A vial of the COVID-19 vaccine from Oxford University / AstraZeneca is seen at Lochee Health Center in Dundee, Scotland, UK, on 4 January 2021.
Andy Buchanan | Swimming pool | Reuters
LONDON – France and Italy say they are ready to quickly restart inoculation programs with the AstraZeneca vaccine if regulators confirm it is still safe to use it.
The European Medicines Agency’s preliminary statement on Tuesday was “encouraging,” Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s office said Tuesday in a statement following a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron. He added that in the event of a positive conclusion by the EMA, France and Italy were willing to “quickly restart” inoculations with the vaccine.
The two countries are among more than a dozen people who have suspended shooting at AstraZeneca-Oxford University following the notification of blood clots in some of the vaccinated citizens.
Last week there was concern about the possible side effects of the vaccine after the death of a woman in Austria. Since then, more countries have reported cases of blood clots and an unusual number of platelets in some patients. AstraZeneca said on Sunday that of the 17 million people vaccinated in the EU and the UK, there have been 15 events of deep vein thrombosis and 22 cases of pulmonary embolism, according to data received as of March 8.
We are still firmly convinced that the benefits … outweigh the risk of these side effects.
Emer Cooke
Executive Director of EMA
European health authorities continue to believe that the shot is good to use in the fight against Covid-19. The EMA said on Tuesday that “there are no indications” 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,” EMA Executive Director Emer Cooke told a news conference.
He 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, have continued to administer the AstraZeneca shooting. 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 there may be an effect on vaccine confidence,” Cooke said Tuesday.
The EU vaccination program has faced several obstacles. Population doubts about vaccine safety could derail the EU’s main goal of vaccinating 70% of the adult population by the end of summer.
EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said on Tuesday that “it is crucial that citizens can feel that they have the confidence and confidence in vaccines that have been authorized by the European Medicines Agency, so that we can combat this. virus together “. “
As of Monday, more than 6 million EU citizens had received the AstraZeneca vaccine from more than 46 million inoculations, according to data from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.
The European Commission also on Tuesday urged member states to use all doses of vaccine to which they have access.
ECDC data show that more than 62 million doses have been distributed to member states, showing that almost 20 million doses have still been administered.