Health News Roundup: Beijing reports 45 new symptomatic COVID cases, 8 new asymptomatic cases for May 6; China builds permanent COVID testing stations for life after lockdown and more

The WTO's 164 members on Friday discussed the "outcome document" that stems from months of negotiations between the main parties - the United States, the European Union, India and South Africa - in an effort to break an 18-month deadlock over the issue. Obesity may weaken vaccine protection; unvaccinated Omicron patients face risk from variants The following is a summary of some recent studies on COVID-19.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Beijing reports 45 new symptomatic COVID cases, 8 new asymptomatic cases for May 6

Beijing reported 45 new symptomatic COVID-19 cases for May 6, down from 55 cases a day earlier, state television said on Saturday. China's capital also recorded 8 asymptomatic cases, versus 17 a day earlier, it said.

China builds permanent COVID testing stations for life after lockdown

China is setting up thousands of permanent PCR testing stations, with 9,000 already completed in Shanghai alone, as authorities seek to "normalize" tough pandemic controls even after the current round of lockdowns end. At present, nearly 25 million residents in the eastern financial hub of Shanghai remain under some form of lockdown as the city battles China's biggest ever coronavirus outbreak.

WTO meeting on COVID vaccine rights waiver went 'very well' -chair

The first World Trade Organization meeting to discuss a draft agreement to temporarily waive intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines went "very well", its chair said on Friday, although some members voiced reservations. The WTO's 164 members on Friday discussed the "outcome document" that stems from months of negotiations between the main parties - the United States, the European Union, India, and South Africa - in an effort to break an 18-month deadlock over the issue.

Obesity may weaken vaccine protection; unvaccinated Omicron patients face risk from variants

The following is a summary of some recent studies on COVID-19. They include research that warrants further study to corroborate the findings and that has yet to be certified by peer review. Obesity may weaken vaccine protection in the never infected

As Beijing COVID outbreak proves stubborn, mass tests becoming routine

Millions of Beijing residents queued up for another round of COVID-19 tests on Sunday as China's capital seeks to trace and isolate every infection to contain a small but stubborn outbreak - and avoid a Shanghai-type prolonged lockdown. Strict COVID curbs in Beijing, Shanghai and dozens of other major cities across China are taking a psychological toll on its people, weighing on the world's second-largest economy and disrupting global supply chains and international trade.

England reports case of rare monkeypox infection

A person in England has been diagnosed with a rare viral monkeypox infection thought to be linked to travel to West Africa, health authorities said on Saturday. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said in a statement the case, in a person who had recently traveled to Nigeria, was being treated at an expert respiratory infectious disease unit at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust in London.

Third Ebola patient dies in northwest Democratic Republic of Congo

The third Ebola patient in the northwest Democratic Republic of Congo has died, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday, the latest fatality in an outbreak first reported last month. The 48-year-old man was the most recent confirmed case in Congo's 14th outbreak of the hemorrhagic fever, which has hit the city of Mbandaka, the capital of Equateur province.

U.S. elections may thwart Democratic effort to cap insulin cost

U.S. lawmakers attempting to cut the cost of insulin for more than a million Americans to $35 per month are unlikely to succeed as the November elections draw near and complicate bipartisan support, health policy and political experts say. The U.S. House of Representatives in March passed a bill capping monthly out-of-pocket insulin costs for those with health insurance at $35. Senators are drafting a wider bill that also provides incentive for drugmakers to lower list prices.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Alito's abortion history lesson in dispute

Justice Samuel Alito's draft U.S. Supreme Court ruling that would overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide hinges on a contested historical review of restrictions on the procedure enacted during the 19th century. Lawyers and scholars backing abortion rights have criticized Alito's reading of history as glossing over disputed facts and ignoring relevant details as the conservative justice sought to demonstrate that a woman's constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy was wrongly recognized in the Roe ruling.

U.S. identifies 109 cases of severe hepatitis, including 5 deaths, in children

U.S. health officials on Friday said they are investigating 109 cases of severe hepatitis of unknown origin in children, including five reported deaths, updating a nationwide alert issued in April for doctors to be on the lookout for such cases of liver disease. The cases have been identified over the past seven months in 25 states and territories, Dr. Jay Butler, deputy director for infectious diseases at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said during a conference call.

(With inputs from agencies.)