Health News Roundup: British PM says new variant may carry higher risk of death; Walmart expands vaccinations in boost to U.S. COVID-19 program and more

Severe allergic reactions to Moderna vaccine appear rare: CDC report Severe allergic reactions to Moderna Inc's coronavirus vaccine appear to be quite rare, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday, after over 4 million people had received their first dose.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

U.S. alone won't fill COVAX funding gap, lead official says

U.S. President Joe Biden's decision to join the COVAX vaccine facility could make a "huge difference" to the financing of the scheme, intended to deliver coronavirus vaccines to poor countries, a diplomat with a lead role in COVAX said on Friday. But Dag Inge Ulstein, Norway's minister of international development who is co-lead of the COVAX Facilitation Council with South Africa, said other wealthy countries must step up too and urged them to donate more shots.

Severe allergic reactions to Moderna vaccine appear rare: CDC report

Severe allergic reactions to Moderna Inc's coronavirus vaccine appear to be quite rare, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday, after over 4 million people had received their first dose. Based on the data, the CDC said anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic reaction, occurred at a rate of 2.5 cases per 1 million shots administered.

British PM says new variant may carry higher risk of death

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday the new English variant of COVID-19 may be associated with a higher level of mortality although he said evidence showed that both vaccines being used in the country are effective against it. Johnson said that the impact of the new variant, which is already known to be more transmissable, was putting the health service under "intense pressure".

39.9 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines distributed, 19.1 million administered: U.S. CDC

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it had administered 19,107,959 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Friday morning and distributed 39,892,400 doses. The tally of vaccine doses are for both Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech, vaccines as of 9:00 a.m. ET on Friday, the agency said.

Travel group, airlines oppose quarantine for U.S.-bound air passengers

Groups representing the U.S. travel industry and airlines on Friday voiced opposition to mandatory quarantines for air passengers arriving in the United States from overseas a day after President Joe Biden signed an order to take that step. Biden on Thursday issued an executive order directing federal agencies to require international air travelers to quarantine upon U.S. arrival. His administration also is implementing effective next Tuesday a requirement that all U.S.-bound passengers ages 2 and above get negative COVID-19 test results within three days before traveling.

Walmart expands vaccinations in boost to U.S. COVID-19 program

Walmart Inc said it is preparing to offer COVID-19 vaccinations in seven more states, as well as in Chicago and Puerto Rico, this week and next, expanding beyond the two states where its pharmacists are offering inoculations. The move from the world's largest retailer comes as U.S. President Joe Biden races to accelerate a frustratingly slow vaccination campaign that has stranded about half of the 38 million shots distributed in freezers rather than in arms.

Special Report: How U.S. CDC missed chances to spot COVID's silent spread

In early February, 57 people arrived at a Nebraska military base, among the first Americans evacuated from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the new coronavirus outbreak. U.S. health officials knew very little then about the mysterious new virus, and the quarantined group offered an early opportunity to size up the threat. The federal government sought help from a team at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, including Dr. James Lawler, an experienced infectious disease specialist. Lawler told Reuters he immediately asked the world-renowned U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for permission to test the quarantined group, deeming it crucial to know whether people without symptoms were infected and could spread the deadly pathogen.

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now: 'A wartime undertaking' Exclusive: AstraZeneca to supply 31 million COVID-19 shots to EU in first quarter, a 60% cut - EU source

AstraZeneca Plc has informed European Union officials on Friday it would cut deliveries of its COVID-19 vaccine to the bloc by 60% to 31 million doses in the first quarter of the year due to production problems, a senior official told Reuters. The decrease deals another blow to Europe's COVID-19 vaccination drive after Pfizer Inc and partner BioNTech SE slowed supplies of their vaccine to the bloc this week, saying the move was needed because of work to ramp up production.

California virus variant driving surge around LA; smell training advised for lingering problem

The following is a roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. Virus variant found in California drives SoCal surge

(With inputs from agencies.)