Prime Minister Mario Draghi sought Friday to reassure Italians over the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, which was suspended this week before being declared safe, saying he would have it himself. “I have not yet made a booking, but my age group is among those who are allowed to have the vaccine and yes, I will have […]

The World Health Organization’s vaccine safety experts gave renewed backing to AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 jab on Friday, having reviewed reports of blood clotting after immunisation. The WHO Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety said the AstraZeneca jab “continues to have a positive benefit-risk profile, with tremendous potential to prevent infections and reduce deaths across the world.” […]

France’s health regulator recommended Friday that only people aged 55 and over should be given AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine due to reports of blood clots, while giving the green light to resume its use after a brief suspension. It said the recommendation was based on the fact that the reported blood clots, which prompted the vaccine’s […]

Brazil has set a new daily record in coronavirus infections as the spiralling outbreak puts major stress on the nation’s hospitals. The Health Ministry in Brasilia reported 90,303 infections over the past 24 hours on Wednesday evening. The previous high was 87,843 new cases on January 7. This brings the total number of people confirmed […]

The EU’s drug regulator said Thursday the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine was “safe and effective” and was not linked to an increased risk of blood clots. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) however said that after an investigation it could not “definitively” rule out a connection to a particularly rare type of blood disorder. Around a dozen […]

Italy will resume administering AstraZeneca/Oxford coronavirus vaccines on Friday after the EU’s drugs regulator declared them safe, Prime Minister Mario Draghi said. Italy suspended the use of the jab on Monday, one of a number of European countries taking precautionary action following concerns it was linked to blood clots. “The administration of the AstraZeneca vaccine […]

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has deemed AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine “safe and effective” after an extensive review of possible blood clot risks, the agency’s chief said on Thursday. Blood clot reports from several countries prompted governments around the world to halt inoculations with the AstraZeneca jab. This slowed down already sluggish inoculation campaigns in the […]

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is due to provide an assessment on Thursday of the safety of Astrazeneca’s vaccine against Covid-19 after several countries temporarily suspended use of the jab over fears about side effects. The EMA’s safety committee has been making a detailed evaluation of a small number of cases concerning blood clots occurring […]

The European Commission plans to launch the dispute settlement process in its coronavirus vaccine contract with pharma giant AstraZeneca, EU spokesmen said Thursday. Chief spokesman Eric Mamer said Brussels is waiting for the go-ahead from EU member states to write to the firm to demand talks on its alleged failure to honour its contract. Mamer […]

French Prime Minister Jean Castex on Thursday announced a limited month-long lockdown for Paris and several other regions to combat surging Covid-19 cases while insisting the measures would not be as strict as in the past. While non-essential businesses will close and movement outside will be restricted in the affected regions, schools will stay open […]