The Latest: UK says vaccines effective for Indian variant

The Latest: UK says vaccines effective for Indian variant

SeattlePI.com

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LONDON - British health officials expressed optimism Sunday that the coronavirus restrictions remaining in England can be lifted in June after an official study found that the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines offer effective protection against the variant first identified in India.

Authorities in Britain have expressed concern in recent weeks that increasing cases of the Indian variant could jeopardize the U.K.’s so-far successful plan to reopen its economy. More than 2,880 cases of the Indian variant have been recorded in England, figures show.

The government has said the variant appears to be more transmissible, but there was still uncertainty about how concerning this was.

Jenny Harries, chief executive of the U.K. Health Security Agency, said officials in England are on track to proceed with the final stage of unlocking the country from June 21 if the public remains cautious.

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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

— The poor, the rich: In a sick India, all are on their own

— IOC VP gets backlash saying Olympics are on, no matter virus

— Pandemic has fueled eating disorder surge in U.S. teens, adults

— COVID testing’s value shrinks as vaccines beat back virus



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Follow more of AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine

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HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

PARIS - The French foreign minister says it’s possible that France will introduce stricter coronavirus restrictions for British visitors when tourism reopens this summer, to prevent the spread of a worrying virus variant first detected in India and...

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