Covid-19 pandemic: live updates and news for January 1, 2021

Photographer: Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

The US surpassed 20 million cases of Covid-19, a year after a mysterious pathogen first revealed itself in Wuhan, China. That number is almost twice as many as in India, the second most affected country. New York State infections remained high, just below Wednesday’s record when the rate of positive tests in New York City rose to 10%. The number of fatalities in California reached a record high.

The pandemic started 2021 with no signs of slowing down. Worldwide daily deaths hit record highs this week. Countries from Germany to Japan to South Africa ended 2020 with a record number of daily cases. Turkey, China and Brazil became the newest countries to receive infections new, highly transmissible virus strain.

Vaccines remained the best hope for 2021. The World Health Organization issued an emergency use designation for the Pfizer Inc. shot, a move that would allow more countries to import and distribute the vaccine.

Main Developments:

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American Covid Hospital Admissions at High (4:55 PM NY)

Hospital admissions in the US climbed to a new high, with 125,379 people to admitted, according to data collected by the Covid Tracking Project. That’s comparable to the two previous waves of the virus – in April and July – peaking at about 60,000.

The data shows that the Midwest is the only region where hospital admissions are on the decline, with most in the South, at nearly 50,000. The Northeast, which has been most affected by the first wave of the pandemic, has the fewest hospitalizations recorded during the recent wave.

Oxford-AstraZeneca Expects More Vaccine Production, Times Reports (16:47 NY)

A member of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine team expects 2 million doses to be ready every week from mid-January, the Times of London reported.

Health Minister Matt Hancock said earlier this week that only 530,000 doses of the vaccine would be ready Monday. The Oxford team is frustrated that the poor state of the country’s production capacity has affected the pace of production, the paper said.

Virginia, Maryland Outbreaks Near Highs (3:31 PM NY)

Virginia reported more than 5,000 cases the second consecutive day, one day after the infections rose to a new peak. The total number of hospital admissions, which has nearly tripled since the beginning of November, has risen to a record 2,744, according to data collected by the Covid Tracking Project.

Neighboring Maryland reported 3,557 cases, the second highest on record, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg. Hospital admissions are also close to a record high, at 1,773.

California Deaths Rise to Record (2:41 pm NY)

California added a record 585 new deaths, bringing the total to 25,971. The state reported 47,189 new cases, with a total number of nearly 2.3 million.

The Golden State is emerging as the epicenter for the latest outbreak as hospitals, particularly in Southern California, have run out of beds in the intensive care unit. The positivity rate of 12.2% is at one of the highest levels since the start of the pandemic.

Ireland Sees Post-Christmas Surge (2:24 pm NY)

Ireland expects to register more than 9,000 cases in the coming days as a Christmas backlog in reporting and testing decreases. More than 1,700 cases were reported on Friday, close to a record high. Medical authorities warned of a rise in hospital admissions, with as many as 70 patients per day to admitted, in addition to the more than 500 already treated in the hospital.

Ireland has entered a third national lockdown pending widespread vaccination.

All primary schools in London remain closed, Guardian Reports (2:15 pm NY)

All primary schools in London will close before the start of the new semester following pressure from local authorities, The Guardian reported.

The British government had previously omitted several London areas from a list of primary schools to be closed. An emergency meeting of the Cabinet Office on New Year’s Day resulted in the addition of the remaining London education authorities to the government’s emergency areas.

Turkey Finds 15 Cases Of New Variant Among Visitors From UK (13:03 NY)

Turkey has suspended all arrivals from the UK after discovering the new variant of the Covid-19 virus among 15 people who had traveled from the country, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said.

All 15 patients have been in quarantine since they were screened, and no other cases of the more contagious mutant virus have been detected in the country so far, Koca said in an online statement.

Turkey announced 12,203 new infections on Friday, the lowest level since at least November 25, when the Ministry of Health began disclosing the number of everyone testing positive for the virus, citing controversial policies to rule out asymptomatic cases. released.

NY Cases Keep Near Record High (12:54 pm NY)

New York State reported 16,497 new cases, just below Wednesday’s record for the entire pandemic. The total number of hospital admissions fell slightly, to 7,886, as did the overall positive test rate, at 7.52%, Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a statement. Another 166 people died, most in two weeks with fatalities over 100.

Danish Prime Minister Sets April As Turning Point In Virus Battle (12:13 PM NY)

Denmark is likely to reach a turning point in the fight against the pandemic at the beginning of April, said Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.

“I think the worst year is behind us, but we must expect the most difficult months to be ahead,” the Social Democratic prime minister said in her New Year’s speech broadcast on Friday. She said Easter Sunday, April 4, “will not be the end but a turning point,” aided by vaccinations and better weather conditions.

NYC percentage of positive tests rises to 10% (11:54 am NY)

The number of positive tests in New York City continues to grow rapidly, at 9.41% based on a seven-day average, Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a tweet Friday. That number was below 2% in November. Hospital admissions also continued to rise, with an additional 219 admissions, he said.

“2021 is here and it will be a better year for our city – but we have to keep fighting against it #COVID-19,” he said.

Italy Cases Slow (11:17 am NY)

Italy registered 22,211 virus cases on Friday, out of 23,477 the day before. The daily death toll also fell with 462 reported deaths, compared to 555 on Thursday.
The Italian government has imposed a “stop-and-go” lock across the country from December 24 to January 6, with strict restrictions on and around Christmas, New Year and the Epiphany holidays on January 6.

New Business In The UK Remains High (11:09 am NY)

The UK reported 53,285 new cases and 613 deaths on Friday. The latest R number was estimated to be 1.1 to 1.3, meaning the virus continues to spread exponentially.

Portugal reports less daily business (11:06 am NY)

Portugal reported 6,951 new confirmed cases, less than the record of 7,627 announced the previous day, bringing the total to 420,629. The number of hospital cases decreased by 34 to 2,806.

Portugal started its vaccination program Covid-19 on December 27.

Philippines bans foreigners traveling from the US (10:57 am NY)

The Philippines will ban foreign travelers from the US until mid-January after a third state, Florida, reported that a strain of the coronavirus would be more contagious, Reuters reported.

The ban, which will take effect on Sunday, will not apply to Filipinos traveling from the US, although they must be quarantined in a government facility for 14 days, the news agency reported.

Norway lifts UK flight ban (6:33 am NY)

According to the country’s Ministry of Health and Care, Norway will revoke a suspension of flights from the UK on January 2 from 5:00 p.m. CET. Special quarantine and testing rules for people coming from the UK will remain.

Merz, Germany, calls for schools to reopen (16:42 HK)