Health News Roundup: McKesson begins distribution of Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine: Israeli Supreme Court bans unlimited COVID-19 mobile phone tracking and more

Announcing the initiative, Surgeon General Cecilia Muller said she expected new coronavirus cases to surge in the coming weeks, and so Hungary would try to stretch supplies by extending the period between the two jabs, while maintaining safety. Amid scramble for COVID-19 vaccine, Latin America turns to Russia As Bolivia struggled late last year to secure deals with large drug firms to supply COVID-19 vaccines, the incoming president, Luis Arce, turned to Russia for help.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

McKesson begins distribution of Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine

U.S. drug distributor McKesson Corp said on Monday it had begun distribution of Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine.

The vaccine became the third authorized COVID-19 vaccine in the United States over the weekend, following Friday's unanimous endorsement by the Food and Drug Administration's panel of outside experts.

Israeli Supreme Court bans unlimited COVID-19 mobile phone tracking

Israel's Supreme Court on Monday banned the government from sweeping the use of mobile phone tracking of coronavirus carriers, calling the measure a grave infraction of civil liberties. Used on and off since March 2020 in efforts to curb the pandemic, the Shin Bet counter-terrorism agency's surveillance technology matched carriers' locations against other mobile phones nearby to determine with whom they came into contact.

Tyson to offer vaccinations to thousands of Iowa meat plant workers

Tyson Foods Inc, the largest U.S. meat processor, said on Monday it would offer COVID-19 vaccinations to thousands of its frontline workers at its Iowa meat processing plants this week. Tyson, which has previously said it would offer vaccines at its facilities, expects many of the company's 13,000 Iowa employees to be inoculated during vaccination events later this week.

Congo confirms three new Ebola cases

Three new cases of Ebola have been confirmed in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, bringing to 11 the number of cases since authorities declared a resurgence of the virus last month.

The new cases were detected in the Butembo health zone, the health minister of North Kivu province, Eugene Nzanzu Salita, told reporters.

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Third U.S. COVID-19 vaccine by J&J available in 1-2 days, CEO says

Americans should be able to receive Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine within the next 24 to 48 hours, its chief executive said on Monday after U.S. regulators approved the vaccine, making it the country's third available one for the novel coronavirus. The drugmaker was still on track to deliver 4 million vaccine doses this week, and 100 million doses by June, J&J CEO Alex Gorsky told NBC News' Today program in an interview.

Montreal's Olympic Stadium opens to vaccinating elderly as Canada plays catch-up

As COVID-19 vaccinations ramp-up in Canada, one of the country's largest stadiums is preparing to receive thousands of elderly, while provinces enlist dentists, midwives and chiropractors to help meet the expected rush for jabs. A slow rollout of vaccines has recently dented Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's popularity, with the lack of domestic production being blamed for Canada trailing many other developed nations in its vaccination drive.

Teachers have similar levels of COVID-19 exposure to other jobs - UK's ONS

Teachers are not at a higher risk of infection in their jobs than people in other professions, data released by Britain's Office for National Statistics said on Monday, ahead of a planned reopening of schools in England next week. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has prioritized the reopening of schools as he plots a route out of England's third national lockdown. They are set to reopen on March 8.

Hungary stretches vaccine supply to counter "exponential" rise in cases

Hungary is adjusting its COVID-19 vaccination drive to give as many first shots as possible in the face of fast-spreading infections, widening immunization by providing at least some protection to recipients, authorities said on Monday.

Announcing the initiative, Surgeon General Cecilia Muller said she expected new coronavirus cases to surge in the coming weeks, and so Hungary would try to stretch supplies by extending the period between the two jabs while maintaining safety.

Amid scramble for COVID-19 vaccine, Latin America turns to Russia

As Bolivia struggled late last year to secure deals with large drug firms to supply COVID-19 vaccines, the incoming president, Luis Arce, turned to Russia for help. By the end of December, Bolivia clinched its first major COVID-19 vaccine deal, with enough shots for some 20% of the population. The first Sputnik V doses arrived in the country in late January, just as virus cases were spiking.

 

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)