Coronavirus updates: 1st vaccines now on the way to all 50 US states
Two main trucks left the Pfizer facility on Sunday morning, the company said.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 71.5 million people and killed over 1.6 million worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
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New York City ending indoor dining
Indoor dining will end Monday in New York City to help stem the spread of COVID-19, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced.
Outdoor dining and takeout will continue.
Indoor dining accounted for 1.43% of recent spread, said Cuomo, adding that a 74% spike in infections is linked to indoor gatherings at private homes.
Indoor dining capacity could be reduced elsewhere in New York depending on the numbers, the governor said.
Before the governor's announcement, Mayor Bill de Blasio said he felt "tremendous empathy for restaurant owners."
“I feel for them," the mayor added, "but sometimes it’s smart to say, 'Look, if you take an action now, you can stop much worse things from happening later.'"
ABC News’ Aaron Katersky contributed to this report.
Snow leopard at Louisville Zoo has virus
A snow leopard at the Louisville Zoo in Kentucky has SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Veterinary Services Laboratories.
Testing is ongoing for two other snow leopards.
“Samples from three snow leopards were taken after they showed signs of respiratory illness,” the Department of Agriculture said. “It is suspected that they acquired the infection from an asymptomatic staff member, despite precautions taken by the zoo.”
All three animals are expected to fully recover.
This is the first snow leopard in the U.S. to test positive for SARS-CoV-2, though there have been confirmed cases in other big cats in zoos and conservations centers.
ABC News’ Stephanie Ebbs contributed to this report.
HHS secretary says Pfizer vaccine will be approved, vaccinations could start next week
HHS Secretary Alex Azar told "Good Morning America" that vaccinations could come Monday or Tuesday.
He said the Pfizer vaccine will be approved, they are just working out the details and finalizing the fact sheet on allergy warnings.
"We weren't counting on it in terms of getting to the projections that you and I have talked about about having enough vaccine for the second quarter," he said. "The Sanofi vaccine could be an important additional technology for later rounds of vaccination as one goes forward later in 2021."
Azar also said the Food and Drug Administration will proceed with the emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
He said 20 million Americans will be vaccinated this month, up to 50 million total in January and the U.S. believes "we could have 100 million vaccinations in arm by the end of February."
Mayor: In LA, 'someone is dying of COVID-19 every 20 minutes'
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti shared "astounding" COVID-19 figures in a press briefing Thursday.
"In Los Angeles, someone is dying of COVID-19 every 20 minutes," the mayor said, as he reported that there were 74 new deaths from the virus in the county.
Los Angeles County reported a record 12,819 new COVID-19 cases, surpassing Sunday's record of 10,528. Cases have increased 1,000% in the past month-and-a-half, the mayor said.
Intensive care unit bed capacity has also dropped to 7.7%, he said.
"Today's COVID-19 data from LA County is the most devastating since the start of this pandemic," Garcetti said.
The mayor said there is a "light at the end of the tunnel." LA County could begin distributing vaccines early next week if one is authorized soon, he said.
The county could receive up to 83,000 doses in the next couple of days, and as many as 500,000 doses by the end of December, he said.
"I urge all Angelinos to get vaccinated as soon as they qualify," Garcetti said. "The end of this pandemic is finally, finally in sight."
-ABC News' Michelle Mendez contributed to this report.
2 trucks with COVID-19 vaccines have left facility, Pfizer says
The first vaccines in the U.S. have now left the Pfizer facility and are on their way to all 50 states.
Two main trucks left on Sunday morning -- an additional truck will come in later to pick up a few boxes and take them to the U.S. territories.
On Monday Pfizer has an order for another 400 boxes of the vaccine as well as an order for a slightly less amount of boxes on Tuesday, the company said.
The first shipments are expected to arrive at 145 sites on Monday, 425 sites on Tuesday and another 66 sites on Wednesday, Gen. Gus Perna of the Trump administration's Operation Warp Speed vaccine program said.
At those sites, the vaccines will be paired with ancillary kits to assist with the vaccinations. The kits contain needles, syringes, alcohol swabs, diluent, safety gear and vaccine reminder cards.
-ABC News' Joshua Hoyos and Luis Martinez