Health News Roundup: EU regulator backs J&J COVID-19 booster dose for adults; France sees number of COVID-19 patients in ICU at around 4,000 by Christmas holidays and more

The Omicron coronavirus variant is swiftly spreading across the globe, with many new cases linked to the mutant and the World Health Organization warning that Omicron poses a "very high" risk but data on its severity is limited. France sees number of COVID-19 patients in ICU at around 4,000 by Christmas holidays French government spokesman Gabriel Attal said on Wednesday that the government expects to see around 4,000 patients in intensive care with COVID-19 by the Christmas holidays.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

EU regulator backs J&J COVID-19 booster dose for adults

The European Union's drug regulator on Wednesday recommended that a booster dose of Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 shot may be given at least two months after a first dose in people aged 18 years and older, as the bloc battles surging infections. The Omicron coronavirus variant is swiftly spreading across the globe, with many new cases linked to the mutant and the World Health Organization warning that Omicron poses a "very high" risk but data on its severity is limited.

France sees number of COVID-19 patients in ICU at around 4,000 by Christmas holidays

French government spokesman Gabriel Attal said on Wednesday that the government expects to see around 4,000 patients in intensive care with COVID-19 by the Christmas holidays. He also told a news conference that the Omicron variant does not seem, at this stage, to cause more severe forms of the disease than the Delta variant.

Sanofi, GSK delay data on COVID-19 vaccine booster candidate till 2022

Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline said on Wednesday they expect data from late-stage clinical trials of its booster dose of their COVID-19 vaccine candidate in the first quarter, instead of this year, another delay for the potential shot. The news came as the French and British partners said preliminary data from trials showed the single-dose booster provided strong immune responses.

Poland's daily COVID death toll hits fourth wave record

Poland's daily death toll from COVID-19 during the fourth wave of the pandemic has climbed to a record 669, the health ministry said on Wednesday, as the country battles high infection rates with tighter restrictions. "This is the effect of these last weeks, when the number of cases has accumulated. They are mainly unvaccinated people," government spokesman Piotr Muller told private broadcaster Radio Zet earlier.

Ukraine extends COVID-19 restrictions to end-March

Ukraine's government will extend COVID-19 restrictions for another three months, to March 31 from end-December, because of low levels of vaccination, Prime Minister Denys Shmygal said on Wednesday. "Until the level of vaccination in Ukraine reaches 70% of the population, we must adhere to all imposed restrictions," Shmygal said at a televised government meeting.

Turkey's medical workers protest low wages, harsh conditions

Five Turkish healthcare unions representing more than 250,000 health workers, doctors and other medical personnel went on a one-day strike on Wednesday, protesting poor wages and harsh working conditions amid a currency meltdown. Hundreds of health workers, including doctors, nurses, medical staff and laboratory assistants gathered in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, and called on the government to resign.

COVID-19 vaccines may be less effective against Omicron - WHO

Preliminary evidence indicates that COVID-19 vaccines may be less effective against infection and transmission linked to the Omicron coronavirus variant, which also carries a higher risk of reinfection, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. The WHO, in its weekly epidemiological update, said that more data was needed to better understand the extent to which Omicron may evade immunity derived from either vaccines or previous infection.

Hong Kong researchers urge third COVID-19 shot after new Omicron study

Researchers in Hong Kong have urged people to get a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible, after a study showed insufficient antibodies were generated by the Sinovac and BioNTech products to fend off Omicron. Tuesday's release of the results of a study by scientists in the microbiology department of the University of Hong Kong was the first published preliminary data on the impact of Sinovac's vaccine against the Omicron variant of coronavirus.

Pfizer set to oust AstraZeneca as top supplier of COVID-19 shots to poor nations

Pfizer and BioNtech are set to displace AstraZeneca as the main suppliers of COVID-19 vaccines to the global COVAX programme at the start of 2022, a shift that shows the increasing importance of their shot for poorer states. The expected change comes with headaches for receiving countries that lack sufficient cold storage capacity to handle the Pfizer vaccine, and amid risks of a shortage of syringes needed to administer that shot.

Analysis: Texas abortion law opens door to copycat curbs on guns, other rights

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision to leave in place a Texas law banning most abortions has opened the door for states to seek to restrict other rights including guns by copying the measure's novel enforcement mechanism, though it remains to be seen how many will actually do it. The Republican-backed Texas law takes enforcement away from state officials, instead empowering private citizens to sue anyone who performs or assists a woman in obtaining an abortion after embryo cardiac activity is detected - at about six weeks of pregnancy - with awards of at least $10,000 for successful lawsuits. The Supreme Court issued its ruling on Friday.

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