Massachusetts officials have purchased 2.1 million at-home COVID-19 tests to give for free to 102 towns with the highest percentage of people below the poverty level, Gov. Charlie Baker said.

The tests come in packs of two and can be completed at home in 15 minutes.

"Each city or town will be able to determine how best to distribute tests within their community," Baker's office said in a statement Monday.

Philadelphia restaurants will require proof of vaccination beginning on Jan. 3, city officials announced.

The mandate applies to anywhere selling food, including bars, movie theaters and sports venues.

"New cases and hospitalizations are rising, and we must do more to protect our residents," Mayor Jim Kenney tweeted.

From Jan. 3 to Jan. 17 there will be a grace period, during which patrons can show proof of a negative test. But after Jan. 17, all patrons must show their vaccination status, officials said.

The omicron variant appears to have a "growth advantage" over the delta variant, the World Health Organization said in a technical brief released Sunday.

"It is spreading faster than the delta variant in South Africa where delta circulation was low, but also appears to spread more quickly than the delta variant in other countries where the incidence of delta is high, such as in the United Kingdom," the WHO said in the brief, which was dated Friday. "Whether omicron's observed rapid growth rate in countries with high levels of population immunity is related to immune evasion, intrinsic increased transmissibility, or a combination of both remains uncertain. However, given the current available data, it is likely that omicron will outpace the delta variant where community transmission occurs."

Meanwhile, preliminary findings from South Africa suggest omicron may cause less severe illness than delta, and all cases of omicron reported in Europe to date have been mild or asymptomatic. But the WHO said "it remains unclear to what extent omicron may be inherently less virulent" and that "more data are needed to understand the severity profile."

The WHO also noted that "there are limited available data, and no peer-reviewed evidence, on vaccine efficacy or effectiveness to date for omicron." However, preliminary evidence, and the considerably altered antigenic profile of the variant's spike protein, suggests a reduction in vaccine efficacy against infection and transmission associated with omicron.

"There is some preliminary evidence that the incidence of reinfection has increased in South Africa, which may be associated with humoral (antibody-mediated) immune evasion," the WHO said.

The diagnostic accuracy of routinely used polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test and antigen-based rapid diagnostic test (Ag-RDT) assays does not appear to be influenced by omicron. Therapeutic interventions for the management of severe or critical COVID-19 symptoms associated with omicron are also expected to remain effective, according to the WHO.

"However, monoclonal antibodies will need to be tested individually, for their antigen binding and virus neutralization and these studies should be prioritized," the WHO added.

-ABC News' Christine Theodorou

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is receiving treatment for "mild COVID-19 symptoms" after testing positive for the virus on Sunday, his office said in a statement.

Ramaphosa, 69, began feeling unwell earlier Sunday after leaving a state memorial service in Cape Town in honor of Frederik Willem de Klerk, South Africa's last apartheid president and a Nobel laureate, who died last month. Ramaphosa, who is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, was experiencing "mild" symptoms and a test confirmed he was infected, according to his office. The statement didn't say whether he has the omicron variant, which was discovered by scientists in southern Africa last month and is spreading rapidly.

Ramaphosa is self-isolating in Cape Town and is being monitored by the South African Military Health Service. He has delegated all his responsibilities to Deputy President David Mabuza for the next week, his office said.

Last week, Ramaphosa traveled with a delegation to four West African nations. He and the members of the South African delegation were all tested for COVID-19 in each of the countries during their trip. They returned to South Africa on Dec. 8, after testing negative in Senegal. Ramaphosa tested negative again upon arriving in Johannesburg that day, according to his office.

The statement advised people who had contact with the South African president on Sunday to watch for symptoms or to get tested for COVID-19.

"President Ramaphosa says his own infection serves as a caution to all people in the country to be vaccinated and remain vigilant against exposure," his office said in the statement. "Vaccination remains the best protection against severe illness and hospitalization."

-ABC News' Christine Theodorou

A journalist traveling alongside U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on his visit to Southeast Asia has tested positive for COVID-19 in Malaysia, according to U.S. Department of State spokesperson Ned Price.

Meanwhile, Blinken and his senior staff all tested negative for COVID-19 upon arrival in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday night. The member of the traveling press pool who tested positive had last tested negative in Indonesia's capital, their previous stop, on Tuesday.

"The individual who tested positive will remain in isolation," Price said in a statement Wednesday, "and we will continue to adhere to and go beyond CDC guidance, including with our rigorous testing protocol, for the remaining traveling party."

Blinken has canceled a scheduled trip to Thailand "out of an abundance of caution" and will return home to the United States, according to Price.

"The Secretary expressed his deep regret to the Foreign Minister that he would not be able to visit Bangkok this week," Price said. "He explained that, in order to mitigate the risk of the spread of COVID-19 and to prioritize the health and safety of the U.S. traveling party and those they would otherwise come into contact with, the Secretary would be returning to Washington, D.C. out of an abundance of caution."

"The Secretary extended an invitation for the Foreign Minister to visit Washington, D.C. at the earliest opportunity and noted that he looked forward to traveling to Thailand as soon as possible," Price added. "They affirmed that they would use the upcoming engagements to further deepen the U.S.-Thai alliance."

The U.S. Embassy in Malaysia confirmed that the infected individual "was not involved and has not participated in any of Secretary Blinken's program in Kuala Lumpur."

"The sole member of the traveling party who tested positive is observing all requirements of the Ministry of Health," the embassy said in a statement Wednesday. "We confirm all other members of the party tested negative for COVID-19 upon arrival in Malaysia."

Blinken was in Indonesia on Tuesday, and the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta confirmed that no members of the traveling party tested positive for COVID-19.

All members of the U.S. delegation are required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and undergo regular testing on trips.

-ABC News' Conor Finnegan