 patients have recovered so far.
Meanwhile, the officials said, there were 43 confirmed cases of Mucormycosis (black fungus) in the union territory as no fresh case was reported since last evening. (PTI)
Telangana on Thursday registered 409 fresh COVID-19 cases, pushing the tally to 6,54,035, while the toll rose to 3,852 with three more fatalities.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) accounted for the most number of cases with 71, followed by Karimnagar 45 and Nalgonda 31 districts, a state government bulletin said, providing details as of 5.30 PM on Thursday.
The number of recoveries outnumbered fresh cases today with 453 people recuperating from the infectious disease. The cumulative number of recoveries till date was 6,43,318.
The number of active cases was 6,865, the bulletin said.
It said 88,308 samples were tested in the last 24 hours and the total number of samples tested till date stood at 2.37 crore.
The samples tested per million population was 6,37,985.
The case fatality rate in the state was 0.58 per cent, while it was 1.3 per cent at the national level.
The recovery rate in Telangana was 98.36 per cent, while it was 97.51 per cent in the country. (PTI)
Twenty-five fresh cases of COVID-19 and two deaths due to the disease were recorded on Thursday, while the positivity rate dipped to 0.04 per cent, according to data shared by the city Health Department. The death toll due to coronavirus infection in the national capital has risen to 25,079.
No death due to COVID-19 was recorded in Delhi on Monday, while 27 fresh cases were reported with a positivity rate of 0.07 per cent, according to data. This was the tenth time, since the starting of the second wave of the pandemic in the national capital, when zero fatality had been logged in a day.
On July 18, July 24, July 29, August 2, August 4, August 8, August 11, August 12 and August 13 too, no death due to COVID-19 was recorded, as per official data. On March 2 this year, the national capital had reported zero deaths due to the virus. On that day, the number of single-day infections stood at 217 and the positivity rate was 0.33 per cent.
The second wave swept the city during April-May period.
On Thursday, 25 fresh cases with a positivity rate of 0.04 per cent, and two deaths were recorded, according to the latest bulletin. On Wednesday, the city had registered 36 cases and four fatalities, while the positivity rate stood at 0.05 per cent, as per the official figures. On Tuesday, the city recorded 38 cases and four deaths, while the positivity rate stood at 0.07 per cent. (PTI)
Japan has reported a new record for daily coronavirus cases at more than 25,000, which is likely an undercount in a nation where coronavirus testing hasn’t been widespread.
The Health Ministry on Thursday gave the total as 25,141, of which 1,223 cases were still being confirmed. Japanese media gave different tallies, but all surpassing 25,000.
Much of Japan, including Tokyo, is under a “state of emergency” that asks restaurants to close at night and people to stay home.
Worries are growing about overcrowded hospitals. Japan has had more than 15,500 COVID-19-related deaths in the pandemic. (AP)
With the addition of 83 new cases of COVID-19, the tally of infections in Goa rose to 1,72,846 on Thursday, an official from the state health department said. As many as 59 patients were discharged from hospitals, while two died of the infection during the day, taking the count of recoveries to 1,68,764 and toll to 3,180, the official said.
There are currently 902 patients undergoing treatment in the coastal state, he said.
With 6,220 swab samples tested during the day, the total number of tests conducted in the state has gone up to 11,50,269, the official added. Goa’s COVID-19 figures are as follows: Positive cases 1,72,846, new cases 83, death toll 3,180, discharged 168764, active cases 902, samples tested till date 11,50,269. (PTI)
Kerala on Thursday logged 21,116 fresh COVID-19 cases pushing the total infection count to 37,46,121, as the number of people succumbing to the disease climbed to 19,246 with 197 additional deaths. In the last 24 hours, 1,30,768 samples were tested and the TPR was found to be 16.15 per cent. So far, 2.99 crore samples have been tested, it said.
As many as 19,296 people have been cured of the infection since Wednesday, taking the total recoveries to 35,67,492 and the number of active cases to 1,79,303, a state government release said. Among districts, Thrissur led the fray with 2873 followed by Malappuram 2824, Ernakulam 2527, Kozhikode 2401, Palakkad 1948, Kollam 1418, Kannur 1370, Alappuzha 1319, Thiruvananthapuram 955 and Kottayam 925.
Of the new cases, 115 are health workers, 102 had come from outside the state and 19,954 were infected through contact with the source of contact being not clear in 945 cases, the release said. There are currently 4,99,903 people under surveillance in various districts of the state. Of these, 4,72,523 are in home or institutional quarantine and 27,380 in hospitals. (PTI)
Karnataka reports 1,432 new COVID-19 cases, 1,538 recoveries and 27 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Active cases: 21,133
Total cases: 29,34,624
Death toll: 37,088 (ANI)
Uttarakhand reports 33 fresh COVID-19 infections and 20 recoveries today
Active cases: 342
Total cases: 3,42,701
Death toll: 7,376 (ANI)
Coronavirus positive cases inched closer to the two million mark in Andhra Pradesh, touching 19,98,603, with the addition of 1,501 fresh infections in the 24 hours ending 9 am on Thursday. The total recoveries climbed to 19,69,169 after 1,697 infected persons got cured while the toll mounted to 13,696 with ten more deaths in the period.
According to the latest bulletin, the state now has 15,738 active Covid-19 cases. East Godavari district reported 315 fresh cases, SPS Nellore 242, Chittoor 174, West Godavari 150, Krishna 147, Guntur 141, Visakhapatnam 109 and Prakasam 107. | Read More
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday warned that coronavirus is still hanging over people’s heads like a sword of Damocles and the threat is far from over.
The chief minister was speaking at the virtual function to inaugurate the district headquarters building complex in Palghar, and civic and government-run health facilities in Virar and Vasai. | Read More
Odisha’s COVID-19 tally rose to 9,98,187 on Thursday as 1,041 more people, including 128 children and adolescents, tested positive for the infection, while 68 fresh fatalities pushed the state’s coronavirus death toll to 7,154, a health official said. Though the daily count had remained below 1,000 for three consecutive days from Monday, it rose to 1,041 in the last 24 hours.
The daily test positivity rate (TPR) also witnessed an increase to 1.57 per cent from 1.43 per cent on Wednesday, the official said. As many as 605 new cases came from quarantine centres while the remaining 436 fresh infections were detected during contact tracing.
Khurda district, under which Bhubaneswar falls, recorded the highest number of new cases at 398, followed by Cuttack (176). Cuttack registered the highest number of fresh fatalities at 18, followed by Jagatsinghpur (10), Khurda (seven), Dhenkanal (six), Bhadrak and Mayurbhanj (five each), Angul (four), Balasore, Jajpur, and Kendrapara (three each), Ganjam (two), Nayagarh and Sundergarh (one each).
Fifty-three coronavirus patients have died due to comorbidities to date, the official said. The state now has 9,664 active cases, while 9,81,316 people have recovered from the disease thus far, including 845 on Wednesday. The coastal state has tested over 1.72 crore samples for COVID-19 so far, including 66,281 on Wednesday and the cumulative positivity rate stands at 5.77 per cent, he said.
Odisha has so far inoculated 2,01,03,544 people, of whom 46,76,107 have received both doses. Meanwhile, around 12 per cent of the new cases reported among children and adolescents in the age group of 0 to 18 years have emerged as a cause of concern for the administration.
As many as 604 people in the age group of 0-18 years have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past five days in the state and experts believe that the infection among children and adolescents may increase in coming days due to a possible third wave of the pandemic.
Since August 15, out of the 4,680 people who tested positive for Coronavirus in Odisha, 604 cases were found among children and adolescents.
Director of Health Service (DHS) Bijay Mohapatra said the state has made adequate arrangements for the treatment of COVID-19 affected children. (PTI)
Delhi High Court and district courts here will start physical hearings in a restricted manner from August 31 and 24, respectively, said the high court registry Thursday.
The high court, through two separate office orders, said that it has modified its earlier orders dated August 12 which had intimated that physical hearings would start at the high court and district courts from September 6 and August 31, respectively.
“In partial modification of this Court’s Office Order dated 12.08.2021, the Hon’ble Full Court has been pleased to order that physical hearings in this Court shall resume from 31.08.2021,” said the order issued by Registrar General Manoj Jain in relation to the high court.
It is informed that the suitable number of benches that would hold the court physically shall be constituted as per the directions of the Chief Justice and the remaining benches shall continue to take up the matters through video-conferencing.
On physical hearing days, the high court shall permit hybrid/video conferencing hearing when a request to such effect is made by any of the parties, the order added. (PTI)
If a vaccine for children is developed soon, it will be great…There could be ideological differences between State and the Centre, but when it comes to the nation, we work together: Jharkhand Health Minister Banna Gupta on ICMR saying “may have COVID-19 vaccine for children by September” (ANI)
Andhra Pradesh records 1,501 new COVID-19 cases, 1,697 recoveries and 10 deaths in the last 24 hours
Active cases: 15,378
Total cases: 19,98,603
Death toll: 13,696 (ANI)
Pregnant and lactating women who receive the COVID-19 vaccine do not experience symptoms any more severe than their non-pregnant counterparts, according to a survey over 17,000 individuals. The study, published in the journal JAMA Network Open, enrolled pregnant or lactating women and those who were neither pregnant nor lactating in January 2021. The women were invited to describe their reactions after receiving at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. By March, 17,525 individuals had responded. The respondents comprised women who were pregnant (44 per cent) or lactating (38 per cent) and those who stated plans to get pregnant in the near future (15 per cent). The study showed “there were not any increased reactions in pregnant individuals beyond what is expected from a vaccine ” said Linda Eckert, a professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine in the US. – PTI
The newest US airlines are showing signs of growth while at the same time hoping that the surge in coronavirus infections is only a short-term obstacle. On Thursday, Avelo Airlines announced that it will expand to a little-used airport in Connecticut that will serve as a jumping-off spot to destinations in Florida. It will be the Houston-based startup’s first venture east of the Rockies. A day earlier, Utah-based Breeze Airways said it raised $200 million in funding from sources including investment manager BlackRock on top of $135 million in earlier funding. Avelo and Breeze began flying this spring and targeted leisure travelers. That looked like a smart move when vacationers flocked to airports for much of the summer. Now, however, they worry about the surge in COVID-19, which is hurting ticket sales at bigger airlines including Southwest. – AP
The Uttar Pradesh government has sought five crore doses of COVID-19 vaccines per month but is getting around seven to eight lakh doses per day, state Health Minister Jai Pratap Singh said on Thursday. He also said that so far 5.9 per cent of the total eligible beneficiaries in the state have received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. Replying to a question of SP member Shatrudra Prakash, Singh said in the legislative council that till Aug 3, 32 per cent of the total population of adult citizens in the state was given the first dose of Covid vaccine and 5.9 per cent of the population has received both doses. He said Covid vaccination in the state was being done through the vaccines being provided by the Central Government. “Till August 11, 5.55 crore vaccine doses were administered,” he said. – PTI
The Kerala government is ready to vaccinate children against COVID-19 and will take steps as soon as approval for it is received from the Centre, state Health Minister Veena George said on Thursday. The minister highlighted this aspect while speaking to the media after visiting a Drive Through Vaccination Centre at the Government Women’s College here. Regarding the drive through vaccination centres, she said its special feature was that people can get registered, vaccinated and also undergo observation without getting out of their vehicles. In case of any difficulties faced by anyone after vaccination, necessary medical help would also be provided at the site. – PTI
The Philippine health ministry on Thursday recorded 14,895 new coronavirus cases, the second highest daily increase in infections since the start of the pandemic.In a bulletin, it said total confirmed cases were 1.79 million, while deaths have reached 30,881, after 258 fatalities were recorded on Thursday. Active cases rose to a near four-month high at 111,720. – Reuters
The World Health Organization has urged Indonesia to take action to stem transmission of the coronavirus, following new data showing that mobility for retail and recreation has reached pre-pandemic levels in some key regions.Indonesia, which last month became the epicentre of Asia’s coronavirus outbreak, has social mobility restrictions in place, that currently allow malls and restaurants in designated areas to operate at 25% of capacity.The WHO’s latest situation report highlighted “a notable increase in community mobility in retail and recreation” in the provinces of Banten, West Java and Central Java, collectively home to about 97 million people. – Reuters
Abu Dhabi emirate, the second-most populous in the United Arab Emirates, will on Thursday end a partial lockdown imposed last month as part of efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 variants, the government’s media office said in a Twitter post.It cited the Abu Dhabi Emergency Crisis and Disasters Committee as saying restrictions on movement of traffic and the public from midnight until 5 a.m. are ending after achieving their objective.The UAE, a federation of seven emirates, has seen daily coronavirus infections fall to 1,089 cases on Wednesday from around 2,000 in June and a peak of nearly 4,000 in January. It does not give a breakdown for each emirate.The Gulf state, a regional tourism and business hub, has among the world’s highest immunisation rates with latest health ministry data showing 83.14% of the population receiving one COVID-19 vaccine dose and 73.42% fully vaccinated. – Reuters
Russia on Thursday reported 791 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours as well as 21,058 new cases, including 2,142 in Moscow.Russia was hit by a surge in cases this summer that peaked in July and that authorities blamed on the Delta variant and slow uptake for domestically-produced vaccines. – Reuters
The union territory of Puducherry logged 134 new coronavirus cases during the last 24 hours, taking the overall tally to 1,22,676, a senior official of the Department of Health said on Thursday. The new cases were identified at the end of the examination of 5,487 samples, Director of Health G Sriramulu said in a release. Puducherry reported 86 of the 134 fresh infections followed by Mahe (23), Karaikal (19) and Yanam (6), he added. The number of active cases stood at 971 with 172 in hospitals and the remaining 799 in home isolation, he said. One more patient succumbed to the virus in Puducherry pushing the toll to 1,806. As many as 95 patients recovered and were discharged in the last 24 hours, the Health department Director said and added that the total recoveries climbed to 1,19,899. – PTI
More than 58.31 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses have been provided to states and union territories so far, and another 81,10,780 doses are in the pipeline, the Union Health Ministry said on Thursday. Of this, the total consumption, including wastage, is 56,29,35,938 doses, according to data available at 8 am. More than 38 lakh balance and unutilised vaccine doses are still available with the states, UTs and private hospitals to be administered, the ministry said. The Union government is committed to accelerating the pace and expanding the scope of COVID-19 vaccination throughout the country, it added. – PTI
Arunachal Pradesh’s COVID-19 tally rose to 51,799 as 144 more people tested positive for the infection, a senior health department official said here on Thursday. The COVID-19 death toll in the frontier state increased to 254, as two more persons succumbed to the infection in the last two days, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said. The Capital Complex Region recorded the highest number of fresh cases at 29, followed by Papumpare (24) Lower Subansiri (18), West Kameng (12), Upper Siang (9) and Anjaw at 8, Jampa said, adding that fresh infections were also reported from other districts of the state. – PTI
The second wave of COVID-19 has come to an end in Telangana with the virus situation fully under control in the state at present, a Health department official has said. “It can be said that second wave has fully come to an end in Telangana. If we take various parameters like the number of new cases being reported, daily positivity rate and hospitalisation rate, coronavirus, as of now, is fully under control across Telangana, in all districts and all regions,” state Director of Public Health G Srinivasa Rao said. He said the administration is, however, fully alert in dealing with the situation and urged people not to let their guard down. Telangana on Wednesday recorded 424 new COVID-19 cases taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 6,53,626. – PTI
New Zealand’s coronavirus cases jumped on Thursday, as questions grew about the government’s response to the pandemic given the slowest vaccination rate among developed countries and the economic pressures of prolonged isolation.Eleven new cases were reported on Thursday, taking the total to 21 in the latest outbreak that ended the country’s six-month, virus-free run. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said, however, that the virus has not been in the community for long as authorities had linked its origin to a recent returnee from Sydney on Aug 7. – Reuters
Mexico is set to receive the first batch of 1.75 million doses of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine from the United States at the weekend, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Wednesday, shortly after Mexico authorized its emergency use.The Mexican government last week said that U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris had promised to send 3.5 million Moderna and 5 million AstraZeneca vaccines.Mexican health regulator Cofepris on Wednesday said it had authorized the two-shot vaccine from Moderna Inc for emergency use.Ebrard wrote on Twitter that the doses would arrive at the weekend and “In a month, the second dose will arrive (another 1,750,000). Our sincere gratitude!”Mexico has vaccinated at least 42% of its population of 126 million people with a first dose, official data shows. But the Delta variant is sweeping through the country and vaccine hesitancy is rising in younger people. – Reuters
Florida’s largest school district imposed a mask mandate in defiance of the state’s governor, the latest chapter in the coronavirus political battle in the southern United States where new infections are highest.At a day-long meeting that grew contentious at times, the Miami-Dade County School Board voted to require most of the district’s 360,000 students, as well as staff, to wear face coverings when classes begin on Monday. Governor Ron DeSantis previously placed a ban on local mask mandates.“While I am a very, very strong advocate, and always have been, for parental choice, what we are facing in our community is a public health emergency where lives are at risk,” said board chair Perla Tabares Hantman, who supported the mandate.The requirement, which the board approved by a 7-1 vote following the recommendation of its superintendent, exempts student who cannot wear masks for medical reasons.DeSantis last month signed an executive order barring local officials from imposing mask mandates. – Reuters
A British public health study has found that protection from either of the two most commonly used COVID-19 vaccines against the now prevalent Delta variant of the coronavirus weakens within three months.It also found that those who get infected after receiving two shots of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or the AstraZeneca vaccine may be of greater risk to others than under previous variants of the coronavirus.Based on more than three million nose and throat swabs taken across Britain, the Oxford University study found that 90 days after a second shot of the Pfizer or Astrazeneca vaccine, their efficacy in preventing infections had slipped to 75% and 61% respectively.That was down from 85% and 68%, respectively, seen two weeks after a second dose. The decline in efficacy was more pronounced among those aged 35 years and older than those below that age.”Both of these vaccines, at two doses, are still doing really well against Delta… When you start very, very high, you got a long way to go,” said Sarah Walker, an Oxford professor of medical statistics and chief investigator for the survey. – Reuters
Pascal Soriot, the chief executive of COVID-19 vaccine maker AstraZeneca, was Britain’s highest paid company boss in 2020, a year when the average FTSE 100 leader saw their pay fall by almost a fifth, a report on Thursday showed.Soriot, whose handling of the pandemic response has drawn criticism despite the company producing its vaccine at cost price, took home 15.45 million pounds ($21.25 million), a report from the High Pay Centre said.That compares with median pay for CEOs in Britain’s flagship stock index of 2.69 million pounds, down from 3.25 million pounds in 2019, the report found, but still 86 times the median earnings for the average UK worker. – Reuters