Support grows for easing COVID-19 vaccine patent rules, but hurdles remain
France has now joined the United States in calling for the easing of patent protections for COVID-19 vaccines. Other countries, including Canada, China and Russia, are at least willing to take part in WTO talks into a proposal to waive international protection rules.
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The Associated Press ·
Posted: May 06, 2021 1:33 PM ET | Last Updated: May 6
Director general of the Ghana Health Service Dr. Patrick Kuma-Aboagye receives a COVID-19 vaccine in Accra, Ghana on March 2, 2021. Just over 20 million vaccine doses have been administered across Africa, which counts some 1.3 billion people.(Francis Kokoroko/Reuters)
David Rising May 06, 2021 - 10:08 AM
BERLIN - Germany is making the AstraZeneca vaccine available immediately to all adults in a push to get as many people inoculated against COVID-19 as quickly as possible, Health Minister Jens Spahn said Thursday.
Millions of doses of AstraZeneca have been safely administered in Europe, but concerns linger over a rare type of blood clot seen in an extremely small number of recipients. That has prompted some people in Germany, even those in high-risk groups, to hold off on getting the shot, preferring to wait for another vaccine.
Spahn said many people in lower-priority groups waiting for a vaccine appointment would be happy to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine. Therefore, the government has decided to allow doctors offices to vaccinate any adults with it.
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BRUSSELS The European Union is willing to discuss a proposal, now backed by the United States, to waive intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday.
The head of the EU executive said the bloc’s vaccination effort was accelerating, with 30 Europeans being inoculated per second, while exporting more than 200 million vaccine doses to the rest of the world – contrasting with limited sharing of vaccines by the United States and Britain.
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Germany makes AstraZeneca vaccine available to all adults
by David Rising, The Associated Press
Posted May 6, 2021 1:08 pm EDT
Last Updated May 6, 2021 at 1:14 pm EDT
Chancellor Angela Merkel is driven away in her limousine after her vote in the Bundestag in Berlin, Germany, Thursday, May 6, 2021. In a roll-call vote, one item of the amendment to the Infection Protection Act was voted on. Earlier, the Bundestag decided on relief for vaccinated and recovered persons. (Michael Kappeler/dpa via AP)
BERLIN Germany is making the AstraZeneca vaccine available immediately to all adults in a push to get as many people inoculated against COVID-19 as quickly as possible, Health Minister Jens Spahn said Thursday.