February 15 coronavirus news

The biotechnology company Novavax told CNN on Monday that its scientists are testing a new version of its Covid-19 vaccine in the lab that specifically targets the coronavirus variant first identified in South Africa.

As part of this research, the scientists are hoping to determine whether the new vaccine would serve as a booster shot to the original vaccine that has already been developed, or as a bivalent vaccine administered on its own, meaning it would target two strains of the coronavirus, both the original and the variant first identified in South Africa. 

Once lab testing is complete, the new vaccine could move to clinical trials – but a timeline is still in the works and the research is still very early.

In a previous announcement in January, the company said, "Novavax initiated development of new constructs against the emerging strains in early January and expects to select ideal candidates for a booster and/or combination bivalent vaccine for the new strains in the coming days. The company plans to initiate clinical testing of these new vaccines in the second quarter of this year."

The biotechnology company Novavax told CNN on Monday that it expects to announce this week that its PREVENT-19 trial has reached full enrollment.

The trial will include about 30,000 adults across 115 locations in the US and Mexico to test whether the company's investigational vaccine prevents Covid-19 disease. 

Novavax announced in January that early results from a Phase 3 trial in the UK show its coronavirus vaccine has an efficacy of 89.3%. 

As the US trial for Novavax's coronavirus vaccine reaches full enrollment, the company told CNN on Monday that its vaccine is still on track to possibly receive authorization for emergency use in the US by summer. 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for patience and warned the “threat from this virus remains very real” despite the UK reaching its target of giving 15 million people a first dose of the vaccine by Feb. 15. 

Speaking during a Downing Street news conference on Monday, Johnson said he would be setting out a roadmap out of lockdown next week but “we want this lockdown to be the last." He said he wants the progress to be “cautious and irreversible."

He said the level of infection remains very high and there are still more people in hospitals with Covid-19 than at the peak last April. “So this moment is a huge step forward but it’s only a first step,” Johnson cautioned.

The government’s next target is to offer vaccines to its top nine priority groups — including everyone over the age of 50 — by the end of April.

There have been at least 27,645,547 cases of coronavirus in the US, and at least 485,414 people have died, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

So far today, Johns Hopkins University has reported 5,265 new cases and 78 new deaths.  

At least 70,057,800 vaccine doses have been distributed and at least 52,884,356 total doses of the vaccine have been administered, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

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

The UK's mandatory hotel quarantine for travelers arriving from some countries — including South Africa, Portugal and South American nations — went into effect today

Non-UK residents from these countries will be refused entry. British citizens and permanent residents will be picked up straight from the airport and transferred to government-provided accommodation where they will begin their mandatory stay.

CNN's Go There is in London, where international correspondent Scott McLean answered CNN viewers' questions about the UK variant and new quarantine policies.

Watch:

In an interview that aired on “Axios on HBO” Sunday, Axios Managing Editor Margaret Talev asked Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, if he ever worried about contracting the coronavirus himself.

At age 80, Fauci is considered at high risk for serious disease and death if he were to get sick with Covid-19.

Iraq has reported its first new cases of what it says is a rapidly spreading coronavirus variant, after several infections were recorded, including children, the Health Minister Hassan Al Tamimi said in a news conference on TV on Monday.

Al Tamimi did not specify which variant was detected, or how many cases had been identified, but warned of its danger amidst a “remarkable increase in infections”.

On Monday, the Iraqi Ministry of Health reported at least 2,798 new confirmed coronavirus cases. It brings the total number of cases in Iraq to at last 646,650, according to the Iraqi Ministry of Health.

Iraq on Saturday had announced a series of restrictive measures "in light of the increasing number of infections among citizens," to contain the spread of coronavirus, according to a statement released by the Iraqi cabinet.

The statement said Iraq will impose a full curfew on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays of each week between Feb. 18 through March 8.

Two more states have started allowing all or some teachers and school staff to receive the Covid-19 vaccine starting today, bringing the total to 28 states plus Washington, DC.

The additional states are Alaska, where all teachers are now eligible, and North Dakota, where some counties are now vaccinating group 1B, which includes K-12 teachers.

Though some states have announced they are prioritizing teachers, vaccine availability remains a concern across the country.

There are 22 states where teachers are still not eligible to receive the vaccine as a specific group — although some educators might fall into the current age group that state is vaccinating.

Here are the states where all or some teachers are eligible:

Here are the states where teachers are not yet eligible:

This weekend has been one of the busiest for pandemic air travel in more than a month. Transportation Security Administration figures show that 946,458 passed through security at airports on Sunday. That means more than four million people have flown since Thursday. More than 1.1 million people flew on Friday alone. 

Airlines have been concerned that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would mandate that passengers get tested for coronavirus before their trips, something that could suppress travel numbers. On Friday, the CDC said it was not considering pre-departure testing at this time.

The White House met with airline executives on Friday following industry uproar over the possibility of testing domestic travelers for the coronavirus, sources told CNN.

The CDC has been warning people not to travel.