Health News Roundup: Pfizer to deliver 10% more doses to U.S.; UK trial on switching COVID-19 vaccines and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Moderna says protection from its COVID-19 vaccine still strong six months on

Moderna Inc said on Tuesday that its COVID-19 vaccine still showed strong protection against the illness six months after people received their second shot, with an efficacy of more than 90 percent against all cases of COVID-19 and more than 95 percent against severe COVID-19. The vaccine maker, which will be updating investors on the progress of its vaccines at an event on Wednesday, said the six-month follow-up of its original late-stage study of the vaccine showed that vaccine efficacy remained consistent with its previous updates.

U.S. has more than enough vaccine to maintain pace of inoculations as J&J shot paused

White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients said on Tuesday that the United States has more than enough vaccine from Pfizer Inc and Moderna Inc to keep up the pace of vaccinations during a pause in the use of Johnson & Johnson's shot. U.S. federal health agencies on Tuesday recommended pausing administering J&J's COVID-19 vaccine for at least a few days after six women under age 50 developed rare blood clots after getting the shot, dealing a setback in efforts to tackle the pandemic.

U.S. FDA to scrutinize vaccine design behind COVID-19 shots linked to blood clots

With two COVID-19 vaccines now under scrutiny for possible links to very rare cases of blood clots in the brain, U.S. government scientists are focusing on whether the specific technology behind the shots may be contributing to the risk. In Europe, health regulators said last week there was a possible link between the AstraZeneca Plc vaccine and 169 cases of a rare brain blood clot known as cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST), accompanied by a low blood platelet count, out of 34 million shots administered in the European Economic Area.

U.S. pauses use of J&J vaccine over rare blood clots, rollout delayed in Europe

U.S. federal health agencies on Tuesday recommended pausing the use of Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine for at least a few days after six women under age 50 developed rare blood clots after receiving the shot, dealing a fresh setback to efforts to tackle the pandemic. Johnson & Johnson said it would delay the rollout of the vaccine to Europe, a week after regulators there said they were reviewing rare blood clots in four recipients of the shot in the United States. South Africa also suspended the use of J&J's vaccine.

UK trial on switching COVID-19 vaccines adds Moderna and Novavax shots

A UK study into using different COVID-19 vaccines in two-dose inoculations is being expanded to include shots made by Moderna and Novavax, researchers said on Wednesday. The trial, known as the Com-Cov study, was first launched in February to look at whether giving a first dose of one type of COVID-19 shot and the second dose of another, elicits an immune response that is as good as using two doses of the same vaccine.

India's new coronavirus infections hit record of 184,372

India's new coronavirus infections reached a record of 184,372 in the last 24 hours, health ministry data showed on Wednesday, as most of the South Asian nation battles a second surge in cases. The nationwide tally of infections is 13.9 million, with the data showing deaths rose by 1,027, for a toll of 172,085.

Ohio can enforce ban on Down syndrome abortions: U.S. appeals court

A federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that Ohio can enforce a 2017 law banning abortions when medical tests show that a fetus has Down syndrome. In a 9-7 decision, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati said the law did not create a substantial obstacle to obtaining abortions, was reasonably related to Ohio's legitimate interests and was "valid in all conceivable cases."

China's CanSino says no blood clots reported from COVID-19 shot

China's CanSino Biologics Inc said on Wednesday that no serious blood clot cases related to its COVID-19 vaccine had been reported so far. The announcement comes amid multiple cases of people being diagnosed with a blood clot after receiving COVID-19 shots made by AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.

Australia flags mass inoculation amid COVID-19 vaccine turmoil

Australia's national cabinet will begin meeting twice a week from Monday to help mobilize the country's battle against COVID-19 as authorities consider mass vaccinations to ramp up its coronavirus inoculation efforts. The federal government and states will discuss setting up mass vaccination centers from as early as June for people above 50, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday, when the country would have moved to its next immunization phase.

Pfizer to deliver 10% more doses to U.S. by end of May- CEO

Pfizer Inc can deliver 10% more doses of its COVID-19 vaccine to the United States by the end of May and meet its target of supplying 300 million doses two weeks earlier than expected, Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said in a tweet on Tuesday. Pfizer had promised to provide the U.S. government with 100 million doses by the end of March and another 100 million by the end of May, with the rest being delivered by the end of July.