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HEALTH

Merkel seen trembling in public for second time in less than two weeks

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday suffered another episode of uncontrolled trembling, just over a week after a similar incident that sparked questions about her health.

Merkel seen trembling in public for second time in less than two weeks
Angela Merkel being offered a glass of water on Thursday. Photo: DPA

The latest lapse came hours before Merkel was due to board a plane for the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan.

The German leader began to tremble as she stood next to President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who was giving a speech at a ceremony to formally appoint a new justice minister.

The shaking went on for two minutes, according to a DPA photographer who was present at the event.

Merkel folded her arms visibly in a bid to stop the trembling.

She only finally brought it under control once she was able to take a few steps.

She was offered a glass of water but turned it down.

'The Chancellor is well'

Despite the latest health incident, a German government spokesman said Merkel would not be cancelling any appointments on Thursday and Friday.

“The chancellor is well,” he said, adding that she will be flying as planned to Osaka for the G20 summit.

Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert later tweeted she was on the way to Osaka for the G20 summit, and that “numerous bilateral talks with other leaders and government are planned”.

Meanwhile, to head off a repeat of an aircraft failure that forced Merkel to arrive late to the previous G20 summit in Buenos Aires, German media reported that a second A340 is flying to Osaka on standby.

The second plane was due for a training flight to Tokyo.

Her previous bout of shaking last Tuesday had been blamed on dehydration on a hot summer's day.

READ ALSO: Merkel blames dehydration for shaking spell

Asked by a reporter about her wellbeing at a news conference about 90 minutes after that spell, Merkel smiled: “I've drunk at least three glasses of water and so I'm doing fine.”

Leaving politics

Merkel, frequently called the EU's most influential leader and the most powerful woman in the world, turns 65 next month.

She has said she will leave politics at the end of her term, in 2021.

There were brief concerns about her health in 2014 when she was taken ill during a television interview. The broadcast was briefly interrupted when she experienced a drop in blood pressure.

Her spokesman Steffen Seibert explained at the time the leader did not feel well for a moment, then ate and drank something and continued the interview.

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HEALTH

Lengthy waiting times at Danish hospitals not going away yet: minister

Danish Minister for the Interior and Health Sophie Løhde has warned that, despite increasing activity at hospitals, it will be some time before current waiting lists are reduced.

Lengthy waiting times at Danish hospitals not going away yet: minister

The message comes as Løhde was set to meet with officials from regional health authorities on Wednesday to discuss the progress of an acute plan for the Danish health system, launched at the end of last year in an effort to reduce a backlog of waiting times which built up during the coronavirus crisis.

An agreement with regional health authorities on an “acute” spending plan to address the most serious challenges faced by the health services agreed in February, providing 2 billion kroner by the end of 2024.

READ ALSO: What exactly is wrong with the Danish health system?

The national organisation for the health authorities, Danske Regioner, said to newspaper Jyllands-Posten earlier this week that progress on clearing the waiting lists was ahead of schedule.

Some 245,300 operations were completed in the first quarter of this year, 10 percent more than in the same period in 2022 and over the agreed number.

Løhde said that the figures show measures from the acute plan are “beginning to work”.

“It’s positive but even though it suggests that the trend is going the right way, we’re far from our goal and it’s important to keep it up so that we get there,” she said.

“I certainly won’t be satisfied until waiting times are brought down,” she said.

“As long as we are in the process of doing postponed operations, we will unfortunately continue to see a further increase [in waiting times],” Løhde said.

“That’s why it’s crucial that we retain a high activity this year and in 2024,” she added.

Although the government set aside 2 billion kroner in total for the plan, the regional authorities expect the portion of that to be spent in 2023 to run out by the end of the summer. They have therefore asked for some of the 2024 spending to be brought forward.

Løhde is so far reluctant to meet that request according to Jyllands-Posten.

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