Beijing mandates COVID vaccines to enter some public spaces TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The Chinese capital has issued a mandate requiring people to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination before they can enter some public spaces including gyms, museums and libraries, drawing concern from city residents over the sudden policy announcement and its impact on their daily lives. AP NEWS

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BA.5, now dominant U.S. variant, may pose the biggest threat to immune protection yet The FDA recommended that Covid vaccine makers target two omicron subvariants — BA.4 and BA.5 — in new booster shots expected to come this fall. NBC News

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The coronavirus subvariant known as BA.5 accounted for nearly 54% of the country's Covid cases as of Saturday, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A similar subvariant, BA.4, makes up 17% more.

Here are the states returning to pre-pandemic normal the fastest: analysis Story at a glance A Moody’s Analytics index has tracked the country’s economic recovery since the pandemic began based on 13 metrics, including the value of goods and services produced, e… Adam Barnes The Hill

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Study on monkeypox outbreak shows differing symptoms All but 3 of 52  patients had lesions and rashes on their genitals or anal regions. CIDRAP

A new study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases found that the clinical profile in recent monkeypox cases is different than in past events, with fatigue and fever less common and genital skin lesions more likely.

World hunger rising as U.N. agencies warn of "looming catastrophe" World hunger levels rose again last year after soaring in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Ukraine war and climate change threatening starvation and mass migration on an "unprecedented scale" this year, according to U.N. agencies. Maytaal Angel Reuters

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US allows pharmacists to prescribe Pfizer's COVID-19 pill WASHINGTON (AP) — Pharmacists can prescribe the leading COVID-19 pill directly to patients under a new U.S. policy announced Wednesday that's intended to expand use of Pfizer's drug Paxlovid. The Food and Drug Administration said pharmacists can begin screening patients to see if they are eligible for Paxlovid and then prescribe the medication, which has been shown to curb the worst effects of COVID-19. AP NEWS

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WHO: More than 6,000 monkeypox cases reported, emergency meeting set More than 6,000 cases of monkeypox have now been reported from 58 countries in the current outbreak, the World Health Organization said. Reuters Reuters

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Europe is at the center of a resurgence in Covid-19 infections as more people mix at large-scale events and travel, according to the World Health Organization. 

“We are seeing a much more intense wave of the disease passing through Europe again,” Michael Ryan, executive director of the WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme, said at a media briefing Wednesday. “And we will see it happen elsewhere -- we are already seeing it in South East Asia and in the eastern Mediterranean region as well.”

Overall, the number of Covid infections rose 30% globally in the past two weeks, with the omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 driving the increase in Europe and the US. The agency said it was also following a new sublineage of subvariant BA2.75 which had been detected in India. 

The increase in cases in Europe during the summer -- when transmission should be more difficult because people are outside -- results from people swapping one kind of mixing for another, such as attending large concerts and traveling more, Ryan said.