Health News Roundup: Brazil's mass vaccination will not start until March, says health official; Canada set to administer country's first COVID-19 vaccinations and more

U.S. crosses 300,000 COVID-19 deaths as vaccine rollout begins The number of coronavirus deaths in the United States crossed 300,000 on Monday, according to Reuters tally, as the hardest hit nation rolled out its first vaccine inoculations on Monday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Brazil's mass vaccination will not start until March, says health official

In Brazil, a mass inoculation campaign against COVID-19 will only be possible from March and will rely on the AstraZeneca vaccine, a senior health official at the country's leading public biomedical institute told Reuters. The comments come as a fresh wave of coronavirus infections devastates Brazil, which has the world's second-highest death toll from the pandemic with over 180,000 dead, behind only the United States.

Canada set to administer country's first COVID-19 vaccinations

Canada will begin inoculating people against COVID-19 on Monday after doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine began arriving over the weekend, making Canada one of the few Western nations to roll out a vaccination campaign. Ontario and Quebec, the most populous and hardest hit of Canada's 10 provinces, will administer the first shots of the vaccine developed by German biotech BioNTech SE and Pfizer Inc. Canada is expecting to receive 30,000 doses this week.

Tighter COVID-19 restrictions imposed in London as infections surge

London will move into England's highest tier of COVID-19 restrictions, the government said on Monday, citing increased infection rates that may be partly linked to a new variant of the coronavirus. Health Secretary Matt Hancock said more than 1,000 cases of the new variant had been identified, mainly in southeastern England.

South Korea warns of tougher coronavirus restrictions if rules ignored

South Korea's prime minister pleaded with residents on Tuesday to abide by social distancing rules to avoid even greater restrictions in the face of the country's largest wave of coronavirus infections. Daily infection rates are hovering at record levels with another 880 new cases reported as of midnight Monday, up from 718 a day earlier, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said.

U.S. crosses 300,000 COVID-19 deaths as vaccine rollout begins

The number of coronavirus deaths in the United States crossed 300,000 on Monday, according to Reuters tally, as the hardest hit nation rolled out its first vaccine inoculations on Monday. The staggering death toll comes as the nation begins a historic inoculation campaign using a vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE. Moderna Inc's vaccine could get approval as soon as this week.

Regeneron pauses patient enrollment in lymphoma drug trials

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc said on Monday it was pausing patient enrollment in two trials testing its experimental lymphoma drug, after the U.S. health regulator requested changes in trial protocols. Participants benefiting from the drug, odronextamab, may continue treatment, the drugmaker said https://investor.regeneron.com/static-files/690eeaf2-643e-44eb-9c3f-baad97eb9703, if they give their consent.

India reports 22,065 new coronavirus cases, lowest daily rise since July 4

India reported 22,065 new coronavirus infections, taking its total to 9.9 million, data from the health ministry showed on Tuesday, making it the lowest daily rise since July 4, according to a Reuters tally. India has recorded the second-highest number of coronavirus cases in the world, after the United States, but daily infections have declined since hitting a peak in September.

U.S. finds first case of coronavirus in wild animal, a Utah mink

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Monday that it confirmed the first known case of the coronavirus in a wild animal, a mink. The discovery increases concerns about outbreaks in mink as the virus has killed more than 15,000 farmed mink in the United States since August.

'Race against time': First Americans vaccinated as U.S. death toll passes 300,000

A New York City intensive care unit nurse on Monday became the first person in the United States to receive a coronavirus vaccine, saying she felt "healing is coming," as the nation's COVID-19 death toll crossed a staggering 300,000 lives lost. Sandra Lindsay, who has treated some of the sickest COVID-19 patients for months, was inoculated at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in the New York City borough of Queens, an early epicenter of the country's coronavirus outbreak, receiving applause on a livestream with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Moderna COVID-19 vaccine documents accessed in EMA cyberattack

Moderna Inc said on Monday it was informed by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) certain documents related to pre-submission talks of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate were unlawfully accessed in a cyberattack on the medicines regulator. The EMA, which assesses medicines and vaccines for the European Union, said earlier this month that it had been targeted in a cyberattack, which also gave hackers access to documents related to the development of the Pfizer Inc and BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.