protesters in myanmar brings condemnation from the united nations. so why hasn't it taken action? ♪ some americans will be waking up in a few hours to some much needed money in their bank accounts. on friday, president joe biden promoting his success in getting the nearly $2 trillion relief bill through congress. but he also recognized there is more to be done to make sure americans get back on their feet again. >> so there's a lot of work for all of us left to do, but i know we'll do it. to everyone american watching, help is here, and we will not stop working for you. >> there's money in the relief bill to boost covid-19 vaccinations, which do appear to be improving numbers-wise. the cdc reporting that more than 100 million doses have been administered so far. about 35 million people now fully vaccinated. and as more people get vaccinated, the cdc also releasing new public safety guidance. on friday, officials updating their guidelines for child care programs, advising that everyone age 2 and up should wear their masks and practice social distancing. cnn's amara walker with more on where the u.s. is in this fight against the pandemic. >> take off your mask. [ scream ] >> reporter: after one long year, grandparents finally able to hug their children and grandchildren. >> my daughter and granddaughter came to my apartment to give me a little gift, they said. and the gift was the prescription from the doctor, and it said "you are allowed to hug your granddaughter". >> reporter: more reunions like these are on the horizon. with greater numbers of people getting vaccinated with a record 2.9 m 2.9 million vaccinations reported since yesterday. planning under way to implement president biden's call for all adults to be eligible for vaccinations by may 1st. >> again, that doesn't mean that may 1st, everyone's going to be able to get the shot in their arm. but on may 1st, you should be able to get a date in which you'll have a shot in your arm if you haven't had one already. >> reporter: that shot may come too late for one. it's estimated the death toll from corner will near 600,000 by july 1st with fewer people masking up. beginning today, maryland is reopening businesses including restaurants, gyms and places of worship at full capacity. though a mask mandate and social distancing requirements will remain in place. new orleans also allowing some businesses, including restaurants, to increase to 75% capacity with masking and social distancing still required. it's scenes like these in florida that experts worry will hurt progress. maskless spring break revellers gathering in crowds. officials tell cnn they expect the highest number of tourists since the pandemic began this weekend and next. >> everybody keeps say covid doesn't exist down here in florida. >> you're going to see as we enter the summer months, numbers are going to go down and people are going to think great. they're going to be less interested in getting a vaccine because they think we've conquered this pandemic. >> reporter: concerns prompting the superintendent of schools to move to virtual learning for one week after the students return. the tsa reporting a spike in air travel. they screened 2.8 million people on thursday, making it the third busiest day at american airports since the pandemic started. >> we must remain vigilant. >> reporter: the cdc, however, is cautioning against travel, even for the vaccinated, saying it would consider revising its guidance once more people get their shots. >> we are very worried about transmissible variants. a lot have come through our travel corridors. >> reporter: in miami beach, amara walker, cnn. astrazeneca's vaccine could soon become the next one available to americans. the company says it will seek an emergency use authorization shortly after it gets the results from its u.s. phase 3 trial. reuters reporting that's likely to be in early april. the u.s. has been under pressure to donate its supply of astrazeneca vaccines to other countries since it can't use them yet. the biden administration declining, saying it is focused on vaccinating americans. the european union won of those regions that was hoping to get some of the u.s. vaccine supply. its rollout lagging far behind the one here. cnn's melissa bell is standing by in paris. melissa, still a lot of division among nations on vaccine rollouts. the austrian chancellor saying vaccine doses aren't being distributed fairly across member states. tell us about the rollout and how it's been going with the problems. >> reporter: well, essentially it's been ever since the european union decided to come together on this question of vaccine procurement, which was a change from policies so far, which until then had seen health policy left to the member states. ever since that decision was made and the eu coordinated that since last june, it's been a series of problems time after time. first of all in the signature of the contract, then in the rollout of the deliveries. now, as you say, the austrian chancellor complaining about the fact that the vaccines have not been distributed to the member states on the basis of populations as they should have been. so this adds, of course, also to the series of problems that have surrounded the astrazeneca vaccine more particularly as well from the start. michael, it's been at the heart of a political row with the european union, with problems in terms of delivery delays. then questions from the national agencies in charge of health in the individual countries about what age limits should be set on the people who could receive the vaccination. a u-turn then on that decision and now of course this fresh division within europe about whether the astrazeneca vaccine should be suspended because of those problems that have been raised in some countries with regard to the problem of some patients who went on to develop blood clots. of course the company itself, the french national health agency, all say that in fact there is nothing to suggest there is any evidence that there is any increased risk as a result of being inoculated with the astrazeneca vaccine, that in fact the incidence of problems regarding blood clots is the same as in the general population, if not lower. so this another real division within europe on a question that has really divided them from the very start. >> meanwhile, i mean as the vaccine rollout is meant to be gathering steam, the spread of the variant, particularly the uk variant, has seen some pretty big upticks. >> reporter: that's right. it's been the really rapid spread since the second wave that's now taken us into this third in italy, france, germany, is that spread of the new variants, and particularly although the brazilian and south african variants are also making progress in those countries, it is specifically the one first identified in the united kingdom, michael, that has now become dominant in all three of those countries, italy, germany and france. it represents two-thirds of all new cases here in france, 55% in germany. that figure was 6% just six weeks ago. on one hand you have that problem of the faster spread of the new variant, but there is also the french health minister reminded us the problem of the fact that it seems to be more dangerous, that it seems to bring people into hospital in greater numbers and faster than the original coronavirus did. and that, he explained, is the problem now in france. fairly stable levels of new cases and yet more and more people in icus. we now have more than 4,000 in intensive care in france. that is the highest level of covid-19 patients in icu since november. the fear is we heard it from the mouth of the french prime minister just a couple of days ago. the particular pressure that is now being brought to bear on greater parisian hospitals and the fear we might be heading towards further restrictions rather than any lifting of them anytime soon, michael. >> all right. appreciate it, melissa. thank you. melissa bell there in paris. now, some countries in europe aren't taking any chances. in italy, new restrictions kicking in on monday, and the entire country set to enter a new lockdown period over the easter weekend. cnn's delia gallagher joining me now from rome to talk about that. italy bracing for new restrictions. why the increase in cases, and what can italians expect? >> reporter: well, michael, it seems to be a problem of the rate of transmission. authorities say it has increased rapidly due to the presence of variants. the variant first identified in the uk, they say, is now prevalent in italy. the variant first identified in brazil is now showing small clusters in italy. so what they have decided to do is lock down ten of italy's 20 regions. that includes major cities like rome, milan, and venice, and of course a total lockdown over the easter weekend, april 3rd through 5th. they say that any region, michael, that exceeds a weekly caseload of more than 250 per 100,000 residents will go into automatic lockdown. so there may be more regions in lockdown as we go on. prime minister mario draghi spoke to the nation yesterday. here's a little bit of what he had to say. >> translator: the memory of what happened last spring is still vivid, and we will do everything possible to prevent it from happening again. on the basis of scientific proof, the government has astopped reinstructive measures today that we think are appropriate and proportionate. >> reporter: michael, draghi also said that he understood the effects that this is going to have on children's education, on the economy, and on the psychological well-being of italians. but he said the measures were necessary to avoid further deterioration. michael. >> and meanwhile we're talking about vaccine rollout. how is it going specifically there in italy? >> reporter: well, that was another point the prime minister made yesterday. he said we're doing about 170,000 vaccines a day. he wants to triple that. he wants to make it more available, saying using all public spaces, parking lots, gyms to allow italians to get vaccinated. the johnson & johnson vaccine has now been approved for italy, so that gives them a fourth pharmaceutical supply in order to carry out this plan. the health minister said on thursday that they expect to have 80 million vaccines for the end of the summer, so they are confident, michael, that they will be able to accelerate their vaccine program. it's obviously key in order to help italy get out of this lockdown. michael. >> delia, good to see you. delia gallagher there in rome for us. now, right now covid-19 is killing more people in brazil each day than anywhere else in the world. brazil, we're going to show you a map here, there in red. it is a huge nation. it has been the second hardest hit nation in the world for much of the pandemic. and cases there are still spiking. it's getting worse every day. hospitals on the brink of collapse, and officials in rio de janeiro have stopped vaccination efforts because they've run out of shots. matt rivers with more from sao paulo. >> reporter: we are here in sao paulo, brazil, just one of many brazilian states currently reeling during what are unquestionably the worst days of brazil's pandemic so far. we've talked about how multiple single-day coronavirus death records have been set in just the last week alone. we see surging number of cases, and unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a lot of good news on the horizon either. specifically when you look at what is happening in hospitals across this country. specifically in intensive care units. if you look at icu occupancy rates, that's where you see the most disturbing numbers. in 23 of brazil's 26 states plus its federal district, icu occupancy rates are at 80% or higher. in 11 of those 26 states, icu occupancy rates are at 90% or higher. all of this comes as we heard today from the state of rio de janeiro that they are going to be forced to temporarily suspend their vaccination campaign due to low vaccine supply. brazil has had consistent issues procuring vaccines for its population. back weeks ago when the brazilian federal government announced its vaccination campaign plans, it had said that it would have some 46 million or so doses of vaccines available during the month of march. over the last few weeks, they've consistently brought that estimate down to the point where it is now some 26 million doses of vaccine are expected to be available this month during the month of march. those vaccines are desperately needed in this country when we look at the numbers of cases, the number of deaths. but the vaccine supply just not there yet. matt rivers, cnn, in sao paulo, brazil. we're going to take a quick break. when we come back here on "cnn newsroom," protesters in myanmar asking for international help, and so are human rights experts. so what's the holdup with the u.n. security council? we'll explain. also leaders from the u.s., japan, india, and australia discussing china's growing influence in the pacific region at the first ever quad summit. we'll have details on that as well when we come back. new zealand held a national remembrance service to mark the second anniversary of the christchurch terror attack. 51 people, you'll remember, were killed when a gunman opened fire at two separate mosques on march 15, 2019. dozens more people were injured in the shooting, which was livestreamed by the attacker. now, we're hearing more reports of deadly violence in myanmar today. witnesses telling cnn at least two people have been killed in mandalay after police fired on pro-democracy protesters. several others were injured. now, that's after a night of more police brutality. security forces firing at protesters in yangon, killing two people. the u.n. special rapporteur to myanmar says the military junta is unleashing terror and lawlessness against civilians. but that's not been enough to force the u.n. security council into actual action. richard roth explains what's holding them up. >> reporter: the people of myanmar currently under the gun in the streets of their own country should not really be hoping for immediate outside intervention by the u.n. or any other force. that's because the global organization is just not functioning that way. there's just too much division inside the 15-member u.n. security council, especially the big powers. in order for western countries to get the first formal condemnation of the coup on the books, russia and china insisted that the wording of the statement not include the word "coup," and it shouldn't include any threat of further measures should the myanmar generals fail to comply. so in order to get that compromise that many countries wanted, they had to give in on that very significant wording. so whether the myanmar generals really get any kind of hint to do something to protect their own people is highly unlikely. and the u.n. is just set up in a different kind of labyrinth. you will hear hidelines that the u.n. human rights representative in geneva, denouncing for myanmar for potential crimes against humanity and that a message has to be sent to the generals so they know there's no impunity -- the problem is that that's not the full u.n. it's really the security council that causes action, legal action under the charter of the u.n. so you can't be fooled when you see headlines about u.n. condemns myanmar generals. it doesn't necessarily mean it will lead to action. richard roth, cnn, new york. >> earlier i spoke with kaley long, a myanmar researcher for amnesty international. i asked her about the protesters' determination to resist military rule despite the very real threat to their lives. >> it is important to remember that people are just exercising their rights. they are allowed under international law to express themselves freely, to have freedom of assembly and freedom of association. and those rights are being trampled all over by the military. >> knowing the people as you do, are you in some way surprised that the protests have gone on this long despite the military violence or not surprised? >> i think there's a real determination from protesters that what has been shocking is the brutality of the response from the military. >> talk about the role of the military chief, the general, and why he seized power because this is very much about him and his ambitions and position. and according to many observers, his personal financial interest as well. what to make of him and his role? >> jen min aung hlaing has had command responsibility for a number of atrocities in recent years. obviously there was the rohingya crisis of 2016 and '17. but this is a military with a long history of impunity. and the different this time is wreer seating it meted out in the cities and towns all around the country on camera. >> as you've seen this unfold, how strong is the evidence against the military in terms of its use of force and tactics? i mean one imagines the smartphone images that have been documenting the crackdown could result in -- i don't know -- uncreased pressure but also possible evidence for what might be to come in terms of international action once this is over. >> as you say, there has been a pretty constant stream of information coming out, really shocking images and footage each day while the internet is on. as you know, they've been shutting it down each night. so it's really shocking to see this conduct caught on camera. as to whether that will serve as evidence in future criminal proceedings, i'm not sure. but certainly at amnesty, we've been analyzing that to try and piece together who's been responsible for the killings and the violence that we've seen on the streets. >> kayleigh long with amnesty international, really appreciate you coming on. very important issue happening. thank you. now, the united states says it will be restoring humanitarian aid to northern yemen, an area largely under houthi control. this coming as the country is on the verge of what could be the biggest famine in modern history. the head of the world food program telling the united nations he was frustrated by many things, including the lack of coverage it's receiving. >> the demands are catastrophic right now, and, you know, you turn on the media in the united states right now, it's all about harry and meghan. okay. that's fine, but, my god, i've got people dying right now. >> the director also said he spoke with houthi leadership about a cease-fire plan that the u.s. presented a number of days ago. he says an agreement is imperative to prevent more deaths. leaders from the u.s., india, japan, and australia have committed to supply asia with up to a billion covid vaccine doses by 2022. it was one of many topics discussed at the first so-called quad summit. the meeting also taking a hard look at china's growing influence on the global stage. cnn's selena wang reports. >> reporter: the leaders of the u.s., japan, australia, and india met in virtual talks on friday. it marks the first time talks have been held between the heads of state of the four-member quad group. the leaders were expected to discuss increasing capacity for covid-19 vaccines, economic cooperation, collaboration on climate change, as well as securing the indo-pacific region. beijing has denounced the quad as an anti-china bloc, emblematic of a, quote, poisonous cold war mentality. in recent months, relations between china and quad countries have plummeted. here in japan, there's been increasing alarm over china's incursions into the disputed of the east china sea. australia and china tensions have increased and relations have soured since australia called for an open investigation into the origins of covid-19. china has since slapped tariffs on a variety of australian commodities. china and india tensions have simmered ever since the border crisis. but even thou