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11.07pm GMT23:07
Senior NHS leaders have warned that the only way to meet the UK government’s January booster vaccine deadline is to reduce or eliminate routine care, The Independent reports.
On Monday, plans were announced to call on all adults to get a booster dose by the end of January, but health care providers have not yet been told how the NHS is expected to ramp up immunization services.
An NHS trust leader said the only way to reach the deadline would be to “stop the least important and most routine work” at a time when waiting lists are already at record levels.
The National Audit Office (NAO) warned on Wednesday that delays in NHS care could reach between 7 million and 12 million by early 2025.
Another senior trust leader said, “We don’t have enough staff to administer the vaccination that we have now, it will lead to a massive additional workload. It will likely alienate staff from the services we are still struggling to operate.”
10.46 PM GMT 22:46
UK ministers have repeatedly clashed over advice about celebrations and mistletoe, with Home Office staff being urged to limit the numbers who attend Christmas parties in the office, while the health minister has contrasted with one of his Cabinet colleagues to insist “people can sympathize with who they wish.”
Amid concerns about the Omicron variant, the government has been accused of sending mixed messages about whether people should change their behavior over the holiday period despite the lack of laws prohibiting social contact between healthy people.
Sajid Javid became the last to step in, contradicting Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey’s warning against kissing strangers under the mistletoe.
Meanwhile, guidance issued to civil servants at the Ministry of the Interior on Wednesday, seen by the Guardian, said they could celebrate with colleagues, but urged people to “take reasonable precautions”.
Read the full report here:
9.47 PM GMT 21:47
Experts in South Africa said the Omicron variant appears to re-infect people at three times the rate of previous strains.
According to new evidence collected by the country’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NICD), the latest epidemiological evidence indicates that Omicron can evade immunity from infection with previous variants and cause re-infection at three times the previous rates.
“We believe previous infections do not provide protection from Omicron,” said Anne von Gottberg, an expert at the NICD.
Scientists from the same institute said preliminary data suggests that Omicron may cause less severe disease than previous variants, although that may be skewed by the fact that many of the first cases of Omicron were identified in younger individuals or detected in recently screened travelers. .
In mid-November, South Africa was reporting around 300 Covid cases per day. On Wednesday, it reported 8,561 new cases, up from 4,373 the day before and 2,273 on Monday.
Read the full story here:
8.39pm GMT20:39
Third Omicron case detected in the United States
Colorado health officials have identified a case of a woman who recently traveled to South Africa, according to local media.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said the patient had been vaccinated, had mild symptoms and was recovering at home, KKTV reports.
Colorado is the third state in the US to determine Omicron’s case, after California on Wednesday and Minnesota earlier today.
Updated at 8.50pm GMT
8.31pm GMT20:31
Here’s more on the second confirmed Omicron case in the United States, after the first case was registered in California on Wednesday.
Health officials said a case was also found in an adult man who attended an anime convention in New York City in late November. The man, who was vaccinated, tested positive after returning to his home in Minnesota and seeking a Covid test after developing mild symptoms on November 22.
New York officials said they are working to track those who attended Anime NYC 2021, which took place November 19-21 at the city’s Jacob K Javits Convention Center. Vaccinations were required for this event.
Governor Cathy Hochhol said there are no confirmed omicron cases among New Yorkers, but Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement that “we should assume” that there is a local spread of omicron in the city.
Updated at 8.51pm GMT
8.15 pm GMT 20: 15
Brazil confirms two more cases of Omicron
The Ministry of Health said that two more cases of the Omicron variant were recorded in Brazil, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to five.
The two new cases are two people who boarded the plane in South Africa, passed through Ethiopia, disembarked in Guarulhos, and finally arrived in Brasilia.
One individual has mild symptoms of the disease and the other is asymptomatic.
Eight investigations are still ongoing.
8.04 PM GMT 20:04
Google is delaying its return to its EMEA offices due to concerns about the Omicron variant, Business Insider reports, citing a memo it obtained.
Staff were previously told they are expected to be in offices on January 10 in the form of a new mixed business, with offices in different countries and locations to decide for themselves when to return after that date depending on local conditions.
In the memo, Matt Britten, Google’s president for Europe, Middle East and Africa, reportedly said the company would push that deadline beyond January 10.
No guidance has been issued to US or North American employees regarding changes to the return-to-office plan.
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