Portugal approves AstraZeneca jab for over-65s

Portugal, following a number of other European countries, has approved AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine for people aged 65 and over, the DGS national health authority said on Wednesday.

"This decision takes into account data published in recent days indicating that the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine is effective for people aged over 65," the authority said in a statement.

The Ango-Swedish-made vaccine had previously been approved in Portugal for everyone over 18, but "preferably" for people aged under 65.

The government is aiming to vaccinate 70 percent of the population by the summer.

In lockdown since mid-January, Portugal has seen a sharp drop in the number of new infections from a peak of nearly 16,500 daily cases on January 28.

The country with a population of 10 million recorded 30 new deaths and 847 new cases over a 24-hour period on Tuesday.

© 2021 AFP