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Most legal restrictions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in England will be dropped next week, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the British Parliament on Wednesday. From Monday, face masks will no longer be mandatory anywhere in England. (Ott, 1/19)

In other global covid news —

Mexico registered a record number of new Covid-19 cases Wednesday -- more than double the amount seen in previous waves -- as the omicron variant extends its spread through the country. The country recorded 60,552 new coronavirus cases, pushing total cases up to 4,495,310, according to data from the Health Ministry. Deaths increased 323, the highest amount since November, to put the cumulative toll at 302,112. (Quinn, 1/20)

New Zealand is among the few remaining countries to have avoided any outbreaks of the omicron variant — but Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday an outbreak was inevitable and the nation would tighten restrictions as soon as one was detected. But she also said that New Zealand would not impose the lockdowns that it has used previously, including for the delta variant. (Perry, 1/20)

A popular Czech folk singer has died after deliberately getting infected with the coronavirus, in an apparent move to skirt restrictions limiting access to some venues to people who have been immunized or recently recovered from infection, her family said. Two days before she died, 57-year-old Hanka Horká, who was reportedly unvaccinated, wrote on social media that she had “survived” the virus and was looking forward to trips to the theater, the sauna, concerts and the sea. “I’ll tell you my secret, yes, I endured, and I survived … however, it was very colorful,” she said. “Life is here for me and for you too.” (Pannett, 1/20)

More than a million Covid-19 vaccine shots expired in Indonesia before they could be given out, as most of them were donated with a short shelf life. Of the 1.1 million doses that were thrown out, about 98% were donated just one to three months away from expiry, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said in parliament on Wednesday. (Aditya, 1/20)

The global initiative to share coronavirus vaccines equally between rich and poor countries asked Wednesday for $5.2 billion in funds to be able to keep buying doses in coming months. The UN-backed program known as COVAX has delivered just over 1 billion doses since shipments started nearly a year ago. (1/19)

In news about China —

China is ramping up its coronavirus testing regime after linking at least two omicron cases at opposite ends of the country to international parcels. Residents in southern city of Guangzhou who received overseas mail between Jan. 16 and 19 were told Wednesday to take a coronavirus test within three days. Additionally, local authorities are rolling out a free program from Thursday that will see anyone who has accepted an international package tested within three to seven days. (1/20)

With the 2022 winter Olympics taking place in Beijing in less than two weeks, NBC Sports announced Wednesday that it will not be sending any announcing teams to this year's Olympics games — citing "COVID concerns." "The announce teams for these Olympics, including figure skating, will be calling events from our Stamford (Connecticut) facility due to COVID concerns," an NBC Sports spokesperson said in an email to NPR. The spokesperson confirmed that the network will still have a large presence on the ground in Beijing, saying its coverage of everything related to the games will be "first-rate as usual." (Franklin, 1/19)