A potential coronavirus vaccine from Oxford University won't be open for use immediately in the United States. The United Kingdom announces that once the vaccine turns successfully into clinical trials, the country will be the first to test it. Meanwhile, a Californian celebration of Mother's Day turns into something horrifying after a COVID-19 patient was invited, risking the lives of over 180 people at the same celebration.
UK's top choice of COVID-19 vaccine will not prioritize Americans
As reported via ABC News, an Oxford University-studied COVID-19 vaccine is now ready to deliver 100 million doses of its substance. After signing up with a global licensing agreement with U.K.-based pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, the said vaccine will no longer give priority to anyone except British people.
Not that they won't share the vaccine, but the U.K. government said that their people will have the first chance to test the vaccine if experiments are successfully completed soon.
"This deal with AstraZeneca means that if the Oxford University vaccine works, people in the U.K. will get the first access to it, helping to protect thousands of lives," said the U.K.'s Business Secretary Alok Sharma.
After sending 100 million doses, Oxford and AstraZeneca will be working together to create another 30 million doses of the vaccine, to be sent by September as part of the agreement.
Human clinical trials of the said vaccine already began last month. Researchers at both U.K.'s prestigious schools like Oxford and Imperial College of London will receive about $101 million from government budget in line with their experiments for the vaccine.
Mother's Day tragedy happens in California
Due to implemented stay-at-home orders in the U.S., social gatherings like parties, birthdays, or even congregation meetings are still prohibited by law.
However, a religious service during Mother's Day happened in Butte County, Northern California decided to break the law, resulting in a much worse punishment.
According to Fox News, Butte County Public Health said in a press release that a public church located in the area re-opened despite the rules against gatherings.
What they didn't know was that a COVID-19 patient was one of the guests. Over 180 people attended the event and now possibly have the virus due to the infected person.
As explained, the patient only knew he was positive with the virus a day after the gathering.
Meanwhile, health officials from the county said that they had already spoken with the organizers of the service, to inform them that social gatherings are still unallowed today.
"At this time, organizations that hold in-person services or gatherings are putting the health and safety of their congregations, the general public and our local ability to open up at great risk," Butte County Public Health Director Danette York said in a statement. "We all need to do our part to follow the orders and mitigation efforts so that our Reopen Butte County plan can continue to move forward."
