US approves booster jabs for all Americans

WASHINGTON/GENEVA: The US authorised the Pfizer and Moderna Covid vaccine boosters for all people aged 18 and older on Friday, as the world’s hardest-hit country enters a new winter wave of the pandemic.

Boosters were previously available to the immune compromised, people over 65, those at high risk of severe disease, and people in high risk occupations. The new decision “helps to provide continued protection against Covid-19, including the serious consequences,” acting commissioner Janet Woodcock of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said.

A panel of experts convened by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) then ratified the decision to broaden eligibility, while explicitly recommending boosters for all people over 50, even absent underlying conditions.

CDC director Rochelle Walensky formally signed off on the panel’s recommendations, stating that boosters “are an important public health tool to strengthen our defences against the virus as we enter the winter holidays”.

People who received the Johnson & Johnson one-dose vaccine were already eligible for a booster of any brand two months after their first shot.

The booster decision comes as cases are rapidly rising nationally, reaching 88,000 new infections per day on average.

UN urges release of jailed Chinese journalist

The UN on Friday urged China to release a citizen journalist jailed for her coverage of the country’s Covid-19 response and who is reportedly close to death after a hunger strike.

The UN rights office voiced alarm at reports that 38-year-old Zhang Zhan’s health was deteriorating rapidly.

“We call on the Chinese authorities to consider Zhang’s immediate and unconditional release, at the very least, on humanitarian grounds, and to make urgent life-saving medical care available, respecting both her will and her dignity,” spokeswoman Marta Hurtado said in a statement.