These are the global coronavirus stories you need to know about this week.
If Belgium’s COVID-19 infections continue to drop at the current rate, the country will turn green on the map of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) before the start of the summer holidays. After the recent relaxation to restrictions, the number of travellers is increasing, and some 12,000 people returned to Brussels from a journey abroad last week, including 1700 from high-risk areas where the virus is circulating widely. Of these, 1% tested positive. Additionally, the Delta variant is on the rise in Belgium, and is now the second most common variant accounting for 12% of cases.
In the UK, Scotland announced a 3 week delay in further easing of COVID-19 restrictions. This is to allow for more progress in the vaccination programme as Delta variant cases rise. Meanwhile, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that 87% of the adult population in England has tested positive for antibodies against COVID-19 in the week beginning June 7, either as a result of previous infection or vaccination. As of Tuesday (June 22) 60% of UK adults are fully vaccinated, and 82% have received a single dose.
In Portugal, health authorities are concerned about summer travel. “It’s a race against the clock,” said President Marcelo Rebelo de Souza, as reported by Agência Lusa, urging young people to get vaccinated. Despite the appeal, the country is currently vaccinating people over the age of 40, and foreigners still face bureaucratic difficulties in obtaining a vaccine. According to data from the Ministry of Health, 29% of the Portuguese were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and 50% received at least a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
In Italy, all the main indicators are now under control. Incidence is below the threshold of 50 new cases per week per 100,000 population, the R number is less than 1, fewer than 2500 patients are hospitalised, and there’s low occupancy of ICU beds (less than 400 patients). The debate around a mixed protocol for vaccination is still ongoing. After protests by younger people who’d already had a first dose of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, the Government changed its mind and allowed people to choose which vaccine they want as a second dose.
In France, the epidemic continues to weaken but the authorities are using several ‘levers’ in an attempt to stem the spread of the Delta variant, which is currently estimated at 7% of cases. To allow for better screening of COVID-19 during the summer holidays, the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, announced to the newspaper JDD that self-tests were going to be distributed for free and on a massive scale, in particular on beaches, at campsites, and leisure centres. The minister also indicated that experimental use of sniffer dogs trained to detect infected people in ports and airports is beginning. If the results are positive, they will be rolled out from this summer. As of June 22, 48% of the total population in France has received a dose of vaccine and over 25% have been fully immunised.
In Spain the incidence of new COVID-19 cases at 14 days has stabilised at around 92 per 100,000 population. According to the epidemiological surveillance report from the Ministry of Health, the Delta variant accounted for 4% of cases detected in Spain, and the predominant variant continues to be Alpha. Nevertheless, experts estimate that the Delta variant will be the predominant variant in Spain in a month.
The Minister of Health, Carolina Darias, has said that this week, Spain will reach 15 million people fully vaccinated, and 50% of the population will have received at least one dose. A new Spanish study on vaccination has concluded that the effectiveness of mRNA vaccines (Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna) used on elderly care home residents was 71% effective against symptomatic and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection, 88% in preventing hospitalisations, and 97% in preventing deaths.
The Government has announced that from June 26, the use of masks will no longer be mandatory outdoors. Spain has now dropped out of the list of the 10 countries most affected by the global health crisis.
In Germany, the Robert Koch-Institute (RKI) reported 455 new infections within one day and a 7-day incidence of 8.0 on Tuesday, down from 652 and 15.5 the previous week.
Despite the decreasing numbers, concerns over the Delta variant and a fourth wave are growing. The German Medical Association advises against travelling to areas where this variant is already widespread. This is of particular concern for German football fans. The Chair of the World Medical Association warned fans against visiting London to attend the final of the European championship.
In Switzerland, the Federal Council is debating lifting more restrictions from June 26. This would include masks no longer being needed outdoors, larger groups being allowed at restaurants, and the opening of discos for people who are vaccinated, recovered, or with negative test results.
As of June 21, 32% of those eligible for vaccination in Austria have received both doses of a vaccine, and 57% received at least one dose.
In the US, cases continue to fall but the decrease is starting to level off as the Delta variant begins to make its presence felt. The Delta variant now accounts for about 20% of all new infections in the US, according to the CDC. COVID-19 cases tied to Delta doubled in about 2 weeks. Delta COVID-19 cases are rising in Missouri, which is tracking the increase of this variant through wastewater sampling. Signs of trouble may be brewing in other midwestern states, too, such as Kansas.
In Mexico, on Saturday the planned return to school for pupils was cancelled in Mexico City. On Tuesday 22 June, 4233 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed, the second consecutive week with an increase in cases, which could indicate the start of a third wave. So far, 13.4% of the population is fully vaccinated.
Soberana 2, a homegrown COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed by Cuba, has shown 92% efficacy in the latest clinical trial.
The Chilean government is studying the possibility of administering a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine. So far, 78% of its population has received at least one dose of a vaccine and 61% are fully vaccinated.
In Colombia, after weeks of protests, the number of deaths from COVID-19 has surpassed 100,000. Despite a third wave of infection, restrictions have been relaxed.
The PAHO director reported that about 1.8 million people in the Americas region have died from COVID-19. The United States announced that it will send roughly 14 million vaccines to the Latin American and Caribbean region through COVAX.
On Sunday (June 20) Brazil sadly reached 501,825 thousand deaths from COVID-19. Thousands of people took to the streets of the main capitals of the country to protest against the lack of adequate policies and against the federal government’s denialist attitude in confronting the pandemic. The country only started its vaccination rollout in the second half of January and was ranked 67th place in the global ranking of doses distributed.
The first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine has been administered to 30% of the Brazilian population, and 12% are fully vaccinated.
There are already 140 cases of COVID-19 among people involved with the Copa América football tournament, according to Conmebol, and the majority are “outsourced workers and employees”.
India has declared the new Delta Plus (AY.1) variant of SARS-CoV-2, a variant of concern, after three states reported cases of the variant. The Delta Plus variant has a K417N mutation within the receptor-binding domain of the spike protein and is believed to have higher transmissibility, stronger receptor-binding affinity and diminished response to monoclonal antibodies. India administered nearly 8.6 million COVID-19 vaccine doses on June 21, the highest-ever single-day figure for the country. On June 22, India reported 42,640 new COVID-19 cases, the lowest in 91 days.
Following COVID-19 outbreaks at schools in Israel, the Health Ministry is considering reintroduction of masks in schools, and possibly all indoor spaces. The country had officially lifted its indoor mask mandate just a week earlier.
China has administered more than one billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to date. The country plans to fully vaccinate 40% of its nearly 1.4 billion population by the end of June.
South Korea is set to loosen several COVID-19 restrictions from July 1, including allowing gatherings of up to six people and permitting restaurants, cafes, and night-life venues to stay open until midnight.
On June 20, Japan ended its COVID-19 state of emergency for nine prefectures. Seven of these nine prefectures, including Tokyo and Osaka, will continue to have focused restrictions. Organisers of the Tokyo Olympics decided to allow domestic spectators with a cap of 10,000 attendees per event.
Australia has limited use of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to individuals aged 60 years and above following concerns over the risk of blood clots in the younger population.
See more global coronavirus updates in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Centre.
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