The latest on the coronavirus pandemic and vaccines

Mixing Covid-19 vaccines is not recommended, Public Health England’s Head of Immunisations Dr. Mary Ramsay said Saturday, after government guidance was updated this week to say the interchangeability of Covid-19 vaccines was a "reasonable" option.

“There may be extremely rare occasions where the same vaccine is not available, or where it is not known what vaccine the patient received. Every effort should be made to give them the same vaccine, but where this is not possible it is better to give a second dose of another vaccine than not at all,” she added.

Ramsay clarified the UK’s position on vaccine mixing after an update to the government’s vaccine playbook on Dec. 31.

What did the updated guidance say? Thursday's guidance said if the same vaccine is not available, or if the first product received is unknown, “it is reasonable to offer one dose of the locally available product to complete the schedule."

“This option is preferred if the individual is likely to be at immediate high risk or is considered unlikely to attend again,” it added.

Which vaccines are the UK using? The UK authorized emergency use of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine on December 2 and the Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccine on Dec. 30.

The guidance recommends both vaccines to be administered in two doses, a minimum of 21 days apart for Pfizer/BioNTech and 28 days apart for AstraZeneca, with longer term protection provided by the second inoculation.

UK guidelines contradict US approach: The updated UK guidance contradicts guidelines in the United States for the two vaccines it has authorized, Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has noted that the authorized Covid-19 vaccines “are not interchangeable with each other or with other Covid-19 vaccine products,” and that “the safety and efficacy of a mixed-product series have not been evaluated. Both doses of the series should be completed with the same product.”

The CDC adds, however, that “if two doses of different mRNA COVID-19 vaccine products are inadvertently administered, no additional doses of either product are recommended at this time.”

Five people have been arrested and more than 1,000 fines have been issued after an illegal New Year's rave in the French countryside ended on Saturday, local authorities said.

More than 2,500 partygoers attended the illegal party in the region of Brittany in France, despite the government's strict coronavirus restrictions and a national night-time curfew.

About 1,600 fines were issued as of Saturday following the rave, which started on Thursday, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said via his official Twitter profile.

Trucks, sound systems and generators have been seized and Gendarmes officers "are continuing their investigation and checks so that this illegal event is harshly sanctioned," Darmanin added.

Of the 1,200 fines, 800 are related to coronavirus restrictions, Emmanuel Berthier, prefect of Ille-et-Vilaine, said.

Up to 20 vehicles including trucks which may be carrying sound equipment managed to escape the police block, Sauvegrain added.

"There is a judicial investigation which will allow us to identify the main perpetrators and to arrest them," Sauvegrain added.

Local police said they had tried to shut down the rave, but "faced violent hostility," with a police vehicle set on fire, other vehicles damaged, and soldiers sprayed with bottles and stones, causing minor injuries.

"No new violence" occurred since Thursday, a Gendarmerie Nationale spokesperson told CNN on Saturday, adding that partygoers were "leaving the premises voluntarily."

Local authorities said the number of partygoers was "estimated at 2,500, coming from different French departments and from abroad."

A national curfew from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. has been in place since December 15.

Native Americans are losing their elders to Covid-19. As death tolls continue to climb, tribes are struggling to protect some of their last remaining knowledge and language keepers.

"Every time one of those elders leaves this world, it's like a whole library, a whole beautiful chapter of our history, of our ceremonies -- all that knowledge, gone," Clayson Benally, a member of Navajo Nation, said.

Self-isolating in their Flagstaff, Arizona, homes, Clayson and his sister Jeneda Benally have been working to pass on the knowledge of their elder father, Jones Benally, during the pandemic.

"I take it as the greatest responsibility I've ever had in my life to make sure that our knowledge keepers, to make sure that my parents, come out on the other side of this pandemic," Jeneda said.

Native Americans are particularly susceptible to the coronavirus because they suffer from disproportionate rates of asthma, heart disease, hypertension and diabetes.

The Navajo Nation is the largest tribe in the US, with over 300,000 members, and had reported 22,776 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 783 deaths as of Thursday. The tribe has been on lockdown since November 16 and will continue to stay at home until January 10, according to a recent announcement from the Navajo Department of Health. The new measures also include 57-hour weekend lockdowns.

"Wherever we go, we're cautioned," Jones said.

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Twenty-five types of businesses will temporarily close in Thailand's capital, Bangkok, from Saturday in a bid to contain a new wave of local Covid-19 infections, according to a statement from the Government's Public Relations Department.

Bangkok's Governor Aswin Khwanmuang signed an order on Friday to close the businesses because of their "risk of spreading the disease."

The businesses include pubs and bars, amusement and water parks, children's playgrounds, fitness centers, massage parlors, and "all buildings at schools, tutorial schools, and educational institutions."

Restaurants, shopping centers, cinemas, and beauty salons are among the businesses allowed to stay open, but are required to follow strict Covid-19 prevention measures.

Anyone caught breaking the rules will be subject to a jail term of up to one year, or a fine of up to 100,000 baht (US$3,333), or both, according to the government statement.

Thailand reported 216 new cases of Covid-19 on Saturday, taking the country's total to 7,379, according to the country's Department of Disease Control; 1,545 of those total cases occurred in Bangkok province.

The US topped 20 million total infections and inched closer to 350,000 Covid-19 deaths on the first day of 2021 -- reminders of a grim reality continuing into the new year.

Grim death toll: More people have died across the US than anywhere else: nearly 348,000 Americans since the pandemic's start. About another 115,000 could die over the next month, according to projections from the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

That's while hospitalizations are at the highest levels they've ever been. The US reported a record 125,379 hospitalized Covid-19 patients nationwide Thursday, according to the Covid Tracking Project. That number dipped slightly Friday, with 125,057 hospitalizations reported -- about a 163% increase from two months ago.

A California doctor said hospitals have hit a "breaking point."

Highest infections: And Friday's bleak case milestone also means the nation has also recorded by far the most Covid-19 infections. It's double what India -- the country with the second-highest number of cases -- has reported and nearly triple what Brazil -- the third country in line -- has reported.

Read the full story.

You've undoubtedly seen and heard the phrases in commercials since the pandemic began.

"We live in unprecedented times." "In these challenging, difficult times." "Out of an abundance of caution." "We're in this together."

According to one university, that's gone on long enough.

In its annual review, Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, released the 2021 edition of the Top 10 words and phrases that are overused to the point of becoming insincere, useless or cliché. For 2020, it's all about Covid-19.

More than 1,450 phrases were nominated from around the world for consideration, LSSU said, and seven of the 10 phrases that the university selected for so-called "banishment" this year are about the coronavirus. They include:

The university has compiled its annual "List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness" since New Year's Day 1976. The list seeks to "uphold, protect, and support excellence in language" by encouraging the avoidance of words and terms that have been overused to the point of being "ineffective, baffling, or irritating."

Read the full story here:

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This year's list of 'banished' words and phrases are all about Covid-19

At least 160,606 new Covid-19 cases and 2,051 related deaths were reported in the United States on Friday, according to Johns Hopkins University's tally.

To date, there have been 20,128,693 reported cases of coronavirus in the US. At least 347,788 people have died. 

The totals include cases from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and other US territories, as well as repatriated cases. 

Track cases here:

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for emergency use, paving the way for lower and middle-income countries to start immunizing their populations against Covid-19.

The vaccine was first approved in the UK on December 8 for emergency use within the country, with the US, Canada and European Union following soon after. All have begun their own vaccination drives.

But the WHO green means countries without their own regulatory bodies, or the means to rigorously assess the efficacy and safety of vaccines, can expedite their own approval processes and begin rolling out vaccination programs.

There have been concerns about unequal distribution of vaccines as wealthier countries have bought or signed contracts to purchase large amounts of the doses available or those waiting for approval.

In a statement Thursday, WHO said groups like UNICEF and the Pan-American Health Organization could now procure the vaccine for distribution to countries in need.

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The Australian city of Sydney is mandating that people wear face masks in indoor spaces starting Sunday. Violations of the new measure will be punishable by a fine starting Monday.

The Premier of the state of New South Wales, Gladys Berejiklian, announced the new regulations for Greater Sydney on Saturday. 

Residents will be fined 200 Australian dollars ($154) if they are caught without face masks in the following places:

Staff in all hospitality venues and casinos must also wear masks.

Australia was able to successfully stop the virus' spread last year by closing its borders to most travelers and enacting strict lockdowns. However, cases have tincreased in recent days.

New South Wales reported seven new locally acquired cases in the 24 hours to 8 p.m. local time Friday, with an additional 12 cases identified in returned travelers in hotel quarantine, according to the state government.