Sudden extension of vaccine eligibility sows confusion in Poland

Warsaw: Polish health care was plunged into confusion on Thursday after a surprise overnight decision to widen eligibility for COVID-19 vaccines triggered the crash of an online registration system, just as new infections soared to a new daily high.

The incident left Polish doctors temporarily unable to prescribe drugs for non-coronavirus ailments, immunologist Pawel Grzesiowski told Reuters. It played out against the backdrop of a health service stretched to its limits by spiralling coronavirus case numbers that have left hospitals in some Polish regions on the brink of running out of ventilators.