(Reuters) -Here’s what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:
Oxygen supplies run low in India
Indian authorities scrambled to shore up supplies of medical oxygen to hospitals in the capital, New Delhi, on Wednesday as a fast-spreading second wave of coronavirus cases stretched medical infrastructure to breaking point, officials and doctors said.
India, the world’s second most populous country after China, is reporting the highest global number of new daily cases and is approaching a peak of about 297,000 cases in one day that the United States hit in January.
The latest date released by the health ministry showed there had been 295,041 new infections nationwide overnight and 2,023 deaths, India’s highest in the pandemic.
J&J to resume rollout of vaccine in Europe
Johnson & Johnson said on Tuesday it would resume rolling out its COVID-19 vaccine in Europe after the region’s medical regulator said the benefits of the shot outweigh the risk of very rare, potentially lethal blood clots.
The European Medicines Agency on Tuesday recommended adding a warning about rare blood clots with low blood platelet count to the vaccine’s product label.
Protesters gather in Germany
Demonstrators gathered in Berlin on Wednesday to protest against a law that parliament is set to pass giving the national government the power to impose lockdowns on areas with high coronavirus infection rates.
Chancellor Angela Merkel decided to draw up the new law, which opponents say curtails personal freedoms, after some of Germany’s 16 federal states refused to impose tough measures despite a surge in cases.
The measures include curfews between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. and limits on private gatherings, sport and shop openings. Schools will close and return to online lessons if the virus incidence exceeds 165 cases per 100,000 residents.
Roche looking for new place to test COVID-19 pill
Roche is looking for another location to carry out trials of its pill to fight COVID-19, after plummeting case numbers in Britain made it difficult to find enough patients for its study there, the Swiss drugmaker said on Wednesday.
Roche and Boston-based partner Atea Pharmaceuticals are hoping their AT-527 pill could offer an anti-viral therapy to treat COVID-19 patients that would be easier to administer and cheaper than other prospective treatments, such as antibody cocktails or Gilead Science’s remdesivir.
Papua New Guinea passes 10,000 infections
The number of coronavirus infections in Papua New Guinea exceeded 10,000 on Wednesday, an alarming milestone for the Pacific country as health officials worry that its fragile health system is at risk of being overwhelmed.
PNG logged 245 new cases in the 24 hours to midday on Tuesday, continuing a run of daily increases of more than 200, putting its total at 10,197, although its tally of reported deaths from the coronavirus was steady at 91.
In a departure from previous updates that showed most new cases near the capital, Port Moresby, the COVID-19 National Pandemic Response said the new infections occurred in 17 of the country’s 22 provinces, implying a broader spread.
(Compiled by Linda NoakesEditing by Gareth Jones)
