More than a dozen countries, mostly in Europe, have suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s Coronavirus vaccine as a precautionary measure after a number of recipients suffered blood clots in the days and weeks that followed.
According to details, Ireland, Bulgaria, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Romania, France, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, and Indonesia have halted the use of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine over safety fears.
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Thailand was the first non-European country to stop the use of AstraZeneca’s vaccine on 12 March, the day it was due to kick off the mass vaccination campaign. However, the suspension was brief as PM Prayuth Chanocha became the first person in the country to receive AstraZeneca’s vaccine on 16 March.
DR Congo has decided to postpone its mass vaccination campaign in light of the moves of the European countries. Congo had received 1.7 million doses of AstraZeneca’s under the COVAX scheme earlier this month.
Venezuela has decided against authorizing the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine as the country has been using Russia’s Sputnik V and China’s Sinopharm for its mass vaccination campaign.
On the other hand, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA), in light of AstraZeneca’s statement, have appealed to countries not to halt the vaccination campaigns.
In an official statement, AstraZeneca has stated that a review of its safety data revealed no evidence of an increased risk of blood clots. The review is based on the experiences of 17 million individuals vaccinated across the UK and EU.
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Meanwhile, Pakistan is also set to import 45 million doses of AstraZeneca’s Coronavirus vaccine through COVAX. 15 million doses will reach Pakistan during H1 2021 while the remaining 30 million doses will be procured during H2 2021.
Note that AstraZeneca, the UK-based pharmaceutical company, had developed its COVID-19 vaccine in collaboration with Oxford University.
AstraZeneca had outsourced the large-scale manufacturing of its COVID-19 vaccine to Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, which claimed that it was producing more than 50 million doses per month to meet the global demand for AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine.
