A “possible link” exists between AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine and rare blood clots, according to the European Union’s top drug regulator, but the benefits of the drug still outweigh its risks. 

A safety committee of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) on Wednesday concluded that unusual blood clots with low blood platelets should be listed as very rare side effects of the vaccine.

Still, the agency placed no new restrictions on the use of the vaccine, which is currently being used in people age 18 and older. 

The U.S. has purchased 300 million doses, the largest such deal made through the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed, though the shot is not yet authorized by the Food and Drug Administration.

Emer Cooke, EMA’s executive director, stressed on Wednesday that the vaccine is still a key tool in the fight against COVID-19.

“This vaccine has proven to be highly effective. It prevents severe disease and hospitalization and it is saving lives,” Cooke said during a press briefing. “We need to use the vaccines we have to protect us against the devastating effects” of the virus.

Concerns over blood clotting in a small number of recipients have dogged the shot in recent weeks, and the finding from the EMA is another blow for the vaccine, which is meant to be the backbone of a global inoculation effort.

Many European countries are relying heavily on the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, as it is being sold using a nonprofit model and is far cheaper to make than other COVID-19 vaccines.

The European Union has purchased 400 million doses of the vaccine.

It is also the main shot being used by Covax, the global program to deliver vaccines to low- and middle-income countries.

Some European countries that had already authorized the vaccine have restricted its use to older populations in an effort to minimize the risk of clotting events. However, Cooke said there is no clear evidence that specific risk factors like age, gender or previous clotting history play a role.

So far, most of the cases reported have occurred in women under 60 years of age within 2 weeks of vaccination.

The blood clots occurred in veins in the brain (cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, or CVST) and a similar condition in the abdomen (splanchnic vein thrombosis) as well as in arteries. Low levels of blood platelets were sometimes reported, and occasional bleeding.

The EMA’s safety committee carried out an in-depth review of 62 cases of CVST and 24 cases of splanchnic vein thrombosis. Between the two, there were 18 fatal cases.

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The cases came from the reporting systems of the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom, where 25 million people had received the vaccine. 

The World Health Organization, the U.K.’s medicines regulator and the International Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis have all said that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks.

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AstraZeneca has previously said its studies have found no higher risk of blood clots as a result of its vaccine.

— Updated at 11:01 a.m.

Airline customers were unable to book flights with multiple major U.S. airlines on Monday, including American, Delta and United Airlines.

When attempting to book a flight through the companies’ respective booking sites, the pages failed to upload available flights for all three airlines.

Responding to one customer who was struggling to book a flight, American Airlines tweeted, “Yes, we’re aware that the website is down. We’re working hard to resolve those issues.”

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Both Delta and United also acknowledged on Twitter that their booking sites appeared to not be working as they should. The cause of the issues has not been determined.

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Other major U.S. airlines such as JetBlue and Southwest Airlines did not appear to be impacted.

“Delta is engaged with a third-party vendor that is currently troubleshooting a technical issue that is impacting the ability for customers to search for and book flights on Delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Delta’s Customers can still check in for flights and use the platforms to search for other flight planning information. We apologize for the inconvenience,” Delta said in a statement provided to The Hill.

American Airlines also attributed the issues to a third-party vendor.

“We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience. There was no impact to flight operations and customers were still able to check in for flights through aa.com,” the airline said in a statement to The Hill.

A United Airlines spokesperson said that customers may still book flights through the airline’s phone system. The spokesperson was unable to say when the booking website would be up and functioning again, adding that the issue may be stemming from the Google Flights system used by United.

A spokesperson for Google confirmed to The Hill that there is a “known issue” on the tech company’s side of the flight system. They stated Google is currently working to implement a solution to the issue.

It is unclear if American and Delta also use the Google Flights system.

The website issues come just days after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new guidance that stated it was safe for fully vaccinated people to travel on airplanes. The guidance would likely be a boon to the airline industry that has been heavily impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.

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The CDC stated that people traveling domestically do not have to be tested before boarding a flight unless their destination requires a test. COVID-19 tests should still be taken before international flights and masks should still be worn on planes regardless of vaccination status, the CDC said in its new guidelines.

Delta indicated a slight return to normal last week when it announced it would slowly begin reintroducing middle seats into its flights. The airline had blocked off middle seats when the pandemic began in an attempt to provide better social distancing on flights.

— Updated at 4:54 p.m.

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The Interior Department said Friday that it will create nearly 19,000 jobs through improvement projects in national parks, wildlife refuges and Bureau of Indian Education schools through funding allocated last year from a bipartisan conservation bill. 

According to a statement issued by the department, this year will see a $1.6 billion investment in 165 deferred maintenance projects that will improve recreation facilities, historic structures, roads, trails, bridges and more. 

The department said this will support about 18,851 jobs and add $2 billion to the country’s gross domestic product this year. 

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“Through the Great American Outdoors Act, we are investing in the American people, and in the future of our public lands and sacred spaces,” Interior Secretary Deb HaalandDeb HaalandOvernight Energy: Haaland making moves: Discusses public lands drilling, creates unit to investigate missing and murdered Native Americans Haaland on public lands drilling: Taxpayers deserve ‘a return on their investment’ Interior says parks maintenance fund will go to 165 projects, support 19K jobs this year MORE said in a statement on Friday. 

“We must address the long-delayed maintenance needs of the nation’s aging buildings and infrastructure. Importantly, this funding also honors our commitment to Tribal communities by investing in Bureau of Indian Education-funded schools for current and future generations,” Haaland added.  

The first major investment will be of $3 million to restore the Jefferson Memorial’s exterior in Washington, D.C., including using lasers to remove algae, fungi and bacteria. 

The Great American Outdoors Act provided up to $1.6 billion annually for five years for the fund being used for the improvement projects. 

It also permanently allocated $900 million to the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which helps the federal government acquire new land for parks and trails and works to protect sensitive forest and endangered species habitat.

Former President TrumpDonald TrumpWhite House says bills are bipartisan even if GOP doesn’t vote for them Gaetz bragged about ‘access’ to women through Florida tax collector charged in federal case: report Trump calls for boycott of MLB for moving All-Star Game MORE had previously proposed removing significant funding from the LWCF but later supported the bill after meeting with Republican senators.

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The U.S. trade deficit rose to its highest monthly level on record in February, hitting $71.1 billion, a 4.8 percent increase from the previous record set in January.

While trade activity was generally lower than in the previous month, the level of exports fell nearly three times as much as the level of imports.

The figures for 2021 thus far are a whopping 68.6 percent higher than the first two months of last year, before the pandemic took hold.

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In some regards, the deficit is a sign of the relative strength of the U.S. economy, where strong fiscal stimulus has boosted demand for goods and services above levels seen overseas.

The data represent a bitter legacy for former President TrumpDonald TrumpYelp creates tool to help support Asian-owned businesses Iran espionage-linked ship attacked at sea Biden exceeds expectations on vaccines — so far MORE, who railed against the trade deficit in his 2016 campaign for the presidency, and started a slew of trade wars to renegotiate the terms of trade between America and its trading partners.

Biden’s trade representative, Katherine TaiKatherine TaiCraft whiskeys, an American success story, are facing death by trade war The Hill’s Morning Report – Biden’s infrastructure plan triggers definition debate 2024 GOP White House hopefuls lead opposition to Biden Cabinet MORE, has signaled that she will keep many of the tariffs in place until negotiated settlements can be reached with trade partners, though the administration has already deescalated tensions and suspended some barriers with Europe and the United Kingdom.

Economists say that trade deficits are not inherently bad for the economy, but can be a sign of global imbalances or stalling economic productivity.

They have also become a political talking point in recent years, which could raise pressure on the Biden administration to enact policies that would rein in the trade deficit.

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Happy Wednesday and welcome back to On The Money, where we’re officially switching our endorsement for the next “Jeopardy!” host to LeVar Burton. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.

See something I missed? Let me know at slane@thehill.com or tweet me @SylvanLane. And if you like your newsletter, you can subscribe to it here: http://bit.ly/1NxxW2N.

Write us with tips, suggestions and news: slane@thehill.com, njagoda@thehill.com and nelis@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @SylvanLane, @NJagoda and @NivElis.

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THE BIG DEAL—Biden says compromise ‘inevitable’ on infrastructure plan: President BidenJoe BidenManchin throws cold water on using budget reconciliation Moderate GOP senators and Biden clash at start of infrastructure debate Omar slams Biden admin for continuing ‘the construction of Trump’s xenophobic and racist wall’ MORE said Wednesday that compromise on his infrastructure and jobs proposal is “inevitable” but insisted that inaction was not an option.

“Compromise is inevitable, changes are certain,” Biden said in remarks from the White House. “We’ll be open to good ideas and good faith negotiations. But here’s what we won’t be open to. We will not be open to doing nothing. Inaction simply is not an option.”

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Biden’s next steps: 

• The White House says that Biden plans to meet with Republicans and Democrats after they return to Washington next week on how to move forward. 
• Biden specifically said Tuesday he is open to negotiation on how to pay for the package, after Republicans and Sen. Joe ManchinJoe ManchinManchin throws cold water on using budget reconciliation On The Money: Biden says compromise ‘inevitable’ on infrastructure plan | Chance for bipartisan breakthrough? | Democrats mull tax hikes Coons says bipartisan infrastructure package ‘likely’ to be smaller, not fully financed MORE (D-W.Va.) expressed opposition to his proposal for a hike in the corporate tax rate to 28 percent.

Biden’s proposal has been met with a swell of opposition from Republicans, who argue that the plan is too expensive and includes too many provisions that are not infrastructure. Republicans have also vehemently opposed the proposed corporate tax hike, saying it would push businesses out of the U.S. and hurt American companies. The Hill’s Morgan Chalfant brings us up to speed here.

What happens from here: Sen. Chris CoonsChris Andrew CoonsOn The Money: Biden says compromise ‘inevitable’ on infrastructure plan | Chance for bipartisan breakthrough? | Democrats mull tax hikes Coons says bipartisan infrastructure package ‘likely’ to be smaller, not fully financed Biden says compromise ‘inevitable’ on infrastructure plan MORE (D-Del.), a Biden ally on Capitol Hill, suggested during an interview with Punchbowl News Tuesday that Democrats and Republicans may be able to coalesce around a smaller package and not necessarily cover the entire cost. 

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Even so, Coons said that while a bipartisan deal would be better late than never, Republicans can’t make Biden wait forever.

“I believe President Biden is open to spending the next month negotiating what that possibility is,” Coons said. “There is also, though, a real sense of urgency.” The Hill’s Niv Elis explains here.

Treasury lays out Biden tax plan: Though the final infrastructure bill is likely to change, The Treasury Department on Wednesday released a report detailing Biden’s proposals to increase corporate taxes to fund infrastructure investments.

• Department officials said the proposals would raise about $2.5 trillion over 15 years and fully offset the cost of the new infrastructure spending. 
• During a call with reporters, Treasury Secretary Janet YellenJanet Louise YellenOn The Money: Biden says compromise ‘inevitable’ on infrastructure plan | Chance for bipartisan breakthrough? | Democrats mull tax hikes G-20 hoping to agree on minimum corporate tax rate in July Biden seeks .5T in corporate tax hikes to fully pay for infrastructure MORE argued that the plan will be beneficial for both the federal government and businesses.

“Tax reform is not a zero-sum game, with corporations on one side and government on the other. There are policies that are mutually beneficial,” Yellen said. “Win-win is a very overused phrase, but we have a real one in front of us now.”

Under Biden’s plan, “America will compete on our ability to produce talented workers, cutting-edge research and state-of-the art research, not on whether we have lower tax rates than Bermuda or Switzerland,” Yellen said. The Hill’s Naomi Jagoda breaks it down here.

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Democrats jockey over tax hikes: Of course, what tax policies actually make it into the law are up in the air and the subject of lots of internal discussion among Democrats. 

• Reaching consensus on taxes will be among the top challenges for Democrats as they work to enact an infrastructure and jobs package in the coming months.
• Democrats will need to craft legislation that can get near-universal support in the party, since Republicans have signaled that they will oppose any measure close to what Biden proposed.

Naomi tells us what’s on the table here.

LEADING THE DAY

IRS: Stimulus checks on the way to beneficiaries of Social Security: The Treasury Department announced Wednesday that the IRS has distributed 156 million direct payments under President Biden’s COVID-19 relief bill after sending $36 billion to another roughly 25 million households.

The latest round of stimulus payments will begin arriving in bank accounts and mailboxes Wednesday, the IRS said, with the vast majority of payments heading to beneficiaries of Social Security and other federal programs.

• More than 19 million payments within the new batch will go to recipients of Social Security retirement, survivor or disability benefits,
• 3 million will go to Supplemental Security Income beneficiaries, 
• And 85,000 payments will go to Railroad Retirement Board beneficiaries.

Treasury’s announcement means severely delayed relief should soon be in the hands of some of the most financially vulnerable Americans. The Social Security Administration’s weeks-long holdup in providing new income information to the IRS for federal beneficiaries kept millions of households that depend on the government to get by from receiving additional relief.

Biden to unveil 2022 spending request Friday: The Biden administration is set to unveil its proposed top-line spending numbers for the 2022 government budget on Friday, after a brief delay. 

• The discretionary proposal, which is expected to be short on details, will include proposed spending figures for defense as well as non-defense funding.
• Budget watchers expect the defense figures to stay relatively stable, while the other spending covers every other government agency, ranging from Agriculture to Housing and Urban Development to Education to the State Department.
• The proposal, which in recent years has amounted to approximately $1.4 trillion, will allow Congress to kick off of its annual appropriations process.

Niv tells us what to expect here.

GOOD TO KNOW

• The Group of 20 (G20) countries anticipate reaching an agreement on international tax issues, including a global minimum corporate tax rate, by July, Italian Finance Minister Daniele Franco said Wednesday. 
• And top International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials on Wednesday lent support to key aspects of President Biden’s corporate tax proposals, including raising the rate and implementing a global minimum.
• JPMorgan Chase President and CEO Jamie Dimon predicted Wednesday that a post-pandemic U.S. economic expansion may stretch “well into 2023” with the proper federal investments.
• A major U.K. bank is moving hundreds of staffers to work-from-home positions on a permanent basis after more than 70 percent of the bank’s 1,800 call center employees volunteered to do so.

ODDS AND ENDS 

• The U.S. trade deficit rose to its highest monthly level on record in February, hitting $71.1 billion, a 4.8 percent increase from the previous record set in January.

• Commerce Secretary Gina RaimondoGina RaimondoHillicon Valley: Twitter will not allow Trump account archive on platform | Commerce Dept. still weighing approach to Huawei, TikTok | Dating apps work to reinvent amid COVID-19 pandemic 3 whales on the path to extinction in US waters On The Money: Biden says compromise ‘inevitable’ on infrastructure plan | Chance for bipartisan breakthrough? | Democrats mull tax hikes MORE said Wednesday reviews are ongoing about how the Biden administration will address Chinese companies Huawei and TikTok. 

Facebook on Tuesday announced that during March it removed more than 1,100 accounts tied to spreading deceptive content in a variety of countries as part of its effort to root out domestic and international disinformation efforts. 

The social media giant reported that it had also removed almost 300 Instagram accounts, over 250 Facebook pages, and 34 Facebook groups tied to 14 coordinated influence operations over the past month. 

The over a dozen networks were based around the world, including five in Mexico along with networks in Israel, Comoros, Georgia, and Benin that were targeting domestic audiences within each country. 

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One network based in Israel was targeting Iranian audiences, while the remaining networks in Spain, El Salvador, Argentina, Albania and Iran were all targeting groups in various other countries.  

“We’re constantly working to find and stop coordinated campaigns that seek to manipulate public debate across our apps,” Facebook researchers wrote in a blog post detailing the takedowns. 

One of the operations was what Facebook described as a “troll farm” based in Albania and tied to an exiled militant opposition group that was targeting Iran over the past few years, along with three networks of accounts and pages that were using profile pictures generated by machine learning technologies. 

“We know that influence operations will keep evolving in response to our enforcement, and new deceptive behaviors will emerge,” the Facebook researchers wrote. “We will continue to refine our enforcement and share our findings publicly.”

“We are making progress rooting out this abuse, but as we’ve said before – it’s an ongoing effort. We’re committed to continually improving to stay ahead,” they added. “That means building better technology, hiring more people and working closely with law enforcement, security experts and other companies.”

Facebook releases reports at the beginning of each month on accounts and pages it removed over the previous month due to concerns over deceptive content. 

The company previously announced in November that it had removed a network of fake accounts based in Iran that targeted protests in Israel. Facebook announced as part of its report Tuesday that the threat actor behind those accounts had attempted to rebuild its presence throughout the past few months, and that Facebook would continue to disrupt them.

The European Union will not order Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, Germany’s health minister said on Wednesday, according to The Associated Press.

Health Minister Jens Spahn, during a public radio appearance, said that the European Union executive commission would not order doses of the Sputnik V vaccine for its member countries, which it did with vaccines from other manufacturers, the AP reported.

Spahn told the EU health ministers that Germany “will talk bilaterally to Russia, first of all about when what quantities could come,” to see if ordering the doses from the country makes sense.

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“To really make a difference in our current situation, the deliveries would have to come in the next two to four or five months already,” Spahn said, adding that if delivered on any other time frame, Germany would have “more than enough vaccine” already.

Spahn also noted that the Sputnik V vaccine would have to be cleared for use by the European Medicines Agency, and “for that, Russia must deliver data.”

Markus Söder, the state premier of Bavaria, a southern region of Germany, announced on Wednesday that he was signing a provisional agreement to purchase 2.5 million doses of the Sputnik V vaccine, Politico reported.

Söder noted, however, that the vaccine would not be administered before it receives regulatory approval from the European Medicines Agency. He added that the region would probably receive the doses in July.

“If Sputnik is approved in Europe, then the Free State of Bavaria will receive additional vaccine doses — I think it’s 2.5 million doses — probably in July through this company that is operating in Bavaria, in Illertissen, to then once again increase the additional capacity for vaccination in Bavaria,” Söder said, according to Politico.

Last month, a spokesman from the Kremlin said there is “unprecedented” pressure on countries to reject Russia’s Sputnik COVID-19 vaccine.

“In many countries, the scale of pressure is quite unprecedented. … Such selfish attempts to force countries to abandon any vaccines have no prospects,” Dmitry Peskov said.

“We believe that there should be as many doses of vaccines as possible so that all countries, including the poorest, have the opportunity to stop the pandemic,” he added.

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Video taken near the southwest border with Mexico last week shows a young migrant child pleading with immigration authorities for help, telling them that he was abandoned by a larger group of migrants traveling to the U.S.

“Somebody could rob or kidnap me, I’m scared,” the sobbing child can be seen saying in the video. 

An officer asks the child if he crossed the border with his mother or father. 

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“No, no,” the boy responds. “I came with a group and they left me behind.” 

NBC News reported the 10-year-old boy was from Nicaragua and was found walking on a rural road near La Grulla, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley. ABC News reported the child was taken to a migrant holding facility for children in Donna, Texas.

“It is unconscionable that anyone would abandon these small children, and those responsible for smuggling events like this will be aggressively prosecuted,” Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Heitke said in a statement to NBC News.

A recent surge in migrants, particularly unaccompanied minors, across the southern border has led to criticism of President BidenJoe BidenIran espionage-linked ship attacked at sea Biden exceeds expectations on vaccines — so far Jill Biden to visit Alabama with actress Jennifer Garner MORE‘s immigration policies. Republicans have argued Biden’s promise to grant asylum to some 11 million undocumented people currently living in the United States has encouraged mass migration.

Democrats have leveled separate criticism of the detention facilities used to hold children who cross the border.

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Last month, Biden named Vice President Harris to lead the administration’s immigration efforts to form partnerships with Mexico and Northern Triangle countries.

A more contagious variant of coronavirus first identified in the United Kingdom is now the most common strain of the virus in the United States, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle WalenskyRochelle WalenskyCDC: Almost 80 percent of teachers, childcare workers have gotten at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose CDC distributes billion for vaccine preparedness Masks may be done by summer’s end, but don’t throw them out yet MORE said Wednesday.

The announcement highlights the ongoing risks from the virus, given that the variant, known as B.1.1.7, spreads more easily and therefore is more able to cause spikes in cases.

“Based on our most recent estimates from CDC surveillance, the B.1.1.7 variant is now the most common lineage circulating in the United States,” Walensky said at a White House press briefing.

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“The virus still has hold on us, infecting people and putting them in harm’s way and we need to remain vigilant,” she added. “We need to continue to accelerate our vaccination efforts and take the individual responsibility to get vaccinated when we can.”

Importantly, officials say the current vaccines work well against the variant, meaning that the accelerating vaccination campaign will help control the virus even with the rise of this variant.

But in the short term, there are concerning signs in some places, most of all Michigan, which is seeing an alarming spike in cases and hospitalizations.

Cases are also ticking up nationally, around 64,000 per day. Deaths have fallen as more vulnerable people get vaccinated, but there are still more than 700 people dying every day, highlighting the need to maintain precautions like mask-wearing and distancing until vaccinations are more widespread.

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