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Europe's drug regulator, The European Medicines Agency is today expected to announce the findings of its investigation into cases of blood clots in more than 30 people who have had the Oxford University-AstraZeneca jab.
People over 65 who have recovered from the virus are less likely to have protection than younger people , a study carried out in Denmark found. The research, which was published in

The Lancet

medical journal found that under-65s had about 80 percent protection for at least six months after contracting the virus, while over-65s had only 47 percent protection.

**Spain's Health Minister Carolina Darias has called for "maximum caution" to avoid a fourth wave **of the virus amid a surge in infections across the country after a seven-week decline in infection rates.
Greece has called for doctors to volunteer to work in its overwhelmed state hospitals to help them overcome the "most critical juncture of the pandemic," according to Health Minister Vassilis Kikilias.
The UK is on target to vaccinate all adults by the end of the July , Health Minister Matt Hancock said, despite the government warning its jab supplies would be significantly reduced from late March.
**The developers of the AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech jabs have said they expect their vaccine deliveries to the UK to remain unaffected, **after the UK government statement about vaccine supply issues towards the end of the month.
More than a dozen people were arrested at an anti-lockdown protest in Dublin , Ireland on St Patrick's Day for failing to comply with public health guidelines.
Bulgaria is to tighten its nationwide restrictions in a bid to slow the spread of the virus with schools, restaurants and shopping malls to close for 10 days from March 22.
England's deputy chief medical officer, Jonathan Van-Tam, has said he was "firmly convinced" the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweighed the risks, following reports of people getting blood clots shortly after they received the jab. Van-Tam urged people to continue to receive the shot, but added that a "very rigorous analysis" was ongoing.
Infections in Ukraine have passed 1.5 million since the start of the pandemic , Health Minister Maksym Stepanov said.
Portugal is to welcome British tourists from May 17 if they have a vaccination certificate or evidence of a recent negative test , tourism minister Rita Marques said.

Spain's Health Minister Carolina Darias has called for "maximum caution" to avoid a fourth wave of the virus amid a surge in infections. /AP

ACROSS EUROPE

Toni Waterman in Brussels

Belgium

One country's pause could be Belgium's gain. The country has asked AstraZenenca to send any extra COVID-19 vaccine doses its way, after 19 European countries temporarily halted the jab's use over concerns about a potential link to blood clots.

The World Health Organization and Europe's drugs regulator, the European Medicines Agency, have insisted the shot is safe.A Flemish minister said he contacted the vaccine maker and is awaiting an answer. Some countries, including Italy and France, have said they're ready to unfreeze their AstraZeneca roll-out, pending the findings of an investigating into the vaccine's safety.

Still, Belgium is betting that public confidence in the AstraZeneca shot will be lower, leading to a surplus. The appeal comes as new infections spike across the country, up almost 30 percent in the past week to an average of 3,052 cases a day.

The EU

Brussels is hoping to close the latest chapter in the AstraZeneca saga on Thursday afternoon, when the European Medicines Agency (EMA) issues updated guidance on the safety of the jab after countries across the bloc halted its use over concerns about blood clots.

Nothing groundbreaking is expected. During a press briefing on Tuesday, the agency reiterated that it believed the jab was safe and that the benefits outweigh the risks. France and Italy have indicated they will lift their ban based on the recommendation from the EMA.

But there could be lasting damage. In the past few days, thousands of people in Italy failed to show up for vaccine appointments, while a poll on French TV showed trust in the AstraZeneca jab floundering at 20 percent.

Any pause in the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine could further dampen Brussels' vaccination efforts and put the goal of inoculating 70 percent of the adult population by the end of summer that much further out of reach.

Nawied Jabarkhyl in London

The UK government says a reduction in its COVID-19 vaccine roll-out next month is due to delays from international suppliers.

Public health officials have warned the UK will face a "significant reduction" in jabs throughout April.

The BBC reports the issue is down to a hold-up of 5 million AstraZeneca vaccinations from India. The jab's developers have, however, said its deliveries to the UK should remain unaffected.

The move could slow the UK's rapid progress in the coming weeks but officials say the country is still on course to vaccinate all those aged over 50 by mid-April.

More than a dozen people have been arrested at an anti-lockdown protest in Dublin, Ireland on St Patrick's Day (Wednesday). /AP

Penelope Liersch in Budapest

A record number of COVID-19 deaths have been recorded in Hungary, with 207 people passing away in the past 24 hours. The number surpasses yesterday's highest figure of 195.

Meanwhile, there's talk that post-COVID-19 outpatient clinics may be set up in hospitals. Often called long-COVID-19, symptoms including difficulty breathing, head and body aches could be treated in rehabilitation centers in university clinics and county hospitals. It's understood a ministerial order will soon be issued to set up the clinics.

The government of Czechia is meeting this evening to discuss the next stages of lockdown. Hospitals in the country remain stretched and have shown little improvement despite two weeks of stricter measures. It comes as Poland announced yesterday it's introducing nationwide restrictions after the daily tally of coronavirus cases reached its highest level this year. Theaters, shopping malls, hotels and cinemas will close from Saturday until after Easter.

Ross Cullen in Paris

France's president is looking for a hybrid model of measures to try to contain the third wave, rather than a third national lockdown.

Emmanuel Macron said the government will impose "measures to slow the spread which look different from those we have known before" and which will last "several weeks." He added: "You cannot lock down Greater Paris from Friday night to Sunday night."

A form of lockdown, an extension to the curfew and obligatory working from home are all measures under consideration for the Greater Paris region and the northern Hauts-de-France region.

Those two regions, which comprise 18 million people, are the two worst-hit by intensive care admissions and new infections. The prime minister and the health secretary will announce the new restrictions in their weekly news conference at 6 p.m. local time today.

Ryan Thompson in Frankfurt

Some German states, along with the capital, Berlin, are pausing the easing of measures after a sharp rise in infections during the past week. The decision means restaurants will not be able to open for outdoor dining anytime soon, in-person meetings will remain restricted and outdoor sport will still not be possible.

Berlin's Mayor Michael Mueller described the situation as "grueling" in an interview with the

Berliner Zeitung

newspaper. Germany's capital's seven-day incidence rate rose to 91.3 on Tuesday, a strong increase on the day before when it stood at 75.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

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