An ampoule of the Oxford University / AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is seen at Lochee Health Center in Dundee, Scotland, UK, January 4, 2021.
Andy Buchanan | Swimming pool | Reuters
LONDON – France and Italy say they are ready to restart AstraZeneca vaccine inoculation programs quickly if regulators confirm it is still safe to use.
Tuesday’s preliminary statement from the European Medicines Agency was “encouraging”, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s office said on Tuesday in a statement following a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron. He added that in the event of a positive conclusion from the EMA, France and Italy were ready to “promptly restart” vaccinations with the vaccine.
The two countries are among more than a dozen that have suspended the shooting of AstraZeneca-Oxford University after reports of blood clots in some of the vaccinated citizens.
Concerns about the potential side effects of the vaccine surfaced last week after a woman died in Austria. Since then, several countries have reported cases of blood clots and an unusual number of platelets in a few patients. AstraZeneca said on Sunday that of the 17 million people vaccinated in the EU and the UK, there were 15 events 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 risk of these side effects.
Emer Cooke
Executive Director at EMA
The European health authorities still believe that the shot is good to use in the fight against Covid-19. The EMA said on Tuesday that there was “no evidence” so far that reports of blood clots were caused directly by the vaccine.
“We are still firmly convinced that the benefits … outweigh the risk of these side effects,” Emer Cooke, EMA’s chief executive, told a news conference.
She confirmed that the institution is studying 30 reports of unusual blood disorders and that it will announce the result of this work on Thursday.
A group of EU countries, including Belgium and Poland, continued to administer the AstraZeneca shot. Those European countries that have suspended the vaccine are waiting for the EMA announcement to decide how to proceed.
Meanwhile, the EMA is “concerned that it could have an effect on vaccine confidence,” Cooke said Tuesday.
The EU vaccination program has faced various obstacles. Doubts among the population about the safety of vaccines could derail the EU’s main goal of vaccinating 70% of the adult population by the end of the summer.
EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said on Tuesday that “it is crucial that citizens feel confident and confident in the vaccines that have been authorized by the European Medicines Agency so that we can fight this virus together. “
As of Monday, more than 6 million EU citizens had received the AstraZeneca vaccine out of more than 46 million vaccinations, according to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.
The European Commission also urged Member States on Tuesday to use every dose of vaccine they have access to.
ECDC data show that more than 62 million doses have been distributed to Member States, showing that there are almost 20 million doses still being administered.
“Unfortunately, AstraZeneca has byproduced”
The EU has been battling AstraZeneca after the company announced lower-than-expected delivery targets. The pharmaceutical company cut its delivery figures in the first quarter twice and said it would deliver less than half what the EU had expected for the second quarter.
AstraZeneca said that problems with yields in EU factories have caused delays in production.
Speaking on Wednesday, von der Leyen said: “AstraZeneca, unfortunately, produced little and was not delivered too little, which was painful, of course, slowing down the vaccination campaign.”
Instead, the head of the EU commission said that “BioNTech-Pfizer and Moderna are fulfilling their contracts”.