LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The UK Health Security Agency on Tuesday recommended that some gay and bisexual men at higher risk of contracting monkeypox should be offered a vaccine to control an outbreak. A total of 793 cases of the chickenpox-like disease have been recorded across the country as of Monday, the public health body said. Head of immunisation Mary Ramsay said contact tracing had helped to limit the spread “but we are continuing […]
Tag: Virus
Singapore, South Korea report first monkeypox cases
One imported case, a British flight attendant, confirmed in Singapore; two suspected cases, including a foreign national, reported in South Korea (Eagle News) — Both Singapore and South Korea reported their first suspected monkeypox cases, the first such reported cases in Southeast and East Asia respectively In Singapore, the Ministry of Health has confirmed one imported case of monkeypox infection, a 42-year-old male British national who works as a flight attendant. He was in […]
France monkeypox count rises to 277, one woman infected
PARIS, France (AFP) — France has detected 277 cases of monkeypox, health authorities said Tuesday, including the first case in the country of a woman contracting the virus. The case numbers have risen steeply since the last official figure of 183 cases five days earlier. But there have been no deaths in France attributed to monkeypox. The normal initial symptoms of monkeypox include a high fever, swollen lymph nodes and a blistery chickenpox-like rash. […]
DOH notes 82 percent increase in Covid cases from June 13 to 19, compared to previous week
Covid cases on the rise but hospital bed occupancy remains low, says OCTA (Eagle News) – The Department of Health noted an 82 percent increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in the country in the period of June 13 to 19, compared to the previous week of June 6 to 12. In data that the DOH had recently released, the new cases from June 13 to 19 reached 3,051, with the daily average number […]
‘Huge uncertainty’ for EU firms over China’s Covid curbs, chamber warns
by Beiyi SEOW Many European firms are rethinking their investments in China because of its strict Covid controls, a top business group said Monday, warning that disruptions had pummelled operations. While the rest of the world has steadily removed coronavirus curbs, China has remained committed to its zero-Covid strategy, using lockdowns and mass testing to stamp out all infections. But this strategy has hammered businesses and snarled supply chains — 60 percent of respondents in […]
China’s mass testing mantra is building a waste mountain
by Matthew Walsh Agence France-Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — Hazmat-suited workers poke plastic swabs down millions of throats in China each day, leaving bins bursting with medical waste that has become the environmental and economic levy of a zero-Covid strategy. China is the last major economy wedded to stamping out infections no matter the cost. Near-daily testing is the most commonly used weapon in an anti-virus arsenal that includes snap lockdowns and forced quarantines when […]
Thailand to drop mask rule, foreign tourist registration
Thailand announced Friday it would drop rules requiring people to wear masks outdoors and no longer require foreign visitors to register before travel, as Covid-19 cases fall and the kingdom seeks to lure tourists back. Facemasks have been compulsory in public in Thailand, including outdoors, since mid-2021 when the Delta variant was running rampant. But as the pandemic has subsided, the tourism-dependent kingdom has gradually relaxed covid restrictions in a bid to boost visitor numbers. […]
Anthony Fauci, Biden’s top Covid advisor, tests positive
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Top scientist Anthony Fauci, the face of America’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, tested positive Wednesday for the virus on a rapid antigen test but is continuing to work from home while he recovers, the National Institutes of Health said. “He is currently experiencing mild symptoms,” the NIH said, adding the 81-year-old, who is fully vaccinated and double boosted, had not been in recent close contact with President Joe […]
US panel recommends Covid vaccines for youngest children
by Issam AHMED Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A panel of experts convened by the US Food and Drug Administration unanimously recommended Covid-19 vaccines Wednesday for children under five, the final age group awaiting immunization in most countries. Formal authorizations for Moderna and Pfizer should follow soon, with the first shots in arms expected early next week, just over a year-and-a-half after the first Covid vaccines were greenlighted for the elderly […]
More cases of highly transmissible Omicron subvariants found; six of 16 new cases are in NCR
6 new BA.5 cases and 10 new BA.2.12.1 cases added to growing number of Omicron cases in PHL (Eagle News) – At least 16 more cases of the more transmissible Omicron subvariants BA.5 and BA.2.12.1 have been recently found in the country. There were six additional cases of the BA.5 Omicron subvariant and two of these came from Metro Manila. At least 10 more additional cases of the Omicron subvariant BA.2.12.1 which were also […]
US panel weighs authorizing Covid vaccines for youngest children
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — After months of anxious wait for some parents, a panel of experts convened by the US Food and Drug Administration will meet Wednesday to weigh recommending Covid vaccines for the nation’s youngest children. Children under five are the only age group not yet eligible for Covid immunization in the United States and most other countries. If, as expected, panelists vote in favor of greenlighting the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, formal […]
URGENT: Canada PM Trudeau says contracted Covid a second time
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has tested positive for Covid-19 for a second time in less than five months, he said Monday, adding that he feels fine but is isolating. “I’ve tested positive for Covid-19. I’ll be following public health guidelines and isolating,” the Canadian leader said on Twitter, adding: “I feel okay.” Trudeau, who has received three doses of the Covid vaccine, also tested positive for the virus at the end of January. I’ve […]





