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ROME, Italy (AFP) — Bookings for coronavirus vaccines in Italy spiked this week after the government said all employees must show proof of a jab, negative test or recent recovery from Covid-19, authorities said. “On a national level, there was a generalized increase in bookings for the first dose of between 20 and 40 percent compared to last week,” coronavirus commissioner Francesco Figliuolo said in a statement late Saturday. Reservations for the first dose of […]
BRASILIA, Brazil (AFP) — Brazil’s Covid-unvaccinated President Jair Bolsonaro said Thursday he will attend next week’s United Nations conclave in New York, effectively defying city authorities who recently announced proof-of-vaccination requirements for all attending leaders and diplomats. “Next week I will be at the UN General Assembly (UNGA), where I will give an opening speech” on Tuesday, the president said during a social media broadcast. It will be “a calm speech, very objective, focused […]
by Suy SE PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AFP) — Cambodia on Friday began inoculating children as young as six against coronavirus, even though the World Health Organisation has yet to approve a vaccine for the under-12s. The southeast Asian country has won praise for its swift vaccination programme, which has seen more than 98 percent of the adult population receive at least one dose, according to the health ministry. The latest phase of the drive began […]
WASHINGTON, United states (AFP) — US medical experts will meet Friday to debate and vote on the controversial question of giving out booster doses of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine to the general population. President Joe Biden’s administration announced in August a plan to roll out third shots to everyone, not just the immune compromised already able to receive them, starting from September 20. But experts have since expressed reservations about whether they are required, amid concerns […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China has fully vaccinated more than 1 billion people — 71 per cent of its population — a health official said Thursday. “As of September 15, 2.16 billion vaccine doses have been administered nationwide,” said a National Health Commission spokesman at a press briefing. © Agence France-Presse
HAVANA, Cuba (AFP) — Cuba said Wednesday it would seek World Health Organization approval for two home-grown coronavirus vaccines it hopes to commercialize widely. A vetting process will start Thursday with WHO experts examining the nation’s Abdala and Soberana 02 jabs, said Rolando Perez of state pharma group BioCubaFarma. Perez said the experts would examine the vaccines’ “safety, immunogenicity (the ability of a vaccine to provoke an immune response) and efficacy.” The WHO’s representative in […]
by Ahikam Seri and Ben Simon JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israel’s program of booster jabs has proved effective in reducing severe cases of Covid even as new infections hover near record highs, experts said, citing recent data. Since taking office in June, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has insisted he will aim to avoid any new lockdown, a pledge his government has kept even as the country of roughly 9.3 million people regularly records more than 10,000 […]
STRASBOURG, France (AFP) — The European Union is to donate another 200 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to low-income countries, more than doubling its present pledge, the bloc’s chief said on Wednesday. The extra doses announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen come on top of 250 million shots the EU has already promised to give to other countries, particularly ones in Africa. “I can announce today that the commission will add a new […]
by Clare BYRNE PARIS, France (AFP) — The French government faces a stand-off with tens of thousands of health workers and carers Wednesday over a new rule requiring them to receive a Covid-19 vaccine or face suspension without pay. Starting Wednesday, hospital staff, ambulance drivers, retirement home workers, private doctors, fire service members and people caring for the elderly or infirm in their homes — some 2.7 million people in total — must be able […]
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — The Netherlands said Tuesday it would further ease Covid-19 restrictions including an end to social distancing, but will introduce a pass for bars, restaurants and festivals. The pass showing proof of vaccination, recovery from the virus or a negative test will be needed for people aged 13 and over from September 25, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said. Infection rates are falling in the Netherlands, which early in the pandemic had […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Arizona on Tuesday became the first US state to file suit against President Joe Biden’s Covid vaccination mandate for federal employees and businesses with more than 100 employees. Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, a Republican, announced the filing of the suit against what he described as an “unconstitutional” move by the Democratic president. “The federal government cannot force people to get the Covid-19 vaccine,” Brnovich said in a statement. “The […]
by Kelly MACNAMARA PARIS, France (AFP) — Vaccines are effective enough at preventing severe cases of Covid-19 that there is no current need for the general population to be given third doses, according to a report in The Lancet published Monday. Some countries have started offering extra doses over fears about the much more contagious Delta variant, causing the World Health Organization to call for a moratorium on third jabs amid concerns about vaccine supplies […]
