【無了期唔知幾時完嘅武漢肺炎】國際疫情討論區09

日本東京都新增350宗新型肺炎確診個案，連續10日少於500宗，重症患者減至92人。都政府表示，去年11月中至上月底期間，當地18間保健所漏報了800多宗確診個案，原因包括人員忘記在電腦系統內按確認鍵，以及傳真未能成功發送，導致病例信息未能上報。在計及漏報病例後，當地累計10萬7900多人染病。

全國過去一日新增965宗確診個案，時隔3個月回落到1000宗以下，同日新增72宗死亡病例，累計41萬7000多人染病，超過7000人不治。

當局計劃明天開始為民眾接種新型冠狀病毒疫苗，其中輝瑞藥廠表示，一個盛載他們出產疫苗的小瓶，使用特定注射器可以提取6劑作注射，但以政府庫存的標準注射器只能提取5劑。內閣官房長官加藤勝信承認有關特定注射器短缺，可能導致疫苗浪費，已緊急要求製造商加快生產有關注射器。

新增8宗新型肺炎確診 包括3宗源頭不明本地個案

本港新增8宗新型肺炎確診個案，包括2宗輸入個案及3宗源頭不明的本地個案，其餘3宗與本地個案有流行病學關連。

衞生防護中心表示，源頭不明個案包括39歲的家庭主婦，她於本月9日開始發燒和頭痛，本月13日到普通科門診求醫，翌日遞交深喉唾液樣本。另1宗個案涉及53歲、在葵涌消防局工作的消防隊目，他於本月4日開始頭痛、咳嗽和喉嚨痛，本月14日到博愛醫院求診，最後上班日期為本月10日。1名確診8歲女童亦屬源頭不明個案，沒有病徵，本月14日到社區檢測中心接受檢測。

衞生防護中心表示，過去14天累計新增302宗個案，包括261宗本地個案，其中81宗源頭不明。

英國疫苗接種者超1500萬 接種率世界第三 將實施新的酒店隔離政策

超過1500萬英國居民現已接種第一針新冠疫苗，英國首相約翰遜將其描述為 「重要里程碑」。英國的疫苗接種率僅次於以色列和阿聯酋，居世界第三。

從周一（2月15日）開始，英國的疫苗接種計劃進入新階段，65歲以上的老人和臨牀上的弱勢人群將被邀請預約注射疫苗。

英國疫苗接種和免疫聯合委員會（JCVI）將臨牀弱勢群體定義為患有慢性阻塞性肺病、囊性纖維化、嚴重哮喘等慢性呼吸道疾病的人群。

第一劑疫苗於2020年12月8日運抵英國。兩月後達此目標，約翰遜歡呼其為「非凡壯舉」。在一段視頻中，約翰遜稱讚這是「真正的全國性、全英國的努力」，並補充說，已向英格蘭所有前四個優先群體提供疫苗注射。

英國政府預計將在周一（2月15日）宣佈兌現承諾：向英國前四個優先接種群體的每個人提供疫苗。

威爾士也達標。

但「沒有人安於現狀，」約翰遜說，「我們還有很長的路要走。而且毫無疑問，路上會有顛簸。但在我們取得所有成就之後，我們可以帶著巨大信心前進。」

英國周日（2月14日）的每日新冠數據顯示，目前已有約1500萬人注射第一針疫苗，其中周六（2月13日）有50萬人注射第一針。

英國還有258人在接受新冠病毒檢測呈陽性後的28天內死亡。按該標凖計算，英國的死亡人數達到117166人。周末的新病例有約1萬例，總確診人數達403878例。由於周末報告滯後，周日報告的死亡人數往往較少。

英國國民健康服務體系（NHS）首席執行官史蒂文斯爵士（Sir Simon Stevens） 說，十周內達到1500萬人注射的目標，是里程碑，是 「了不起的共同成就」。

他說：「NHS疫苗接種計劃是歐洲和醫療服務歷史上規模最大和速度最快的（成就）。這要歸功於我們出色的員工在當地社區、志願者和相關人士支持下，展現的技能、關懷和日夜努力工作的結果。」

英國衛生部長漢考克（Matt Hancock） 說，這意味著每四個成年人中就有一個人現在 「開始接受保護，以應對這種可怕的疾病」。

但他提醒說：「還有更多事要做，我敦促任何有資格的人站出來接受注射。疫苗是我們通往自由的道路，我們將一針一針戰勝病毒。」

到目前為止，疫苗接種計劃的目標是為四個最優先群體接種疫苗，他們包括NHS的一線工作人員、護理院居民和員工、70歲以上的老人和被認為在臨牀上極度脆弱的人。

根據英國衛生和社會關懷部的數據，到目前為止，這些群體已佔到英國新冠死亡人數的88%。

NHS一位負責人蘭金（Ruth Rankine）對 「令人難以置信的成就」表示敬意，但他補充說，「在每個人都受保護之前，其實沒有人受到保護」。

她說：「還有工作要做，要對前四批人中所有剩餘的人進行第一針疫苗的管理工作，以及向下移動，直到每個人至少注射一針疫苗。更不用說開始管理第二針疫苗接種的工作」。

工黨的影子衛生部長阿什沃斯（Jonathan Ashworth）說，部長們需要 "鎖定疫苗接種帶來的效益」，並引入進一步措施減少疾病傳播。

這包括增加對那些不得不自我隔離的人的財政支持，更新口罩指導，並使工作場所更安全。

所有從高風險國家抵達英格蘭的英國和愛爾蘭公民，及英國居民，從周一（2月15日）英國時間04:00起必須在酒店隔離。

英國列出的 「高風險國家」有33個，其中包括葡萄牙、巴西和南非。

新規定旨在阻止新冠變種病毒進入英國，規定適用於過去10天內去過這些地方的入境者。他們將不得不預先預訂並支付1750英鎊，並在政府批准的酒店中度過10天隔離期。這個費用包括酒店、交通和新冠檢測的費用。

此前，英國外交大臣拉布（Dominic Raab）拒絶所在黨派議員提出的關於英格蘭解封的提議，稱政府將「謹慎 」行事。

周六英國首相表示，他「樂觀希望」能在本月底制定出 「謹慎」放鬆英格蘭封鎖措施的計劃，理由是疫苗推廣取得 「巨大進展」。

英國目前正在注射兩種經醫藥監管機構批准的疫苗：輝瑞/BioNTech和牛津大學/阿斯利康公司研製的疫苗。

第三種已獲批准的疫苗由美國公司Moderna生產，但預計要到春季才能供應。

如果其他三種疫苗獲批使用，英國也將排隊接受至少另外三種疫苗。

What you said is almost completely true. However, I would like to point out 2 things:
1. A few countries get worse recently. For example, Iraq:


2. Most of the countries that has improved slightly just because there are very strict lockdown by government and weather. Very heavy snows in North America and UK have forced people stay at home even though in places there are not local lockdown. For example, https://us.cnn.com/2021/02/16/weather/texas-winter-storm-tuesday/index.html

So, we have to wait a bit longer to make sure that we are really heading to the right direction.

10:02 GMT+8, 17 Feb 2021

Coronavirus Cases: 110,020,914 (+342,151 )
Deaths: 2,428,314 (+9,777)
Recovered: 84,835,632

Cities and states delay Covid-19 vaccine distribution because of winter storms

Vaccine distribution slowed in many areas because of winter storms engulfing much of the country Monday and Tuesday. Here are the localities and states that have delayed or postponed distribution so far:

Alabama
Some county health departments closed their vaccination clinics Tuesday, the Alabama Department of Public Health said.

Colorado
Colorado is among the states that had to delay vaccinations because of the storm's impact on a Tennessee distribution hub, officials said.
"Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is working with Colorado's health care providers and local public health agencies across the state to make adjustments over the coming days to make sure appointments and clinics do not need to be canceled," a news release from the state read.
Ahead of the Presidents Day weekend, Colorado requested and received doses on Friday that had been scheduled for this week, but the state's allocation of 133,000 vaccines expected to arrive Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday will be impacted.
"This decision helps us have enough on hand to work with providers to move doses around to prevent cancellations," the press release said.

Florida
Approximately 2,000 people in Miami-Dade County will not receive their scheduled second dose due to weather-related supply delays, according to Rachel Johnson, mayor's office communications director.
The second doses of the Pfizer vaccine that were scheduled to be administered on Thursday have not arrived, Johnson tells CNN.
All those affected have been notified about the delay, Johnson said, and have been told that as soon as the vaccine arrives, their appointment will be rescheduled.

Georgia
The Georgia Department of Public Health received a notification from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that Pfizer and Moderna vaccines scheduled to arrive early this week would be delayed by the manufacturers because of the inclement winter weather, DPH said in a news release.
"As a result, many providers statewide, including health departments, are being forced to reschedule appointments for vaccination. Rescheduling appointments will depend on when shipments resume and when the vaccine arrives in Georgia. Delays are expected to continue through the week," the DPH release said.

Illinois
In Chicago, all city-run vaccine sites were closed Tuesday because of the winter weather and appointments there will be rescheduled, city officials said.
The Cook County health system, which includes the Chicago suburbs, told CNN all of its vaccination sites would be closed, except for three that the system operates within the city limits.
The postponements came after Covid-19 shipments coming into the area were delayed when more than a foot of snow fell between Sunday evening and Tuesday morning, the Chicago Department of Public Health said.
In advance of winter weather and adverse road conditions, Illinois ordered the Covid-19 vaccine to be delivered to its "Strategic National Stockpile Receipt, Store, and Stage site," according to a state news release.
The state also said it has been informed by the federal government it should anticipate vaccine delivery delays this week because of the winter storms, the news release said.

Kentucky
The weather will cause some vaccination delays in the state, Gov. Andy Beshear said Monday evening. He said he hopes the state will be able to make up for any postponements next week, after the last of the weather dissipates.
In Louisville, the LouVax vaccination site at Broadbent Arena was to be closed Tuesday, the city's mayor said.

Mississippi
All Mississippi State Department of Health drive-thru vaccination sites were to be closed Tuesday, with the exception of the Coast Coliseum site in Harrison County, the department said.
"Canceled appointments at all other sites will automatically be rescheduled for the same time on an alternate day," the department tweeted.

Nevada
Nevada Health Response tweeted Monday the state may experience a delay in deliveries this week because of the powerful storms.
The state received word the disruption could occur and it is working with the health districts and pharmacies that may be affected.
"We ask Nevadans to continue to be patient at this time," the tweet read.
The State received word some vaccine deliveries may be delayed in arriving this week due to severe storms across the country. Our team is monitoring closely & working with health districts & pharmacies that may be affected. We ask Nevadans to continue to be patient at this time.

— @NVHealthResponse (@NVHealthRespon1) February 15, 2021

Ohio
Gov. Mike DeWine announced Tuesday that Covid-19 vaccine shipments being delivered to providers directly from Pfizer and Moderna could be delayed by one to two days because of severe weather.
Smaller shipments from the Ohio Department of Health's Receipt, Store and Stage (RSS) Warehouse are being delivered on a two-hour delay, DeWine said.
Some vaccine providers have canceled appointments because of snow emergencies, DeWine said, but many are continuing to vaccinate. "So we're continuing to monitor the weather and the shipments for the rest of the week, but we expect, as we've seen, a slowdown in the shipments," he said.

Oklahoma
Some vaccination sites will have adjusted hours or be closed temporarily throughout the week to "ensure public safety is a priority consideration," the Oklahoma State Department of Health said.
The department said it will provide updates on its website as information comes in from regional health departments.
Tennessee
Sites run by several county health departments were closed Tuesday, the state department of health said. People who had appointments will be contacted, and appointments will be rescheduled, the department said on Twitter.

Texas
Corpus Christi
No first-dose vaccines are being shipped to Corpus Christi-Nueces County Public Health District Monday and Tuesday because of winter weather, according to a news release from the city.
The soonest a new shipment may come will be Wednesday, according to the news release.

Dallas County
The county said it has closed its Fair Park vaccination site through Wednesday.

Harris County
The winter storm cut power to the Harris County Public Health building around 2 a.m. Monday and the backup generator also failed, putting more than 8,400 coronavirus vaccines in jeopardy of spoiling, Harris County Judge Lena Hidalgo said Monday afternoon.
Officials quickly put a plan together to allocate and salvage the vaccines, Hidalgo said.
Harris County officials settled on Houston's Ben Taub, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Houston Methodist Hospitals, as well as Rice University and the Harris County Jail as the locations to receive the vaccine overnight, Hidalgo said.

San Antonio
The city postponed vaccine appointments scheduled to take place Tuesday at the Alamodome until Saturday because of the storm, according to a news release from the city.
This was the second straight day San Antonio postponed vaccinations at the venue. Over the weekend, the city made the decision to move Monday's appointments to Friday.

Iran's Covid-19 cases appear to be rising

On Tuesday, Iran reported 8,011 new daily coronavirus cases, bringing the country's total number of cases to 1,534,034.

Infections appear to be on the rise once again across Iran. It recorded 7,760 cases on Monday and 7,390 on Sunday.

The country also reported 89 new related Covid-19 deaths bringing the country's death toll to 59,117 on Tuesday.

The Health Ministry said 3,696 patients remain hospitalized in ICUs across the country.

Iran has the highest Covid-19 case and fatality rates in the Middle East region. The country has kept pandemic restrictions in place to try and avoid a larger outbreak of infection.

The government also began its rollout of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine earlier this month. Officials said doctors and nurses would be among the first to receive the shot.

Russia extends UK flight ban until mid-March, state media says

Russia has extended a ban on flights to and from the United Kingdom until March 16, state media reported on Tuesday, citing the country’s coronavirus task force.

“The operational headquarters for preventing the import and spread of novel coronavirus infection in Russia has decided to extend the suspension of air traffic with the UK,” RIA-Novosti reported.
“To ensure the protection of public health, the restrictions were extended to [23:59] on March 16, 2021,” the task force added.
Russia imposed the flight ban on December 22 in light of the new and more contagious variant circulating across the UK. The variant was linked to a surge in cases there in late 2020.

Mass testing is underway in a German city after case of UK Covid variant detected

Several apartment blocks in the German city of Hamm were put under quarantine Monday evening, after a man there tested positive for the more transmissible variant of Covid-19 first detected in the UK.

The man of Bulgarian descent had shown coronavirus symptoms and looked for medical help, according to a press release from the city.

Authorities then cordoned off the four apartment blocks near where he worked, and rolled out mass testing, the release adds.

The testing was necessary as the man is a builder at the site, according to the release, and so is likely to have had contact with colleagues across the apartment blocks.

Meanwhile, the German agency for disease control and prevention reported 3,856 new coronavirus cases, bringing the country's total reported case count to 2,342,843.

Germany's death toll stands at 65,604, including 528 new fatalities.

The country's national agency for disease control and prevention, the Robert Koch Institute, said that 4,284,554 vaccinations have been administered so far in the country.

Heavy snow stops vaccinations in Greek capital

Heavy snowfall in the Greek capital of Athens caused Covid-19 vaccination centers to halt their work on Tuesday.

“Due to the severe weather conditions, all vaccinations planned for today will be postponed across all vaccination centers in Athens," the Greek Health Ministry said. "Citizens who have their vaccination scheduled for today will be notified of their appointment rescheduling.”
Residence on the Attic peninsula, which encompasses Athens and its countryside, have been warned against any against non-essential travel in the area due to "intensifying" weather conditions.

UK will facilitate other countries' Covid passports but not produce its own, minister says

The UK will facilitate other countries' Covid-19 vaccine passports plans, although it is not planning to introduce them domestically, UK vaccine minister Nadhim Zahawi told the BBC on Tuesday.

“Internationally, if other countries will require a vaccine certificate, then I think it's right that we facilitate it,” Zahawi said, “that's what we are working on.”
“We're not looking at the domestic use of vaccine passports, that's not in our planning. As the prime minister described, it'll be the national vaccination programme combined with rapid testing that I think is the way forward,” Zahawi added.
Zahawi added that the UK government plans to make immunization and vaccination records available to citizens via a National Health Service (NHS) app if they need to travel internationally.

When asked about the supply of vaccines, Zahawi said that he was expecting “much greater volume in March and April, tens of millions of doses coming through,” adding that he's confident the UK will meet the target to give the first vaccine dose to 32 million people in top nine priority groups by the end of April.

The UK has been hard-hit by the pandemic and has the highest Covid-19 death toll in Europe.

The introduction of Covid-19 passports -- documents proving that the traveler has been vaccinated -- remains a contentious concept.

Calls from several European countries to create an internationally recognized vaccination certificate prompted the European Union to debate the measure in January.

While some states argue that reopening borders and frozen sectors of the economy with the help of Covid-19 passports would be crucial in 2021, fears remain over what protection various vaccines actually afford, how the certifications might be abused and what it means for those still awaiting shots.

In discussions last month, some EU members expressed concern that vaccine certifications may result in the unvaccinated being treated as second-class citizens who are refused certain services.

LA elementary schools are allowed to reopen as virus rates fall

Elementary schools in California's Los Angeles County have been cleared to reopen for in-person learning starting Tuesday, after county health officials announced they expect to reach the state's Covid-19 case threshold for reopening those campuses.

"The state permits elementary schools to reopen as soon as we reach an adjusted case rate of 25 per 100,000," the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said in a news release on Monday.
"We are informing Los Angeles County schools tonight via an emailed letter that we expect to announce we have reached this threshold effective Tuesday, February 16."
County health officials say that while Covid-19 numbers are declining, "the virus is still very much present and circulating widely" across the county and they urged residents to remain cautious.

本港新增16宗新型肺炎確診，12宗屬本地個案，當中10宗源頭不明，另外4宗是輸入個案。

16宗新增個案包括5女11男，年齡介乎29至72歲。10宗源頭不明的個案中，包括荃灣的一間燒臘店師傅，有11人需要檢疫；有患者在廣華街的食肆工作，9名相關人士要檢疫；一名34歲無業男子確診，新年期間有到親友家等，40至50人需要檢疫；有在九龍啟德工作的文職人員確診，新年期間有活動，20多人要檢疫。

兩宗本地個案與之前的個案有關，包括葵涌消防局再多1人確診，以及早前消防局確診者的1名緊密接觸者。

另外，有約10宗初步陽性個案，當中有2至3宗感染源頭不明。

推下先，大家的關注少左好多

南韓新增621宗確診 再多4名患者死亡

南韓新增621宗新型肺炎確診個案，相隔一個多月以來，確診個案再度超過600宗。新增確診個案中，590宗屬於社區感染，31宗屬境外輸入。全國累計8萬4千多宗確診。

隨著新年假期結束，預計新增病例會逐漸反彈，特別是新春期間親友聚會引發集體感染，疫情可能有進一步擴散風險。

當日新增4宗死亡病例，累計1538人死亡。

Thank you for your help.

打疫苗啦 關個屁咩

放寬防疫措施首日 食客拒用「安心出行」拳襲快餐店職員

新冠肺炎第四波疫情持續數個月，政府日前放寬晚市禁堂食、二人一枱等限聚措施，由今日(18日)起生效，與此同時，政府強制食肆使用「安心出行」應用程式，要求食客進入時需掃描二維碼或登記資料，措施引起反彈。

今晨6時53分，有食客擬光顧黃大仙清水灣道45號彩雲商場地下一快餐店時，被職員要求使用「安心出行」應用程式或登記資料。有人拒絕並強行進入快餐店，爭執期間揮拳打向快餐店職員，其後逃去。職員眼部受傷，其後由救護車送院治理。警方了解事發過程後將案列作襲擊，交黃大仙警區刑事調查隊跟進，暫未有人被捕。

兩人帶疫拜年70親友送檢

農曆新年假期完結，食肆晚市及場所復業前夕，新冠肺炎疫情隨即反彈，本港昨日（17日）新增16宗個案，本地個案佔12宗，其中有10宗屬源頭不明，有兩名患者曾在新年期間四出拜年，導致合共有逾70名親友需送檢。本港累計10,813宗個案，另有約10宗初步確診，最少有3宗為源頭不明個案，包括一名位於觀塘順利邨圓玄護養院暨長者日間護理中心的護理員，有逾80名院友及員工需送檢。

昨日源頭不明個案激增，有患者在新春期間發病，包括一名34歲無業男，他在年初三（14日）發病後兩日，曾到元朗葡萄園的親戚家中拜年，有近50名密切接觸者要隔離檢疫。另一名曾拜年患者為36歲男子，於九龍城啟德道從事文職工作，傳染期間沒有工作，他於年初二（13日）發病，但農曆新年期間有出席聚會，有20多名親友要隔離檢疫。

病足一個月 七旬翁四出飲茶
另有患者發病後拖足一個月證實確診，該名72歲男子，他在本月15日感到不適，經救護車送到屯門醫院治理，發現已有抗體，相信發病日期為1月中。衞生署衞生防護中心傳染病處主任張竹君表示，該確診者在上月起，曾3度向中醫求診，平日多在屯門一帶飲茶，包括屯門時代廣場的好日子皇宴，煌府婚宴專門店及富泰商場的羊城海鮮火鍋酒家。

此外，有兩名廚師中招，分別於荃灣海壩街的都好燒臘餐廳工作，有11名同事須檢疫；一名則在油麻地廣華街廣發商業中心地下一間餐廳工作，有9人須檢疫；另有一名為地盤工人，於沙田麗坪路地盤工作，患者於本月9日已沒有上班，但當局會安排該地盤做檢測。

10宗屬源頭不明患者報稱住址為：沙田乙明邨明恩樓、藍田匯景花園一座、深水埗福華街福華大廈、彌敦道66-70號金冠大廈、紅磡維港．星岸2座、元朗豐樂里康城大樓、黃大仙飛鳳街安利大廈、屯門富泰邨秀泰樓、覺士道1A號高景臺及尖沙咀華源大廈。

葵涌消防局爆疫 人員要強檢
餘下2宗有關連個案均屬葵涌消防局群組，加上有一宗初步個案，故葵涌消防局內人員及過去14日曾停留兩小時人士均須強制檢測，累計4人染疫。位於油塘高超道的高翔苑高鳳閣由於出現有多宗確診亦需強檢。

昨日4宗輸入個案，分別從菲律賓、奧地利及巴基斯坦抵港，一名巴基斯坦抵港的29歲男子其樣本被驗出N501Y變種病毒基因，連同早前兩宗個案，目前累計共有38人證實帶有變種基因病毒人士，當中26人屬英國到港、兩人從南非赴港，另有一宗與巴西變種病毒類似，其餘9宗個案暫時未分類。至於約10宗初步確診中，除了一名葵涌消防局消防員外，一名居於大埔88廣場的家庭主婦，及一名天后電氣道的金殿大廈御名軒知客亦證初步確診，均屬源頭不明個案。

再有兩名染疫者離世，包括一名57歲瑪嘉烈醫院男病人，去年12月7日因發燒及呼吸困難，入住該院接受治療，其後確診，屬跳舞群組。另有一名68歲有長期病患男病人，因初步確診於1月14日被送往大埔那打素醫院，同日轉送威爾斯親王醫院深切治療部接受隔離治療。病人經治療後，驗出有抗體，衞生署於本月5日解除其隔離令。病人於深切治療部留醫，惟病情持續惡化，延至昨日離世。死者生前居於上水清河邨清頌樓。連同上述兩名病人，至今共有197名確診病人離世。

歐盟增購疫苗 阿斯利康疫苗在德國使用緩慢

【彭博】-- 歐盟委員會確保獲得另外數億劑新冠疫苗，並承諾將加速批准專門針對變異毒株的疫苗。阿斯利康新冠疫苗在德國接種進度緩慢，接種開始數日使用數量尚不足交付數量的十分之一。

聯合國正努力推動全球範圍內進行疫苗接種。在英國，科學家將著手進行世界上第一項研究，故意讓志願者接觸新型冠狀病毒，以加快研究速度。

紐約市警告稱，冬季風暴導致疫苗供應短缺。五角大樓初步數據顯示，約三分之一被提供新冠疫苗的美國軍人拒絕接種疫苗。

要點：

全球新冠病毒數據追蹤：累計確診病例超過1.098億，死亡人數超過240萬疫苗追蹤：全球接種超過1.81億劑阿斯利康新冠疫苗在德國接種進度緩慢 醫護人員對其副作用感到擔心疫苗鋪開給新冠檢測行業前景蒙上陰影

在一項實驗室研究之中，輝瑞公司和BioNTech SE的新冠疫苗針對南非新冠病毒毒株刺激產生的中和抗體低約三分之二。兩家公司認為，它們的疫苗仍然可以對抗這種病毒。

法國把該國東北地區新冠檢測呈陽性人士的隔離時間延長到10天，該地區新型毒株的傳播尤其高。

五角大樓初步數據顯示，約三分之一被提供新冠疫苗的美軍拒絕接種疫苗。

五角大樓周三在眾議院一個小組會議上說，對於現役軍人來說，接種疫苗仍是自願性的，因為到目前為止，由輝瑞和Moderna開發的疫苗只獲得美國食品藥品管理局(FDA)的緊急使用授權。 FDA全面批准後，情況會發生變化，因為許多其他疫苗是強制軍人接種的。

伊朗食品和藥物管理局的一名官員表示，伊朗衛生部已經對阿斯利康-牛津大學，印度Bharat Biotech開發的新冠疫苗給予緊急使用授權。

德國衛生部長Jens Spahn表示，在英國首先發現的變異新冠毒株現在占德國病例的20%以上。

Spahn在周三推文中引用Robert Koch Institute的數據稱，「我們必須假設它很快會占據主導地位。南非和巴西變異毒株所占占有率也在增加，但水平要低得多。」

就在幾周前，歐盟還在喧囂著希望獲得阿斯利康公司的新冠疫苗。現在，該疫苗在德國推出已經有一小段時間，但使用數量尚不足交付給該國數量的十分之一。一些醫療衛生從業者表示對這種疫苗的副作用感到擔心。