First Community Covid Transmission Drives Tonga Into Lockdown
Meanwhile, in Tokyo cases hit a record high — above 20,000 daily for the first time. In Europe, some nations are scaling back their restrictions, including Norway, even as the World Health Organization warns that many places have yet to reach the peak of the omicron surge.
The New York Times:
Tonga Goes Into Lockdown Over Covid Cases
Two workers who were helping to distribute aid shipments at the Tongan wharf tested positive for the virus on Tuesday, prompting Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni to announce a lockdown that night. Three more positive cases were recorded on Wednesday among relatives of the workers, who are asymptomatic and in quarantine, local news media reported. (Zhuang, 2/1)
In other global covid news —
Reuters:
Tokyo's Daily COVID-19 Infections Exceed 20,000 For First Time
Tokyo's new COVID-19 cases exceeded 20,000 for the first time on Wednesday, dimming hopes that an Omicron-fuelled wave of infections in Japan is peaking out. (2/2)
Bloomberg:
Covid-19: Norway Scales Back Most Of Its Restrictions
Norway is easing most of the measures to curb infection and aims to remove the rest in a couple of weeks as it bets a high level of vaccination will be enough to shield the health system from overloading. Limits on guests at private gatherings, a curb on the service of alcohol in bars and restaurants, and testing after arriving at the border have all been removed, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store told reporters in Oslo on Tuesday. Face masks will still need to be worn in shops, shopping centers and on public transport where a distance of a meter can’t be maintained. (Treloar, 2/1)
The Washington Post:
WHO Urges Caution As Countries Begin To Loosen Restrictions
Countries should be cautious about lifting coronavirus restrictions, World Health Organization officials warned Tuesday, noting that many places haven’t yet reached the peak of the omicron surge. (Pannett and Suliman, 2/2)
CNBC:
These Countries Have The Lowest Covid Vaccination Rates In The World
Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Haiti are the least vaccinated countries in the world against Covid-19, data has shown. Just 0.05% of Burundi’s population has received at least one Covid vaccination dose, according to statistics compiled by Our World in Data. In DR Congo, 0.4% of people have been given at least one dose, while in Haiti that proportion of the population rises to around 1%. In low-income countries, just 5.5% of people have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, according to Our World in Data. In high-income countries, 72% of the population has been fully vaccinated with at least two doses. (Taylor, 2/2)
The Washington Post:
Researchers Are Asking Why Some Countries Were Better Prepared For Covid. One Surprising Answer: Trust
Before 2020, Vietnam looked particularly vulnerable to a pandemic. The Southeast Asian country, a single-party state with nearly 100 million people, scored low on international assessments of universal health coverage and had relatively few hospital beds for its population, as well as a closed-off political system. Instead, Vietnam emerged as an early pandemic success story. Long after the coronavirus began to spread in neighboring China, Vietnam maintained low levels of infections and fatalities even as wealthy countries with more robust health systems, including the United States and much of Europe, struggled. (Taylor, 2/1)
Also —
NPR:
Cuba Has Come Up With 5 COVID Vaccine Candidates
In the early days of the COVID pandemic, Cuba decided it was going to make its own vaccine – even though vaccine development historically takes years, even decades, to bear fruit. Why did the Communist island nation decide to go it alone? It didn't want to rely on the whims of foreign governments or international pharmaceutical companies to immunize its people. Cuba didn't even sign up for the COVAX program, backed by the World Health Organization, that was promising to purchase vaccines in bulk and distribute them equitably around the globe. (Beaubien, 2/1)
Roll Call:
Unvaccinated Truckers Find Roadblocks At Canada-US Border
A requirement that foreign nationals entering the U.S. and Canada be vaccinated for COVID-19 is exacerbating the supply chain logjam, according to freight industry groups who say they can’t find enough vaccinated drivers to bring goods across the U.S.-Canada border. The U.S. government argues the new requirement has had little such impact and argues the public health benefits make the mandate worthwhile. The U.S. on Jan. 22 began imposing the vaccine requirement on all non-U.S. individuals traveling for both essential and nonessential reasons. The restrictions do not apply to U.S. citizens entering the U.S. Canada began requiring northbound truckers and other incoming visitors to be vaccinated beginning Jan. 15, which has triggered a number of protests by Canadian truckers. (Wehrman, 2/1)
