The vaccination campaign in the UK continues in full swing. 20 million people have already received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. However, there is concern about the reluctance of some ethnic groups towards the vaccine.
In a London suburb, Walthamstow, the vaccination rate for the black population was 36% compared to 70% for the white population. Doctors suspect it may be due to mistrust and misinformation around vaccines.
“The doubts about vaccines in certain groups are due to a series of reasons, the experience of the country of origin with vaccination campaigns, having had a bad experience with a particular vaccine or pharmaceutical, which generates a lot of mistrust. That is why we need health workers to step up and say ‘I have been vaccinated, these are the advantages and if you have questions talk to us,’ “explained Naheed Khan-Lodhi, a British doctor.
For its part, the British Government has set itself the goal of vaccinating all those over 50 by April 15 and hopes to reopen the economy in stages, with the return of schoolchildren to class as of March 8 and the opening of non-essential stores on April 12.
AstraZeneca is unpopular in Germany
The German Minister of Health, Jens Spahn, defended on Friday the efficacy and safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine, against which there have been reservations in Germany for its side effects and for its alleged lower effectiveness compared to those of Moderna or Pfizer- BioNTech.
“The vaccine is safe, effective and protective,” Spahn said about it.
Scientists have also come out in defense of the vaccine, but several states have called for AstraZeneca doses to be given only to younger people if those 65 and older don’t want them.
Czech Republic swims against current for Sputnik V vaccine
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, Andrej Babis, appears to break ranks with Brussels. He has assured that he is willing to acquire the Russian Sputnik V vaccine without waiting for the approval of the European Medicines Agency.
“There are people who write to me that they want the Russian vaccine, which will always be voluntary, so why not use it. If it is safe and is used in other countries, why not here?” Babis said.
Netherlands helpless in the face of fed up with coronavirus
Amsterdam police broke up a protest against sanitary measures on Sunday. Dozens of demonstrators carried banners that read “enough of the COVID dictatorship.”
Last month, several cities in the Netherlands experienced days of unrest in response to a night curfew to curb the transmission of the virus.
After the curfew came into effect on January 23, groups of young people in different cities rioted against the police, which led to violent riots, looting, and destruction of public furniture in protests that lasted four consecutive nights, around the restriction start time, at 21:00 local time (20:00 GMT).
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