Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Chinese province reports 11 new virus cases from Iran flights: state media

The northwestern Chinese province of Gansu reported 11 new confirmed coronavirus patients, all of whom entered China on commercial flights from Iran, according to state media. A total of 311 passengers arriving at the provincial capital of Lanzhou from Iran have now been quarantined, state broadcaster CCTV reported late on Thursday. Pfizer weighs working with BioNTech on potential coronavirus vaccine: R&D head

Pfizer Inc is considering a collaboration with German drugmaker BioNTech SE to develop vaccines for the coronavirus using BioNTech's mRNA-based drug development platform, Pfizer's R&D head told Reuters on Thursday. Pfizer Chief Scientific Officer Mikael Dolsten was one of the pharmaceutical executives who attended a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump to discuss possible vaccines and treatments for the fast-spreading virus on Monday. New coronavirus infections may drop to zero by end-March in Wuhan: Chinese government expert

Wuhan, the epicenter of China's coronavirus epidemic, will likely see new infections drop to zero by the end of this month, an expert with the country's top panel on battling the illness said on Thursday, even as the city reported a quicker rise in new confirmed cases. Mainland China had 139 new confirmed cases as of Wednesday, the National Health Commission (NHC) said, bringing the total accumulated number of cases to 80,409. Authorities reported 119 new cases the previous day and 125 the day before that. U.S. Congress approves, sends to Trump $8.3 billion to fight coronavirus

The U.S. Senate on Thursday passed and sent to President Donald Trump an $8.3 billion funding bill to help state and local governments combat the spreading coronavirus, as public health experts outlined efforts to rapidly accelerate testing for the disease. By a vote of 96-1, the Senate approved legislation that was overwhelmingly passed on Wednesday by the House of Representatives. Coronavirus cases surge across U.S. as Americans face looming outbreak

The coronavirus outbreak radiated across the United States on Thursday, surfacing in at least four new states and San Francisco as Congress quickly approved more than $8 billion to fight the outbreak. The death toll from the respiratory illness rose to 12 in the United States, with the latest fatality recorded in King County, Washington, where six people have died in an outbreak at a nursing facility in the Seattle suburb of Kirkland. Singapore minister says coronavirus outbreak emerging as pandemic

The coronavirus spreading around the world from China is "starting to look like a global pandemic," said Singapore minister Lawrence Wong, who co-heads the country's virus fighting taskforce. The spread of the infection has been accelerating in other parts of the world, including in Europe and North America, in recent days. Cruise ship passengers 'in limbo' off San Francisco awaiting coronavirus tests

First, the food buffet was shut down as gloved staff scurried about wiping every surface in sight. Then the ocean liner's gym, bar, casino and boutiques were closed, with passengers urged to keep to themselves. Finally, they were confined to their staterooms. Once the captain announced their vessel may be tainted with coronavirus, Grand Princess cruise ship guests like Kathleen Reid were left with little to do but contemplate the prospect of extended isolation at sea, or worse. Japanese swimmer Ikee tries to turn tide as coronavirus saps blood donations

Japanese star swimmer Rikako Ikee, who stunned fans last year with news she was battling leukemia, has launched an urgent appeal for people to give blood after steps to curb the spread of coronavirus led to a sharp drop in donations. Ikee, who left hospital in December and has vowed to target the Paris 2024 Olympics, said on Twitter there were people whose lives depended on donations and the "drastic decrease" was causing anxiety. NZ man with coronavirus attended packed rock concert in Auckland, health authorities say

A person in New Zealand confirmed to have been infected was revealed on Friday to have attended a rock concert packed with thousands of other people. Health authorities said the man in his 30s, who is the partner of a woman who was confirmed to have COVID-19 this week, attended the Tool concert at Spark Arena in Auckland on Feb. 28. U.S. coronavirus death toll rises to 12, including latest in King County, Washington

The U.S. death toll from the coronavirus rose to 12 on Thursday when King County, Washington reported the latest fatality. Of the 12 U.S. deaths, 11 have come in Washington state and one in California.