COVID News Live: England turns to ‘Plan B’; Three Pfizer shots can ‘neutralize’ omicrons, lab tests show

China It has reported 83 new confirmed coronavirus cases for Wednesday, December 8, up from 74 a day earlier, its health authority said on Thursday.

According to a statement from the National Health Commission, 60 of the new infections were locally transmitted, as seen by Reuters, compared to 44 a day earlier.

New local cases were reported by authorities in Inner Mongolia, Zhejiang, Heilongjiang, Jiangsu and Yunnan.

China reported 33 new asymptomatic cases, which it classifies separately from confirmed cases, compared with 23 a day earlier.

No new deaths were reported, taking the total death toll to 4,636.

France A fourth COVID vaccine may offer a booster shot, Jean-François Delfrecy, the government’s top Covid-19 adviser, has said.

“The peak is clearly not behind us, with the pandemic continuing to grow,” government spokesman Gabriel Attal said during a press briefing on Wednesday.

France, which has more than 90% of its adult population fully vaccinated, is hoping a national campaign will invite everyone over the age of 18 to receive a third vaccine — or booster shot — as much as Will avoid the need for hard restrictions on daily life as soon as possible.

Jean-François Delfraissi said:

For now, a booster shot is in demand. Will this be enough? I do not know. Maybe we’ll need a fourth shot.”

The latest seven-day average of newly confirmed new infections set a new 2021 high of more than 44,500 on Tuesday.

South Africa Nearly 20,000 new COVID-19 cases were reported on Wednesday, a record since the Omron version was detected, and 36 new COVID-related deaths.

A total of 19,842 new cases were reported Reported By the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, a daily change of 50%.

Brazil The Health Ministry said on Wednesday that 10,055 new cases of corona virus have been reported in the last 24 hours and 233 people have died due to Kovid-19.

The South American country has recorded 22,167,781 cases since the pandemic began, according to ministry data, while the official death toll has risen to 616,251. It is the second deadliest outbreak in the world outside the United States.

With 85% of adults now fully vaccinated, the rolling 14-day average of Covid-19 deaths has risen to 208 per day, compared to a toll of nearly 3,000 a day at the peak of the pandemic in April.

In light of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Plan B announcement, here’s a quick snapshot of COVID-19 UK,

Hello, I am Samantha Locke and this Thursday I will tell you all about the developments in COVID.

We start with the news that England Will happen Implementing a raft of Plan B measures To counter the rise in COVID cases in the lead up to Christmas.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson made the announcement at a Downing Street press conference on Wednesday night amid fears of a rapid increase in the Omicron version. Johnson said people should work from home where possible from Monday and face masks would be a legal requirement in most public indoor areas such as cinemas and cinemas from Friday, with eating and drinking allowed in hospitality venues.

The move comes after government experts warned of Omicron infections Growth up to 1m by the end of the month With up to 2,000 hospital admissions in a day.

In more promising news, three doses of Pfizer/BioNtech Vaccine likely Preventing Omicron Type Infection But there cannot be two doses according to laboratory data.

Trials using antibodies in blood samples have given some of the first insight into how far Omicron evades immunity, showing a significant drop in the perceived protection for people with two doses against infection or any type of disease. . The findings suggest that, for Omicron, Pfizer/BioNTech should now be viewed as a “three-dose vaccine.”

Here is a snapshot of the latest coronavirus Stories from around the world:

• WHO Preliminary data indicates that the Omicron Covid variant can more easily re-infect people who already have the virus or have been vaccinated than previous variants, but it can also cause milder illness. Is.
• In UK, boris johnson New covid restrictions extended amid fears of exponential growth in the Omicron variant. “It’s a proportional and responsible thing now Steps to Plan B“From Monday people will have to work from home.
• Sajid Javid told MPs that Omicron cases in the UK could exceed 1 million by the end of this month.
• Denmark The country’s prime minister said on Wednesday that restrictions would be reimposed aimed at halting the rapid spread of COVID-19, including the new Omron version.
• France 93,071 have reported coronavirus Hospital deaths, up to 129. It reported that 2,426 people were in intensive care units for COVID-19, 75 more than the previous day’s figures.
• Slovakia Health Minister Vladimir Lenggvarsky said on Friday that non-essential shops and some services would be reopened for those vaccinated against COVID-19, while also locking down others and some schools.
• South Africa has approved Pfizer’s coronavirus booster shots for over 18s, as the Omicron version dominates rising new infections. The South African Health Products Authority said in a statement that it was authorizing a third vaccine dose “to be administered, at least six months after the second dose, in persons 18 years of age and older”.
• Italy Reported 17,959 coronavirus cases, up from 15,756 on Tuesday. Elsewhere, Bolivia, Peru and Colombia are seeing an increase in cases, while Ecuador, Chile and Argentina have seen a decline.
• UK statistics show The positive test result of 51,342 new people was confirmed on December 8, 2021. Between December 2 and 8, 339,861 people tested positive, an increase of 11.3% over the previous week.
• BioNTech and Pfizer said on Wednesday The three-shot course of their COVID-19 vaccine was able to neutralize the new Omron variant In a lab trial and if needed they may distribute an Omron-based vaccine in March 2022.