Coronavirus Outbreak

Health Ministry chief Prof. Hezi Levy says he favors requiring teachers to vaccinate, sparking a harsh response from the teachers’ union.

Tel Aviv City Hall and the Sourasky Medical Center launch vaccines drive encouraging the city’s foreign nationals, many of whom are undocumented asylum seekers, to get inoculated.

A closely watched visit by World Health Organization experts to Wuhan, where the first COVID cases were discovered, did not dramatically change the current understanding of the early days of the global pandemic that has so far killed more than 2.3 million people worldwide.

Lockdowns and social distancing have taken their toll on the entire population, adults in particular. Israelis that have been fully immunized will no longer be required to self-quarantine if they come into contact with a coronavirus carrier.

Government fails to reach decision on reopening schools, businesses, after Health Ministry officials warn younger people can become seriously ill and overwhelm hospitals' coronavirus wards.

Report by the Military Intelligence task force on the coronavirus finds Israel leading Western countries like US, UK, France in number of new infections per 1 million people. Israel’s reproduction rate hovering around 1 despite five-week lockdown. 

According to its staff, 29 out of 30 patients with moderate-to-severe cases of the coronavirus were administered EXO-CD24 and experienced a marked recovery in just two days.

PM calls on Israelis aged 50 and over to get vaccinated to ease Israel’s stubborn morbidity rate. Health Ministry officials warns without tightened lockdown, Israel could see thousands more become seriously ill and die.

Starting at 7 a.m. Sunday, restrictions on movement will be lifted and one-on-one services such as hair salons will be allowed to reopen. Cabinet to decide on schools in phone vote next week.

The Health Ministry has decided to expand the nationwide vaccination campaign and allow every Israeli over the age of 16 to get inoculated as a result of the drastic drop in the vaccination rate in recent days.