U.K. approves its second vaccine

A sharp rise in COVID-19 infections led the British government on Wednesday to extend its highest Tier 4 restrictions to more areas of the country, banning household mixing and closing nonessential shops. British regulators on Wednesday authorized emergency use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, after granting approval to Pfizer-BioNTech’s immunization earlier this month. Health officials pushed back the timeline for administering the shots’ second dose so more people can get the first one as they battle a more contagious variant of the virus. Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the rollout of the Oxford-AstraZeneca formula would begin Jan. 4.

What’s happening in other countries? China’s National Health Commission urged millions of migrant workers to avoid traveling home during the Lunar New Year holiday in February to limit further outbreaks. Serbia received an initial 2,400 doses of Russia’s Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday and will begin dispensing them early in January.

Dig deeper: Read Emily Belz’s report on the technology behind two leading U.S. vaccines.