Health News Roundup: Shops closures in Czech; COVID-19 'by no means under control' in France and more

In the health sector today, the Czech government will close non-essential shops and services and enforce a stricter curfew from Sunday while a hospital official in Paris said that COVID-19 is not under control in France. Watch the video below for the top health stories of December 23 from all across the world.

Devdiscourse brings you the top health news stories of the day from all across the world.

Czech government to close most shops amid tougher COVID restrictions

The Czech government will close non-essential shops and services and enforce a stricter curfew from Sunday as it seeks to curb another rise in COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations, Health Minister Jan Blatny said on Wednesday. Blatny said the government approved moving the country onto the highest level of the government's risk index, triggering the tightening of restrictions.

Keep calm, Taiwan says after first local COVID-19 case in 8 months

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen called on people on Wednesday to keep calm after the island confirmed its first locally transmitted case of COVID-19 since April 12, as the government announced negative tests so far for the person's contacts. Taiwan has kept the pandemic well under control thanks to early and effective prevention methods and widespread mask-wearing, with all new cases for more than the last 250 days being among travelers arriving on the island.

COVID-19 is not under control in France, says Paris hospital official

The coronavirus pandemic is not under control in France and a new lockdown must remain an option, Karine Lacombe, the head of the infectious diseases unit at Paris' Saint-Antoine hospital, said on Wednesday. Medical experts have voiced concerns that the Christmas holidays could result in a resurgence of COVID-19 cases in France and Europe.

Peru surpasses one million confirmed cases of coronavirus

Peru surpassed 1 million confirmed cases of the coronavirus, health officials said on Tuesday, as concerns about a potential second wave of infections began to grow in the hard-hit Andean nation. The daily tally of new cases in Peru has fallen sharply in recent months, from a peak of 10,000 cases per day at the end of August to around 1,000 new infections on Monday.

Australia's New South Wales eases COVID-19 curbs for Christmas as new cases dwindle

Australia's most populous state on Wednesday relaxed coronavirus restrictions for Christmas following a second straight day of low case numbers, though parts of Sydney's northern seaside suburbs remain under lockdown. New South Wales (NSW), of which Sydney is the capital, reported eight locally acquired cases on Wednesday, unchanged from Tuesday in another sign that social distancing and mass testing have brought a dangerous new outbreak under control.

Drugmakers expect tests will confirm vaccines effective against new coronavirus variant

At least four drugmakers expect their COVID-19 vaccines will be effective against the new fast-spreading variant of the virus that is raging in Britain and they are performing tests that should provide confirmation in a few weeks.

India likely to approve AstraZeneca vaccine by next week- sources

India is likely to approve Oxford/AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine for emergency use by next week after its local manufacturer submitted additional data sought by authorities, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. This could be the first country to give the regulatory green light for the British drugmaker's vaccine as the British medicine regulator continues to examine data from the trials.

Dubai to begin inoculations with Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine from Wednesday

Dubai will start inoculating people with the COVID-19 vaccine produced by Pfizer and BioNTech for free from Wednesday, the emirate's government said, joining Saudi Arabia which last week became the first Arab country to begin using this vaccine. The move comes after the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain earlier this month rolled out a vaccine developed by China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) to the general public.