ISLAMABAD – Pakistan has started vaccinating people 60 years of age or older to protect them from COVID-19 amid a steady rise in cases and deaths from the disease.
Pakistan is currently using the Sinopharm China vaccine, which was given to it by Beijing last month.
Pakistan hopes to start receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine this month under the World Health Organization ‘s COVAX Facility. Authorities say Pakistan will receive 17 million doses of coronavirus vaccines under the scheme from March to June.
Deaths and confirmed cases of coronavirus have risen steadily since March 1, when Pakistan began starting regular classes at schools. On Wednesday, Pakistani authorities were expected to decide whether to close schools again.
Pakistan has reported 595,239 cases, including 13,324 deaths.
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THE VIRUS ISLANDER:
– After a year of pandemics, a tired world will look back – and on
– House ready to vote on virus relief, Biden due to impact
– Los Angeles school district reaches agreement to reopen classes
– Restaurants are major beneficiaries of the COVID-19 relief bill
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– Follow AP pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
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HERE’S WHAT ELSE’S INVOLVED:
BERLIN – The German medical union is calling on its members to be able to vaccinate people with serious illnesses against the crown virus.
The Marburger Bund said in a statement Wednesday that GPs and specialists say people with breast disease are at a disadvantage of Germany’s vaccine priority lists.
Some German states have begun allowing doctors to manage the scenes in a small number of practices. Officials are debating whether all doctors should be allowed to offer vaccines as the supply available increases in the coming weeks.
The German disease control group reported 9,146 newly diagnosed cases of COVID-19 overnight, and a further 300 deaths. Since the beginning of the revolution, Germany has recorded more than 2.5 million cases and 72,489 COVID-related deaths.
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JUNEAU, Alaska – Gov. Mike Dunleavy says Alaska will be the first state to waive eligibility requirements and allow anyone 16 or older living or working in the state to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
Dunleavy, who made the news Tuesday after his own blow with COVID-19, described the move to open eligibility as a historic step.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID-19 Vaccine Detector shows that Alaska is leading states in percentage of their population to receive two doses of COVID-19 vaccine.
The state last week expanded eligibility significantly to include people ages 55 to 64 and those 16 and older who are classified as essential workers, at high risk or may be in serious illness from COVID-19 or living in multi-generational homes or communities without water or sewerage systems.
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ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Maryland will ease restrictions on restaurants and other businesses this week, Gov. Larry Hogan Tuesday, announcing improvements to COVID-19 health metrics and increasing vaccinations.
Starting Friday at 5pm, capacity limits will be lifted on indoor and outdoor dinners at restaurants and bars, though customers will have to be seated and at a distance, the governor said. Capacity limits will also be raised for retail businesses, religious facilities, personal services such as hair and nail salons and indoor recreation centers such as casinos and bowling alleys.
The Maryland state mask mandate will remain in effect. It requires front coverage at an indoor public facility, including retail outlets, fitness centers, grocery stores, pharmacies, personal service centers. Masks are also required in the public areas of all public and private businesses throughout the state, and when using public transportation.
Larger outdoor and indoor facilities will be able to expand to 50% capacity. That includes conference halls, wedding venues, theaters and sports fields like Camden Yards, where the Baltimore Orioles football team plays.
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MIAMI – Hundreds of bump-to-bumper cars crashed into a federal-backed vaccination site that appeared to offer shots to anyone in attendance, breaking from the eligibility requirements sent by Gov. Ron DeSantis who planned to put seniors at the end of the line.
The wider availability of the vaccine has upset – and hoped – among those seeking to protect themselves from a disease that has killed more than 1.9 million Floridians and nearly 32,000.
State officials said they were resolving the situation. It was unclear what authority state officials could have over federal resources.
Already, federal sites in Florida are adhering to closely issued guidelines that allow teachers and other school staff to get vaccinated, instead of complying with the governor’s instructions. setting a minimum age of 50 for educators and school staff.
Due to low initial demand, another silver – funded vaccination site in Florida City last weekend began offering insights to any tenants, regardless of age. The site was not taken over the next day, forcing officers there to recapture age restrictions.
On Tuesday morning, a traffic lane of vehicles was created in a parking lot at North Miami Dade College. People waited for hours, but before 10am, officers at the site announced that they had reduced their supply of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
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SAN FRANCISCO – California counties are still tired of changing their vaccine delivery systems to a new state, with Santa Clara County saying it will not participate.
Mercury News reports that Jeff Smith County Government said late Monday that the county will not sign a contract controlling Blue Shield over the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines in California.
Some counties are also pushing for Newsom to reconsider a plan to roll out more vaccines to vulnerable areas.
The push back to Newsom’s centralized plan for vaccine circulation comes as more of California reopens its economy and operations. The Disney CEO says Disneyland is likely to open before the end of April after a one – year closure.
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MONTGOMERY, Ala. – With Alabama slamming most of the country in COVID-19 vaccines, National Guard troops will begin work later this month dispensing doses in at least 24 rural counties, the Alabama said. state Tuesday.
The Alabama National Guard, with two 55-member mobile vaccination teams delivering a total of 8,000 doses a week, will work with public and local health officials to determine exact locations and logistics, the Gov. Kay Ivey in a statement. Vaccination vaccinations begin March 23rd.
Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that 15.2% of 4.9 million Alabama residents have received at least one dose of the vaccine that protects against the new COVID-19-induced coronavirus. That was lower than any state except nearby Georgia, where 13.4% had received at least one view.
Guards crews move through counties to provide sightings to more people, the statement said. Ivey called for patience as the state is still trying to get more vaccines from the federal government.
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CASPER, Wyo. – County health officials in Wyoming have detected the coronavirus variant that originated in South Africa.
The Casper Star-Tribune reported Monday that the Teton County Department of Health said a sample from a resident who tested positive for COVID-19 in January showed otherwise.
Health officials said the man, who had not yet been identified, did not travel before being arrested. State health officials have not named any other case of the opposite.
County Health Officer Dr. Travis Riddell has urged residents to get coronavirus tests if they have symptoms or are in contact with someone who tested positive.