Health News Roundup: U.S. patients hospitalized with COVID-19 surpass 90,000 ahead of expected case surge; U.S. CDC reports 262,673 deaths from coronavirus and more

WHO says would be 'highly speculative' to say COVID did not emerge in China The World Health Organization's top emergency expert said on Friday it would be "highly speculative" for the WHO to say the coronavirus did not emerge in China, where it was first identified in a food market in December last year.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Britain and other nations press on with AstraZeneca vaccine amid trial questions

Britain asked its regulator on Friday to assess AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine for a possible rollout, while the Philippines and Thailand secured millions of doses, giving the shot a vote of confidence after experts raised questions about trial data. The UK government, which has secured 100 million doses of the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, has targeted a rollout to begin before Christmas.

WHO warns countries with falling COVID cases to stay alert

Even if countries see a fall in coronavirus cases, they need to stay vigilant, Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organization's technical lead for COVID-19, said on Friday. "What we don't want to see is situations where you are moving from lockdown to bringing (the virus) under control to another lockdown," she told a virtual briefing in Geneva.

U.S. CDC reports 262,673 deaths from coronavirus

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday reported 12,823,092 cases of new coronavirus, an increase of 324,358 cases from its previous count, and said the number of deaths had risen by 3,668 to 262,673. 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 Nov. 26 versus its previous report on Wednesday.

WHO says it needs to evaluate vaccine candidates on more than just a press release

The World Health Organization needs to evauate coronavirus vaccines and their immune responses based on more than just a press release, Kate O'Brien, WHO's director of immunisation vaccines and biologicals, said on Friday. AstraZeneca is likely to run an additional global trial to assess the efficacy of its vaccine using a lower dosage, its chief executive was quoted as saying on Thursday amid questions over the results of its late-stage study.

Explainer: Will COVID-19 vaccines protect us? Does efficacy equal effectiveness?

The frontrunners in the COVID-19 vaccine race have emerged with different success rates for their shots in clinical trials, but what does that mean for the global fight against the pandemic? U.S. drugmakers Pfizer-BioNtech and Moderna have each said their coronavirus vaccines have an efficacy rate of around 95% and a Russian project touted 92% efficacy for its Sputnik V vaccine.

WHO says would be 'highly speculative' to say COVID did not emerge in China

The World Health Organization's top emergency expert said on Friday it would be "highly speculative" for the WHO to say the coronavirus did not emerge in China, where it was first identified in a food market in December last year. China is pushing a narrative via state media that the virus existed abroad before it was discovered in the central city of Wuhan, citing the presence of coronavirus on imported frozen food packaging and scientific papers claiming it had been circulating in Europe last year.

U.S. patients hospitalized with COVID-19 surpass 90,000 ahead of expected case surge

The number of COVID-19 patients being treated in hospitals across the United States reached 90,000 on Friday after nearly doubling in the last month, just as holiday gatherings are expected to propel the next wave of infections. The rate of hospitalizations - now at the highest since the pandemic began - has pushed some medical centers beyond capacity. The rapid increase comes after weeks of rising infection rates across the country. That is likely to worsen as people who mingled with friends and relatives over Thanksgiving gradually get sick, health experts say.

COVID-19 epidemic in UK shrinking, R-rate estimated below 1

The COVID-19 epidemic in Britain has retreated slightly, with the reproduction "R" number estimated to be below 1, suggesting that England's second national lockdown is stemming infections, government scientists said on Friday. The number of new infections across Britain is shrinking by between 0% and 2% every day, the UK Government Office for Science said, after it was estimated to be growing between 0% and 2% in last week's release.

Certain blood groups less likely to get COVID-19

Type O blood linked to lower COVID risk, taking Vitamin D unlikely to help

Ten COVID-19 vaccines seen by mid-year, head of global pharma group says

Ten COVID-19 vaccines could be available by the middle of next year if they win regulatory approval, but their inventors need patent protection, the head of the global pharmaceutical industry group said on Friday. Vaccines by Pfizer and BioNtech, as well as Moderna and AstraZeneca have shown promising results in large clinical trials, but there is no question of "cutting corners", said Thomas Cueni, director-general of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA).

(With inputs from agencies.)