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U.S. Cases Trend Up; German Troops Put on Standby: Virus Update

Cases Rise in U.S. Northeast; Netherlands Lockdown: Virus Update

U.S. cases are trending up, with new infections in the week that ended Friday the highest in more than a month, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg. At the same time, almost 10 million vaccine doses were administered in the last week, the most since late May.

German leaders made urgent calls for wider vaccine acceptance and put troops on standby to help the rollout of booster shots. The Netherlands is entering a partial lockdown, closing shops, bars and restaurants early for three weeks. France, where cases have remained relatively low, reported the most infections in two months. 

Singapore eased its rules for vaccination records for travelers from the U.S., the Strait Times reported, after U.S. travelers were served quarantine notices because their documentation wasn’t recognized.

Key Developments:

  • Virus Tracker: Cases exceed 252.8 million; deaths pass 5.09 million
  • Vaccine Tracker: More than 7.46 billion shots given
  • German vaccines lag, cases spike, with troops on standby to help
  • China’s wildlife harbor germs that could endanger people
  • Airbus sees pandemic as a blip with 39,000 new jets by 2040
  • Vaccine mandates are essential to stopping Covid-19: Editorial
U.S. Cases Trend Up; German Troops Put on Standby: Virus Update

U.S. Weekly Vaccinations Highest Since May (4:32 p.m. NY)

The U.S. administered almost 10 million vaccine doses in the last week, the most since late May, the White House said on Saturday. Ronald Klain, President Joe Biden’s chief of staff, tweeted that the number has increased because of booster shots, vaccine requirements and the start of vaccinations for children ages 5 to 11. By Wednesday, a total of about 900,000 shots were given to young children. Booster shots outpacing first doses by far. 

Singapore Eases Rules on Vaccine Records for U.S. Travelers (2 p.m. NY)

Singapore eased its rules for vaccination records for travelers from the U.S. With only nine states providing these records on digitally verifiable certificates, the city-state will now accept a physical vaccination card along with a letter from the provider of the inoculation, the Straits Times reported.

The move came after the paper reported travelers from the U.S. were served quarantine notices when they arrived in Singapore because their vaccination records weren’t recognized.

U.K. to Move Up Booster Eligibility (1:47 p.m. NY)

The U.K. plans to offer booster shots early, at five months after full vaccination from the current six, the Guardian reported, citing anonymous sources. The change is aimed at reducing possible pressure as the winter approaches, the newspaper reported. 

Those eligible for the earlier shots are frontline health workers, people with underlying health conditions and those older than 50. 

A record 2 million booster shots were given in the last week for a total of more than 12 million, the government announced on Saturday. 

France Cases Highest in Two Months (1:39 p.m. NY)

France reported the highest increase in daily infections since Sept. 2 with 14,646 new cases. The country’s seven-day average has been steadily increasing and is now nearly at 10,000, which is twice as much as three weeks ago. Still, France’s infections have stayed relatively low as much of Europe is suffering through a new viral wave.

Kaiser Permanente Strike Averted (12:32 p.m. NY)

Kaiser Permanente reached a tentative agreement with unions, averting what could have been the largest strike yet this year. The averted strike would have involved more than 30,000 workers from nurses and pharmacists to janitors and locksmiths.

The health-care company reached the agreement on a four-year contract covering 50,000 employees in 22 local unions, the Alliance of Health Care Unions said in a statement Saturday. 

Workers were planning to walk out of hospitals across mostly the U.S. West Coast on Monday morning, a move that could have disrupted a health-care system recovering from the damage of the Covid-19 pandemic and as U.S. hospitals confront a new wave of infections heading into the winter. 

Idaho Lawmakers Return to Fight Mandates (12:16 p.m. NY)

Idaho’s Republican-controlled legislature is coming out of recess on Monday to consider bills seeking to blunt federal vaccine mandates. Possible actions include a defense fund for businesses fighting mandates and exemptions to vaccine or mask rules, the Idaho Statesman reported.  

As in several other states, the legislature appears to be angering some in the business community, who say they don’t want another layer of government interference and that the issues will ultimately be decided in the courts. 

“Make no mistake that it is all for the purpose of scoring political points and appealing to a tiny philosophical fringe,” Alex LaBeau, president of the Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry, wrote in a statement this week. 

Idaho is recovering from a sharp spike in infections and deaths that peaked last month.

Slovenian Hospitals Strained (10:47 a.m NY)

Slovenian hospitals are near a breaking point as numbers of patients in ICUs climbed to 225 on Saturday, the highest since the beginning of the epidemic in March 2020. With the vaccination campaign stalling at around 54% of citizens fully immunized, daily deaths hit 20 for the second time in a week, the most since February. Total deaths are 4,920.

U.S. Weekly Cases Accelerate (10 a.m. NY)

U.S. cases are trending up, with new infections in the week that ended Friday the highest in more than a month, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg. The outbreak has begun to accelerate in the Northeast, though has been worst in the Southwest, Rocky Mountains and upper Midwest states. 

Daily deaths also increased slightly in the week that ended Friday compared with the previous seven days, the data show. Overall, though, fatalities are almost 40% less than in early October. 

Germany Puts 12,000 More Soldiers on Standby (6:15 a.m. NY)

Germany’s military is putting up to 12,000 more soldiers on standby to support hospitals and health officials overburdened by coronavirus cases, Der Spiegel reported. The military, which has been helping with Germany’s Covid response since the start of the pandemic, should also be available to assist with booster vaccinations and testing, the magazine said, citing a memo from a top armed forces official.

Lockdowns for unvaccinated people can’t be ruled out, according to Christian Lindner, in line to take over the finance ministry in Germany’s next government.  

“If enough people get inoculated, that’s our path out of the pandemic,” Chancellor Angela Merkel said in her regular podcast published Saturday.

The number of infections in Germany continued to rise at a near-record pace, with another 45,081 cases reported for the 24 hours through early Saturday. The RKI public-health institute also recorded another 228 deaths from Covid, taking the total to 97,617, while the seven-day incidence rate climbed to 277.4.

U.S. Cases Trend Up; German Troops Put on Standby: Virus Update

Iran Cases Slow (6 a.m. NY)

Iran’s daily new cases fell below 5,000 for the first time since June 7, at 4,306, the latest health ministry data showed. The country also recorded 124 deaths in the last 24 hours, in line with an average of 123 daily fatalities from the virus over the past seven days.

Nearly half of Iran’s population, or 42 million people, have received two vaccine doses so far as the country has started giving booster shots to people above 60.

Poland Offers Inducements for Booster Shots (5 p.m. HK)

Poland said vaccine certificates will be valid for a year after getting a booster shot as it struggles to to stave off the latest wave of infection. The move is aimed at promoting more vaccinations as hospitalizations rose to 13,000 Saturday, an increase of 702 people. Almost 14,300 new cases were reported.

Czech Cases Top 10,000 for Fourth Day (3:30 p.m. HK)

The Czech Republic had 14,199 new cases of Covid-19 on Friday, an increase by 5,000 from a week ago. The nation of 10.7 million has now reported new coronavirus cases above 10,000 for 4 straight days. The government will announce curbs on Monday, that may involve limiting of access for non-vaccinated people to some services and facilities.

China’s Dalian Locks Down Thousands of Students (12:15 p.m. HK)

Tens of thousands of university students are under lockdown on their campuses in the northeastern Chinese city of Dalian, which is battling the biggest flareup in the country’s current outbreak, according to newspaper Dushikuaibao.

Two universities in Zhuanghe in Dalian have imposed the curbs since the port city discovered Covid cases on Nov. 4, the report said, citing university students. Students are having online classes from their dormitories, the paper said.

U.S. Cases Trend Up; German Troops Put on Standby: Virus Update

Dalian has become the country’s latest hotspot, reporting 40 local cases on Saturday out of the 57 new infections added nationwide. The city’s authorities have urged people not to leave their homes to reduce transmission, and have halted operations at public venues deemed non-essential.

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With assistance from Bloomberg