A vial containing the Oxford University / AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine will be seen at the Lochee Health Center in Dundee, Scotland, UK, on 4 January 2021.
Andy Buchanan | Swimming Pool | Reuters
LONDON – France and Italy say they are ready to resume vaccination programs with the AstraZeneca vaccine soon, as regulators confirm it is still safe to use.
The European Medicines Agency’s preliminary statement on Tuesday was “encouraging”, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s office said in a statement on Tuesday following a call with French President Emmanuel Macron. It added that, in the event of a positive conclusion by the EMA, France and Italy were prepared to “resume vaccination with the vaccine immediately”.
The two countries include a dozen who were shot dead by AstraZeneca-Oxford University after reports of blood clots in some vaccinated citizens.
Concerns about possible side effects of the vaccine emerged last week after a woman died in Austria. Since then, more countries have reported cases of blood clots and an unusual number of platelets in some patients. AstraZeneca said on Sunday that of the 17 million people vaccinated in the EU and the UK, 15 had cases of deep vein thrombosis and 22 cases of pulmonary embolism, according to data received by March 8.
We are still firmly convinced that the benefits … outweigh the risks of these side effects.
Emer Cooke
Executive Director at EMA
European health authorities still believe the shot is good to use in the fight against Covid-19. The EMA said Tuesday that so far there is “no indication” that the reports of blood clots were caused directly by the vaccine.
“We are still firmly convinced that the benefits … outweigh the risks of these side effects,” Emer Cooke, EMA’s executive director, told a news conference.
She confirmed that the institution is studying 30 reports of unusual blood disorders and that it will announce the results of this work on Thursday.
A group of EU countries, including Belgium and Poland, fired the AstraZeneca shot. The European countries that have suspended the vaccine are awaiting the EMA’s announcement to decide how to proceed.
Meanwhile, the EMA “is concerned that there may be an effect on the confidence of the vaccines,” Cooke said Tuesday.
The EU’s vaccination program has faced various obstacles. Doubts among the population about the safety of vaccines could derail the EU’s main goal of getting 70% of the adult population vaccinated by the end of the summer.
EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said on Tuesday that “it is crucial that citizens can feel confident and confident in the vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency so that we can fight this virus together. fight. “
According to data from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, more than 6 million EU citizens received the AstraZeneca vaccine from more than 46 million vaccinations as of Monday.
The European Commission also urged member states on Tuesday to use every single dose of vaccine to which they have access.
The ECDC data show that more than 62 million doses have been distributed to Member States, showing that there are still almost 20 million doses administered.