As covid surges, experts say US booster effort is far behind
As the pandemic has surged toward its third year, shape-shifting into the new omicron variant and spiking in parts of the country, health officials are urging Americans to get vaccinated and boosted. But the going has been slow. Of American adults who are fully vaccinated and eligible for a booster shot, only about 30% have received one, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And among all Americans, only about 1 in 6 has received a booster. Some states may be undercounting, but the lag is alarming because omicron infections appear to evade regular one- or two-dose vaccinations.
Los Angeles delays enforcing its student vaccine mandate
By at least one important measure, the Los Angeles school district’s plan to require vaccinations for students 12 and older has been a success: Three months after the mandate was announced, almost 90% of those students had complied. Nevertheless, the Los Angeles Unified School District decided this week to slow things down. Board members voted 6-1 not to enforce the vaccine deadline, originally scheduled for Jan. 10, until fall 2022. Board members stressed that unvaccinated students will have to be tested regularly and that the district would keep up its outreach efforts to help as many students as possible meet the new deadline.
Senate confirms Biden’s 40th judge, tying a Reagan-era record
The Senate confirmed President Joe Biden’s 40th federal judicial nominee early Saturday, the most judges confirmed in a president’s first year in the past 40 years. In a predawn mad dash before leaving Washington for the holidays, lawmakers confirmed 10 district court judges, bringing the year-end total to 40 and notching an achievement not seen since former President Ronald Reagan. The milestone came as a welcome victory for frustrated congressional Democrats whose legislative agenda continues to hit roadblock after roadblock. The Senate confirmed 18 circuit and district court judges in President Donald Trump’s first year in office, and 12 in President Barack Obama’s inaugural year.
Pope doubles down on quashing old Latin Mass with new limits
Pope Francis doubled down Saturday on his efforts to quash the old Latin Mass, forbidding the celebration of some sacraments according to the ancient rite in his latest salvo against conservatives and traditionalists. The Vatican’s liturgy office issued a document that clarified some questions that arose after Francis in July reimposed restrictions on celebrating the old Latin Mass that Pope Benedict XVI had relaxed in 2007. Francis said then that he was reversing his predecessor because Benedict’s reform had become a source of division in the church and been exploited by Catholics opposed to the Second Vatican Council, the 1960s meetings that modernized the church and its liturgy. The Vatican repeated that rationale on Saturday, saying the clarifications and new restrictions were necessary to preserve the unity of the church and its sacraments.
Huge fire damages sprawling QVC distribution center
A huge fire broke out at a distribution center for QVC, the home shopping network, on Saturday morning in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, ripping through the 1.2 million-square-foot building and damaging three-quarters of it, officials said. There were 300 employees in the building when the fire started, Eric Evans, the manager for Edgecombe County, North Carolina, said at a news conference on Saturday afternoon. QVC and the authorities believe that everyone in the building made it out safely, he said, though one person remained unaccounted for. It was not immediately known what caused the fire or where it began.
London, with Britain’s largest surge, goes on emergency footing against omicron
With hospitalizations and a rapid rise in new coronavirus cases being driven by a surge of the omicron variant, London’s mayor on Saturday declared a “major incident” — or emergency — for the first time since January. The move came as the number of patients in London hospitals increased 29% over the past week. The city has confirmed 65,525 new cases in the past week and 26,418 cases in the past day, the highest number since the start of the pandemic, Mayor Sadiq Khan’s office said. The Greater London area has seen cases rise by nearly 200% over the past two weeks, making it the hardest hit area of Britain.
With omicron spreading, Netherlands locks down
Nations across Europe have been tightening restrictions to prevent the spread of the omicron variant, and on Saturday, the Netherlands became the first European country to announce a full lockdown to fight the variant. Dutch leaders ordered the closing of all nonessential shops, bars, restaurants, gyms, outdoor sports, cultural venues and schools from Sunday until mid-January. The Netherlands, normally a well-organized country, has struggled more than many other wealthy nations to control the virus, and its booster campaign has been relatively slow. The health minister, Hugo de Jonge, said that efforts to mass-administer booster shots would be drastically increased.
Novavax vaccine wins emergency approval from WHO
The World Health Organization granted emergency authorization to a COVID-19 vaccine produced by Maryland-based Novavax and the Serum Institute of India, opening the door for the vaccine, also called Novavax, to be distributed to lower-income countries. The announcement was made Friday, about six weeks after the company submitted its application. News of its authorization came as governments around the world reimposed restrictions, bracing for a surge in cases brought on by the omicron variant. The approval of Novavax could bring important change. Novavax announced an agreement in February to supply 1.1 billion doses to COVAX, a U.N.-backed initiative to deliver vaccines to low- and middle-income countries.
Israeli defense officials cast doubt on threat to attack Iran
With diplomatic efforts to curb Iran’s nuclear program teetering, Israel’s defense minister has ordered his forces to prepare a military option, warning the world that Israel would take matters into its own hands if a new nuclear agreement did not sufficiently constrain Iran. But several current and former senior Israeli military officials and experts say that Israel lacks the ability to pull off an assault that could destroy, or even significantly delay, Iran’s nuclear program, at least not anytime soon. One current high-ranking security official said it would take at least two years to prepare an attack that could cause significant damage to Iran’s nuclear project.
By wire sources
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