(Bloomberg) — U.S. regulators authorized a booster dose of Pfizer Inc.’s Covid-19 vaccine for people aged 65 and over. Anthony Fauci said earlier that he expects mRNA vaccines to be administered as a three-dose regimen.
Singapore singaled that virus cases were rising faster than it expected. Australia’s Victoria state saw a daily case record while an outbreak in New South Wales appears to be slowing, as the country battles the delta variant. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte told police and military to augment hospital staffing in the Manila area.
U.S. President Joe Biden called on other nations to help vastly expand production of shots and treatments to help end the pandemic. He said the U.S. will buy an another 500 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine to donate abroad.
Key Developments:
- Global Virus Tracker: Cases pass 229.4 million; deaths exceed 4.7 million
- Vaccine Tracker: More than 6.03 billion doses administered
- FDA to clear third Pfizer dose for older, at-risk Americans
- Fauci sees three doses as the eventual standard for mRNA vaccines
- Understanding the debate over Covid booster shots: QuickTake
- Alpha, delta and more. Why virus variants cause alarm: QuickTake
U.S. Olympians Will Need Shot for Winter Games: NYT (11:23 a.m. HKT)
The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee said all athletes and team staff using its training facilities must be fully inoculated by Nov. 1., and that any athletes trying to compete at the Winter Games in Beijing will need to show proof of vaccination, the New York Times reported.
The International Olympic Committee has not announced a vaccine requirement for the Beijing Olympics, scheduled to kick off on Feb. 4.
Ardern Wants New Zealand Among Most Vaccinated Nations (10:16 a.m. HK)
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she wants it to become one of the world’s most vaccinated countries.
Once a very high level of inoculation is achieved, authorities won’t need to turn to the strictest form of lockdown — Alert Level 4 — in the event of an outbreak, she told a press conference. The government is still trying to stamp out a current outbreak in Auckland, with 15 new cases reported in the city on Thursday.
Singapore Signals Cases Rising Faster Than It Expected (10:14 a.m. HK)
Virus cases are rising faster in Singapore than the government originally projected but the situation remains under control, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung told a Straits Times sister publication.
The Southeast Asian city-state had 1,457 new virus cases as of noon Sept. 22, the Ministry of Health said — a higher per-capita rate than New York, and just below that of London, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
“We had planned to have a preparatory period, during which we could gradually open up while handling perhaps 100 to 200 cases a day,” Ong was quoted as saying in a Mandarin-language interview with Lianhe Zaobao, reported by the Straits Times. “But delta did not wait for us to be ready and attacked us first.”
China Reports 28 Local Covid Cases Amid Outbreak (8:56 a.m. HK)
China reported 28 local cases on Thursday, as a new cluster emerged from the northern city of Harbin while an existing outbreak across the country in Fujian province started to taper. Harbin found eight more infections, as the city of 10 million underwent mass testing. In Fujian, cases started decreasing amid stringent curbs that have included a lockdown of Xiamen, home to 4.5 million people. The costal city reported 17 cases on Thursday, while Putian — where the latest outbreak started — saw cases dwindle to three.
Taiwan’s Medigen Plans Phase-3 Clinical Trial in Europe (8:54 a.m. HK)
The board of Taiwan’s Medigen approved a phase-3 clinical trial of its vaccine in Europe, the firm said in statement to the Taiwan stock exchange on Wednesday. There are expected to be up to 4,000 people participating in multiple locations and countries in Europe, the Taipei Times reported, citing a company spokesman.
Duterte Taps Military to Assist Hospitals (8:43 a.m. HK)
President Rodrigo Duterte told the police and the military to augment hospital staffing in Metro Manila, as hundreds of health workers have Covid and the Philippines — a global supplier of nurses — is experiencing a “dearth of supply.”
Read more here.
Record Cases for Australia’s Victoria (7:36 a.m. HK)
Australia’s second-most populous state, Victoria, reported a daily record of 766 virus infections on Thursday. Authorities have struggled to bring the state’s current delta surge under control, despite months of lockdown in Melbourne. The outbreak has doubled in size to more than 10,000 cases in about eight days.
Meanwhile, the delta outbreak in Australia’s most populous state — New South Wales — appears to be slowing, after a months-long lockdown and mass vaccination effort.
FDA Authorizes Third Pfizer Dose for Some (7:35 a.m. HK)
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized a third booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech SE vaccine for people aged 65 and older and individuals with a high risk of getting severe Covid. The added shots are to be administered at least six months after completion of the primary series.
Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock said the greenlight would allow people including teachers, daycare staff, healthcare and grocery workers to get a third dose.
“I want to make this clear: The introduction of booster doses will not impact our ability to meet existing global supply commitments,” Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla tweeted.
UN Says Delegate Tested Positive (5:20 a.m. HK)
The United Nations said a delegate who was in the main hall of the General Assembly on Tuesday morning tested positive. While the UN didn’t identify which country the delegate represented, heads of state speaking in the hall at that time included Biden and Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro.
Two members of Bolsonaro’s delegation — including Brazil’s health minister — have tested positive while in New York.
UN staff who might have been in contact with the infected person “will be notified individually and guided through next steps,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement. New York officials had called on the UN to enforce stricter requirements on visiting delegates, but the organization hasn’t required proof of vaccination to enter its buildings.
NYC’s Vaccine Mandate for Teachers Cleared (5:06 a.m. HK)
New York City’s requirement for teachers to be vaccinated was cleared by a state judge following a legal challenge from labor unions.
New York State Supreme Court Justice Laurence L. Love vacated a temporary restraining order that had stopped the vaccine mandate from being enforced while the case is being litigated.
Fauci Envisions Three-Dose Standard (3:55 p.m. NY)
Future administration of mRNA vaccines like Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Inc.’s will likely require three doses from the start, instead of two doses plus a booster, Fauci said.
If implemented as the top infectious disease expert predicted, the third shot would become part of the primary series, potentially changing the vaccine label and plan for administering shots altogether.
Mormons Make Masks Mandatory in Temples (2:20 p.m. NY)
The top leadership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Wednesday ordered mandatory use of face masks in its temples around the globe and again called for members to get vaccinated, citing the Mormon church’s history in prior pandemics.
Biden Calls on Wealthy Nations to Step Up (1:15 p.m. NY)
Biden called on other nations to help vastly expand production of coronavirus vaccines and treatments in order to end the pandemic, in a virtual summit he hosted Wednesday.
Biden said the U.S. will buy another 500 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine for donation abroad, pushing the total U.S. donation pledge above 1.1 billion doses.
The summit’s attendees included the leaders of the U.K., Canada, South Africa and Indonesia, private-sector figures and representatives of non-governmental organizations.
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