Germany eyes contact restrictions to soften COVID-19 wave

An SOS message can be read on the facade of the Ostallgoeu-Kaufbeuren hospitals in Kaufberen, Germany on Dec 5, 2021 to draw attention to the critical situation in the hospitals due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (KARL-JOSEF HILDENBRAND / DPA VIA AP)

LONDON / WASHINGTON / ROME / MOSCOW / JOHANNESBURG / DUBLIN / BRUSSELS / BLED, Slovenia / LIMA / MADRID / BERLIN / HAVANA – Tougher contact restrictions and an accelerated booster campaign are among measures being considered by German leaders ahead of a meeting on Tuesday aimed at softening the blow of a fifth wave of coronavirus infections.

The government's scientific advisory panel said in a statement on Sunday it was necessary to further limit contact, with data so far showing that boosters alone would not be enough to contain the spread of the virus.

The state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia state, Hendrik Wuest, did not rule out contact restrictions on people who have been fully vaccinated or had a booster shot.

"We should be careful about ruling anything out," he told broadcaster ARD on Monday.

However, Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has ruled out a lockdown before Christmas and said he did not expect a "hard lockdown" after the holidays either. read more

At the same time, Lauterbach called for parliament to decide on mandatory vaccinations as soon as possible to stem the coming waves.

Some 70.3 percent of Germany's total population are considered fully vaccinated, while 31.5 percent have received an additional booster shot, according to official figures.

The German Hospital Federation (DKG) has warned the fifth wave could bring a deadly twofold blow of seriously ill patients and massive staff shortages due to coronavirus infections.

The Robert Koch Institute infectious disease body reported 16,086 new coronavirus cases within 24 hours on Monday, the smallest rise since early November. The death toll increased by 119 on Monday, to reach a total of 108,352.

Cuba

The number of active COVID-19 cases in Cuba continued to decline to the lowest level in nearly a year, reaching 358 as of Sunday, the Cuban Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP) said.

Among the active cases, 16 are in intensive care units across the country, MINSAP said.

The Caribbean nation reported 62 new COVID-19 infections in the last 24 hours, taking the national tally to 964,097, it said, adding that no coronavirus-related deaths were registered in the past day, leaving the national death toll at 8,324.

Cuba has so far reported five cases of the highly transmissible Omicron variant. Health officials continued to urge people to follow COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

Sports facilities, leisure centers, theme parks and beaches in Cuba are open with mask mandates, whereas restaurants and cafeterias are operating under social distancing guidelines.

In this file photo taken on March 19, 2021, a firefighter holds a vial of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, in front of the firefighter truck, in Vaillhauques, southern France.  (SYLVAIN THOMAS / AFP)

European Union

The member states of the European Union will receive an additional 20 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in the first three months of next year to hasten the pace against the fast-spreading Omicron variant, the European Commission said on Sunday.

"The Commission has today agreed with BioNTech-Pfizer to accelerate the delivery of its mRNA vaccine to Member States, starting in a few weeks," it said in an announcement. Five million doses will be delivered in January, another five million in February and an extra ten million doses in March.

These doses come on top of the already scheduled 195 million doses from BioNTech-Pfizer, bringing the total number of deliveries in Q1 to 215 million.

The announcement came after the European Commission announced on Thursday that Moderna had agreed to accelerate the delivery of its mRNA vaccine to EU countries.

"In view of the deteriorating epidemiological situation in the European Union over the past months, full vaccination and the roll-out of boosters remains one of the EU's top health priorities," said the executive arm of the EU.

In this file photo taken on March 25, 2021, people wait in a queue to receive a swab test for COVID-19 at a walk-in portable testing center operated by the ambulance service in Dublin.  (PAUL FAITH / AFP)

Ireland

The Irish Department of Health on Sunday reported 5,124 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, saying that about 52 percent of them were due to the Omicron variant.

"It has taken less than two weeks for Omicron to become the dominant strain of COVID-19 in Ireland, revealing just how transmissible this virus is," said Tony Holohan, chief medical officer with the department, in a statement.

He urged all the people eligible for a booster vaccine to get it as early as possible, saying that "it is extremely important we do everything we can to flatten the curve of this wave now to prevent unnecessary deaths, risk to the vulnerable and to protect our health service."

Starting from Sunday, people aged 40 to 49 in Ireland are eligible for a booster vaccine. Local media reported that long queues were seen in many vaccination centers across the country.

The Irish government originally planned to inoculate the people in this age group with the booster vaccine starting from Dec. 27, but has decided to vaccinate as many people as possible before the coming Christmas and New Year holidays, according to the Irish health department.

People wait at an Italian Red Cross anti COVID-19 vaccination hub, in Rome on Nov 29, 2021. (GREGORIO BORGIA / AP)

Italy

Italy's government is considering new measures to avoid a surge in COVID-19 infections during the holiday period, local newspapers reported on Sunday, amid worries over the spread of the highly contagious Omicron coronavirus variant.

After holding a meeting with ministers on Dec 23, Prime Minister Mario Draghi could impose an obligation on the vaccinated to show a negative test to access crowded places, including discos and stadiums, daily Corriere della Sera reported.

Negative tests could also be required to enter cinemas and theatres, along with wearing masks outdoors.

Under current rules, people who have been vaccinated or have recently recovered from the disease have free access to indoor seating at bars and restaurants, museums, cinemas, clubs and sporting events.

"Some measures, such as making masks compulsory even outdoors … could be taken soon," Franco Locatelli, one of the government's main scientific advisors, told the newspaper.

Italy – where vaccination is already mandatory for healthcare workers, school staff, police and the military – could extend the jab obligation to all workers from January, Corriere della Sera reported.

ALSO READ: S.Africa: Vaccines, prior infection leading to mild COVID-19 cases

A woman looks at images of the 551 doctors who died amid the COVID-19 pandemic which are displayed at the so-called "Paseo de los Heroes" outside Peru's Medical College (CMP) in Lima, on Dec 08, 2021. (ERNESTO BENAVIDES / AFP)

Peru

Peru confirmed the first four cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, Minister of Health Hernando Cevallos announced on Sunday.

Cevallos said that one of the patients was a woman who had journeyed from South Africa while another was a Peruvian healthcare worker. He added that all patients are currently in isolation.

"At the moment, all these patients are stable and are, of course, under permanent observation," said the minister.

The minister added that two people who had been in contact with one of the patients also tested positive for COVID-19, but studies are still being carried out to identify the variant.

In this file photo taken on Oct 21, 2021, a healthcare worker administers a dose of Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine to a patient at a vaccination center in the GUM State Department store in Moscow. (DIMITAR DILKOFF / AFP)

Russia

The Kremlin is convinced that the World Health Organization will recognize Russia's flagship Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine within a few months, the Interfax news agency cited Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov as saying on Sunday.

The Kremlin on Tuesday said Russia had still not handed over all the information needed for the vaccine to be approved by the WHO because of differences in regulatory standards. 

"I am deeply convinced that literally within a few months… the WHO will approve Sputnik and it will also then be possible to move forward on this path with the Europeans," Interfax quoted Peskov as saying.

The WHO expects to receive the relevant documents by the end of the year, RIA reported, citing WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic.

In a documentary about the COVID-19 pandemic, aired on state television channel Rossiya 1 in Russia's Far East ahead of scheduled programming in Moscow, Peskov said mortality in Russia was very high, describing it as a tragedy and something that preoccupied President Vladimir Putin and his presidential administration.

Slovenia

The Slovenian Health Ministry launched a national campaign on Sunday to boost the COVID-19 vaccination rate to cope with the Omicron variant.

Health Minister Janez Poklukar kicked off the campaign in the northwestern city of Bled, where he got his booster shot.

The campaign was scheduled from Dec. 19 to 23 in 62 vaccination centers across the country.

A woman is vaccinated against COVID-19 at the Hillbrow Clinic in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Dec 6, 2021. (SHIRAAZ MOHAMED / AP)

South Africa

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has returned to work after finishing a week of self-isolation due to testing positive for COVID-19, his office said on Monday.

Ramaphosa, who was given Johnson & Johnson's vaccine in February, tested positive for COVID-19 on Dec 12 and received treatment for mild symptoms.

"The President has returned to duty and will chair the final cabinet meeting for 2021 on Wednesday," the presidency said in a statement.

In the past few days, a nationwide outbreak believed to be linked to the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus has been infecting more than 20,000 people a day, even though the number of new recorded infections dropped below that over the weekend.

ALSO READ: Netherlands starts 'painful' Christmas coronavirus lockdown

A young girl watches as a boy receives a vaccine as children are administered the first shot of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at Hospital de Henares in Coslada, Madrid on Dec 15, 2022.(BERNAT ARMANGUE / AP)

Spain

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Sunday that he will meet with the leaders of Spain's 17 autonomous communities to discuss measures for controlling the sharp rise of COVID-19 cases in the country.

Sanchez made the announcement from Barcelona after the Health Ministry confirmed on Friday that the 14-day incidence of COVID-19 had climbed to 511 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, returning to the level of a "very high risk" for the first time since early August.

"We cannot accept this accumulated incidence as good," said Sanchez, highlighting the need to "intensify actions against the virus," and expressing the hope that "shared measures that can be implemented in the next few weeks" would be agreed.

Britain's Health Minister Sajid Javid speaks during a media briefing in Downing Street, London on Oct 20, 2021.  (TOBY MELVILLE / POOL PHOTO VIA AP)

United Kingdom

Britain's health minister on Sunday declined to rule out the chance of further COVID-19 restrictions before Christmas, saying the spread of the Omicron variant was a very fast moving situation.

Asked whether he could rule out new restrictions before Christmas, health minister Sajid Javid told BBC Television: "We are assessing the situation, it is very fast moving."

"There are no guarantees in this pandemic I don't think. At this point, we just have to keep everything under review."

Javid said the government was watching the data on an "almost hourly basis" and listening to its scientific advisers and would balance that against the broader impact of restrictions on things such as businesses and education.

Another 12,133 Omicron cases have been recorded in Britain, the biggest daily increase since the COVID-19 variant was detected in the country, taking the total Omicron cases found in the country to 37,101, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said Sunday.

Meanwhile, Britain reported 82,886 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 11,361,387, according to official figures released Sunday.

Patients wait to receive a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot at a mobile vaccination station on 59th Street below Central Park on Dec 2, 2021, in New York. (JOHN MINCHILLO / AP)

United States

US health officials urged Americans on Sunday to get booster shots, wear masks and be careful if they travel over the winter holidays, as the Omicron variant raged across the world and was set to take over as the dominant strain in the United States.

Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, told CBS' Face the Nation that the number of Omicron cases will rise steeply in the next two weeks.

"A big message for today is if you've had vaccines and a booster, you're very well protected against Omicron causing you severe disease. So, anybody listening to this who's in that 60 percent of Americans who are eligible for a booster but haven't yet gotten one: This is the week to do it. Do not wait," he said.

Omicron is multiplying rapidly, making COVID-19 vaccinations and booster shots more crucial than ever, chief White House medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Sunday. Currently 27 percent of US residents have not gotten even a single dose of vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"It is just, you know, raging through the world," Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on NBC's Meet the Press.

Omicron has been found in 43 out of 50 US states and around 90 countries so far.

A child receives a dose of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine at an event launching school vaccinations in Los Angeles, California on Nov 5, 2021. (FREDERIC J. BROWN / AFP)

In another development, a US appeals court on Friday reinstated a nationwide vaccine-or-testing COVID-19 mandate for large businesses, which covers 80 million American workers, prompting opponents to rush to the Supreme Court to ask it to intervene.

The ruling by the 6th US Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati lifted a November injunction that had blocked the rule from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which applies to businesses with at least 100 workers.

"It is difficult to imagine what more OSHA could do or rely on to justify its finding that workers face a grave danger in the workplace," said the opinion. "It is not appropriate to second-guess that agency determination considering the substantial evidence, including many peer-reviewed scientific studies, on which it relied."

President Joe Biden unveiled in September regulations to increase the adult vaccination rate as a way of fighting the pandemic, which has killed more than 750,000 Americans and weighed on the economy.

The ruling coincides with public health officials bracing for a "tidal wave" of coronavirus infections in the United States as the more transmissible Omicron variant spreads rapidly worldwide.

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