Reuters Health News Summary

Biden coronavirus advisers nix national U.S. lockdown The head of Democratic U.S. President-elect Joe Biden's coronavirus advisory board said on Friday there was no plan to shut the country down and that the new administration's approach will be targeted at specific areas.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Fauci not advising Biden, sees no reason to quit Trump now: Reuters interview

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, said he has had no contact with President-elect Joe Biden's coronavirus transition team and sees no reason to quit to join that effort when there is so much to do now to fight the surging pandemic. "I stay in my lane. I'm not a politician. I do public health things," he said in an interview on Thursday ahead of next week's Reuters Total Health conference. Biden aide says no U.S.-wide COVID lockdown planned as West Coast states advise against travel

President-elect Joe Biden's top coronavirus adviser said on Friday there were no plans for a wholesale nationwide lockdown to curb the surging coronavirus as three U.S. West Coast states jointly called for a halt in non-essential travel. The joint advisory from California, Oregon and Washington urging residents to avoid venturing out of state came as health experts voiced concerns that the coming holiday travel season would accelerate already alarming spikes in COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations. U.S. Secret Service officers sidelined by COVID-19

Dozens of U.S. Secret Service officers assigned to protect President Donald Trump have been sidelined by COVID-19, the Washington Post and New York Times reported on Friday as the coronavirus outbreak spread at the White House. Two U.S. government sources familiar with the situation confirmed to Reuters that Secret Service officers had tested positive for the virus but did not provide a specific number. One of the sources said a larger number of officers who had not tested positive had gone into quarantine as a protective measure. Canadians can save Christmas if COVID-19 contained now, Trudeau says

Canadians have time to tamp down the surging second wave of COVID-19 by Christmas if they act now, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday, as he urged provincial leaders for the second time this week to impose more health restrictions. "What we do in the coming days and weeks will determine what we get to do at Christmas," Trudeau said at a news conference. Biden coronavirus advisers nix national U.S. lockdown

The head of Democratic U.S. President-elect Joe Biden's coronavirus advisory board said on Friday there was no plan to shut the country down and that the new administration's approach will be targeted at specific areas. Dr. Vivek Murthy, a former U.S. surgeon general tapped to lead the board, said doctors have learned a lot about how the virus spreads and what steps to reduce risk are effective. Before Biden inauguration, 70,000 more could die from COVID-19 in the U.S.

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has pledged to make controlling the coronavirus a top priority and is likely to push for mask wearing mandates and more fiscal stimulus to keep businesses and workers afloat. But in the two months until inauguration day on Jan. 20, skyrocketing infections could add more than 8 million more cases and 70,000 deaths, representing a potential 80% increase in infections and a 29% rise in deaths, according to Reuters calculations. U.S. states race to buy ultra cold vaccine freezers, fueling supply worries

U.S. states, cities, and hospitals are scrambling to buy ultra-cold freezers that can safely store Pfizer Inc's COVID-19 vaccine, ignoring advice from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to hold off. The push reveals a lack of infrastructure to support a super cold vaccine campaign, including equipment to store millions of doses of Pfizer's vaccine at temperatures of minus 70 degrees Celsius (minus 94°F), significantly below the standard for vaccines of 2-8 degrees Celsius (36-46°F). Britain to pilot COVID tests for care home visitors

Visitors to care homes in parts of England will be able to get tested for COVID-19 under a new pilot scheme aimed at reducing onerous restrictions in time for Christmas, the health ministry said on Saturday. With England under lockdown until December, care home visits can still go ahead in certain circumstances, but official guidance states that screens, windows or "visiting pods" should be used to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission. Exclusive: Chile health minister hopes Biden victory will help avoid vaccine 'trade war'

Joe Biden's win in the U.S. election is raising hopes in Latin America that a war over medical supplies at the start of the COVID-19 outbreak will not be repeated once vaccines are approved for use, Chile's health minister told Reuters on Friday. Enrique Paris said he believed Biden's leadership would allow for countries to present a more "united" front against the pandemic, avoiding the commercial battles by nations including the United States to secure ventilators, masks and personal protective equipment seen earlier this year. Second wave, same strategy: Swedish COVID-19 czar defiant despite surge

Sweden remains steadfast in its strategy of voluntary measures and no lockdowns, the architect of its unorthodox COVID-19 response said on Friday, as the country battles a growing second wave of a disease that has now killed more than 6,000 Swedes. The Nordic nation of 10 million people, whose soft-touch approach to combating the virus has drawn worldwide attention - and harsh domestic criticism from some - has seen a surge in the number of cases, hospitalisations and deaths in recent weeks.