Health News Roundup: Facing long fight with COVID variants; FDA allows storage, transport of Pfizer vaccine and more

Australia's Victoria says COVID-19 curbs to return to pre-Christmas settings Australia's Victoria state will start easing coronavirus restrictions from Friday night, after authorities deemed new locally acquired cases detected for the first time in a week in the state will not pose any public health risk.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Facing long fight with COVID variants, EU pushes to step up vaccinations

COVID-19 is here to stay, France and Germany said on Thursday, after European Union leaders discussed ways to fight new variants of the virus, step up inoculations and save Europe's tourism industry from another ruinous summer. Leaders of the 27 EU member nations agreed in a video conference to keep "tight restrictions" on public life and free movement as the bloc races against the emergence of new variants that are holding back an economic rebound.

FDA allows storage, transport of Pfizer vaccine at higher temperatures

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved storage and transportation of COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech SE at standard freezer temperatures for up to two weeks instead of ultra-cold conditions. Last week, the companies had asked the U.S. health regulator to relax requirements for their COVID-19 vaccine to be stored at ultra-low temperatures, potentially allowing it to be kept in pharmacy freezers.

U.S. administers 68.3 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines: CDC

The United States has administered 68,274,117 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Thursday morning and distributed 91,673,010 doses. The tally of vaccine doses are for both Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech, vaccines as of 6:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, the agency said.

South Korea kicks off COVID-19 vaccination campaign

South Korea launched its COVID-19 inoculation campaign on Friday, with shots to be administered in some 200 nursing homes, in an effort that officials call the first step in returning the country to more normal life. The first doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine began to be given at 9 a.m.(0000 GMT) to nursing home workers and some patients at facilities across the country of about 52 million.

France could impose more regional lockdowns in worst COVID-hit areas

France will impose measures including weekend lockdowns in Paris and 19 other regions from the start of March if signs of the coronavirus accelerating persist, French Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Thursday. Castex said a new nationwide lockdown was not on the agenda, but said French citizens needed to be in a state of heightened alert to make sure they contain the spread of the virus while vaccines are rolled out.

Colombia extends health state of emergency, seeks more Sinovac vaccines

Colombia will extend its health state of emergency to curb the spread of coronavirus by three months, President Ivan Duque said on Thursday, adding that the country is in talks to buy additional doses of coronavirus vaccines produced by China's Sinovac Biotech. Colombia earlier announced agreements with a raft of pharmaceutical companies - including Sinovac - as well as the World Health Organization-backed COVAX mechanism to secure 61.5 million vaccine doses, enough to inoculate some 32.5 million people.

Japan hopes to end state of emergency for six prefectures this month

The Japanese government is looking to end a state of emergency in all but Tokyo and three neighbouring prefectures at the end of this month, a week earlier than scheduled, the minister in charge of coronavirus countermeasures said on Friday. Emergency coronavirus measures will be removed in Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, Aichi, Gifu and Fukuoka prefectures if an advisory panel approves the government's proposal.

New York officials downplay concern over new coronavirus variant

Mayor Bill de Blasio's chief medical adviser on Thursday downplayed the results of two studies suggesting that a new coronavirus variant found in New York City in November will be more resistant to vaccines now being administered. Dr. Jay Varma said it was premature to infer from laboratory results how effective the vaccines would be on the variant, echoing concerns of other scientists who questioned why preliminary studies are given to the media ahead of academics.

Australia's Victoria says COVID-19 curbs to return to pre-Christmas settings

Australia's Victoria state will start easing coronavirus restrictions from Friday night, after authorities deemed new locally acquired cases detected for the first time in a week in the state will not pose any public health risk. Victoria, Australia's second-most populous state, on Friday reported two new cases in people placed in quarantine after they were identified as close contacts of existing cases.

Argentina receives first delivery of Sinopharm vaccines

Argentina has received 904,000 doses of the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine in its first delivery from the Chinese drug maker, the government said on Thursday, which should help the country accelerate its fledgling inoculation program. The delivery, part of a deal for 1 million doses of the vaccine, arrived on a plane of Argentina's state carrier from Beijing late in the evening.