Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Mexico coronavirus infections rise to 31,522 cases and 3,160 deaths

Mexico's health ministry on Friday reported 1,906 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infections and 199 additional fatalities, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 31,522 and 3,160 deaths. However, the government has said the real number of infections is significantly higher than the confirmed cases and that deaths are also higher than official numbers show. U.S. CDC reports 1,248,040 coronavirus cases, 75,477 deaths

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday reported 1,248,040 cases of the new coronavirus, an increase of 28,974 cases from its previous count, and said that the number of deaths had risen by 2,180 to 75,477. The CDC reported its tally of cases of the respiratory illness known as COVID-19, caused by the new coronavirus, as of 4 p.m. ET on May 7, compared with its count https://bit.ly/2WfXuu1 a day earlier. Pfizer to outsource some drug production, focus on coronavirus vaccine

Pfizer Inc said on Friday it is in talks to shift more of its medicine production to outside contractors as it prepares for large-scale production of an experimental vaccine to prevent COVID-19, should it prove safe and effective. The U.S. drugmaker is tapping its network of around 200 outside contractors, which includes Catalent Inc, Lonza Group AG, and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc, to play a bigger role in producing some of its existing medicines, Mike McDermott, president of global supply at Pfizer, told Reuters in an interview. FDA commissioner in self-quarantine after exposure to person with COVID-19

U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn is in self-quarantine for a couple of weeks after coming into contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, an FDA spokesman told Reuters late on Friday. Hahn immediately took a diagnostic test and was tested negative himself for the novel coronavirus, FDA spokesman Michael Felberbaum said in an emailed statement. New York governor says 5-year old died from rare COVID-related complications

A 5-year old boy has died in New York from a rare inflammatory syndrome believed to be linked to the novel coronavirus, highlighting a potential new risk for children in the pandemic, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Friday. Cuomo told a daily briefing that the boy died in New York City on Thursday and that health officials were looking at other deaths involving children under similar circumstances to see if there is a link to COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Germany's confirmed coronavirus cases rise by 1,251 to 168,551: RKI

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 1,251 to 168,551, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Saturday. The reported death toll rose by 147 to 7,369, the tally showed. Tijuana coronavirus death rate soars after hospital outbreaks

The number of deaths from the coronavirus in Mexico's best-known border city, Tijuana, has soared and the COVID-19 mortality rate is twice the national average, the health ministry says, after medical staff quickly fell ill as the outbreak rampaged through hospital wards. A floor at one of the city's main public hospitals has been left empty because so many workers are sick there are not enough left to care for patients, the hospital director said, despite people with COVID-19 symptoms lining up outside to get in for treatment. Exclusive: Iran-linked hackers recently targeted coronavirus drugmaker Gilead - sources

Hackers linked to Iran have targeted staff at U.S. drugmaker Gilead Sciences Inc in recent weeks, according to publicly-available web archives reviewed by Reuters and three cybersecurity researchers, as the company races to deploy a treatment for the COVID-19 virus. In one case, a fake email login page designed to steal passwords was sent in April to a top Gilead executive involved in legal and corporate affairs, according to an archived version on a website used to scan for malicious web addresses. Reuters was not able to determine whether the attack was successful. China reports one new coronavirus case, 15 asymptomatic cases

China reported one new coronavirus case for Friday, unchanged from the day before, data from the national health authority showed on Saturday. One new imported case was recorded on May 8, the National Health Commission said in a statement. White House's Birx to take key role in coronavirus drug distribution

U.S. coronavirus task force response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx will have a leading role in how the first drug to demonstrate a benefit in treating COVID-19 patients will be distributed to hospitals, the White House said on Friday. Birx, who has been a fixture in televised task force media briefings, will be one of the chief consultants on how Gilead Sciences Inc's remdesivir will be supplied, White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany told reporters.