Health News Roundup : Brazil's Bolsonaro catches coronavirus; Texas reports more COVID-19 cases in single day and more

Texas reports more COVID-19 cases in single day than any EU country as cases rise by 10,000 Texas shattered records on Tuesday when it reported over 10,000 new coronavirus cases, the biggest one-day increase in the state since the pandemic started, according to the state health department.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

China could have done more to aid world's COVID-19 response, top U.S. health official says

U.S. coronavirus task force response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx said that the United States and other countries could have had a stronger initial response to COVID-19 if China had been more forthcoming about key features of the virus. At a panel held by the Atlantic Council, a U.S. think tank, Birx said the United States would have been more focused on identifying COVID-19 patients without symptoms if China has shared information about the frequency with which COVID-19 patients, particularly young people, are asymptomatic.

Brazil's Bolsonaro catches coronavirus, shrugs off health risks

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said on Tuesday he tested positive for the novel coronavirus after months minimizing the severity of the pandemic and defying medical experts, even as the virus has killed more than 66,000 people in his country. The right-wing populist gave the news to reporters at his official residence standing just inches away from him, adding to criticism of his cavalier approach to the outbreak in Brazil, the world's worst outside the United States.

Texas reports more COVID-19 cases in single day than any EU country as cases rise by 10,000

Texas shattered records on Tuesday when it reported over 10,000 new coronavirus cases, the biggest one-day increase in the state since the pandemic started, according to the state health department. Texas, with 30 million residents, has reported more new daily coronavirus cases than any European country had at the height of their outbreaks, according to a Reuters tally.

U.S. tops three million known infections as coronavirus surges

The U.S. coronavirus outbreak crossed a grim new milestone of over 3 million confirmed cases on Tuesday as more states reported record numbers of new infections, and Florida faced an impending shortage of intensive care unit hospital beds. Authorities have reported alarming upswings of daily caseloads in roughly two dozen states over the past two weeks, a sign that efforts to control transmission of the novel coronavirus have failed in large swaths of the country.

U.S. withdrawal from WHO over claims of China influence to take effect July 2021: U.N.

The United States will leave the World Health Organization (WHO) on July 6, 2021, the United Nations said on Tuesday, after receiving notification of the decision by President Donald Trump, who has accused the agency of becoming a puppet for China during the coronavirus pandemic. Trump, who announced the decision over a month ago, has to give one-year notice of the U.S. withdrawal from the Geneva-based body and pay all Washington's dues under a 1948 joint resolution of the U.S. Congress. The United States currently owes the WHO more than $200 million in assessed contributions, according to the WHO website.

Masks, disinfectant, social distancing: Japan responds to disaster amid coronavirus

Boxes of surgical masks, bottles of disinfectant and a sign saying "Please wear a mask" mark the entrance to a public gym in Yatsushiro city, a shelter for residents fleeing devastating floods in southwestern Japan this week. Elsewhere in the gym, cardboard partitions separate the 233 evacuees' sleeping areas and another sign instructs them to check their temperature each morning, then sterilise the thermometers.

WHO acknowledges 'evidence emerging' of airborne spread of COVID-19

The World Health Organization on Tuesday acknowledged "evidence emerging" of the airborne spread of the novel coronavirus, after a group of scientists urged the global body to update its guidance on how the respiratory disease passes between people. "We have been talking about the possibility of airborne transmission and aerosol transmission as one of the modes of transmission of COVID-19," Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead on the COVID-19 pandemic at the WHO, told a news briefing.

Germany's confirmed coronavirus cases rise by 397 to 197,341 - RKI

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 397 to 197,341, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Wednesday. The reported death toll rose by 12 to 9,036, the tally showed.

HHS to open 'surge' COVID-19 testing in Florida, Texas, Louisiana

The U.S. government is creating short-term "surge" testing sites for the novel coronavirus in three metropolitan areas in Florida, Louisiana and Texas to meet demand from rising COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said on Tuesday. The program adds testing for 5,000 people per day for a five- to 12-day period and will help identify new cases, particularly among asymptomatic people, and potentially limit the spread of the disease, Assistant Secretary for Health Admiral Brett Giroir said during a call with reporters.

Dozens of Florida hospitals out of available ICU beds, state data shows

More than four dozen hospitals in Florida reported that their intensive care units (ICUs) have reached full capacity on Tuesday as COVID-19 cases surge in the state and throughout the country. Hospital ICUs were full at 54 hospitals across 25 of Florida's 67 counties, according to data published on Tuesday morning by the state's Agency for Health Care Administration. More than 300 hospitals were included in the report, but not all had adult ICUs.

(With inputs from agencies.)