Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Australia in vaccine swap pact with Singapore as COVID-19 cases surge Australia will receive 500,000 doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine from Singapore this week, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Tuesday, after Canberra agreed a swap deal in a bid to curtail surging coronavirus infections.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Australia in vaccine swap pact with Singapore as COVID-19 cases surge

Australia will receive 500,000 doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine from Singapore this week, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Tuesday, after Canberra agreed a swap deal in a bid to curtail surging coronavirus infections. The agreement, which will see Australia return the same amount of Pfizer vaccine doses to Singapore in December, will allow Canberra to accelerate its vaccination programme as daily cases near record levels for the country.

Factbox - Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

Around 14 million U.S. residents received their first dose of a COVID-19 shot in August, about 4 million more than in July, White House officials said on Tuesday. DEATHS AND INFECTIONS * Eikon users, see COVID-19: MacroVitals https://apac1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/cms/?navid=1592404098 for a case tracker and summary of news

About 14 million in U.S. get first COVID-19 shot in August, up from July

Around 14 million people in the United States received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in August, about 4 million more than in July, officials said on Tuesday as the government pushes inoculation as infections rise. The United States' vaccination rate still lags other developed countries. Only around 52% of U.S. residents are fully vaccinated, including about 63% of adults, according to federal data.

Ireland to drop almost all COVID-19 restrictions in October

Ireland, which had one of Europe's longest COVID-19 lockdowns, will drop almost all pandemic restrictions in October after one of the continent's most successful vaccine rollouts, Prime Minister Micheal Martin said on Tuesday. From Oct. 22, the requirement for vaccine certificates in bars and restaurants will be dropped, as will all restrictions on the numbers attending indoor and outdoor events.

China ramps up healthcare reform with pilot pricing scheme

China stepped up its reform of healthcare service pricing at public medical institutions on Tuesday with the announcement of a pilot programme aimed at controlling costs for consumers, ensuring service quality and incentivising providers.

China's state insurance fund, which helps patients cover their medical costs, is facing the combined pressures of a growing elderly population and a falling birth rate, prompting it to explore more efficient medical services.

Brazilian viper venom may become tool in fight against coronavirus, study shows

Brazilian researchers have found that a molecule in the venom of a type of snake inhibited coronavirus reproduction in monkey cells, a possible first step toward a drug to combat the virus causing COVID-19. A study published in the scientific journal Molecules this month found that the molecule produced by the jararacussu pit viper inhibited the virus's ability to multiply in monkey cells by 75%.

J&J's HIV vaccine fails trial in latest blow to the field

Johnson & Johnson's experimental vaccine failed to provide sufficient protection against HIV to young women in sub-Saharan Africa, in the latest setback to the field after a string of earlier failures. The mid-stage study called Imbokodo, testing the experimental J&J vaccine, included 2,600 women participants across five Southern African countries, where women and girls accounted for over 60% of all new HIV infections last year.

Pennsylvania governor issues mask mandate for schools, child care facilities

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf on Tuesday issued a mask mandate for all K-12 school and child care facilities to protect against the spread of COVID-19, three weeks after the Democrat said he would leave the decision to individual districts. The order, which goes into effect Sept. 7, comes amid a surge in COVID-19 cases due to the highly-contagious Delta variant of the virus.

U.S. administers 370.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines - CDC

The United States has administered 370,212,027 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Tuesday morning and distributed 441,332,155 doses, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Those figures are up from the 369,556,911 vaccine doses the CDC said had gone into arms by Aug. 30 out of 440,026,945 doses delivered.

No evidence that Ivory Coast patient had Ebola, says WHO

New testing has found no evidence that the woman in Ivory Coast who tested positive earlier this month for Ebola actually had the virus, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday. "WHO considers that the patient did not have Ebola virus disease and further analysis on the cause of her illness is ongoing," it said in a statement.

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