New Coronavirus News from 31 Oct 2021

Russia reports an all-time high of 40,993 daily coronavirus cases [TASS, 31 Oct 2021]

The number of patients undergoing medical treatment from the novel coronavirus increased to 916,713
MOSCOW, October 31. /TASS/. Confirmed coronavirus cases in Russia grew by an all-time high of 40,993 in the past day to 8,513,790, the federal anti-coronavirus crisis center reported on Sunday.

The coronavirus growth rate equaled 0.48%, it said.

In particular, 3,597 new coronavirus cases were registered in the past day in St. Petersburg, 2,737 in the Moscow Region, 1,458 in the Samara Region, 799 in the Nizhny Novgorod Region and 793 in the Voronezh Region, the latest figures show.

The number of patients undergoing medical treatment from the novel coronavirus increased to 916,713, the crisis center informed.

Confirmed monthly coronavirus cases in Russia topped a million in October for the first time since the start of the pandemic, according to TASS estimates based on the anti-coronavirus crisis center’s data released on Sunday.

On October 1-31, the anti-coronavirus crisis center reported 1,002,764 infections or 69.4% more on the previous month and 127% higher compared to October 2020.

Coronavirus recoveries in Russia grew by 27,115 in the past 24 hours to 7,358,539, the crisis center reported.

The share of patients discharged from hospitals upon their recovery dropped to 86.4% of all infections, it said.

Coronavirus fatalities in Russia grew by 1,158 in the past day compared to 1,160 a day before to 238,538, the crisis center reported.

The mortality rate remained at 2.8%, it said.

Coronavirus cases in Moscow increased by 7,603 in the past day compared to 7,267 a day before to 1,817,391, the crisis center reported.

The coronavirus growth rate in the Russian capital equaled 0.42%, the latest data show.

Ninety-four coronavirus patients died in Moscow in the past day compared to ninety-seven a day before, bringing fatalities to 31,342 in the Russian capital (1.72% of all infections), the crisis center reported.

New Coronavirus News from 30 Oct 2021

Germany fears fourth Covid wave as vaccination rates remain low [The Guardian, 30 Oct 2021]

By Philip Oltermann

With a new governing coalition yet to be formed and jab refusal high, experts worry the country is unprepared for a surge in cases

Concerns are mounting in Germany about a rapidly growing and hard to predict fourth wave of Covid-19 this autumn, as the government is in transition and flatlining vaccination rates lag behind those in the rest of western Europe.

An increasingly mobile population, a largely dismantled pop-up testing infrastructure and reduced staffing at hospitals have led some experts to warn that the government is facing a resurgent virus with less resolve than at previous stages of the pandemic.

“I am not relaxed about it,” said Hendrick Streeck, director of the institutes of virology and HIV research at Bonn University. “Capacity at intensive care units is reduced; we may have to factor in another influenza wave. Our grasp of the dynamic behind the infections is not great, but we have higher mobility,” Streeck said.

Germany’s disease control agency has warned of a “growing likelihood of infectious contacts” after reporting an incidence rate of 145 new infections per 100,000 residents – the highest recorded since May this year.

More people in Germany are infected with the virus than at the same point in 2020: according to the federal government’s own data 205,700 people were infectious on 29 October 2021 compared with 131,541 people on 29 October 2020.

At 75, the rolling seven-day average of deaths linked to the coronavirus in Germany is also higher than a year ago, when it was 44.

The number of Covid-19 patients in intensive care beds is roughly on a par with October 2020 levels, with 1,868 patients registered on Friday. Last autumn, cases kept on rising in spite of “lockdown light” restrictions, until hospital bed occupancy peaked, with about 5,700 cases being treated in the first week of January.

“We are at a critical stage of the pandemic”, said Gerald Gass, chair of the German Hospital Federation. “If this trend persists, we will be back to 3,000 patients on intensive care within two weeks”, he said.

The German health ministry said it was confident that clinics in the country would not have to invoke triage, when acute care cannot be provided to every patient in need because of lack of resources.

While levels of compliance with hygiene restrictions such as mask-wearing on public transport is high, Germany and its southern neighbour Austria lag behind other western European nations on vaccination rates. Sixty-six per cent of Germany’s population is fully vaccinated, compared with 68% in France, 71% in Italy and 80% in Spain.

Unlike some southern European states, Germany opted against making vaccination mandatory for specific sectors of industry.

A survey commissioned by the health ministry suggests the rate of vaccinations is unlikely to improve in the near future: 65% of those who have so far refused the jab said they would “in no way” take a vaccine in the next two months, while a further 23% said they would “probably not” let themselves be immunised.

In spite of the rising numbers, the three parties likely to make up Germany’s next government have agreed in principle to end the “epidemic situation of national relevance” by the end of November.

But 25 November would not be a “freedom day” as celebrated by the British government, say politicians from the Social Democratic party, which is expected to lead the next government in a coalition with the Greens and the Free Democratic party.

While the parties say they plan to continue to enforce mandated mask-wearing, social distancing and limited access to cultural venues for those without double vaccinations, they have effectively ruled out another nationwide lockdown including school closures and curfews.

Inside Russia's 'fourth wave': Record deaths, deep frustration and plenty of blame [The Washington Post, 30 Oct 2021]

By Robyn Dixon

MOSCOW — A routine medical checkup in mid-September nearly cost Alexander Ivanov his life. The clinic was packed with people, almost no one wearing masks.

“Or distancing,” he said — a common sight in Russian public spaces and on transport. “I even told some of the people that they should be wearing masks, but people didn’t care.”

Three days later he fell ill with the coronavirus and wound up in intensive care in Yekaterinburg, in Russia’s Urals region. The 47-year-old resident — who was not vaccinated — watched other patients dying, thinking he was next.

Russia’s catastrophic “fourth wave” is a cautionary tale for a failing vaccination campaign, showing the difficulties in correcting course after the government’s confused, on-off messaging about covid-19.

Russia’s pandemic measures began with a strict lockdown in early 2020 and dropped before a crucial July 2020 vote on constitutional changes. This summer, Moscow brought in QR codes to prove vaccine status to enter bars, restaurants and cafes, but the unpopular measure was abandoned after a few weeks.

Some analysts say Russians’ distrust of authorities and skepticism of doctors — going back to Soviet times — helps explain the country’s vaccine reticence. Others blame anti-vaccine activists and rampant disinformation on social media.

But the result leaves Russia as a pandemic hot spot, while countries with higher vaccination rates are lifting restrictions.

Almost daily, a grim record of Russian deaths is marked: more than 1,100 a day, according to official figures. That is still understated, many independent analysts say. Hospitals are struggling and small business owners are angered by the reimposition of restrictions, including a partial lockdown from Thursday.

Three decades after the Soviet era, this Moscow street echoes what was.

As authorities played down the crisis before September parliamentary elections, Russia’s vaccination rate hovered among the lowest globally. In recent weeks, officials have ramped up warnings about the coronavirus and the need for vaccines.

Russia’s Ministry of Health says it has fully vaccinated 8 million Russians since Oct. 14, bringing the current total to 50.9 million, or about 35 percent of the population. That compares to 74 percent in Canada, 72 percent in Japan, 68 percent in France, 67 percent in Britain, 66 percent in Germany and 57 percent in the United States, according to the Britain-based Global Change Data Lab.

Ivanov is not against the vaccine, but his attitude illustrates how the government failed to convince even those not opposed to vaccines. A retired policeman who spends a lot of time with his dogs and chickens at his small farm outside Yekaterinburg, he didn’t think the jab was necessary.

“I was planning to do it, but I just thought tomorrow. And tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow. I just didn’t get around to it,” said Ivanov. “I didn’t take this virus seriously at all. I thought it was like the flu, not dangerous at all. I was not afraid.”

In intensive care for several weeks, his only contact with the outside world was a doctor who reported his condition to his family and read them notes he wrote.

“So I wrote, ‘Don’t worry, I’m okay.’ But of course I was thinking I could die, especially when I saw people around me dying,” Ivanov said.

In Russia, experts are challenging official pandemic figures as too low. They refuse to be silenced.

Vlad Nesterov — father-in-law of Ivanov’s daughter — had similar views about getting the virus. He also fell sick in late September, along with his family and almost everyone in the office where he worked.

Nesterov, a journalist, thinks he picked it up at an office birthday party. There was plenty of vodka and toasts and many guests later came down with covid-19.

“I’m not against the vaccine. It’s just that I thought that Jesus Christ would help me, and whatever should happen would happen,” said Nesterov. He spent four weeks battling the coronavirus at home, ill and constantly exhausted.

St. Petersburg doctor Lev Averbakh feels as is if he is wading against a tide of ignorance, apathy and disinformation. “I am so sick and tired of explaining to people what this virus is about and why they need to be vaccinated. This resistance from the population is huge,” he said in an interview.

Another doctor, Sergei, working in the “red zone” — or the coronavirus treatment unit — at a regional hospital, no longer feels much compassion for unvaccinated patients. He just thinks about the generous red zone bonus payments that means he earns double his normal pay.

“But we covid doctors are very cynical now, because of these covid payments. For us, covid is good, as awful as that might sound,” said the doctor, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of fear of reprisals. “For us, the worse the covid situation is the better,” he said referring to doctors’ bonuses.

A few months ago, he asked every one of 120 coronavirus patients under his direct care if they had been vaccinated. All said no, citing vague reasons such as “side effects or genetic problems,” he said.

As Russian voting moves online, Putin’s foes say another path to curb Kremlin is lost
His 200-bed hospital was ordered to add 70 extra beds when the disease peaked.

“And there was no space to put beds. We had to stick beds in the corridors, in the operating theaters, anywhere we could find a space,” said the doctor. Patients without coronavirus-related illnesses were sent home prematurely, he said, only to return soon after, sicker than ever.

With cases hitting record highs, hospitals across Russia are under similar intense pressures.
One person in Siberia took drastic action: he bought PPE gear, disguised himself as a nurse and sneaked into the “red zone” at Tomsk Medical Sanitary Unit No. 2 to check on his 80-year-old grandmother.

Identifying himself only as Sergei, he videoed himself pulling on a white protective suit, surgical gloves, blue goggles and a mask, and walking up the hospital’s interior stairs.

“Grandma, hi. Quiet, quiet,” he said, approaching her bed, recording multiple black bruises on her arms and discovering that her diaper had not been changed and pressure sores had not been bandaged. The video was aired Wednesday on Tomsk independent television TV2.

He spent nearly nine and a half hours in the hospital the first day and returned a day later to find her unwashed, lying again in a dirty diaper, he said. On day three, a doctor confronted him and he fled.

Antonina Stoilova, head of therapeutics at the hospital, said all patients are properly cared for, TV2 reported.

Russia considers using ‘Sputnik Light’ as booster against COVID-19 [Global News, 30 Oct 2021]

By Tom Balmforth and Maria Kiselyova

Russia will recommend using the domestically-made Sputnik Light vaccine against COVID-19 only as a booster for people who have already been vaccinated, Russian news agencies cited the health minister as saying on Saturday.

Russia had previously promoted Sputnik Light, which comprises the first shot of its flagship two-shot Sputnik V, as an effective standalone vaccine as well as a booster that can be combined with non-Russian vaccines.

“As the Delta variant is advancing, there will definitely be changes made today to the methodological recommendations on vaccinations where it will (say): only use ‘Sputnik Light’ for re-vaccination,” Health Minister Mikhail Murashko was quoted as saying by TASS.

“We see that a higher quality immunity is formed after two-stage vaccination, and this is crucially important to preserve health,” Interfax quoted Murashko as saying.

He was speaking during a trip to Russia’s Vladimir region east of Moscow after President Vladimir Putin instructed the minister and his deputies to visit regions that have been worst hit by the latest wave of the pandemic.

Russia on Saturday reported 40,251 new COVID-19 infections in the past 24 hours, its highest single-day case tally of the pandemic so far. Its daily death toll, at 1,160, was only three short of a record high reported on Friday.

Sputnik Light vaccine has demonstrated 70 per cent effectiveness against the Delta variant three months after injection and is likely to become the country’s main vaccine in the future, Russia said earlier this month.

Putin told a meeting of G20 nations by video link on Saturday that Sputnik Light could be used to increase the effectiveness of other vaccines.

“We are working to this end with our colleagues from European countries and are offering it to our partners,” he said.

Russia records all-time high of 40,251 new daily coronavirus cases [TASS, 30 Oct 2021]

By Jake Rudnitsky and Evgenia Pismennaya

Russia recorded 1,160 coronavirus deaths in the past 24 hours

MOSCOW, October 30. /TASS/. Russia recorded 40,251 coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the highest daily number since the beginning of the pandemic, the anti-coronavirus crisis center said on Saturday. The total number of cases has reached 8,472,797.

According to data from the crisis center, Russia's coronavirus growth rate was 0.48%.

In particular, 7,267 coronavirus cases were reported in Moscow in the past day, 3,578 in St. Petersburg, 2,680 in the Moscow region, 1,405 in the Samara region, 815 in the Nizhny Novgorod region and 787 in the Voronezh region.

There are currently 903,993 active coronavirus cases in Russia.

Recoveries and deaths
Russia's coronavirus recoveries rose by 28,909 to 7,331,424 in the past 24 hours.

According to data from the crisis center, 86.5% of coronavirus patients have recovered in Russia.

In particular, 3,088 coronavirus recoveries were reported in the Moscow region in the past day, 2,604 in St. Petersburg, 823 in Crimea, 822 in the Samara region and 662 in the Bashkortostan region.

Russia recorded 1,160 coronavirus deaths in the past 24 hours, down from 1,163 the day before. The total death toll has climbed to 237,380.

According to data from the crisis center, 2.8% of coronavirus patients have died in Russia.

In particular, 76 coronavirus fatalities were reported in St. Petersburg in the past day, 43 in the Krasnodar region, 39 in the Moscow region, 36 in the Bashkortostan region and 34 in the Rostov region.

Coronavirus in Moscow
Moscow recorded 7,267 coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, down from 7,511 the day before. The total number of cases has reached 1,809,788.

According to data from the crisis center, Moscow’s coronavirus growth rate was 0.4%.

The city's coronavirus death toll increased by 97 to 31,248 in the past day and recoveries rose by 5,506 to 1,588,697.

There are currently 189,843 active coronavirus cases in Moscow.

Russia battles highest COVID-19 infection and death rates since the pandemic's start [NPR, 30 Oct 2021]

By CHARLES MAYNES

Russia is seeing its highest infection and death rates since the start of the pandemic. It's beginning a controversial 10-day shutdown in an attempt to defeat the virus.

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
For almost a year, as coronavirus spread across Europe, the U.S. and elsewhere, Russia's numbers were curiously low by comparison. Well, that has changed. This week, Russian health authorities reported that rates of infections and death are the highest since the start of the pandemic. And this morning, in an effort to slow further spread of the disease, Russia begins a, quote, "nonworking period." From Moscow, NPR's Charles Maynes reports.

CHARLES MAYNES, BYLINE: There was a time when President Vladimir Putin boasted of Russia's handling of the coronavirus, including rollout of its Sputnik V vaccine. Yet with surging infections and the death toll mounting, a clearly frustrated Putin said last week he couldn't comprehend why Russians - nearly two-thirds of them - continue to refuse to get the shot.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN: (Non-English language spoken).

MAYNES: "I can't understand what's going on," said Putin. "We have a reliable and efficient vaccine. I want to emphasize again there are only two choices - get sick or get vaccinated."

Russian officials have registered the highest death toll in Europe, and there's solid evidence the real total is far more than the official count. Yet it's an unprecedented surge from the delta strain of the virus that has the Kremlin reintroducing what it calls a nonworking week while giving regional authorities broad powers to tackle the pandemic as they see fit.

For Khakassia, a republic in eastern Siberia, that means a 10 p.m. curfew and halt to all public transport, even if some locals doubt the move's impact.

ALEXEI KIRICHENKO: (Non-English language spoken).

MAYNES: "There's not much to do here after 10 p.m. anyway. It's cold out," says Alexei Kirichenko (ph), an independent journalist in Khakassia's main city of Abakan, who said spare beds in local COVID wards were filling up fast, along with gripes about the new restrictions.

KIRICHENKO: (Through interpreter) The same people who complain about the curfew and buses not working are the same ones who never wore masks to begin with.

MAYNES: Back in Moscow, a web of lockdown measures brought an abrupt end to a sense of normalcy that had settled over the capital in recent months. Unvaccinated seniors are required to stay indoors, schools have shuttered and offices have sent workers home. Meanwhile, city restaurants, bars, cafes and movie theaters - pretty much everyone in the business of fun - have been ordered closed to customers.

ANNA ALEKSEEVA: (Non-English language spoken).

MAYNES: "The lockdown is hitting us again," says a disappointed Anna Alekseeva (ph), who works in a small craft beer bar.

ALEKSEEVA: (Through interpreter) If they keep us shut until the new year, we're done for. This isn't Europe or America, where they at least provided some financial assistance. The government here doesn't care about small business at all.

MAYNES: Moscow theaters and museums remain among the few public spaces still open to visitors, albeit at 50% capacity and with proof of vaccination.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Non-English language spoken).

MAYNES: That includes "Life With Viruses," a new exhibit dedicated to the interplay between humans, pathogens and science over the centuries. Tour guides lead visitors through huge models of spores and bacteria. An interactive video game called Pandemic allows players to try and save a metropolis from mass infection. And in the corner, a hologram of the coronavirus, with its now-famous spikes, pulsates against the wall.

SERGEI RYKOV: (Non-English language spoken).

MAYNES: Exhibit curator Sergei Rykov (ph) says he often finds himself looking at it and meditating.

RYKOV: (Through interpreter) We don't want to scare anyone. Our goal is to inform. The more we understand what we're dealing with, the better chance we have of coming up with ways to defend ourselves.

MAYNES: Rykov notes the exhibit's tell-it-like-it-is approach has proved popular with once-skeptical health officials now looking to reboot Russia's vaccination efforts.

Yet some health experts say Russia's current COVID woes are due at least in part to the Kremlin's own propaganda machine.

GEORGII BAZYKIN: (Non-English language spoken).

MAYNES: Georgii Bazykin, a biologist at the Skolkovo Institute in Moscow who studied the epidemiology of the virus, says state media has pushed conspiracies questioning the efficacy of Western vaccines that undermine Russia's own campaign.

BAZYKIN: (Non-English language spoken).

MAYNES: "It played a cruel joke on Russia's vaccination efforts," says Bazykin, "a country that produces and exports a vaccine its own citizens refuse to take."

New Coronavirus News from 29 Oct 2021

IN OUR VIEW: Broadband grant sure to benefit [Independent, 29 Oct 2021]

Kentucky has been awarded a $1 million federal grant to help expand high-speed internet across the state, and we are delighted, but maybe not for the same reasons as others.

Gov. Andy Beshear noted the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of reliable high-speed internet access for education, businesses and health care. “Access to the internet is no longer a luxury,” Beshear said in a news release. “To build a better Kentucky, every home and business in our state should have access to affordable, adequate and reliable internet to participate fully in our economy, schools and society.”

The grant, provided by funding from the American Rescue Plan, is the latest step to expand high-speed internet in Kentucky. Last year, Beshear’s administration dedicated $8 million in federal pandemic relief funding to expand internet connectivity for elementary and secondary students and their families.

Expanding the internet to help cope with COVID-19 is just the beginning. It will help with future pandemics we are sure to face.

Scientists agree that more viruses capable of causing a global pandemic will emerge, says Amesh Adalja of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security in Baltimore, who predicted respiratory RNA viruses were a particular threat a year before the emergence of COVID-19, which is a respiratory RNA virus. Virologists also have expressed concerns about other COVID viruses, more flu viruses and the Nipah virus of Asian fruit bats, which is deadly. Scientists predict there are other viruses we haven’t yet encountered.

Harvard’s school of public health website states climate change, which we know is happening, can have an effect on the spread of disease.

“Many of the root causes of climate change also increase the risk of pandemics. Deforestation, which occurs mostly for agricultural purposes, is the largest cause of habitat loss worldwide.
Loss of habitat forces animals to migrate and potentially contact other animals or people and share germs. Large livestock farms can also serve as a source for spillover of infections from animals to people. Less demand for animal meat and more sustainable animal husbandry could decrease emerging infectious disease risk and lower greenhouse gas emissions,” the website states. “We have many reasons to take climate action to improve our health and reducing risks for infectious disease emergence is one of them.”

With predictions of such a future, we must continue to connect via internet so society can go on, unfortunately, in isolation, if need be.

New Coronavirus News from 28 Oct 2021

UK Covid 27 October - 207 deaths and 43,941 cases - see hospitals and vaccination data [West Bridgford Wire, 28 Aug 2021]

UK Covid 28 October. Cases, deaths, vaccinations, hospitalisations and testing data for today.

UK Covid 28 October
There were 916,286 tests reported on 27 October 2021. This shows a decrease of -8.3%compared to the previous 7 days.

Between 21 October 2021 and 27 October 2021, there have been 5,954,439 tests.
Cases

A confirmed case is someone who has tested positive for coronavirus.

39,842 new people had a confirmed positive test result reported on 28 October 2021.

Between 22 October 2021 and 28 October 2021, 295,549 people had a confirmed positive test result. This shows a decrease of -9.8% compared to the previous 7 days.

Vaccinations
Vaccines are currently given in 2 doses, at least 21 days apart.

49,838,202 people had been given a first dose by the end of 27 October 2021.

45,627,499 people had been given a second dose by the end of 27 October 2021.

Healthcare
Some people with coronavirus have to go into hospital.

962 people with coronavirus went into hospital on 24 October 2021.

Between 18 October 2021 and 24 October 2021, 6,999 went into hospital with coronavirus.

This shows an increase of 10.0% compared to the previous 7 days.

There were 8,914 patients in hospital with coronavirus on 27 October 2021.

Some people in the hospital need to use a special device called a mechanical ventilator to help them breathe.

There were 945 coronavirus patients in hospital beds with a mechanical ventilator on 27 October 2021.

Deaths
There were 165 deaths within 28 days of a positive test for coronavirus reported on 28 October 2021.

Between 22 October 2021 and 28 October 2021, there have been 1,060 deaths within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test. This shows an increase of 16.2% compared to the previous 7 days.

New Coronavirus News from 27 Oct 2021

Coronavirus (COVID-19) at a glance – 27 October 2021 [Australian Government Department of Health, 27 Aug 2021]

This infographic provides a quick view of the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation in Australia on 27 October 2021.

We aim to provide documents in an accessible format. If you're having problems using a document with your accessibility tools, please contact us for help.

Description:
As at 3pm on 27 October 2021, a total of 163,769 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Australia, including 1,669 deaths, and approximately 28,654 active cases.

• Over the past week, there have been an average of 2,067 new cases reported each day. Of the newly reported cases, the majority have been from Victoria.

• COVID-19 cases were reported across all ages:
o The median age of all cases is 31 years (range: 0 to 106 years).
o The median age of deaths is 84 years (range: 15 to 106 years).
• There is a relatively equal ratio of male-to-female cases across most age groups.
• In 2020 case numbers reached an initial peak at the end of March. This was followed by a period of low case numbers. In mid June 2020 case numbers started to increase before reaching a secondary peak in early August 2020. Case numbers gradually declined and remained low with spikes occurring in mid-late December 2020 and mid-late April 2021. From late June 2021, case numbers increased and are currently sitting at a peak.
• Of cases with a reported place of acquisition, 77% were locally acquired.
• The overall proportion of cases under investigation in each state and territory is relatively low, indicating that public health actions, including case identification and contact tracing, is occurring in a timely manner.
• To date, more than 42,713,500 tests have been conducted nationally. Of those tests conducted, 0.4% have been positive.
• The ‘cases in aged care services’ table presents the number of cases that have been reported among care recipients in Australian Government-subsidised residential and in-home care settings in each state and territory.

COVID-19: Top news stories about the coronavirus pandemic on 27 October [World Economic Forum, 27 Aug 2021]

By Joe Myers

1. How COVID-19 is affecting the globe
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 have passed 244.5 million globally, according to Johns Hopkins University. The number of confirmed deaths stands at more than 4.96 million. More than 6.92 billion vaccination doses have been administered globally, according to Our World in Data.

All fully-vaccinated Australian citizens and permanent residents will be able to leave the country without a special exemption from 1 November. Australians have been unable to travel abroad for 18 months without a government waiver.

The Canadian province of British Colombia will offer COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to everyone over the age of 12 from January, officials have announced.

Bahrain has approved the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 3-11 years old.

Viet Nam will begin vaccinating children against COVID-19 using the Pfizer/BioNTech jab from next month.

Victoria state Premier Daniel Andrews has said his government will not apply for travel permits to allow unvaccinated tennis players to compete at the Australian Open.

Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases have hit a record high in Bulgaria, with 6,813 new cases in the previous 24 hours.

Ukraine's health minister has urged more people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, as COVID-19-related deaths hit a daily record of 734 yesterday.

A panel of experts has voted to recommend the US Food and Drug Administration authorize the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5-11.

2. EU health agency warns of severe winter flu season for elderly
The European Union's public health agency has warned that the upcoming influenza season in Europe could be severe for the elderly and those with weak immunity. The agency added that it could put a greater burden on health systems already under strain by COVID-19.

The main reported subtype of the influenza virus seen in the EU and European Economic Area disproportionately affects older people and is associated with lower vaccine effectiveness, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said.

"The early detections of the A (H3N2) subtype are an indication that the upcoming flu season could be severe, although we cannot know for sure what the upcoming flu season will look like," said Pasi Penttinen, ECDC's head of influenza programme.

Penttinen also urged health workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and the flu.

3. US and Indonesia call for new G20 forum to prepare for next pandemic
The world's largest economies should create a forum to facilitate global coordination for the next pandemic, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said on Tuesday. A new financing facility should also be created to keep up with emerging threats, the two said in a letter to their G20 colleagues.

"While we are making progress in fighting COVID-19, we also face a stark reality: this will not be the last pandemic," they wrote ahead of Friday's joint meeting of G20 health and finance ministers. "We must not lose this opportunity to demonstrate leadership with a decisive commitment to act."

They said that the forum would allow health and finance ministers to better cooperate and coordinate prevention, detection, information sharing and any necessary response.

Uttarakhand corona update: 17 cases found on 27 October [Uttarakhand News Network, 27 Aug 2021]

In the last 24 hours, 17 new corona infected have been found in the state. At the same time, not a single patient has died. While 18 patients were sent home after recovery. The number of active patients has come down to 150. Whereas on Tuesday there were 156 active patients in the state.

According to the bulletin issued by the Health Department, the test report of 13417 samples has come negative on Wednesday. Not a single infected patient has been found in seven districts of Bageshwar, Champawat, Nainital, Pithoragarh, Rudraprayag, Tehri and Udham Singh Nagar. At the same time, one each has been found in Almora, Haridwar and Pauri, three in Chamoli, nine in Dehradun and two in Uttarkashi.

Infection rate reached 0.13 percent
So far, the total number of corona infected in the state has increased to 343861. Of these, 330163 people have been cured. A total of 7399 people have lost their lives due to corona in the state. The recovery rate of the state has been recorded at 96.02 percent and infection rate of 0.13 percent.

New Coronavirus News from 26 Oct 2021

Panel Warns World Is Unprepared For Next Pandemic, Can't Even End Covid [Kaiser Health News, 26 Oct 2021]

A report issued by the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board says the world is not in a fit state to combat the next pandemic, and the globe "is unequal, divided, and unaccountable."

Separately, Indonesia and the U.S. called on G20 members to improve planning for the future pandemics.

The Washington Post: International Body For Pandemic Preparedness Issues Stark Warning In Latest Report An international body that tracks preparedness for international health crises says in a new report that the current global system does not have the capacity to end the current covid-19 pandemic – let alone prevent the next pandemic – unless there are major changes. The report released by Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB) on Tuesday states that as many as 17 million people may have died due to covid-19, but that “there is scant evidence that we are learning the right lessons from this pandemic” and that the pandemic has “exposed a world that is unequal, divided, and unaccountable.” (Taylor, 10/26)

Reuters: Indonesia, U.S. Call On G20 To Plan Pandemic Prevention System The United States and Indonesia on Tuesday called for the launch of a forum to prepare for future pandemics, urging members of the Group of 20 leading economies to seize an opportunity this month to plan for an international response system. (10/26)

Stat: Congress’s Efforts To Prepare For The Next Pandemic Are Falling Behind Addressing the federal government’s failures during the Covid-19 pandemic has fallen off the priority list in Congress this year, according to three lobbyists and a congressional aide following the talks.

Though Congress looked poised for progress this spring — with rare, bipartisan interest in shoring up the nation’s pandemic infrastructure — that action has been delayed as Democrats tussle over massive bills containing President Biden’s domestic agenda and averting a government shutdown and financial crisis. If this Congress does eventually take action to improve public health response, it isn’t likely to happen until next year. (Cohrs, 10/26)

In news about bird flu —

Reuters: Rise In Human Bird Flu Cases In China Shows Risk Of Fast-Changing Variants: Experts A jump in the number of people in China infected with bird flu this year is raising concern among experts, who say a previously circulating strain appears to have changed and may be more infectious to people. China has reported 21 human infections with the H5N6 subtype of avian influenza in 2021 to the World Health Organization (WHO), compared with only five last year, it said. Though the numbers are much lower than the hundreds infected with H7N9 in 2017, the infections are serious, leaving many critically ill, and at least six dead. (Patton, 10/26)

New Coronavirus News from 25 Oct 2021b

With COVID-19 deaths climbing and hospitals strained, Russia rolls out restrictions [CBC.ca, 25 Oct 2021]

By Briar Stewart

Nearly 38,000 new COVID-19 cases and 1,069 deaths recorded Monday in Russia

As an increasingly deadly fourth wave of COVID-19 threatens to overwhelm Russia's hospitals, officials who had been hesitant to implement restrictions in recent months are doing so now in a desperate attempt to try to reduce the record number of people dying every day.

On Monday, there was an all-time high of 37,930 new cases, along with 1,069 additional deaths, according to the country's coronavirus task force.

"There is a real war in the red zone in hospitals throughout the country," Dr. Denis Protsenko, the country's chief coronavirus doctor, wrote on his Telegram social media account
"Look at the number of free beds and a lot will fall into place."

Protsenko is the head doctor at the Kommunarka infection disease hospital in Moscow,
Municipal officials say since September, cases in Russia's capital have risen by 30 per cent each week and are hovering around 8,000 a day — a trajectory that Mayor Sergey Sobyanin has acknowledged is a "worst-case scenario."

To try to curb the spread, the city is bringing in a partial lockdown that will begin Thursday.
As of Monday, it is ordering anyone over the age of 60 to stay home until Feb. 25 if they haven't been vaccinated or previously infected with COVID-19 during the past six months.

On his website, Sobyanin made a plea to grandparents to get vaccinated, pointing out that the vaccination rate for those older than 60 is slightly more than 30 per cent in Moscow, while that demographic makes up 86 per cent of those dying in the city's hospitals.

In an effort to increase vaccinations among that age group and those with chronic illnesses, the city of 12 million is imposing tough restrictions that kick in on Oct. 25 for those who haven't been vaccinated or previously infected.

They are supposed to stay at home for four months, but are allowed out for walks and exercise.

It's not clear how the order will be enforced, but during the first lockdown in the spring of 2020, Maria Markova said public health officials called to check up on her to make sure she was at home.

The 73-year-old, who had COVID-19 in 2020, isn't vaccinated and said it's because of underlying health conditions.

"I don't think it is right that they force people," Markova told CBC as she was out for a walk near the Moscow river on Friday.

"The pensioners and the older people are the target again? This is totally unacceptable."

Alexander Lobanov, who is turning 60 on Nov. 1, spoke to CBC as he was riding his bike nearby. He is also unvaccinated, but is resigned to the fact that he may have to get it.
"I feel like I have no choice now," he said.

With more than 1,000 people dying of COVID-19 every day for the past 10 days and with vaccination rates lagging, Russia has declared a non-working week from Nov. 1 to Nov. 7.

It coincides with statutory holidays on Nov. 4 and 5 for Unity Day, which commemorates a 1612 uprising against Polish and Lithuanian forces.

In addition to the non-working week, Moscow is imposing a partial lockdown between Oct. 28 and Nov. 7. During this period, all non-essential stores will be closed and dining in at restaurants will be banned, but public transport will continue to run.

11 days of restrictions
Theatres and museums will also keep operating but at 50 per cent capacity and all visitors will be required to show a vaccination QR code or proof they have had a recent COVID-19 infection.

The measures are slated to only last for 11 days and the mayor said the restrictions are akin to taking an aspirin for a fever.

The pill won't cure the illness, he wrote, but it gives the body a break.

"Let's take a little rest and help preserve the lives and health of many people," he wrote.
Some other cities, including St. Petersburg, which is also going into a partial lockdown on Oct. 30, are making it mandatory for all public places like restaurants and gyms to require guests to have a QR code.

However, Moscow isn't requiring that.

Officials enacted that measure in June, but cancelled it after three weeks because of pressure from the hospitality industry.
In the wealthy Moscow neighbourhood of Patriarch Ponds, streets are lined with upscale restaurants, including Uilliams, which was one of nearly 70 eateries in the city recognized by the French Michelin guide last week.

The recommendation would normally be a boon for reservations, but Uilliam's, an Italian restaurant, is getting ready to shut its doors to customers.

"I guess it's necessary and maybe it will even help," said 28-year-old Artyom Sabirov, the manager at Uilliams.

"The main thing is it doesn't drag on for too long like it did two years ago."

Hesitation over restrictions
While officials in Russia have been hesitant to institute restrictions, the climbing cases and deaths are taking a toll on hospitals and medical staff.

In the Siberian town of Biysk, 3,000 kilometres southeast of Moscow, there are reports that some hospital staff are having to work 72 hours straight in order to keep up with the number of COVID-19 patients being admitted. The town also had to build an additional morgue.

In Biysk, like elsewhere in Russia, vaccination rates are low.

Across the country, slightly more than 40 per cent of adults have had two doses of a vaccine, according to Gogov, which tallies statistics from across Russia.

The Sputnik V shot, which Russia unveiled in August 2020, hasn't been cleared for use in anyone under the age of 18, so the country's approximately 30 million children remain unvaccinated.

Despite pleas from government officials, including President Vladimir Putin who got the Sputnik jab, the vaccination rate has stalled.

On Oct. 21, Putin reiterated that he doesn't support mandatory vaccinations, but stressed that people only have two options, "get sick or get vaccinated."

Much stronger words are being used by the pro-Kremlin broadcaster, Dmitry Kiselyov, 67, who hosts a weekly news program, Vesti Nedeli.

Normally, he uses the airtime to criticize Western governments and culture, but recently he has been railing against Russia's unvaccinated Kiselyov, who said he was vaccinated in January, was hospitalized with coronavirus last month.

Sputnik vaccine not approved yet by WHO
"To refuse getting the vaccine can't be called anything but sociopathic behaviour," he said on his Sunday news program.

"The lion's share of state funds are going to treat the unvaccinated. The unvaccinated don't want to take any responsibility."

While multiple research studies, including one published in the medical journal The Lancet, have pointed to the effectiveness of the Sputnik vaccine, it hasn't yet been approved by the World Health Organization.

In Russia, those refusing to get the jab include those who don't trust the government shot and those who don't support vaccination in general.

Elena Romachenko, 34, told CBC that a person can control their own health.

"Eat well, do sports, " she said. "Go to the resort, the sea, the mountains, then you will be healthy."

Pavel Volchkov, head of a genomic engineering laboratory at Moscow's Institute of Physics and Technology, believes most vaccine holdouts aren't against vaccines, but think they don't need them.

"I call it the superhero syndrome," Volchkov told CBC.

"They believe if they were able to resist COVID-19 during the past year and a half, that SARS-CoV-2 won't be able to infect them."

Volchkov, who helped develop COVID-19 tests during the early days of the pandemic, believes countries need to take a stricter approach such as occurred in China and Australia, which locked down entire regions after the detection of a small number of cases.

He thinks obligatory vaccination is part of the answer but believes it would be unpopular and untenable in most countries.

As for Russia, he said in order to have "good population immunity," 70 per cent or more would have to be vaccinated.

As children can't currently be immunized in the country, that means all adults would have to be.
And with more than half of them unwilling to get a shot, he said the government has no choice but to institute restrictions every time the hospitals get close to being overwhelmed.

Russia Experiencing COVID-19 Outbreak Despite Sputnik Vaccine - 9 & 10 News [9&10 News, 25 Oct 2021]

The spike in COVID-19 cases due to the Delta variant is on its way down in the U.S., but Russia is seeing a renewed surge.

They’re experiencing their worst outbreak of the pandemic.

Russia continues to bury a record number of COVID-19 victims, more than one thousand people per day.

President Vladimir Putin has urged Russians to get vaccinated, but there remains a deep-rooted distrust of authority in Russia.

The legacy of the Soviet Union and years of poor government have left many wary of the vaccines being made available.

Less than one third of Russia’s 146 million people have been vaccinated, even though there is plenty of the Russian-developed Sputnik vaccine available.

Russian COVID Cases Hit Record High as Eastern Europe Imposes New Curbs | World News [U.S. News & World Report, 25 Oct 2021]

By Luiza Ilie and Gleb Stolyarov

BUCHAREST/MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia reported a record high number of daily COVID-19 cases and some central European countries imposed fresh restrictions on Monday, as a new wave of the pandemic gathered pace.

In Asia, the Red Cross called for urgent help for Papua New Guinea and China's latest outbreak forced the capital Beijing to delay its annual marathon and step up other curbs, less than four months before it hosts the Winter Olympics.

Authorities around the world have been sounding the alarm as infections surge, with governments in regions where vaccine uptake has been low forced to toughen up restrictions in a bid to stop the virus raging out of control.

"The pandemic is far from over. Complacency is now as dangerous as the virus. Now is the time to be on heightened alert, not to let down your guard," World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday.

Russia on Monday reported 37,930 new COVID-19 infections in the last 24 hours, its highest in a single day since the start of the pandemic, as well as 1,069 deaths related to the virus.

Frustrated by the slow take-up of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine by its own population, authorities are introducing stricter measures this week to try to curb the spread of the pandemic.

Some regions imposed a workplace shutdown and from Thursday, Moscow will introduce its tightest lockdown measures since June 2020, with only essential shops like supermarkets and pharmacies open. Moscow schools are also closed, and unvaccinated over-60s in the capital have been ordered to lock down for four months.

Vaccine scepticism is high across central and eastern Europe, and as a result the region has become a hotspot.

Tougher restrictions came into force in Romania and the Czech Republic on Monday, while in Slovakia stricter rules were expanded to more regions. In Bulgaria, police will start imposing fines on people who break restrictions from Monday.

Poland also warned it would consider tighter restrictions.

In Romania, where a deputy minister on Saturday lamented a "disaster situation", the government reintroduced a curfew and made health passes mandatory for entry to most public venues.

While experts have said that a lack of confidence in public institutions caused by decades of Communist rule has fuelled vaccine scepticism in the region, there were signs that more people were now getting a jab.

In Romania authorities said inoculations were on the rise last week, while in the Czech Republic the daily number of doses administered was the highest since late-August.

The Dutch government also said it may impose new coronavirus restrictions to reduce pressure on hospitals struggling to deal with a swelling number of COVID-19 patients.

'LOSS OF LIFE'
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies warned of the potential for huge numbers of deaths in Papua New Guinea unless international action was taken to help the island nation's struggling health service.

Less than 1% of the population has been fully vaccinated, according to Our World in Data figures, with the Red Cross blaming misinformation, public apprehension, and logistical challenges.

"Urgent efforts and further support are needed in healthcare to prevent a massive loss of life in the coming days and weeks," Uvenama Rova, PNG Red Cross secretary general, said.

Chinese health officials warned on Sunday that its latest cluster, caused by the highly transmissible Delta variant, was increasingly likely to expand further.

Beijing has banned entry of people from other cities with cases, and closed indoor venues such as some chess and card parlours, even in districts without infections. Although the infection numbers are far smaller than many places outside China, authorities have adopted a zero tolerance strategy.

New Zealand saw its second-highest daily tally of COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began, with 109 new locally acquired coronavirus cases reported on Monday, the bulk of them in its largest city, Auckland.

Once lauded for its success in stamping out the virus, New Zealand has been struggling with an outbreak of the Delta variant centred in Auckland, despite the city remaining under a strict lockdown for more than two months.

Russia marks another record number of everyday COVID-19 cases [The Hindu, 25 Oct 2021]

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Russians not to go to work between October 30 and November 7, when the country will observe an extended holiday.

Russia reported another daily record of confirmed coronavirus cases on Monday as a surge in infections has prompted the Kremlin to tell most people to stay away from work starting later this week.

The Russian government’s coronavirus task force tallied 37,930 new confirmed cases in 24 hours, the highest number since the start of the pandemic. The task force also reported 1,069 more COVID-19 deaths in the same period, slightly fewer than a record of 1,075 reached over the weekend.

Coronavirus live | India committed to supplying COVID-19 vaccines to other nations; exports to begin by year end

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Russians not to go to work between October 30 and November 7, when the country will observe an extended holiday. In some of Russia’s 85 regions where the situation is particularly grave, Mr. Putin said the nonworking period could begin earlier and be extended beyond November 7.

During that time, most state organisations and private businesses, except for those operating key infrastructure and a few others, are to halt work.

Officials in Moscow plan to order the off-work period to start from Thursday. Gyms, most entertainment venues and most stores are to be closed for 11 days along with kindergartens and schools. Restaurants and cafes will only be open for takeout or delivery orders during that period. Food stores and pharmacies can stay open.

Access to museums, theatres, concert halls and other venues will be limited to those holding digital codes on their smartphones to prove vaccination or past illness, a practice that will remain in place after November 7.

Russian authorities hope the idle time will help limit the spread of the virus by keeping people out of offices and off public transportation, where mask mandates have been loosely enforced.
Overall, Russia has registered over 8.2 million confirmed virus cases and 2,31,669 deaths, by far the highest death toll in Europe and the fifth-highest in the world after the United States, Brazil, India and Mexico.

The government has blamed the latest spike in infections and deaths on low vaccination rates and lax public attitudes toward taking precautions. Only about 45 million Russians – roughly a third of the country’s nearly 146 million people – are fully vaccinated.

Russia was the first country in the world to authorise a coronavirus vaccine, launching Sputnik V in August 2020, and has plentiful supplies. But uptake has been slow, blamed in part on conflicting signals from authorities.

Some Russian regions shut workplaces as daily COVID-19 cases hit new peak [Reuters, 25 Oct 2021]

By Gleb Stolyarov and Alexandr Reshetnikov

MOSCOW, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Russia reported its highest single-day COVID-19 case tally since the start of the pandemic on Monday as some regions imposed a workplace shutdown to combat a surge in infections and deaths.

Faced with worsening disease rates and frustrated by the slow take-up of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine by its own population, authorities are introducing stricter measures this week to try to slow the spread of the pandemic.

President Vladimir Putin last week declared that Oct. 30 to Nov. 7 would be paid non-working days but said every region could extend that period or start it earlier depending on the epidemiological situation.

Six regions, including the Samara and Perm regions east of Moscow, began their non-working days on Monday, TASS news agency reported. From this Thursday, Moscow will introduce its tightest lockdown measures since June 2020, with only essential shops like supermarkets and pharmacies remaining open.

The measures are not popular among some Muscovites who question whether the disruption is justified.

"I'm very sceptical about the lockdown because it hurts businesses first of all," said a man who gave his name as Viktor as he walked in front of the Bolshoi Theatre, wearing a medical mask. "I'm an athlete, and gyms are closing. For people who live and breathe sport, it's really bad."
Moscow schools are also closed, and unvaccinated over-60s in the capital have been ordered to lock down for four months starting Monday.

Authorities in St. Petersburg, Russia's second largest city, said COVID-19 restrictions would not be lifted until at least 80% of its population was vaccinated, RIA news agency reported. Nationwide, only about a third of the population has been inoculated.

Putin has ordered a series of measures including increased testing, tighter monitoring of mask-wearing and social distancing and an acceleration of the vaccine campaign, with employees to get two paid days leave as a reward for getting inoculated.

Authorities reported 37,930 new COVID-19 infections in the last 24 hours, a daily record, as well as 1,069 deaths related to the virus, six short of the record of 1,075 set on Saturday.

New Coronavirus News from 25 Oct 2021a

Corona crisis deepens in Russia - UNN [Uttarakhand News Network, 25 Oct 2021]

In many countries including Russia, the Covid-19 pandemic has started taking a terrible form again. The situation is such that the lockdown has to be announced in St. Petersburg, Russia.

There, restaurants, cafes and other non-essential categories of shops, establishments and institutions will remain closed from October 30 to November 7. During the last 24 hours, 35,660 new cases of corona were reported in Russia, while 37,678 cases were registered a day earlier. During this 1,072 people died. Chile reported 2,056 new cases in a single day since July.

Cases increased in China
Chinese officials said on Sunday that 43 new cases of corona infection have been found there during the last 24 hours. In a report released on Sunday by John Hopkins University, it has been told that 6.78 billion vaccines have been administered worldwide.

America most affected country
America remains the most affected country, where the number of infected has reached 4.54 million and the number of dead has reached 7.35 lakh. India ranks second in terms of infected (3.41 crores). The number of corona infected has increased to 2.17 crore in Brazil, 87.75 lakh in Britain, 80.78 lakh in Russia, 78.26 lakh in Turkey and 72.21 lakh in France. According to Reuters, the number of corona infected in Eastern Europe crossed 20 million on Sunday.

Australia launches vaccination campaign to compete with third wave
The Australian government on Sunday launched the next phase of a vaccination campaign to combat the third wave of Covid. Health Minister Greg Hunt was quoted by Xinhua News Agency as saying that the campaign has been named ‘Spread Freedom’. People are being told that those vaccinated will be able to travel within the states and also abroad. About 86.6 percent of Australia’s population has taken at least one dose of the anti Covid vaccine. Hunt said that booster doses could be introduced in the country soon.

Delta-Plus havoc in UK
In the UK, more than fifty thousand cases have been reported in a few days. According to experts, the sub-strain Delta-Plus (named AY-4.2) of Corona’s Delta strain is believed to be more deadly than the Delta strain. It is being told that its transmission capacity is 15 percent more than the main Delta variant.

Russia's COVID-19 cases hit record as some regions impose curbs [Reuters, 25 Oct 2021]

by Gleb Stolyarov, Dmitry Antonov, Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Mark Trevelyan

MOSCOW, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Russia reported its highest single-day COVID-19 case tally since the start of the pandemic on Mondayas some regions imposed a workplace shutdown to combat a surge in infections and deaths.

Faced with worsening infection rates and frustrated by the slow take-up of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine by its own population, authorities are introducing stricter measures this week to try to slow the spread of the pandemic.

President Vladimir Putin last week declared that Oct. 30 to Nov. 7 would be paid non-working days but said every region could extend that period or start it earlier depending on the epidemiological situation.

Six regions, including the Samara and Perm regions east of Moscow, began their non-working days on Monday, TASS news agency reported.

Putin also ordered a series of measures including increased testing, tighter monitoring of mask-wearing and social distancing and an acceleration of the vaccine campaign, with employees to get two paid days leave as a reward for getting inoculated.

From this Thursday, Moscow will introduce its tightest lockdown measures since June 2020, with only essential shops like supermarkets and pharmacies remaining open. read more
Unvaccinated over-60s in the capital have been ordered to lock down for four months starting Monday, and Moscow schools are also closed.

The government's coronavirus taskforce reported 37,930 new COVID-19 infections in the last 24 hours, a daily record, as well as 1,069 deaths related to the virus, six short of the record of 1,075 set on Saturday.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that economic support measures to compensate for the losses incurred by the restrictions were sufficient at this stage.

"All these measures work, and the situation is being monitored very closely," Peskov said. "The situation is difficult and everybody will carefully follow how it develops."

Russia marks another record number of daily COVID-19 cases [Associated Press, 25 Oct 2021]

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia reported another daily record of confirmed coronavirus cases Monday as a surge in infections has prompted the Kremlin to tell most people to stay away from work starting later this week.

The Russian government’s coronavirus task force tallied 37,930 new confirmed cases in 24 hours, the highest number since the start of the pandemic. The task force also reported 1,069 more COVID-19 deaths in the same period, slightly fewer than a record of 1,075 reached over the weekend.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Russians not to go to work between Oct. 30 and Nov. 7, when the country will observe an extended holiday. During that time, most state organizations and private businesses, except for those operating key infrastructure and a few others, are to halt work.

In some of Russia’s 85 regions where the situation is particularly grave, Putin said the nonworking period could begin earlier and be extended beyond Nov. 7. Six of them — Kursk, Nizhny Novgorod, Novgorod, Perm, Samara and Voronezh — started the off-work period Monday.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Officials in Moscow ordered it to begin Thursday, with gyms, most entertainment venues and most stores closed for 11 days along with kindergartens and schools. Restaurants and cafes will only be open for takeout or delivery orders during that period. Food stores and pharmacies can stay open.

Access to museums, theaters, concert halls and other venues will be limited to those holding digital codes on their smartphones to prove vaccination or past illness, a practice that will remain in place after Nov. 7.

Putin has also told local officials to order unvaccinated people older than 60 to stay home and close nightclubs and other entertainment venues.

Russian authorities hope the idle time will help limit the spread of the virus by keeping people out of offices and off public transportation, where mask mandates have been loosely enforced.
Overall, Russia has registered over 8.2 million confirmed virus cases and 231,669 deaths, by far the highest death toll in Europe and the fifth-highest in the world after the United States, Brazil, India and Mexico.

The government has blamed the latest spike in infections and deaths on low vaccination rates and lax public attitudes toward taking precautions. Only about 45 million Russians — roughly a third of the country’s nearly 146 million people — are fully vaccinated.

Russia was the first country in the world to authorize a coronavirus vaccine, launching Sputnik V in August 2020, and has plentiful supplies. But uptake has been slow, blamed in part on conflicting signals from authorities.

New Coronavirus News from 22 Oct 2021

As UK resists COVID measures, experts fear ‘devastating winter’ [Al Jazeera English, 22 Oct 2021]

By David Child

Daily cases have topped 50,000 and deaths are rising, but Boris Johnson’s government is refusing calls to re-enforce measures that scientists say would help contain the virus.

London, United Kingdom – Pressure is mounting on the United Kingdom’s government to re-enforce COVID-19 restrictions as infections surge, with medical experts warning of a looming crisis.

The UK reported 52,009 new cases on Thursday, the highest daily figure since July 17 and the ninth consecutive day that cases have topped the 40,000 mark.

The death toll is also climbing. On Tuesday, officials recorded the highest daily toll since early March, with 223 deaths. More than 8,000 people are currently hospitalised with the virus.

Alarmed by the situation, senior healthcare figures are publicly urging British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to tackle transmission rates by making face masks mandatory, advising people to work from home and raising awareness about the benefits of ventilated public spaces.

Under a current “Plan A” to manage the pandemic in autumn and winter, officials are focused on third-shot booster vaccinations to millions of people and offering those aged 12-17 a single dose of the vaccine produced by Pfizer-BioNTech.

Mask wearing, which has become far less common in recent months across the country, and social distancing are loosely encouraged but not mandatory.

Without immediate intervention, experts say more will needlessly die and the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) risks becoming overwhelmed.

“If we carry on as we are now, we are going to have a very alarming and devastating winter crisis,” Zubaida Haque, a member of the non-government affiliated Independent Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), told Al Jazeera.

“And the worst part of that is that, unlike last autumn and winter, we [now] have the solutions,” she said, citing the second wave of COVID-19 infections that prompted Johnson to impose nationwide lockdowns.

“We have the vaccines and we know which public health protections are effective … but the government has removed all public health protections to protect the vaccination programme.”
Despite the clamour, the government is resisting calls to launch its “Plan B” contingency strategy.

Since removing almost all restrictions in England in mid-July – on a day Johnson dubbed “Freedom Day” – officials have pinned hopes on the national vaccination programme and natural immunity built up among the UK’s nearly 70 million-strong population to keep COVID-19 in check.

Johnson believes the UK should “learn to live with this virus” and government planning documents state ministers will not pivot to “Plan B” unless the NHS is deemed likely to come under “unsustainable pressure”.

What is ‘Plan B’?
Under “Plan B”, face masks in some settings would be mandatory and employees would be asked to work from home where possible. So-called vaccine passports could also be introduced, requiring people to show proof of vaccination, recovery from the virus or a recent negative test to enter some venues or attend mass events.

On Wednesday, Health Secretary Sajid Javid said the government would not switch to its contingency plan “at this point”, but as he cautioned that cases could soon rise to 100,000 a day, he warned that slow vaccine uptake would increase the likelihood of restrictions.

But the chair of the British Medical Association, Chaand Nagpaul, said the time to act “is now”.
“It is wilfully negligent of the Westminster government not to be taking any further action to reduce the spread of infection, such as mandatory mask wearing, physical distancing and ventilation requirements in high-risk settings, particularly indoor crowded spaces,” Nagpaul said in a statement on Wednesday.

“These are measures that are the norm in many other nations,” he added, describing the UK as an “international outlier” on pandemic control.

Critics have repeatedly decried the UK government’s handling of the pandemic, suggesting it was slow to lockdown during the first and second waves in 2020 and then too quick in lifting restrictions this year.

“We are rapidly approaching a position where, yet again, the government is delaying for too long, and equivocating over taking action. This is the time to learn the lessons of the past and act fast, or else we will face far more extreme measures later,” Nagpaul said.

‘Clutching defeat from the jaws of victory’
Elsewhere in Western Europe, mask wearing is mandatory and vaccine certificates are in use. In these countries, such as France, Italy and Spain, infection rates, hospitalisations and deaths are lower than in the UK.

Christina Pagel, a member of Independent SAGE and director of the Clinical Operational Research Unit at University College London, said the disparity demonstrates the UK’s overreliance on vaccines.

About 86 percent of people aged 12 and above have received a first dose of vaccine, while 79 percent have been fully vaccinated with two doses.

“Vaccines alone will not be able to control this pandemic unless you get to a stage where well over 90 per cent of the population are protected,” she told Al Jazeera.

“Relatively small changes in behaviour could bring cases down quite quickly,” Pagel said, suggesting mandatory mask wearing in settings such as classrooms, an increased emphasis on ventilation in public spaces and the use of vaccine passports.

“We need the extra stuff, at least until we get to a situation where we have vaccinated enough people,” she said. “We’ve seen that in other European countries, where they didn’t rely entirely on their vaccine programme, that they have had much better control over COVID and are now going into winter with far lower rates.”

The UK raced ahead during the early stages of its immunisation drive but comparable Western European countries have since caught up with and surpassed its vaccine coverage.

Britain’s efforts are now plagued by a sluggish campaign to deliver booster shots to those aged above 50, as well as lower vaccine uptake among young adults and teenagers at a time when students have returned to schools and universities.

Waning immunity among those who were jabbed early on and the spread of the highly infectious Delta variant have also contributed to the current crisis.

“The UK response has been a matter of clutching defeat from the jaws of victory,” Danny Altmann, professor of immunology at Imperial College London, told Al Jazeera.

“We looked in a good place after the initial vaccine rollout, but now the situation looks bleak indeed,” he said.

Altmann conceded the UK may need to “learn to live with COVID-19” given the unlikelihood of now eliminating the virus altogether, but warned that should not mean giving up on efforts to contain it.

“We seem to be using the term rather as a synonym for ‘learn to tolerate a truly tragic level of wholly avoidable deaths since we can’t be bothered with simple mitigations’,” he said. “That’s not how one should practice medicine.”

New Coronavirus News from 23 Oct 2021

UK government paves way to bring in tough ‘plan B’ Covid rules [The Guardian, 23 Oct 2021]

Michael Savage, Robin McKie and James Tapper

Councils consulted over support for measures such as vaccine passports amid warnings by senior doctors that NHS faces winter illness ‘triple whammy’

New evidence has emerged that the government is paving the way to implement “plan B” measures in England to combat the spread of Covid-19, amid warnings from health chiefs that a “vortex of pressures” is encircling the NHS.

In the clearest sign to date that Whitehall is actively considering additional measures, the Observer has learnt that the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) contacted local authorities on Friday to canvass their level of support for the “immediate rollout of the winter plan – plan B”.

The disclosure comes as senior doctors warn that operations are already being cancelled due to NHS staffing shortages and scientists warn of “a triple whammy” of respiratory illnesses this winter, with Covid, flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which causes cold-like symptoms but can be serious for children and older adults.

Boris Johnson has so far publicly resisted suggestions that he should order the implementation of plan B, a menu of measures which includes the use of vaccine passports at higher-risk venues and mass gatherings, as well as legally mandating the use of face masks in some settings.

However, in a memo marked “official – sensitive”, the agency states that it was urgently seeking the views of council chief executives and leaders to be fed directly into the Cabinet Office.

“This is a tight turnaround as you might appreciate and so a response by close of play would be really helpful,” it states.

A UKHSA spokesperson said they would not comment on leaks, adding: “It is part of UKHSA’s role to provide advice to the government on the ongoing response to the pandemic.” A government spokesperson said: “We are monitoring all the data closely, and the prime minister has been clear that it does not yet show that plan B is necessary. But it is ready should we need to act to avoid a rise in hospitalisations which would put unsustainable pressure on the NHS.”

Downing Street is still hoping that an accelerated booster jab programme can fend off the need for additional measures.

The prime minister on Saturday issued a desperate call to arms for everyone over 50 to have a booster jab when offered one. “Vaccines are our way through this winter,” Johnson said. “We’ve made phenomenal progress but our job isn’t finished yet, and we know that vaccine protection can drop after six months. To keep yourself, your loved ones, and everyone around you safe, please get your booster when you get the call.

“This is a call to everyone, whether you’re eligible for a booster, haven’t got round to your second dose yet, or your child is eligible for a dose – vaccines are safe, they save lives, and they are our way out of this pandemic.”

A further 44,985 Covid cases were reported on Saturday, more than 4,000 fewer than the previous day. Another 135 deaths were reported in England. It came as one of the government’s scientific advisers said he feared another “lockdown Christmas”. Prof Peter Openshaw, a member of the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag), said putting measures in place now in order to “get transmission rates right down” was key to having “a wonderful family Christmas where we can all get back together”.

Despite ministerial claims that thousands of beds remain available in the NHS, senior doctors said that operations were already being cancelled. Dr Stephen Webb, president of the Intensive Care Society, said: “In many places, the planned urgent surgery that needs to be done is being cancelled. This is not because of a lack of physical beds, it’s because of a lack of staffing to be able to open those beds. We’ve heard about urgent cardiac surgery being cancelled, major bowel surgery being cancelled, because these patients needs post-operative intensive care beds. That’s not just in one or two areas – that’s across the country.”

NHS officials warned that Covid pressures were adding to staffing issues, efforts to deal with surgery backlogs, long waits in emergency departments and difficulties caused by other infections. “It’s a whole bundle of issues coming together, which form a vortex of pressure,” said Saffron Cordery, the deputy chief executive of NHS Providers. “What Covid has done is exacerbated these challenges and thrown some extra things in.”

Matthew Taylor, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation, who has already called for plan B measures, said: “You [the government] have got to recognise that we need a national mobilisation. You’ve got to recognise there is a health and care crisis coming over the next three or four months and accept it, acknowledge it and encourage the public to do everything they can to help. We may need to just get used to the fact that the booster campaign needs to happen every six months and prepare for that, so I welcome the fact that government has stepped up the message there.”

A senior scientist also warned that the nation faces “a triple whammy” of respiratory illnesses this winter. On top of Covid and flu, comes the threat from disease triggered by RSV, one of the most common causes of coughs and colds in winter. For most people, infection causes mild respiratory illness but in the very young and the elderly, RSV infections can trigger severe illnesses such as bronchiolitis and pneumonia and can lead to hospitalisation and even death.

“We had very few – almost no cases – of RSV last year and that is a worry,” said virologist Prof David Matthews of Bristol University. “Immunity to RSV only lasts a couple of years after previous infections. Because of lockdown RSV rates were very low in the UK last winter. That means there is very little RSV immunity left in the population. For good measure there is no RSV vaccine to protect against the disease.”

The country is now highly vulnerable to RSV infections, Matthews said. “That is a real worry because infections are very capable of putting both the elderly and the very young in hospital and at present we probably have very little immunity to the disease.

“Together with influenza and Covid-19 we are facing a triple whammy this winter, one that could have a grim impact on the NHS. It is extremely worrying. It is another reason we need to keep Covid cases to a minimum and get vaccines – boosters and for children – into as many people as possible.”

Saturday’s coronavirus news: Russia defends Sputnik V vaccine; Britain’s weekly cases at highest since July [The Guardian, 23 Oct 2021]

Michael Savage, Robin McKie and James Tapper

Councils consulted over support for measures such as vaccine passports amid warnings by senior doctors that NHS faces winter illness ‘triple whammy’

New evidence has emerged that the government is paving the way to implement “plan B” measures in England to combat the spread of Covid-19, amid warnings from health chiefs that a “vortex of pressures” is encircling the NHS.

In the clearest sign to date that Whitehall is actively considering additional measures, the Observer has learnt that the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) contacted local authorities on Friday to canvass their level of support for the “immediate rollout of the winter plan – plan B”.

The disclosure comes as senior doctors warn that operations are already being cancelled due to NHS staffing shortages and scientists warn of “a triple whammy” of respiratory illnesses this winter, with Covid, flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which causes cold-like symptoms but can be serious for children and older adults.

Boris Johnson has so far publicly resisted suggestions that he should order the implementation of plan B, a menu of measures which includes the use of vaccine passports at higher-risk venues and mass gatherings, as well as legally mandating the use of face masks in some settings.

However, in a memo marked “official – sensitive”, the agency states that it was urgently seeking the views of council chief executives and leaders to be fed directly into the Cabinet Office.
“This is a tight turnaround as you might appreciate and so a response by close of play would be really helpful,” it states.

A UKHSA spokesperson said they would not comment on leaks, adding: “It is part of UKHSA’s role to provide advice to the government on the ongoing response to the pandemic.” A government spokesperson said: “We are monitoring all the data closely, and the prime minister has been clear that it does not yet show that plan B is necessary. But it is ready should we need to act to avoid a rise in hospitalisations which would put unsustainable pressure on the NHS.”

Downing Street is still hoping that an accelerated booster jab programme can fend off the need for additional measures.

The prime minister on Saturday issued a desperate call to arms for everyone over 50 to have a booster jab when offered one. “Vaccines are our way through this winter,” Johnson said. “We’ve made phenomenal progress but our job isn’t finished yet, and we know that vaccine protection can drop after six months. To keep yourself, your loved ones, and everyone around you safe, please get your booster when you get the call.

“This is a call to everyone, whether you’re eligible for a booster, haven’t got round to your second dose yet, or your child is eligible for a dose – vaccines are safe, they save lives, and they are our way out of this pandemic.”

A further 44,985 Covid cases were reported on Saturday, more than 4,000 fewer than the previous day. Another 135 deaths were reported in England. It came as one of the government’s scientific advisers said he feared another “lockdown Christmas”. Prof Peter Openshaw, a member of the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag), said putting measures in place now in order to “get transmission rates right down” was key to having “a wonderful family Christmas where we can all get back together”.

Despite ministerial claims that thousands of beds remain available in the NHS, senior doctors said that operations were already being cancelled. Dr Stephen Webb, president of the Intensive Care Society, said: “In many places, the planned urgent surgery that needs to be done is being cancelled. This is not because of a lack of physical beds, it’s because of a lack of staffing to be able to open those beds. We’ve heard about urgent cardiac surgery being cancelled, major bowel surgery being cancelled, because these patients needs post-operative intensive care beds. That’s not just in one or two areas – that’s across the country.”

NHS officials warned that Covid pressures were adding to staffing issues, efforts to deal with surgery backlogs, long waits in emergency departments and difficulties caused by other infections. “It’s a whole bundle of issues coming together, which form a vortex of pressure,” said Saffron Cordery, the deputy chief executive of NHS Providers. “What Covid has done is exacerbated these challenges and thrown some extra things in.”

Matthew Taylor, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation, who has already called for plan B measures, said: “You [the government] have got to recognise that we need a national mobilisation. You’ve got to recognise there is a health and care crisis coming over the next three or four months and accept it, acknowledge it and encourage the public to do everything they can to help. We may need to just get used to the fact that the booster campaign needs to happen every six months and prepare for that, so I welcome the fact that government has stepped up the message there.”

A senior scientist also warned that the nation faces “a triple whammy” of respiratory illnesses this winter. On top of Covid and flu, comes the threat from disease triggered by RSV, one of the most common causes of coughs and colds in winter. For most people, infection causes mild respiratory illness but in the very young and the elderly, RSV infections can trigger severe illnesses such as bronchiolitis and pneumonia and can lead to hospitalisation and even death.
“We had very few – almost no cases – of RSV last year and that is a worry,” said virologist Prof David Matthews of Bristol University. “Immunity to RSV only lasts a couple of years after previous infections. Because of lockdown RSV rates were very low in the UK last winter. That means there is very little RSV immunity left in the population. For good measure there is no RSV vaccine to protect against the disease.”

The country is now highly vulnerable to RSV infections, Matthews said. “That is a real worry because infections are very capable of putting both the elderly and the very young in hospital and at present we probably have very little immunity to the disease.

“Together with influenza and Covid-19 we are facing a triple whammy this winter, one that could have a grim impact on the NHS. It is extremely worrying. It is another reason we need to keep Covid cases to a minimum and get vaccines – boosters and for children – into as many people as possible.”

New variant? No masks? Here's what's driving the U.K.'s Covid surge [NBC News, 23 Oct 2021]

By Chantal Da Silva

LONDON — What a difference three months can make.

On July 19, Britons celebrated as England marked "Freedom Day," seeing a near-full lifting of Covid-19 restrictions. Covid-related hospitalizations and deaths were relatively low, even if cases continued to rise, and the country's vaccination rollout was largely lauded as a success internationally.

On Thursday, there were more than 50,000 infections recorded in the U.K. in a single day — the highest daily count since mid-July and a higher number than reported in Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Portugal combined. The country also saw 115 deaths, with Tuesday marking a daily death toll of 223 people — the highest since March.

Meanwhile, 1 in 55 people in England were estimated to have had Covid in the week up to Oct. 16, according to the U.K. Office for National Statistics, which means as many as 1 million people may have been infected with the virus that week alone.

The rising deaths, spiraling infection rates and overstretched public health system have prompted calls for the government to reassess the lifting of lockdown and containment measures.

"I think that everyone feels concerned as to what might happen over winter," said Dr. Layla McCay, policy director of the National Health Service Confederation, which represents the health care system in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. "It is better to act now than to regret it later."

Experts said there are a range of factors driving Britain's current surge. As the pandemic nears the two-year mark, they are closely monitoring the country's response to rising cases and whether the U.K. is a warning sign for the rest of the world.

NBC News investigated the cocktail of factors driving Britain’s surge and the lessons that can be gleaned from the country’s experience.

Waning vaccines

Britain was one of the first countries to start vaccinating its population, so Britons enjoyed a return to so-called normal life earlier than most.

But now, there are fears that the immunity gained from Covid vaccinations is starting to wane as the delta variant — which has accounted for approximately 99.8 percent of sequenced cases in England, according to a recent government report — as well as a mutation of the variant known as "delta plus" continue to spread.

"Those deaths are not inevitable. They're preventable."
DR. DEEPTI GURDASANI, CLINICAL EPIDEMIOLOGIST AT QUEEN MARY UNIVERSITY OF LONDON

In addition, the government delayed vaccinating secondary school students, which likely has had a big impact on the virus's spread, according to Danny Altmann, a professor of immunology at Imperial College London.

"I think we paid a very high price for our reticence and delay in vaccinating secondary school children and lost probably a few months on that," he said.

Recent figures released by the Office for National Statistics showed that 1 in 14 secondary school-age children had tested positive for Covid in the week ending Oct. 2.

Because the U.K. rolled out its vaccination program earlier than the rest of Europe, that could also mean protection is waning sooner, especially among older recipients, Altmann added.
"We all assumed that these vaccines would be good and keep us safe for a good year or two, and that possibly would have been true if delta hadn't come along," he said.
Yet, even with the spread of the delta variant, he said the rollout of booster jabs in the U.K. has been slow, which could also be lending to high case rates in the U.K., despite nearly 80 percent of the population over the age of 12 having been fully vaccinated, according to government data.

Dr. Deepti Gurdasani, a clinical epidemiologist at Queen Mary University of London, said she also believed the rollout of the U.K.'s vaccination program, as well as its slow release of booster vaccines, have played a role in the continued rise of Covid cases.

Did 'freedom' come too soon?

The U.K. government's decision to not maintain or reinstate certain Covid containment measures, such as masks being mandatory in enclosed spaces, were also behind the rise, Gurdasani said.

"If you look throughout the pandemic, you can see there is a clear correlation between the level of restrictions in a country and what's happening in the pandemic," she said. "When we have a lockdown, cases always go down because it is an airborne virus."

While many countries across Europe and around the world have maintained different levels of Covid restrictions, including mask mandates, the British government has remained adamant in its commitment to England’s full reopening.

"There is no other way to explain the differences in the pandemic globally," she said. "And there's nothing special about the U.K. population making this happen. ... It's very, very clearly the consequence of policies here compared to the rest of the world."

Mandatory-mask rules do exist on public transport systems, with face coverings required across the Transport for London network, which includes the capital’s underground train system, but those rules are not always complied with, nor regularly enforced.

Ravi Gupta of the Cambridge Institute of Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Disease agreed with Gurdasani that maintaining restrictions might have helped avoid the U.K.'s current predicament.

"The relaxation [of rules] that happened over summer was a fairly drastic month going from, you know, quite, quite tight measures to very few restrictions," Gupta said. "And I think that, in retrospect, a more graded approach may have prevented the surge that we’re seeing."

The government also abandoned plans to enforce a vaccine passport system in England, with British Health Secretary Sajid Javid saying in September he did not "like the idea at all of people having to ... present papers to do basic things." Wales and Scotland have introduced versions of their own vaccine verification systems, however.

Rise of the variants

The emergences of the delta and then the so-called delta plus variant have garnered attention and produced some fear.

But Gurdasani and Gupta agreed that the arrival of the delta plus variant, which is a mutated version of the delta variant, shouldn't come as much of a surprise.

"I’m not convinced that this is a major step change for the virus," Gupta said.

"It may have an incremental or a small effect on its infectiousness or its ability to avoid immunity," Gupta added, saying it was an expected type of mutation, given the high infection rates.

While the U.K. Health Security Agency issued a report Oct. 15 warning the delta plus variant appeared to be "expanding," it accounted for around 6 percent of Covid cases in the U.K. Gurdasani said at the moment, it does not appear to be the main driver of the rise in Covid cases.

Still, both she and Gupta agreed it was important to keep a close eye on it and other variants.
Ultimately, Altmann said it would be "foolhardy" to try to blame the rise in Covid cases and deaths in the U.K. "on one thing more than the other."

"Things that seem like very minor piecemeal mitigation all add up together on a massive scale," he said. "If you put together ... mask-wearing and ventilation and filters and work from home and transport policy ... and vaccine rollout and you get each one of those a little bit wrong as I think the U.K. probably has, you can end up paying a disproportionately high price for it."

Calls for 'plan B'

The government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson is coming under growing pressure to reimpose restrictions in light of the surging cases and deaths.

On Wednesday, Javid resisted calls for a "plan B" approach, even as he confirmed that Covid cases in the U.K. could reach 100,000 a day as winter approaches.

Speaking at his first news conference since taking up the position June 26 — following former Health Secretary Matt Hancock’s resignation the same day, after he was caught breaching social distancing guidelines by kissing a colleague — Javid acknowledged the NHS has been under "greater pressure."

The situation was not yet "unsustainable," he said, adding that Covid-related deaths in the U.K. "remain mercifully low."

Still, he acknowledged that deaths were "sadly over 100 a day." And at an estimated 2 daily deaths per 1 million people as of Wednesday, according to Our World in Data, the U.K.'s rate is more than double that of Germany's, more than triple that of Spain's and Italy's and more than four times that of France's.

Rather than imposing new restrictions, Javid warned that Britons must all "play our part" and focus on getting vaccinated, including with Covid boosters and flu jabs, to avoid the return of coronavirus rules.

Jonathan Ashworth, a senior member of the opposition Labour Party, struck out at Javid’s response.

"The NHS is not just under pressure; it’s under water," he said in an interview with Sky News, which is owned by NBC News' parent company Comcast.

Ashworth said doctors, nurses and other NHS staff were facing "immense" pressure, and he said he was "shocked that the health secretary was so casual in dismissing them."

Gurdasani agreed, saying she "cannot understand how anyone can say that the number of deaths we are having every week, between 800 to 1,000 deaths every week" are mercifully low.
"Those deaths are not inevitable. They're preventable," she said.

If the country does not change its approach, Gurdasani said she expected those numbers only to rise in the months ahead.

"Most of Western Europe hasn’t accepted that we need to live with that level of deaths," she said. "And you don’t need massive sacrifices to reduce them."