Health News Roundup: Paris streets empty as COVID-19 curfew takes effect; U.S. CDC reports 300,032 deaths from coronavirus and more

U.S. CDC reports 300,032 deaths from coronavirus The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday reported 16,317,892 cases of the new coronavirus, an increase of 204,748 cases from its previous count, and said the number of deaths had risen by 1,766 to 300,032.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Paris streets empty as COVID-19 curfew takes effect

Boutiques in the centre of the French capital shut early and shoppers hurried home to meet a new 8:00 p.m. curfew that took effect on Tuesday to try to prevent a new spike in COVID-19 infections. "I completely lost track of time and didn't realise it was so late," said 40-year-old Paris resident Jun, who was in the Opera district just before curfew. "I'm going to head home."

Moderna nears U.S. authorization for COVID-19 shot with FDA staff endorsement

Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccine appeared set for regulatory authorization this week after U.S. Food and Drug Administration staff endorsed it as safe and effective in documents released Tuesday. The coronavirus pandemic has killed more than 300,000 people in the U.S. and the government is counting on the Moderna shot to help fulfill its promise to inoculate 20 million this month.

Valneva to start clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccine candidate in UK

French pharmaceutical firm Valneva will start the first clinical trials of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate at four sites in England, Britain's business ministry said on Wednesday. The Phase I and Phase II trials involve 150 volunteers in Bristol, Birmingham, Southampton and Newcastle, and will be designed to show whether the vaccine is safe and produces an immune response.

Bed shortage looms as S.Korea reports record new coronavirus cases

South Korea's highest priority is securing more hospital beds to handle a record surge in coronavirus cases and blunt a corresponding spike in deaths, the country's prime minister said on Wednesday. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA)reported 1,078 new coronavirus cases as of midnight Tuesday, the highest since the start of the pandemic.

Britain to spend $5 billion on vaccines and bear liability, watchdog says

Britain has agreed to spend 3.7 billion pounds ($4.93 billion) on COVID-19 vaccines and in most cases will bear the liability if claims are made against the pharmaceutical firms involved, the National Audit Office (NAO) said on Wednesday. The government has agreed supply deals for 357 million doses of seven different candidate shots, but has not gone into detail about how much it has spent or indemnity agreements, citing commercial confidentiality around the contracts.

U.S. CDC reports 300,032 deaths from coronavirus

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday reported 16,317,892 cases of the new coronavirus, an increase of 204,748 cases from its previous count, and said the number of deaths had risen by 1,766 to 300,032. 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 Dec. 14 versus its previous report a day earlier.

India records 26,355 new coronavirus cases

India recorded 26,355 new coronavirus cases, data from the health ministry showed on Wednesday, making it the third straight day that daily infections in the country have stayed below 30,000. India has recorded 9.93 million infections so far, the second-highest in the world after the United States, but daily numbers have dipped steadily since hitting a peak of around 97,000 in mid-September.

U.S. COVID-19 immunization rollout expands as officials avow vaccine's safety

The United States expanded its rollout of the newly approved COVID-19 vaccine to hundreds of additional distribution centers on Tuesday, inoculating thousands more healthcare workers in a mass immunization expected to reach the general public in the coming months. Distribution of the vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech SE began on Monday, three days after it won U.S. emergency-use authorization, opening a new front in the battle against a pandemic claiming more than 2,400 U.S. lives a day.

Australia reports first local COVID-19 case in two weeks after airport worker tests positive

Australia's most populous state on Wednesday reported its first coronavirus case in nearly two weeks after an airport worker tested positive prompting authorities to suggest international flight crews should also quarantine after arriving. A 45-year old man who shuttles international airlines staff to the airport tested positive for COVID-19, New South Wales (NSW) state Health Minister Brad Hazzard told reporters.

Bird flu spreads to a quarter of Japan prefectures

Japan's worst bird flu outbreak on record spread to new farms this week and has been found in around a quarter of the country's 47 prefectures, with officials ordering more cullings. About 32,000 birds will be slaughtered and buried in Sukumo city in Kochi prefecture in southwestern Japan after avian influenza was discovered at an egg farm, the agriculture ministry said on Wednesday.