The Race To Vaccinate: UK Prepares To Start Soon

AP: UK Stocks Up On Vaccines, Hopes To Start Virus Shots In Days
Britain said Sunday it has secured 2 million more doses of a promising coronavirus vaccine as it gears up to launch within days the country’s most ambitious inoculation program in decades. ... The Department of Health said Sunday it had increased its order for a vaccine developed by U.S. firm Moderna from 5 million to 7 million doses, enough for 3.5 million people. The Moderna vaccine is expected to be referred soon to the U.K.’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, to see if it is safe and effective. Two other vaccines — one developed by Pfizer and German firm BioNTech, the other by Oxford University and AstraZeneca — are already being assessed by the regulator, the final stage before being rolled out. (Lawless, 11/29)

Bloomberg: U.K. Set To Be First To Clear Pfizer-BioNTech Covid Vaccine
The U.K. is poised to become the first country to approve Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE’s Covid-19 vaccine, ahead of a long line of countries waiting for protection from the coronavirus. Clearance is possible as early as this week, according to a person familiar with the situation, who asked not to be identified because the process is confidential. (Hipwell, Kresge and Ross, 11/28)

Bloomberg: U.K. Moves To Get Astra Covid Vaccine Approved Before The EU
Health Secretary Matt Hancock asked the U.K. medical regulator to potentially bypass its European Union counterpart and approve the supply of AstraZeneca Plc’s coronavirus vaccine to speed its deployment. Until the end of the year, when the U.K. exits a post-Brexit transition period, vaccines there must be authorized by the European Medicines Agency. But on Friday, Hancock said he invoked a special rule allowing Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to authorize a temporary supply of the vaccine Astra is developing with Oxford University if the data is robust enough, after it showed positive results in trials this week. (Morales, 11/26)

In other global developments —

AP: Brazil's Bolsonaro Rejects COVID-19 Shot, Calls Masks Taboo
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro says he won’t take any working COVID-19 vaccine himself and calls the use of masks to limit the spread of the disease “the last taboo to fall.” Bolsonaro’s comments, broadcast on his social media channels Thursday night, alarmed health experts who said they could undermine efforts to achieve vaccination levels essential to halting the pandemic and might scare off vaccine makers negotiating with local authorities. (Savarese, 11/27)

The Washington Post: Japan, Korea Young Women Suicides Spike In Coronavirus Pandemic 
Suicide rates among young women have increased notably in Japan and South Korea, raising possible links to the prolonged coronavirus pandemic as it amplifies stress levels, worsens economic woes and aggravates feelings of loneliness and isolation. No comprehensive global studies are yet available on whether the pandemic has caused higher suicide numbers or how it may have affected different age groups and genders. (Denyer and Kashiwagi, 11/29)

Also —

The New York Times: Offices Of Diego Maradona’s Doctor Raided Over His Death 
The authorities searched the home and offices of Diego Maradona’s personal doctor on Sunday as part of an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the soccer star’s death last week. Prosecutors requested a search warrant for the doctor, Leopoldo Luque, after collecting evidence and interviewing Mr. Maradona’s relatives, according to a statement by the prosecutor’s office in San Isidro, Buenos Aires Province. The statement did not provide more details. (Politi and Kwai, 11/29)