Some shipments of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine are being replaced after they got too cold in transit. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city was forced to reschedule 23,000 vaccination appointments due to a delay in the delivery of 103,000 doses of the Moderna shot.

Germany’s coronavirus deaths reached a record and Chancellor Angela Merkel extended restrictions, warning of possible travel curbs and ratcheting up rules for wearing face masks to keep out new strains. Spain reported the most new cases since the pandemic began.

Key developments:

• Global Tracker: Cases exceed 96.4 million; deaths surpass 2 million
• Vaccine Tracker: More than 46 million shots given worldwide
• US Hot Spots: Death rate expected to dip further in next month
• Why the mutated coronavirus variants are so worrisome: QuickTake
• Big government muscles back into Covid-hit Europe
• Covid vaccine passports are a ticket to nowhere

California tops three million cases

California has surpassed three million confirmed cases of the coronavirus, state health department data show. That’s the most of any US state and exceeds the reported infections in countries including France, Italy, Spain and Mexico, according to Johns Hopkins University data. More than a million cases are in Los Angeles County, home to about a quarter of the state’s residents.

California reported 694 new deaths Wednesday, the second-highest daily tally since the pandemic began. Still, there are signs that the state’s outbreak is improving after a record surge that strained healthcare systems and spurred new lockdowns. Hospitalisations have dropped 8.9% from a 6 January peak, while the 14-day average rate of positive tests has fallen to 11.3% from 12.9% two weeks ago.

“We didn’t see as significant a bump over the Christmas and New Year’s holidays as we expected,” Mark Ghaly, California’s secretary of health and human services, said at a briefing Tuesday.

Spain reports record new cases

Spain reported 18,500 new Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, the most since the pandemic began, reflecting the relaxation of restrictions during the holiday period.

New cases rose from 15,578 on Tuesday as the country recorded 464 deaths in the past 24 hours. The infection rate rose to 736 per 100,000 while the rate of hospitalisation also increased to 20%.

Spain’s regions eased some restrictions during Christmas, allowing people to meet indoors in limited numbers. Even though some regions have since tightened the rules, the country hasn’t brought back a national lockdown like the ones seen in France or the UK.

UK suffers deadliest day

The UK suffered its worst day in the pandemic, with more than 1,800 deaths recorded in 24 hours, as Boris Johnson’s chief scientific adviser warned some hospitals now look “like a war zone”.

The record daily toll takes the number of people who have died within 28 days of a positive test in the UK to 93,290. Almost 40,000 patients are now receiving treatment in UK hospitals.

The average number of new cases has been falling since early January, an indication that the number of people dying will follow soon.

Some Moderna shipments replaced

Some shipments of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine are being replaced after they became too cold in transit, pharmaceutical distributor McKesson said in a statement Wednesday.

McKesson, which is distributing Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine in the US, learned Monday that some of the deliveries it sent on Sunday were too cold upon arrival. The company attributed the issue to gel packs used in shipping the shots getting too cold.

NYC delays vaccinations after shortage

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city is rescheduling 23,000 vaccine appointments because of a supply shortage.

The mayor cited Moderna specifically, saying the drug manufacturer and its distributor told the city the 103,000 doses it was expected to receive on Tuesday will be delayed by a number of days. About half of that supply was intended to be given as second doses.

“We have an immediate and profound problem,” De Blasio said in a Wednesday briefing.

New York still plans to hit its goal of one million vaccinations by the end of the month. “We can do it if we get the vaccine,” De Blasio said.

Moderna didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.

UK plans extension of job-support measures

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak is drawing up plans to extend support for jobs in the months ahead as the pandemic lockdown continues to damage businesses and threaten a surge in unemployment, according to people familiar with the matter.

The government’s flagship £60-billion furlough program, paying as much as 80% of workers’ wages, is due to expire at the end of April, but Sunak is weighing various options to support jobs into the summer, the people said.

Biden to mend WHO ties

President Joe Biden plans to send Anthony Fauci to speak to the World Health Organisation in a strong repudiation of Donald Trump’s snubs since the start of the pandemic.

The incoming administration plans to participate in the WHO executive board meeting this week, with Fauci, the US government’s top infectious disease expert, heading the delegation and speaking. Once the US resumes its engagement with the WHO, the new administration will work with the body to strengthen and reform the group, according to a fact sheet released by the Biden transition team.

Swiss extend job furlough programme

Switzerland is modifying its job furlough program, taking into account the persistence of a pandemic that has forced a renewed closure of shops and restaurants.

The government in Bern said it wanted to reduce hurdles for companies claiming compensation for idle workers, in a bid to ensure they have enough liquidity and prevent a rise in unemployment.

Mongolian health minister resigns after protests

Mongolia’s health minister resigned amid protests in Ulaanbaatar against the government’s response to the pandemic.

Protesters gathered at Sukhbaatar Square voiced anger at strict lockdowns and businesses closures without financial support.

German minister says vaccine delay ‘irritating’

German Health Minister Jens Spahn described as “irritating” last week’s decision by Pfizer to cut vaccine deliveries as it upgrades a factory in Belgium.

“I understand that short-term construction work must be done to increase medium- and long-term capacity, but it’s very, very unsatisfactory that this was communicated to us overnight,” Spahn said at a news conference in Berlin.

“This has led to anger not just in Germany, but in almost all the countries except the US that are supplied by Pfizer and BioNTech,” he added, referring to the German company that jointly developed the shot. It’s important that lessons are learnt, according to Spahn.

Iran infections rise despite restrictions

Iran recorded 6,182 new infections in the past 24 hours, up from 5,917 yesterday. Iran’s daily deaths have more than halved in massive January closures and tighter restrictions, including overnight curfews in most cities.

Two Beijing virus cases had UK variant

Two coronavirus cases in Beijing’s Daxing district on 17 January were caused by the virus variant found in the UK, Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of the Beijing Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said at a briefing.

Beijing imposed a lockdown of 1.7 million people in Daxing as officials race to prevent a resurgence in the country’s northern region from seeping into the rest of the city.

Pfizer, BioNTech shot likely to defeat UK strain

Pfizer and partner BioNTech built the case that their vaccine will protect against the new variant of the coronavirus that emerged in the UK with results of another lab trial.

Like previous work out of the University of Texas Medical Branch, the results published on Wednesday showed that antibodies in the blood of people who had been vaccinated were able to neutralise a version of the mutant virus that was created in the lab. The study was published on preprint server BioRxiv prior to peer review.

South African strain findings stoke concern

South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases studied blood samples from patients previously infected with the coronavirus to check if their antibodies would neutralise the new variant carrying mutations in the spike protein. Worryingly, half the samples tested indicated all neutralising activity was lost — suggesting that those individuals may no longer be protected from reinfection. In the other half, antibody levels were reduced and the risk of reinfection couldn’t be determined, according to the institute. The findings weren’t peer-reviewed and were based on a small sample size.

Israel extends lockdown until end of January

Israel’s government voted to extend the country’s lockdown until the end of the month.

The country’s vaccination effort is being offset by a surge in new cases linked to the spread of the UK variant, an Israeli health official said on Wednesday. Officials expect to see a decline in cases in another week or two, Ran Balicer, head of the country’s Covid-19 National Experts Team, said in an Army Radio interview. Some 25% of the population has received a first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine

Record deaths in Germany

Germany’s daily coronavirus death toll rose by the most since the pandemic began amid tentative signs that the infection rate is starting to come down.

The number of fatalities increased by 1,734 to 48,997 in the 24 hours through Wednesday morning, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Confirmed cases increased by 12,233, a relatively low number compared with recent weeks.

Chancellor Angela Merkel and regional leaders agreed to extend and tighten Germany’s coronavirus restrictions to check the stubborn spread of the disease. Merkel extended her tough line to Germany’s neighbours, calling on European partners to synchronise measures to contain mutations. Otherwise, travel restrictions would be imposed.

Thailand mulls easing curbs

Thailand’s capital and some other provinces are considering relaxing restrictions on businesses and travel in the coming weeks amid a decline in new cases in certain regions.

Chiang Mai, the most populous province in northern Thailand, lifted a ban on alcohol in restaurants from Wednesday, while Bangkok Metropolitan Authority is set to meet on Thursday to consider reopening businesses including massage parlours and gyms.

Singapore Air’s pre-flight tests

Singapore Airlines set up pre-flight coronavirus tests for passengers through its booking platforms as part of efforts to revive travel demand.

People flying from Singapore as well as those travelling from Jakarta and Medan in Indonesia can take tests at clinics and get results within 36 hours. If negative, the results can be used for travel.

Mexico deaths hit daily record

Mexico’s health ministry reported 1,584 deaths on Tuesday, the highest increase other than 5 October, when authorities adjusted the way they count fatalities caused by the virus.

Portuguese minister tests positive

Portugal’s economy minister Pedro Siza Vieira tested positive for Covid-19 after reporting some symptoms, according to the ministry. Vieira had been self-isolating since Saturday.

Japan plans non-priority jabs from May

The Japanese government aims to provide vaccines to non-priority residents as soon as May, Yomiuri reported.

The health ministry plans to start inoculating medical workers from the end of February, and aims to vaccinate about 50 million people in priority tiers by the end of April. Most of the population should be vaccinated by around July. DM

— With assistance by Mark Schoifet, Joe Carroll, Christopher Palmeri, Chris Reiter, Vivek Shankar, Peyton Forte, Nick Wadhams, Jason Gale, Yaacov Benmeleh, Naomi Kresge, Alisa Odenheimer, Iain Rogers, Terrence Edwards, Arsalan Shahla, Catherine Bosley, Alex Morales, Charlie Devereux and Kara Wetzel.