Coronavirus outbreak updates: Dec. 2, 2020

As of 11 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 2

• Japan plans to require athletes competing at the postponed Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics next summer to take coronavirus tests every four to five days even if they do not show symptoms, as part of efforts to prevent the spread of infections, a government-led panel said Wednesday.
  
  
• Britain on Wednesday became the first nation in the world to approve a vaccine against COVID-19 by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. and its German partner BioNTech SE, saying it will be delivered next week throughout the country.
  
  
• Japan's parliament enacted a law Wednesday to cover the costs for residents to be vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, as hopes grow for the early arrival of vaccines following recent reports of progress amid a resurgence of infections.

As of 11 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 1

• Tokyo will ask people aged 65 and older and those with underlying health conditions to refrain from making trips to or from the capital using the government's domestic travel subsidy campaign, amid a recent resurgence of coronavirus cases, Gov. Yuriko Koike said Tuesday.
  
  
• North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has already been inoculated with a novel coronavirus vaccine provided by China, an analyst at a Washington-based think tank has said, but the Chinese Foreign Ministry rejected the report on Tuesday.
  
  
• Japan's top buzzword for this year is "3Cs," a word used repeatedly as part of the country's effort to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, the award's organizer said Tuesday.
  
  
• U.S. President-elect Joe Biden said Monday that he plans to nominate former Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet Yellen to become the first woman to lead the Treasury Department in its 231-year history, tapping the seasoned economist for the job of rebuilding the pandemic-hit economy.
  
  
• At least 607 Japanese entities, including major firms and government agencies, have been targeted by cyberattacks as hackers exploit vulnerabilities in the technology used for remote work amid the coronavirus pandemic, an information security expert said Monday.
  
  
• U.S. biotechnology firm Moderna Inc. said it is filing on Monday for emergency use authorization for its experimental coronavirus vaccine from U.S. and European regulators, after finding the vaccine more than 94 percent effective against the COVID-19 disease.
  
  
• Princess Aiko, the only child of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, turned 19 on Tuesday while attending online classes at her university as a first-year student amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.