ASTRAZENECA

South African scientists identified a new COVID-19 variant which has now been reported in Belgium, Botswana, Hong Kong and Israel.

"This is the Frankenstein of mutations," Alex Sigal from the Africa Health Research Institute in Durban, South Africa, said. CBS News foreign correspondent Debora Patta met the scientists in the lab where Omicron was first discovered.

The emergence of the new omicron variant and the world’s desperate and likely futile attempts to keep it at bay are reminders of what scientists have warned for months: The coronavirus will thrive as long as vast parts of the world lack vaccines.

The Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine maker, has resumed exports of coronavirus vaccines to the U.N.-backed COVAX distribution program after halting most overseas sales in March.

Prince Charles is praising Cambridge as a center of scientific collaboration as the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca opened a 1 billion-pound ($1.34 billion) research center there on Tuesday.

AstraZeneca's antibody treatment has been shown to be highly effective at preventing Covid in people who may not respond well to vaccines.

British-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca says it will start to book a modest profit from its coronavirus vaccine as it moves away from the nonprofit model it's operated during the pandemic.

AstraZeneca says it is withdrawing its application for approval of its COVID-19 vaccine in Switzerland because the country’s medical regulator wanted to restrict its use to people over age 50.

Dr. Kavita Patel explains why the surging number of Covid cases in the United Kingdom could be a compelling argument for booster shots.

Egypt's government says it will require public servants to have a vaccination certificate or show a weekly negative COVID-19 test before entering their workplaces.

ABC News’ Will Carr explores the response to the pandemic in Presidio and Lamar County, two Texas counties with the highest and lowest vaccination rates in the state.

Anglo-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca has asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to authorize the emergency use of an antibody treatment to prevent COVID-19.

The U.K. last week announced that fully vaccinated individuals from a number of countries and territories won't have to quarantine after arrival.

India, the world’s largest vaccine producer, will resume exports and donations of surplus coronavirus vaccines in October after halting them during a devastating surge in domestic infections in April.

Uganda is accelerating its vaccination drive in order to administer 128,000 doses that recently arrived and expire at the end of September.

Here are this morning's top stories.

The UK regulator's decision paves the way for a rollout ahead of winter to millions of people.

From the need for boosters to kids and Covid and the risk of new variants, here’s what you need to know.

Five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Wednesday evening.

Five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Friday evening.

AstraZeneca agrees to deliver 200 million doses by next spring, ending the threat of court action.

The European Union and drugmaker AstraZeneca say they reached a deal to end a damaging legal battle over the slow pace of deliveries of the company’s COVID-19 vaccines.

Krishna Udayakumar, the founding director of Duke’s Global Health Innovation Center, describes what the U.S. needs to do now to support vaccination around the world.

Thousands of migrants, including many Afghans, are stranded in Bosnia and other Balkan countries while trying to reach wealthy European nations.

The risk of rare blood clotting is significantly higher as a result of catching Covid-19 than it is from being vaccinated against the virus, a study has found.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen has received her first dose of the island’s domestically developed coronavirus vaccine on Monday, launching its rollout to the public

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen received her first dose of the island's domestically developed coronavirus vaccine on Monday, launching its rollout to the public. The vaccine, made by Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp., was given emergency approval by regulators in July using a shortcut that prompted fierce opposition from parts of Taiwan's medical and scientific community. Instead, they compared the level of antibodies that Medigen's vaccine was able to generate with that of AstraZeneca's vaccine, which has been approved by many governments and has undergone the full three stages of clinical trials.

Regardless of previous infection, two shots of Pfizer or AstraZeneca offered good protection against the Delta variant, Oxford scientists said.

The Africa director for the World Health Organization says rich countries’ decisions to roll out COVID-19 booster shots while so many people across Africa remain unvaccinated “threaten the promise of a brighter tomorrow" for the continent.

Boris Johnson promised shots for delegates in need, but doses are slow to arrive.

A very small number of people who have been inoculated with the AstraZeneca vaccine have suffered blood clots.

An ad firm paid social media influencers to post misleading claims about Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines, Facebook said.

Facebook has removed hundreds of accounts linked to a disinformation network operating out of Russia that sought to smear COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer and AstraZeneca.

About 50,000 Americans volunteered for Novavax and AstraZeneca COVID vaccine trials but the companies haven't asked the FDA they be cleared for use.

In a race to get more people vaccinated, businesses and local governments are coming up with creative ways to encourage those who are still hesitant.

Professor Sarah Gilbert played a crucial role in developing one of the world's leading COVID-19 vaccines — and now, her likeness is being immortalized by one of the world's leading toymakers.

The World Health Organization on Wednesday called for a moratorium on Covid-19 vaccine booster shots, citing vaccine inequity around the world.

Mixed messaging around use of the AstraZeneca vaccine is complicating efforts to beat back the outbreak in Australia’s largest city.

Brazilian authorities have begun the mass immunization of Rio de Janeiro’s Mare neighborhood in a novel bid to control COVID-19 in a poor community while studying vaccine effectiveness and the prevalence of worrisome variants

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is allowing the problem-plagued factory of contract manufacturer Emergent BioSolutions to resume production of COVID-19 vaccine.

Speaking to CNBC, AstraZeneca's CEO said the company did not have a "precise answer" on whether a third dose of its Covid-19 vaccine would be needed.

AstraZeneca said it intends to seek U.S. approval for its COVID-19 vaccine later this year, further delaying the application even as the company announced it had already delivered more than 1 billion doses to other countries.

Russia’s health officials have given a go-ahead to testing a combination of the AstraZeneca coronavirus shot and the single-dose version of the domestically developed Sputnik V vaccine.

AstraZeneca has backed the advice of Australia’s immunization expert body that Sydney residents should take any COVID-19 vaccine they can get. The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation, known as ATAGI, recommended on July 13 that adults under the age of 60 take Pfizer because of the increased risk in younger adults of blood clotting caused by the AstraZeneca vaccine. Pfizer and AstraZeneca are the only COVID-19 vaccines registered in Australia.

In what appears to be a growing trend across Europe, the world three leaders first received a dose of an adenovirus vaccine (AstraZeneca) before switching to an mRNA for the second.

Australia’s prime minister says he’s urging the government’s adviser on vaccines to change its advice against adults under age 60 taking the AstraZeneca shot. The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization last month lifted the minimum recommended age for taking AstraZeneca from 50 to 60 because of the greater risk of rare blood clots associated with the vaccine in younger people. The change followed the death in Australia of a 52-year-old.

Officials in Thailand have further tightened coronavirus restrictions in response to an alarming rise in cases and deaths that is stressing the country’s health care system.

Thai police have used tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannons to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters who held a rally in Bangkok despite coronavirus restrictions banning gatherings of more than five people.

Thai police used tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannons Sunday to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters who held a rally in Bangkok despite coronavirus restrictions banning gatherings of more than five people. The demonstrators were demanding Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha’s government step down, insisting the budget of the monarchy and the military be cut during the pandemic, and calling for the importing mRNA coronavirus vaccines that have yet to be brought to Thailand on a large scale to fight a growing surge of the virus.

Sajid Javid tested positive two days before the United Kingdom is set to reopen following months of lockdowns. Cases, driven by the delta variant, are up sharply in the U.K.

Thailand has tightened coronavirus restrictions and warned of further measures as daily cases surpassed 10,000 and the death toll hit a record 141 despite an overnight curfew in Bangkok and several other provinces.

Lisa Shaw's widower wants people to have the choice of which Covid-19 vaccine they get.

Five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Thursday evening.

A government official says production of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine at a factory in Thailand has fallen short of its target, likely delaying the country’s plan to acquire a total of 61 million doses until next May.

Production of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine at a factory in Thailand has fallen short of its target, likely delaying the country's plan to acquire a total of 61 million doses until next May, a government official said Thursday. The projected supply shortfall will complicate plans to inoculate at least 70% of the country’s 69 million people this year as Thailand battles record-high daily increases in COVID-19 cases and deaths. Deputy Health Minister Sathit Pitutacha said in an interview with MCOT Television that AstraZeneca had asked for the extension until next May to complete delivery, and that while the timeframe is flexible, the government will still negotiate for as much monthly supply as possible.

Shifting rules over who can get an AstraZeneca shot versus a Pfizer dose are giving worried Aussies whiplash.

As many Asian countries battle their worst surge of COVID-19 infections, the slow flow of vaccine doses from around the world is finally picking up speed, giving hope that inoculation rates can increase and help blunt the effect of the rapidly spreading delta variant.

As many Asian countries battle their worst surge of COVID-19 infections, the slow-flow of vaccine doses from around the world is finally picking up speed, giving hope that low inoculation rates can increase and help blunt the effect of the rapidly spreading delta variant. With many vaccine pledges still unfulfilled and the rates of infection spiking across multiple countries, however, experts say more needs to be done to help nations struggling with the overflow of patients and shortages of oxygen and other critical supplies. The U.S. shipment comes in addition to 3 million other American doses that arrived Sunday, and 11.7 million doses of AstraZeneca that have come in batches since March through the U.N.-backed COVAX mechanism, the last earlier this week.

Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine may pose a “small possible risk” of a rare but potentially dangerous neurological reaction, U.S. health officials said Monday.

Thai health authorities say they plan to limit exports of locally produced AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine because the country doesn’t have enough for its own needs.

Health authorities in Thailand said Wednesday they will seek to impose limits on exports of locally produced AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine because the country doesn't have enough for its own needs. Limiting exports will pose a problem for Southeast Asian countries that have signed contracts to buy Thai-produced vaccines, though some may be able to obtain supplies elsewhere. Dr. Nakorn Premsri, director of the National Vaccine Institute, said its vaccine committee agreed in principle to issue an order temporarily limiting exports, but did not give any details.

The blood clotting, which some scientists are now calling vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia, or VITT, has been linked to both shots.

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EU regulators said AstraZeneca hasn't completed the necessary paperwork on the Indian factory.

Millions of people who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 could nevertheless find themselves barred from entering certain countries in Europe and elsewhere.

After Dr. Ifeanyi Nsofor and his wife received two doses of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine in Nigeria, they assumed they would be free to travel this summer to a European destination of their choice. The couple — and millions of other people who have been vaccinated through a U.N.-backed effort — could find themselves barred from entering many European and other countries because those nations don't recognize the Indian-made version of the vaccine for travel. Although AstraZeneca vaccine produced in Europe has been authorized by the continent’s drug regulatory agency, the same shot manufactured in India hasn't been given the green light.

Medical workers in Thailand who have received two doses of China's Sinovac coronavirus vaccine will be given a booster shot of AstraZeneca vaccine.

A nighttime curfew and other new coronavirus restrictions began Monday in Thailand’s capital and several other provinces, as health officials announced that medical workers will given booster shots of AstraZeneca vaccine after already receiving two doses of China's Sinovac vaccine. Thailand is battling rising COVID-19 cases and deaths since April worsened by the spread of the more contagious delta variant that was first identified in India. Thailand reported 8,656 new cases and 80 deaths on Monday, bringing its total since the pandemic began last year to 345,027 confirmed cases and 2,791 deaths.

Data released by the Thai ministry of health on Sunday that almost 1 in 1,000 health workers with two doses of Sinvac got infected.

A Thai health official said Sunday that an expert panel has recommended administering a third dose to at-risk medical workers.

Critics say the clip of a woman gasping for air is unfair to young people who can't get a vaccine yet.

Taiwan on Thursday received 1.13 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from Japan in the second such donation this year. Once desperately lacking jabs, Taiwan has benefited from vaccine diplomacy, receiving near 5 million doses from the United States and Japan following its worst outbreak starting in May that was being driven by a more contagious delta variant of the coronavirus. Taiwan has also accused China, which claims the self-ruled island as its renegade territory, of intervening to block the delivery of vaccines.

Sri Lanka is administering Pfizer shots to people who were left waiting after receiving their first AstraZeneca doses earlier this year. Mixing two vaccines is still being studied for its effectiveness, but Sri Lanka health officials approved it due to a severe AstraZeneca shortage. Sri Lanka received 26,000 doses of Pfizer on Monday as the first batch of 5 million shots to be received this year.

Japan’s government says a second shipment of more than 1 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine will be sent to Taiwan.

Japan is set to send another 1.1 million donated AstraZeneca doses to Taiwan this week to help the self-governing island fight its worst COVID-19 outbreak amid a struggle to get vaccines. Taiwan, which had only a handful of deaths before the latest outbreak, has seen its death toll spike to more than 700. Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Tuesday the AstraZeneca vaccine is set for shipment on Thursday — Japan's second shipment to Taiwan a month after it donated 1.24 million AstraZeneca doses.

After a slow vaccination rollout, Indonesia is now racing to inoculate as many people as possible as it battles an explosion of cases that have strained hospitals

Australia has weathered the pandemic better than many nations — recording just a single coronavirus death since last October.

South Korea has reported 826 new cases of the coronavirus, its biggest daily jump in about six months, as fears grow about another huge wave of the virus in the greater capital area.

The Queensland and Western Australia state governments have advised people under age 40 not to take the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine because of the risk of a rare blood clotting disorder, despite the Australian government making those shots available to all adults.

Australia is offering AstraZeneca to all adults to rapidly ramp up sluggish vaccination rates as more of the country locks down against COVID-19.

Experts say mixing and matching different two-dose COVID-19 vaccines is likely safe and effective, but data still needs to be collected to be sure.

British lawmakers have failed to force a vote on the government’s cut to foreign aid spending, but may get a chance to debate the contentious decision on Tuesday.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will use the Group of Seven wealthy democracies’ summit this week to urge world leaders to commit to vaccinating the global population by the end of 2022.

A pill has been shown to help keep certain early-stage, hard-to-treat breast cancers at bay after initial treatment.

About 300 inmates in a prison near the Moroccan capital have been vaccinated against COVID-19 as part of what authorities say is a commitment to protect a population considered especially vulnerable.

Lawyers for the European Union have accused vaccine producer AstraZeneca in a Brussels court of diverting doses to other nations when it had promised them for urgent delivery to the 27 member countries.

The president of the Philippines warns he will jail village leaders and police officers who don't enforce pandemic lockdown restrictions.

Mexico’s top diplomat says shipments of a long-delayed lot of AstraZeneca vaccines will finally be sent to Argentina.

Japan has expanded a coronavirus state of emergency hours after it approved the use of two more vaccines in an effort to contain a worrying surge in infections nine weeks ahead of the opening of the Tokyo Olympics.

Malawi has burned nearly 20,000 expired AstraZeneca vaccines, amid conflicting advice over what to do with the doses.

The Serum Institute of India says it hopes to start delivering coronavirus vaccines to the U.

The Las Vegas Strip and surroundings will fully reopen to vaccinated diners, dancers, shoppers and club-goers beginning June 1.

Panama has raised capacity on public transportation across the country, a day after celebrating the first day in 14 months without a COVID-19 death.

The British government is still deciding whether to accept an offer from Pfizer to fast-track Olympic and Paralympic athletes for coronavirus vaccines.

Slovakia's health minister says the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine should remain part of his country's vaccination program.

Mexican authorities say Russia has been having so many problems producing second doses of its Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine that there won't be enough to give people who got the first dose a second shot.

French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the decision from the European Union not to renew its order for the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

The British government has announced a “first tentative step” toward resuming international travel, saying U.K. citizens will be able to travel to countries including Portugal, Iceland and Israel later this month without having to quarantine upon their return.

Germany making the AstraZeneca vaccine available immediately to all adults.

Several world leaders have praised the U.S. move to expand access to COVID-19 vaccines for poor nations by suspending patent protections on the shots.