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Europe has recorded more than six million confirmed cases of Covid-19 since it first appeared in the region in January, an AFP count showed just after 3 p.m. GMT.
So far, the continent has seen 6,000,940 infections and 237,716 deaths, with the highest numbers in Russia (1,248,619 infections and 21,865 deaths), Spain (825,410 infections, 32,486 deaths), France (669,235 infections, 32,365 deaths) and Greater Brittany (530,113 infections, 42,445 deaths).
The rising number of Covid-19 infections in Britain and the increase in people hospitalized with the disease demonstrate that there is a serious problem, said the country’s health minister, Matt Hancock.
“It’s a challenge, and everyone will have seen, from the rising case rates and sadly rising hospitalization rates, which have risen very steeply in the last week, that we have a very serious problem in our hands, “said Mr Hancock told a webinar by the Confederation of British Industry.
“The challenge is how to deal with this second peak in a way that has as little damage as possible. Fortunately, we know a lot more about it than we did the first time.”
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Meanwhile, local closures and different restrictions in Britain are the best way for the country to tackle the coronavirus right now, Trade Minister Liz Truss said.
When asked about criticism that the measures are not working, Ms Truss told BBC Radio: “The measures we implement are, although not measures that we would like to have to do in normal times, they are the best way to deal with what we have now. “
Three of the UK’s largest universities have switched to online classes due to the coronavirus outbreaks.
More than 50 universities in the UK have confirmed cases of Covid-19, after thousands of students returned to campus for the start of the fall semester.
The University of Manchester, where there have been 382 cases of coronavirus since September 21, joined Manchester Metropolitan University and the University of Sheffield to announce a move to online learning to protect the health of students and staff.
The move comes amid a surge in cases in parts of England, and the latest weekly infection figures show Manchester’s rate has soared, with 3,105 new cases recorded in the seven days to October 3, the equivalent to 561.6 cases per 100,000 people.
Analysis by the PA news agency shows that the seven-day rate across the UK rose to 125.7 Covid-19 cases per 100,000 people from 63.8 a week ago.
In Scotland, new restrictions have been placed on the hotel industry and tougher changes have been made to the central belt.
Announcing changes to coronavirus measures at Holyrood, Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon said indoor hospitality venues will only be allowed to operate between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. every day, selling food and non-alcoholic beverages only.
The bars, restaurants and outdoor cafes may remain open until 10 pm and may sell alcohol until that time.
The restrictions will take effect at 6:00 p.m. on Friday and are expected to end after October 25.
However, all licensed facilities in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, Lanarkshire, Ayrshire and Arran, Lothian and Forth Valley will be closed for indoor and outdoor operations.
Cafes without a license to sell alcohol will be allowed to open until 6 p.m., the Prime Minister said, to counteract social isolation.
People in Scotland’s central belt have been asked to avoid public transport unless absolutely necessary for the next two weeks.
Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that those in the five areas of the health board should only use public transportation when traveling to work, school or other unavoidable reasons.
While no travel restriction applies to people in the central belt, Sturgeon urged those who live in these areas not to travel beyond their own health boards.
The US agency wants safety data from two months before approving the Covid-19 vaccine
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has released its guidance for issuing emergency approval for a Covid-19 vaccine, making it clear that it wants to see follow-up two months after the trial volunteers receive their second dose.
Thus, it is unlikely that President Donald Trump’s administration will have a vaccine on the market before the Nov. 3 election, something the president frequently says is at stake.
“Data from Phase 3 studies should include a median duration of follow-up of at least two months after completing the full vaccination regimen to help provide adequate information to assess the benefit-risk profile of a vaccine,” said the document.
The two companies most advanced in their vaccine trials, Moderna and Pfizer, began their final stages in late July and both require two separate injections 28 days apart.
That would mean that only the first people to sign up for the trial would have completed the follow-up period by the end of October and there probably wouldn’t be enough data to request emergency use.
The vaccines should inoculate half of all patients against Covid-19.
Also, there will need to be at least five cases of severe infection in the placebo group to show that the vaccine is effective.
The agency’s director, Dr. Stephen Hahn, said he’s committed to making vaccine development as open and transparent as possible.
The FDA is committed to doing # COVID-19 vaccine development process and our scientific evaluation as open and transparent as possible. To that end, we’ve also created a new landing page to highlight this work, additional resources, and upcoming events. https://t.co/GdDhZag3Jd
– Dr. Stephen M. Hahn (@SteveFDA) October 6, 2020
The decision to issue the guidance comes amid a tug of war between the White House and the FDA.
According to the US media, the White House deemed the two-month monitoring period unnecessary and did not want the FDA to implement it.
Trump expressed his disapproval on Twitter.
New FDA rules make it more difficult for them to expedite the approval of vaccines before Election Day. Just another political success! @SteveFDA
– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2020
The news was welcomed by health experts who said it showed the agency was acting responsibly in the face of political pressure.
Brussels closes cafes and bars in new virus restrictions
The Belgian capital took a step towards restoring its coronavirus lockdown, when Brussels ordered the closure of cafes and bars for a month.
Restaurants that serve table meals will remain open, but bars and alcohol consumption in public places will be banned until November 8, the regional government said.
This is the second time that Brussels has imposed such a measure since the coronavirus outbreak, after a previous lockdown helped reduce cases.
But new infections, as well as serious cases involving hospital admissions, are on the rise again, and regional authorities are tightening the rules.
Belgium’s new national government had already ordered bars and cafes to close after 11pm, but regional president Rudi Vervoort decided this was not enough.
The Brussels capital region is home to 1.2 million densely populated people and is the seat of the Belgian government and of NATO and the European Union.
Last week, Belgium as a whole recorded an average of 2,500 new coronavirus infections per day, an increase of 57% in the previous seven days.
Hospital admissions also increased 25.7% during the week, and more than 11 people die each day.
With 10,092 deaths out of a population of 11.2 million, Belgium is one of the worst affected countries.
New York imposes new restrictions in areas of virus increase
The New York governor has announced tough new restrictions in several areas with high infection rates to try to prevent a second wave of coronavirus.
Andrew Cuomo ordered the closure of non-essential businesses, including gyms and restaurants, in parts of Brooklyn and Queens in New York City.
The governor also banned mass gatherings and limited the number of people allowed in places of worship in so-called red zones that witness “clusters” of infections to ten.
The restrictions take effect from today and will be reviewed after 14 days.
Cuomo blamed the increase in infection on a decrease in the application of social distancing measures and reminded residents to continue wearing masks.
“This is not the time to get tired. The virus is not tired,” he told reporters.
On Monday, Cuomo announced that schools in nine New York City neighborhoods would be temporarily closed.
They are in areas where the positive case rate has been above the 3% threshold for more than seven days.
Two of the neighborhoods have posted positive rates of over 8% and include large Orthodox Jewish communities, where residents recently celebrated the holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Across New York State, the positive case rate remains low at 1.20%. The virus has killed more than 33,000 people across the state.
Masks are now mandatory outdoors in Italy
Italy has made the use of outdoor masks mandatory across the country in an effort to reduce rising Covid-19 infections, the Health Ministry said after the cabinet agreed to the measure.
Italy has seen a steady increase in new cases in the last two months, although their numbers are still much lower than those in other major European countries such as France, Spain and Great Britain.
The cabinet also approved a decree to extend the Covid-19 state of emergency until January 31, a cabinet source said.
Additional reporting PA
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