Health News Roundup: Vaccine airlift delivers shot in the arm for airlines; South Korea to boost testing as coronavirus surge threatens 'medical collapse' and more

French coronavirus infection rate unlikely to fall to lockdown threshold -minister French BFM TV reported on Monday that Health Minister Olivier Veran has told members of parliament that it is unlikely that the number of daily new coronavirus cases will fall to 5,000 by Dec. 15.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Vaccine airlift delivers shot in the arm for airlines

Airlines battered by COVID-19 are prepping for key roles in the mass vaccine rollout that promises to unlock an immediate boost for the sector - and beyond that, its own recovery and survival. Big challenges await carriers leading the airlift, as well as the drugmakers, logistics firms, governments and international agencies planning the deployment across networks blighted by the pandemic.

Biden makes picks for key public health roles as pandemic rages: sources

President-elect Joe Biden has made his selections for two key public health positions, sources said on Sunday, as he prepares to take office next month as the coronavirus pandemic rages to new levels across the United States. Biden plans to nominate California Attorney General Xavier Becerra as secretary of health and human services, two sources said, placing the Latino former congressman in a critical role battling the pandemic.

South Korea to boost testing as coronavirus surge threatens 'medical collapse'

South Korean President Moon Jae-in called on Monday for expanded coronavirus testing and more thorough tracing as the country struggles to control its latest and largest wave of infections. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency reported 615 new coronavirus cases as of midnight Sunday, capping a month of triple-digit daily increases that have led to 8,311 confirmed patients in quarantine, the most ever.

India speeding up review of Pfizer, Astra COVID-19 vaccines: government official

India is accelerating its review of coronavirus vaccines developed by Pfizer Inc and AstraZeneca for emergency use, a senior government official said on Monday, as the world's second-most affected country struggles to contain the outbreak. The Indian government is pinning its hopes for mass supply of the vaccine on Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine producer by volume, which on Monday lodged the first formal application for emergency use approval for AstraZeneca Plc's COVID-19 vaccine.

Biden seen nominating infectious diseases expert Walensky to run CDC: person familiar

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is expected to nominate Rochelle Walensky, chief of infectious diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital, to run the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a person familiar with the decision said on Sunday.

As UK prepares to roll out COVID-19 vaccines, scepticism remains

A sizeable minority of people believe conspiracy theories about the coronavirus and COVID-19 vaccines, some experts have warned, just as countries prepare to launch mass inoculations to get the pandemic under control. Britain begins its vaccine programme this week and others are likely to follow soon, so governments are seeking to reassure people of vaccines' safety and efficacy in order to get a critical mass to take them.

Some 3,000 to 5,000 Hungarians could participate in trials of Russian vaccine

Some 3,000 to 5,000 Hungarians could participate in clinical trials of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19, Hungarian Human Resources Minister Miklos Kasler said on Facebook on Monday. Hungary's plans to conduct trials of and possibly produce the Russian vaccine, an unprecedented step for an EU member state, have added to existing frictions with Brussels.

French coronavirus infection rate unlikely to fall to lockdown threshold -minister

French BFM TV reported on Monday that Health Minister Olivier Veran has told members of parliament that it is unlikely that the number of daily new coronavirus cases will fall to 5,000 by Dec. 15. French President Emmanuel Macron has said that threshold is one of the conditions for ending a nationwide lockdown on Dec. 15. Another condition was for the number of people in intensive care to fall below 3,000.

Amid resistance, California imposes strict stay-at-home orders

California compelled much of the state to close shop and stay at home on Monday, when some of the harshest coronavirus restrictions in the United States came into effect one day after the state set a record with more than 30,000 new COVID-19 cases. Governor Gavin Newsom's order was triggered in areas where fewer than 15 percent of intensive care hospital beds were available, affecting more than 23 million people in Southern California.

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now: South Korea virus surge threatens 'medical collapse'