Health News Roundup: China reports 968 new COVID cases for Sept 26 vs 999 a day earlier; Prominent Chinese commentator urges COVID experts to 'speak out' and more

Last week, the health regulator had allowed use of ten batches of Moderna's updated booster shots made at the Bloomington, Indiana facility, owned by a unit of Catalent Inc, which is currently not a part of the company's emergency use authorization. Syrian health ministry says cholera death toll rises to 29 Syria said on Monday that 29 people had died of cholera in what the United Nations has called the worst outbreak of the disease in the war-torn country for years.


Devdiscourse News Desk | Updated: 27-09-2022 10:37 IST | Created: 27-09-2022 10:30 IST
Health News Roundup: China reports 968 new COVID cases for Sept 26 vs 999 a day earlier; Prominent Chinese commentator urges COVID experts to 'speak out' and more
Representative Image Image Credit: ANI

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

China reports 968 new COVID cases for Sept 26 vs 999 a day earlier

China reported 968 new COVID-19 infections on Sept. 26, of which 245 were symptomatic and 723 were asymptomatic, the National Health Commission said on Tuesday. That compares with 999 new cases a day earlier – 295 symptomatic and 704 asymptomatic infections, which China counts separately.

Prominent Chinese commentator urges COVID experts to 'speak out'

Prominent Chinese commentator Hu Xijin said on Sunday that as China ponders its COVID-19 policies, epidemic experts need to speak out and China ought to conduct comprehensive research and make any studies transparent to the public. Hu's unusual call on Chinese social media for candor and transparency earned him 34,000 likes on the popular Twitter-like microblog Weibo, as well as frank responses from netizens in a normally tightly policed internet quick to censor voices deemed a risk to social stability.

Biogen finalizes $900 million drug kickback settlement, U.S. says

Biogen Inc has finalized a $900 million settlement resolving a whistleblower lawsuit accusing the biotech company of paying doctors kickbacks to prescribe multiple sclerosis drugs, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Monday. The settlement resolves a long-running whistleblower lawsuit in Boston federal court that a former employee pursued on the government's behalf. Biogen in July disclosed it reached a potential settlement, which was subject to government approval.

Canada to remove all COVID travel restrictions from Oct 1

Canada will drop all COVID-19 restrictions for travelers from Oct. 1, including vaccination and masking requirements for flights and trains, the government said on Monday. The move is likely to boost the Canadian travel industry, already booming after months of a lull during the pandemic.

U.S. FDA clears additional lots of Moderna's Covid booster amid a shortage

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Monday it has authorized an additional five batches of Moderna Inc's updated Covid booster shots made at a Catalent facility in Indiana after it deemed them safe for use. Last week, the health regulator allowed use of ten batches of Moderna's updated booster shots made at the Bloomington, Indiana facility, owned by a unit of Catalent Inc, which is currently not a part of the company's emergency use authorization.

Syrian health ministry says cholera death toll rises to 29

Syria said on Monday that 29 people had died of cholera in what the United Nations has called the worst outbreak of the disease in the war-torn country for years. Rapid assessment testing has confirmed 338 cases since the outbreak was first recorded last month, Syria's health ministry said in a statement, with the bulk of the deaths and cases in the northern Aleppo province.

Valneva in talks with a potential partner on second-gen COVID-19 vaccines

French drugmaker Valneva said on Monday it is in talks with a potential partner on producing an updated version of its COVID-19 vaccine that targets new variants of the disease, sending its shares up. The French company has struggled to bring its COVID-19 vaccine to market to compete with rival products from drugmakers such as AstraZeneca, Moderna, and BioNTech/Pfizer. Its shares have lost almost 80% since peaking at the end of 2021.

Pfizer/BioNTech seek FDA nod for new COVID boosters for children

Pfizer Inc and its German partner BioNTech on Monday sought the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's authorization for an Omicron-tailored COVID-19 vaccine booster for children aged 5 through 11 years. The application comes just days after Moderna also applied for FDA authorization of its own Omicron-targeting shot in adolescents aged 12 to 17 years and children aged six to 11.

(With inputs from agencies.)

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