Coronavirus updates: CDC now 'strongly recommends' masks on airplanes, public transportation
The goal is to "help safely reopen America’s economy," the CDC said.
A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.
Over 40 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The criteria for diagnosis -- through clinical means or a lab test -- has varied from country to country. Still, the actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to testing shortages, many unreported cases and suspicions that some national governments are hiding or downplaying the scope of their outbreaks.
Since the first cases were detected in China in December, the virus has rapidly spread to every continent except Antarctica.
The United States is the worst-affected country, with more than 8.1 million diagnosed cases and at least 219,674 deaths.
California has the most cases of any U.S. state, with more than 875,000 people diagnosed, according to Johns Hopkins data. California is followed by Texas and Florida, with over 854,000 cases and over 755,000 cases, respectively.
More than 190 vaccine candidates for COVID-19 are being tracked by the World Health Organization, at least 10 of which are in crucial phase three studies. Of those 10 potential vaccines in late-stage trials, there are currently five that will be available in the United States if approved.
Latest headlines:
India records lowest daily death toll in 3 months
India registered another 579 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, its lowest daily tally in three months.
An additional 55,722 cases were also confirmed. The country's cumulative totals now stand at 7,550,273 confirmed cases and 114,610 deaths, according to the latest data from the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
India is only the second country in the world to surpass 7 million total cases, after the United States. Since hitting a peak of 97,894 new cases registered in a single day in September, India's average number of daily cases has steadily declined.
The vast country of nearly 1.4 billion people is still on track to become the pandemic's worst-hit nation within weeks, overtaking the United States, where more than 8.1 million people have been diagnosed with COVID-19.
Belgium faces 'tsunami' of new cases, health minister warns
A midnight curfew went into effect across Belgium on Monday while bars and restaurants have been ordered to close except for providing takeaway service, as the European nation faces a "tsunami" of new COVID-19 infections.
"We are really very close to a tsunami," Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke told broadcaster RTL. "We no longer control what is happening."
Belgium, which is home to the European Union's headquarters, has the second-highest COVID-19 infection rate per capita in Europe, after the Czech Republic. Over the past two weeks, Belgium recorded 756.9 cases per 100,000 people, compared with Czech Republic's 858.6 cases per 100,000, according to data released Monday by the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, Belgium has confirmed 222,253 cases and at least 10,413 deaths. The 14-day incidence of COVID-19 per 100,000 inhabitants was up 221% on Sunday, according to data from the country's public health agency.
South Africa's health minister tests positive
South Africa's health minister, Dr. Zweli Mkhize, and his wife have tested positive for COVID-19.
"I wish to inform the public that this afternoon my wife, Dr May Mkhize and I have tested positive for COVID-19," he said in a statement posted on his official Twitter account Sunday. "We decided to go test yesterday when I started showing mild symptoms. I was feeling abnormally exhausted and as the day progressed, I started losing appetite."
"My wife had a cough, was dizzy and extremely exhausted," he continued. "Given her symptoms, the doctors advised that she must be admitted for observation and rehydration."
Mkhize said their close contacts over the past week, including some colleagues and family members, have been informed of their positive test results and were advised to immediately self-isolate and get tested.
"I am now in quarantine at home and both my wife and I remain optimistic that we will fully recover from this virus," he said.
The health minister warned of a possible second wave of infections and urged his fellow South Africans to continue wearing face masks, practicing social distancing and washing hands.
"I wish to take this opportunity to urge all South Africans to continue adhering to health protocols," he said. "As country, we’ve made significant strides in our fight against this pandemic. Let us not dare regress."
South Africa accounts for nearly half of all confirmed COVID-19 cases across the African continent. As of Monday, South Africa has reported 703,793 confirmed cases with at least 18,471 deaths, according to data from the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
UNICEF stockpiling half a billion syringes this year ahead of vaccine
The United Nations Children's Fund said it will stockpile 520 million syringes in its warehouses by the end of the year to begin preparations for a COVID-19 vaccine.
The effort is part of a larger plan of delivering over 1 billion syringes to support vaccination efforts, on top of 620 million syringes that the U.N. agency will purchase for other vaccination programs against other disease such as measles and typhoid.
"Vaccinating the world against COVID-19 will be one of the largest mass undertakings in human history, and we will need to move as quickly as the vaccines can be produced," UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore said in a statement Monday. "In order to move fast later, we must move fast now. By the end of the year, we will already have over half a billion syringes pre-positioned where they can be deployed quickly and cost effectively. That’s enough syringes to wrap around the world one and a half times."