FILE PHOTO; A signal for a COVID-19 vaccination clinic is seen as high-risk workers receiving the first vaccines at the launch of the program in the state of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia, on February 22, 2021 REUTERS / Sandra Sanders /
Australia will continue reviewing coronavirus vaccines after the death of a 48-year-old woman was likely linked to inoculation, Health Minister Greg Hunt said on Saturday.
On Friday, Australia reported its first blood clot mortality in a recipient of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 trait (AZN.L). It was the third case of the rare blood clots to appear in people who have been vaccinated in the country. Read more
“The government will ask ATAGI (Australian Technical Advisory Group on Vaccination) to ensure a continuous review of all vaccines in terms of safety and efficacy,” Hunt said in a televised briefing.
He said there will be no immediate changes to further limit the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine and reiterated that the Pfizer vaccine (PFE.N) remains the preferred option for people under 50 years of age.
To date, there have been at least 885,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines given in Australia, which equates to a frequency of blood clot instances in every 295,000 cases, according to the Therapeutic Products Administration (TGA) in early this week.
Hunt also said that the decision will be made next week to give priority to athletes and support staff in the deployment of the COVID-19 vaccine with the rapid approach of the Tokyo Olympics. Read more
“We want to see how our Olympians get to the Olympics and we want to see that they are safe,” he said.
Australia has been one of the most successful countries in the world in curbing the pandemic, with instant blockages, border closures and rapid monitoring limiting coronavirus infections to just under 29,500 infections, with 910 deaths from COVID-19.
Our standards: the principles of trust of Thomson Reuters.