US appeals court vacates federal jab mandate pending hearing

A healthcare worker administers a dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine at a walk up vaccination site in San Francisco, California, US, on Wednesday, February 3, 2021. (DAVID PAUL MORRIS / BLOOMBERG)

PARIS / LOS ANGELES / ADDIS ABABA / WASHINGTON – A US appeals court panel said on Monday it would convene a full panel to reconsider President Joe Biden's executive order requiring civilian federal employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, and set aside the order pending that hearing.

The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which is based in New Orleans, had reinstated the vaccine order in April by a 2-1 vote after it was blocked by a district court judge in January

The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which is based in New Orleans, had reinstated the vaccine order in April by a 2-1 vote after it was blocked by a district court judge in January. 

The court said on Monday that it would reconsider the case en banc, which means it will be heard by a larger panel of judges. No date was given for the hearing. Pending that hearing, the court said it would vacate the April ruling, which means that Biden's order cannot be enforced.

Biden said in September he would require about 3.5 million government workers to get vaccinated by Nov 22, barring a religious or medical accommodation, or face discipline or firing. read more Despite the legal fight, more than 90 percent of federal workers were vaccinated by December, the White House said last year.

The president's vaccine and mask mandates have faced stiff opposition, led by Republicans, which have turned public safety measures endorsed by disease experts into a political and legal battle in the United States.

The United States passed the milestone of 1 million dead from the coronavirus in May. More than 250 people still die of the disease daily, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A miner receives a Covid-19 vaccine at Anglo American Platinum Ltd's Tumela mine in Amandelbult, South Africa, on August 12. (WALDO SWIEGERS / BLOOMBERG)

African countries

The African continent reported 7,985 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases during the past 24 hours, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said Friday evening.

Figures from the Africa CDC showed that the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases across the continent rose from 11,580,073 Thursday to 11,588,058 as of Friday.

The death toll from the COVID-19 pandemic on the African continent has reached 252,862 while 10,911,109 people who have been infected with the disease have recovered, the specialized healthcare agency of the African Union said.

South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt are among the countries with the most cases in the continent, according to the agency.

COVID-19 study

Infection with the coronavirus impairs the activity of multiple genes involved in the body's chemical processes, including blood sugar metabolism, and for the first time researchers have seen these effects not just in patients' respiratory tract but elsewhere in the body.

French Health and Prevention Minister Brigitte Bourguignon receives a second booster vaccination dose against COVID-19 in a pharmacy in Paris, on June 23, 2022. (STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP)

France

French people should start wearing masks again in crowded areas, especially in public transport, as France has to deal with a new wave of COVID-19 infections fueled by new variants of the disease, Health Minister Brigitte Bourguignon said on Monday.

"I'm not saying it should be mandatory but I do ask the French people to put the mask on in public transport," she told RTL, adding it was a "civic duty" to do so.

France reported new 17,601 coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours, the highest figure for a Monday since April 18

"I'm not merely advising it, I'm asking for it," adding face masks should also be worn again in other closed areas, such as workplaces or shops.

France reported new 17,601 coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours, the highest figure for a Monday since April 18.

Five days ago, French vaccination chief Alain Fischer confirmed the country was in the midst of a new COVID-19 wave, like other European countries, adding then he was personally in favour of reinstating mandatory face mask wearing on public transport. 

New infections have been steadily rising since the end of May in France, with the seven-day moving average of daily new cases more then quadrupling between the May 27 figure of 17,705 and Monday's 71,018.

That total is nonetheless still five times lower than the 366,179 record at the start of the year.

The number of people hospitalized for the disease fell to a six-month low of 13,876 on June 18 but it has since increased by 1,223 to 15,099, a four-week high.

There is traditionally a two-week delay between cases and hospital admissions trends and then a similar delay regarding COVID-deaths.

France's COVID death toll rose by 48 over 24 hours on Tuesday, to 149,406.

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