Koronawirus

No data indicate that the Indian coronavirus variant is more dangerous or more contagious, assured the sanitary director of Rome's infectious disease hospital Francesco Vai. He warned against spreading panic.more

12 days after the first dose of COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and AstraZeneca, the risk of infection is significantly reduced, said Grzegorz Cessak, President of the Office for Registration of Medicinal Products, Medical Devices and Biocidal Products in Poland.more

People aged 40 and over in England are now able to book their Covid jabs, NHS officials say. Text messages will be sent to 40 and 41-year-olds, directing them to the national booking service.more

South Korean police searched the offices and laboratories of a large dairy company that said its yogurts were effective in fighting the coronavirus. Authorities suspect the company of deliberately using misleading advertising.more

Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa announced yesterday evening the easing of sanitary restrictions introduced due to the Covid-19 pandemic. He specified that they will be introduced on the basis of the provisions on the state of disaster and will apply from Saturday.more

Sweden's foreign-born residents are much less likely to have been vaccinated against Covid-19 than native Swedes, a new report shows.more

The Irish government has announced a phased relaxation of its strict Covid-19 lockdown over the next six weeks. The country has been at Level Five, its highest level of restrictions, since Christmas.more

The UK is "at or close to the bottom" of levels of coronavirus cases, according to England's deputy chief medical officer who praised the public for sticking to lockdown measures.more

Pfizer is researching an oral anti-SARS-CoV-2 drug. The preparation would be administered after the first symptoms of infection.more

From the dynamics of vaccinations that we have managed to obtain, I can conclude that there is a chance to vaccinate all Poles willing to vaccinate even in July, emphasized Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. When asked about the vaccination passports, he replied that "we will discuss this in Brussels".more

The British government has ordered an additional 60 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, said Health Minister Matt Hancock. They are to be used in the fall for booster vaccinations for those most at risk of the disease.more

The European Parliament voted in favor of issuing vaccine certificates in the EU. MEPs want certificates confirming the right to move freely in Europe during a pandemic to be valid for no longer than 12 months.more

Europe will likely achieve herd immunity against coronavirus this summer thanks to the widespread rollout of vaccines, the boss of pharmaceutical giant BioNTech has claimed.more

Londoners will be able to get their coronavirus vaccine on a bus as part of a new drive to boost the jab rollout across the capital. The double-decker, staffed by medics and volunteers, will tour Ilford, where it will offer first and second doses to residents throughout the borough of Redbridge. more

An estimated seven in 10 adults (68.3%) in private households were likely to have tested positive for coronavirus antibodies in the week to 11 April, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).more

In India, 379,257 new coronavirus infections were recorded in the last 24 hours, which meant that the total number of detected infections exceeded 18 million on Thursday; 3,645 people from Covid-19 died, bringing the death toll to 204,832, the local health ministry said.more

Hospitality chiefs said staff turnover in the sector and a reliance on European workers whose culture is more in tune with restaurant jobs, has led to a ‘serious shortfall’.more

Britons will find out which countries they will be able to enjoy quarantine-free travel to this summer "in the next couple of weeks" - as the transport secretary confirmed an NHS app will be used as a COVID passport for travel abroad.more

Greece, Croatia and Slovenia are European Union countries that have waived the requirement to present a negative coronavirus test result upon entry for fully vaccinated tourists.more

A bar in Copenhagen has started offering customers a COVID-19 test and a beer while they wait for the result to help get business moving again after months of restrictions.more

The British weekly The Economist claims that 13 of the 15 regions in Europe with the highest Covid-19 incidence are in Sweden. more

Poland’s government has unveiled a timetable for removing coronavirus restrictions – which have been in place for most of the time since last October – next month.more

About a million Italians ate dinner at a restaurant for the first time in six months thanks to the relaxation of anti-epidemic restrictions in most regions of the country.more

One in four people in the UK have now been fully vaccinated as 17 more people died from the virus on Tuesday. The vaccine rollout saw 90,695 more first doses and 304,688 more second doses given out.more

Kane Tanaka, a 118-year-old woman from this southwest Japan city who has been certified by Guinness World Records as the world's oldest living person, will give up her position in the Olympic torch relay, it has been learned.more