Brazil Completes China’s Vaccine Trial; Russia Plans To Test Drug Combination

The Hill: China's COVID-19 Vaccine Effective In Late-Stage Trials In Brazil: Report 
Late-stage trials in Brazil for China’s Sinovac Biotech COVID-19 vaccine have shown promising results, positioning it for public use, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. The vaccine, CoronaVac, has reached phase three trials in Brazil, the first country to complete the third trial stage for Sinovac’s vaccine, according to the newspaper. The experimental vaccine is also being tested in Indonesia and Turkey. (Choi, 12/21)

AP: Russia, AstraZeneca To Test Combination Of COVID-19 Shots
Developers of the Russian coronavirus vaccine Sputnik V on Monday announced signing an agreement with AstraZeneca to test a combination of the British drugmaker’s COVID-19 shots and a component of the vaccine created in Moscow. The developers of Sputnik V proposed the approach to AstraZeneca last month, suggesting it could increase the effectiveness of the British vaccine. The company announced on Dec. 11 a study to test the combination, and on Monday signed a memorandum of cooperation with Moscow-based medical research facility the Gamaleya Institute, the Russian Direct Investment Fund and Russian drugmaker R-Pharm. (Litvinova, 12/21)

NPR: Vatican OKs Receiving COVID-19 Vaccines, Even If Research Involved Fetal Tissue
The Vatican says that it's "morally acceptable" to receive a vaccination for COVID-19, even if the vaccine's research or production involved using cell lines derived from aborted fetuses, given the "grave danger" of the pandemic. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican office charged with promoting and defending church morals and traditions, said in a document released Monday that "when ethically irreproachable Covid-19 vaccines are not available ... it is morally acceptable to receive Covid-19 vaccines that have used cell lines from aborted fetuses in their research and production process." Pope Francis approved the text on Thursday, Vatican News reported. (Wamsley, 12/21)

Also —

Bloomberg: Japanese Citizens Urged To Wear Masks At Home As Cases Swell
Japan’s struggle to contain the coronavirus ahead of the holiday season has prompted some local leaders to ask residents to embrace a more extreme precaution: wearing masks at home. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike and her counterparts in three neighboring prefectures on Monday wrote a joint message urging the elderly and people with underlying health issues -- and those living with them -- to don masks at home during the New Year break. Some other prefectures, including Fukushima and Niigata, have made similar requests. (Suga, 12/22)

The Washington Post: U.S. Olympic Officials Have Yet To Decide If Vaccinations Will Be Mandatory For Tokyo 
The International Olympic Committee won’t require coronavirus vaccines of athletes competing at the Tokyo Games next summer, but the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee is working on a plan to educate American athletes and possibly facilitate immunization for its Olympic hopefuls. USOPC officials said on a conference call with reporters Monday that the organization would encourage Team USA athletes to take the vaccine when it becomes available. When asked whether the organization would mandate a vaccine for its athletes, Sarah Hirshland, the USOPC’s chief executive, said a full plan had not yet been developed. (Maese, 12/21)

Bloomberg: Mexico’s Excess Deaths Pass 250,000 Amid Covid Outbreak
Mexico has recorded 40% more deaths than expected this year, according to a report on excess mortality in the country. The country has recorded 254,625 more deaths -- from all causes -- than expected through late November, the report said. The amount is more than double the 118,598 confirmed Covid-19 deaths in the country. Excess deaths include those who died because they couldn’t get treatment at overloaded hospitals or were never tested even though they had the virus. The country’s management of the virus and the clarity of its data has been criticized because of the excess deaths. (Quinn, 12/22)

Politico: Canada's Largest Province To Impose Holiday Lockdown To Avoid 'Catastrophic' Covid Fallout 
Canada's holiday season will be even quieter this year as Ontario, by far the country’s most-populous province, announces weeks of stricter coronavirus lock-downs starting Dec. 26. Ontario Premier Doug Ford made the announcement Monday as his province — and much of Canada — deals with a stubborn resurgence of Covid-19. The province is home to nearly 39 percent of all Canadians. (Blatchford, 12/21)

Bloomberg: Virus Surge Puts South African Hospitals Under Severe Strain
In four of South Africa’s most populous provinces, “we have noted a substantial resurgence in Covid-19 patients and the health-care system is under significant pressure,” said Charl van Loggerenberg, Life Healthcare’s general manager of emergency medicine. Intensive care and high-care units are “particularly under severe strain” in the KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape and Eastern Cape regions, he said. Besides admitting more Covid-19 patients, the hospitals are also having to administer additional treatment. “We are seeing a significantly higher demand for oxygenation of sick patients versus the first wave,” Netcare’s Chief Executive Officer Richard Friedland said in an emailed response to questions. “We have seen more cases in both the Eastern Cape and Western Cape, and expect to exceed the number of cases seen in the first wave in KwaZulu-Natal this week.” (Kew, 12/21)