Africa is not “moving away” from the AstraZeneca vaccine, says the CDC

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – The African Union (AU) will not “move away” from the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, but will target its use in countries that have not reported cases of a dominant variant in South Africa, its head of disease control said on Thursday the body.

The comments come after South Africa stopped launching the vaccine due to preliminary data from the study which shows that it offers minimal protection against mild to moderate diseases caused by the dominant 501Y.V2 variant in the country.

South Africa said on Wednesday it could try to sell or change its AstraZeneca fires and will use an alternative from Johnson & Johnson to begin protecting health workers later this month.

African countries are expected to receive 100 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine this year as part of an AU vaccination plan.

John Nkengasong, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Africa (CDC), told a virtual news conference that more work is needed to understand how the AstraZeneca vaccine against the 501Y.V2 rapid spread identified for the first time at the end of last year.

“For now, our strategy is not to drop 100 million doses, but rather to target countries that, as I indicated, have not reported cases of that specific variant,” Nkengasong said, adding that only six countries other than Africa South, reported that the variant was circulating.

“You still have a large number of countries that can benefit from these vaccines, so we will not stray from AstraZeneca vaccines at all.”

Kenya said on Thursday it would continue with plans to use AstraZeneca photography.

Matshidiso Moeti, director of the World Health Organization for Africa, said the WHO is informing African countries about the recommendation of its SAGE panel of experts to use the AstraZeneca vaccine, even in countries where the 501Y.V2 variant may reduce its effectiveness.

She said interactions with neighboring countries in South Africa were “particularly intense” after eSwatini said on Tuesday it would not use AstraZeneca photos.

“While a vaccine that prevents all forms of COVID-19 disease is our greatest hope, the prevention of severe cases and hospitalizations that overwhelm … health systems is crucial,” Moeti told another news conference. .

ALARM VARIANT

The 501Y.V2 variant is partly of concern to health experts because of its ability to evade the potential immune response generated by previous exposure to coronaviruses or vaccines.

African countries that have confirmed cases of the variant include Botswana, Comoros, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique and Zambia, although there are concerns that it has spread to other places, such as eSwatini and Tanzania.

CDC Africa has recommended that countries that have not detected the variant continue with the launch of AstraZeneca.

For those present, “we recommend speeding up their preparation to introduce all vaccines that have received emergency use authorization or approval from regulators,” Nkengasong said, adding that “efficacy should be taken into account.” AstraZeneca) vaccine against variant 501Y.V2. ”

Nkengasong said Africa CDC will conduct its own evaluations of the AstraZeneca vaccine in several countries.

He added that talks are underway with Johnson & Johnson to access more doses than the 120 million listed in the AU vaccine plan.

Nkengasong said the launch of 7 million doses of AstraZeneca funded by telecommunications company MTN will continue. “This plan will continue to move forward, this is a good vaccine without the option,” he said.

AstraZeneca says it has started adapting its 501Y.V2 vaccine.

On Wednesday, South Africa said it wanted to see if it could change the doses of AstraZeneca it had ordered from the Serum Institute of India with photos of another vaccine available through the COVAX vaccine distribution system.

Asked about this idea, the chief executive of AstraZeneca said on Thursday that the doctor will support anything agreed between the Serum Institute and the South African government.