Health News Roudnup: UK says regulator must be given time; Thailand confirms 103 new coronavirus infections and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

UK says regulator must be given time to carry out Oxford COVID-19 vaccine review

Britain's Department of Health said on Sunday that medicines regulator MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency) must be given time to carry out its review of the data of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. "We must now give the MHRA the time to carry out its important work and we must wait for its advice", a Health Department spokeswoman said, commenting on a Sunday Telegraph report https://bit.ly/37RNBIC that Britain will roll out the vaccine from Jan. 4.

Thailand confirms 103 new coronavirus infections

Thailand on Sunday confirmed 103 new infections of the coronavirus, including 94 domestic transmissions, the government said in a statement. The new cases also include eight found in state quarantine and one infection in a person coming from abroad who did not enter quarantine, the statement said without elaborating.

NY health network faces criminal investigation over unauthorized COVID-19 vaccine

New York State Health officials said on Saturday they are investigating a Brooklyn-based healthcare provider on suspicion it violated state guidelines for distribution of COVID-19 vaccine. ParCare Community Health Network "may have fraudulently obtained COVID-19 vaccine, transferred it to facilities in other parts of the state in violation of state guidelines and diverted it to members of the public - contrary to the state's plan to administer it first to frontline healthcare workers, as well as nursing home residents and staffers," state Health Commissioner Howard Zucker said in a statement.

Brazil sees 307 COVID-19 deaths, Bolsonaro not worried about vaccine delays

Brazil has registered 307 new COVID-19 deaths, and 17,246 new cases of coronavirus, the health ministry said on Saturday, as President Jair Bolsonaro said he was not worried about delays in rolling out vaccinations in Latin America's biggest country. Brazil now has nearly 7.5 million confirmed cases and 190,795 deaths from the virus, ministry data showed.

Germany's confirmed coronavirus cases rise by 13,755: RKI

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 13,755 to 1,640,858, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Sunday. The reported death toll rose by 356 to 29,778, the tally showed.

Canada's Ontario finds two cases of virus variant first seen in UK

Health officials in Ontario said on Saturday that two confirmed cases of the new coronavirus variant first detected in the United Kingdom have appeared in the Canadian province. Scientists say the variant is about 40%-70% more transmissible than the original strain. Several other countries, including Australia, Italy and the Netherlands say they detected cases of the new strain.

U.S. CDC reports 329,592 total deaths from coronavirus

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Saturday reported 329,592 total deaths from the new coronavirus, an increase of 4,496 from its previous count, and said the number of cases had risen by 339,235 to 18,730,806. The CDC reported its tally of cases of the respiratory illness known as COVID-19, caused by the new coronavirus, as of 4 p.m. ET Friday versus its previous report published on Dec. 24. https://bit.ly/2JkpCs https://bit.ly/2JkpCs3 The CDC figures do not necessarily reflect cases reported by individual states.

Mexico City's COVID-19 'excess mortality' reaches 214 deaths a day

Mexico City registered 2,664 more deaths than usual earlier this month as authorities fought to contain the spread of COVID-19 that has strained hospitals and forced the city into a semi-lockdown. The populous capital's "excess mortality" from Dec. 1 to 12 - deaths above the typical number from prior years - averaged 214 a day, a government report said on Saturday. That compared to 141 excess deaths a day in November.

Sydney awaits verdict on New Year's Eve festivities as COVID-19 outbreak grows

Sydney's COVID-19 outbreak continued on Sunday with more than a quarter million people in lockdown as Australia's largest city awaited word on whether any public New Year's Eve celebrations will be allowed. Seven cases of the new coronavirus were reported in New South Wales state, six linked directly to the outbreak in Sydney's northern beach suburbs, which are under a stay-at-home order until Wednesday.

Infections stand at 122. Europe rolls out vaccines in bid to leave pandemic behind

Europe launches a cross-border vaccination programme of unprecedented scale on Sunday as part of efforts to end a COVID-19 pandemic that has crippled economies and claimed more than 1.7 million lives around the world. The region of 450 million people has secured contracts with a range of suppliers for over two billion vaccine doses and has set a goal for all adults to be inoculated during 2021.