Coronavirus: Philippines bans travellers from 20 nations with UK variant detected
- Filipino workers returning from the countries, which include the UK, China and Singapore, are exempted from the ban, the Philippine labour chief says
- Meanwhile, Indonesia is finalising deals to secure 50 million doses of coronavirus vaccines from drugmakers Pfizer and AstraZeneca
These include Australia, Britain, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands. Bello did not say when the ban would take effect.
Filipino workers returning from these countries are exempted from the ban, said the labour chief, who expects as many as 100,000 more overseas Filipino workers to arrive in the country.
The announcement came as the Philippines approved Janssen Pharmaceuticals’ application to conduct a clinical trial of its coronavirus vaccine in the Southeast Asian nation, Food and Drug Administration Director General Eric Domingo said at a media briefing.
“In the next few weeks, we will be able to begin clinical trials,” Domingo said. The trial applications of Chinese firms Sinovac Biotech and Sichuan Clover Biopharmaceuticals Inc, and Pfizer Inc’s application for emergency use for its vaccine are still under review, he said.
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Indonesia poised to buy 50 million vaccine doses
Indonesia is finalising deals to secure 50 million doses of coronavirus vaccines from drugmakers Pfizer and AstraZeneca, the new health minister said on Tuesday.