Omicron is forcing new restrictions, a global call for booster shooting by Reuters

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Singapore halted quarantine travel and Australia renewed its vaccine boost on Wednesday as cases of a rise in the Omicron coronavirus variant forced authorities to set new limits and speed up booster launches a few days before Christmas.

Governments around the world have tightened restrictions on social mobility and urged citizens to vaccinate as the main strain of the Omicron virus appears as a vaccine, with many hoping to announce the start of a post-pandemic era in 2022.

In the Asia-Pacific, Singapore will freeze all new flights and bus tickets as part of its program to make quarantine-free trips to the city-state from 23 December to 20 January, the government said on Wednesday, citing the risk of speeding. Omicron expands.

“Our borderline measures will help us gain time to study and understand the Omicron variant, and strengthen our defenses, increase our health capacity and vaccinate and encourage more people,” the Singapore Ministry of Health said in a statement.

U.S. President Joe Biden quickly ordered a half-billion free COVID-19 test on Tuesday and warned a quarter of unaccompanied American adults that their chances could tell the “difference between life and death.”

In response to the rise in cases, the country is also looking to shorten the time between second vaccinations and boosters. However, beware of the fatigue of the public blockade, there is a reluctance to return to the strict limits set in the expansion of the Delta variant earlier this year.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday announced new vaccine funding for clinics and pharmacies. It has also called on hundreds of vaccine sites in the country to reopen the spread of promoters, which closed when adult double-dose rates exceeded 80%.

Federal and state leaders held an emergency meeting of the national cabinet on Wednesday to look into more and more cases that are seriously delaying test facilities.

Australia reported more than 5,000 infections in the pandemic for the first time every day on Wednesday, in most cases in the most populous states of New South Wales and Victoria.

Despite the rise of Omicron, Morrison repeatedly stressed on Wednesday that the blockades would not be returned and that limiting the spread of the virus comes from personal responsibility.

There was also resistance to the new blockades in South Korea, where authorities announced restrictions on meetings and opening hours for restaurants, cafes and bars.

While polls show a broad stance in favor of South Korea’s fresh borders, some of which are still stricter, many small businesses have complained that the cuts leave too many workers and too many supplies, unprepared for the looser rules for the holiday season.

Associations of small businesses and restaurants made statements demanding protest and compensation against the decision, and one of the groups vowed to hold a demonstration on Wednesday.

NEW AWARD

European Health Organization chief Hans Kluge warned of the “storm” that Omicron will bring on Tuesday, “pushing the already extended health systems to the limit.”

Germany, Scotland, Ireland, the Netherlands and South Korea are among the countries that have recently reinstated partial or total blockades or other measures of social exclusion.

Portugal has ordered the closure of nightclubs and bars and told people to work from home for at least two weeks from Saturday.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he would not put a new COVID-19 limit on England before Christmas, but the situation remained very difficult and the government may have to act later.

Governments have stepped up their efforts to vaccinate and treat the US Food and Drug Administration’s approval of COVID-19 treatment pills. Pfizer Inc. (NYSE 🙂 and Merck, Bloomberg News reported.

Israel will offer the fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine to people over 60 years of age.

Politicians are struggling to cope with the economic blow that may come from the new appearances because Britain has announced additional £ 1bn ($ 1.3bn) in aid to Omicron-hit companies.

With not much known yet about the severity of Omicron’s infections, companies are also concerned about a cancellation group that will have an impact on major New Year’s card events.

Amazon (NASDAQ 🙂 Inc, Facebook (NASDAQ 🙂 parent Meta Platforms Inc, Twitter Inc. (NYSE 🙂 and Pinterest (NYSE 🙂 Inc. will skip the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show (CES) next month due to concerns about Omicron.

The North American National Hockey League has not sent its players to compete in the men’s ice hockey tournament at the Beijing Winter Olympics due to concerns about COVID-19, ESPN reported on Tuesday.

This would not only affect the league players of the US and Canadian ice hockey teams, but also the Swedish, Finnish and German Olympic teams.