Coronavirus
New players to enter EU’s COVID vaccines playground
The EU's drugs agency EMA has started evaluating an application for conditional marketing authorisation for US biotech firm Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine, Nuvaxovid. If granted, this will be the fifth vaccine authorised in the European Union.
EU moves to halt air travel from southern Africa over COVID variant
The European Union aims to halt air travel from the southern African region amid rising concern about a new COVID-19 variant detected in South Africa, EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday (26 November).
Fearing new South Africa variant, Europe scrambles for boosters, jabs for kids
Europe scrambled Thursday (25 November) to regain control over a resurgent coronavirus as governments urged adult boosters and jabs for young children in a sign of growing unease over a pandemic that has killed 1.5 million people on the continent.
Portugal adopts new restrictive measures despite high vaccination rate
Vaccinated people will need to show a negative test to enter sports venues and cultural events despite the country's high vaccination rate, said Prime Minister António Costa. Portugal "is not as well" as I wanted, he added.
Merkel gives stark warning as Germany’s Covid death toll tops 100,000
German Chancellor Angela Merkel issued an urgent warning on pandemic management on Thursday (25 November) to the new government coming in to succeed her, imploring it to take quick, decisive measures as the country's total death toll passed 100,000.
France says no to lockdowns, boosts vaccination campaign instead
France will not go into lockdown or under curfew and will speed up its vaccination campaign to slow the increase of COVID-19 cases amid a European fourth wave. EURACTIV France reports.
EU proposes booster jabs for 2022 travel, opens to WHO vaccines
European Union residents will need to have COVID-19 vaccine booster jabs if they want to travel to another country in the bloc next summer free of tests or quarantines, the European Commission proposed on Thursday (25 November).
COVID cases break records in Europe, prompting booster shot expansion
Coronavirus infections broke records in parts of Europe, with the continent once again the epicentre of a pandemic that has prompted new curbs on movement and seen health experts push to widen the use of booster vaccination shots.
Portugal’s vaccination rate gives Commission confidence on economic recovery
The European Commission remains confident in a successful recovery of the Portuguese economy, especially as the COVID-19 vaccination rate in the country is so high. As part of the “autumn package” adopted on Wednesday, the EU executive has published the latest post-programme...
Europe battles COVID surge as WHO warns of 700,000 more deaths
Europe remains "in the firm grip" of COVID and the continent's death toll could top 2.2 million this winter if current trends continue, the World Health Organisation warned on Tuesday (23 November).
Germany considers more COVID-19 curbs, compulsory vaccines as cases soar
German Health Minister Jens Spahn called on Tuesday (23 November) for further restrictions as Germany's rate of coronavirus infections hit a record high and more politicians backed compulsory vaccinations.
EU wants to harmonise validity period of vaccination certificate
The European Commission aims to harmonize the duration of the validity of the COVID-19 vaccination certificate, including the effects of booster shots, Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said on Monday (22 November), amid record infection numbers in some EU states.
Only nine EU countries still escape the US ‘Do Not Travel’ COVID-19 warning
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the State Department added Germany and Denmark to a list of European countries where US nationals are advised not to travel, because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases.
‘Jabbed, cured or dead’, Germany warns as Europe battles COVID surge
Germans faced the stark warning Monday (22 November) that they would be either "vaccinated, cured or dead" from Covid by the end of winter, while Austria returned to a partial lockdown as Europe battles a fourth wave of the pandemic.
Protestors clash with police in Brussels over new COVID restrictions
A fresh wave of protests broke out in Brussels and several European cities on Sunday (21 November), as protesters reacted, sometimes violently, to moves to reintroduced coronavirus restrictions.
Plan by wealthy nations to treat COVID vaccines as aid prompts backlash
The question of how COVID vaccines donated by wealthy countries are classified and priced could artificially raise the European Union’s development aid figures by billions of euros, EURACTIV understands.
The Brief, powered by Facebook — The Dirty Dozen
The European Commission has been caught by surprise. In its efforts to fight disinformation, it developed instruments to monitor Russia. However, new research shows that the anti-vaxxer disinformation campaign to which many EU citizens have fallen victim actually originates in the United States.
Latvia toughens rules for unvaccinated people
Employers in Latvia are allowed to dismiss employees who refuse to get vaccinated against Covid-19 from Monday (15 November), under new rules aimed at taming the pandemic in the EU member state.
Austria introduces lockdown for the unvaccinated
Austrians who have not had a COVID-19 vaccine, around 25% of the population, will be placed into a fully-fledged lockdown from Monday (15 November). But according to experts, additional measures will soon be needed to combat the rise in infection rates.
European Medicines Agency recommends two drugs for treating COVID-19
Two monoclonal antibody medicines for treating COVID-19 have been recommended for authorisation by the European Medicines Agency on Thursday (11 November), sparking new hopes in the fight against the virus.
Dutch consider new partial lockdown as coronavirus cases hit record
The Dutch government on Thursday (11 November) was considering whether to impose Western Europe's first partial lockdown since the summer, as new coronavirus cases jumped to the highest level since the start of the pandemic.
Croatians protest against tightened COVID measures
Hundreds of Croatians protested on Thursday (11 November) for the fourth day in Zagreb and other cities against obligatory certificates for the public sector as the country's Covid-19 cases hit a record high.
MEP: COVID-19 was a harsh lesson but we came out with a common approach
Patient access to the same high standards of care should be at the core of the re-thinking process of health systems after the pandemic, according to Romanian Liberal MEP Nicolae Ștefănuță.
Bulgaria’s daily COVID-19 deaths rise to record high
Bulgaria reported a record number of daily coronavirus deaths on Tuesday (9 November) as the European Union's least vaccinated country grapples with a fourth wave of the pandemic.