BERLIN (AP) – Officials from several European countries reversed on Friday the decisions of others to stop the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine after sporadic reports of blood clots, despite a lack of evidence of the shot.
German Health Minister Jens Spahn said that while the country takes “very, very seriously” the potential harmful effects of vaccines, both the European Medicines Agency and the German vaccine control body itself have said they have no evidence of an increase in dangerous blood clots in connection with the shootings.
“I regret that, based on knowledge, as of Friday morning, some European Union countries have suspended vaccines with AstraZeneca,” Spahn told reporters in Berlin.
Denmark was the first to stop temporarily use of the AstraZeneca vaccine on Thursday after reports of blood clots in some people. The health authority of the Nordic nation said the decision “was based on a precautionary principle” and that a person who developed a blood clot after vaccination had died.
Norway, Iceland and Bulgaria followed suit and suspended the use of the Anglo-Swedish company’s vaccine, which was developed with Oxford University.
“Until all doubts are cleared up and experts guarantee that it poses no risk to people, we will stop vaccinating ourselves with this vaccine,” Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said at a cabinet meeting. He said the suspension will last until the European Medicines Agency issues a written statement that it is safe.
The regulator has said it is studying the reports, but vaccinations should continue in the meantime.
Thailand and Congo have also delayed vaccine use, pending an investigation, while Italy and Romania have stopped using shots from a specific batch. Austria has also stopped using single, but different, doses.
This decision followed the death by blood clots of a 49-year-old woman, 10 days after she was vaccinated, and the hospitalization of a 35-year-old woman. Experts concluded that none of the complications were related to the vaccine and the Austrian chancellor said on Friday that he himself would be willing to receive the shot “to show that I have confidence in this vaccine”.
“Experts here have a clear opinion and this vaccine is being used in many countries around the world, and tens of millions are already using it,” Sebastian Kurz said.
In fact, almost all countries that issued a suspension acknowledged that they had no evidence that the vaccine had caused blood clots. Health experts have noted that people more likely to receive COVID-19 vaccines are also more likely to have other health problems, which could lead to an increased risk of blood clots.
Meanwhile, France, Poland and Nigeria said they would continue to use the AstraZeneca firing even while national regulators investigate.
“At this stage, the benefit of vaccination is considered to outweigh the risk,” said French Health Minister Olivier Veran.
The suspensions were the last issue for AstraZeneca, which had a public dispute with the European Union earlier this year over delays in supply and also faced its effectiveness in older adults. Although EU regulators have approved it for use in all adults, some countries have set age restrictions, although many now lift them.. The problem also comes as many EU countries have struggled to accelerate quickly vaccines.
Despite the rugged deployment, the vaccine is expected to be critical to the global inoculation program because it is cheaper and easier to store than many others, and because the global initiative to get vaccines in the poorest countries known as COVAX depends largely on the vaccine.
Italy’s precautionary ban came after what it said were “serious adverse events”. It did not go into detail, but Italian media reported that at least two suspected deaths of military and police officers were being investigated.
The union representing members of the Italian Air Force confirmed that one of its members had died and urged the government to clarify further.
Italy’s ban affects many of the 500,000 doses of AstraZeneca that had been administered nationwide.
The European Medicines Agency, which authorized the shooting for the EU in 27 countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway in January, said “the benefits of the vaccine continue to outweigh its risks and the vaccine can continue to be administered.” while a more detailed assessment of blood clot cases continues.
“There are currently no indications that vaccination has caused these conditions,” the regulator said Thursday. It was said that the number of people with blood clots in vaccinated people was not higher than those who had not been inoculated.
The World Health Organization said the same, but added that it would evaluate the reports, although it did not expect changes in the recommendations based on current evidence.
The British drug regulator also said it had not received any reports of blood clots in people caused by the AstraZeneca vaccine. More than 11 million doses of AstraZeneca have been administered in the UK
“Reports of blood clots received so far are no higher than the number that would have occurred naturally in the vaccinated population,” the agency said.
The EU drug regulator said separately that product information for the AstraZeneca vaccine should be updated to take into account that cases of severe allergic reactions have been reported.
The suggested update is based on a review of 41 cases of anaphylaxis or severe allergic reactions that were identified among 5 million people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine. In a statement on Friday, the Amsterdam-based agency concluded that “there is likely to be a link to the vaccine in at least some of these cases.”
These allergic reactions are a rare side effect known to many vaccines and other features of COVID-19 have been reported, including that performed by Pfizer and BioNTech.
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Associated Press journalists from Africa, Asia and Europe contributed to this report.
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