USA

O’FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Several states say they have been told to expect far fewer doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in its second week of distribution, prompting worries about potential delays in shots for health care workers and long-term care residents.

But senior Trump administration officials on Thursday downplayed the risk of delays, citing a confusion over semantics, while Pfizer said its production levels have not changed.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Hospitals across California have all but run out of intensive care beds for COVID-19 patients, ambulances are backing up outside emergency rooms, and tents for triaging the sick are going up as the nation’s most populous state emerges as the latest epicenter of the U.S. outbreak.

WASHINGTON (AP) — All fingers are pointing to Russia as the source of the worst-ever hack of U.S. government agencies. But President Donald Trump, long wary of blaming Moscow for cyberattacks, has so far been silent.

The lack of any statement seeking to hold Russia responsible casts doubt on the likelihood of a swift response and suggests any retaliation — whether through sanctions, criminal charges or cyber actions — will be left in the hands of President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming administration.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the Food and Drug Administration said late Thursday that his agency will move to quickly authorize the second COVID-19 vaccine to fight the pandemic, hours after the shot won the key endorsement of a government advisory panel.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration helped deliver vaccinations against the coronavirus earlier than even some in his administration thought possible, but the president has been largely absent from the effort to sell the American public on what aides hope will be a key part of his legacy.

Trump launched “Operation Warp Speed” — the government campaign to help swiftly develop and distribute vaccines — this spring with great fanfare in the White House Rose Garden.

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. COVID-19 vaccination campaign has begun, and the few available doses are mostly going into the arms of health-care workers and nursing home residents.

But what about in January, February and March, when more shots are expected to become available? Who should get those doses?

A federal panel of vaccination experts takes up that question at an emergency meeting this weekend. No matter what the committee decides, there will be differences from state to state.

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 17 (APP): The UN General Assembly stamped its approval Wednesday on a Pakistan-sponsored resolution that reaffirms the right to self-determination for peoples who are subjected to colonial, foreign and alien occupation.

WASHINGTON, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US Treasury accused Switzerland and Vietnam of manipulating their currencies, partly to gain a trade advantage over American exports.

In the semi-annual foreign exchange report, Treasury found the two countries were intervening in currency markets to affect balance of payments, and in the case of Vietnam, also aiming at “gaining unfair competitive advantage in international trade.”

WILMINGTON, Del./WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Joe Biden will get the coronavirus vaccine as soon as next week, transition officials said on Wednesday, as U.S. authorities try to build public confidence in a measure that promises to stanch the deadly pandemic.

Vice President Mike Pence will get the vaccine on Friday, the White House said.

Both men will receive the shot publicly in an effort to boost confidence in the safety of the vaccine, which will become widely available to the public next year.

UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- Geir Pedersen, UN special envoy for Syria, warned on Wednesday that with five international armies operating in Syria, the country remains a tinderbox for a major international incident, with potential implications across the region.