Country, Other	Total Cases	New Cases	Total Deaths
World	200,237,136	+614,447	4,258,778
USA	36,049,015	+104,758	630,497
India	31,767,965	+42,566	425,789
Brazil	19,986,073	+32,572	558,597
Russia	6,334,195	+22,010	160,925
France	6,178,632	+26,829	111,993
UK	5,923,820	+21,691	129,881
Turkey	5,795,665	+24,832	51,645
Argentina	4,961,880	+14,850	106,447
Colombia	4,807,979	+6,929	121,484
Spain	4,523,310	+20,327	81,773
Italy	4,363,374	+4,845	128,115
Iran	3,979,727	+39,019	91,785
Germany	3,782,326	+2,548	92,208
Indonesia	3,496,700	+33,900	98,889
Poland	2,883,284	+164	75,265
Mexico	2,861,498	+6,506	241,585
South Africa	2,470,746	+8,988	72,992
Ukraine	2,254,361	+827	52,981
Peru	2,116,652	+2,207	196,598
Netherlands	1,872,093	+2,184	17,832
Czechia	1,673,946	+151	30,372
Iraq	1,660,371	+11,644	18,865
Chile	1,618,457	+605	35,640
Philippines	1,612,541	+6,879	28,141
Canada	1,433,782	+2,177	26,607
Bangladesh	1,296,093	+15,776	21,397
Malaysia	1,163,291	+17,105	9,598
Belgium	1,129,018	+1,364	25,247
Romania	1,083,711	+233	34,297
Pakistan	1,043,277	+3,582	23,529
Portugal	974,203	+2,076	17,397
Japan	944,763	+8,332	15,204
Israel	882,798	+3,148	6,495
Hungary	809,672	+26	30,029
Jordan	773,657	+914	10,071
Serbia	723,031	+424	7,127
Nepal	702,097	+2,448	9,922
UAE	685,462	+1,548	1,960
Austria	660,262	+390	10,742
Thailand	652,185	+18,901	5,315
Morocco	642,683	+8,760	9,949
Tunisia	596,775	+1,243	20,226
Kazakhstan	595,433	+7,481	6,153
Lebanon	564,354	+1,230	7,917
Saudi Arabia	528,952	+1,075	8,270
Greece	501,030	+3,428	12,972
Bolivia	474,538	+639	17,859
Paraguay	453,367	+336	15,135
Belarus	448,335	+581	3,483
Panama	437,744	+932	6,851
Georgia	428,670	+4,827	5,910
Bulgaria	426,003	+462	18,225
Cuba	413,251	+9,629	2,993
Costa Rica	411,123	+943	5,070
Kuwait	400,128	+785	2,345
Slovakia	392,751	+41	12,541
Uruguay	381,853	+138	5,976
Guatemala	373,047	+2,789	10,483
Croatia	363,973	+186	8,267
Azerbaijan	345,882	+931	5,034
Dominican Republic	342,850	+190	3,968
Denmark	319,295	+810	2,550
Palestine	317,264	+181	3,609
Sri Lanka	316,219	+2,450	4,645
Myanmar	311,067	+4,713	10,373
Venezuela	308,452	+882	3,637
Ireland	304,310	+884	5,035
Honduras	300,572	+1,018	7,902
Oman	297,431	+309	3,877
Egypt	284,415	+53	16,540
Lithuania	283,688	+426	4,420
Ethiopia	281,300	+467	4,395
Bahrain	269,495	+94	1,384
Moldova	259,828	+161	6,261
Slovenia	259,486	+181	4,429
Libya	258,467	+2,139	3,609
Armenia	230,713	+237	4,621
Qatar	226,710	+170	601
Kenya	205,356	+1,085	3,995
S. Korea	202,203	+1,201	2,104
Zambia	197,123	+633	3,422
Nigeria	175,264	+505	2,163
Algeria	175,229	+1,307	4,370
Vietnam	170,190	+8,429	2,071
Mongolia	167,229	+1,019	827
Kyrgyzstan	165,540	+797	2,354
North Macedonia	156,543	+37	5,494
Latvia	139,037	+112	2,556
Norway	138,740	+475	799
Estonia	133,978	+225	1,273
Albania	133,211	+65	2,457
Uzbekistan	131,978	+899	893
Mozambique	126,391	+1,429	1,500
Namibia	119,797	+355	3,080
Zimbabwe	112,435	+1,580	3,676
Finland	108,358	+692	982
Ghana	105,512	+518	844
Cyprus	103,314	+598	429
Suriname	25,549	+110	654
Aruba	11,877	+70	111

Retrieved from:  https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

 

 

 

WHO's pandemic project faces cash crunch amid vaccine, oxygen shortages

Francesco Guarascio

 

The World Health Organization (WHO) is seeking $11.5 billion in urgent funding to fight the more infectious Delta variant of the coronavirus, a draft report seen by Reuters shows, amid worries wealthy nations are partly bypassing its COVID-19 programmes.

A large portion of the cash being requested from the WHO's partners is needed to buy tests, oxygen and face masks in poorer nations, says the document which is expected to be released this week. And a quarter of it would be to buy hundreds of millions of vaccines for them that would otherwise go elsewhere.

The paper, still subject to changes, outlines the results and financial needs of the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-A), the programme co-led by the WHO to distribute fairly COVID-19 vaccines, drugs and tests across the world.

The programme, set up at the start of the pandemic, remains vastly underfunded, and its coordinators are now acknowledging it will remain so as many governments look to address global COVID needs "differently", an ACT-A official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

As a result, it has cut by nearly $5 billion its total request for funds, the document shows. But it still needs $16.8 billion, almost as much as what has been raised so far, and $7.7 billion is required urgently.

The document also calls for a further $3.8 billion, on top of the $7.7 billion, to take up options for 760 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines that would be delivered next year.

"These options to buy need to be exercised in the coming months or vaccine doses will be lost," the document warns.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus last week said that $7.7 billion were urgently needed, but did not give a breakdown of planned spending, and did not say how much extra money was needed for vaccines.

The WHO was not immediately available to comment.

The latest cash crunch will underscore concerns about the long-term future of the programme, which has struggled to secure supplies and equipment to tame a pandemic that has killed more than 4.2 million.

The vaccine portion of the project, called COVAX, is increasingly reliant on donations from wealthy nations, rather than its own supplies, after key manufacturer India restricted exports of shots to boost domestic vaccinations.

But the United States, European Union and Japan have also donated vaccines directly to countries as part of their vaccine diplomacy drives. Japan has also said it's a quicker process than going through COVAX.

Some countries have provided equipment directly to others too. Last month, Australia said it would donate oxygen-related equipment, antigen test-kits as well as vaccines to Indonesia. read more

The plea for cash comes as a review of the ACT-A gets under way, with France, Germany and Canada among the countries steering the process. A report on the programme's results and shortcomings is expected in September by consultancy Dalberg Global Development Advisors, the ACT-A official said.

OXYGEN NEEDS

Among ACT-A's immediate needs are $1.2 billion for oxygen to treat seriously ill COVID-19 patients in poorer countries where supplies are low, the report says.

Oxygen has moved up the priority list given vaccines are not available, the ACT-A official said, highlighting the repercussions from the shortage of shots as the Delta variant spreads to 132 countries.

COVAX has delivered about 180 million vaccines, far short of its 2 billion target by the end of this year.

Oxygen is needed to "control the exponential death surges caused by the Delta variant," the document says.

Global demand for medical oxygen is currently more than a dozen times greater than before the pandemic, the document says, but many countries are struggling to access sufficient supplies.

The urgent need for the most basic treatment against COVID-19 one and a half years into the pandemic shows how little has been done to combat the virus in most of the world, the ACT-A official said, noting: "There hasn't been much progress. What was urgent three months ago is still urgent now."

"Inequity in access to life-saving COVID-19 tools has never been more apparent," the document says.

In rich nations, most people have already been vaccinated, including the younger who are less at risk from COVID-19, whereas in poorer nations the most vulnerable are still waiting for a first dose and there is a lack of basic materials, such as face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE).

"Avoidable death and unsustainable pressure on health systems is mounting in many countries due to insufficient access to oxygen and PPE," the document says.

At least $1.7 billion are urgently needed to buy protective devices for healthcare workers in poorer nations, the document says, and another $2.4 billion are needed to boost testing in low-income countries.

 

Retrieved from:  https://prod.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/whos-pandemic-project-faces-cash-crunch-amid-vaccine-oxygen-shortages-2021-08-03/

 

 

New York becomes first U.S. city to order COVID vaccines for restaurants, gyms

By Maria CaspaniDan Whitcomb

 

A family enjoys dinner at a restaurant during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., March 25, 2021. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon

 

New York City will become the first major U.S. city to require proof of COVID-19 vaccination at restaurants, gyms and other businesses, Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Tuesday, as the nation grapples with the rapidly spreading Delta variant.

With vaccines widely available, political leaders were combating the latest surge in infections with shots and masks rather than ordering businesses to close and Americans to stay home as they did last year. 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday issued a new 60-day moratorium on residential evictions in areas with high levels of COVID-19 cases, despite a Supreme Court ruling in June suggesting that such a move would require Congress to pass new legislation.

The U.S. government and several states, along with some hospitals and universities, already require employees to get inoculated. Tyson Foods on Tuesday became one of the largest private employers to require workers to be immunized to combat the virus that has killed over 600,000 in the country.

New York City's policy requires proof of at least one dose and will be enforced starting Sept. 13. Like mask mandates and last year's stay-at-home orders, the plan will likely meet stiff resistance.

In France, government imposition of a nationwide health passport proving vaccination has touched off large protests, often dispersed by police using tear gas.

Government vaccine passports are controversial among Americans as well, especially conservatives.

"It is time for people to see vaccination as literally necessary to living a good and full and healthy life," de Blasio, a Democrat, told a news conference.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is aiming to give full approval for the Pfizer COVID vaccine by early September, the New York Times reported on Tuesday, citing people involved in the effort.

Roughly 60% of all New Yorkers have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to city data. But certain areas, largely poor communities and communities of color, have much lower vaccination rates.

 

Retrieved from:  https://www.reuters.com/world/us/nyc-require-proof-vaccination-indoor-activities-mayor-2021-08-03/

 

 

 

Japan names and shames citizens for breaching Covid quarantine rules

 

Japan has carried out a threat to publicly shame people not complying with coronavirus border control measures, releasing the names of three people who broke quarantine rules after returning from overseas.

The health ministry said the three Japanese nationals named had clearly acted to avoid contact with authorities after recently returning from abroad.

The announcement late on Monday, the first of its kind, sparked a flurry of speculation among Twitter users about the details of those identified, such as their jobs and locations.

Japan is asking all travellers from overseas, including its own citizens, to self-quarantine for two weeks, during which they are asked to use a location-tracking smartphone app and report on their health condition.
Japan last week expanded its coronavirus state of emergency to four more areas beyond Tokyo after record increases in infections while the capital hosts the Olympic Games.

The prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, declared an emergency in Saitama, Kanagawa and Chiba near Tokyo and in the western city of Osaka, effective from Monday until 31 August.

Emergency measures already in place in Tokyo and the southern island of Okinawa will also be extended until the end of August, after the Olympics and well into the Paralympics, which start on 24 August.
The surge in cases in Tokyo despite more than two weeks of emergency measures has raised doubts that the authorities can slow infections effectively.

Tokyo reported record increases in cases for three days in a row last week, including 3,865 on Thursday. The number of cases doubled since the previous week but officials said the rise was unrelated to the Olympics.

Five other areas, including Hokkaido, Kyoto, Hyogo and Fukuoka were placed under less stringent emergency restrictions.
Tokyo’s governor, Yuriko Koike, has noted that people in their 30s or younger accounted for many recent cases and urged them to “share the sense of crisis” and follow basic measures such as mask wearing and avoiding having parties.

 

Retrieved from:  https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/04/japan-names-and-shames-citizens-for-breaching-covid-quarantine-rules

 

 

 

Most children with Covid-19 recover within a week, but a small percentage have long-term symptoms, a study says

By Emily Anthes

 

A health care worker collected a swab sample for a coronavirus test from a young passenger arriving on an international flight in Chennai, India on Sunday.Credit...Idrees Mohammed/EPA, via Shutterstock

Although most children with Covid-19 recover within a week, a small percentage experience long-term symptoms, according to a new study of more than 1,700 British children. The researchers found that 4.4 percent of children have symptoms that last four weeks or longer, while 1.8 percent have symptoms that last for eight weeks or longer.

The findings suggest that what has sometimes been called “long Covid” may be less common in children than adults. In a previous study, some of the same researchers found that 13.3 percent of adults with Covid-19 had symptoms that lasted at least four weeks and 4.5 percent had symptoms that lasted at least eight weeks.

“It is reassuring that the number of children experiencing long-lasting symptoms of Covid-19,” is low, Dr. Emma Duncan, an endocrinologist at King’s College London and lead author of the study, said in a statement. “Nevertheless, a small number of children do experience long illness with Covid-19, and our study validates the experiences of these children and their families.”

The study, published on Tuesday in the journal The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, is based on an analysis of data collected by the Covid Symptom Study smartphone app. The paper focuses on 1,734 children between the ages of 5 and 17 who tested positive for the virus and developed symptoms between Sept. 1 and Jan. 24. Parents or caregivers reported the children’s symptoms in the app.

In most cases, the illness was mild and short. Children were sick for six days, on average, and experienced an average of three symptoms. The most common symptoms were headache and fatigue.

But a small subset of children experienced lingering symptoms, including fatigue, headache and a loss of smell. Children between 12 and 17 were sicker for longer than younger children and more likely to experience symptoms that lasted at least four weeks.

“We hope our results will be useful and timely for doctors, parents and schools caring for these children — and of course the affected children themselves,” Dr. Duncan said.

The researchers also compared children who tested positive for the coronavirus with those who reported symptoms in the app but tested negative for the virus. Children who tested negative — and may have had other illnesses, such as colds or the flu — recovered more quickly and were less likely to have lingering symptoms than those with Covid. They were ill for three days, on average, and just 0.9 percent of children had symptoms that lasted at least four weeks.

 

Retrieved from: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/03/health/kids-covid-symptoms-recovery.html

 

 

 

Delta variant has spiked Covid-19 deaths in Africa by 80% in one month, WHO says

By Nimi Princewill, CNN

 

Abuja, Nigeria (CNN)Coronavirus deaths in Africa rose rapidly over the past month, as fatalities surged by 80 percent within the last four weeks, the World Health Organization has said.

WHO's Vaccine Introduction Officer for the African Region, Phionah Atuhebwe, told CNN on Monday that the continent was witnessing an unprecedented rise in coronavirus fatalities.

"COVID-19 death rates have increased across Africa, with the highest weekly rate (6,343) to date reported during the week starting 19 July 2021," said Atuhebwe.

"Deaths increased by 89%, from 13,242 to 24,987, in the last 28 days, when compared against statistics for the previous 28 days," she added.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference Friday that the pandemic's worsening death toll and rapid infection rate are "being driven by the highly transmissible Delta variant," which is considered to be more deadly than the original strain of coronavirus.

Ghebreyesus said the Delta variant — so far "detected in at least 132 countries" — has also spiked Covid-19 infections globally by 80 percent within the past four weeks.

"Almost 4 million cases were reported to WHO last week, and on current trends, we expect the total number of cases to pass 200 million within the next two weeks," Ghebreyesus added.

Africa at 'higher risk'

Atuhebwe explained that most new deaths in the last 28 days were reported from Southern Africa, which she said accounts for 64 percent of the burgeoning death rate with 16,019, while North Africa accounts for 24 percent with 6036 deaths. Both subregions accounted for 88 percent of all reported deaths in the past month, the WHO official added.

Atuhebwe said at least 15 African countries are currently recording an upward trend in weekly deaths associated with COVID-19.

"The 15 countries are Algeria, Botswana, DRC, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritania, Mozambique, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Libya, Tunisia, and Morocco," she said, attributing the surge in Covid fatality rates to increased transmission rates of the virus.

In West Africa, a resurgence of cases is overwhelming the already stretched healthcare systems of affected countries in the region. Less than one million of Senegal's 16 million people have received Covid-19 vaccination, setting the country up for a devastating third wave of infections, which saw more than 15,000 new Covid cases last month.

While in Nigeria, a rise in the number of Covid deaths is also causing concern. Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said Monday that there has been a daily average of six deaths at its isolation centers in the past week. Sanwo-Olu added that there had been an eight-fold increase in infection rate in Lagos, resulting in 4,300 confirmed cases in July alone, while 352 patients were admitted into the state-run isolation centers.

 

Retrieved from: https://edition.cnn.com/2021/08/03/africa/delta-variant-covid-africa-intl/index.html

 

 

 

Status of some UK citizens vaccinated overseas still not recognised by NHS

By Aubrey Allegretti 

 

Ministers have been criticised for their failure to let some people vaccinated overseas have their double-jab status recognised by the NHS, after a promise the system would be changed to enable them to do so by the end of July was not met.

In the final week before the Commons broke up for recess, the vaccines minister, Nadhim Zahawi, sought to reassure MPs that the government was working quickly to help those who were inoculated overseas but registered with a GP in the UK.

He said on 22 July that “by the end of this month” that would change – and that “UK nationals who have been vaccinated overseas will be able to talk to their GP, go through what vaccine they have had, and have it registered with the NHS that they have been vaccinated”.

GPs would need to check the vaccine the person received had been approved in the UK – and once that process was completed they could have their vaccine record updated, enabling them to prove their double-jabbed status.

The government is already urging some venues such as nightclubs to use the NHS app’s Covid pass, which only displays people’s vaccine status if they were jabbed in the UK – meaning those who got their dose overseas will not be able to use the technology.

When asked by the Guardian if people jabbed abroad could have that information registered with their GP, the Department of Health and Social Care admitted the change earmarked to happen by the end of July had not yet come into force.

A spokesperson said: “Only Covid-19 vaccines administered in England and Wales can currently be shown through the NHS Covid pass.

“We recognise there are a large variety of Covid-19 vaccines being administered worldwide and work is ongoing to determine which non-UK vaccines and certification solutions to recognise.”

The DHSC added that people registered with a GP who were vaccinated overseas could contact their practice – but they still could not use the app to demonstrate their inoculation.

Liz Kendall, the shadow health minister, said it was “yet another case of ministers over-promising and then failing to deliver, leaving many people still unable to obtain a Covid pass after being told they’d be able to”.

She added: “Those who live abroad and have done the right thing by getting vaccinated will feel let down by the government’s failure to find a solution.

“Ministers need to be straight with the public and provide clarity about progress on a globally recognised international vaccine passport – working with the EU and US to get travel moving again.”

Caroline Lucas, the Green MP and vice-chair of the all-party parliamentary group on coronavirus, said people who received recognised vaccines abroad were “being let down by the government’s mixed messages and broken promises”.

She added that there should be “swift action to make the NHS pass compatible with international systems and ensure those who were told they could use it are able to”, and that ministers should be “clear and consistent in their advice to avoid further damaging public trust”.

While arrivals from overseas are locked out of using the NHS app for domestic certification to prove they have been vaccinated, the government did change the rules from this week to let in those who have been double-jabbed in Europe and the US – so long as it was with a vaccine approved for use by three regulators: the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency.

 

Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/aug/04/status-of-some-uk-citizens-vaccinated-overseas-still-not-recognised-by-nhs

 

 

 

Summary

 

Here are the key developments from the last few hours:

· Teenagers aged 16 and 17 will reportedly be given the green light for Covid-19 vaccination, according to Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon.

· More than 200 areas across England and Wales had at least twice as many deaths as average during the first Covid wave, according to analysis by the Office for National Statistics.

· China reported its highest daily number of local coronavirus cases in months as mass testing and contact tracing campaigns uncovered a trail of Delta variant infections.

· Fewer than one in 20 Covid-positive children who experience symptoms continue to be symptomatic beyond four weeks, a study carried out in the UK between September 2020 and February 2021 has found.

· The legal requirement for physical distancing in Scotland will be removed from next week, Nicola Sturgeon has said.

· The US government has issued a new moratorium on evictions that will last until 3 October, following mounting pressure on Joe Biden to take action to help keep Americans in their homes as Covid-19 continues to spread.

· New York City is to require proof of vaccination for indoor activities including entering restaurants, going to gyms and attending performances, mayor Bill de Blasio said.

· Helen Clark, former New Zealand prime minister and co-chair of an influential Covid panel, criticised more developed countries for buying up many more vaccines than they require.

· The most disadvantaged areas of Sydney have had almost twice as many Covid cases as the rest of the city during the current outbreak, according to a Guardian Australia analysis.

· A Sydney man in his 20s has died of Covid as local cases continue to proliferate in the worst outbreak so far in New South Wales.

· Prof Sarah Gilbert, the co-creator of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab, has been immortalised with a Barbie doll in her honour.

· Lindsey Graham became the first US senator to disclose a breakthrough infection after being vaccinated against Covid.

· Morocco is introducing new coronavirus restrictions, including a curfew from 9pm to 5am, as infection rates rise.

 

Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2021/aug/04/coronavirus-live-news-china-sees-most-local-cases-since-january-biden-rolls-out-more-covid-aid?page=with:block-610a16d88f0811859febd0fb#block-610a16d88f0811859febd0fb