Parts of the US health system “are in dire straits,” as the spread of the Covid-19 Delta variant forces some states to prepare for rationed medical care, said Rochelle Walensky, head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“That means that we are talking about who is going to get a ventilator, who is going to get an ICU bed,” Walensky said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “Those are not easy discussions to have, and that is not a place we want our health-care system to ever be.”
Idaho, among the US’s least-vaccinated states, and Alaska have said that hospitals can begin to ration medical care if needed. A major hospital in Montana also implemented so-called “crisis of care standards” to prioritize who is treated. Health officials warned the measure could be widened across the state.
Meanwhile, American men lost 2.2 years of life expectancy last year because of Covid-19, the biggest decline among 29 nations in a study of the pandemic’s impact on longevity.
Deaths among working-age men contributed the most to declining lifespans in the US, according to research led by demographers at the U.K.’s University of Oxford. Only Denmark and Norway, who have excelled at controlling their outbreaks, avoided drops in life expectancy across both sexes, the study published Sunday in the International Journal of Epidemiology found.
Key developments:
Thailand to reopen regions including Bangkok
Thailand’s government is reopening 10 more provinces, including Bangkok, for vaccinated foreign tourists from November 1. The mandatory quarantine period for vaccinated travelers will be cut to seven days from 14, the government said in a statement.
More places and businesses, including theaters and nail salons, will be allowed to reopen from October 1, the government said. A nighttime curfew will be shortened by one hour, it said.
Taiwan eases restrictions
Taiwan will allow some recreational facilities, including karaoke and video game venues, to resume operation conditionally from October 5, according to statement from Taiwan Centers for Disease Control. The easing comes as Taiwan reported zero new daily infections.
Partition or separated seating at the venues is required, and no dining will be allowed. Bars and nightclubs will remain shut.
South Africa exits third virus wave
South Africa has officially exited its third wave of coronavirus infections, the National Institute of Communicable Diseases said. New infections fell to below 1,000 on Sunday and the positivity rate of tests was 5 percent, the institute said in a statement.
With almost 2.9 million confirmed infections and over 87,000 deaths, South Africa has been worse hit by the virus than any other country in Africa.
New Zealand’s pilot program for travelers
New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said a small pilot program will begin soon to trial self-isolation for returning international travelers.
Those arriving in New Zealand are allowed to isolate at home for 14 days as an alternative for managed isolation. The program will be capped at 150 people and focus on those required to travel for work. Participants must be New Zealand citizens and residents and fully vaccinated.
More freedoms in New South Wales
New South Wales will roll back more restrictions for fully-vaccinated adults and raise caps on international arrivals once 80 percent of the adult population has received two shots at the end of October, as it unveils the next stages of its path out of Covid lockdown.
State Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the next phase of the re-opening will include increased access to hospitality venues, the ability to travel freely throughout the state and eased limits on the number of guests able to visit homes once the 80-percent threshold is reached, which she expects will come at the end of next month.
China infections tailing off
China reported 16 infections on Monday, as the spread of Delta variant appears to be tailing off. The cluster in southeastern province Fujian dwindled to two cases, all in Xiamen, a city of 5.2 million and a manufacturing hub for electric components that was placed under lockdown following detection of cases in early September.
The Northeastern city of Harbin reported 13 infections, including two asymptomatic cases, while a smaller city in the north called Suihua reported one infection, raising concern that the virus is spreading within the broader Heilongjiang Province.
Korea cases set to rise after holiday
South Korea reported 2,383 new cases after hitting a record of 3,272 on Saturday. Health authorities expect infections to rise sharply from the middle of this week in the aftermath of the Chuseok holiday.
The country will begin administering booster shots for people aged 60 or older and those at high risk from October 25. Pregnant women and people aged 12 to 17 will begin receiving vaccinations on October 18. South Korea aims to achieve its goal of inoculating 80 percent of adults by the end of October to prepare for gradual return to normal life.
Singapore strategy unchanged
Singapore is moving on a journey toward living with Covid-19, and right now the country needs to ensure that the health system can handle an increased number of daily cases, Singapore Finance Minister Lawrence Wong said in an interview with Bloomberg TV’s Haslinda Amin.
Singapore added 1,939 new cases, almost doubling from a week earlier, the latest in a string of daily records in the past week ahead of new curbs kicking in on Monday. Two more deaths were reported, both elderly with underlying conditions who were not vaccinated, bringing the death toll to 78. A total of 30 people are in the ICU.
Indonesia’s shot progress faces hurdles
A shortage of health-care workers and logistical flaws are hampering Indonesia’s efforts to inoculate its people against Covid-19, leaving the world’s largest archipelago trailing its neighbors despite being among the first in Southeast Asia to start the program.
Only 17.9 percent of Indonesia’s 270 million people are fully vaccinated, behind almost every major economy in the region, according to Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker.
Japan weighs lifting all restrictions
The Japanese government is making final arrangements to lift all coronavirus states of emergency in the nation as scheduled at the end of this month, the Asahi newspaper reported Monday, citing several unidentified officials.
Daily coronavirus cases have been steadily coming down in Japan since its peak in mid-August when it saw more than 25,000 cases, according to data compiled by public broadcaster NHK. The cases dropped to 2,134 Sunday.
Tokyo is considering keeping some restrictions on bars and restaurants serving alcohol even if the state of emergency is lifted at the end of the month, broadcaster FNN reported, citing an unidentified person.
WHO starts new team to probe Covid origin
The World Health Organization is reviving its investigation into the origins of the Covid-19 virus by building a new team of about 20 scientists, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. The previous team, which had been disbanded after a visit to Wuhan, had said data provided by Chinese scientists was insufficient to reach a conclusion.
Members of the new team will be chosen by the end of this week, and the team’s “priority needs to be data and access in the country where the first reports were identified,” WHO officials told the Journal.
The Chinese government declined to say if the new team will be allowed to enter the country.
Australian PM defends strict border closures
Prime Minister Scott Morrison defended Australia’s strict anti-virus measures, including shutting the borders since the start of the pandemic.
“I’ll tell you what shutting those borders did,” Morrison said on CBS’s “Face the Nation”. “It saved over 30,000 lives in Australia…About 1,200 Australians have lost their lives to Covid. That is what is lost in a day here in the United States.”
He said measures would ease as Australia continues to vaccinate its population, with three quarters of the nation having received a first shot. In an earlier appearance on Australian television, he said state premiers must not keep internal borders closed once vaccination targets are reached. Bloomberg News