BERLIN (AP) – Slowly, the European Union has intensified its COVID-19 vaccination efforts, with the distribution of the Johnson & Johnson one-shot product this week adding momentum amid high infection rates across the continent.
The EU’s vaccination effort lags far behind that of the United Kingdom or the United States. Only about 1 in 5 of the bloc’s 450 million inhabitants received the first blow – about half the US share. But European officials say they have turned the corner.
“In the first quarter of 2021, only 10% of Germans were able to receive a first vaccination due to lack of vaccine,” German Health Minister Jens Spahn said this week. “We achieved the next 10% in just three weeks.”
France recently celebrated several landmarks of the vaccine, including the administration of at least one dose to almost 100% of the 700,000 residents of nursing homes in the country.
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And Italy, the Netherlands and other countries are continuing plans to start distributing J&J fire or are already doing so, after the drug regulatory agency gave the green light for its use on Tuesday amid concerns about a rare type of clot. blood seen in an extremely small number of US recipients
“The numbers now are encouraging,” said Manfred Weber, a German member of the European Parliament, adding that the EU should be able to give every citizen a vaccine by the end of the summer.
“If this works, then I think a lot of Europeans will say, ‘OK, it was a rough ride and things didn’t work out at first.’ But in the end, we Europeans will be the first continent to be fully vaccinated, “he said.
The increase comes as countries across Europe face an increase in infections that has pushed the total number of coronavirus cases in the EU to almost 30 million, while deaths have recently exceeded 660,000, according to the European Center for Prevention and Control. Diseases.
Hospitals in many European countries are once again undergoing treatment, treating younger and younger patients with severe COVID-19 as older age groups receive vaccinations.
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Officials say several contagious variants of the virus are now dominating, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently warning, “We’re basically having a new pandemic.”
Vaccination efforts on the continent have been met with repeated setbacks, including production delays, concerns about the effectiveness of the AstraZeneca shot and the fear of coagulation, which also involved the AstraZeneca vaccine. Both vaccines have now been phased out for use in Europe, with regulators saying the benefits of inoculation against COVID-19 far outweigh the risks.
Merkel said on Wednesday that the EU’s decision to jointly purchase vaccines for all 27 of its members – fiercely criticized in some areas as an abdication of national responsibility – prevented “brutal competition from larger, stronger and more powerful countries.” richer against the little ones ”.
“There would have been enormous potential for destruction” in the EU, she said.
In Germany, Spahn said vaccination rates will continue to rise until the second quarter. The country has about 83 million people taking about half a million doses during the week, or about five photos every second, and has recently started offering vaccinations in about 55,000 medical offices, which means people are no longer forced to go to special centers.
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French President Emmanuel Macron, who has been accused of raising skepticism about the AstraZeneca vaccine after initially calling it “almost ineffective”, this week called on citizens to lift their reservations about the shooting after the European Medicines Agency considered -Sure.
There have been widespread signs that the AstraZeneca vaccine is struggling to regain the trust of some of those eligible to receive it – in France, those aged 55 and over.
French media reported that a vaccination center in the Mediterranean city of Nice had 4,000 doses of AstraZeneca available for last weekend, but attracted only 58 people who took it and closed early Saturday. Ministry of Health officials insist that such examples are the exception.
Italy began releasing 184,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson shots stored at regional vaccination centers on Wednesday. Poland and Luxembourg have begun administering the shooting, while the Netherlands and the Czech Republic are expected to do so this week.
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With a stubborn number of new infections, EU member states are taking a number of approaches to reduce the spread of the virus while waiting for vaccinations to reach a critical threshold.
German lawmakers on Wednesday approved uniform “emergency braking” restrictions for when the virus spreads too quickly, replacing a series of measures in the 16 German states.
Areas where there are more than 100 new cases per 100,000 residents per week will face a restrictive restriction, with stricter limits on person-to-person contact and the closure of shops, museums and sports facilities.
Thousands protested against the plan in front of the Berlin Parliament.
Other countries have given in to demands to reduce pandemic restrictions amid heightened blockade fatigue.
“We really see the tension between the gloomy reality here and now in hospitals and at the same time that cautious and optimistic outlook,” Dutch caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Tuesday, announcing that a curve will be set up next week for bars and cafes. will be allowed to reopen the outdoor terraces in the afternoon for the first time since mid-October.
In Italy, schools can be reopened for full-time personal learning, and restaurants and bars can be opened to stay outdoors from Monday in all high-risk areas.
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Sitting in the post-shooting waiting room of a vaccination center in the Cinecitta film studios in Rome, where “La Dolce Vita” and other gemstones of Italian cinema were made, Patrizia Centa expressed her relief at receiving a first prize. dose.
“It’s definitely a positive experience,” said Centa, surrounded by movie star posters and inspirational messages from Sophia Loren and Roberto Benigni. “It was, well, something incredible. It was a pleasant experience, a pleasant experience.”