Reuters Health News Summary

Citizens are required to take at least one PCR test each week until the end of October, the city government said on its Wechat account. South Carolina Senate moves to further restrict access to abortions The South Carolina Senate on Thursday approved a bill tightening an abortion ban that is blocked by the state's highest court, following two days of fierce debate between anti-abortion Republicans and more moderate lawmakers from both parties.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

For many weary Chinese, lockdown dread trumps fear of COVID

When COVID-19 case numbers started ticking up in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen last week, Robin Chen got in his car and fled to nearby Huizhou. It wasn't because he feared the virus - many of his friends overseas had caught it and recovered - but he didn't want to lose his freedom again as speculation swirled that Shenzhen was headed for its second lockdown in six months.

New York to ramp up polio vaccinations after virus found in wastewater

New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a disaster emergency on Friday in a bid to accelerate efforts to vaccinate residents against polio after the virus was detected in wastewater samples taken in four counties. Hochul's executive order followed the discovery of the virus last month in samples from Long Island's Nassau County, bordering the New York City borough of Queens. Earlier this year the virus was found in samples from Rockland, Orange and Sullivan counties, all north of the city.

Lawmakers seek U.S. probe on airline handling of COVID funds

The leaders of two congressional committees want a federal probe into whether airlines used government pandemic money to fund pilot buyouts and early retirements that may have fueled current pilot shortages, according to a letter released on Friday. Congress approved $54 billion in three rounds covering much of U.S. airline payroll costs for 18 months that ended in September 2021. Airlines accepting government assistance that funded payroll costs were prohibited from furloughs or firing workers and faced limits on executive compensation and bans on stock buybacks and dividends.

Novartis drug shown to ease symptoms of painful skin condition

Novartis said its anti-inflammatory drug Cosentyx eased the symptoms of a painful, lump-forming skin condition in two late-stage trials, putting the approved treatment on track to further shore up sales growth at the Swiss drugmaker. In a statement on Saturday, the company said that the drug, already approved for conditions like psoriasis and arthritis, demonstrated rapid and sustained relief in trial participants suffering from hidradenitis suppurativa.

U.S. starts enrollment in trial testing Siga's antiviral for monkeypox

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on Friday it had started enrolling monkeypox patients in a late-stage study testing Siga Technologies Inc's antiviral pill Tpoxx against the disease. The oral and intravenous formulations of Tpoxx are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of smallpox, but does not yet have clearance to treat monkeypox.

Kim Jong Un suggests N.Korea may begin COVID vaccinations

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has suggested that the isolated country could begin COVID-19 vaccinations in November, state media reported on Friday. In a speech on Thursday to the North Korean national assembly, Kim cited World Health Organization warnings that the winter could see a resurgence in coronavirus infections.

China's financial hub Shanghai to extend free COVID testing services

China's financial hub Shanghai will extend free regular COVID-19 testing services to Oct. 31 to further consolidate the results of their epidemic prevention efforts, the city government said on Friday. Citizens are required to take at least one PCR test each week until the end of October, the city government said on its Wechat account.

South Carolina Senate moves to further restrict access to abortions

The South Carolina Senate on Thursday approved a bill tightening an abortion ban that is blocked by the state's highest court, following two days of fierce debate between anti-abortion Republicans and more moderate lawmakers from both parties. The bill the Senate approved would cut exceptions for rape and incest to the first trimester of pregnancy, not 20 weeks as the existing law provides. Like the existing ban, the bill would also permit abortions if the fetus receives a fatal diagnosis, but it would require diagnoses from two doctors, not one, as the blocked law requires.

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