AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – The Netherlands joined a rapidly growing list of countries suspending the use of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on Sunday after reports of possible unexpected side effects from the injection.
The vaccine will not be used until at least March 29 as a precautionary measure, the Dutch government said in a statement.
The announcement will lead to delays in launching photos in the Netherlands, which had pre-ordered 12 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine.
Health officials had scheduled about 290,000 injections of AstraZeneca in the next two weeks.
The measure, which follows a similar decision by Ireland earlier in the day, is based on reports from Denmark and Norway of possible serious side effects, the government said.
Three Norwegian health workers who had recently received the vaccine were being treated in hospital for bleeding, blood clots and a low platelet count, Norwegian health authorities said on Saturday.
No such cases have yet been found in the Netherlands, the Dutch health ministry said, adding that there is still no evidence of a direct link between the vaccine and reports from Denmark and Norway.
“We cannot allow any doubt about the vaccine,” said Dutch Health Minister Hugo de Jonge.
“We have to make sure everything is right, so it’s wise to stop for now.”
AstraZeneca said on Sunday that an analysis of the safety data of people vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccine showed no evidence of an increased risk of blood clots.
Late last week, the Dutch government said there was no reason to stop using the AstraZeneca vaccine because the EMA said there was no indication it could cause blood clots.
However, De Jonge said his decision was informed by new reports, which will now be investigated by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
Along with Denmark, Norway and Ireland, Iceland also suspended the use of the vaccine due to clotting problems, while Thailand became the first country in Europe to do so on Friday.
Italy’s northern region, Piedmont, said on Sunday it would stop using a batch of AstraZeneca vaccines after a teacher died on Saturday after being vaccinated. Austria also stopped using a certain lot last week.
Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Diane Craft and Lincoln Feast.