In his Christmas address, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson calls on his compatriots to be tested for the coronavirus and vaccinated before family reunions. “Although the time to buy presents is theoretically running out, there is still one wonderful thing you can give to your families and the whole country – and that is to get vaccinated,” said Johnson according to a speech in his address to the nation on Christmas Eve.
Despite a record number of new infections from the Omikron variant, there are no contact restrictions or other stricter measures in the UK over Christmas. In the hospitals in England, however, it is already becoming apparent that there is a risk of overload in the near future. Within a week, sickness reports related to Covid-19 in the English health service rose by almost 40 percent, like the one Guardian reported. The number of Covid patients in hospitals is increasing.
Johnson called for testing for the virus, especially before meeting with loved ones at risk. However, he believes that this Christmas will be “significantly better” than the last, said the conservative politician. In 2020, the government banned all celebrations shortly before the festival due to the emerging alpha variant. Johnson describes the vaccination as an “invisible gift of inestimable value”. It makes it possible for more celebrations to be possible again this year. (12/24/2021)
US agency reduces isolation time for health workers
Fearing that hospitals could become overburdened due to Omikron, the US health authorities have reduced the length of isolation for health workers after a corona infection. The CDC announced on Thursday that anyone who had a negative test and no symptoms could return to work after seven days. Typically, the CDC recommends ten days of isolation. The CDC defines isolation as the time after a confirmed infection.
“Our goal is to protect health workers and patients and to avoid excessive stress on our health facilities,” said CDC chief Rochelle Walensky. Healthcare workers who received all of the recommended corona vaccination doses would also not have to stay at home in quarantine after high-risk exposure. These guidelines only apply to health workers. Omikron is now dominant in the USA. The number of corona cases has recently skyrocketed. US President Joe Biden is primarily relying on armament for hospitals. (12/24/2021)
Australia reduced the interval to booster vaccinations
In Australia, the intervals between the second Covid vaccination and the booster will be shortened from the beginning of the year. Health Secretary Greg Hunt said on Friday that citizens should get their booster vaccination from January 4th just four months after the second vaccination. From the end of January, this interval is to be reduced to three months, as announced by the Immunization Advisory Commission. Currently, the booster can only be administered after five months. With these changes, the number of Australians who can claim a booster vaccination increases from the current 3.2 million to 7.5 million at the beginning of the year. With the further shortening of the interval at the end of January, this number rose to 16 million. (12/24/2021)
Sundance Festival in January requires booster vaccination for participants
The Sundance Film Festival in the US state of Utah has tightened the requirements because of the spread of the Omikron variant. Participants in the largest US film festival for independent productions must now show a booster vaccination, as the organizers announced on Thursday. Mask requirements and other hygiene rules also apply. Founded in the 1980s by Robert Redford, the festival is scheduled to take place from January 20th to 30th in the Park City winter sports region. Usually tens of thousands of film fans make the pilgrimage to the event in Utah, but due to the pandemic, the film festival was last moved to the Internet. In 2022, visitors to the planned hybrid event are expected again on site and online. (12/24/2021)
France and Italy report record numbers of infections
There are new records for the number of infections in France and Italy. Authorities recorded 91,608 new cases in France, the highest number since the pandemic began. “Today’s numbers are not good,” said Health Minister Olivier Veran, assuming that the numbers were slightly lower, but they were also at a high. There will probably be changes to the Corona regulations soon.
In Italy, the health authorities have also recorded a new high since the start of the pandemic, with around 44,600 new corona infections. Almost 170 people died with the virus, according to data from the Ministry of Health. The authorities last registered the highest number of new infections on November 13, 2020 at just under 41,000.
However, a lot more corona tests were done in the days before Christmas. According to the ministry, there were more than 900,000 on Thursday. The proportion of positive cases including fluctuated in the past seven days between 3.6 percent and 4.9 percent.
The Italian government is reacting to the high number of cases by tightening its measures. From February 1, 2022, the vaccination certificate will only be valid for six months instead of the previous nine months, said Health Minister Roberto Speranza. Proof is important for access to transportation or work. The booster vaccination could also be given after four months instead of the previous five.
According to Speranza, people across the country have to wear masks outdoors. In addition, an FFP-2 mask is mandatory in public transport, as well as in cinemas, theaters and football stadiums. The consumption of beverages and food is also prohibited there. Italy is introducing the 2G rule in museums and exhibitions. Only those who have been vaccinated or have recovered are allowed access. Outdoor parties are also prohibited until January 31, 2022. Discos that were previously open again in Italy will have to close.
The regulation for access to old people’s and nursing homes is also new. For this, people have to be boosted or have a negative test in addition to a double vaccination or proof of recovery.
The number of cases is also high in Spain. The seven-day incidence was given by the Ministry of Health in Madrid on Thursday evening as 563. That was almost 80 more than the day before. The incidence is now around twice as high as in Germany. However, since almost 80 percent of all citizens have received basic immunization through a double vaccination or, in the case of Johnson & Johnson, a single vaccination and the third vaccinations are also relatively advanced, the situation in the hospitals is even less dramatic than in Germany. The number of corona patients in intensive care units was given as 1515. They thus occupied a good 16 percent of the capacities in this area. However, the regional differences were great. While only a good two percent of the intensive care beds in Extremadura were occupied by corona patients, it was 32 percent in Catalonia. 82 more coronavirus-related deaths were registered within one day. (23.12.2021)
New high risk areas
In the latest listing by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the USA, Spain – including the Balearic and Canary Islands – Portugal, Cyprus and Finland are now listed as high-risk areas. In contrast, Austria, Bosnia and Serbia, among others, are no longer considered to be such.
Anyone who enters from a high-risk area and is not fully vaccinated or recovered has to be in quarantine for ten days and can only get rid of it with a negative test five days after arrival at the earliest. (23.12.2021)
Novovax is said to work well against Omikron
According to the manufacturer, the Novavax corona vaccine offers effective protection against the Omikron variant. The vaccine elicits an effective immune reaction against the variant, and an additional booster vaccination increases the immune response, the company announced after initial data from an ongoing study on the effectiveness of the vaccine in adolescents and as a booster.
The vaccine was only recently approved by the EU. However, it may take weeks or months before the vaccine becomes widely available. Therefore, experts advise not to wait for Novavax. But to fall back on one of the available vaccines. (23.12.2021)
Corona outbreak: lockdown for Chinese city of 13 million
After a few dozen corona infections in Xi’an, China, massive curfews have been imposed on the metropolis’ 13 million residents. They have not been allowed to leave their apartments since midnight, exceptions are hardly allowed. Each family can designate a member who can go shopping every two days, as the city government announced in its decree. Authorities reported 63 local infections on Thursday. The outbreak was triggered by “imported cases”, it said.
It was not disclosed whether the virus is the new Omikron variant. In addition to the lockdown in the provincial capital of Shaanxi, millions of corona tests are also expected to help contain the outbreak. Infected people and their close contacts should be brought to hospital or quarantine, and all transmission routes should be interrupted. Schools have been closed – as have shops that are not absolutely necessary for supplies. Transport connections were also largely interrupted. Much of the flights to Xi’an have been canceled.
With such rigid measures, China, which has a zero-Covid policy, has largely got the virus under control. For more than a year, the pandemic situation in the People’s Republic has been much better than in many other countries. Daily life and the economy have long since normalized. However, the more contagious Delta variant has caused several outbreaks since the fall. And now those responsible fear the highly infectious Omicron variant, which is spreading even faster. The Olympic Winter Games are due to begin in Beijing in six weeks. (23.12.2021)