WASHINGTON The nation s top infectious disease expert estimates that most Americans will have access to the new COVID-19 vaccines by mid-summer.
Dr. Anthony Fauci told Good Morning America on Tuesday that he expects to start vaccinating the general population “somewhere in the end of March, the beginning of April.”
He said the process could take up to four months to reach all Americans who want to receive the vaccine.
The first doses started rolling out last week, with health care workers, first responders and the elderly on the priority list. Fauci planned to receive his own shot of the vaccine created by Moderna on Tuesday.
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December 22, 2020
BISMARCK, N.D. The governor of North Dakota is allowing bars and restaurants to return to regular hours of operation on Tuesday, as the active number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have declined.
The food service establishments had been closed to in-person service between 10 a.m. and 4 a.m. since Nov. 16. Republican Gov. Doug Burgum signed an amended executive order on Monday that allows them to return to normal hours, consistent with any local requirements.
But to keep the virus in check, the bars and restaurants must follow other state and local rules, including limiting capacity to 50% and allowing no more than 150 people inside until Jan. 8. Social distancing, mask wearing and other precautions also remain in place.
PRAGUE The lower house of the Czech Parliament has approved a government plan to cut income taxes in an effort to help revive an economy hit by the coronavirus pandemic.
The lawmakers have reduced the main tax rate from 20.1% to 15% while the top earners will pay 23%.
The annual cost of the cuts will reach some 100 billion Czech crowns ($4.6 billion).
As part of the measure, the lower house agreed to increase the flat write-off on personal income tax by 3,000 crowns annually for the next two years.
The cuts split the ruling coalition. It was pushed through by the centrist ANO (YES) movement by Prime Minister Andrej Babis with help from the right-wing opposition.