Health News Roundup: Sydney to open to travellers without quarantine, but citizens first; New Zealand reports 65 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 and more

J&J and its affiliates were not part of the bankruptcy filing. U.S. donates 17 million J&J doses to African Union President Joe Biden told visiting Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday that the United States will make a one-time donation of more than 17 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to the African Union, the White House said.


Reuters | Updated: 15-10-2021 10:40 IST | Created: 15-10-2021 10:29 IST
Health News Roundup: Sydney to open to travellers without quarantine, but citizens first; New Zealand reports 65 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 and more
Representative image Image Credit: ANI

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Sydney to open to travellers without quarantine, but citizens first

Sydney will allow in fully vaccinated travellers from overseas from Nov. 1 without the need for quarantine, the country's most populous state said on Friday, although the easing of strict entry controls will initially benefit only citizens. The move comes as New South Wales state is expected to reach an 80% first dose vaccination rate on Saturday, well ahead of the rest of Australia, and brings forward the expected return of overseas travel by several weeks.

New Zealand reports 65 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19

New Zealand reported 65 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19, with all in locked-down Auckland, as the country readies for a mass immunisation drive on Saturday when it hopes to administer a record 100,000 vaccine doses. Auckland, the country's largest city, entered into a lockdown in mid-August to stamp out an outbreak of the Delta variant, with officials looking to end the strict restrictions when full vaccination rates reach 90%.

Abbott Labs unit recalling two COVID-19 lab test kits - FDA

A unit of Abbott Laboratories is recalling two COVID-19 laboratory test kits as they can potentially issue false positive results, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Thursday. The regulator has identified the recall of the Alinity m SARS-CoV-2 AMP and the Alinity m Resp-4-Plex AMP test kits by unit Abbott Molecular Inc as a Class 1 recall, the most serious type.

U.S. FDA advisers back Moderna COVID-19 booster shots for older and high-risk people

A panel of expert advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration unanimously voted on Thursday to recommend booster shots of Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccine for Americans aged 65 and older and those at high risk of severe illness or occupational exposure to the virus. If the FDA signs off on Moderna's booster, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will make specific recommendations on who should get the shots. CDC advisers are scheduled to meet next week.

J&J puts talc liabilities into bankruptcy

Johnson & Johnson on Thursday put into bankruptcy tens of thousands of legal claims alleging its Baby Powder and other talc-based products caused cancer, offloading the potential liabilities into a newly created subsidiary. J&J put the talc claims into an entity called LTL Management LLC, which filed for bankruptcy protection on Thursday in North Carolina, according to the company and court records. J&J and its affiliates were not part of the bankruptcy filing.

U.S. donates 17 million J&J doses to African Union

President Joe Biden told visiting Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday that the United States will make a one-time donation of more than 17 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to the African Union, the White House said. The meeting with Kenyatta at the White House marked Biden's first as president with an African leader. Kenya holds the rotating presidency of the U.N. Security Council this month. The United States and Kenya have long cooperated on economic and security initiatives including counterterrorism.

Illinois nursing home fined for COVID-19 safety violations

An Illinois nursing facility was fined more than $83,000 for failing to protect its staff from COVID-19, the Labor Department said on Thursday, the largest penalty under a U.S. healthcare worker safety rule adopted during the pandemic. West Suburban Nursing and Rehabilitation Center had six violations in a July inspection including failing to ensure that N95 respirators fit and were used properly, according to a statement from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), part of the Labor Department.

U.S. vaccine mandates are working, Biden says, but 66 million still don't have shot

President Joe Biden touted the success of mandates in spurring vaccination against COVID-19 in the United States on Thursday but said more needed to be done to get the 66 million people who are eligible but still unvaccinated to get the shot. Vaccination rates against COVID-19 in the United States have risen by more than 20 percentage points after multiple institutions adopted vaccine requirements in recent months, while case numbers and deaths from the virus are down, Biden administration officials said on Wednesday.

Bayer, CureVac terminate COVID-19 shot production partnership

Bayer AG has terminated a vaccine manufacturing partnership under which it would have helped produce CureVac's COVID-19 shot, a spokesperson for Bayer told a German newspaper.

The news comes after CureVac earlier this week said it will give up on its first-generation COVID-19 vaccine candidate and instead focus on collaborating with GSK to develop improved mRNA vaccine technology.

US State Department defends handling of 'Havana Syndrome'

The State Department on Thursday defended its handling of so-called Havana Syndrome health complaints after a bipartisan group of U.S. senators said they were concerned the unexplained ailments were not being taken seriously enough. Around 200 U.S. diplomats, officials, and family members overseas are believed to have been struck by the mysterious ailment - with symptoms including migraines, nausea, memory lapses, and dizziness.

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

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