Category: Covid-19

More than 4 million people in Massachusetts have received a dose of COVID-19 vaccine as of Saturday, the state reported.

The latest milestone in the states battle against the coronavirus came nearly three weeks after the state made anyone 16 or older eligible to receive coronavirus vaccinations. According to the state, more than 3 million people had received vaccine as of April 13 in Massachusetts.

To be considered fully vaccinated, people must receive both shots of the two-dose vaccines produced by Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna, or the single-shot vaccine by Johnson & Johnson, health officials have said.

The number of people fully vaccinated as of Saturday with either two shots of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines or one shot of the Johnson & Johnson rose to 2,884,727, the state reported.

On Saturday, the number of coronavirus vaccinations administered in Massachusetts rose by 72,352 to 6,666,814, state officials reported.

The number of new vaccinations was fewer than on Friday, when 93,199 were reported.

The total number of shots administered amounted to 84.3 percent of the 7,907,220 doses shipped to providers in the state so far, the Department of Public Health said.

The total shots administered included 3,782,087 first shots and 2,663,906 second shots.

The state reported a total of 220,821 people who have received Johnson & Johnsons one-shot vaccine.

The department reported 795 new confirmed coronavirus cases Saturday, bringing the states total to 652,535. The department also reported eight new confirmed coronavirus deaths, bringing the states total to 17,324.

The state said 19,125 people were estimated to have active cases of the potentially deadly virus, and 441 confirmed coronavirus patients were in the hospital.

It also said 78,526 more tests had been conducted for coronavirus. The total number of tests administered climbed to more than 21.9 million. New antigen tests had been completed for 4,758 people, bringing that total to 1,232,497.

The state reported that the seven-day average rate of positive tests, which is calculated from the total number of tests administered, was at 1.32 percent.

The department said the rate would be 2.23 percent if the effect of college testing programs in which asymptomatic people can be tested repeatedly in an effort to rapidly identify new cases is factored out.

To take a deeper dive into the states coronavirus statistics click here.

John Hilliard can be reached at john.hilliard@globe.com.

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State reports 8 new COVID-19 deaths, 795 cases; more than 4 million Mass. residents have received COVID-19 vaccine as of Saturday - The Boston Globe

He also said indoor mask mandates need to be more liberal as vaccinations go up.

May 9, 2021, 3:04 PM

6 min read

Dramatically ramping up COVID-19 vaccinations is key to ending the crisis in India, White House chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci told ABC's "This Week" anchor George Stephanopoulos on Sunday.

"India is the largest vaccine-producing country in the world. They've got to get their resources -- not only from within but also from without -- that's the reason why other countries need to chip in to be able to get either supplies for the Indians to make their own vaccines or to get vaccines donated," Fauci said.

The Biden administration said last week it now supports waiving the intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines, opening the door for their possible manufacturing by companies and countries around the world. The U.S. had opposed the waiver, along with pharmaceutical companies, which are concerned about the precedent it would set.

While some countries, including the U.K., European Union, Canada, Japan, Australia and Brazil, do not support waiving patent protections on vaccines developed in their countries, the World Health Organization has called the natural distribution of COVID-19 vaccines "a moral outrage."

"You said the companies should be scaling up, but many of those companies say that President Bidens plan to have these patent waivers is going to prevent them from scaling up -- its going to hamper the supply chain and actually set back the vaccine production effort," Stephanopoulos said.

"I dont think thats the case, George. They can scale up. Theyve done an extraordinary amount. Youve got to give them credit. Theyve really just really done something that is really quite impressive in the way theyve gotten their vaccine supply up and out for the rest of the world," Fauci replied.

"I think the waiving of the patents and the TRIPs is not going to necessarily interfere with that right now," Fauci continued, referencing the WTO's Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement, which provide global patent protections.

"The endgame of this all, George, is going to be to get people vaccinated," Fauci said.

"India is the largest vaccine-producing country in the world. They've got to get their resources," Fauci continued. "That's the reason why other countries need to chip in to be able to get either supplies for the Indians to make their own vaccines."

India is currently experiencing a devastating surge of COVID-19 with record-breaking cases, hospitalizations and deaths. The country's health care system is teetering on the edge of collapse as hospitals are overcrowded and much-needed medical supplies are in low supply.

Last week, the U.S. government, non-profit and private sector organizations began sending shipments of aid to India.

Fauci also told Stephanopoulos that he has been in communication with his counterparts in India over the last several days, urging them to open more field hospitals and implement more stringent shutdowns.

"I believe several of the Indian states have already done that," Fauci said. "But you need to break the chain of transmission and one of the ways to do that is to shut down."

Back in the U.S., more than 151 million Americans have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, prompting some criticism of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's indoor mask guidance, suggesting it's too stringent.

"You've had experts like the former head of the (Food and Drug Administration), Scott Gottlieb, say it's time to start relaxing the indoor mask mandates. Is he right?" Stephanopoulos asked.

"I think so," Fauci responded, adding that the CDC will be updating their recommendations and guidelines in real time.

"We do need to start being more liberal as we get more people vaccinated," Fauci said.

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Vaccinations are the 'end game' to the COVID-19 crisis in India: Fauci - ABC News

The COVID-19 puzzle: deciphering pathophysiology and phenotypes of a new disease entity  The Lancet

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The COVID-19 puzzle: deciphering pathophysiology and phenotypes of a new disease entity - The Lancet

Dallas County reported three more COVID-19 deaths and 178 new coronavirus cases Saturday.

The latest victims included a Coppell man in his 50s and a Dallas woman in her 50s who had both been critically ill in area hospitals. A Mesquite woman in her 50s died in the emergency department of an area hospital. All three victims had underlying health conditions.

County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a written statement that this was the least deadly week of the year for COVID-19. The decrease in deaths over the last four weeks is largely due to older people getting the vaccine, he said. However, he noted the county is seeing younger people with serious COVID-19 cases.

I was walking blocks this morning and had the opportunity to visit with several people who had not been vaccinated but would greatly benefit from vaccination, Jenkins said. They are going to get vaccinated today and Monday. But its impossible for us to talk one-on-one with everyone, so please do all that you can to encourage your friends who are unvaccinated to get vaccinated just as soon as possible.

Of the new cases, 169 were confirmed and nine were probable. The numbers bring the countys overall case total to 300,439, including 258,609 confirmed and 41,830 probable. The death toll is 3,928.

The average number of new daily cases in the county for the last two weeks is 223. For the previous 14-day period, the average was 242.

Health officials use hospitalizations, intensive-care admissions and emergency room visits as key metrics to track the real-time impact of COVID-19 in the county. In the 24-hour period that ended Friday, 184 COVID-19 patients were in acute care in hospitals in the county. During the same period, 408 ER visits were for symptoms of the disease.

According to the state, 1,029,040 people in Dallas County have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 768,878 37.9% of the countys population 16 and older are fully vaccinated.

Across the state, 2,190 more cases were reported Saturday, including 1,949 new cases and 241 older ones recently reported by labs.

The state also reported 45 COVID-19 deaths, raising its toll to 49,572.

Of the new cases, 1,445 were confirmed and 504 were probable. Of the older cases, 206 were confirmed and 35 were probable.

The states case total is now 2,903,694, including 2,485,695 confirmed and 417,999 probable.

There are 2,508 COVID-19 patients in Texas hospitals, including 507 in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. On Friday, 3.1% of patients in the hospital region covering the Dallas-Fort Worth area were COVID-19 patients below the 15% threshold the state has used to define high hospitalizations.

The seven-day average positivity rate statewide for molecular tests, based on the date of test specimen collection, was 4.7% as of Friday. For antigen tests, the positivity rate for the same period was 3%. A molecular test is considered more accurate and is sometimes also called a PCR test; an antigen test is also called a rapid test. Gov. Greg Abbott has said a positivity rate above 10% is cause for concern.

According to the state, 11,402,111 people in Texas have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 8,594,479 38.3% of the states population 16 and older are fully vaccinated.

Tarrant County reported 12 deaths and 156 cases Saturday.

Of the new cases, 94 were confirmed and 62 were probable. The numbers bring the countys case total to 258,115, including 216,586 confirmed and 41,529 probable. The death toll is 3,450.

According to the county, 164 people were hospitalized with the virus on Friday.

According to the state, 777,230 people in Tarrant County have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 602,104 37.2% of the countys population 16 and older are fully vaccinated.

The state added one death and 43 cases to Collin Countys totals Saturday.

No details about the latest victim were available.

Of the new cases, 36 were confirmed and seven were probable. The numbers bring the countys case total to 90,444, including 74,392 confirmed and 16,052 probable. The death toll is 829.

According to the county, 75 people were hospitalized with the virus on Friday.

According to the state, 484,320 people in Collin County have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 380,862 47.5% of the countys population 16 and older are fully vaccinated.

Denton County no longer releases new coronavirus data over the weekend.

As of Friday, the county had reported 74,882 coronavirus cases 55,080 confirmed and 19,802 probable. The death toll was 495.

According to the county, 35 people were hospitalized with the virus.

According to the state, 379,522 people in Denton County have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 295,856 42.4% of the countys population 16 and older are fully vaccinated.

The Texas Department of State Health Services has taken over reporting for these other North Texas counties. In some counties, new data may not be reported every day. The latest numbers are:

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Dallas County adds 3 COVID-19 deaths and 178 cases, records least deadly week of the year - The Dallas Morning News

COVID-19 is a viral illness that has a variety of symptoms. Many of these symptoms impact the upper respiratory tract, which includes your nose, throat, and upper airways.

You may be wondering if the feeling of a lump in your throat could mean that you have COVID-19. The short answer is probably no, unless you have other common COVID-19 symptoms like fever, cough, or fatigue.

In this article, we discuss why having a lump in the throat by itself is not generally an indicator of COVID-19, the more common causes of this sensation, and some steps you can take to ease the feeling.

A lump in the throat is a feeling of fullness in the throat. Its not painful and an examination reveals no actual object in the throat. The medical term for a lump in the throat is globus sensation or globus pharyngeus.

Feeling a lump in your throat is relatively common. In fact, this sensation accounts for about 4 percent of new visits to ear, nose, and throat (ENT) doctors.

Generally speaking, having a lump in your throat is probably not a symptom of COVID-19 unless its happening along with other COVID-19 symptoms.

Three of the most common symptoms of COVID-19 include:

Additional COVID-19 symptoms that are reported with a lower frequency include:

A lump in the throat has been reported in a very small number of people with COVID-19. These findings were discussed in a study of ENT symptoms in 116 people with confirmed COVID-19.

Researchers found that sore throat was the most common throat-related symptom. It was found in 38 (32.7 percent) of participants. A lump in the throat was reported in only 16 participants (13.7 percent).

The exact cause of a lump in the throat is unknown. However, there are a variety of conditions that its been linked to. Some examples include:

Acid reflux is a condition in which stomach acid travels up the esophagus and into the throat. This acid can irritate the lining of the throat, leading to inflammation and a feeling of a lump in the throat.

The muscles of your throat typically function in a coordinated manner. Having tension or spasms in these muscles or uncoordinated swallowing may lead to sensations like a lump in the throat.

Many times, the sensation of a lump in the throat reportedly worsens in times of increased stress or anxiety. This is because it can cause tension in the throat muscles.

Sinusitis or a viral upper respiratory illness (a common cold) can cause post-nasal drip, which is when nasal mucus drips down the back of your throat. As this happens, it may lead to a feeling that you have a lump in your throat.

Tonsillitis is a condition in which your tonsils become swollen. This may make you feel as if something is in your throat.

A goiter is an enlarged thyroid gland and can occur in people with thyroid disease. A goiter may push against your throat, leading to a feeling of fullness in the area.

A hiatal hernia is when the top part of your stomach bulges up through an opening in your diaphragm. One of the main symptoms of a hiatal hernia is acid reflux, a potential cause of a lump in the throat.

Cervical osteophytes are bone spurs in the neck vertebrae. Its possible that in some cases these can cause a feeling of pressure or throat fullness.

Although very uncommon, some rare head or neck cancers can cause the sensation of having a lump in your throat.

If you have a lump in your throat, there are some things that you can try at home to help ease the sensation. Lets explore them now.

Swallowing can help to relax muscles in your throat. If you feel like you have a lump in your throat, take a swallow. A good way to do this is to take a small sip of water, which can also help to keep your throat from getting too dry.

Try to cut back on actions that can further irritate your throat. Some examples of these include talking for long periods, clearing your throat often, and shouting.

Stress can make your symptoms worse, so look for ways to reduce it. Some examples of things you can try include:

In addition to swallowing, a few other movements or exercises may also help alleviate a lump in your throat. Some examples are:

If you have acid reflux, be sure to take all medications, such as proton pump inhibitors, as directed by your doctor.

Many times, a lump in the throat will go away on its own with at-home care. However, be sure to make an appointment with your doctor if you experience any of the following:

Many people will experience the feeling of a lump in their throat at some point in their lifetime. This sensation typically goes away with at-home care and doesnt require a visit to the doctor.

Unless it occurs along with other COVID-19 symptoms, its unlikely that a lump in the throat is a sign of COVID-19.

Some more common causes of a lump in the throat are acid reflux, stress or anxiety, and tension in the throat muscles.

You can help ease a lump in your throat by swallowing, reducing stress, and trying out various movements and exercises. See your doctor if your symptoms dont go away, get worse, or include things like pain or difficulty swallowing.

Excerpt from:

Lump in Throat: Could It be a Symptom of COVID-19? - Healthline

Indian Super League (ISL) soccer team Bengaluru FC were asked to leave the Maldives on Sunday by the country's sports minister, after some players breached COVID-19 protocols ahead of their AFC Cup playoff tie with Eagles FC.

Maldives Minister of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment Ahmed Mahloof took to Twitter to call for the Indian team to leave the country for breaching guidelines set by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) before their match on May 11.

"Unacceptable behaviour from @bengalurufc breaching the strict guidelines from HPA," Mahloof said. "The club should leave... immediately as we can't entertain this act.

"We have informed FAM (Football Association of Maldives) that we cannot hold the match, and asked them to make arrangements for @bengalurufc's departure. We will be in further correspondence with AFC... to postpone the group stage."

The AFC later confirmed that all AFC Cup south zone group stage matches in the Maldives had been postponed.

Group D matches were originally scheduled to be held in the capital Male from May 14-21. The AFC did not give revised dates for the games.

"Participating clubs who have travelled to Maldives will be required to arrange for their return home while adhering to the COVID-19 health and travel protocols put in place by the country," the AFC said in a statement.

"At the same time, the AFC is in contact with all other participating clubs and officials who have not entered the Maldives to cancel their travel arrangements."

Group D includes India's ATK Mohun Bagan, Bashundhara Kings of Bangladesh, Maldives' Maziya Sports & Recreation and the winner of the playoff.

Bengaluru FC CEO Parth Jindal said on Twitter that the club would sanction three members of the travelling party.

"On behalf of @bengalurufc, I am extremely sorry for the inexcusable behavior of three of our foreign players/staff while in Male - the strictest action will be taken against these players/staff," Jindal said.

Earlier, Group J matches in Hong Kong were postponed from May to June due to challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020 edition of the AFC Cup was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic when quarantine regulations in many nations made international travel almost impossible.

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Bengaluru FC told to exit Maldives after COVID-19 protocol breach - Reuters

Hopes that Indias rampaging second wave of COVID-19 is peaking were set back on Thursday as record daily infections and deaths were reported and as the virus spread from cities to villages that were poorly equipped to cope.

Government modelling had forecast a peak by Wednesday in infections that have overwhelmed the healthcare system, with hospitals running out of beds and medical oxygen.

A record 412,262 new cases and 3,980 deaths were reported over the past 24 hours, taking total infections past 21 million and the overall death toll to 230,168, Health Ministry data showed.

"This temporarily halts speculations of a peak," Rijo M John, a professor at the Indian Institute of Management in the southern state of Kerala, said on Twitter.

While the capital New Delhi and several other cities have been hardest hit so far, limited public healthcare, including a dearth of testing facilities, means the threat is grave in rural areas that are home to nearly 70% of the 1.3 billion population.

In the town of Susner in Madhya Pradesh state, patients were being treated outdoors under trees, on blankets on the ground.

Prime Minister Narendra Modis government welcomed U.S. President Joe Bidens announcement that he would support waiving intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccinations.

Such a waiver would make vaccines more widely available, although it could take months for the World Trade Organization to hammer out any deal.

While India is the world's biggest vaccine maker, it is struggling to produce enough doses. Its two current vaccine producers will take two months or more to boost monthly output to more than 110 million doses from 70 million-80 million.

At a meeting with his top officials on Thursday, Modi stressed that Indian states must keep up vaccination rates and that healthcare workers involved in the inoculation campaign must not be diverted to other tasks, the government said.

Although the country has administered at least 157 million vaccine doses, its rate of inoculation has fallen sharply in recent days.

Mortuary workers load the body of a person, who died from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), to an ambulance for cremation, at a hospital in New Delhi, India May 5, 2021. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

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NO NATIONAL LOCKDOWN

Modi has been widely criticized for not acting sooner to suppress the second wave, after religious festivals and political rallies drew tens of thousands of people in recent weeks and became "super spreader" events.

Several Indian states have imposed various levels of social restrictions to try to stem infections, but the federal government has resisted imposing a national lockdown.

The southern state of Kerala announced on Thursday it will impose nine days of curbs on movement from Saturday.

In the office of a Hindu crematorium in Delhi, the floor and shelves were overflowing with earthen pots, plastic packets and steel containers filled with the ashes of people who have died from COVID-19.

Practising Hindus collect the ashes of the dead a few days after the funeral for immersion in a river or sea, one of the rituals that they believe lead to salvation of the soul.

"Our lockers are full. We cannot store any more ashes. We used to get around 40 COVID-19 bodies a day. We are now telling relatives to take the ashes with them on the same day," Pankaj Sharma, a manager at the crematorium, told Reuters.

With Delhi running short of ambulances, authorities have teamed up with a non-profit organisation to turn some of the citys ubiquitous three-wheeled autorickshaws into makeshift ambulances for COVID-19 patients.

The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday the jump in cases posed downside risks to the Fund's April forecast for 12.5% growth in India's economic output in fiscal years 2021 and 2022.

The IMF will revisit that forecast when it issues a fresh World Economic Outlook in July, IMF spokesman Gerry Rice told reporters at a regular briefing. He gave no further details.

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar acknowledged the healthcare system "stands exposed" after 75 years of under-funding by successive governments since independence from Britain.

Its very easy to say today that we should have put in more money. Now that I am in government..., I can say it is not as easy as it sounds, Jaishankar said on Wednesday.

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COVID-19 spreads to rural India, villages ill-equipped to fight it - Reuters India

Golden State Warriors forward Damion Lee revealed Thursday that he tested positive for COVID-19 despite being fully vaccinated. Statistically speaking, this is a very rare phenomenon, with only around 6,000 people known to have tested positive after being fully vaccinated. While none of the approved vaccines are 100 percent effective at preventing COVID-19 infection, all have been remarkably effective at preventing serious cases, hospitalizations and deaths due to the disease.

Lee did not need to be hospitalized but explained that he suffered through a variety of common symptoms despite receiving the vaccine in March. "I had headache, chills, sneezing, congestion, soreness, body aches," Lee said. "It felt like I was hit by a car. Like hit by two cars at once every step I took. It hurt, it was pain, soreness. It felt like there was a weight on my chest for a couple of days, like it was just hard to breathe."

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Lee has been cleared to return to the Warriors' facility but has not yet resumed basketball activities. His recovery is still being monitored, and there is no timeline for him to return to the floor this season. The Warriors have five regular-season games left on the schedule before they are slated to participate in the play-in round of the postseason.

Many NBA players have been vaccinated, but other than those who have volunteered that information freely, we do not who or exactly how many of them have done so. After making it through the Orlando bubble without any major disruptions in play due to the virus, the NBA is about to embark on its first postseason during the pandemic without the protection Disney world provided. NBA cases have fortunately been minimal in recent months, but the specter of the disease continues to have over the league.

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Warriors' Damion Lee reveals he tested positive for COVID-19 despite being fully vaccinated - CBS Sports

SOHAG, Egypt (AP) Countries worldwide wrestling with new coronavirus surges are trying to ensure they arent hit by an India-style disaster. They face many of the same risks, including large populations that have shirked restrictions and fragile health systems shaken under the strain.

In a province along the Nile in southern Egypt, hospitals have been flooded with COVID-19 patients, a main hot spot in a third spike swelling across the country. Doctors in Sohag province warn the health system there could collapse, even as the government rushes in new supplies.

My estimate is that there is no family in Sohag that does not have a corona case, said Dr. Mahmoud Fahmy Mansour, head of the provinces doctors union. We lost five physicians in one week.

He said a scenario like India was a possibility, but God willing, it is a very far possibility.

Long reluctant to impose new lockdowns, Egypts government announced its strictest restrictions in months on Wednesday. It ordered cafs, restaurants, stores and malls to close at 9 p.m. and banned large gatherings for two weeks, as well as shutting down beaches and parks during the upcoming Eid el-Fitr holiday at the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

Egypt isnt alone in seeing mounting new infections. Worldwide, more cases have been reported in the past two weeks than in the entire first six months of the pandemic, World Health Organization director general Tedros Adhanom said.

India and Brazil accounted for a large part of that, but there are many other countries all over the world that face a very fragile situation, he said. What is happening in India and Brazil could happen elsewhere unless we all take these public health precautions.

India has been hit by a catastrophic surge of COVID-19 infections after its prime minister boasted of vanquishing the pandemic and following multiple massive crowding events. New cases and deaths skyrocketed nearly 30-fold during March and April. The health system has been overwhelmed, leaving patients desperate for oxygen and other supplies.

Wealthier nations, as they immunize more of their populations, are finding room to open up. But countries where vaccination has been slow or minimal face grimmer prospects. They must grapple with whether to lock down to thwart new surges and risk damaging their economies all with the possibility of an India-style tragedy looming.

In Turkey, new cases surged nearly six-fold from the beginning of March, reaching a peak of more than 60,000 a day. The government imposed a three-week national lockdown on April 29 but exempted many sectors, allowing millions to keep going to work.

Numbers have fallen, but medical experts are calling for a 28-day full closure of all non-essential services, while only some 10 million of its more than 80 million people have been fully vaccinated.

These restrictions were not the restrictions we called for, said Vedat Bulut, secretary-general of the independent Turkish Medical Association.

In Egypt, average daily new cases have doubled since early February to just over 1,000 a day and continue to rise, compared to earlier peaks of 1,400 to 1,600 a day last summer and in December, according to official numbers.

The scope of the pandemic has been difficult to judge in the country of 100 million, most of whom live in densely packed cities along the Nile. Official figures report 234,015 cases, including 13,714 dead considered a significant undercount like elsewhere in the world.

In Sohag province, health workers have grown desperate. One doctor who chairs a major hospital there said the real figures are likely 10 times the Health Ministry rate of 400-450 new cases a week.

The ministry is like an ostrich burying its head in the sand, he said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

Mustafa Salem, a Sohag lawmaker, said he has received dozens of calls from people desperate to find ventilators or intensive care unit beds.

When Ismail Abdallah fell ill last month, his family rushed him to a clinic, where without being tested he was told it was pneumonia.

Two days later, the 50-year-old farmer and father of seven had trouble breathing. At the hospital, he was confirmed with COVID-19, and his family scrambled to find a bed in packed ICUs.

There were no available beds in the free ward, said a relative, Amr Mahrous. We struggled to find a bed in the paid ward.

After two weeks in isolation at a hospital, Abdullah died last week.

The Health Ministry has beefed up facilities in the province, sending oxygen generators and ventilators and increasing the number of ICUs. It deployed more physicians and doubled medical teams to follow up with those isolated at home. Two vaccination centers have been set up and more are planned, and 100 teams mobilized to raise awareness.

The Health Ministry listed Sohag among five hot spots in the country - including Cairo, a metropolis of some 20 million people.

Health officials attribute the new spike to widespread ignoring of precautions. Throughout Egypt, mask wearing and social distancing are rare. Some cafes still serve waterpipes, shared among customers, despite government bans. Wedding parties and funerals still take place, and people crowd into marketplaces.

In Islamic Cairo, the capitals historic center, families go to communal prayers during the holy month of Ramadan. Tens of thousands gather at night in the bazaars narrow streets, shopping or sitting in cafes. Few wear face masks.

Hajah Fatima, 57, came from the southern province of Beni Sueif with her family and had iftar, the meal ending the daytime fast, in a caf next to the revered Al-Hussein Shrine.

Its a custom, she said. Corona? Nothing will happen to us except what God has decreed.

So far, more than 1 million people, or just 1% of Egypts population, have been vaccinated, Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouly said Wednesday.

In the crowded Palestinian enclave of the Gaza Strip, home to 2 million people, cases have risen swiftly. In March and April, infection rates surpassed 1,000 a day the number Gaza previously recorded weekly. Daily deaths have doubled to a high of 20. The virus has killed more than 900 Gazans and sickened over 102,000, more than half of them this year.

Hospitals are struggling to cope, the international aid group Doctors Without Borders warned this week.

The territorys Hamas rulers closed mosques and restaurants and imposed a nighttime curfew at the beginning of Ramadan to slow the outbreak. But it decided to lift those restrictions for the final 10 days of the holy month, alarming health officials.

We are concerned by the large-scale easing of the measures, said Rami Abadllah, head of epidemiology at the Health Ministry.

Amid concerns over India, Kenya, which is coming down from a recent peak, halted flights with the country for two weeks, while Nigeria suspended flights with India, Brazil and Turkey, fearing new virus strains could come in as it tries to bring down cases, particularly in Lagos, home to some 20 million people.

In South Africa, with by far the largest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Africa, officials warn of a new surge as the Southern Hemispheres winter approaches.

Pakistan is in the midst of a third wave, with single-day fatalities hitting their highest of the entire pandemic on April 28, with 201 deaths.

Health officials added hundreds more hospital beds. Oxygen production had already been nearly doubled to 800 tons a day compared to last year. Still, at the surges peak in recent weeks, it was using 90% of that production.

New cases have eased slightly this week from a running average of around 6,000 a day.

Thank God, we have so far managed to cope with this huge increase because of proactively building capacity of the entire system, Planning and Development Minister Asad Umar said.

But he warned the country of more than 200 million could face an India-level disaster unless people adhere to precautions that have been widely ignored. The government has rejected calls for a lockdown but warns that could change.

Be careful. For yourself, and your loved ones, he said in a tweet.

___

AP reporters Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey; Munir Ahmed in Islamabad, Pakistan; Sam Olukoya in Lagos, Nigeria; Fares Akram in Gaza City; Andrew Meldrum in Johannesburg; Jamey Keaten in Geneva and Cara Anna in Nairobi, Kenya contributed.

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India's disaster hangs over countries facing COVID-19 surges - Associated Press

Europe's medicines regulator said on Friday it has begun a real-time review of the COVID-19 antibody treatment developed by GSK (GSK.L) and Vir Biotechnology (VIR.O), formally kicking off the process for a potential European Union (EU) approval.

The so-called rolling review comes after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) last month began another review of early data to provide recommendations for national authorities in the trading bloc who may decide on early use of the medicine. read more

The EMA said it kicked off the real-time review based on early results from an ongoing study into how well the treatment, termed sotrovimab or VIR-7831, can prevent hospitalisation or death in non-hospitalised COVID-19 patients.

"EMA has not yet received the full dataset and it is too early to draw any conclusions regarding the benefit-risk balance of the medicine," the regulator said, adding that it has started assessing the first batch of data.

GSK and Vir reported in March that their medicine reduced the risk of hospitalisation and deaths among patients by 85%, based on interim clinical data.

Sotrovimab belongs to a class of medicines called monoclonal antibodies, which are synthetically manufactured copies of the human body's natural infection-fighting proteins.

It joins similar drugs from Eli Lilly (LLY.N), Celltrion (068270.KS) and Regeneron (REGN.O) for an EU-rolling review.

Rolling reviews are aimed at speeding up the approval process by allowing researchers to submit findings in real-time before final trial data is available.

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EU regulator begins real-time review of GSK-Vir COVID-19 antibody drug - Reuters