Health News Roundup: WHO body says COVID-19 vaccines may need to be updated for Omicron; Pfizer study shows COVID-19 booster can be given along with pneumonia shot and more

Health authorities had given their blessing on Tuesday for the move, which comes as tens of thousands more people get infected every day due to the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the virus. French Health Minister: too early to say if current COVID-19 wave has peaked French Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Wednesday it was too early to say if the current, Omicron-fuelled wave of the new coronavirus had peaked in the country, which is currently reporting record numbers of daily new cases.

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.

Pfizer study shows COVID-19 booster can be given along with pneumonia shot

Pfizer Inc said on Wednesday booster doses of its COVID-19 vaccine can be administered along with its pneumonia vaccine and produced strong safety and immune responses in people aged 65 and above in a late-stage study. The study, initiated in May, tested the company's next-generation pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, PREVNAR 20, with a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 shot in 570 participants.

Factbox: Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will have to defend his premiership on Wednesday after it was revealed a "bring your own booze" gathering was held at his official residence during the first coronavirus lockdown. EUROPE

India's Bharat Biotech says Covaxin booster shot neutralises Omicron

India's Bharat Biotech said on Wednesday a booster shot of its Covaxin COVID-19 vaccine administered six months after the last of two doses neutralises both the Omicron and Delta variants of the coronavirus. The study was conducted at the Emory Vaccine Center in Atlanta based on blood serum collected from 13 individuals, 28 days after their booster shot. It was sponsored by Bharat Biotech's partner Ocugen Inc.

Tunisia to restore curfew and ban gatherings over COVID

Tunisia will re-impose a night curfew and ban all gatherings for two weeks starting from Thursday to counter the rapid spread of COVID-19, the government said on Wednesday in a move critics decried as aimed at stopping protests. The ban on gatherings and a request to avoid travel within the country except for emergencies comes two days before a planned demonstration against President Kais Saied called by major political parties.

Swiss halve quarantine period to five days to tackle Omicron wave

Switzerland will halve its quarantine time to five days to help tackle a wave of coronavirus infections that threatens to hamstring the economy, the government said on Wednesday. Health authorities had given their blessing on Tuesday for the move, which comes as tens of thousands more people get infected every day due to the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the virus.

French Health Minister: too early to say if current COVID-19 wave has peaked

French Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Wednesday it was too early to say if the current, Omicron-fuelled wave of the new coronavirus had peaked in the country, which is currently reporting record numbers of daily new cases. "We still need a bit of time to work out whether or not we are near a current COVID peak, " Veran told France info radio, adding that the more dangerous Delta variant was declining in France.

China's Omicron-hit Tianjin launches new tests; Toyota idles local plant

The Chinese port city of Tianjin began a new round of testing of its 14 million residents on Wednesday to contain the Omicron variant, as analysts warned of the growing economic costs to China of curbs to extinguish clusters of coronavirus infections. Japanese automaker Toyota said operations at its joint-venture in Tianjin, which has annual production capacity of 620,000 vehicles, had been halted since Monday due to the impact on suppliers of mandatory COVID-19 testing of city residents.

Biogen slumps after Medicare's restrictive decision on Alzheimer's drug

Shares of Biogen Inc fell nearly 10% on Wednesday after the U.S. government announced limited coverage of Alzheimer's treatments including the drugmaker's Aduhelm, dealing a blow to the controversial treatment that was approved last year. Biogen had been banking on the government's coverage decision to help drive up sales of Aduhelm, which it hoped would help counter the hit to revenue from some of its main drugs from rising competition.

Morocco seeks foreign medics to plug pandemic gaps, minister says

Morocco is considering wage hikes for health workers and tax incentives to attract foreign investors and doctors to plug shortages in the health system as it battles the pandemic and expands medical insurance, its health minister said. Hospitals have an "acute shortage" of 32,000 doctors and 65,000 nurses, a number "that is difficult to rapidly train because only 1,200 doctors graduate a year", Health Minister Khalid Ait Taleb told Reuters in an interview.

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