Health News Roundup: Mexico reports 5,263 new coronavirus cases, 411 more deaths; Australia reports no COVID-19 deaths for third day and more

The CDC reported its tally of cases of the respiratory illness known as COVID-19, caused by a new coronavirus, as of 4 pm ET on Oct. 8 versus its previous report a day earlier.(https://bit.ly/3npgGkp) Trump says he is pushing to get Regeneron's COVID-19 treatment approved quickly U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he is working to get coronavirus antibody drugs developed by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc and Eli Lilly and Co approved quickly and out to hospitals after his own positive coronavirus treatment experience.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Health Canada to start real-time review of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

Health Canada will start a real-time review of Germany's BioNTech SE and Pfizer Inc's experimental COVID-19 vaccine, the companies said on Friday. The companies said they would submit safety and efficacy data from the trial of their COVID-19 vaccine to Canada's health ministry under a rolling submission as and when it becomes available.

U.S. CDC reports 212,111 deaths from coronavirus

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday reported 7,583,200 cases of the new coronavirus, an increase of 54,887 cases from its previous count, and said the number of deaths had risen by 979 to 212,111. The CDC reported its tally of cases of the respiratory illness known as COVID-19, caused by a new coronavirus, as of 4 pm ET on Oct. 8 versus its previous report a day earlier.(https://bit.ly/3npgGkp)

Trump says he is pushing to get Regeneron's COVID-19 treatment approved quickly

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he is working to get coronavirus antibody drugs developed by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc and Eli Lilly and Co approved quickly and out to hospitals after his own positive coronavirus treatment experience. In a radio interview with Rush Limbaugh, Trump said he may not have recovered without the treatments he received to combat his own coronavirus illness.

Mainland China reports 15 new COVID-19 cases vs 21 a day earlier

Mainland China reported 15 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus on Oct. 9, down from 21 a day earlier, the country's national health authority said on Saturday. All the new cases were imported infections involving travellers from overseas, the National Health Commission said in a statement.

Australia reports no COVID-19 deaths for third day, hotspot faces longer lockdown

Australia recorded no coronavirus deaths for a third straight day on Saturday, but its hotspot city of Melbourne faced a prolonged lockdown as new infections stayed stubbornly above the target for re-opening. The southeastern state of Victoria reported 14 new cases, taking the two-week average up slightly to 9.5, double the target of fewer than five set for easing curbs in its capital of Melbourne in eight days' time.

Mexico reports 5,263 new coronavirus cases, 411 more deaths

Mexico's Health Ministry on Friday reported 5,263 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infection and 411 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 809,751 cases and 83,507 deaths. The government says the real number of infected people is likely significantly higher than the confirmed cases.

COVID-19 surges in U.S. Midwest, Broadway dark until June

COVID-19 shattered records for new cases in the U.S. Midwest, straining hospitals, and will darken New York's Broadway theaters until June, a decision the Actors' Equity Association union called "difficult but responsible." The Broadway closure that began in March had been due to end in early January until the Broadway League industry group announced the extension on Friday.

U.S. expects over 1 million COVID-19 antibody doses from Regeneron, Lilly in 2020

The U.S. government expects to be able to provide at no cost more than 1 million doses of antibody treatments for COVID-19 similar to the one President Donald Trump received to treat his illness, according to a top U.S. health official on Friday. The government's Operation Warp Speed program currently has "a couple of hundred thousand doses" of the monoclonal antibody treatments being developed by drugmakers Regeneron Pharmaceutical Inc and Eli Lilly & Co, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services official Paul Mango said on a call with reporters. That would top 1 million doses by the end of the year, he said.

Nevada's prohibition of Quidel, Becton Dickinson's COVID-19 tests violates law: HHS official

U.S. state of Nevada's recent ban on the use of Quidel Corp's Sofia and Becton Dickinson and Co's (BD) Veritor point of care antigen tests in long-term care facilities violates federal law, a U.S. government official said on Friday. "The letter (on ban) from Nevada officials can only be interpreted as reflecting a fundamental lack of basic knowledge about testing and interpreting results," said Admiral Brett Giroir, assistant secretary for health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in a press briefing.

U.S. signs agreement with AstraZeneca to develop, supply COVID-19 antibody treatment

The U.S. government on Friday signed an agreement with AstraZeneca Plc worth $486 million to develop and secure supplies of up to 100,000 doses of COVID-19 antibody treatment, a similar class of drugs that was used to treat President Donald Trump. The U.S. health agency will provide the funding to AstraZeneca for two Phase 3 clinical trials under operation Warp Speed, which is aimed at speeding up treatments and vaccines for COVID-19.