U.S. Cases and Deaths Dive; Outbreak Hits Everest: Virus Update.

Italy Weighs Mandatory Vaccines (4:10 p.m. HK) Italy may consider making Covid-19 vaccinations mandatory in the future, the country's head of civil protection, Fabrizio Curcio, said in an interview with La Stampa daily on Saturday. Current Covid shots provide a high level of protection against hospitalization and death, according to a summary of the efficacy of eight vaccines that showed the BioNTech/Pfizer shot may better at stopping at least two worrisome coronavirus variants. (Bloomberg) -- Covid-19 cases and deaths in the U.S. continue to plunge, despite the slowed pace of vaccinations. [Extracted from the article]