US Starts COVID -19 Vaccines When Death Toll Surpasses 300,000

In front of an American flag, nurse Lillian Wirpsza, left, administers a COVID-19 vaccine to Shylee Stewart, a delivery nurse at George Washington University Hospital, on December 14, 2020, in Washington, DC. The United States launched a mass vaccination campaign on Monday in hopes of turning the tide of the world’s largest coronavirus outbreak, as the death toll in the country approached a staggering 300,000. (Photo by Jacquelyn Martin / POOL / AFP)

NEW YORK – The United States launched a mass vaccination campaign Monday in hopes of turning the tide of the world’s largest coronavirus outbreak, as the nation’s death toll surpassed a staggering 300,000.

The start of the long-awaited vaccine program coincided with several European countries announcing new closures amid rising infections, highlighting how the road to ending the global pandemic is still long.

New York nurse Sandra Lindsay became the first person in the United States to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech injection, live on television, six days after Britain launched the West’s vaccination campaign against Covid-19.

“It felt no different than taking any other vaccine,” said Lindsay, a critical care nurse at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center, imploring all Americans to “do our part” by getting vaccinated.

“I hope this marks the beginning of the end of a very painful time in our history,” he added.

Vaccines arrive in one of the darkest phases of the pandemic, with cases in the US and many other countries, and health experts still battle vaccine skepticism, lockdown fatigue, and uneven compliance. of the safety rules.

On Monday, the Netherlands was preparing to enter its tightest lockdown since the pandemic began, Britain announced new restrictions on London, and Turkey said it would enter a four-day lockdown over the New Year holidays.

The United States, which has the world’s highest death toll and the highest number of reported cases at 16.3 million, surpassed 300,000 deaths just hours after vaccines began, according to the Johns Hopkins University tally.

“First vaccine administered. Congratulations USA! Congratulations WORLD! “President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter earlier in the day, while President-elect Joe Biden tweeted:” Keep Hope, Brighter Days Ahead. “

Vaccinations were also carried out in Pennsylvania and Ohio, while Canada administered its first dose to a caregiver in Montreal.

Delivery trucks with special refrigeration equipment are being deployed across the United States as part of a public-private plan to ship millions of doses of the recently approved Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine to vulnerable Americans.

Couriers FedEx and UPS have deployed fleets of trucks and planes to transport their valuable cargo, sometimes under armed surveillance, to all 50 states, where healthcare workers and nursing home residents are first in line. .

– London lockdown –

2.9 million initial doses are scheduled to be delivered at 636 sites across the country by Wednesday, and authorities say 20 million Americans could receive the two-injection regimen by the end of the year and 100 million by March.

Doses are shipped in boxes containing dry ice that can keep supplies at -70 degrees Celsius (-94 degrees Fahrenheit), the freezing temperature necessary to store the medicine.

Trials have shown the vaccine to be 95 percent effective, and Americans are told that it is safe unless they are allergic to any of the drug’s components.

But experts face a battle to convince enough Americans to take the vaccine for it to be effective in a country where the anti-vaccine movement is strong.

“My biggest concern is the level of hesitation in the country. I really hope we can change that, ”Moncef Slaoui, head of the government’s Operation Warp Speed ​​vaccine implementation program, told CBS.

Worldwide, there have been at least 1.6 million deaths since the outbreak in China last December, and 71.6 million cases overall.

The United Arab Emirates also launched vaccines on Monday, which began administering injections from Chinese drug giant Sinopharm in Abu Dhabi.

– New strain –

The British health minister announced that London will move to the highest level of restrictions from Wednesday and that theaters, pubs, restaurants and other hospitality venues will be forced to close, except for take away food.

Matt Hancock said scientists had identified a “new variant” of the virus in southern England that could be causing infections to spread faster, although he added that it is “highly unlikely that it will not respond to a vaccine.”

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said schools and all non-essential shops would close from Tuesday for five weeks over the Christmas period, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced a nationwide curfew. from December 31 to January 4.

The Czech government said it would re-impose a nightly curfew and close restaurants and bars for Christmas, while Germany will enter a partial closure starting Wednesday, with nonessential shops and schools closing.

Even as US officials welcomed the unprecedented vaccine effort, they warned people not to relax in observing the precautions.

“It will be months before the vaccine reaches a critical mass. So this is the light at the end of the tunnel, but it’s a long tunnel, ”said New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo, where 35,000 people have succumbed to Covid-19.

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