Latest DEVELOPMENTS

• China's "Covid-Zero" policy continues, with at least 23 cities under partial or full lockdown, including Shanghai, where the city and it's more than 25 million residents have been living under total lockdown for more than 10 days. Residents are not allowed to leave their homes except for COVID-19 testing. Protests have broken out in various parts of the city as residents begin to run low on food.
• Outside of China, cases continue to fall or stay flat in much of southeast Asia. South Korea, which had the most COVID-19 cases per-capita globally in the month of March, has just now recorded fewer than 100,000 daily new cases. 
• The highly contagious Omicron subvariant known as BA.2 is responsible for the recent waves in southeast Asia and Europe. It is more transmissible than the original Omicron variant but does not cause more severe illness. BA.2 now makes up a majority of cases globally, including in the U.S., where a second Omicron wave is likely in the coming months. 
• Multiple countries have begun rolling out a 2nd booster dose for the elderly or otherwise vulnerable populations in an effort to combat waning vaccine effectiveness. 
• Outside of several east Asian nations, most countries have dropped restrictive entry policies. 

Latest DEVELOPMENTS

• Concern over the Omicron variant appears to be lessening as more data comes out. A preliminary study in South Africa shows Omicron to cause significantly less severe illness than the Delta variant or the original strain of COVID-19. The study showed that hospital admissions are significantly lower during the Omicron-driven fourth wave—38 admissions per 1,000, compared with 101 per 1,000 during the Delta-driven wave, and 131 per 1,000 when the Beta variant was dominant.

• While the Omicron variant does appear to evade immunity much more than other variants, the data out of South Africa shows that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine’s efficacy against severe illness and hospitalization was still about 70 percent after two doses. 

• Data out of Britain shows that after six months, two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine provided no protection at all from infection from Omicron. Two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech had an effectiveness of just 34 percent. But a Pfizer-BioNTech booster had an effectiveness of 75 percent against infection.

• As a result of the positive data, and its own surge, the United Kingdom reversed course on banning travel from southern Africa, and removed all countries from its "Red List" on 15 December. 

• While the UK dropped its travel bans, others have issued new bans on travel:

  • France has banned all travel to and from the UK starting 18 December, unless there is a compelling reason, due to concerns over the surge in cases in the UK. 

  • South Korea and Hong Kong have issued new travel bans for multiple countries, including in Africa and elsewhere. 

     

Latest DEVELOPMENTS

• On 26 November, the World Health Organization named the Omicron variant a "new variant of concern" after it had been identified a day earlier by scientists in South Africa. Omicron is spreading rapidly in South Africa, displacing Delta as the dominant strain among new cases, though it is unclear if Omicron originated in South Africa.
• Omicron has been detected in South Africa, Botswana, and in travelers to Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany,  Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Hong Kong. This list will grow in the coming days and weeks. 
• As a reaction to Omicron, many countries have banned flights from southern Africa, while several countries have significantly adjusted restrictions or banned all travel outright;
  
  
  • Israel - banned all foreign travelers until at least 11 December. Returning nationals must quarantine
  • Morocco - banned all incoming flights for at least the next two weeks.
  • Japan - indefinite entry ban for all foreign nationals.
  • Australia - flight suspension and entry ban for travelers and flights from southern Africa. Quarantine mandate and self-isolation requirement imposed for all international arrivals in Victoria, New South Wales, and Australian Capital Territory.

• While it is too soon to compare the symptoms and severity of Omicron to other iterations of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, Omicron has a number of mutations affecting the spike protein, raising concerns over possible immune evasion and increased transmissibility, as was seen with Delta, which currently comprises 99% of cases globally. 
• Pfizer-BioNTech expects to receive lab data on the Omicron variant within the next two weeks. It says that they can adapt mRNA vaccine within six weeks and possibly ship initial batches within 100 days in event of escape variant.
• Moderna has told investors that it is evaluating a full booster dose of original vaccine, studying two multi-valent boosters, and plans on launching an Omicron-specific booster.
• Johnson and Johnson has announced that it is already testing its vaccine’s efficacy against the new variant of concern.
• Novavax is on pace to file for U.S. EUA before 2022. It has already applied for approval in the EU and Canada. Novavax is developing a new version of its vaccine and it will begin testing and manufacturing in the next few weeks.

Latest DEVELOPMENTS

• The United States will lift international travel restrictions on 08 November for fully vaccinated individuals. Those vaccines approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) will be accepted. In addition, the U.S. land borders with Canada and Mexico will re-open to fully vaccinated leisure travelers. A negative test will still be required for international air arrivals.

• Australia is expected to lift restrictions on international travel in November, several months earlier than anticipated, due to high vaccination rates inside the country. At least 58 percent of the country has been fully vaccinated, just ahead of the United States.

• Cases, hospitalizations, and deaths have all steadily declined in the U.S. Hotspots are now focused in the upper Midwest where earlier cool temperatures have led to more indoor activity. 

Latest DEVELOPMENTS

• The European Union removed the United States from its "Safe List", causing several European nations to alter their entry restrictions on American travelers. For example, Spain now requires unvaccinated Americans to provide proof of a negative test, while Switzerland removed the U.S. from its own list of approved traveler countries. 
• Pfizer expects to report data needed for vaccine approval in five to 11-year-olds later in September and could potentially submit an application for emergency use shortly after. It said data for kids aged two to under five could arrive soon after. For children between six months and two years, Pfizer has said it could have safety and immunogenicity data as early as October or November. It is likely all children in the U.S. 6mo and older will be able to receive Pfizer's vaccine by the start of 2022.
• Hospitalizations in the U.S. appear to be flattening as the Delta variant wave looks to have peaked in much of the South. Hotspots are now in Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia. Daily deaths now average nearly 2,000/day and will likely peak in the next 10-14 days.
  
  

Latest DEVELOPMENTS

• The U.S. FDA gave full approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID vaccine, named Comirnaty. The decision set off a wave of vaccine mandates by various organizations, corporations, and institutions, including LSU, Ohio State, New York City school system, the Pentagon, and CVS, among others. Delta Airlines has announced they will charge unvaccinated employees an extra $200 per month for health insurance. 
• The FDA has authorized vaccine booster shots for immunocompromised or other at-risk individuals. 

Global DEVELOPMENTS

• As of 02 August, England will be open to vaccinated travelers from the USA and Europe, without the need to quarantine. Arrivals who have been fully vaccinated in the USA and European countries will still be required to complete a pre-departure test before arrival into England, alongside a PCR test on or before day 2 after arrival. 
  • Separate rules will continue to apply for those arriving from France.
  • Those vaccinated in the US will also need to provide proof of US residency.
  • Passengers from all countries cannot travel to the UK unless they have completed a passenger locator form.
    
• The US CDC updated its guidance for mask wearing amid the spread of the Delta variant across most of the country. 
  
  • They recommend for fully vaccinated people to wear a mask in public indoor settings in areas of substantial or high transmission.
  • They added guidance that fully vaccinated people might choose to wear a mask regardless of the level of transmission, particularly if they are immunocompromised or at increased risk for severe disease from COVID-19, or if they have someone in their household who is immunocompromised, at increased risk of severe disease or not fully vaccinated.

Global DEVELOPMENTS

• Europe has largely reopened to American tourists. The UK is not far behind, with planned lifting of quarantine restrictions on 19 July for those vaccinated through the NHS arriving from "amber list" countries. Fully vaccinated American tourists will be allowed into the UK later in the summer. See below map for breakdown.
• New cases are surging in Spain, the UK, and the Netherlands; however, deaths remain relatively flat, highlighting the power of vaccines in reducing hospitalizations and deaths.
  
• Southeast Asia, which has for the most part managed the pandemic well, is in the midst of a spike in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths due to the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant. Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines may experience shortages of hospital beds and oxygen in the coming weeks. Many countries in the region have imposed new restrictions.
  
• Latin America and southern Africa remain global hotspots for COVID-19 cases and deaths amid presence of variants and low vaccination rates.

UNITED STATES LATEST DEVELOPMENTS

• Maryland-based Novavax recently announced promising Phase 3 trial results for its protein-based vaccine. The two-dose vaccine has an estimated efficacy of 90.4% based on a study of 30,000 volunteers in the U.S. and Mexico. It expects to seek emergency authorization use later this year. It does not require special refrigeration and could be the key to vaccinating the third world. 
  
• Only Washington, Oregon, New Mexico, and Michigan have not fully reopened. Michigan and Washington will be open by 1 July while New Mexico and Oregon are waiting for residents to hit key vaccine milestones. 
  
• The U.S. announced it will buy 500 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine for distribution to 100 low-and middle-income countries.

For the latest United States case counts, click here.

UNITED STATES LATEST DEVELOPMENTS

• The U.S. CDC announced on 13 May that vaccinated individuals could resume activities that they had stopped doing during the pandemic. Masks are no longer recommended except when flying or taking public transit, when visiting health care facilities, and in congregate settings like prisons and homeless shelters. 
  
• Multiple states in the U.S. changed, or announced they were considering changes to mask mandates. Some private businesses will continue to require masks in their stores, likely until state-by-state vaccination rates meet an internal threshold.
  
• The potential lifting of mask mandates following the new CDC guidance raises questions about vaccination verification. It is likely each state will have a different system in place to deal with proof of vaccination. Some states have banned entities from requiring proof of vaccination. 
  
• There is optimism that being able to stop using a mask will incentivize those vaccine holdouts. Other states have implemented free food schemes, while Ohio took the extraordinary step of holding $1 million lottery once a week for vaccinated individuals in the state, in an effort to get more people vaccinated. 
  
• So far, around 154 million people have received at least one vaccine dose. This will increase as teenagers and adolescents get vaccinated. The CDC recently approved Pfizer's vaccine for use in 12-15 year-old children.

For the latest United States case counts, click here.