Europe has more new virus cases but not lockdowns

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday defended his decision to not implement a national lockdown despite a rising number of COVID-19 infections and full hospitals. The government has closed nonessential stores and imposed some regional travel restrictions. In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel backed off initial plans to put the country in lockdown down over Easter, but health officials encouraged people to stay home. Contagious variants of the coronavirus have driven an increase of new cases in the 27-member European Union, and some nations have imposed tight new restrictions. The U.K. variant is thought to be about 50 percent more contagious than the original coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

How is the EU vaccination campaign going? Slower than anyone wants. Some European leaders have accused Britain of hoarding vaccines while accepting imports from the bloc, and EU members have clashed in recent days over how to distribute 10 million doses. The European Union still hopes to get 70 percent of the adult population vaccinated by the end of summer, but at the moment, only 14 percent of residents have received a shot.

Dig deeper: Read Mindy Belz’s column on responding to pandemic despair.