Health News Roundup: COVID-19 landing in Canada despite pre-flight testing; White House knew of J&J vaccine contamination problems last week and more

German experts say under 60s should not get second AstraZeneca vaccine Germany's vaccine commission, known as STIKO, recommended on Thursday that people under 60-years old who have had a first shot of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine should receive a different product for their second dose.

Europe, under fire for fumbling its vaccine roll-out and fighting a fresh wave of infections, is scrambling to speed up the pace of injections and avoid being left further behind by Britain and the United States. In Paris, the city's hallowed national soccer stadium is being transformed into a mass vaccination hub, while Italy - with 20,000 infections daily - has put the army and civil defence agency in charge, after new Prime Minister Mario Draghi fired the country's vaccine czar.

EU countries agree to share 'solidarity vaccines' with states in need

Most European Union member states on Thursday agreed to share part of their upcoming vaccine deliveries with the five EU countries they said need them most. The EU's vaccine doses are usually distributed between the bloc's 27 countries based on population size.

U.S. COVID-19 vaccine rollout analysis hampered by technology, state data reporting

(Reuters) - When a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine leaves a U.S. manufacturing plant, its path can be traced all the way to the hospital or clinic representative signing for the shipment at its destination. What happens next is not always clear. Federal agencies overseeing the rollout are relying on a tangled web of aging state vaccine registries complicated by state laws and practices.

COVID-19 landing in Canada despite pre-flight testing

More than 1,000 air passengers arrived in Canada infected with COVID-19 over a recent four-week period despite obligatory pre-departure testing, according to federal data that cast doubt on any broad easing of restrictions before the summer travel season. Canada began testing international arrivals in February, requiring air travelers to spend up to three days in hotel quarantine at their own expense until results come back, a measure criticized by airlines hit hard by the pandemic. People who test negative can finish a 14-day quarantine at home.

Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 shot 91% effective in updated data, protective against South African variant

Pfizer Inc and BioNTech said on Thursday their vaccine is around 91% effective at preventing COVID-19, citing updated trial data that included participants inoculated for up to six months. The shot also showed early signs of preventing disease in a small subset of study volunteers in South Africa, where a concerning new variant called B.1.351 is circulating.

White House knew of J&J vaccine contamination problems last week

The White House knew last week about the contamination of about 15 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Thursday. Psaki told a daily briefing there was no disruption in the U.S. supply of the J&J vaccine.

Virginia law denies benefit to some healthcare workers who refuse COVID-19 vaccine

(Reuters) - Virginia has passed a law making it easier for some healthcare workers who become ill with COVID-19 to collect medical expenses or lost wages. But there's a catch: the law excludes healthcare workers who are offered a vaccine at work and refuse it.

Ontario 'pulling the emergency brake' with third COVID-19 lockdown as cases rise, ICU beds fill

The Canadian province of Ontario will enter a limited lockdown for 28 days on Saturday, as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations rise and more dangerous virus variants take hold, the premier said on Thursday. The lockdown for Canada's most populous province will fall short of enacting a stay-at-home order, which new government modeling released earlier on Thursday suggested would be necessary to avoid a doubling to some 6,000 new COVID-19 cases per day by late April.

Sao Paulo exhumes old graves to make space for surging COVID-19 burials

Brazil's biggest city on Thursday sped up efforts to empty old graves, making room for a soaring number of COVID-19 deaths as Sao Paulo city hall registered record daily burials this week. Gravediggers in the Vila New Cachoeirinha cemetery in the city's northern reaches worked in white hazmat suits to open the tombs of people buried years ago, bagging decomposed remains for removal to another location.

German experts say under 60s should not get second AstraZeneca vaccine

Germany's vaccine commission, known as STIKO, recommended on Thursday that people under 60-years old who have had a first shot of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine should receive a different product for their second dose. Earlier in the week, Germany said only people aged 60 and over should be administered the AstraZeneca vaccine due to the rare but severe occurrence of thromboembolic side effects. It said it would make a separate recommendation later on younger people who had already received a first shot.