DENVER — Colorado Gov. Jared Polis says the state will expand COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to people ages 65 to 69 and school personnel on Feb. 8.
The announcement came Friday as the state updated its distribution plan to include these groups in “Phase 1b 2.” In addition to preschool through 12th grade teachers, childcare providers, bus drivers, safety workers and paraprofessionals will be eligible to receive the vaccine.
State officials say there are 408,000 people in this group, and the goal is to vaccinate 55% of them by March 5.
Adults 65 to 69 can schedule appointments through providers, and educators will get vaccines through their employers.
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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:
Dr. Fauci sees vaccination for kids by late spring or the summer. Johnson & Johnson 1-dose shot appears to prevents virus, but less than some others. WHO team visits Wuhan hospital that had early coronavirus patients. Dubai blamed by several countries for spreading the coronavirus abroad after the city welcomed New Year’s revelers. Philadelphia’s problematic vaccine rollout raises larger questions.
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Follow all of AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
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HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:
PRAGUE — The Czech Republic is banning foreigners from entering the country for non-essential reasons in an effort to contain the coronavirus pandemic.
The Foreign Ministry says the ban, which becomes effective on Saturday, applies for all countries.
The exceptions to the ban includes those who work or study in the country. Trips to the country to visit relatives and nursing homes, receive medical care and attend weddings and funerals also are allowed.
The ban is part of a series of new restrictive measures that are tightening the country’s lockdown. They have been approved with a goal to further limit people’s contacts and movement.
Earlier in January, the day-to-day increase in coronavirus cases in the country was gradually declining since hitting a record high of nearly of nearly 18,000 on Jan 6. But the numbers didn’t drop enough and started to rise again this week.
The government is also worried about the potential impact of the more contagious British variant on the health system, which has been under serious pressure for months.
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PARIS — France is closing its borders to people arriving from outside the European Union starting Sunday to try to stop the spread of new variants of the coronavirus.
French Prime Minister Jean Castex announced the measure Friday night after an emergency government health security meeting at the presidential palace, warning of a “great risk” from the new variants.
All those arriving from other EU countries will be required to produce a negative virus test, he says. France will close all large shopping centers starting Sunday and limit travel to and from its overseas territories.
Castex ordered stepped up police checks of those who violate France’s 12-hour-a-day curfew, hold secret parties or reopen restaurants in defiance of a closure order in place since October.
Virus infections, hospitalizations and deaths have been rising steadily but not sharply in recent weeks. Many doctors have been urging a new nationwide shutdown like those imposed in several other European countries.
Castex says the measures are an attempt to avoid the economic cost of a third lockdown. Currently, more than 60% of intensive care beds are occupied by coronavirus patients. France has reported more than 75,000 deaths, seventh highest in the world.
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JACKSON, Miss. — Mississippi residents scrambled to book appointments for COVID-19 vaccinations after Republican Gov. Tate Reeves announced Friday that 15,000 new openings were available for the first of two doses.
“I’m sure they will be booked quickly!” Reeves wrote on Twitter. “Stay safe and God bless!”
In just over two hours, all of the appointments were filled.
Laurie Bertram Roberts, who splits time between her home in Jackson and a job in Alabama, told The Associated Press she and one of her daughters went online Friday and booked vaccination appointments for themselves and six other family members.
Roberts said they managed to get appointments for five people in Jackson, where they live. But, they had to book one appointment in Vicksburg, which is about an hour’s drive one way, and two in Natchez, which is about a two-hour drive in one direction.
Coronavirus vaccinations in Mississippi are currently available for people 65 and older, health care workers and those who are at least 16 and have health conditions that might make them more vulnerable to the virus.
Inoculations are being done at hospitals, community health centers, private clinics and at 19 state-run drive-thru sites.
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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a law that extends eviction protections through the end of June.
Newsom signed the law on Friday, one day after it was approved by the state Legislature.
Last year, Newsom signed a law that banned evictions for unpaid rent for tenants who paid at least 25% of their rent owed after Sept. 1. The law Newsom signed Friday extends those protections through June 30.
The law will also use federal stimulus dollars to pay off 80% of some tenants’ unpaid rent, but only if landlords agree to forgive the remaining 20%.
People who earn more than 80% of the area median income are not eligible for the money.
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ALBANY, N.Y. — New York City restaurants can reopen for indoor dining at a quarter of capacity by Valentine’s Day, and big weddings can return statewide in March if infection rates continue to drop.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s announcements are part of a gradual loosening of economic restrictions in New York state as a post-holiday bump in infections slows down. Statewide COVID-19 hospitalizations have dropped by 916 since Jan. 19 to 8,357.
Cuomo says the indoor dining ban at city restaurants that went into effect Dec. 14 is on track to be partly lifted on Feb. 14. The 50-person limit on wedding receptions may increase to 150 on March 15, as long as the venue remains at 50% capacity or under.
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MADISON, Wis. — Democratic Gov. Tony Evers lashed out at rival Republicans who tried to repeal his statewide mask mandate.
Evers says Republicans were trying to throw out one of the only tools he has left to limit the spread of the coronavirus. GOP lawmakers and conservative groups last year convinced the state Supreme Court to kill Evers’ stay-at-home order and the limits he placed on the size of indoor gatherings.
“It is important for people to remember that masks save lives,” the governor said. “It is not about individual liberty, as others would say.” He added people aren’t at liberty to go 100 mph on highways.
Senate Republicans voted Tuesday to end the governor’s health emergency declaration, which would kill the mask mandate. Assembly Republicans were expected to follow suit Thursday but delayed a vote after learning that ending the emergency declaration would cost the state $49 million in federal food assistance.
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OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma House and Senate leaders announced COVID-19 safety protocols for the upcoming legislative session that include encouraging, but not requiring, lawmakers to wear masks when at the state Capitol.
The precautions announced jointly Friday by House Speaker Charles McCall and Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat also include requiring staff and visitors to wear masks and livestreaming all proceedings for the session that starts Monday.
Gov. Kevin Stitt and at least seven of the state’s 149 lawmakers have tested positive for the coronavirus. The state health department reported 2,787 cases and 48 more deaths, increasing the totals to 384,217 cases and 3,471 confirmed deaths.
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ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey says it has detected the possibly more infectious coronavirus variant first found in southeast England.
Health Minister Fahrettin Koca says on Twitter that 128 people have been diagnosed with the new coronavirus variant in 17 cities across the country.
“We have to be vigilant about the threat of mutations,” tweeted Koca, adding that new mutations could pose a threat to the country’s vaccination drive.
The country has reported 2.4 million coronavirus cases and nearly 26,000 confirmed deaths.
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ALGIERS, Algeria — Algeria received its first coronavirus vaccines Friday, a shipment of Russia’s Sputnik V, according to the health minister.
Minister Amar Belhimeur didn’t indicate how many arrived, although the government has said it had ordered a first batch of 500,000 doses. The government also is negotiating acquisition of the AstraZeneca vaccine, according to the communications minister.
Algeria will start vaccinations Saturday at a hospital in the town of Blida, where the first cases of the coronavirus were confirmed in March.
The campaign will start with health care workers, the elderly and other vulnerable populations.
Algeria has registered more than 106,000 coronavirus cases and 2,881 confirmed deaths.
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WASHINGTON — Dr. Anthony Fauci says the emergence and increasing spread of coronavirus mutations means vaccine makers must be ready to make new shots to stay ahead of the public health crisis.
The government’s top infectious disease expert spoke Friday during a White House coronavirus briefing.
“This is a wake-up call to all of us,” says Fauci, noting government scientists will be working to keep pace with virus mutations.
The nature of viruses is to change in ways that promote their spread, Fauci says. The evolution of mutant versions means scientists need to be “nimble” and ready to make tweaks to vaccines. So far, the mutants haven’t overwhelmed the protective power of vaccines.
Fauci says it is important to vaccinate people as quickly as possible to keep new mutations from developing.
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BERLIN — Regulators have authorized AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine for use in adults throughout the European Union, amid criticism the bloc is not moving fast enough to vaccinate its population.
The European Medicines Agency licensed the vaccine Friday to be used in people 18 and over, although concerns had been raised this week that not enough data exist to prove it works in older people.
The shot is the third COVID-19 vaccine given the greenlight by the European Medicines Agency, after those made by Pfizer and Moderna. Both were authorized for all adults.
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WASHINGTON — The Biden Administration won’t need any new coronavirus vaccines approved by the FDA to fulfill its plan to purchase 200 million additional doses by the summer.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki says while it’s a “positive step” for additional vaccines to receive FDA approval, the Biden Administration will rely solely on Moderna and Pfizer for its new purchases.
Johnson & Johnson announced Friday its single-dose coronavirus vaccine was effective, though at a lower rate than the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. The company is seeking emergency-use authorization from the FDA.
Psaki says the Biden administration would “rely on our health and medical experts to advise” on additional vaccines.
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TOKYO — Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga says he is determined to host the postponed Tokyo Olympics this summer, despite growing uncertainty as coronavirus cases rise at home.
Suga, speaking at a virtual meeting of the World Economic Forum, says the Olympics would be a symbol of human victory over the pandemic. He pledged to get infections under control in Japan as soon as possible and achieve a “safe and secure” Olympics.
Olympic officials have repeatedly said the games will be held in July as planned after a one-year postponement, though various scenarios including the holding of events without spectators are being considered.
Suga has been criticized for delaying virus measures until daily cases surged to new highs in late December. He eventually declared a partial state of emergency in early January, issuing non-binding requests through Feb. 7 for people to avoid crowds or eating out in groups and for restaurants and bars to close early.
New coronavirus cases in Tokyo have dipped but experts say they haven’t slowed enough, indicating the emergency measures could be extended for several more weeks.
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KYIV, Ukraine — The parliament of Ukraine has passed a law banning registration of the coronavirus vaccine developed by Russia.
The vaccine, called Sputnik V, has been registered for use in 11 countries as well as in Russia. The parliament on Friday approved registration for vaccines used in the United States, China, Japan and the European Union, among other countries, but specifically excluded vaccines developed by “the aggressor state.”
Ukraine’s relations with Russia plunged after the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea and the continuing conflict in the country’s east with Russia-backed separatists. Ukraine’s underfunded medical system has been hit hard by the coronavirus. The country of 44 million has recorded more than 1.2 million infections and more than 22,000 confirmed deaths.
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NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. — Johnson & Johnson says its vaccine appears to protect against COVID-19 with just one shot.
It’s not as strong as some two-shot rivals but still potentially helpful for a world in dire need of more doses. Results released Friday show the single-shot vaccine was 66% effective overall at preventing moderate to severe illness, and much more protective against the most serious symptoms.
These are preliminary findings from a study of 44,000 volunteers that is ongoing. Researchers tracked illnesses starting 28 days after vaccination – about the time when, if participants were getting a two-dose variety instead, they would have needed another shot.
After day 28, no one who got vaccinated needed hospitalization or died regardless of whether they were exposed to “regular COVID or these particularly nasty variants,” Dr. Mathai Mammen, global research chief for J&J’s Janssen Pharmaceutical unit, told The Associated Press. When the vaccinated did become infected, they had a milder illness.
The vaccine worked better in the U.S. compared to South Africa, where it was up against a tougher, mutated virus. The company says it will file an application for emergency use soon in the U.S., and then abroad.
It expects to have some ready to ship as soon as authorities give the green light and supply 100 million doses to the U.S. by June.
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BERLIN — Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis says it has signed an agreement to help production of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine.
Novartis says the initial agreement calls for it to take active ingredient from Germany’s BioNTech and fill it into vials at its plant in Stein, Switzerland. The vials would be sent back to BioNTech for distribution.
Novartis says the plan is for it to start production during the second quarter, with the initial shipment of finished vaccines expected in the third quarter.
Novartis’ announcement comes after another rival, French drugmaker Sanofi, said Wednesday it would help bottle and package the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine at a plant in Frankfurt.