(Reuters) – Here’s what you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic right now:
China’s confirmed COVID cases fall
China reported 1,366 confirmed coronavirus cases for March 24, the country’s national health authority said on Friday, down from 2,054 a day earlier, though the number of asymptomatic infections increased.
Asymptomatic cases, which China counts separately, rose to 3,622 from 2,829 a day earlier. Shanghai’s locally transmitted asymptomatic infections surged to a record for the commercial hub of 1,582 from 979.
Organisers of the Beijing autoshow, which was scheduled to be held in late April, have postponed the event due to the recent flare up of COVID cases, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Hong Kong government to resume services on April 1
Hong Kong will gradually resume public services from April 1, the government said on Friday, with the city posting its lowest number of daily infections in about a month.
Japan’s Shionogi signs government supply deal for pill to fight COVID
Japan’s Shionogi & Co has signed a basic agreement with the government to supply an oral COVID treatment it is now developing, the firm said on Friday. The government is considering buying a million doses of the drug pending regulatory approval, the company added in a statement.
German health minister urges people at risk to get second booster
Germany’s health minister urged people over age 60 with risk factors such as high blood pressure or a weak heart to get a second COVID booster shot to reduce their risk of getting seriously ill.
Costs of going unvaccinated in America are mounting
Nearly a year after COVID vaccines became freely available in the United States, a quarter of American adults remain unvaccinated, and a picture of the economic cost of vaccine hesitancy is emerging.
Vaccine hesitancy likely already accounts for tens of billions of dollars in preventable U.S. hospitalization costs and up to hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths, say public health experts.
Drugmakers and scientists start hunt for treatments for long COVID
After producing vaccines and treatments for acute COVID in record time, researchers and drugmakers are turning to finding a cure for long COVID, a more elusive target marked by hundreds of different symptoms afflicting millions of people.
Leading drugmakers, including those who have launched antiviral pills and monoclonal antibodies for COVID-19, are having early discussions with researchers about how to target the disease, five scientists in the United States and Britain told Reuters.
(Compiled by Linda Noakes)
