Health News Roundup: Cumulative total of COVID cases in France rises to over 20 million; Yelps, tears as Malaysia starts vaccinations for young children and more

Speaking to journalists in a briefing, the European Medicines Agency's (EMA) head of vaccines strategy, Marco Cavaleri, reiterated that he encouraged pharmaceuticals companies to explore not only a monovalent shot tailored to the Omicron variant but also versions that address a combination of variants. U.S. to cover cost of over-the-counter COVID tests through Medicare People enrolled in the U.S. government's Medicare program can get over-the-counter COVID-19 tests for free starting early spring, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said on Thursday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Danish COVID tally could be twice as high as registered, blood donor data suggests

The number of adult Danes infected with COVID-19 may be double the official tally, Danish scientists said on Thursday, after releasing data suggesting one third of the adult population has been infected in the past three months. By screening blood donations for certain antibodies, Danish scientists say they have come closer to determining how many people are actually infected, following the emergence of the more infectious Omicron variant.

EU to ease rules on COVID pass to remove hurdle for vaccine trials

The European Commission proposed on Thursday a change to rules on COVID-19 certificates that would allow participants in vaccine trials to get a valid pass despite having received unapproved shots. The move follows concerns raised by Germany's BioNTech and Spain's Hipra about difficulties in enrolling volunteers for their COVID-19 vaccine trials because participants could face limitations to access public spaces and to travel.

In world first, S.Africa's Afrigen makes mRNA COVID vaccine using Moderna data

South Africa's Afrigen Biologics has used the publicly available sequence of Moderna Inc's mRNA COVID-19 vaccine to make its own version of the shot, which could be tested in humans before the end of this year, Afrigen's top executive said on Thursday. The vaccine candidate would be the first to be made based on a widely used vaccine without the assistance and approval of the developer. It is also the first mRNA vaccine designed, developed and produced at lab scale on the African continent.

Cumulative total of COVID cases in France rises to over 20 million

The cumulative total for confirmed COVID-19 cases in France since the start of the pandemic has passed 20 million, health ministry data showed on Thursday. The health ministry registered 274,352 new infections on Thursday, pushing the total to 20.15 million, Reuters calculations showed. The cumulative death toll is nearly 132,000.

Yelps, tears as Malaysia starts vaccinations for young children

Malaysia kicked off a COVID-19 mass vaccination programme on Thursday for children aged between 5 and 11, in an effort to protect the youngest members of its population and increase its high immunisation rate. At a vaccination centre in the capital Kuala Lumpur, young children sat anxiously with parents as occasional yelps of pain were heard echoing in the hall.

Price of COVID treatments from Pfizer, Merck, GSK align with patient benefits -report

The prices of drugs used to treat COVID-19 for those at risk of serious illness are "reasonably aligned" with how much they help patients, according to a draft report from drug-pricing research organization the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER). The report assessed Pfizer Inc's Paxlovid and Merck & Co's molnupiravir - both recently authorized antiviral pills - as well as sotrovimab, an intravenous monoclonal antibody drug developed by GlaxoSmithKline Plc and Vir Biotechnology Inc.

Factbox-Latest on the worldwide spread of the coronavirus

People enrolled in the U.S. government's Medicare program can get over-the-counter COVID-19 tests for free starting early spring, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said on Thursday. DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now: Omicron sub-variant BA.2 harder to identify

EU watchdog says supports fast development of Omicron-only vaccine

The European Union's drug regulator said on Thursday it would support a filing for approval of an upgraded COVID-19 vaccine targeting only the new Omicron variant if that is the quickest way to broaden the offering of available shots. Speaking to journalists in a briefing, the European Medicines Agency's (EMA) head of vaccines strategy, Marco Cavaleri, reiterated that he encouraged pharmaceuticals companies to explore not only a monovalent shot tailored to the Omicron variant but also versions that address a combination of variants.

U.S. to cover cost of over-the-counter COVID tests through Medicare

People enrolled in the U.S. government's Medicare program can get over-the-counter COVID-19 tests for free starting early spring, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said on Thursday. The Biden administration laid out plans last month that require private insurance companies to cover the cost of eight over-the-counter at-home tests per person each month, but said nothing about such coverage for Medicare beneficiaries.

(With inputs from agencies.)