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U.S. COVID Death Toll Racing with Vaccine Release; Rich Countries Hoards Coronavirus Vaccine; FTC Slap Facebook with a Lawsuit; No Deal Done Yet for Brexit; President Trump Still Hoping to Win; Canada Authorizes Emergency Use of Pfizer Vaccine; Allergic Reactions on the Pfizer/BioNTech Vaccine on Two U.K. Nurses; Chinese Sinopharm Vaccine 86 Percent Effective; Mexico to Buy 35 Million Doses of Chinese Cansino Vaccine; Cars Line Up for Food in L.A. County; Cases and Hospitalizations on the Rise in the United States; Protest in Idaho Over COVID-19 Mandates; Trump Fixated on Election Results; Hong Kong Tightens Restrictions Amid Virus Resurgence; Denmark's Success in Fighting COVID-19; Basilica in Italy Pays Tribute to Nurses; SpaceX Test Flight Ends Hard. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired December 10, 2020 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[03:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Live from CNN world headquarters in Atlanta, welcome to you, our viewers here in the United States, Canada, and around the world. I'm Brunhuber.
Ahead on CNN Newsroom, from bad to worse. The U.S. breaks its own record for daily COVID-19 deaths and people hospitalized by the disease just hours before a vaccine could get the green light.
Plus, groundbreaking lawsuits against Facebook, the U.S. government says that the social media giant is an illegal monopoly that needs to be broken up.
And later, Denmark has kept its coronavirus deaths an infection rates low. Details on the country's success strategy to contain the pandemic.
Now the U.S. has kept another milestone, more than 3,000 deaths reported in a single day. That's more than the number of Americans who died on 9/11. And it's only growing worse as the virus spreads. More and more people are ending up in the hospital fighting to breathe.
Right now, U.S. medical facilities across the country are treating more than 106,000 COVID patients. That's the most ever in many hospitals. Fear they'll soon be overrun if the virus keeps spreading. The best hope right now maybe Pfizer's promising new vaccine.
The Food and Drug Administration will finally give it a hard look beginning in a few hours. And if it gets the green light, limited distribution could start almost immediately.
We get more from CNN's Erica Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERICA HILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Across the country, the countdown for the first COVID-19 vaccine is on.
GUSTAVE PERNA, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, OPERATION WARP SPEED: We will begin upon approval of EUA packing, to the micro plants and begin distribution within 24 hours out to the jurisdictions accordingly.
HILL: The FDA could authorize Pfizer's vaccine as soon as tomorrow. Trucks and planes are ready to go, ultra-low temperature features on standby.
NANCY PALAMARA, PHARMACY DIRECTOR, HOLY NAME MEDICAL CENTER: You're looking at potentially getting close to at least a quarter of the staff in that first go around.
HILL: Holy Name Medical Center in northern New Jersey is anticipating about 1,000 dozers in that first shipment. Though, like nearly everyone else, they won't know for sure, until the call comes.
JONEIGH KHALDUN, CHIEF MEDICAL EXECUTIVE AND CHIEF DEPUTY DIRECTOR, MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: We still to this date don't know exactly how many Michigan will be receiving.
HILL: As states prepare there are new questions about Pfizer's e vaccine which was just given the OK in Canada after two healthcare workers in the U.K. had an allergic reaction.
MONCEF SLAOUI, CHIEF SCIENTIFIC ADVISER, OPERATION WARP SPEED: The expectation would be that subjects with known severe reaction, allergic reactions should not take the vaccine. Until we understand exactly what happened here.
HILL: The reality for most Americans, the vaccine won't be widely available until spring.
UNKNOWN: It's going to be a rough couple of months.
HILL: The U.S. now averaging 206,000 new cases a day. That's up nearly 70 percent in just four weeks. Daily reported deaths even more alarming, skyrocketing, 123 percent in that same period.
MORGAN FITZSIMMONS, TRAVELING COVID-19 NURSE: I mean, you got to think that everyone has a loved one.
HILL: Hospitals are struggling.
MARK GHALY, SECRETARY, CALIFORNIA HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY: Statewide, I don't believe we've ever seen as many hospital admissions increased since -- like we did just in the past 24 hours.
HILL: Massachusetts further limiting outdoor gatherings and indoor capacity.
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER (R-MA): The days that most people doing most of the right things are probably not enough.
HILL: Doing the right thing, meaning more resistance.
(CROWD CHANTING)
HILL: And Idaho health board meeting discuss new COVID restrictions abruptly shut down after just 12 minutes.
DIANA LACHIONDO, COMMISSIONER, ADA COUNTY, IDAHO: My 12-year-old son is home by himself right now and there are protesters banging outside the door, OK, I'm going to go home.
HILL: Despite the pushback many officials are moving forward with new COVID safety measures. As hospitals brace for what could be their toughest battle yet.
NIRAV SHAH, DIRECTOR, MAINE CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION: What we do today impacts and predicts the success that we will have going forward starting tomorrow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL (on camera): Here at Holy Medical Center I'm told there is a buzz, there is excitement about the vaccine, but also some questions. So, to address any concerns they're holding a virtual town hall for the staff on Thursday. They do anticipate about 1,000 doses of the vaccine in the initial shipment when they receive it and first in line will be the staff that interacts directly with COVID patients.
[03:05:04]
In Teaneck, New Jersey, I'm Erica Hill, CNN.
BRUNHUBER: Now many people have wondered why the U.K., Canada and others have authorize the Pfizer vaccine but the U.S. hasn't. So, I asked Dr. Saad Omer of the Yale Institute for Global Health about it. And here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAAD OMER, DIRECTOR, YALE INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL HEALTH: It's not a race, in terms of regulatory review. Every country has its own regulatory procedures and that's why we don't have a sort of a single entity that's improving for everyone.
So, I think a review and authorization that happened today or last week versus if it happens in a few days is not a big difference as long as the advisory bodies and independent review is, you know, these conditions are satisfied in line with each country's own regulatory procedures.
BRUNHUBER: How worried should we be about the warning we just heard that people with significant history of allergic reactions shouldn't be given the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine? Or is the main worry that it will scare people off? OMER: Well, so there are two ways of looking at it. First, yes, for
people who are in that category, there's this precaution and then in certain cases contraindication that has been added by one country's advisory body and d regulatory entity in fact.
But the other side of it is that, when you have a new vaccine, even if it has been tested in tens of thousands of people, there is an ongoing safety assessment, an ongoing what we call pharmacovigilance or vaccine safety surveillance system that is put into place. And that system if that give, the system gives you a signal, this is the appropriate action.
So, expect some two weeks to the immunization recommendations based on people's background, risk factors, et cetera to happen, to continue to happen to some extent as people get vaccinated.
In this case, my understanding is that they had a moderate allergic reaction, the people who had that are OK. But that means that regulatory entities have a little bit more information on which to act and based on which they react in terms of assigning categories of people who can and should receive this vaccine right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER (on camera): So far, the U.K., Bahrain, and now Canada have authorized the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for use.
A vaccine watchdog group says wealthy countries are hoarding COVID-19 vaccines and leaving poor countries behind. The People's Vaccine Alliance says that in 67 developing countries only one out of every 10 people will get vaccinated by the end of 2021. It says almost all of vaccine doses Pfizer, BioNTech, and Moderna are promising have already been purchased by wealthy nations.
Canada, for example, has reportedly bought enough doses to immunize its citizens five times over if all the leading vaccines are approved. The vaccine watchdog says some of the countries at risk include, Kenya, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Ukraine with more than 1.5 million combined cases. And charitable organizations are also sounding the alarm.
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ANNA MARRIOTT, HEALTH POLICY MANAGER, OXFAM: We don't have enough supply of the vaccine, not enough is being made and the second problem is that rich countries have already advanced purchased the vast majority of those ones that are promised for next year. Now this doesn't have to be a competition between poor countries and rich countries in terms who -- of who gets the vaccine if we fix that supply problem.
And to do that, we need to pharmaceutical competitions to share their vaccine science and know-how, transfer their technology so that more manufacturers can come on board and get involved in that mass production that we need to see to get the vaccine to everyone who needs it as quickly as possible. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER (on camera): CNN's David McKenzie joins us from Johannesburg. David, so throughout the pandemic, you know, one of the worries was that when the vaccine became available, it would just be hovered up by the richest countries. And now it looks, well, as if those fears were justified. So, you have been looking at this issue, what are you seeing, and what effects might have down the road?
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I've been speaking to scientists and public health officials, Kim, particularly from the African continent. They worry because of this pre-ordering hoarding as it were, of vaccine, on potential vaccine candidates by rich countries, you just don't have the supply available. Even if you did have solidarity in terms of raising money for poorer countries to access the vaccines, you can't buy something that doesn't really exists on the shelf.
[03:10:02]
So that is the big worry here. Now you mentioned the moral responsibility and public health officials have talked about that. It's also just a public health issue and in the self-interest of rich countries according to scientists to help vaccinate the entire planet.
Now here's what a WHO vaccine expert had to tell me just on this today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD MIHIGO, WHO COORDINATOR, IMMUNIZATION AND VACCINE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM: Until everybody is protected nobody can be safe. Because we are now living in an interconnected world, global villages as we said. And even for those countries that could protect themselves, they can't be living like in the island. So, I think we need absolutely the world in which people can interact, not only economically, but socially.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCKENZIE (on camera): So, the issue here is that you might see an African country only a substantial amount of vaccine coverage over three years, Kim. And that is a much-delayed vaccine rollout that you are going to see in rich countries. The scientific issue or the epidemiological issue that, it means that no one is safe.
But also, in terms of commerce, you can't really foresee say public health experts, many countries installing a kind system that you can only travel or meet if you have a vaccine card, and so it will just further exacerbate those inequalities. And this is not the first time you've seen this issue.
You think of the HIV AIDS pandemic where you had access to ARBs in rich countries while many people were dying, millions of them in other parts of the world.
One thing that a guest mentioned in your introduction, there is a more controversial push from charity groups to try and get the intellectual property rights waived on some of these vaccines to allow a broad manufacturing by say, generic drug companies to get the vaccine everywhere.
That might be a harder policy thing to push through but certainly that could be one way to allow the globe to be vaccinated in what will be easily the most substantial logistical public health challenge that we've seen in our lifetime. Kim?
BRUNHUBER: Yes. I'm sure the drug companies will be fighting tooth and nail against that. So now this lack of, potential lack of vaccine coming now in South Africa and other parts of the continent are being hit by a second wave. So how bad and how widespread is it?
MCKENZIE: Well, just on Wednesday, late Wednesday, the health minister here in South Africa said that the country is officially on its second wave highlighting six provinces that are seeing dramatic increases in cases. Now South Africa and other countries on the continent at least haven't seen the level of death that we've seen in other nations.
So that's the good news, in part because of public health issues that were brought in early, and also because of the demographic nature of these countries. But they believe that the second wave could be higher than the first.
And so, again, it shows that a vaccine rollout is critical in all of these countries because otherwise COVID will just be circulating for years to come. Kim?
BRUNHUBER: Absolutely. All right, thank you so much, David McKenzie in Johannesburg, I appreciate it.
Well, Facebook is in a legal fight of its life. Dozens of U.S. states plus the Federal Trade Commission are suing the social media giant. They say Facebook is a monopoly that has abused its dominance in the digital marketplace and the stifle competition. And they're calling for the company to be broken up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LETITIA JAMES, NEW YORK STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL: For nearly a decade, Facebook is used its dominance and monopoly power to crush smaller rivals, and snuff out competition. All at the expense of everyday users. By using its vast troves of data and money, Facebook has squashed or hindered what the company perceived as potential threats. They have reduced choices for consumers. They stifled innovation and they degraded privacy protection for millions of Americans.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER (on camera): But Facebook is calling the accusations revisionist history.
CNN's business reporter Sherisse Pham has more on all this now. So, Sherisse, yet another tech giant in legal crosshairs, first Google now as Facebook. And this move is sort of unusual for at least one reason, it's managed to do what almost no other issue has done, unite Democrats and Republicans. So, what's at stake here?
SHERISSE PHAM, CNN TECH AND BUSINESS REPORTER: A little bipartisan support. Imagine that? What's at stake, Kim, is some of the crown jewels in Facebook's empire. This really is unprecedented action from the U.S. government against one of the biggest companies in Silicon Valley.
[03:15:02]
The lawsuit from the Federal Trade Commission in particular is looking to force Facebook to unwind and sell WhatsApp and Instagram. And these are really prized assets in Facebook's portfolio. You know, the FTC says that when Facebook bought these companies it was basically trying to neutralize competition.
A Face -- sorry -- an FTC spokesperson saying that Facebook's actions were meant to maintain its monopoly. Deny consumers the benefits of competition and the aim is to rollback Facebook's anticompetitive conduct and restore competition so that innovation can thrive.
Now of course Facebook is pushing back on this. Facebook bought Instagram for a billion dollars in 2012, which seem like a lot of money at the time until two years later when it paid $19 billion dollars for WhatsApp. So, you can bet that they want to hold on to those two platforms. Because Instagram brings Facebook a lot of young users. WhatsApp has a huge global reach.
I can tell you here in Hong Kong it is the main messaging platform of everybody that I know. And we all use it on a daily basis. So, Facebook took to Twitter and said that, you know, we are reviewing the complaint. And there will be more to say soon.
But they are saying that the FTC is just trying to have a do-over with no regard for the impact that the precedent this lawsuit would set would have on the broader business community and people who use Facebook products every day.
So, there is something we can look to in the past for this. Which is, the U.S. government's last big action against big tech was against Microsoft in the late 90s and early 2000s. And experts say that that lawsuit, which was eventually settled, really did pave the way for a competitor to thrive, and that competitor is Google, which as we know is now one of the other big tech companies in the government's crosshairs.
BRUNHUBER: Absolutely. All right. We'll be watching that. Thank you so much, Sherisse Pham. I appreciate it.
Well, the big Brexit question all of Europe is asking, deal or no deal? Obviously, this isn't a game show. We'll update the critical trade talks that are coming down to make or break deadlines.
And no matter that dozens of lawsuits have been dismissed, U.S. President Donald Trump is backing another long shot ploy to challenge the election results. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Very large gaps remain between the two sides. Well, that's the consensus after crucial Brexit talks ended in further uncertainty in Brussels. There will be more talks on Sunday. For Britain, an entire trade deal is hanging in the balance.
We have Nic Robertson in Brussels. Nic, so things are still at an impasse, new deadlines looming. What's the latest?
[03:20:04]
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: You know, Kim, I think when we look at the meeting last night between Ursula von der Leyen and Boris Johnson three hours of meeting over dinner. Fish on the menu. And of course, fish one of the central, and fisheries and the use of British waters by European fishing vessels, one of the key stumbling blocks.
But when you look at this three-hour meeting yesterday and you try to sort of analyze what was gained out of it. Was it a step forward? Was it a step back? Did they not move any distance? The language that's come out of it really tells you that if you sort of pass the diplomatic language here, coming from the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, lively and interesting conversation, I mean, that just tells you that's diplomatic language for this was really a full on discussion coming from number 10 Downing Street.
This was a frank conversation. Significant obstacles remain. Large gaps are still there from the European -- from the European Union side, saying that we understand each other clearly, but not any closer to agreement. And what was different about this meeting compared to the two significant phone calls they've had over the past week or so, is that there wasn't an agreed text that they both used afterwards.
Both sides came out and put out their own versions. Now those versions were parallel. There was not a lot of difference between them. But I think again, when you are trying to look at moving forward, moving back, this has not in any way appeared to sort of narrow the gaps or give any sort of optimism that something is around the corner.
Yes, they've told their negotiators to get back to the table and keep talking, but from what we are hearing from the outside, there is no indication that any of the particular log jams that have been holding up these talks that have been broken, there is no apparent, significant political compromise in there at all.
So, both sides have said, by the end of the weekend, according to the European Union, by the end of Sunday, this is what number 10 Downing Street is saying, we will decide whether or not it's worth going forward with these talks. Now that doesn't mean Sunday is another new part hard deadline. It looks like it, but in terms of negotiations that may not be how it works.
But what is happening is the mounting pressure on both sides. Both in Britain and from the different nations in the -- across the European Union. To know and understand what preparations contingencies are being made for a no deal exit. And that's something we are expecting to hear in this building behind me fairly soon from Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, to lay out, OK, if we are going to get to a no deal scenario, what are the contingencies, what are the preparations.
Because yes, come the 1st of January there are going to be significant issues in trading between the E.U. and the U.K. And that's going to manifest itself in the ports and at the train stations and anywhere where there is direct physical communication between -- between the E.U. and U.K.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Well, hope springs, if not eternal, then at least until Sunday night, I suppose. Thank you so much, international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson. I appreciate it. I appreciate your report in Brussels.
Well, U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is making the case for his choice for defense secretary. If confirmed, retired Army General Lloyd Austin would be the first black man to hold the post. But the retired -- but he retired from the military just four years ago. The Congress would have to waive the law that requires the defense secretary to be out of the armed forces for at least seven years.
Now that's designed to keep civilian control of the military. Some of Biden's fellow Democrats oppose a waiver, but president-elect says it's justified.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: The law states that an officer must have left the service seven years before becoming secretary of defense. There is a good reason for this law that I fully understand and respect. I would not be asking for this exception if I had not -- if I did not believe this moment in our history didn't call for it. It does call for it. And if I didn't have the fate, I have in Lloyd Austin to ask for it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER (on camera): And as Biden pushes forward with building his cabinet, President Trump's focus remains on his increasingly desperate attempts to overturn the election. His latest legal gambit is to back a Texas lawsuit that would invalidate millions of votes in four battleground states.
Jim Acosta reports from the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(APPLAUSE)
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Stuck in election challenge Groundhog Day losing time and again in court, President Trump is sounding more detached from the reality of the pandemic, tweeting cries for help in the election from his social media bunker falsely declaring, rigged election. And, if somebody cheated in the election, which the Democrats did, why wouldn't the election be mediately overturned. How can a country be run like this?
[03:25:03]
This tweet makes even less sense. At 10 p.m. on election evening, we were at 97 percent win with the so-called bookies. the president isn't hiding his hash tag, sad.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: All of the things we've done and we were rewarded with a victory, now let's see whether or not somebody has the courage, whether it's legislator or legislatures or whether it's a justice of the Supreme Court or a number of justices of the Supreme Court. Let's see if they have the courage to do whatever everybody in this country knows is right.
ACOSTA: The president's latest act of desperation pinning his hopes on Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton's long shot requests that the Supreme Court invalidate the results in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Even though the high court just rejected a similar GOP attempt in Pennsylvania. Michigan's Democratic attorney general accused Paxton of shopping for a presidential pardon.
DANA NESSEL, MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL: I go back where the taxpayers in Texas that have to finance this ridiculous and frivolous lawsuit. You know, we should note that A.G. Paxton, you know, is a member of the Trump campaign. Very involved with that. Also, that he is currently under federal indictment for securities fraud and also being investigated by the FBI.
ACOSTA: Louisiana House Republican Mike Johnson is backing the Texas lawsuit, writing in an e-mail to his GOP colleagues that they should sign on too, saying Mr. Trump is anxiously awaiting the final list of supporters in Congress. Back in September when the president was seeking to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, he signaled he might turn to the Supreme Court to bail him out.
TRUMP: I think the scam that the Democrats are pulling, it's a scam. The scam will be before the United States Supreme Court. I think it's very important to have a ninth justice.
ACOSTA: Utah GOP Senator Mitt Romney is blasting the attempts at sabotage as madness. This is madness. We have a process. Recounts are appropriate. Going to the court is appropriate, and pursuing every legal avenue is appropriate. But trying to get electors not to do what the people voted to do is madness.
Even the first lady may not be sure that Mr. Trump's efforts will succeed with one source telling CNN, she just wants to go home. Tell that to Senator Lindsey Graham, one of Mr. Trump's biggest enablers.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): If you're not fighting for Trump now, when he needs you the most as a Republican leader in Georgia, people are not going to fight for you when you ask them to get reelected. There is a civil war brewing in Georgia for no good reason. It's not unreasonable to ask the legislature to come back in and order an audit of the signatures in the presidential race to see if the system works.
It's not unreasonable to change the law while you can, so Stacey Abrams can't steal another election. What is unreasonable is to sit on your ass and do nothing when you got a chance to save the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA (on camera): The attorney representing Mr. Trump in that Texas lawsuit is John Eastman who appears to be the same John Eastman who is pushing the racist conspiracy theory earlier this year that Kamala Harris was not eligible to be vice president. Of course, she is eligible to be vice president. It just goes to show you some of the legal minds at work in this latest gambit.
Jim Acosta, CNN, the White House.
BRUNHUBER: Still ahead, to U.K. health worker's apparent reactions to the coronavirus vaccine that prompted a warning. We'll have details on why authorities now say some people shouldn't get the shot.
And the United Arab Emirates say a Chinese vaccine they are testing is showing great potential. We'll have the first interim results from one of the world's largest coronavirus vaccine trials.
Stay with us.
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[03:30:00]
KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR (on camera): Welcome back. I'm Kim Brunhuber and you're watching CNN Newsroom. Canada is the latest country to give emergency authorization to the Pfizer BioNTech COVID- 19 vaccine. The move comes just a day after the U.K. became the first country to roll it out. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expresses Canada's first vaccinations to happen sometime next week. Health care workers and residents and long-term care centers will be the first in line. The country set to receive an initial shipment of a quarter million doses by the end of the year.
British health authorities are now advising people who frequently get allergic reactions to stay away from the Pfizer BioNTech COVID vaccine. Two health care workers in the U.K. had allergic reactions after the vaccine was rolled out there earlier this week. Pfizer says it's excluded people with that medical history from its trials.
Well, we have CNN's Salma Abdelaziz in London. So, Salma, the U.K.'s vaccination program rolls on, but there has been a hiccup. Please take us through this.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN PRODUCER (on camera): Absolutely, Kim. And thousands have been vaccinated in many more are still to be vaccinated some just right behind me here. But yes there was as you said, a hiccup. So two health care workers who had a significant history of allergies presented with an anaphylactic reaction. What is that? Well, it's not a life-threatening reaction, it's not anaphylactic shock or anything like that, but what it does mean is there can be shortness of breath, wheezing, other sorts of respiratory issues.
Now both of them are recovering well, but of course the U.K.'s regulator quickly acted to this. They alerted the creators of this vaccine Pfizer and BioNTech to these two incidences and said that they will be launching an investigation. They've also advice as a precautionary measure that anybody with a significant history of allergic reactions or who has been advised to carry an adrenaline shot not to take the vaccine.
Pfizer and BioNTech also gave a statement saying that they are supporting the U.K.'s regulators in their investigation and that this is again a precautionary measure. But what is important to remember here in the wider scope of things, is that clinical trials will not reveal everything. So, the Pfizer BioNTech clinical trial had over 40,000 people.
So yes. The large in scope, but of course when you roll out to the wider population, you're talking about millions of people. You are talking about rare occurrences happening that otherwise would not have been seen during clinical trials. So, yes, this is all part of the U.K. being the first western nation to approve this vaccine. That means you will be the first to find the issues, the hiccups.
You will be closely scrutinized by the larger international community. But you will also be followed quite closely because you are going to be setting a precedent. So of course, yes, hiccups, but let's look again at the big picture here, Kim, by enlarge, this has been going off very well. We have the over 80's, the frontline health workers, care home staff, the key members of the British community right now receiving these vaccinations. So, still a lot of hope in this vaccine, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: Yes, the big picture, important to keep in mind there, thank you so much CNN's Salma Abdelaziz, in London.
Dozens of vaccine trials are going on worldwide with four late stage candidates from Chinese developers. China has been pretty opaque in sharing details with CNN's Becky Anderson did some digging on one of its most promising vaccines which the United Arab Emirates has been testing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): More than 30,000 participants. 125 nationalities, it has been one of the largest and most diverse clinical trials in the world. And now, new interim results here in United Arab Emirates show that the Chinese vaccine candidate is some 86 percent effective in protecting people from being infected with coronavirus.
UNKNOWN: Good afternoon, there you go.
ANDERSON: The UAE putting those results out before even China's state and pharmaceutical firm Sinopharm has. The new numbers according to the analysis from Sinopharm, should not yet been publish in a peer reviewed medical journal show that it's 100 percent effective at preventing severe and moderate cases of the virus with no serious safety concerns.
[03:35:15]
The UAE however has not released any of their data. And CNN's calls to Sinopharm had not been returned. Still now the UAE will officially register the vaccine. And (inaudible) state media say that quote, the announcement is a significant vote of confidence by the UAE's health authorities in the safety and efficacy of this vaccine.
The UAE is just one country of 10 taking part in this Sinopharm trial. So, the final efficacy could fluctuate. Authorities tell CNN that a hundred thousand people have already voluntarily taking the vaccine here including 30 percent of the military. With the country's leader, like its Foreign Minister, Abdullah bin Zayed, giving it then of an approval. Sinopharm has said that nearly a million people in China have already been given the vaccine in emergency approval.
How does this vaccine compared to others? Well, the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine which the U.K. started giving to people on Tuesday is 95 percent effective. And Moderna's vaccine is 94 and a half percent effective. It's still waiting for regulatory approval. So, while China's vaccine falls short of that, it is still above AstraZeneca's at 70 percent efficacy on average. And it is far higher than the 50 percent that experts say it should reach for approval.
But we are not there yet. The UAE is still not green lighting the vaccine for a mass population program. So, it will still be relying on its testing and tracing regime where it has been at the global forefront. With one of the highest per capita testing rates in the world.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: That was CNN's Becky Anderson reporting there from Abu Dhabi. Now separately, Mexico has just signed a deal to buy 35 million doses of a different Chinese vaccine, this one's from Cansino biologics. It has been undergoing phase three trials in Mexico for the past month.
All the while, COVID-19 deaths, cases, and hospitalization soar across the U.S., it seems President Trump is more concerned with trying to overturn the results of the election.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNKNOWN: Why not including members of the Biden transition team as a part of this summit that you are hosting today?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, we are going to have to see who the next administration is, because we won.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BRUNHUBER: What you are seeing there is incredible images out of Los Angeles County where hundreds of cars lined up at the homeowner raceway for a drive-through food pantry. The event by the Sowing Seeds For Life food bank is held every year before Christmas and gives out food and toys, and since the pandemic began, pantries have reported a significant increase in the number of people now in need for food. Just look at the number of cars stretching on there.
[03:40:20]
Well, Donald Trump has been largely silent about the worsening situation across the country. Even as the coronavirus rages, and more Americans are dying each day. The U.S. just recorded its highest daily death toll from COVID-19, making Wednesday the third deadliest day in U.S. history. Hospitalizations in cases are also climbing.
Wednesday marked the third highest single day reporting of daily new cases. And at the same time, many Americans are struggling to make ends meet. As of last week, more than 20 million people or claiming some form of unemployment benefit. And in the coming hours, we will learn the latest on the new jobless claims.
Well, the mandate and lockdowns put in place to curb the virus to spread have sparked protests. Now, this one in Boise Idaho, dozens of people disrupted a health board meeting. Protesters also gathered outside of the homes of some board members, including Dr. Ted Epperly.
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TED EPPERLY, COMMISSIONER, IDAHO CENTRAL DISTRICT BOARD OF HEALTH: I think if we had better leadership, at the onset of this pandemic from a national level we could have actually pulled the nation together in a much more productive fashion. This has become very political, very polarized, and it is actually both hurting the efforts in my locality in my states, and sadly is going to lead to unnecessary loss of life.
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BRUNHUBER: Dr. James Phillips made headlines when he was openly critical of President Trump's behavior during this coronavirus treatments at Walter Reed Hospital, you'll remember this moment on October 4th when the U.S. President left the hospital to take a joyride past crowds of supporters. While he was still positive for COVID-19 while in the car with secret service members.
Well, Dr. Phillips joins me now. Doctor, thank you so much for being with us. At the time you call that drive-by with the secret service political theater, and insanity and CBS News is reporting that you have been removed from Walter Reed's Hospitals schedule beginning in January. Well, we are looking in to those details ourselves. Can you confirm that? And do you think there is a connection?
JAMES PHILLIPS, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST (on camera): Well, it's a sensitive topic for sure and I know it is of public interest. I am -- primarily I am a physician and an assistant professor at George Washington University hospital. And through that -- through our hospital we have a number of contracts around the city with other hospitals. Where we supply emergency physicians, and my position at Walter Reed was for something like that.
Now, there has been changes to my scheduling. It's not something that I am able to speak to as a representative of Walter Reed, or as a representative of G.W. But there are other opportunities in my future where I will be exploring teaching with, you know, more at the bedside with my medical students, with my fellows and new disaster medicine opportunities there as well.
BRUNHUBER: All right, well, I have sought clarification from Walter Reed and we are waiting for that. We do want to follow up on the story if there was a link between your comments and you not being there anymore. I think that that is an important story.
But let's move on more generally then, what do you think of the president's handling of the pandemic, and how the president elect might change course on the response?
PHILLIPS: Yes. I think we are heading in the right direction now. And I have been openly critical of the president's job here in the United States. And it is not a political issue. What it is, it is an issue of crisis and leadership. And as a subject matter expert in disaster medicine, and emergency management.
You know, we look to the crisis leaders in situation like this to set the tone. And to provide the best example possible, and it is clear, since the very beginning of this, Donald Trump has done the polar opposite of what any textbook, class course or expert would tell you to do.
Fortunately, the American people have elected a new presidents. And Donald Trump waning days, we are now starting to see what the Biden administration has put together. And it is clear from the appointments they have made so far, and the finalist for the other positions, that had been narrowed down, that they are resuming a merit based expertise based experience based, policy by which they choose their leaders, their policy makers and their appointees.
And that starts with the doctors, nurses, and other scientists who surrounded himself with on his task force about COVID-19. And we are seeing that more with the appointments that are being made at the various organizations and departments.
BRUNHUBER: Now, it could not come at a more important time. I mean, you and many others experts predicted that after thanksgiving here in the U.S. we would see a spike in cases, which would put more stress on the health care system. And that might lead to even more restrictions. So, what we are seeing now, ICU beds at capacity across the country. The U.S. setting a record number of deaths yesterday. Is this about what you expected, or even worse?
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PHILLIPS: It is unfortunately exactly as we predicted. I was talking to my wife this evening. The first lecture I gave about COVID-19 was actually before the virus was even named as far as COVI-2, back in February, and just looking at the simple statistics that had come out of Wuhan, my worst nightmare, one of my slides was 280,000 dead Americans. And we passed that last week. And so we are unfortunately where we thought we would be.
BRUNHUBER: I mean, looking beyond the numbers, I mean you deal with many of these patients. What goes through your minds when you hear that they are in your care because they ignored the warnings?
PHILLIPS: It is a challenge. You know, it's our job as physicians to love our patience and to not judge them for the choices that they make. We would burn out and leave our jobs very early if we asked physicians, in a particular emergency and trauma physicians. If we judged our patients and treated them differently based on their decisions that they have made with their health care or otherwise.
And so I try not to do that. But you are exactly right that this is a unique situation, and for me, I've been lucky that I've had a public health platform through the media to be able to talk and try to educate the general public about how to stay safe.
And it does a time feel like I'm screaming into avoid. When half the people you are trying to speak to don't want to listen. And they think you are liar. And the president calls you a fraud. And says that you are manipulating death certificates for money. And some of the horrible things we have heard.
And so it is very frustrating and you know, just this week, I took cared of a family of four. And the youngest person in that family was two years old. All of them were infected because they went home to a different state for Thanksgiving. And the day after they returned, a relative called and said they were COVID positive. And that is the exact problem we were concerned about. And it's happening a 100,000 times right now today across the country. And the biggest concern I have is what that holds for the holiday season to come.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Must be so frustrating. Well, thank you so much for your work out there on the frontlines, Dr. James Phillips. We appreciate you talking to us.
PHILLIPS: Thank you.
BRUNHUBER: Ahead, Denmark secret to success, while it's been able to keep COVID counts relatively low despite having few restrictions on daily life. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Japan has just reported a record number of new COVID-19 cases. The country's health ministry says more than 2,800 new infections were added in the past 24 hours. The highest number since the pandemic began. COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations are also on the rise. Japan's total number of confirmed coronavirus cases is now nearing 170,000.
Some of Hong Kong's toughest coronavirus restrictions just went into effect. The city is trying to regain control of the virus as a fourth wave of cases hits. Restaurants now can only offer dine-in services at 50 percent capacity and only during the day. And they are restricted to take out at night. And all athletic facilities are being forced to close.
[03:50:10]
Let's go straight to Hong Kong, CNN's Kristie Lu Stout is live there this hour. So, Kristie Lu, talk us through the restrictions and the reactions so far.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Yes, there are quite a number of new restrictions in place, but I just wanted to mention that we just heard from the Hong Kong Health Department today, 112 new cases of the coronavirus during what is known as Hong Kong's fourth wave and ahead of Christmas, the Hong Kong government is imposing additional social distancing restrictions as the number of cases rise.
Starting today we know that there will be a ban on dining in services from 6:00 p.m. Gyms will be closed. Beauty parlors, beauty salons will be close. Beaches as well as playgrounds and outdoor sporting facilities, from tennis courts, to skate parks, all will be closed. It kicks in today. These measures will stay in place for at least two weeks.
Existing restrictive measures will also remain in place. Schools across Hong Kong will continue to be closed. Bars will continue to be closed. No more than two people can be at a table at a coffee or dining with each other at any given time. As you can imagine, with these additional restrictions a sense of fatigue, a sense of frustration has settled in here in the territory.
Earlier today and just right here, as a matter of fact, I was speaking to a personal trainer along with his client who were working out here at the harper front in (inaudible) of the gyms, because they are all closed as of today. Take a listen.
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GOZ, LAWYER: I think has a bit of -- everyone had a bit of fatigue. Like COVID fatigue. So, I think I am going to just get a -- just get out of it. Everybody just wants to continue and get on with. I don't think people can get any more depressed or upset. I think people is -- it's almost like you get used to it, we are just getting on with life.
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LU STOUT: On Tuesday we heard from Hong Kong's top leader, Carrie Lam, she said that these new measures were needed. She sighted public transport data showing quite a number of people around Hong Kong we're continuing to travel despite existing fourth wave restrictions.
And again, today, Hong Kong reporting 112 new cases of the coronavirus in this city of 7.5 million people. Hong Kong health officials particularly concerned about the local number of cases and a number of them are untraceable, meaning that you have these silent chains of transmission embedded in the community. Back to you, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Thanks so much. CNN's Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong.
Well, Denmark has been hailed as a success in its fight against the coronavirus. It has one of the lowest per capita virus death rates in Europe. So, what is the (inaudible) nation doing to keep its numbers down especially as it faces a new spike in cases? Well, Nina Dos Santos has more.
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NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Please (inaudible) that this will work. In Denmark, we handled the spring, we handled the summer and we handled the fall. With your help we will handle the winter as well.
The Prime Minister reassuring fellow Daines that Denmark will keep the latest spike in COVID-19 infections under control. Our government is swinging into action. Restaurants, museums and movie theaters have to close on Wednesday in 38 of the country's municipalities. Which is a home to almost half of the nation's population, including the capital Copenhagen. And schools are closing their doors. The P.M. also urged Daines to limit their Christmas and New Year gatherings to 10 people.
Back in March, Denmark was one of the first countries to implement a lockdown, and then in April, one of the first in Europe to reopen schools and daycare centers and relax the rules.
SOREN BROSTROM, DIRECTOR GENERAL, DANISH HEALTH AUTHORITY: When we were hit by the epidemic, last week of February, first week of March, we were very quickly acted and so did our politicians and our governments. So, they acted in a very timely fashion where you could see that a number of other countries that acted too late, when the epidemic hit, they had a much bigger challenge with the epidemic.
DOS SANTOS: In the summer months the rate of infections and deaths remains low. And CNN analysis had data from Oxford University and Johns Hopkins University shows that Denmark was most successful than almost any other country in Europe. At keeping the number of deaths and the infection rate low from September to November. Despite having relatively few restrictions on daily life.
Oxford's government response tracker shows Denmark had the second most effective test and trace policy in the region during that period. After Cypress.
BROSTROM: We have to find the balance between what kind of restrictions as human behavior or adaptations of human behavior, we have to look for, to be able to control the epidemic, and I think we found -- we actually struck a quite good balance in this country in this regard.
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DOS SANTOS: The Danish tradition of putting society over self- interest coupled with trust in the government has contributed to the countries success. GERT TINGGAARD SVENDSEN, HISTORIAN, AARTHUS UNIVERSITY: When the
government says now you can only be 10 people together, most people respect that. You have to wear a mask. People will do that. And it means that people do it voluntarily.
DOS SANTOS: And all this survey requested by the European commission found 95 percent of Daines we're satisfied with their government's response to the pandemic. One of the highest rates in the European Union.
UNKNOWN: It makes sense that we all need to do the same in order to make it work. Being in general, we believe in the government and what we were told. And believe in our neighbor.
DOS SANTOS: But the rate of infection rising, Denmark's success strategy is being put to the test again. Like in the past the government cannot do it alone. Instead it's relying heavily on the goodwill of the people to contain this latest spike. Nina Dos Santos, CNN, London.
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BRUNHUBER: An Italian churches is paying special tribute to frontline health care workers this holiday season. The basilica of St. Francis of Assisi has incorporated life-size figures of a nurse as part of its nativity seen displayed outside. The statue is to honor Italy's health workers for their heroic efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. Italy of course was one of the first western countries to be hit hard by the virus and has suffered nearly 1.8 million cases and almost 62,000 deaths.
Well, SpaceX has tested launch Wednesday. Look perfectly predictable yesterday, but we will see, it did not end that way.
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UNKNOWN: Three, two, one, zero.
BRUNHUBER (voice over): The prototype of the SpaceX star ship designed to carry huge cargos and take people to Mars soared more than 12 kilometers straight up, then it leveled off, performed an abrupt flip before nailing what SpaceX called a hard and exciting landing. SpaceX says the midair maneuvers mimic a skydiver supposedly the cut the spacecraft speed. Still they called the fireball finale a success. Right.
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BRUNHUBER (on camera): Well, that wrap this hour of CNN Newsroom. I'm Kim Brunhuber, be back in just a moment with more of news. Please do stay with us.
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