Reuters Health News Summary

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said it had received no such reports of clotting events following use of the vaccine made by BioNTech SE and Pfizer Inc. Vietnam asks for foreign support in procuring COVID-19 vaccines Vietnam has appealed to diplomats from the United States, European Union and Japan to help it secure supplies of COVID-19 vaccines, as part of efforts to acquire the 150 million doses needed to cover its adult population.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Greek PM criticises EU vaccine rollout, pledges to step up campaign

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday criticised the European Union's stumbling rollout of COVID-19 vaccines but said Greece would double its vaccinations in the coming weeks and inoculate everyone over 60 years of age by the end of May. Greece, which coped relatively well during the first wave of the pandemic last year, has been forced to tighten restrictions to combat a surge in cases over recent months, with hospitals in the worst affected areas around Athens struggling to cope. Exclusive: Fauci says U.S. may not need AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine

The United States may not need AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, even if it wins U.S. regulatory approval, Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease doctor told Reuters on Thursday. The vaccine, once hailed as another milestone in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, has been dogged by questions since late last year, even as it has been authorized for use by dozens of countries, not including United States. UK regulator found total of 30 cases of blood clot events after AstraZeneca vaccine use

British regulators on Thursday said they have identified 30 cases of rare blood clot events after the use of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, 25 more than the agency previously reported. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said it had received no such reports of clotting events following use of the vaccine made by BioNTech SE and Pfizer Inc. Vietnam asks for foreign support in procuring COVID-19 vaccines

Vietnam has appealed to diplomats from the United States, European Union and Japan to help it secure supplies of COVID-19 vaccines, as part of efforts to acquire the 150 million doses needed to cover its adult population. Vietnam has received about 930,000 doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine so far but wants to procure doses from Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, China's Sinovac, and Russia's Sputnik V shot. Pandemic poised to surge again in California's Silicon Valley tech hub

A California community that has been a bellwether of the coronavirus pandemic's rampage across the United States warned on Thursday that the number of cases of more contagious COVID-19 variants is increasing to worrisome levels. "The region's progress in curbing the pandemic remains precarious," the health department in Santa Clara County, home to California's Silicon Valley, said. Turkey begins administering Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 shots

Turkey on Friday began administering Pfizer and BioNTech's COVID-19 shots, introducing a second vaccine in its campaign that began in mid-January, as new cases reached record highs. Turkey has so far delivered 16.5 million vaccine doses nationwide, including more than 7 million people who have received a second dose of the shots developed by China's Sinovac Biotech. Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 shot 91% effective in updated data, protective against South African variant

Pfizer Inc and BioNTech said on Thursday their vaccine is around 91% effective at preventing COVID-19, citing updated trial data that included participants inoculated for up to six months. The shot also showed early signs of preventing disease in a small subset of study volunteers in South Africa, where a concerning new variant called B.1.351 is circulating. Moderna gets nod to speed up virus vaccine output with bigger vials

The U.S. drug regulator gave Moderna Inc clearance to speed up output of its COVID-19 vaccine by letting it fill a single vial with up to 15 doses, with the United States banking on rapid immunisation to stem the spread of the deadly virus. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also authorized vaccinators to extract a maximum of 11 doses from the current vials, instead of the ten previously permitted. India reports six-month high of COVID-19 daily infections amid new curbs

India reported 81,466 new COVID-19 infections on Friday, the highest daily number in six months, as several states were hit by a second wave of the coronavirus. Health ministry data showed the total number of cases surged to 12.3 million, making India the third-most hit country from the virus after the United States and Brazil. The number of those dead rose by 469 to 163,396. Australia probes if blood clot case linked to AstraZeneca vaccine

Australia is investigating whether a blood clotting case recorded on Friday is related to the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, a health official said, raising concern in a nation where most people are expected to receive the drugmaker's shot. A 44-year-old man was admitted to a Melbourne hospital with clotting days after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine, suffering serious thrombosis and a low count of platelets, or blood cells that stop bleeding. "Investigators have not at this time confirmed a causal link with the COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccine, but investigations are ongoing," the deputy chief medical officer, Michael Kidd, told a televised briefing.