Health News Roundup: U.S. FDA green lights Omicron-targeted COVID boosters ahead of revaccination campaign; U.S. life expectancy fell further in 2021 due to COVID and more

Shares in Aspen jumped 6% in afternoon trade on Wednesday on news of the deal and after it posted a 31% jump in full-year profit. U.S. FDA green lights Omicron-targeted COVID boosters ahead of revaccination campaign The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized updated COVID-19 booster shots from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna that target the dominant BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants, as the government prepares for a broad fall vaccination campaign that could begin within days.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Finland detects small amount of radioactivity, says no health impact

Small amounts of radioactive isotopes have been detected in air samples collected in Kotka in south-east Finland, but there is no risk to humans and similar discoveries are "quite normal", the country's nuclear safety watchdog said on Wednesday. "The observed radioactivity has no impact on the environment or human health, as the concentrations were very low," the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) said in a statement.

Europe to receive Omicron vaccines within days of approval, says MEP

Omicron-adapted vaccines will be delivered to the European Union within days of regulatory approval, European member of parliament Peter Liese said on Wednesday. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is expected to make a decision this week on Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines tailored to target the older BA.1 Omicron variant as well as the original strain that first emerged in China.

Canada's Ontario allows masked people with asymptomatic COVID in public

Canada's most populous province, Ontario, said on Wednesday that residents can come out of isolation with a mask as soon as 24 hours after their COVID-19 symptoms dissipate, under a strategy to homogenize guidance for all respiratory illnesses. Asymptomatic COVID-positive residents, as well as those who come in contact with an infected person, can go to work or school but they must wear a face mask for 10 days, the Ontario government said.

S.Africa's Aspen, India's Serum Institute sign vaccines deal for Africa

Aspen Pharmacare has signed a deal with the Serum Institute of India to manufacture and sell four Aspen-branded vaccines for Africa, as it seeks to utilise its near-idle COVID-19 vaccine production lines in South Africa. Shares in Aspen jumped 6% in afternoon trade on Wednesday on news of the deal and after it posted a 31% jump in full-year profit.

U.S. FDA green lights Omicron-targeted COVID boosters ahead of revaccination campaign

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized updated COVID-19 booster shots from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna that target the dominant BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants, as the government prepares for a broad fall vaccination campaign that could begin within days. The new vaccines also include the original version of the virus targeted by all the previous COVID shots.

Explainer-Updated COVID vaccines are coming in the U.S. Should you get one?

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized updated COVID-19 boosters from Pfizer Inc with German partner BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc retooled to target Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants as well as the original virus. They could start rolling out in the next few days following recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which is holding a meeting of its expert advisers on Thursday. Here is what you need to know:

New Mexico to build $10 million clinic to meet abortion demand

New Mexico's governor on Wednesday earmarked $10 million in public funds for a reproductive healthcare clinic to meet an expected rise in demand for abortions from women traveling from neighboring states that have banned the procedure. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed an executive order for the clinic to be built in southern New Mexico's Doña Ana County bordering Texas, where abortion has been outlawed since the U.S. Supreme Court in June ended the nationwide constitutional right to the procedure.

U.S. life expectancy fell further in 2021 due to COVID

Life expectancy fell in the United States in 2021 to its lowest since 1996, the second year of a historic retreat due to COVID-19 deaths, provisional government data showed on Wednesday. The nearly one-year decline from 2020 to 76.1 years marked the largest two-year drop in life expectancy at birth in close to a century, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found.

Cyprus ends mandatory mask wearing as COVID-19 measures eased

Cyprus on Wednesday said it would end all restrictions on gatherings and the mandatory use of face masks in most areas after cases of COVID-19 were declining. Effective Wednesday, all restrictions on public or private gatherings would be eased, while wearing face masks would only be compulsory in areas such as hospitals, care homes and on public transport, Health Minister Michalis Hadjipantela said.

China's Guangzhou, Shenzhen tighten COVID curbs as parts of north join in

Parts of China's southern city of Guangzhou imposed COVID-19 curbs on Wednesday, joining the tech hub of Shenzhen in battling flare-ups, fuelling uncertainty over commerce and daily life in two of the region's most economically vibrant metropolises. Several of China's biggest cities have stepped up COVID-19 restrictions this week, curtailing the activities of tens of millions of people.