Health News Roundup: WHO body says COVID-19 vaccines may need to be updated for Omicron; Israel shortens COVID-19 isolation for asymptomatic cases and more

"Reports of adverse events following use of the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine under emergency use authorization suggest an increased risk of immune thrombocytopenia during the 42 days following vaccination," the regulator said in a letter to J&J's arm, Janssen Biotech Inc. Biden, top officials defend COVID response amid Omicron surge President Joe Biden and top health officials on Tuesday defended the government's response to the unrelenting pandemic as daily U.S. COVID-19 cases reached a new high, largely fueled by the highly contagious Omicron variant.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

WHO body says COVID-19 vaccines may need to be updated for Omicron

A World Health Organization technical body said on Tuesday that current COVID-19 vaccines may need to be reworked to ensure they are effective against Omicron and future variants of the coronavirus. The technical group, made up of independent experts, said it would consider a change in vaccination composition and stressed that shots needed to be more effective in protecting against infection.

Israel shortens COVID-19 isolation for asymptomatic cases

Israel on Tuesday cut the isolation time for asymptomatic COVID-19 cases from 10 days to seven, hoping to keep schools and the economy open as Omicron infections sweep the country. People infected with the coronavirus and not suffering symptoms for three days can be out of isolation after seven days, the Health Ministry said in a statement. Those showing symptoms were required to continue to isolate for 10 days.

Biden wants U.S. agencies to mandate COVID-19 testing for unvaccinated employees by Feb 15

The Biden administration said on Tuesday that federal agencies should require weekly COVID-19 testing by Feb. 15 for unvaccinated government employees who are working on-site or interacting with the public. A vaccine mandate imposed by President Joe Biden in September covers about 3.5 million federal workers and required them to be fully vaccinated by Nov. 22 or face potential discipline or even termination.

Canada's Quebec plans health tax for residents who refuse COVID-19 vaccine - premier

Canada's Quebec province is working on a plan to require a "health contribution" from residents who refuse to get a COVID-19 vaccinate for non-medical reasons, Premier Francois Legault said on Tuesday. Hospitals in Quebec are stretched after the highly transmissible Omicron coronavirus variant brought in more COVID-19 patients and took healthcare workers off their jobs.

Too soon to treat COVID-19 like flu as Omicron spreads - WHO

The Omicron variant of COVID-19 is on track to infect more than half of Europeans, but it should not yet be seen as a flu-like endemic illness, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday. Europe saw more than 7 million newly-reported cases in the first week of 2022, more than doubling over a two-week period, WHO's Europe director Hans Kluge told a news briefing.

U.S. FDA amends J&J vaccine fact sheet to include rare bleeding risk

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday amended the fact sheet for Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine to include a rare risk of immune thrombocytopenia, a bleeding disorder. "Reports of adverse events following use of the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine under emergency use authorization suggest an increased risk of immune thrombocytopenia during the 42 days following vaccination," the regulator said in a letter to J&J's arm, Janssen Biotech Inc.

Biden, top officials defend COVID response amid Omicron surge

President Joe Biden and top health officials on Tuesday defended the government's response to the unrelenting pandemic as daily U.S. COVID-19 cases reached a new high, largely fueled by the highly contagious Omicron variant. Biden, who has been accused of focusing on vaccinations at the expense of testing and support for struggling healthcare systems, told reporters on Tuesday he was "confident we're on the right track" to fight the pandemic.

Italy's doctors warn cancer treatment at risk due to COVID surge

The latest wave of COVID-19 cases in Italy is increasing pressure on hospitals and jeopardizing the treatment of some 11 million cancer patients, a medical association said on Tuesday. "The postponement of surgery may lead to the development of tumours in more advanced stages, with less chance of a cure," the Federation of Oncologists, Cardiologists and Haematologists (FOCE) said in an appeal published on its website.

U.S. man recovering after 'breakthrough' pig-heart transplant

A U.S. man with terminal heart disease was implanted with a genetically modified pig heart in a first-of-its-kind surgery, and three days later the patient is doing well, his doctors reported on Monday. The surgery, performed by a team at the University of Maryland Medicine, is among the first to demonstrate the feasibility of a pig-to-human heart transplant, a field made possible by new gene editing tools.

EU drug regulator expresses doubt on need for fourth booster dose

The European Union's drug regulator on Tuesday expressed doubts about the need for a fourth booster dose of COVID-19 vaccine and said there is currently no data to support this approach as it seeks more data on the fast-spreading Omicron variant. "While use of additional boosters can be part of contingency plans, repeated vaccinations within short intervals would not represent a sustainable long-term strategy," the European Medicines Agency's Head of Vaccines Strategy, Marco Cavaleri, told a media briefing.