U.S. Outbreak Worsens; Vaccine Protest in Vienna: Virus Update

(Bloomberg) --

U.S. infections rose to an average of about 120,000 a day this week, the most since September, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg through Friday. The delta variant continues to drive infections and hospitalizations, though the new omicron variant has been reported now in more than 25 states.

Omicron has the potential to cause a wave of infections in England and fuel almost 75,000 deaths this winter, according to a research report by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. U.K. care homes are already cutting back on visits, the Guardian reported. 

About 44,000 people turned out in Vienna for the third large protest in the past month against mandatory vaccinations, organized by the far-right Freedom Party. An estimated 8,000 protesters demonstrated in downtown Hamburg saying they oppose vaccination mandates and shots for children.

Key Developments:

• Virus Tracker: Cases pass 269.6 million; deaths approach 5.3 million
• Vaccine Tracker: More than 8.37 billion shots given
• Omicron propels U.S. booster drive where it’s needed least
• What we know about omicron: QuickTake
• Closed U.S. movie theaters leave void from small towns to big cities
• Coronavirus Daily: Japan’s disappearing Covid deaths

Nurses Deployed to Western N.Y. (3:17 p.m. NY)

New York state’s largest health-care system will send nurses to hospitals in the western part of the state overwhelmed by the surge in Covid-19 cases, Governor Kathy Hochul said in a statement on Saturday. 

Almost 20 nurses from Northwell Health will assist in intensive care, emergency and surgery in Buffalo and Rochester, starting on Saturday, Hochul said. The positive test rate in western New York is about 10%, compared with the U.S. average of about 7.5%.

Pfizer Boosters Provide Omicron Protection: Study (2:51 p.m. NY)

People who received the second Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine between five and six months ago have no protection against infection or serious disease caused by the omicron variant, Israel’s Sheba Medical Center reported on Saturday from a study of 20 patients. 

However, protection against the variant increased by 100 times in those who received the third booster dose of the Pfizer vaccination a month ago. This proves that the booster offers ‘’significant protection” and reduces the chance of severe disease, Gili Regev-Yochay, the director of Sheba’s infectious disease unit, told journalists. 

The protection is about four times lower than for the delta variant “but it is still very optimistic,” she said. How quickly the booster’s protection will wane is still being studied, she added.

Germans Protest Against Vaccinations (1:18 p.m. NY)

An estimated 8,000 protesters demonstrated in downtown Hamburg saying they oppose vaccination mandates and shots for children, German broadcaster NDR reported, citing police.

A similar march last Saturday drew about 5,000. Germany’s parliament on Friday backed a limited mandate, including for health-care and nursing home employees, that requires proof of vaccination or recovery from Covid by March 15.

Pfizer Has 23% Efficacy Against Omicron: Study (12:29 a.m. NY)

A two-shot course of Pfizer Inc.’s vaccine has just 22.5% efficacy against symptomatic infection with the omicron variant, but can thwart severe disease, according to laboratory experiments in South Africa.

Researchers at the Africa Health Research Institute in Durban issued additional data on a small study released earlier this week. 

The research considered blood plasma samples from 12 participants. Scientists found omicron resulted in about a 41-fold reduction in levels of neutralizing antibodies produced by people who had received two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech SE shot, compared with the strain detected in China almost two years ago. 

England Could Face 75,000 Winter Deaths (12:22 p.m. NY)

The omicron variant has the potential to cause a wave of infections in England and fuel almost 75,000 deaths this winter, if the government doesn’t impose additional precautionary control measures, according to a research report by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

Under the government’s ‘Plan B’ rules imposed last week in response to omicron, the most optimistic scenario for England indicates about 175,000 hospital admissions and 24,700 deaths for the five-month period from December to April. The worst-case projection is for 74,800 deaths. That is more than half the 127,154 fatalities registered in England since the start of the pandemic.

Big Turnout for Third Vienna Rally (11:25 a.m. NY)

Police estimate about 44,000 people turned out in Vienna for the third large protest in the past month against mandatory vaccinations, organized by the far-right Freedom Party and its leader, Herbert Kickl. Several arrests were reported. Kickl addressed the flag-waving, drum-banging crowd in the city’s Heldenplatz.

Austria’s nationwide coronavirus lockdown will lift on Sunday after almost three weeks, giving way to more of a patchwork of measures. In Vienna, museums and cultural events will reopen, with stores to follow on Monday and restaurants on Dec. 20.

The central European nation plans to push ahead with a vaccine mandate, with people who haven’t had an inoculation by February subject to fines. Meantime, access to many parts of Austrian life will be restricted for those who can’t show evidence of vaccination.

U.S. Outbreak Worsens (10:30 a.m. NY)

U.S. infections rose to an average of about 120,000 a day this week, the most since September, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg through Friday. The delta variant continues to drive infections and hospitalizations, though the new omicron variant has been reported now in more than 25 states. Most of the omicron cases are among vaccinated people and are so far mild. 

In 12 states and the nation’s capital, the seven-day average of hospital admissions with confirmed Covid-19 has climbed at least 50% from two weeks earlier, according to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data. 

French PM Urges Vaccines Ahead of Christmas (8:00 a.m. NY)

French Prime Minister Jean Castex urged more people to get vaccinated, with a fifth wave of cases sweeping the country. “People can celebrate Christmas normally, but we must respect the rules...and get vaccinated,” Castex, who tested positive for Covid-19 last month, told public radio outlet France Blue late Friday, according to AP. At least 81% of the French population has had at least one shot, according to Bloomberg’s vaccine tracker.

Scotland Tightens Isolation Rules (6:15 a.m. NY)

People in Scotland who live with someone who catches Covid must now isolate for 10 days, regardless of whether they test negative or have been vaccinated. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the change on Friday, warning that omicron could bring a surge of new cases.

U.K. Cuts Care Home Visits (5:45 p.m. HK)

The U.K. Department of Health and Social Care is letting care home residents receive visits from just three nominated people over Christmas, the Guardian reported. The new rule is expected to be effective on Wednesday, according to the paper. Residents and staff will also be subject to more frequent testing. 

The changes come as U.K. Health and Security Agency officials advise ministers that “stringent national measures” should be taken within a week to avoid Covid hospitalizations surpassing last winter’s peak, the Guardian reported. Curbs such as stricter isolation rules for contacts of Covid cases, masks in pubs and a hospitality shut-down could be considered.

Separately, the U.K.’s hospitality industry is trying to solve staff shortages exacerbated by the pandemic by offering signing bonuses of as much as 2,000 pounds ($2,650), according to a separate report in the Guardian. 

German ICUs Still ‘Severely Strained’ (5:30 p.m. HK)

German ICUs remain “severely strained,” according to Gernot Marx, the head of the country’s association for intensive care medicine DIVI. “We are running at full capacity throughout Germany,” Marx told the Passauer Neue Presse newspaper.

Even if new cases drop significantly, it takes time for that kind of relief to reach the ICUs, he said. The association expects the number of patients in ICUs to reach 6,000 by Christmas, exceeding the peak during the second wave of the pandemic last winter.

Czech Republic to Vaccinate Kids (4:30 p.m. HK)

The Czech Republic said it will start vaccinating children between 5 and 11 years old next week. The country will open registry for kids from Sunday, and expects the first shots for children, from the total 300,000 it ordered, to arrive at the beginning of the week. The country had 12,836 new cases on Friday, 5,300 less than a week ago. 

German Cases Decline (2:25 p.m. HK)

Cases in Germany are falling. The nation recorded a total of 53,697 new cases, compared with 61,288 the day before, according to the country’s public health authority RKI. The 7-day incidence rate fell to 402.9 per 100,000 people. Daily reported new deaths associated with the virus rose by 510, bringing the total to 105,506. 

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With assistance from Bloomberg