Health News (Reuters)

Co-Diagnostics Inc said on Tuesday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's new policy to expand the availability of COVID-19 tests would allow the medical test maker's tests to be distributed to a wide array of U.S. labs.

Finland decided late on Tuesday to lower buffer requirements of its banks, attempting to boost the slowing economy, as the country prepared to close its borders as part of the response to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

The coronavirus pandemic is likely to take about two years to run its course, the head of Germany's public health agency said on Tuesday, adding that much depended on the speed with which a vaccine against the virus was developed.

Molecular testing company Qiagen NV said on Tuesday it would ramp up its global capacity to produce certain chemical kits used to test COVID-19, aiming to support more than 6.5 million tests a month by April end.

One of Britain's top epidemiologists said on Tuesday that the British government got the timing of its coronavirus strategy about right but that there was no time to lose on moving to more stringent measures.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled much more stringent measures to tackle the coronavirus outbreak after new research indicated a quarter of a million people would have died under previous plans to control the spread of pandemic.

The highly contagious novel coronavirus that has exploded into a global pandemic can remain viable and infectious in droplets in the air for hours and on surfaces up to days, according to a new study that should offer guidance to help people avoid contracting the respiratory illness called COVID-19.

Cambodia reported 21 new cases of coronavirus on Tuesday, raising its tally to 33.

Italy's prime minister on Tuesday declared coronavirus was causing a "socio-economic tsunami" as European leaders agreed to seal off external borders and unveil economic stimulus to cushion the fallout from the infection's rapid spread.

The U.S. military will make available up to 5 million respirator masks and protective equipment, including 1 million immediately, from its strategic reserves for U.S. government distribution, U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said on Tuesday.

European Union leaders agreed on Tuesday to close Europe's borders for 30 days to prevent the spread of coronavirus but establish fast-track lanes at their countries' frontiers to keep goods moving, bloc leaders said after a video-conference summit.

French President Emmanuel Macron told his fellow European Union leaders that emergency border controls slapped within Europe to contain the spread of coronavirus cannot damage their internal market, a French presidency source said.

Finland will start restricting traffic over its borders on Thursday in an attempt to contain the coronavirus outbreak, Interior Minister Maria Ohisalo said.

Homebound for at least the next two weeks under a state of emergency, Spain's self-employed workers fear the economic damage coming from coronavirus will deprive them of work and customers for much longer, plunging them into debt.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte told his fellow European Union leaders on Tuesday that coronavirus was causing a "socio-economic tsunami" across Europe and that dedicated bonds may be needed to cushion the hit, an Italian government source said.

Switzerland's health care system could collapse by the end of the month if the new coronavirus keeps spreading at current rates, a government official warned on Tuesday.

Jordan's King Abdullah approved on Tuesday a law that gives the government sweeping powers to enforce a state of emergency to help it combat the spread of coronavirus, state media said.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc said on Tuesday it had identified hundreds of antibodies that could treat or prevent the coronavirus and was preparing to begin clinical trials by early summer, sending the drugmaker's shares up 12%.

Standing on their balconies, holidaymakers at a hotel on the Portuguese island of Madeira patiently waited for news after a fellow guest tested positive for the coronavirus and they were put in isolation.

China has given the go-ahead for researchers to begin human safety tests of an experimental coronavirus vaccine in the race to develop a shot against the COVID-19 epidemic that has killed more than 7,000 people worldwide.