December 17 coronavirus news

The United States reported a record-high number of new Covid-19 cases and deaths on Wednesday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University (JHU).  

The nation confirmed 247,357 new Covid-19 infections and 3,656 new deaths Wednesday, according to JHU.

As of December 16, 113,069 patients are hospitalized with Covid-19 -- the highest number of hospitalizations seen across the US since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the latest data from the COVID Tracking Project.

The nationwide totals now stand at 16,979,762 cases, with at least 307,501 virus-related fatalities, according to JHU.

The totals include cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases. 

The days with the highest number of new cases according to JHU data are: 

CNN is tracking the US cases:

RELATED

Tracking Covid-19 cases in the US

Germans could start receiving the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech by December 27, subject to the EU granting regulatory approval, according to state documents.

Elderly people in retirement homes will be one of the first vulnerable groups at the front of the queue to receive the vaccine. 

Germany has recently seen a surge in Covid-19 infections, hospitalizations, and deaths. On Thursday, the country's center for disease control reported 26,923 new cases and 698 deaths.

The Japanese capital Tokyo reported another highest daily rise in Covid-19 cases, with 678 new infections on Wednesday, according to the city's metropolitan government. 

Tokyo's intensive care units are 35% full, with 69 patients in a serious condition, the city's government said Thursday. There are 618 patients in ICUs across Japan, according to Japan's Health Ministry.

Hard-hit Osaka recorded 396 new Covid-19 cases Wednesday, the Health Ministry said.

Nationwide, there were 2,988 new Covid-19 cases and 51 deaths recorded Wednesday. Total infections stand at 187,815 cases, with 2,752 deaths.

Japan has been grappling with a new wave of infections and hospitalizations as cold winter temperatures set in. Winter was always expected to bring a spike in cases, as cold weather sends people indoors to poorly ventilated spaces -- conditions likely to make coronavirus spread more easily.

Cases have been rising steadily since the start of last month. On November 1, just over 600 cases were reported. Some 20 days later there were more than 2,500 daily infections.

PM's "remorse": For weeks, Japanese health officials have urged citizens to reduce their daily activities, remain vigilant and only dine out in small numbers to curb a resurgent winter Covid-19 wave.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga this week came under fire for attending a dinner party with celebrity friends in an apparent breach of his own government's coronavirus guidelines, an act he expressed "remorse" for.

Read more on Japan's outbreak:

RELATED

Japanese leader appears to flout virus guidelines as infections surge

Although promising, vaccines “will not stop the virus” and are not a “silver bullet” to ending the pandemic, a top World Health Organization official told a news conference hosted on Zoom Thursday. 

Dr. Takeshi Kasai, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific, made the comments as he was giving an update on the region’s progress in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. 

When asked by CNN when the world could hope to go back to normal, Kasai said that “the answer to this question depends on all of us. And the individual actions that we take now and into the future."

He said the initial number of vaccines will be limited and that high-risk groups should be prioritized.

While the Americas and Europe were facing challenging Covid-19 situations, Kasai said the Western Pacific had fared “comparatively well” but should “keep preparing for the worst case scenario."

Younger people are getting infected: Dr. Babatunde Olowokure, WHO Western Pacific regional emergency director, added that the trend of infections had shifted from older generations to the 20-29 age group because of “increased mobility” following the relaxation of restrictions, and also because of a “low level of perceived threat in young people” leading to "complacency."

Olowokure added that the death toll remained highest for people aged over 80.

Although the Western Pacific was doing well in global terms, Olowokure also said that the “seven-day moving average is showing upward trends in our region” with the most notable increases of infections in South Korea, Japan and Malaysia. 

People flying to Hawaii without proof of a negative Covid-19 test will have their quarantine time cut starting Thursday.

Gov. David Ige ordered that the mandatory quarantine be reduced from 14 days to 10 days.

Travelers from the US mainland and a few foreign countries can avoid the quarantine if they obtain a negative coronavirus test from an approved health care provider within 72 hours before travel.

One of the biggest tournaments in the tennis calendar -- the Australian Open -- will begin on February 8, three weeks later than planned, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) confirmed today.

The delay of the grand slam comes after weeks of intense negotiations between the state government of Victoria and tournament organizers, Tennis Australia, over Covid-19 safety and quarantine requirements.

On Thursday, the ATP announced that players would have to quarantine for 14 days on arrival in Melbourne, in compliance with Australian travel rules.

However a “controlled environment” will allow players to prepare for their matches while quarantining, the ATP said.

Players will travel to Melbourne between January 15 and 31 after the Australian Open qualifying rounds are played in Doha, Qatar. 

The Australian Open was originally scheduled to start on January 18.

Interior Secretary David Bernhardt tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday, becoming the latest prominent member of President Donald Trump's administration to contract the coronavirus.

Bernhardt's positive test was first reported by The Washington Post.

Bernhardt is the latest member of the President's Cabinet to test positive for the virus, joining Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, who was hospitalized last month. The interior secretary was not present at a Cabinet meeting with Trump on Wednesday.

Read more:

RELATED

Interior Secretary David Bernhardt tests positive for Covid-19

Sinopharm’s Covid-19 vaccine trials can resume in Peru, the country's Health Minister Pilar Mazzetti announced Wednesday.

On Saturday, Peru’s clinical trials of the Sinopharm vaccine were temporarily suspended by the Peruvian National Institute of Health after a 64-year-old patient, with a history of diabetes, reported a decrease in muscle strength in his legs.

German Malaga, the head of clinical trials at Sinopharm laboratories in Peru, said at the time that the reason for the symptoms had not yet been determined.

Mazzetti gave no further details on Wednesday as to whether or not the patient’s symptoms were linked to the vaccine candidate.  

Health authorities in Sydney, Australia have issued a Covid-19 public health alert after diagnosing the first cases of community transmission since December 3.

Five community cases of Covid-19 have been discovered in Sydney since Wednesday, according to New South Wales' health department.

Just one of the five cases can be traced -- a 40-year-old bus driver who ferried airline crews to and from their hotels. 

The four mystery cases are all located in Sydney’s Northern Beaches area. Two were diagnosed on Wednesday and a further two on Thursday.

Residents in the area responded to a call for increased testing with long queues at clinics on Thursday morning.

The Berejiklian government took the added step on Thursday of canceling visits for elderly care homes on the Northern Beaches.

"We're recommending no visitors until we identify the source of infection and feel more confident that we have it under control," she said.

New South Wales has recorded a total of 4,477 cases of Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the local health department.