World Covid dispatch: FDA clears third shot for immunocompromised patients

Thailand coronavirus cases hit record high, US FDA amended the emergency use authorizations for both Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines

Tokyo faces disaster-level crisis on virus

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said the spread of the virus is at disaster levels comparable with the heavy rains and flooding hitting western regions of Japan and urged residents to avoid going out and get vaccinated.

Koike spoke to reporters a day after an expert adviser to the Tokyo government said the virus was out of control. Tokyo reported just under 5,000 new cases Thursday, close to a record marked last week; national case numbers also leaped to a new high of almost 19,000. Read more

FDA clears third shot for certain immunocompromised patients

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration amended the emergency use authorizations for both the Pfizer-BioNTech and the Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to allow an additional dose for some immunocompromised individuals.

The FDA assessed information on the third dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccinesm, it said in a statement, adding that other fully vaccinated individuals do not need an additional vaccine dose right now. Read more

Thailand’s new Covid cases hit a record as deaths mount

New infections stood at 23,418 in the past 24 hours with 184 Covid deaths, the Thailand government said, taking the total toll to 7,126. Read more

Mexico hits record second straight day

Mexico posted a record rise in cases Thursday for the second day in a row as the pandemic surges anew in the country.

Cases climbed by 24,975 to 3,045,571, according to Health Ministry data. Deaths rose 608 to 246,811. Read more