Health News Roundup: AstraZeneca China summoned over suspected fraud; U.S. orders 100 million additional COVID-19 tests to give out and more

Starting in January, the U.S. government has been allowing households to order four free at-home COVID-19 tests from the website COVIDTests.gov with shipping expected within seven to 12 days of ordering. U.S. FDA says Empowered Diagnostics recalling COVID-19 tests Empowered Diagnostics LLC is recalling its COVID-19 tests as they have not been cleared for use in the United States and could potentially lead to false results, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Friday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

AstraZeneca China summoned over suspected fraud

Chinese authorities summoned officials of AstraZeneca China regarding an investigation of suspected medical insurance fraud by the company's employees, the National Healthcare Security Administration (NHSA) said on Saturday. The regulator of the state medical insurance fund said authorities ordered the arrest of all suspects, but did not give details of the suspected violations or the size of funds involved.

U.S. orders 100 million additional COVID-19 tests to give out

The United States government has procured more than 100 million additional COVID-19 tests from testmaker iHealth Lab Inc. as part of the White House's plan to distribute 500 million free at-home tests across the country, the Department of Defense said Friday. Starting in January, the U.S. government has been allowing households to order four free at-home COVID-19 tests from the website COVIDTests.gov with shipping expected within seven to 12 days of ordering.

U.S. FDA says Empowered Diagnostics recalling COVID-19 tests

Empowered Diagnostics LLC is recalling its COVID-19 tests as they have not been cleared for use in the United States and could potentially lead to false results, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Friday. The regulator has labeled the recall of the CovClear COVID-19 rapid antigen test and the ImmunoPass COVID-19 neutralizing antibody rapid test as Class 1, or the most serious type of recall.

Thai pig farmers angered by havoc from suspected African swine fever

Business began unravelling for Thai pig farmer Jintana Jamjumrus two years ago, after dozens of her animals got feverish and died within days of a mysterious illness she suspected of being a viral disease with no known vaccine, African swine fever (ASF). This month, officials identified the first case of ASF in Jintana's province of Nakhon Pathom, after years of saying it was not in Thailand, unleashing a political firestorm as pork prices hit an all-time high near which they may stay for months.

China reports jump in COVID cases among Olympic athletes, officials

Daily COVID-19 infections among athletes and team officials at the Beijing Winter Olympics jumped to 19 on Friday from two a day earlier, as Games organisers warned of more cases in coming days. Including the athletes and officials, 36 Games-related personnel were found to be infected - 29 when they arrived at the Beijing airport and seven already in the "closed loop" bubble that separates event personnel from the public, the organising committee said in a statement on Saturday.

Olympics-China reports 34 new COVID-19 cases among Games-related personnel

Thirty-four new COVID-19 infections were detected among Olympics-related personnel, the Beijing 2022 Winter Games organising committee said on Sunday, including Poland's short track medal hopeful Natalia Maliszewska. Of those, 13 were athletes or team officials who tested positive after arriving at the airport on Saturday.

Britain reports 72,727 new COVID cases, 296 deaths

Britain reported a further 72,727 cases of COVID-19 on Saturday and 296 more deaths, government statistics showed. Cases are down 3.6% over the last seven days compared with the week before, while deaths are down 3.2% over the same seven-day period.

Britain to offer COVID vaccinations to vulnerable children aged 5-11

Britain will this week begin offering vaccinations to children aged between five and 11 who are most at risk from coronavirus, the state-run National Health Service said on Sunday. Britain has been slower than some other countries in offering the shots to 5-11 year olds, and is not planning to vaccinate the age group more broadly unlike countries such as the United States and Israel.

Hong Kong allows hamster pet stores to resume business after COVID cull

Dozens of pet stores that sold hamsters in Hong Kong may resume business from Sunday, Hong Kong's government said, after being shuttered last week and thousands culled over coronavirus fears. Authorities enraged pet lovers with an order to cull more than 2,200 hamsters after tracing an outbreak to a worker in a shop where 11 hamsters tested positive. Imported hamsters from Holland into the Chinese territory had been cited as the source. All hamster imports remain banned.

China to strengthen anti-monopoly efforts in pharma industry

China will toughen law enforcement to curb monopoly practices and unfair competition in the pharmaceutical industry as the government seeks to foster a good business environment, the industry ministry said on Sunday. The action follows November's regulatory guidelines to stamp out monopolies in active pharmaceutical ingredients (API). China leads the world in making and exporting these products.