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PM to chair emergency meeting amid travel bans

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PM to chair emergency meeting amid travel bans
© PA Media
The prime minister will chair a meeting of the government s emergency committee later after France closed its border with the UK for 48 hours.
The move, announced on Sunday, means no lorries or ferry passengers will be able to sail from the port of Dover.
France said the action was necessary because of the prevalence of a new variant of coronavirus in the UK.
Countries including Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Irish Republic, Turkey and Canada are stopping UK flights.
European Union member states are due to meet in Brussels to discuss a co-ordinated response.

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Why doctors differ on Covid-19 plasma therapy

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Why doctors differ on Covid-19 plasma therapy
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Recovered patients from all over the world have come forward to donate plasma
Desperate calls for blood plasma to treat Covid-19 patients continue to appear on India s social media platforms even as doctors have mixed views about the experimental therapy.
When people have Covid-19 or other viral diseases, their immune system responds by creating antibodies, which attack the virus. Over time the antibodies build up and can be found in plasma - the liquid portion of the blood.
India s health authorities, like many around the world, have allowed the use of plasma to treat severely ill patients as Covid-19 continues to claim lives. The therapy also requires the consent of patients and their families.

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