Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Mexico To Finally Give Covid Shots To Younger Teenagers
Bloomberg: Mexico To Begin Vaccinating Some Teenagers Against Covid-19
After dragging its feet and falling behind regional peers, Mexico’s government will finally vaccinate some teenagers, and one state will even begin sending minors to the U.S. to get shots. During a press conference on Tuesday, the nation’s virus czar Hugo Lopez-Gatell announced that vaccinations will now be available to kids from the ages of 15 to 17 without underlying health conditions. (Villamil, Gonzalez and Navarro, 11/16)
AP: Coalition Launched To Provide School Lunches To Global Needy
Over 60 governments and 50 U.N. agencies and organizations have joined forces to press for the restoration of school lunches for all 388 million primary school children who were receiving the meals before the COVID-19 pandemic. They also will push for school meals to be started for 73 million vulnerable youngsters who weren’t getting them before the coronavirus struck in early 2020. Led by France and Finland, the School Meals Coalition was officially launched at a U.N. event Tuesday with a longer-term goal of ensuring that every needy child in the world gets a nutritious school meal by 2030. (Lederer, 11/17)
Elsewhere around the world —
Bloomberg: Ireland Reimposes Some Covid Restrictions As Coronavirus Cases Surge
Ireland has reintroduced some Covid-19 restrictions as it grapples with surging infections and a rising number of hospitalizations. Starting Thursday, people should work from home where possible, Prime Minister Micheal Martin said in a national address, while bars and restaurants must close by midnight. Cinemas and theaters will now require proof of vaccination, he said. (Flanagan, 11/16)
AP: Belgium To Make COVID-19 Shots Mandatory For Health Workers
Health workers in Belgium who don’t want to get vaccinated against COVID-19 will face losing their jobs. Amid a surge of coronavirus cases that has led hospitals in Belgium to reserve half of their 2,000 ICU beds for COVID-19 patients, Belgium’s federal government finalized a draft bill late Monday to make vaccinations mandatory for health care workers. (Petrequin, 11/16)
Reuters: Russia Reports Record Daily COVID-19 Deaths
Russia on Wednesday reported a new record one-day death toll of 1,247 from COVID-19, a little over a week after most of its regions emerged from a week-long workplace shutdown designed to curb the spread of the virus. The government coronavirus task force also reported 36,626 new coronavirus cases nationwide in the last 24 hours, including 2,966 in Moscow. (11/17)
AP: South Korea Pushes Booster Shots As COVID-19 Spread Worsens
South Korea on Wednesday reported 3,187 new cases of the coronavirus, nearly matching a one-day record set in September, a worrisome development in a country that eased social distancing rules in recent weeks to lessen the pandemic’s economic impact. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said more than 2,550 of the new cases came from the greater capital area, including a record 1,436 in Seoul. The country’s death toll is now 3,137, after 21 deaths were reported on Wednesday, the 16th consecutive day of double-digit fatalities, including a record 32 on Saturday. (11/17)
Bloomberg: China Covid Infections Fall To Single Digits In Latest Outbreak
China reported eight Covid-19 infections on Wednesday, all in one province, as the country’s new cases dropped to single digits for the first time in its latest delta outbreak. All of the locally transmitted cases were found in northeastern Liaoning province, according to the National Health Commission. The number of new infections has fallen for three consecutive days, after peaking at more than 100 daily during the broadest outbreak it’s experienced since Covid first emerged two years ago. (11/17)
