Coronavirus vaccine news, updates and information for 5-04-2021

<p>This is Vaccine 411, the latest coronavirus vaccine information for May 4th, 2021.</p><p><br></p><p>The FDA is reportedly expected to authorize Pfizer's vaccine for youngsters ages 12 to 15 by next week. That means shots before starting the next school year. In late March, Pfizer released preliminary results from a study of volunteers in that age group, showing no cases of COVID-19 among the fully vaccinated vs. 18 among those given placebos.</p><p><br></p><p>Russia last year took credit for being first in the world to authorize a vaccine, but vaccination efforts there are lagging. Shots are available almost everywhere to anyone 18 or older but only 8% have received at least one shot. A poll in February showed only 30% of people were willing to get Sputnik V, one of three domestically produced vaccines available.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p>So what countries are performing best in terms of total vaccinations per capita? US News &amp; World Report compiled a list, and no one is even close to Israel at 62.4 doses per 100 people. Next comes the U.K. at 50.8. And then there’s a cluster of the next most successful countries which includes, the U.S., Chile, Hungary, and Bahrain.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p>Apparently, the U.S. has vaccines to waste. Kaiser Health News reports CVS and Walgreens are responsible for most wasted vaccine doses, which total more than 180,000. Reasons included broken supplies, storage errors, and leftover doses that expired due to no-show appointments.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p>The news is getting better for travel. EU officials proposed easing restrictions on visiting its 27 nations since vaccination campaigns are gathering speed across the continent. Right now, travelers from very few countries with low infection rates can get in, but they’re looking to expand that to all those fully vaccinated with EU-authorized shots.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p>In the United States cases were down 27%, deaths are down 8%, and hospitalizations are down 7% over 14 days. The 7-day average of new cases has been trending do