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About 200 million people have tested positive for the virus worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University. More than 4.2 million infected people have died. About 4.3 billion vaccine doses have been administered worldwide.
The “green passport” is valid in Italy
From Friday (Aug. 6), anyone in Italy who wants to eat indoors in a restaurant, go to a museum or to a swimming pool or spa will have to show a “green passport” – either proof of vaccination, a negative Corona test valid for 48 hours or proof of recovery. The new rules also apply to outdoor cultural or sporting events or gyms. All persons twelve years of age and older are affected. Visitors from abroad must also present proof in Italian, French, English or Spanish. In Italy, a first vaccination is sufficient for a passport. The Corona disease must not have been contracted more than six months ago. For the time being, a “green passport” is not yet required for hotels or public transportation.
South Korea is extending its tightened Corona restrictions
South Korea is extending its tightened Corona restrictions by two weeks shortly before the summer vacations in order to curb new infections with the highly contagious delta variant. More and more people are becoming seriously ill, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Friday (Aug. 6) No more than two people are allowed to meet after 6 p.m. in the capital Seoul and surrounding areas, and four in other regions. Only 14 percent of South Korea’s population has been fully vaccinated so far.
Situation in Brazil
Brazil’s northeastern constituent states will not import 37 million doses of the Russian Sputnik vaccine as planned. The project has failed for the time being because of the conditions set by the regulatory authority, the governor of the constituent state of Piauí said Thursday (Aug. 6). Russian Sputnik distributor RDIF announced that the doses would now be sold to Mexico, Argentina and Bolivia.
CDC warns of hundreds of thousands of new corona infections
The head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) warns of hundreds of thousands of new corona infections per day in the United States. However, if the country stands together, the unvaccinated get vaccinated and people wear their masks, the situation can be brought under control within a few weeks, Rochelle Walensky told CNN television Thursday night (Aug. 5). If that doesn’t happen, she said, the U.S. could be looking at several 100,000 cases a day – similar to the surge in early January. In quite a few southern states, such as Florida, there is already an exponential increase, he said. However, Walensky stressed that in the past, when the number of cases was this high, there were many more deaths. That’s because of vaccinations against the virus, he said. With vaccine breakthroughs, the course of the disease is usually mild, he said. “But what it (vaccination) can no longer do is prevent transmission,” the CDC chief said, referring to the particularly contagious delta variant.
Moderna 93 percent effective four to six months after the second dose
Moderna said its proprietary Covid-19 vaccine is expected to be 93 percent effective four to six months after the second dose. The U.S. pharmaceutical company made the announcement Thursday (Aug. 5). That makes it about as effective as the original clinical trials (94%) had shown. Pfizer/Biontech’s rivals had released data last week showing that the efficacy of their vaccine was said to decline by about 6 percent every two months and was 84 percent six months after the second dose. Moderna also touts that ongoing studies with three different booster vaccines have produced robust antibody responses against the gamma, beta and delta variants, resulting in antibody levels similar to those seen after the second dose.
- source: nzz.ch/picture: pixabay.com
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