PARIS (AP) – France will only administer the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine to people under 65, President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday after the government’s health advisory body cited a lack of sufficient data on its effectiveness in the elderly. .
The decision could shake the French vaccination strategy, as the country has prioritized residents over residences and people over 75 years of age. France had relied on the AstraZeneca vaccine for much of its upcoming inoculations, until the company announced delays affecting countries in Europe and the world.
“For this AstraZeneca vaccine, we will not propose it to people over 65,” Macron told TF1 television on Tuesday night. Instead, the vaccine the British-Swedish company developed with Oxford University will be given to medical staff under the age of 65, people with health vulnerabilities or people with high exposure, he said.
The French practice differs from the guidelines of the European Medicines Agency, which on Friday authorized the AstraZeneca vaccine for all adults across the European Union, amid criticism that the bloc is not moving fast enough to vaccinate its population.
Health authorities in Germany and other countries have expressed concern that the Anglo-Swedish company has not tested the vaccine on people old enough to show that it works for them and has indicated that they would not recommend it to older people. of 65 years.
In guidelines published on Tuesday, France’s High Health Authority said it “recommends that the vaccine be given preferably to people under 65.” He says he will review this guide when AstraZeneca has more data on the effectiveness of the vaccine in the elderly.
The French government depends on the guidance of the High Authority and adapts its strategy based on the announcement. Health officials have said they are constantly adapting the vaccine strategy based on dose availability, demand and regulatory guidelines.
Macron said France still intends to offer the vaccine to anyone who wants it by the end of summer.
Macron met Tuesday night with international vaccine producers and major pharmaceutical companies that have an industrial site in France to discuss ways to boost “quickly” and “significantly” short-term production capabilities in France and Europe. The meeting came amid criticism of the EU’s handling of its collective vaccination strategy among the bloc’s 27 member countries.
Macron said he sent a scientific team to Russia several weeks ago to study the country’s vaccination efforts and “the exchanges were very positive.” The French leader noted the first results of an advanced study of Russia’s Sputnik V published in the medical journal The Lancet which showed that the vaccine was approximately 91% effective.
Macron said that if and when the European Medicines Agency decides to approve the Russian vaccine, it will not be a “political decision. It is a scientific decision.”
France has seen some of the world’s highest figures for confirmed virus cases and deaths, which have risen steadily in recent weeks.
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