Free coronavirus testing site opens on U.S.-Mexico border

San Diego, US: A coronavirus testing site has been set up on the U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego, offering free virus tests to travelers crossing into California from Mexico.

The testing site, located at the San Ysidro Port of Entry, which is the world's busiest, offers free tests with no appointments needed to travelers crossing by foot from the Mexican border city of Tijuana. "This is open to everyone, we don't ask for immigration status. Right now there are restrictions on the border in terms of who is able to cross; those that are coming in for essential reasons or those that are providing essential services. So anyone who is coming across is able to come and anyone that lives in the community can come and get their test," said Barbara Jimenez, from the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency.

"We get about 20,000 people that are crossing the border walking and so this is an opportunity for those coming for essential reasons and our essential workers, they can quickly stop by and get their test on their way to work or to do their activities," she added.

A ban on non-essential border travel between Mexico and the U.S. has been in place since March in an attempt by both governments to limit coronavirus infections, yet cross-border traffic has been busy. Mexico's northern border region is home to a large population of U.S. permanent residents and U.S. citizens, including dual nationals, who are typically free to cross back and forth.

"I think (border testing) is a very good program, especially for those who are responsible and want to keep their families safe," said Sarina Coronado, who lives in Tijuana but crosses the border everyday to get to her job waiting tables at a restaurant in San Diego.

"It's great because it makes you feel safe, it makes everything feel safer, when you come and you go, so I'm all for it," said 50-year-old Gabriel Rodriguez, a San Diego resident who had just returned from visiting his parents who live in Tijuana.The San Ysidro coronavirus testing site will be open 6:30 am to 12pm (local) Monday through Friday.

New Zealand scrambles to trace cluster, reporting 14 new virus cases

Auckland: New Zealand officials were scrambling to trace the source of an outbreak of the coronavirus, reporting 14 new cases on Thursday, as long queues of people formed to escape a renewed lockdown in the country's biggest city or be tested for the virus.

The discovery of four infected family members in Auckland two days ago shocked a country that had not recorded a case of COVID-19 for more than three months, raising some criticism of the government's handling of the crisis. New Zealand announced on Thursday that there were 13 new cases in the community, and one overseas arrival who was in quarantine, bringing the total number of active cases to 36.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern reimposed tight movement restrictions in Auckland and social distancing measures across the rest of the country on Wednesday, echoing her early response to the pandemic, which was praised for its apparent effectiveness. Officials reported on Thursday that three more people at a refrigerator storage facility - Americold -where one of the family members worked, had tested positive.

Ardern said it was a positive sign that all the new 13 cases were linked back to the infected family, either via work or broader family connections. All were being transferred into quarantine facilities. The rest of the country was placed back into slightly looser level 2 restrictions. The restrictions will initially remain in place until Friday, when Ardern will announce the next steps.

Argentina and Mexico to produce AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine

Buenos Aires: Argentina and Mexico will produce the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine for most of Latin America, Argentine President Alberto Fernandez said on Wednesday after a meeting with company executives involved in the project.

An agreement signed between British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and the biotechnology company mAbxience of the INSUD Group includes transfer of technology to initially produce 150 million doses of the vaccine to supply all of Latin America with the exception of Brazil, the Argentine government said.

AstraZeneca, Britain's second-largest drugmaker, has long operations in Argentina. The company signed a deal with the foundation of Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim for production of the vaccine, which is expected to be delivered in the first half of 2021, pending Phase III studies and regulatory approvals.

The South American country, which has passed 5,000 coronavirus fatalities, posted a record daily number of COVID-19 infections on Wednesday with 7,663 new cases. There were more than 200 fatalities over the previous 24-hour period.

Brazilian state agrees to produce Russian COVID-19 vaccine

Curitiba: A Brazilian technology institute said on Wednesday it expects to produce a controversial coronavirus Russian vaccine by the second half of 2021, shortly after the state of Parana signed a memorandum of understanding with Moscow.

Russia has touted it as the world's first registered coronavirus vaccine, although experts have also raised safety concerns for going to market while other pharmaceutical companies are still carrying out mass testing. Parana's Technology Institute, known as Tecpar, said it may import the vaccine earlier than the production date, if Brazil's federal health regulator Anvisa approves the vaccine.

Tecpar signed the cooperation agreement with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), which said in a statement from Moscow that its goal was to "organise the production of the Sputnik V vaccine and its distribution in Brazil and other Latin American countries."

Brazilian public health experts and former senior regulatory officials said on Tuesday they had safety concerns about the vaccine, which has not passed the usual mass testing required of vaccinations. At a press conference, Tecpar Director Jorge Callado said they were still waiting for Russia to send in its phase 1 and 2 vaccine test results, and that their understanding is they are still conducting phase 3 trials. He added that Parana would likely participate in the phase 3 testing, subject to Anvisa authorisation.

Brazil has the world's worse coronavirus outbreak after the United States, with over 3 million confirmed cases and 100,000 deaths, making it a global hub for testing coronavirus vaccines, including British and Chinese candidates.

Israeli jeweller makes $1.5 million gold COVID-19 Face Mask, The World's Most Expensive

Motza, Jerusalem, Israel: Art rather than ostentation is the rationale behind the world's most expensive coronavirus mask, say the Israeli jewellers who are crafting the $1.5 million object for an unnamed U.S.-based client.

Made out of 18 carat gold and studded with 3,600 black and white diamonds, the mask will be fitted with an N99 filter to offer a high level of protection, said Isaac Levy, owner of the Yvel jewellery brand. "I don't think he is going to use it going to the supermarket but he is going to use it here and there, I'm sure," said Levy. He described the client as a Chinese art collector living in the United States.

"He is a young-old customer of ours, very charming, very outgoing, very wealthy and he likes to stand out," Levy said. The jeweller plans to deliver the mask personally when it is completed, in October. The mask, which a team of around 25 artisans is working on, might be viewed a vulgar display of wealth during hard economic times, but for Levy it is above all a work of art.

"We are very proud to be able to create such a mask that provides so much work to so many people that desperately need these jobs in theses challenging times." he said.

'Seriously doubt' Russia coronavirus vaccine was proven safe - Dr. Anthony Fauci

Top U.S. infectious disease official Dr. Anthony Fauci said he doubts that Russia has proven a newly announced COVID-19 vaccine as safe and effective.

"Having a vaccine... and proving that a vaccine is safe and effective are two different things," said Fauci. "I hope, but I haven't heard any evidence to make me feel that's the case, I hope that the Russians have actually definitively proven that the vaccine is safe and effective. I seriously doubt that they've done that." Fauci's comments were released as a preview of an exclusive conversation with National Geographic as part of their event, 'Stopping Pandemics,' airing Thursday, August 13 at 1pm ET (1700gmt).

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Russia had become the first country in the world to grant regulatory approval to a COVID-19 vaccine after less than two months of human testing, a move hailed by Moscow as evidence of its scientific prowess.

The vaccine still has to complete final trials, raising concerns among some experts at the speed of its approval, but the Russian business conglomerate Sistema has said it expects to put it into mass production by the end of the year.