France announces soft new virus restrictions in Paris region
Instead, the prime minister announced a patchwork of new restrictions while reducing the national curfew by one hour. Prime Minister Jean Castex announced the new rules, which will take effect as of midnight Friday and last for at least four weeks. The Paris region has an infection rate of 446 out of 100,000 inhabitants โ up more than 23% in a week โ Castex said, and intensive care units are close to saturation. The north, the Paris region and several others are now being targeted, but with a mix of carrot and stick measures. The U.K. virus variant accounts for most infections, and around 250 people are dying each day from the virus.
Portugal's relief at falling COVID-19 cases tempered by fear
Nurses tend to a patient in a COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit at the Curry Cabral hospital in Lisbon, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021. The number of COVID-19 patients in hospital and in intensive care fell Thursday for the third straight day. The health ministry reported the fewest hospitalizations since Jan. 20 and the fewest patients in ICUs for almost two weeks. The number of COVID-19 patients in hospital and in intensive care fell Thursday for the third straight day. But Germano isnโt expecting any immediate relief at the intensive care unit he heads, where 25 patients are in care.
Portugal extends its virus lockdown as firefighters get jabs
A doctor performs an ultrasound scan on a patient in a COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit at the Curry Cabral hospital in Lisbon, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021. A January surge of cases in Portugal has ebbed amid a lockdown, but deaths and pressure on hospitals remain high. The seven-day average of daily deaths in Portugal is the highest in the world, at 2.05 per 100,000 people, according to Johns Hopkins University. Also Thursday, Portugal started inoculating firefighters against COVID-19, as the January surge of cases ebbed but deaths and pressure on hospitals remained high. Portuguese firefighters, who number about 15,000, commonly operate ambulances, and they are to be vaccinated over a two-week period.
St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor receives COVID-19 vaccines, begins vaccinations
A healthcare worker at St. Joe's Ann Arbor holds up a sticker that says "I Got Vaccinated" as COVID-19 vaccinations get underway. ANN ARBOR โ The first shipment of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine arrived at four hospitals within the Mercy Health and Saint Joseph Mercy Health System on Thursday, including St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor, St. Joseph Mercy Oakland and Mercy Health Saint Maryโs in Grand Rapids and Mercy Health Muskegon. Mercy Health Muskegon received 1,950 doses while the other three hospitals received 975. All hospitals within Trinity Health Michigan have ultra-cold freezers capable of storing the vaccines. For more information about the COVID-19 vaccine, visit www.stjoeshealth.org/vaccine.