The US on Friday cleared President Joe Biden’s goal of injecting 100 million coronavirus shots, more than a month before his target date of his 100th day in office, as the president prepared to set his sights higher in the nationwide vaccination effort.
With the country now administering about 2.5 million shots per day, Mr Biden, who promised to set a new goal for vaccinations next week, teased the possibility of setting a 200-million-dose goal by his 100th day in office.
"We may be able to double it," he told reporters before leaving the White House for Atlanta. The US is on pace to have enough of the three currently authorised vaccines to cover the entire adult population 10 weeks from now.
As the pace of US vaccinations and supply improves, the White House said the nation is in a position to help supply neighbours Canada and Mexico with millions of life-saving shots.
The Biden administration on Thursday revealed the outlines of a plan to lend a limited number of vaccines to Canada and Mexico.
Coronavirus co-ordinator Jeff Zients said on Friday that 2.5 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine would go to Mexico and 1.5 million would be sent to Canada. He emphasised that because the AstraZeneca shot is not yet authorised in the US, “this loan will not reduce the supply of vaccine to Americans”.
“Our first priority remains vaccinating the US population,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Thursday. She said that “ensuring our neighbours can contain the virus is a mission-critical step, is mission critical to ending the pandemic”.
The AstraZeneca vaccine has not yet been authorised for use in the US but has been by the World Health Organisation.
Tens of millions of doses have been stockpiled in the US, waiting for emergency use authorisation, and that has sparked an international outcry that vaccines are being withheld when they could be used elsewhere. The White House said about seven million of the AstraZeneca doses are ready for shipment.
The initial run of doses manufactured in the US are owned by the federal government under the terms of agreements reached with drugmakers, and the Biden administration has faced calls from allies across the globe to release the AstraZeneca shots for immediate use. Mr Biden has also fielded direct requests from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to buy vaccines produced in the US.
Global public health advocates say wealthy nations like the US need to do far more to help stem the spread of the pandemic. The WHO on Thursday issued a report stating that fewer than seven million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered in Africa thus far. That’s the equivalent of what the US administers in a matter of days.
Mr Biden did move to have the US contribute financially to the Covax alliance, backed by non-governmental organisations such as Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, along with the WHO and Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which will share vaccines with more than 90 lower and middle-income nations. But the US has yet to commit to sharing any doses.
From his first days in office, Mr Biden has set clear – and achievable – measures for US success, whether they be vaccinations or school reopenings, as part of an apparent strategy of underpromising, then overdelivering. Aides believe that exceeding his goals breeds trust in government after the Trump administration’s sometimes fanciful rhetoric on the virus.
The 100 million-dose goal was first announced on December 8, days before the US had even one authorised vaccine for Covid-19, let alone the three that have now received emergency authorisation. Still, it was generally seen within reach, if optimistic.
By the time Mr Biden was inaugurated on January 20, the US had already administered 20 million shots at a rate of about one million per day, bringing complaints at the time that Mr Biden’s goal was not ambitious enough. He quickly revised it upwards to 150 million doses in his first 100 days.
Now the US is injecting an average of about 2.5 million doses each day. The pace is likely to soar later this month in conjunction with an expected surge in supply of the vaccines, putting a 200 million-dose goal well within reach.
The president has moved to speed up deliveries of vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, as well as to expand the number of places to receive shots and people who can administer them, with a focus on increasing the nation's capacity to inject doses as supply constraints lift.
The risk in setting too rosy expectations is that an administration might become defined by its failure to meet them, such as in May 2020, when president Donald Trump said the nation had “prevailed” over the virus.
At the time, the country had seen about 80,000 deaths from the virus. This week, the US death toll topped 538,000. Mr Trump's lax approach and lack of credibility also contributed to poor adherence to public safety rules among the American public.
The five pillars of Islam
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
The five pillars of Islam
'The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window'
Director:Michael Lehmann
Stars:Kristen Bell
Rating: 1/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs: 2018 Ducati SuperSport S
Price, base / as tested: Dh74,900 / Dh85,900
Engine: 937cc
Transmission: Six-speed gearbox
Power: 110hp @ 9,000rpm
Torque: 93Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.9L / 100km
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
World Cricket League Division 2
In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.
UAE fixtures
Thursday February 8, v Kenya; Friday February 9, v Canada; Sunday February 11, v Nepal; Monday February 12, v Oman; Wednesday February 14, v Namibia; Thursday February 15, final
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Read more about the coronavirus
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Sunday's games
Liverpool v West Ham United, 4.30pm (UAE)
Southampton v Burnley, 4.30pm
Arsenal v Manchester City, 7pm
Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
Best Referee: Stephanie Frappart
Best Revelation Player: Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid and Portugal)
Best Sporting Director: Andrea Berta (Atletico Madrid)
Best Women's Player: Lucy Bronze
Best Young Arab Player: Achraf Hakimi
Kooora – Best Arab Club: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia)
Kooora – Best Arab Player: Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Nassr FC, Saudi Arabia)
Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3ECompany%20name%3A%20Shipsy%3Cbr%3EYear%20of%20inception%3A%202015%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Soham%20Chokshi%2C%20Dhruv%20Agrawal%2C%20Harsh%20Kumar%20and%20Himanshu%20Gupta%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20India%2C%20UAE%20and%20Indonesia%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20logistics%3Cbr%3ESize%3A%20more%20than%20350%20employees%3Cbr%3EFunding%20received%20so%20far%3A%20%2431%20million%20in%20series%20A%20and%20B%20rounds%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Info%20Edge%2C%20Sequoia%20Capital%E2%80%99s%20Surge%2C%20A91%20Partners%20and%20Z3%20Partners%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
RACE SCHEDULE
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday, September 29
First practice: 7am - 8.30am
Second practice: 11am - 12.30pm
Saturday, September 30
Qualifying: 1pm - 2pm
Sunday, October 1
Race: 11am - 1pm
