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The United Kingdom will start rolling out Pfizer's COVID-19 pill to vulnerable people next month, the health ministry says, targeting the treatment at people with compromised immune systems for whom the vaccine can be less effective.
The health ministry said that Pfizer's antiviral treatment Paxlovid, a combination of Pfizer's pill with an older antiviral ritonavir, will be made available to thousands of people from February 10.
"It is fantastic news that this new treatment, the latest cutting-edge drug that the NHS is rolling out through new COVID-19 medicine delivery units, will now be available to help those at highest risk of COVID-19," National Health Service medical director Stephen Powis said.
"Trials have shown it can reduce hospitalisation and risk of death by 88 per cent, meaning we'll be in the best position to save thousands of lives."
The UK has ordered 2.75 million courses of Paxlovid and the government said that it would set out further details on access to the treatment soon but that people who are immunocompromised, cancer patients or those with Down's Syndrome could be able to access it directly.
It is the second antiviral being rolled out in the UK after molnupiravir, a pill made by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics which is being deployed to patients through the Panoramic trial.
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Forty-two is the magic number as five Australians eye titles on so-called 'Super Saturday' at Melbourne Park.
It's been 42 years since an all-Australian men's doubles final at the Australian Open and just as long since a local woman has played for the women's title.
Mark Edmondson and Kim Warwick downed Peter McNamara and Paul McNamee in 1980, while that same year Wendy Turnbull was the last Australian face in a women's decider.
Until now.
The clocks can be reset on Saturday when Matt Ebden and Max Purcell play Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios for the doubles title, before world No.1 Ash Barty looks to complete a dominant tournament for the hosts.
It'll be a vibrant contrast in styles, the men dubbed the 'Special Ks' turning tennis into a rock concert, while modest two-time grand slam champion Barty has been formidably understated.
Their appearances follow a final loss in Friday's mixed doubles final for Australian wildcards Jason Kubler and Jaimee Fourlis, while Dylan Alcott's tennis farewell ended in a quad singles final loss on Thursday.
Demanding "hype", Kyrgios was typically straight to the point as he described the final match-up as "f***ing awesome" while Ebden declared the pressure was on his higher-profile rivals.
Barty says it's "unreal, so incredible" to be the first Australian woman to make the final since Wendy Turnbull in 1980, and potential first winner since Chris O'Neil two years earlier.
"To be in the finals weekend of your home grand slam is what a lot of Aussie players dream of," she said.
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Five new lion cubs have been born at South Australia's Monarto Safari Park providing a boost to the threatened species.
Eight-year-old lioness Husani gave birth on Monday with the cubs and their mum doing well.
"She has been very attentive, licking and cleaning them and all five cubs have been moving around and we've seen them feeding and waddling around looking for mum's teat," assistant curator Anna Bennett said.
"Every birth at Monarto Safari Park is such a special event for us because our breeding programs are vital in raising awareness and securing the future of vulnerable species like African Lions."
The International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species estimates only between 23,000 and 39,000 of the lions remain in the wild.
The falling population has been attributed to indiscriminate killing, habitat loss and trophy hunting.
Keepers were able to watch Husani give birth using a camera in her den with the new arrivals to remain in an off-limits area at Monarto for the next few months.
At about four weeks old, they will be introduced to their aunties and their half-sisters, Chikondi, Adira and Zaha, who were Husani's first litter born in February 2020.
"The older girls have seen cubs before but it will be the first time for Husani's previous cubs, so it will all be new to them," Ms Bennett said.
"I'm sure there will be a lot of excitement and wanting to play."
At six weeks the cubs will receive their first health check, when keepers will be able to determine their sex.
Once ready to venture beyond their den, the little ones will make their debut in the park's lion exhibit.
The cubs represent the next generation in Monarto's breeding program, with Husani born at the park in 2013.
© AAP 2022
Photo: A supplied image shows eight-year-old lioness Husani and her lion cubs at Monarto Safari Park in Monarto South, South Australia, Tuesday, January 25, 2022. (AAP Image/Supplied by Zoos SA)
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Former Seven Network television host Andrew O'Keefe has been arrested in Sydney, accused of grabbing a woman by the throat, punching, pushing and kicking her to the ground.
The 50-year-old presenter was arrested early on Thursday after getting into an argument with the 38-year-old woman on Tuesday in a Sydney CBD unit, which led to O'Keefe assaulting her, police said.
The former Deal or No Deal host is accused of "grabbing her by the throat, pushing her to the ground and punching her", police said in a statement.
He also "allegedly assaulted the woman a second time - punching and kicking her - before she left the unit".
O'Keefe, a former lawyer and son of former NSW Supreme Court judge Barry O'Keefe, was a founding member of domestic violence charity, the White Ribbon Foundation, where he served as chairman in 2017. The organisation went into liquidation in 2019.
White Ribbon had distanced itself from O'Keefe last year but has not commented on the latest arrest.
© AAP 2022
Image: AAP Image/Dean Lewins
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